Any Closer and I'll Lose Control - Chapter 39

By the time they returned to the museum, it was almost two o’clock. Wei Chuan trailed behind Meng Tang like a pack mule, carrying a pile of plush toys.

Meng Tang explained to the event coordinator about giving the toys to the children, and the coordinator happily agreed. Wei Chuan was promptly handed a “good guy” card.

Naturally, he stayed behind, appointing himself as Meng Tang’s assistant.

The toys were placed in a corner where the children wouldn’t immediately spot them. Wei Chuan suggested it could be a fun little surprise.

Once the kids were settled, Meng Tang held up a piece of wood and announced cheerfully,

“This is a piece of basswood, prepared by the museum. Given its size and thickness, I think it’d be perfect for carving a bookmark. What do you all think?”

“Yesss~” the children chorused, dragging out the word.

“Teacher, what are you going to carve?”

Meng Tang smiled. “What designs do you like?”

“A dinosaur!”

“A four-leaf clover!”

“My mom!”

“Nezha!”

“No, I want Ao Bing!”

“I want Ao Bing’s dad!”

“…”

Meng Tang couldn’t help but laugh. At least the movie had left an impression.

The little rascals were getting rowdy, so Wei Chuan feigned seriousness and coughed twice. “Quiet down.”

To be fair, his tall, imposing figure standing there actually worked wonders.

Seeing the kids instantly “intimidated,” Meng Tang curled her lips in amusement.

“How about a koi fish?” Meng Tang suggested, looking at the children. “A koi playing in the waves.”

The kids immediately launched into a debate about the koi’s physique but unanimously agreed, it had to be chubby.

Meng Tang nodded and began carving along the wood’s grain, occasionally explaining the process to the children.

Wei Chuan watched intently as she sketched the shape and sculpted the form.

When it came to carving the eyes, one child bombarded her with questions, and Meng Tang patiently answered each one.

Wei Chuan gazed at her, thinking she looked like a piece of porcelain bathed in light, smooth, serene, and gentle.

Time slipped by unnoticed, and it was already past three when Meng Tang finally lifted her head. She showed the finished carving to the children.

“Wow, it’s so pretty! It looks real!”

“Teacher, can I have it?”

“I want it too!”

“Me too, please, teacher!”

Wei Chuan squeezed forward. “I want it too.”

“…” Meng Tang looked up at him. “Are you seriously competing with children?”

Wei Chuan smirked. “It’s just a thin little bookmark. You can’t split it into 22 pieces, so you might as well give it to me.”

Meng Tang hesitated, glancing at the sea of raised arms.

There was only one bookmark, and giving it to any one child would be unfair.

“Wait a second,” Wei Chuan said before grabbing the bag of plush toys from the corner and holding it up. “Who wants one of these?”

“Me! Me! Me! Me! Me!”

In an instant, Meng Tang was left standing alone.

Wei Chuan opened the bag and said, “Line up, one each. You’ve all been very well-behaved today.”

The children obediently formed a line. Wei Chuan stepped past them and plucked the bookmark from Meng Tang’s hand, declaring shamelessly, “Now you can give it to me.”

Meng Tang had no choice but to hand it over, it wasn’t like she could snatch it back.

Each child left with an unexpected little gift, their faces flushed with excitement as they headed out.

Meng Tang exhaled in relief. Finally, it was over.

“Let’s go back to campus,” she said, turning to Wei Chuan.

Wei Chuan checked his phone, it wasn’t even four yet. “How about we look around? Don’t you have a piece displayed here?”

“Not in this wing,” Meng Tang replied. “There’s no time to explore now, the museum’s huge. Besides, didn’t you say you’re treating someone to dinner tonight? It’ll take us nearly an hour to get back by subway.”

Wei Chuan glanced at the remaining plush toys, realizing that carrying them around wouldn’t be practical for much longer. Heeding Meng Tang’s suggestion, he said, “Let’s head back then.”

After bidding farewell to the museum staff, Meng Tang had just stepped outside when Xun Liyan suddenly caught up and called out to her.

Meng Tang turned around, puzzled. “Director Xun, is there something else?”

Xun Liyan replied, “The originally scheduled artisan called to thank you for your help and asked for your contact information.”

“No need,” Meng Tang said with a faint smile. “I believe fate will bring us together if it’s meant to be. Director, you must be busy. My classmate and I will take our leave now.”

As they left the museum, Wei Chuan couldn’t help but ask curiously, “Why didn’t you give them your contact info? Worried they might be scammers?”

Meng Tang chuckled. “What made you think they were scammers? The artisans invited by the museum should be trustworthy. I just find social interactions tedious, that’s all.”

The journey from the museum back to school required a transfer between subway lines.

It was mid-afternoon, and the train wasn’t crowded. Wei Chuan sat beside Meng Tang, carefully turning the bookmark over in his hands, examining it from every angle.

An elderly man nearby couldn’t resist leaning in and asking, “Young man, where did you buy that bookmark?”

Wei Chuan glanced at Meng Tang and replied, “You can’t buy it. It’s one of a kind in the world.”

“Oh, that’s really something,” the old man said, his admiration unconcealed. “The knife marks are as fine as silk threads, and the fish tail is as delicate as a cicada’s wing.”

Wei Chuan was happy to hear the praise and chimed in, “I think so too.”

He lowered his head and gently swayed the bookmark, creating an illusion of shimmering light as the angle shifted.

The old man added another compliment, “Every cut is precise, the fish tail seems to ripple with life, such remarkable craftsmanship.”

Meng Tang leaned slightly forward. “Sir, do you know about wood carving?”

The old man replied, “Not really, I just enjoy browsing market stalls.”

His accent revealed he was from the north. Wei Chuan, feeling a kinship, mentioned that his ancestors were also northerners, though his grandparents had migrated south, and his grandmother and mother were southerners.

Meng Tang glanced at Wei Chuan. No wonder he was so tall, though his features weren’t rough at all.

A perfect blend of northern and southern genes, it seemed.

After transferring lines, they said goodbye to the old man.

Wei Chuan carefully tucked the bookmark into his bag, ensuring his oblivious roommates wouldn’t snatch it away like bandits.

Noticing his action, Meng Tang teased, “You’re treating it like a treasure. Do you like reading?”

Wei Chuan first shook his head, then nodded vigorously, leaving Meng Tang confused.

“Do you or don’t you?”

Wei Chuan coughed awkwardly. “I’m starting to like it now. How about we stop by the Xinhua Bookstore?”

Meng Tang scoffed. “Let’s just go back to school.”

Wei Chuan flushed slightly in embarrassment.

Books hold houses of gold and beauties like jade, now that he had this lifelike fish, maybe reading wouldn’t put him to sleep anymore.

Finally arriving at Z University Station, Meng Tang and Wei Chuan made their way toward the exit.

Along the path, vendors had set up stalls selling all sorts of goods. Wei Chuan’s eyes landed on a display of accessories, and he pointed.

“That keychain looks like the one on Xie Lingyin’s backpack, just not as refined.”

Meng Tang followed his gaze and laughed. “That’s a knockoff, of course it’s not as refined as Lingyin’s. Hers is a limited-edition collaboration from a brand, several times more expensive than anything from this stall.”

Wei Chuan ignored the eager stares of the vendors and said, “You know a lot about it.”

Meng Tang replied, “Because it’s mine. Of course I’d know.”

Her stomach growled, and she eyed the food stalls lining the path, thinking of grabbing a quick bite.

But before she could, Wei Chuan suddenly grabbed her shoulder. “Yours?”

“Yeah, I gave it to her,” Meng Tang said. “Once she forgot her keys and came to the woodcarving studio to get them from me. She casually complimented it, so I just gave it to her.”

Wei Chuan: “…And she just took it?”

He had always thought it was a backpack charm, but it turned out to be a keychain.

Meng Tang nodded blankly: “It wasn’t expensive anyway.”

Wei Chuan: “…”

Then what did the rose he asked her to carve as a confession gift even mean?

After all this, was it Meng Tang who liked the Rose Prince?