Their Youth Part 9
At Beijing Time 17:45, Chen Xiaoxi, arm in arm with Jiang Chen, loitered in the supermarket at the school entrance. Twice Jiang Chen suggested that the weather was hot, let's not link arms, both times he was ignored.
At that time when the hour hand and the minute hand formed a straight line on the clock surface, plus formed a 180 degree angle, other than being able to sigh that the author is a great person who is extremely sensitive to time and angles, we can also predict, something was about to happen.
Yes, something was about to happen.
Chen Xiaoxi excitedly lifted up a box of mint candies that was packaged extremely strangely, I want to buy this.
She had a strange habit, when she saw things that were packaged prettily or weirdly, she couldn't help but want to buy them, there were bottles and boxes of all sizes in disorderly piles in her dormitory, the dorm master had secretly thrown away many of them.
Jiang Chen lowered his head and glanced at it, "Don't you hate mint-flavoured things?"
"But the box is very pretty." Chen Xiaoxi grabbed the sleeve of Jiang Chen's shirt and shook it twice, her two eyes shining with starry light, "It'll be okay if you eat them."
"I don't want to." Jiang Chen refused flatly, this woman always did this sort of thing, randomly buying a few things that she didn't need, then complaining that she had no money to eat when it came to the end of the month, yet not being willing to take his meal card when he gave it to her, it was very annoying.
The expression in Chen Xiaoxi's eyes dimmed, "If you don't want then forget about it, I'll give them to my dormmates to eat."
"You're not allowed to buy it." Jiang Chen removed the box in her hands, and placed it back on the shelf.
"It's not like I'm asking you to buy it for me, I'm using my own money, why am I not allowed to buy it?!" Chen Xiaoxi felt like this was a little hard to comprehend, and couldn't help but talk back.
Jiang Chen stared blankly, that was right…… Why didn't he think of buying it for her……
But timing mattered for a lot of things, once the opportunity passed, it seemed like no matter how you said it, it would seem weird, plus with a little of his shame turning into anger, Jiang Chen's face darkened as he said, "Up to you."
Three words such as "up to you" that were so casual, Chen Xiaoxi had always disliked them, but no matter how much she disliked these words, since they came out of Jiang Chen's mouth, apart from accepting them, she had no other choice, this sort of feeling of not having the upper hand, sometimes really made one so discouraged that grievances would arise in one's heart.
As they walked along the path of being about to part on bad terms, Jiang Chen stealthily took a few peeks at Chen Xiaoxi, her head bowed and not saying a word. There were a few times he wanted to hold her hand, yet every time, he dropped the idea because he couldn't put aside his pride. He sent her downstairs her dormitory, and watched as she said "I'm going back" indifferently, then went upstairs without even turning her head back. This was completely different from her normal manner, ordinarily, she would always dillydally and say many things, and she would even play out a few rounds of "You should go back, I'll watch you leave, ah why are you really going off like this? Come back, you have to tell me that you'll watch me go upstairs……"
The distance between her dormitory and his dormitory was only about 5 minutes on foot, but often he would receive her text barely halfway through the journey, talking about some senseless content, who in the dormitory overturned the paint, whose clothes haven't been washed for a week et cetera, though they had clearly just finished meeting up and finished chatting, she could always find (things that) she so-called "forgot to tell you just now".
But today, Jiang Chen waited for a night, yet there was no text or call from Chen Xiaoxi, but according to the usual practice of international stubbornness, we'll say that Jiang Chen wasn't waiting for a call, he was only looking at the time on the display screen of his phone every few minutes.
In the morning of the second day, as both of them had different class schedules, they didn't meet up, but before noon came Chen Xiaoxi had already sent a text saying that she was going to eat with her classmates during lunch, and discuss their class tasks in passing.
In the afternoon during lesson time, there was unexpectedly a text that came saying, their conclusion from their discussion during noontime was to go out and collect source material, and get close to nature for three days and two nights, they were about to set off, going to set off immediately, they had already set off.
Jiang Chen was too astonished, to the point where what flashed by in his mind momentarily was all the gossip that Chen Xiaoxi told him normally, who went out together to do class tasks, and got together upon returning, who originally had boy/girlfriends, and after staying up all night to do woodblock printing, cheated on their significant others simultaneously……
He sent a text over asking who she (was going) with, she sent back a string of names, there were boys and girls, and one name caught the attention of Jiang Chen, don't ask what name it is, let's leave some privacy for others.
There were people in school who took notice of Chen Xiaoxi, it was just that she was dense, plus she threw her entire body and heart at Jiang Chen, hence she herself always had the misconception that her market price wasn't high. But Jiang Chen saw things clearly, with regards to her misconceptions and low self-confidence in this aspect, he never thought of helping her to rectify it. However, even though he remained calm and collected, but he always knew a profound principle - what is known as 'one need not fear (one's things) being stolen by a thief, but one ought to fear (one's things) being thought of constantly by a thief'.
Hence Jiang Chen sent a text to Chen Xiaoxi, its content roughly being, he and so-and-so were also going to attend a seminar with his professor soon.
This so-and-so naturally was a girl's name, so-and-so naturally harboured some evil designs towards Jiang Chen to some extent, but in view of the principle of protecting one's privacy, we naturally also can't say her name, in any case the purpose of this lie of Jiang Chen's was, to cause Chen Xiaoxi to cannot help but make a phone call everyday to check on him diligently, and hence achieve his purpose of indirectly checking on her.
And with Chen Xiaoxi's IQ, she naturally fell into the pit*. (T/N: meaning to lose and fall into one's trap)
Just like that, even a Chen Xiaoxi who wanted to go into a period of cold war after arguing, still couldn't help but call Jiang Chen everyday, and ask him what he was doing, and she even had to report her own itinerary in exchange for a few simple sentences of his accounting (what he did).
Three days later, Jiang Chen went to the bus station to meet Chen Xiaoxi, before going he briefly reflected on the reason why they had quarreled, and felt that he was lacking in some areas, so he went to the supermarket and bought those mint candies that Chen Xiaoxi said had a pretty looking box in all 6 different flavours with packaging of different colours, and poured out all the candies inside to give to the child of the auntie in charge of the hostel. Though that child said, "Thank you older brother", the expression in his eyes as he watched him carrying 6 empty boxes as he left clearly wrote, "Adults are all lunatics."
When he saw Chen Xiaoxi, fellow classmate so-and-so whose name we cannot divulge was standing next to also, also she had cut her hair short, it seemed like she was in glowing spirits.
She was just talking to him about something, her face entirely solemn, to the point where she didn't even notice Jiang Chen walking up right in front of her, when she became aware that the light in front of her had been blocked, she raised her head. There was astonishment that flashed past, then she momentarily exploded into a smile, her eyes curved, and happiness spilled out of the outer corners of her eyes.
Being looked at with such an expression, no matter how great his anger was, it extinguished in a flash.
Chen Xiaoxi stretched out her hand to take his arm, "Why have you come?"
"It was on the way when I came over to buy a router," Jiang Chen said. Computer City indeed was in the vicinity of the bus station, but as to which (location) was 'on the way', only he himself knew.
Chen Xiaoxi had long forgotten the disagreements between the two of them previously, she tightly kneaded at his arm, "Let me tell you, we took many photos this time, our class monitor even drew an oil painting that was very ingenious, our teacher said……"
Jiang Chen smiled at her chattering on and on, and even found the time to smile at that fellow classmate so-and-so whose entire face was full of awkwardness, if we absolutely had to give an interpretation for this smile of his, that would be, "Our family's Xiaoxi gets this excited as long as she meets me, excuse us*." (T/N: the original phrase is '见笑', meaning to see and laugh. It is often used when you explain to someone that you are so bad at something that they would laugh (to incur ridicule)).
Fellow classmate so-and-so silently retreated, these two persons when looking at each other, their eyes shone with light that couldn't be hidden, that was as if they could only see the existence of each other in time and space, there was seriously no leeway for someone to insert himself in.
Chen Xiaoxi accompanied Jiang Chen to buy a router, due to the timing and the route, the public bus back to school was very empty, the two of them sat side by side in the last row. Chen Xiaoxi gave Jiang Chen her drawings from these few days to see as if she was presenting a treasure, and even matched them up with some boastful shameless introductions, Jiang Chen swept a few glances and lost interest, after all in his eyes, her drawings were not much better looking than anatomical diagrams. Actually, her hair that hung at her two cheeks due to her lowering her head as she flipped through her sketchbook caught his interest more, he stretched out his hand to use his index finger and lift it up, "When did you cut your hair?"
"The day before yesterday."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Why do I have to tell you?" Chen Xiaoxi was baffled.
With her replying his question with this question, Jiang Chen momentarily became aware that his question just now was especially full of the manner of a complaining married woman, but words that come out of one's mouth were like water that is poured out, other than bracing oneself and pretending to be in the right and self-confident, he had no other choice, so he said, "Your hair is mine."
He had just finished speaking, when Chen Xiaoxi shifted sideways horizontally, and gathered her large sketchbook in front of her chest in a defensive stance, "You aren't Jiang Chen, who are you? Tear down your mask!"
Jiang Chen decided to let his shame turn into anger and not speak.
"Hey, why aren't you speaking?" Chen Xiaoxi poked his arm, and seeing that he still was ignoring her, simply pulled down the zip of his backpack in his arms, and upon zipping it open, stuffed her sketchbook inside.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm placing it with you."
"Don't you have your own bag?"
"It's too heavy. Ee? What is this?" As the sketchbook was squeezed in, sounds of metal clashing travelled out of the bag, she stretched her hand in to fish it out and saw the candy box that was the main culprit that had caused them to argue previously.
Chen Xiaoxi shot a glance at him, wanting to laugh but trying with all her might to hold it in, and even having to pretend that she didn't care for it, "What is this for? You bought it to give it to me?"
"Mm."
"Really?" Chen Xiaoxi held the box and turned in over and over again to look at it, "There's finally a time where you feel like you were in the wrong?"
"You're thinking too much." Jiang Chen calmly zipped up his backpack that had been rummaged through by Chen Xiaoxi till it was in a mess, "Who said I was wrong?"
"Then why did you buy them? And you even bought so many?"
"That's to remind you to not make me angry in the future."
The rocking and swaying public bus, carrying the three/four o'clock sunshine of an autumn day and a bickering pair of sweethearts, proceeded on to where it should go.
Translator's Corner:
Hello!! Sorry for the late update. Just came back from leading a school trip so was a little busy as well ): Hope you enjoy! – Amy