When Wen Di was greeted by the handsome guy’s gaze, he was shocked and a word popped up in his mind—unexpected disaster.
He felt like a passerby character in a novel who was pulled into the vortex of strife just by brushing past the entangled protagonists.
Before he could finish imagining the bloody plot, an even more dramatic scene unfolded. The muscular boy stood up, grabbed the jacket hanging on the back of his chair, and darted across the dining table like a shooting star, heading out the door.
Wen Di was stunned for three seconds, then turned around and stared at his old classmates with sharp eyes: “Who has wet wipes?”
Yu Jingyi took out a small pack of ten and handed it over. “What do you need them for?”
“Sending charcoal in the snowy weather,”1雪中送炭: lit. to send charcoal in snowy weather (idiom); fig. to provide help in sb’s hour of need Wen Di said, “for research purposes.”
Yu Jingyi looked at him suspiciously, trying to make sense of the two seemingly unrelated statements: “Research?”
With a mysterious smile, he stood up, walked through the hallway, and came to the opposite side of the professor. His sudden approach didn’t seem to surprise the professor at all, as if they were quite familiar with each other.
“What a coincidence, Professor,” Wen Di said. “Do you need a wet wipe?”
He handed over the pack of wet wipes, and Bian Cheng took it, using it to wipe the tea off his face and hands. His clothes were beyond saving and could only be left to dry naturally. Through the soaked shirt, the outline of muscles faintly showed, and Wen Di glanced at them with a mix of curiosity and subtlety.
Although he looked disheveled, Bian Cheng didn’t seem to mind at all. He thanked Wen Di—just a simple ‘thank you’—and handed back the remaining wet wipes.
Wen Di took them with a smile and said, “I have a question I want to ask you. If I don’t figure it out tonight, I won’t be able to sleep for the rest of my life. Do you mind if I sit here?”
Bian Cheng made a ‘please sit down’ gesture, and Wen Di smoothly took the seat across from him. As their eyes met, Wen Di realized that Bian Cheng was also looking at him.
Bian Cheng’s gaze subtly lingered on Wen Di’s eyes—beautiful almond-shaped eyes, clear and bright, against the fair skin, like dewdrops on a camellia flower.
Having spent many years abroad, surrounded by people with high noses, deep-set eyes, blond hair, and blue eyes, Bian Cheng perhaps found that rare things were precious. After wandering through the dazzling world, he still believed that East Asian bone structure had the most charm—gentle, elegant, and understated, like an ink wash painting on rice paper.
The voice of a childhood friend echoed in his mind: “You live like our ancestors and your aesthetic tastes are also like our ancestors.”
Thinking of Song Yuchi, Bian Cheng frowned slightly. This guy complained that he was under a lot of pressure to find a job and had asked to be treated to a meal. They had chosen a Japanese restaurant, and as they chatted, he suddenly found himself looking at Wen Di across from him.
“Oh!” Song Yuchi quickly turned his head, then turned back again. “Is that the guy from five years ago?”
Bian Cheng nodded.
“Why don’t you go say hello to the person?”
“Why?” Bian Cheng said. “He doesn’t remember me anymore.”
Song Yuchi looked at him as if he were terminally ill. “You’re going to end up alone.” After a long silence, he suddenly perked up, filled with a sense of righteous determination, and started talking to himself. “Nevermind, I’ll help you.”
Bian Cheng was immediately suspicious. “What are you planning to do?”
Song Yuchi suddenly became bashful, which made him feel so disgusted that he got goosebumps all over his body.
“Stop it.”
Song Yuchi maintained his disgusting look of admiration, reached out and grabbed Bian Cheng’s wrist.
“Let go, or do you want a dislocated shoulder?”
Song Yuchi suddenly turned his head and then slammed his teacup down heavily.
“If you dare…”
Tea splashed right in his face.
Bian Cheng wiped the water from his forehead, but Song Yuchi had already fled the scene. That guy’s guts really seemed to grow bolder with each passing year. Just as he was about to get up and chase after him, he saw Wen Di approaching, holding a pack of wet wipes.
He hesitated for a moment, then sat back down.
Wen Di generously offered his help, allowing Bian Cheng to salvage his appearance. Then, Wen Di rested his arm on the table, leaned forward with a curious expression, and asked, “Who was that gentleman just now?”
“A friend.”
“Are friends into holding hands at the dinner table now?”
“He’s got a dramatic personality, always acting out at the slightest provocation.”
“And the water-splashing?”
Bian Cheng was silent for a moment before saying, “That was a personal grudge.”
It was true. He said he was helping him, but in fact, he was taking the opportunity to take revenge. Song Yuchi had wanted to splash him with something for a long time.
Wen Di scratched his forehead. “He seemed to look at me. Did you talk about me?”
“Yeah.” Sort of.
“Why?” Wen Di leaned forward, “Professor and I aren’t very familiar with each other, right?”
Bian Cheng looked at him for a moment and said: “He is also a PhD student at T University. I told him that I saw a student from the same school, and he was a little curious.”
“Oh…” Wen Di got his answer, but felt a little uneasy. So it was just a friend joking around? Makes sense—these days, straight guys could joke around even more boldly than actual gay men.
The world was still functioning normally, and the professor’s orientation remained a mystery.
Wen Di smiled and said, “If someone didn’t know the context, that scene just now really looked like…” He paused here. After all, he and the professor were not familiar with each other, so it would be inappropriate to joke casually like this.
Bian Cheng picked up: “A breakup scene?”
“Ah? En..” Wen Di said, “I was just imagining things. Since it’s two men and all, it seems like you are…”
“I’m gay.”
Wen Di suddenly leaned back, his back hitting the sofa. as he gripped the edge of the table, searching for something to steady himself in his suddenly unsteady world. “Wha…” He turned his head, trying to make sure he heard correctly. “What?”
Professor is gay?
Professor is gay, and he came out to him?
This was only the third time they’d met?
Seeing the blank, dazed look in Wen Di’s eyes, Bian Cheng asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Uh…” Wen Di thought about it and finally voiced his concern. “Why would you tell me such a private matter?”
“Do you have a problem with gay people?”
“How is that possible?” Wen Di waved his hand. “I’m gay myself.”
Since the other party had already come out to him, Wen Di decided to reveal his own secret. What baffled him was that despite hearing a casual acquaintance like a student come out to him, Bian Cheng remained completely unperturbed and even answered Wen Di’s earlier question: “I thought you were too, so I said it.”
The gaydar is so accurate?
“Oh,” Wen Di sighed, “I thought that the domestic atmosphere had become more open when I was not aware of it.”
Bian Cheng seemed to find that amusing, curling his lips slightly. “How could that be,” he said, “but I hope you can keep it a secret for me.”
This hint of sharing a secret made Wen Di giddy: “Does T University discriminate against professors’ sexual orientation?”
“I don’t mind if there is one,” Bian Cheng said. “It’s just that my father doesn’t want me broadcasting it everywhere.”
This sentence contained a lot of information. First, Professor2Since in the earlier chapters, the author mainly refer to Bian Cheng as professor instead of his name, I’ll be translating as that and I’ll be using Professor when it’s pronoun and professor when it’s noun. had already come out to his family. Second, his family was opposed to it. Lastly, Professor had accepted the pressure from his elders and kept his orientation a secret.
This was somewhat different from the impression Wen Di had of him. “Your father doesn’t accept homosexuality?”
“No,” Bian Cheng replied. “Whether I’m gay or not doesn’t matter to him. What’s more important is that, in the eyes of others, I don’t appear to be gay.”
Wen Di felt a bit choked up. “Your father is really… persistent.” He carefully avoided using words like ’stubborn’ or ‘archaic’.
But on second thought, the older generation often held traditional views and found it hard to accept homosexuality, or even saw it as a disease. This situation was very common. The winds of sexual liberation hadn’t blown through for very long, and outside the world of novels, there weren’t many people who could genuinely respect others’ choices.
The mathematical genius who has a smooth life also had family secrets, making the professor seem a bit more grounded in reality.
“By the way,” Bian Cheng said, “there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask.”
Wen Di perked up. “What is it?”
“Why has someone over there been staring at me this whole time?”
Wen Di turned his head and saw two old classmates staring intently in their direction while whispering to each other. Wen Di didn’t know what they were planning, but judging from their expressions, the plot must be bloody.
Bian Cheng glanced over at the girls, who quickly turned their heads back and continued their conversation as if nothing had happened.
He looked at Wen Di and asked, “Aren’t you going back?”
Wen Di suddenly remembered that today’s event was a class reunion. Reluctantly, he stood up and walked towards the ladies, who were eyeing him with intense curiosity. You Jun’s sharp gaze almost burned a hole in his face.
“Great ah, I knew you were someone destined for great things. You don’t make a move unless it’s impactful.” You Jun looked at him with admiration. “I haven’t seen you for a few years and even the professor is in your hand now.”
Wen Di looked at Yu Jingyi, who shrugged innocently: “I only mentioned that he is a professor, the rest is her subjective interpretation.”
“What in your hand?” Wen Di said, grabbing a piece of octopus with mustard. “There’s not even a slightest sign it’s happening yet.”
“Without even a slightest sign, you suddenly ran across from him and sat down?”
Wen Di ate his side dishes while briefly recounting what had happened.
Yu Jingyi, with her introverted nature, didn’t show much change in expression, while You Jun’s face was brilliantly colorful.
“This professor,” she said, “seems a little strange.”
Wen Di asked as he ate heartily, “What’s so strange about him?”
“He said his family doesn’t want him broadcasting it, but then he comes out to you. That’s contradictory,” You Jun pointed out. “It’s not like you guys know each other well.”
The sharpness of the mustard hit Wen Di’s throat, and Wen Di suddenly realized: “Tell me,” he asked the two ladies: “is he interested in me?”
You Jun raised her eyebrows and Yu Jingyi’s face was full of question marks, the meaning was clear: this narcissist.
“Based on your reasoning, isn’t that the conclusion?” Wen Di felt a bit deflated by their reactions. “He can’t just tell anyone, but he told me. That suggests he wants me to know he’s gay. If he isn’t interested in me, why would he go out of his way to ‘clear the path’ like that?”
“But he didn’t ask for your contact info either,” You Jun pointed out.
“And he didn’t ask you to stay,” Yu Jingyi added.
“If you leave, won’t the connection between you two be broken?” You Jun said, “Is that how someone reacts when they like someone?”
Wen Di started to feel uncertain. Okay ba, maybe Professor was just acting on a whim, wanting to share a secret that had been hidden for too long…
Whatever. The biggest takeaway here was that the professor was gay, right?
Before, he had only hoped to exchange a few words and maybe become a familiar face. Now, knowing they shared the same orientation, the possibilities had expanded significantly.
A once elusive possibility had suddenly grown more plausible.
Wen Di was rubbing his hands in anticipation, full of confidence. It had been years since he’d pursued anyone, and his skills had gotten rusty. It was time to brush up. “I think there’s a chance,” Wen Di said. “I at least have to try.”
“I’m rooting for you,” You Jun watched the excitement without minding if the situation got bigger. “Let’s have a bottle of Japanese sake to strengthen your courage, and when you’re done you’ll go to someone and confess your love.”
“Don’t,” Wen Di said, “I have alcoholic amnesia.”
You Jun was silent for a while. The sudden appearance of unfamiliar terminology made her feel surreal. “What?”
“It means I forget things when I get drunk,” Wen Di explained. “You know how some people black out after drinking too much? Maybe my tolerance for alcohol is low, so when I black out, it’s really severe. If I drink a bottle of alcohol, I might confess tonight and forget it by tomorrow.”
“But that’s not right ah,” You Jun said. “Back in university, during our class gatherings, you used to drink beer.”
“I didn’t realize it back then. I only discovered it after a few blackouts.”
“Isn’t that really inconvenient?” You Jun asked. “How much stuff have you forgotten?”
“I don’t drink often,” Wen Di replied. “And I usually only forget things for half a day or a day. I don’t usually have anything important going on when I’m drinking, so it’s not a big deal if I forget.”
“How is it not a big deal?” Yu Jingyi chimed in. “You don’t remember what happened during the exchange?”
This seemed to hit a sore spot for Wen Di. He clenched his hands tightly, and the cup in his hand rattled. “Exactly!” he said through gritted teeth. “Except for that time.”
You Jun looked at him, who was filled with righteous indignation, as if he had some deep-seated hatred. “What happened that time?”
Wen Di forced out a sentence through gritted teeth: “Some damned bastard stole 700 dollars from me.”
The surreal feeling returned, and You Jun took a while to process this bizarre news that she only could respond with a simple, “Ah?”
“But I don’t remember who it was. I drank too much that night,” Wen Di felt a pain in his heart just recalling it. Seven hundred dollars, that was nearly a month’s salary for him ah. “If I ever catch him one day, I’ll cut him into a thousand pieces and grind his bones to dust.”3千刀万剐 (qiān dāo wàn guǎ): to hack sb to pieces (used while cursing)
The author has something to say:
Alcohol-induced amnesia does exist, but it usually occurs in people who have been drinking heavily over a long period. I am just borrowing it here.
T/N:
Title is from Hamlet, Act 3, Scene 2
