Published at 2nd of September 2019 8:31 pm

Chapter 2.5 — “Guan guan!” Cry the Ospreys, On an Islet in the River (5)

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Lin Yu Tang glanced incredulously at that person beside him. For the first time he understood that people could actually be so shameless. What was this that he wanted to stand up and give the answer? For a moment he was so livid he could not speak.

Lin Yu Tang would not stand.

Shen Xi looked at Lin Yu Tang, who was not budging in the slightest. How could he disappoint his professor? And disappoint her? She thought for a moment, then decided to give Tang Tang a round of applause. Bringing her hands together, she took the lead and began to clap. As she took advantage of “He Zhi Zhou’s” name and ability to rally support, applause from the entire class soon rose up and carried on continuously for a long time.

To quiet the thunderous applause, Lin Yu Tang had no choice but to stand.

Resting her chin in her hand, Shen Xi turned her head to the side. You’re welcome!

A droning noise filled Lin Yu Tang’s brain. Despite the fact that he was absolutely furious, he still needed to calm down to think over the problem. He looked over what was written on the Powerpoint slide once again, and after organizing his train of thought, he began to answer this problem on non-equilibrium carrier transport and furthermore, began to touch upon new knowledge. Lin Yu Tang was thinking as he answered, from recombination rate to equilibrium carrier density to, finally, the complex concept of resistivity …

“Very good. Lin Yu Tang’s … and He Zhi Zhou’s thought process is very good.” After Lin Yu Tang had finished given his answer, Professor Wang’s praise also included “He Zhi Zhou.”

Shen Xi had also been made to look good in this, but Lin Yu Tang’s expression was not a pleasant one. Nudging him with her elbow, she said, “You performed pretty good.”

He made a sneer and asked evenly, “Since when did I say I wanted to stand up and give the answer?”

Making up nonsense, she answered, “I saw it in your eyes.”

For the entire class, whenever Shen Xi tried to talk to Lin Yu Tang, he only ignored her.

Third and fourth period classes were back-to-back. Shen Xi was already starting to feel that she could not sit any longer. Suddenly, she felt that dancing was actually a pretty good thing.

During the class break, she once again handed the mandarin orange to Lin Yu Tang, and he lost his temper. “I’m not eating it!”

“No, I meant that you help me peel it. I don’t have nails.”

Lin Yu Tang’s breathing was ragged from anger.

Since he was a child, he had been a proper and good student, even up until, after growing up under the earnest hopes of his parents, he became a promising young man. He held ideals and aspirations, and he was also well-cultured and had a fine sense of morals, which had been cultivated amid a strict upbringing.

Recently, the opinions he had of “He Zhi Zhou” were very negative, but he could not behave like a girl by quarreling about those with him. So, he could only try his best to push those “out of sight, out of mind.” However, this demand that He Zhi Zhou had stated so boldly, as if justified, had shocked him to the point that he could not refuse it.

Shen Xi nibbled on the orange that Lin Yu Tang had peeled for her and for a while, even took down some notes. To prevent Lin Yu Tang from seeing her handwriting, she used her hand to cover the notebook while she was writing, and her action seemed as if she was guarding against people’s prying eyes.

Lin Yu Tang’s eyes swept over to her and then he was hit with exasperated anger. Since primary school, he had not encountered a person like this one. He stepped out of the classroom to catch some air, and as he did, he dropped his mobile phone under the table.

Shen Xi continued taking notes. She did not know which were the important points, so she could only rely on her gut feel as to what should be written down. All of a sudden, underneath the table, the screen of Lin Yu Tang’s phone lit up. A text message had come in. Stopping her note-taking, she glanced at what was written in that text. Immediately, it seemed as if something had given quick squeeze to her heart, like a bumblebee had been flying right by it and then suddenly jammed its stinger into her:

I’m sick. Feeling awful. But I still have exams to take. So scared I’m going to mess them up.

Shen Xi closed her textbook, her mood plummeting.

Soon, Lin Yu Tang returned. Seeing the message, he picked up his mobile phone. Before he had typed a reply, the other end had sent another message over. It was a photograph of the back of a hand with an IV needle inserted in it, and the soft lighting made the skin tone seem fair and delicate.

Shen Xi especially wanted to see how Lin Yu Tang would respond. She moved her head in closer, but Lin Yu Tang powered-off his phone and even turned to look at her.

Blinking her eyes, she inquired, “Who’s that?”

“A friend.”

Shen Xi basically spent the second half of class sprawled on her desk, sleeping. When Professor Wang saw this, he did not say anything and only surmised that Student He had likely studied late into the night the previous night. However, the instant the bell rang to signal the end of class, Shen Xi immediately sprung awake and, grabbing her textbooks and notebook, darted out of the classroom. Her actions were so speedy Professor Wang was somewhat unable to even react.

Shen Xi raced directly to the restroom at the end of the hall, shut the door, and whipped off her pants. Suddenly, from the stall next door, a girl’s voice could be heard. “Waaah, finally someone has come. Friend next door, would you be able to give me some toilet paper? I’ve been waiting here for half a class …”

Someone who could even forget to bring toilet paper to go use the toilet. What kind of sucky memory was that?! In the spirit of Lei Feng [spirit of serving people], she yanked out three fragrant tissues and handed it under to the adjacent stall. “Don’t use too much. I don’t have much left, either …”

Her voice had just sounded out when Shen Xi seemed to sense that there might be something a bit wrong. It seemed she might have gone into the wrong washroom. Actually, she didn’t go to the wrong one … AAAH! She really had gone to the wrong one!

One second, two seconds, three seconds. The ladies’ restroom fell into an eerie type of quiet. After a long period, the voice of the girl in the adjacent stall could once again be heard, feebly asking, “Um … Was it me that went to the wrong one, or you?”

Shen Xi covered her face with her hands, a sob nearly escaping from her throat. She was the one who went to the wrong one. She had, out of habit, walked into the ladies’ restroom.

The girl in the adjacent stall fled in a mad dash. Shen Xi put on her pants, but when she was planning to leave as fast as possible while there was still no one, the ladies’ restroom suddenly filled up with people. The peak period for restroom usage had arrived.

Shen Xi hid herself in the stall, not daring to go out, and in there, she could experience the endless stream of people moving through. She could only cry a tearless cry. She waited for five minutes but the flow of people going in and out of restroom did not subside and only increased. From this, one could see how much the teachers in S University liked to drag on and on in their lectures.

“What’s going on in here? It’s been so long and that person still hasn’t come out,” a girl said outside the stall.

“Maybe the door’s broken. Give it a push,” another girl suggested.

Shen Xi hurriedly held tight to the door to prevent someone from really pushing it open and walking in. At the same time, she sent He Zhi Zhou a text message: I accidentally went into the ladies’ restroom, and I can’t get out right now. I’m scared of disgracing you. Can you come save me? Or should I just walk right out?

After Shen Xi finished sending this message to He Zhi Zhou, even she felt that she was a nuisance. But she didn’t do it on purpose. A habit that had been engrained for more than a dozen years wasn’t something that could be changed in a day.

Very shortly, He Zhi Zhou had returned a message to her. There was only one sentence in it: You can go to hell.

Shen Xi answered him: The problem is … even if I die here in the bathroom and go to hell, the next day, someone will still discover the body.

……

When He Zhi Zhou received Shen Xi’s SOS message, he wished he could crush his phone between his fingers. But what could he do? He still ended up riding his bicycle over and charging into the teaching building in S University. With a “RESTROOM CLOSED FOR CLEANING” sign in hand, he welcomed Shen Xi out of the ladies’ restroom.

Neither of them had eaten lunch yet. Shen Xi jumped onto the backseat of He Zhi Zhou’s bicycle and he rode with her behind him for a while. Feeling the ride was strenuous, he stopped and asked, “How about we change places and you take the front seat?”

Holding onto her “own” slender waist in front of her, she replied, “Since I was a kid, I’ve never known how to ride a bike.”

He Zhi Zhou gave a cold snort and continued riding arduously out of S University. He bypassed all the campus roads and very easily, as if much practiced, arrived at a relatively empty restaurant that served western food.

This was a chain restaurant that partly served its food buffet-style and was situated in a newly developed area. Now, though, lunchtime had already passed, so even more so, the number of people inside was pitifully small. Shen Xi had soon taken a seat and begun ordering.

He Zhi Zhou ordered a steak with pasta as well as a French onion soup on the side. Seeing that the caloric value of his meal really was too high, she tried to convince He Zhi Zhou to switch out the French onion soup to a whole wheat roll instead.

He Zhi Zhou lifted his eyes to look at her. “And what about you? Who did you order all that food for?”

Shen Xi felt ashamed. She had not thought that He Zhi Zhou would care so much about his figure, too. After cancelling half her order of food, she told him, “I don’t know why but after I switched to a different body, I get hungry really easily. All I can say is, the you from before had a big appetite.”

He Zhi Zhou gave a quick “hmph” and carried on leisurely eating his food.

Changing the topic, Shen Xi asked him, “Were you able to get a medical record?”

He Zhi Zhou pulled out a medical form and handed it to her. “Have a look. See any problems?”

Shen Xi carefully looked over this medical history form and read it aloud. “Protruding tailbone … But my tailbone doesn’t stick out.”

“I found someone I knew to do it and he just arbitrarily wrote that up.” Their food orders arrived, and with graceful motions, he began adeptly cutting his steak. As he cut, he said, “I couldn’t stick you with an endocrine disorder [hormone problem], right?”

This guy’s tongue was becoming more and more toxic. Shen Xi was not about to bother arguing with him over that and instead, asked directly, “Did you tell him the truth about our situation?”

“No. Before I went to the hospital, I used my own phone to send him a message, and so I just went directly to the hospital and picked it up,” He Zhi Zhou explained.

Fine. Sure enough, when those wickedly smart top students did things, they tended to plan things out more.

Shen Xi suddenly thought of something. In order to prepare for the upcoming CET-4 and 6 examinations, this afternoon, the college was holding a mock CET-4/6 exam. She lowered her head, then raised it again, and her eyes suddenly had become more charmingly bright.

“Um, so … my serendipity friend,” Shen Xi out of the blue addressed He Zhi Zhou in this way.

He Zhi Zhou reminded her, “Can you just be normal and say the name?”

Shen Xi brought her palms together pleadingly. “He Zhi Zhou … Um, this afternoon, I have a mock exam, a CET-4/6 mock exam.”

He Zhi Zhou did not try to make things difficult for her. “What time?”

Shen Xi recalled what time it was and informed him, “It starts at two o’clock.”

“I need to take my afternoon nap at two,” He Zhi Zhou flatly declined.

Shen Xi looked directly at He Zhi Zhou. “My body doesn’t have the habit of taking afternoon naps. During naptime in preschool, I wouldn’t be able to fall asleep …”

He Zhi Zhou had to take his hat off to Shen Xi. Polishing off his lunch, he reckoned that a mock CET-4 examination would not take him much time anyway, so he nodded in consent to her request.

Shen Xi bowed and thanked He Zhi Zhou over and over. Then, pulling out the notes she had taken that morning, she presented them to him as if she was seeking recognition for her service. He Zhi Zhou took them from her, and after glancing over those blindly copied symbols and formulas, he stated bluntly to her, “From now on, you don’t need to take down any notes.”

Shen Xi was a little hurt by this and did not say anything.

He Zhi Zhou closed the notebook. “You don’t need to take notes because I know all of this already.”

“Oh.” Shen Xi’s self-esteem came back a little bit.

When lunch was finished and they had paid and stepped back outside, they walked past a liquor and tobacco depot. He Zhi Zhou massaged his forehead, which was feeling a little heavy with sleepiness. He had not expected that, even though he had switched bodies, he still had cigarette cravings. He turned his head and with a voice carrying a tone of willingness to discuss with her, he asked Shen Xi, “May I have a smoke?”

Shen Xi was taken aback for an instant, but after thinking about the “terrible abyss of misery and suffering” he had lived in these last two days, she agreed. “You go ahead. When you go back, remember to rinse and freshen your mouth.”

He Zhi Zhou nodded and strolled toward the depot, but after taking several steps, he turned back and said to Shen Xi, who had been behind him, “You go buy it.”

Shen Xi thought over it. Buying cigarettes was indeed something that was more appropriate for her, as a “man,” to do. Come to think of it, she had never bought smokes before. As she thought of this, she suavely strode into the depot and told the cashier inside, “A pack of Chunghwa [premium Chinese brand of cigarettes] and a lighter.”

Thinking of all her various examinations, Shen Xi turned completely into a suck-up. Although she did not feel she was fawning over him, the words she chose still especially tried to indulge him.

After buying the cigarettes and lighter, she immediately eagerly gave them to He Zhi Zhou, saying, “Don’t know if this brand suits your tastes.”

He Zhi Zhou gave a seldom-seen smile, the corner of his lips turning up faintly into a slight curve. This was the first time Shen Xi had ever seen He Zhi Zhou smile, and it was rather novel to her. He Zhi Zhou took the cigarettes and lighter from her hand, and in very smooth movements, he opened the packaging, pulled out a cigarette, lowered his head and lit it, and took a deep inhale. In an instant, white smoke spilled out from his nostrils and lips.

Shen Xi pulled back her gaze and began walking forward while pushing the bicycle. She and He Zhi Zhou were strolling down a small lonely street. On the left was a new, developing zone while on the right was the old city area of S City. An old, plaster wall on their left was moist and peeling, and at its corner, an unknown little flower was growing against that wall, looking as if its future would be lush and flourishing.

Halting his steps, He Zhi Zhou stood beside the wall and smoked while she sat on the bicycle and looked boredly at him. The weather was neither nice nor poor, but the sky above their heads was very blue — a brilliant azure colour.

A wind blew in from the end of the street, and she smelled the scent of tobacco on it.

He Zhi Zhou lifted his eyes to look at her. His eyes were clear and carried a slight air of elegance.

Sitting on the bicycle, Shen Xi played with the bell on it. The look in He Zhi Zhou’s eyes made her feel a little discomfited. Smiling, she said, “I used to only look at myself in pictures or in the mirror. I never thought that, when I’m looking at myself face to face, I’d be even more beautiful.”

“Ha ha.” He Zhi Zhou choked on the smoke. Sweeping his eyes over to her, he shot back one sentence. “The same could be said for me.”

Shen Xi felt that, if you could just figure out the right technique, He Zhi Zhou was actually not hard to get along with.

雷锋 Lei Feng was a soldier known for his kindness and selflessness, and his name was used by Mao Zedong in nationwide propaganda to encourage people to follow his example.

Completed

9 of 65 Chapter segments

0 of 2 Epilogues

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