Chapter 25.2
Yu Le was quite good at self-comforting. Even as Lu Yao set him down at the counter, he was still lost in his own world, feeling unfulfilled.
Lu Yao pinched the back of his neck to bring him back to reality. “Aren’t you supposed to be hopping? There are just two more steps left. Hop to the back and sit down.”
Yu Le muttered to himself, “Underestimate me, huh? I could hop from the door without any problem,” and carefully lifted his other foot, steadily hopping towards the back.
The distance between the counter and the table was perfect for Zhou Fei and the others to see Yu Le’s clearly swollen ankle.
As Yu Le hopped to the chair and was about to sit down, he looked up and saw the group still staring at him.
Yu Le: “…”
What was he saying again? Men shouldn’t be carried like princesses. It easily draws unwanted attention…
The five of them exchanged glances. This time, Guan Zheng was the first to speak up, “Yu Le, what happened to your foot?”
Zhou Fei immediately chimed in, “Did you bump into the foot of the bed?”
Lu Yao cast a glance over, and Zhou Fei immediately fell silent.
Yu Le said, “What bed foot? I twisted it a bit when I was coming downstairs yesterday afternoon.”
They had all gone out together yesterday afternoon, missing each other by chance.
Guan Zheng’s tense brow relaxed immediately, his expression shifting from cloudy to clear and bright. “So, it’s not serious?”
His tone was light, as if a great weight had been lifted.
Yu Le replied, “It’s not serious. I applied a compress and medication before bed last night. The swelling is going down.”
“That’s good.” Guan Zheng looked at Zhou Fei with a mocking expression, but spoke to Yu Le, “Take good care of it. A sprained ankle shouldn’t be used too much; otherwise, it will heal very slowly.”
Wang Wenyan observed the change in Guan Zheng’s expression and raised her eyebrows slightly. Zhou Fei silently turned his face away, pretending it had nothing to do with him.
It was exaggerated to the point of helplessness, and some people’s mouths were truly annoying.
Yu Le gave him a thumbs-up, pulled out a chair, and sat down next to Lu Yao.
Earlier, while Yu Le was upstairs, he had been playing Gold Miner on a tablet by himself. When Lu Yao asked if he was bored and if he wanted to come downstairs, Yu Le thought it might be more fun, so he agreed. However, it turned out to be just a change of place and device, continuing with Gold Miner.
The level even went down; he couldn’t even catch diamonds.
When Zhao Xiaosong arrived, Yu Le was asking Lu Yao if he could sit in the courtyard. Lu Yao shook his head readily, “No.”
“Give me a reason,” Yu Le said.
Then, realizing something, he quickly added before Lu Yao could speak, “You’re not allowed to say it’s dangerous!”
Lu Yao had just finished composing a group email and pressed the send button. “Before you recover, you can only choose between leaving the room and leaving my sight.”
“…” Yu Le said, “Are you afraid I’ll fall and die?”
“Fall and die?” Zhao Xiaosong, who had been clinging to the counter, looked anxiously at Yu Le. “Brother Yu Le, are you okay? Does your foot still hurt today?”
Yu Le only then noticed Zhao Xiaosong and smiled, patting his head, “I’m fine. It doesn’t hurt anymore.”
“I’m sorry.” Zhao Xiaosong pouted and said softly, “I’ve reflected on it. I’ll be more careful and won’t bump into others again.”
He handed Yu Le a card with Ultraman on it, “Brother Yu Le, here’s an unlimited free card for you. You can eat as much as you want at my ice powder stall. It’s on me!”
The Ultraman’s eyes had been colored black with a water-based pen.
Yu Le swore this was the most unique gift he had ever received, worth remembering.
“And this.” Zhao Xiaosong placed a bag with a foam container on the table, “These are sweet cakes my mom made. They’re really delicious. Make sure to eat them while they’re hot!”
Yu Le gladly accepted both and warmly invited Zhao Xiaosong to stay for dinner.
“No, no,” Zhao Xiaosong said seriously, “My uncle is still at my house. As the host, I have to go back and entertain him!”
Yu Le, on friendly terms with him, gave him a high-five, “Alright, then we’ll meet next time.”
Zhao Xiaosong ran off, and Yu Le, smelling the sweet cakes, found no one else was eating. So he ended up eating them all by himself.
“Do you have any paper?” Yu Le poked Lu Yao’s shoulder. He had looked around but couldn’t find any.
Lu Yao said, “In the drawer on your right.”
The space behind the counter was so small that it was a bit cramped for two people.
Yu Le’s right hand was dirty, and his left hand was awkward and uncoordinated. The drawer was stuck, and after several unsuccessful attempts, he poked Lu Yao again, “Boss, this drawer is pretty old and worn out.”
Lu Yao glanced over, closed his laptop, and, to Yu Le’s surprise, lifted him from the chair and placed him on the counter.
Suddenly, he was the highest and farthest person in the room: “…”
As the eyes behind him turned to stare again, Yu Le had become numb to it.
“I feel like a little chick being carried around,” Yu Le said, looking at the person helping him with his hands, his tone forlorn.
Lu Yao asked, “Not happy?”
Yu Le huffed, “It’s humiliating.”
Lu Yao replied, “I’ll carry you back later.”
Yu Le: “…”
He silently lowered his head and turned the computer towards himself, holding the mouse with his left hand. “Oh, so many gold mines are missing. This game is hopeless.”
Lu Yao tossed the paper into the trash can with a smile.
….
Yu Le’s leg was slowly recovering, and the long rainy season had arrived.
When Yu Le learned that Lu Yao went into the mountains every night in such heavy rain, he was stunned.
“I mean, it’s raining so hard, the roads up the mountain are slippery, and visibility is poor at night. Isn’t it too dangerous to go into the mountains now? Can’t you wait until the rain stops?”
“It’s because of the rain that it’s necessary to go.”
Lu Yao put on his raincoat and adjusted the flashlight on his hat. “Every man in Daiwa Town is a mountain guardian, responsible for guarding the mountain. But since there are fewer young people in the town, I don’t trust letting the older people risk the rain to guard the mountain.”
Yu Le said, “But I don’t trust you going either… Lu Yao! How can you still be smiling?!”
There was no way to avoid it; Yu Le’s reluctance and concern made it hard for Lu Yao not to feel pleased.
“Don’t worry.” Lu Yao ruffled his hair. “This isn’t my first time guarding the mountain in the rainy season. I know every path and slope up there. I’ll be careful and nothing will happen.”
How could Yu Le not worry!
Watching Lu Yao’s figure gradually disappear into the heavy rain, he furrowed his brow anxiously and even felt an impulse to run up and accompany him into the mountains—
…But maybe not.
He knew himself well enough to realize that he might be more of a danger if he went with Lu Yao.
After closing the door and returning to his room, Yu Le quickly showered and then pressed his face against the window, straining to see in the direction of the mountains. Unfortunately, there were no streetlights in town, and it was pitch black outside, with only the fine rain and the swaying copper bell in sight.
For the first time, he wanted to complain that Daiwa Mountain was too large.
Nine o’clock, ten o’clock, eleven o’clock, eleven-thirty—the usual bedtime had arrived, and Yu Le’s biological clock started to kick in.
But despite feeling sleepy, he couldn’t fall asleep. Listening to the copper bell being torn apart by the fierce wind and rain, his heart felt like it was floating, suspended in mid-air, and he couldn’t settle.
Midnight, one o’clock, and then two o’clock—the rain seemed to lighten.
He turned over in bed, hugging the quilt, drowsily looking out the window, thinking, Why isn’t he back yet?
His eyelids had fought countless battles but refused to close completely.
Just after four in the morning, there was finally some movement downstairs. After a while, footsteps were heard coming upstairs.
Yu Le heard the footsteps stop outside his door, and when the person noticed he hadn’t closed the door while sleeping, they gently pushed it open, walking in quietly to avoid waking him.
The familiar rough touch on his ankle made Yu Le’s heart finally settle, and the drowsiness surged in.
He turned his head slightly and called softly, “Lu Yao.”
Lu Yao checked him over, pulled up the quilt, and spoke in a very low voice, “Mm, it’s me. Did I wake you?”
Yu Le shook his head slightly, his eyes already too heavy to keep open, reaching out to try to grab Lu Yao’s hand.
Lu Yao held his hand.
“It’s raining. Does it still hurt?”
Yu Le, half asleep and half awake, spoke softly and indistinctly, contrasting sharply with the loud rain outside, making one’s heart itch.
Lu Yao replied, “It’s fine.”
Yu Le asked, “You didn’t fall, did you?”
Lu Yao answered, “No, I didn’t fall.”
Yu Le said, “Hmm, that’s good…”
Lu Yao looked at Yu Le, who was clearly exhausted but still trying to ask concerned questions, and his heart softened immensely.
He tucked Yu Le’s hand under the quilt and adjusted the edges, “Go to sleep, Yu Le.”
On the first day of the rainy season, at 4:20 a.m., Yu Le, who had stayed up most of the night, finally fell into a deep sleep.
The following days followed the same pattern: Lu Yao went out into the heavy rain every night and returned only in the early morning. Yu Le, no matter how tired, had to wait until Lu Yao returned safely before he could rest easy.
Occasionally, on days when Yu Le had managed to get some rest during the day, he would still be awake when Lu Yao returned at night and could ask him to rub his hands.
“Stop staying up so late,” Lu Yao said. “Go to bed early if you’re tired.”
Yu Le didn’t lift his head, “I can’t.”
Lu Yao asked, “Why not?”
Yu Le countered, “Then why do you come to check on me every night when you come back?”
Lu Yao didn’t answer, but Yu Le wasn’t really looking for an answer. Just making him speechless made Yu Le feel better.
“I can’t help it; the rain is too heavy. If you don’t come back, I can’t rest easy, and if I can’t rest easy, how can I sleep?”
It was noisy outside, but very quiet inside the house.
Lu Yao’s gaze shifted from Yu Le’s face to the window, letting the urge to embrace him slowly dissipate in the damp air, before pulling his hand back and getting up.
“Rest early. Starting tomorrow, don’t wait for me.”
Whether Yu Le would wait or not wasn’t up to Lu Yao to decide; the final say still rested with Yu Le.
Moreover, the weather started to seem off from the afternoon of the next day.
Less than an hour after Lu Yao left, the rain suddenly intensified. The raindrops grew larger and more dense, coming down in torrents. The collision between liquid and solid was violent, with a deafening roar that echoed through the heavens and earth.
Yu Le was alarmed; he had never seen such heavy rain since arriving in the town.
Could anyone still go into the mountains in this weather?
He felt anxious and trapped in the inn, unable to do anything. He could only comfort himself with the thought that Lu Yao was experienced and would surely be fine.
“Damn! This rain is insane! Did the sky break a hole or is Bai Suzhen (1 thousand year old snake spirit from the Legend of the White Snake) going through tribulations?!”
It was Zhou Fei’s voice, who was leaning on the railing and shouting loudly. The sound reached Yu Le’s ears as he was also standing on the balcony observing the rain.
Yu Le was already troubled, and Zhou Fei’s words only made him more annoyed.
As if Zhou Fei hadn’t had enough, his sharp voice continued to spew out:
“With this heavy rain, won’t there be a flood?”
“Did Boss Lu go into the mountains again? In this situation, will he be able to come back?”
“There are quite a few cases of people going missing in the mountains during heavy rain. If something happens to him, will we have to help search for him? The mountain roads will definitely be bad after the rain—”
“Shut up!” Yu Le lost his temper for the first time and cursed, “Can you keep your damn mouth shut?!”
The upstairs instantly fell silent. Zhou Fei either stopped speaking or his quiet retorts were drowned out by the rain. Yu Le couldn’t be bothered to think about it, turned on his heel, and stormed back to his room, slamming the door with a thunderous crash.
The time tonight passed especially slowly.
Usually, by the late night, the rain would ease up somewhat, but tonight it did not. Instead, it seemed to be getting heavier and heavier.
Yu Le’s chest felt tight, and the pounding rain made him anxious. He paced back and forth in the room, unable to calm down despite the increasing humidity in the air.
Knowing that fretting was useless, he slapped his forehead, sighed deeply, and forced himself to lie down on the bed. As he was about to put in the earplugs Lu Yao had given him, a sudden clap of thunder exploded right above him.
Yu Le’s heart leaped violently, and he sat up in bed with a pale face. A crackling sound of electricity followed, and the lights went out, plunging the small town into complete darkness.
Outside, it grew increasingly noisy. Yu Le quickly jumped out of bed, ran to the window, and pushed it open. Cold raindrops hit his face. He saw several flashlight beams moving through the rain, heading hurriedly towards the mountain entrance.
The sound of the rain covered their footsteps, and only a few fragmented words reached Yu Le’s ears:
“Hurry up, it seems there’s been a landslide!”
