Time Has Grown Dim, And Evening Has Already Fallen - Chapter 22

Chapter 22

This winter night seemed exceptionally cold. Fortunately, they managed to make it home before sunset; by dusk, a winter rain began to fall, bringing a sudden, biting chill.

Cheng Xun shivered as he retreated to the bedroom, his hands trembling. He pressed the backs of his hands against his ears, but still felt frozen. He hurriedly plugged in the electric hot water bottle. Even wrapped in a thick down jacket, the cold seemed to seep into his bones.

Seeing Lu Xingshu follow him into the room, Cheng Xun gave him a quick glance before turning his attention back to the heating hand warmer.

“It’s really cold this year.”

Lu Xingshu echoed him with a low “Mm.”

Once the hand warmer finished heating and the power cut off automatically, Cheng Xun picked up the one with a “little pig” cover and handed it to Lu Xingshu to warm his hands.

These two hand warmers were new arrivals in the shop’s stock this year. Designed to look like plush hand mufflers, they came in the light colors preferred by girls. They performed better than the older models, featuring an automatic shut-off function that made them much safer than the one he used last year.

When Cheng Xun had grabbed them from the warehouse, he hadn’t looked closely at the colors. He ended up with one pink pig and one yellow Pikachu. Out of a private whim, he left the pig for Lu Xingshu. The latter, of course, didn’t mind; he just wanted the warmth.

The weather was so cold that Cheng Xun didn’t even want to play on the computer. Sitting at the desk felt colder by the minute. But he couldn’t just stay curled up in bed like a salted fish forever; he still had a mountain of winter break homework to finish.

As mentioned before, Lu Xingshu’s laptop was now essentially shared between them. Cheng Xun wasn’t much of a gamer; the account he’d started before had long been abandoned. Occasionally, he’d browse video sites for movies. Once, he accidentally logged into a popular ACG (Anime, Comic, Games) video site because Lu Xingshu’s account was set to auto-login.

A red notification dot kept blinking. Driven by a slight touch of OCD, Cheng Xun instinctively clicked the message list to clear it. Consequently, he stumbled upon the works Lu Xingshu had uploaded to the site.

There were both audio tracks and videos all covers. Cheng Xun clicked on a video and watched for a while. It showed Lu Xingshu holding a guitar, singing a popular song. His face wasn’t in the frame, but the voice was unmistakable.

Marveling internally, Cheng Xun silently binged through all of Lu Xingshu’s uploads. This guy really did have a beautiful voice, and he could play the guitar, too. No wonder he had quite a following. Throughout all the videos, Lu Xingshu never showed his face. To have so many followers just by singing anonymously… Cheng Xun found him increasingly impressive.

However, in all the time Lu Xingshu had lived at Grandma’s house, Cheng Xun had never seen that guitar. Had he sold it? But in the videos, the guitar looked well-maintained, and Lu Xingshu seemed to treasure it.

Being someone who couldn’t keep a question to himself, Cheng Xun eventually asked him directly.

“The guitar?” Lu Xingshu seemed surprised by the sudden question. His expression flickered with a brief moment of startle before returning to his usual calm indifference. “You saw my videos?”

Since his account was on auto-login, it was only natural Cheng Xun would see it. In fact, there were several unreleased covers stored on the laptop; since the tragedy at home, he hadn’t been in the mood to edit or upload anything.

“Yeah,” Cheng Xun admitted frankly. “I didn’t know you were an uploader.”

“Not really,” Lu Xingshu shook his head. “Anyone can upload videos.”

Cheng Xun gave a small “Oh,” then realized he was drifting off-topic and quickly pulled it back. “Did you sell the guitar?”

Lu Xingshu shook his head.

“But I remember you didn’t have a guitar in your luggage when you came?”

Lu Xingshu pursed his lips before continuing, “Before everything happened, the guitar was always kept at my teacher’s house for convenience during lessons. I left in such a hurry that I never went to pick it up.”

“I see.” Cheng Xun hesitated before deciding to be direct. “Is it okay? Leaving it at someone else’s house for so long?”

Because the teacher didn’t mind keeping it, Lu Xingshu hadn’t been in a rush to retrieve it. As a result, it had sat there for more than a semester. Thinking about it now, he really should find an opportunity to go get it.

“The teacher doesn’t mind. But it has been a long time.” Lu Xingshu looked down at his phone, intending to message the teacher. Fortunately, the Spring Festival travel rush had subsided, and since the teacher was a local, she was available.

Cheng Xun listened quietly as Lu Xingshu finished the call and made an appointment.

“Is it okay for you to go back to S-City alone?” Cheng Xun leaned in, looking at Lu Xingshu with curiosity, his eyes practically screaming I want to go too.

The “It’s fine” that was on the tip of Lu Xingshu’s tongue was swallowed back down. He lowered his gaze slightly and said, “Come with me.”

“Oh, well, if you insist…” Cheng Xun tried to act indifferent, but he couldn’t hide the smile tugging at his lips. “I’m just worried something might happen if you go alone. Grandma would be sad.”

Lu Xingshu looked at him speechlessly. “How old do you think I am?”

“You’re a minor regardless,” Cheng Xun shot back righteously. “It says so on your ID.”

“You’re a minor too,” Lu Xingshu countered ruthlessly.

“Well, I’m still older than you.”

“Only on your ID.”

Cheng Xun: “…”

“Whatever. Just buy the tickets,” Cheng Xun said, conceding defeat and stiffly changing the subject. “Luckily, the buses won’t be too crowded these few days.”

C-County didn’t have a high-speed rail station, and the subway link to S-City had been under construction for years with no end in sight. While S-City wasn’t far, a taxi would cost over a hundred yuan for a two-hour trip, and Cheng Xun was too thrifty for that.

Lu Xingshu frowned at the mention of the bus, seemingly recalling some unpleasant memories. “Do we have to take the bus?”

“Taxis are too expensive.” Cheng Xun turned to him, the shape of money practically reflecting in his pretty eyes. “Transferring buses is a hassle. The long-distance coach is easier.”

Lu Xingshu thought about it and eventually agreed in silence. He’d just have to buy some motion sickness pills.

“Lu Xingshu, since you’re going back, aren’t you going to meet up with your old friends?” Before they bought the tickets, Cheng Xun suddenly thought of this. He remembered the friend Lu Xingshu had mentioned before, a guy named Liang. It made sense to meet up after being away for so long.

“That’s a good idea.” Lu Xingshu didn’t think twice and sent a WeChat message to Liang Ziyan.

He was immediately bombarded by a phone call from Liang Ziyan. You finally decided to crawl back after disappearing for so long? And you’re coming back for a guitar, not your brothers?! Hurry up and get over here, I’m buying you dinner.

Lu Xingshu hung up. “He talks too much.”

Cheng Xun remarked, “He sounds like the total opposite of you. It’s amazing you guys are best friends.”

“Two quiet people wouldn’t make very good friends, would they?”

Cheng Xun scratched his hair, smiling innocently. “True. So does that mean I get to tag along for a free meal? I feel kind of bad.”

“Don’t. He’s a lot like Xie Qiubai.”

Cheng Xun looked confused. “In looks?”

“In personality.”

Cheng Xun nodded, understanding.

To catch the bus, the two of them woke up early, and both ended up nearly frozen to death in the morning chill. They had told Grandma they would be gone for about a day and a night.

Originally, Lu Xingshu’s plan was to meet his friends for dinner, pick up the guitar, and head back the same day. However, once Liang Ziyan found out he was coming, he immediately booked an e-sports hotel, insisting they pull an all-nighter gaming.

Specifically, after hearing Lu Xingshu was bringing a friend, Liang Ziyan generously booked a large room with four high-end PCs and two double beds—supposedly the highest-rated e-sports hotel in S-City. Despite his father’s strictness, Liang Ziyan was quite pampered when it came to material things.

Sitting on the bus and watching the scenery change, Cheng Xun felt a mix of emotions. He felt a faint sense of excitement, but also a hard-to-describe anxiety. To be honest, ever since Grandma had taken him in, he had lived his entire life in this tiny county. It wasn’t developed or trendy, but it had its own charm. He was worried that following Lu Xingshu out would make him look like a country bumpkin and embarrass his friend.

Just talk less and don’t stare too much, Cheng Xun told himself, trying to settle his nerves.

He turned to ask Lu Xingshu about S-City, only to see the guy sitting with his eyes closed, looking pale and unwell. Cheng Xun hurriedly dug around for the motion sickness pills. Lu Xingshu’s reaction was surprisingly severe, even though they were sitting in the front row this time.

The bus reached the airport station—the long journey was finally over. The moment they got off, Cheng Xun reached out to steady Lu Xingshu, patting his back. Lu Xingshu waved him off, indicating he was fine; the air in the bus had just been too stuffy. Once he breathed the fresh air, he felt much better.

Liang Ziyan’s phone rang immediately—he was already waiting in the airport station lobby. Lu Xingshu led Cheng Xun toward him. Cheng Xun was completely unfamiliar with the area, so he followed Lu Xingshu step-for-step, terrified of getting lost. The scene was a mirror image of when they visited Grandpa Zhao in the countryside, only this time, it was Cheng Xun who was the bewildered one.

From a distance, they saw a boy in a beige short down jacket waving at them. He was tall, dressed stylishly, and stood out in the crowd. Lu Xingshu nodded to him.

Standing behind Lu Xingshu, Cheng Xun studied the boy. He looked like a classic “sunny” guy with clean features—someone who seemed to have a good temper and be easy to get along with.