Chapter 52

“Have you thought of a name yet?” Qin Weihang asked when they left together.

“Mhm,” An Ning followed him and nodded, “wasn’t there Just so so before? Then this one will be called Veyron!*”

[*TN: From the car, Bugatti Veyron]

Qin Weihang turned his head with an expression of ‘Are you being serious?’

An Ning said, “Once you hear this name, you’ll know it’s the one you redpointed. I have already thought about it; the next route that you redpoint will be called R1!”

Qin Weihang smiled and walked forward: “Then how many street bikes do I have to buy…”

Hearing his tone, An Ning was a little uncertain. The way out was narrow and there was only enough space for one person to pass. He was currently following behind Qin Weihang, wanting to catch up with Qin Weihang to look at his expression. As soon as he caught up, Qin Weihang’s long legs had already stepped far in front, so he had to ask from behind: “… You don’t like it?”

Qin Weihang said as he walked: “No, I like it.” As he said this, he turned his head back. His face was not completely turned to the side when he looked over, but An Ning still saw his raised eyebrows—it was a happy expression.

He relaxed and followed up again: “Or use the trendy brand you like.”

Qin Weihang thought for a while: “OFF-WHITE?… It sounds unlucky though.”

An Ning laughed: “Actually, I had thought about using the names of the nine planets, or the names of the space probes.”

Don’t you want to be an astronaut? Then, in the future, every new rock wall will be your journey to the stars.

Qin Weihang’s footsteps seemed to slow down a bit, it was even lighter: “You have thought so much.”

Once again, they walked from the ray of light into the dim tunnel. Qin Weihang’s voice echoed in the cave—it was a low and soft feeling, as if water was flooding into the tunnel. An Ning felt an indescribable sense of being enveloped; he was enveloped in this narrow valley gap, and also enveloped in this sound.

Afterward, neither of them spoke. In the constricted and dim space, An Ning seemed to be able to feel Qin Weihang’s loftiness and gentleness even more.

When they emerged out of the gap, the sky was already bright outside and the mist had dispersed. An Ning felt that he was freed from the enveloping atmosphere, and the denseness between them seemed to have been suddenly diluted.

The forest was still a forest, it was just that there were a lot of birds chirping. An Ning suddenly thought; maybe there were bobcats, leopards, lynxes, etc., so he asked Qin Weihang: “You often go out wild climbing alone, don’t you worry about encountering wild animals?”

“So we don’t need to worry because there are two of us?” Qin Weihang replied, looking at him with slightly bent eyes as if saying, ‘Are you silly?’

An Ning was perturbed from being stared at with this look, so he forcibly covered it up and nodded his head: “… That’s true.” As for him and Qin Weihang, it was not like the wild animals wouldn’t attack just because they saw that there was another person, maybe even think it was a good opportunity to have an extra meal. Once again, he thought of something, “Not only wild animals, it would also be frightening if it were like in 127 Hours.”*

[*TN: 127 Hours is a movie about a mountaineer who fell while climbing and his right arm gets trapped by a boulder against the wall.]

Qin Weihang said: “Not bad, you looked up quite a lot of things.”

Yep, An Ning thought, it has taken up much of my study time, so I have no hope of getting a scholarship next semester. No wonder puppy love wasn’t allowed in high school…

“I have met a lynx.”

Qin Weihang suddenly said something amazing. An Ning pricked up his ears and asked nervously, “Did it attack you?”

Qin Weihang turned his head, his eyebrows bore a smiling expression—it was again that ‘Are you silly’ expression.

An Ning asked embarrassed: “Then…was the lynx beautiful?”

Qin Weihang walked forward and nodded: “It’s pretty. It was just a glimpse; I was talking on the phone at the time, and it was hiding behind a bush. If I didn’t see its ears, I also wouldn’t have recognized that it was a lynx.”

“Why didn’t it attack you…” An Ning muttered to himself, puzzled.

Qin Weihang also recalled: “I think it was just curious about me, and I also didn’t feel its hostility.”

“So you just left?”

“Yes,” Qin Weihang said, “I just left right in front of it.”

In fact, he checked it online later. It was quite dangerous for him to leave with his back facing the wild animal, but the lynx didn’t attack, so maybe it showed him kindness.

“You were talking on the phone, so it may have heard your voice. Moreover, you were standing and was also carrying a hiking bag, so it may have thought you were bigger than it, so it didn’t attack you.” An Ning speculated.

Qin Weihang thought for a while: “It did indeed leave after I stood up.”

“That might have been a young lynx.” An Ning said, and then took another look at Qin Weihang, saying in his heart, it felt that it could not beat a panther.

The off-road car can already be seen up ahead. It was almost noon at this time. Qin Weihang said: “What do you want to eat?”

They were in the middle of nowhere, so there were no shops. An Ning widened his eyes: “Hunting?”

Qin Weihang opened the trunk, and there was something inside. He opened the box and took out a few pieces of bread and ham sausages: “There’s only these.”

Two people sat in the back of the car, drinking mineral water and eating bread and ham sausages. The scenery of the outskirts of the forest was refreshing, so the dried-up bread did not feel unpalatable anymore.

Qin Weihang changed back to a black down jacket and jeans, and he changed his basketball shoes to an older pair. An Ning mistakenly thought that he was like a black panther that transformed into a person, and the body had changed into a human being. These kinds of spirits that become human would definitely be good-looking. After all, they can become humans, so why would they go for an ordinary look? Thus, he had met a spirit, but it was not like the dainty fox spirit in Liao Zhai*—the spirit could also be tall and handsome. He ate the bread while thinking about this, and smiled to himself.

[*TN: The novel “Strange Tales from Liaozhai” is a collection of short stories about things such as supernaturals and spirits.]

Qin Weihang glanced at him, lowered his head and ate the bread, then smiled in reminiscence.

“Today is New Year’s Eve,” An Ning said while looking at the forest scenery, “Liang Shenghan and Xiao Pang went out to play all night.” He looked at Qin Weihang, “How are we spending it?”

Qin Weihang paused and looked at him.

An Ning realized what he said and was embarrassed by Qin Weihang’s staring. It was too strange to say that. Why did he say how are ‘we’ spending it? They didn’t have to spend it together…

Qin Weihang rolled up the finished bread packaging. He patted his clothes and the down jacket made a puff sound. He said: “How do you want to spend it?”

An Ning amended: “Let’s watch the countdown party in the dorm room tonight!”

“Sure,” Qin Weihang said, “but I want to return the car first.”

An Ning nodded, “Mhm, let’s return the car first!” He stood up, took a plastic bag, and stuffed all the garbage in it. Qin Weihang handed him the rolled-up packaging. He took it and touched Qin Weihang’s fingers.

There was no way he could have avoided it, An Ning lowered his head to comfort himself. The packaging was rolled so small by Qin Weihang and was held in his large hand. He had taken it out of Qin Weihang’s hand. When he took it, it was like a blooming flower, following along with Qin Weihang’s loosened fingers and slowly opening up.

In the afternoon, An Ning drove to Lantian County with Qin Weihang. For the first time, he saw Qin Weihang’s teacher, Zhong Jing—he was younger than he thought. He felt very uneasy when he saw that wheelchair, and he would keep thinking of Qin Weihang. Every time the wheelchair moved, he couldn’t even look away from Qin Weihang.

Zhong Jing was like Qin Weihang’s eldest brother. He felt a bit like an older brother that was like a father, and was especially welcoming of An Ning after meeting him. An Ning felt like he was the first friend Qin Weihang brought home; like a third-grader who was going to a classmate’s house for the first time.

The three of them were sitting on the sofa in the living room. The TV screen was very big and An Ning seemed to be watching a movie. Zhong Jing asked him, “Is it difficult to tutor him?”

He said hurriedly, “No, he is quite smart.”

Qin Weihang sat next to him and was leaning back on the sofa. An Ning sat relatively forward, so he couldn’t see Qin Weihang, but he could hear the low, long, and thick breathing from behind him.

Zhong Jing said: “You are the first to praise him for being smart. Usually, he would be praised for being handsome.”

An Ning couldn’t help but say in his heart: Well, he is indeed a bit too handsome.

Qin Weihang said: “I’m not only smart, but I’m also handsome, okay? Does this need to be confirmed repeatedly?”

Zhong Jing’s wife was not at home, so Zhong Jing was alone in the villa. Mu Dan called back midway and heard that they came over, so she told them to stay overnight, saying that she was “worried that Old Zhong is alone and lonely at home.”

Thus, Zhong Jing had them stay over.

Qin Weihang said: “I have to send him back because he needs to go back to self-study. He can’t miss even a day.”

An Ning was embarrassed, especially by the phrase ‘can’t miss even a day’, as if he was being complained about by Qin Weihang. He blushed and said: “It’s not like I can’t miss even a day…”

Zhong Jing said: “Then stay, it’s boring to be alone in the dormitory on New Year’s Eve!”

It was difficult for An Ning to reject this hospitality, and he didn’t want Qin Weihang to struggle between accompanying him back to the dormitory or staying with his teacher, so he nodded: “Then I’m sorry to be bothering you.”

Qin Weihang furrowed his eyebrows and looked at him, then asked, “What about the scholarship?”

An Ning was asked this and felt extremely awkward.

Zhong Jing glared at Qin Weihang and said, “You, enough is enough.”

Qin Weihang smiled silently. He put his elbows on the armrest of the sofa and his hands propped on his cheeks, looking as if he was actually a bit happy.