BSS - Chapter 47

Chapter 47

Deng Chuan looked up, her gaze meeting Yang Jing's directly.

Her eyes still held a bit of a daze from breaking her concentration. Meeting Yang Jing's inexplicably serious and sighing gaze, she took a moment to react, then placed the peeled crayfish she was holding into the disposable bowl in front of Yang Jing.

"…"

Yang Jing was silent for a second, then picked it up and ate it. The tender, firm meat was soaked in red oil, with a slightly numbing aftertaste that rose from her stomach to her sinuses, creating a strange sensation of becoming hungrier the more she ate.

Yang Jing focused her full attention on the crayfish.

Deng Chuan, meanwhile, continued peeling her crayfish as usual. She skillfully pulled the shell apart with a tug, then fed the whole piece of meat to Xu Wei's lips. The disposable glove, stained with red oil, brushed against Xu Wei's lips like an alternative kind of kiss.

Xu Wei ate a few pieces with her head lowered, then pulled out a tissue to wipe her mouth. She pushed the disposable bowl filled with crayfish meat toward Deng Chuan, then nudged Zhou Liu, who had jumped onto the table, back down, pointing a warning finger at him.

Because it was summer, Zhou Liu's coat was thinner, but his size hadn't decreased. With his black and white fur, if he got any fatter, he'd start looking like a gas canister.

He had probably smelled the food and was excitedly circling the coffee table. He was already familiar with Yang Jing and knew Xu Wei wouldn't indulge him. After failing to beg for food around the table, he cunningly rolled onto his back next to Yang Jing, striking a pose exactly like someone faking an accident on the street.

Yang Jing teased him with a piece of crayfish meat. When his interest was piqued and he got up to sniff it, she would quickly pull her hand back and eat it herself. After a few rounds of this, Zhou Liu lost interest, jumped onto the sofa, and lay down, ignoring the three humans having their late-night snack.

Xu Wei stopped eating as well. She threw the used tissue into the trash can and sat back on the sofa, frowning at a PDF file open on her tablet. The screen was filled with graphs and data analysis. Deng Chuan didn't understand it, but she could tell from the text that it was a paper on statistics.

Xu Wei was communicating with the person who had sent the PDF about data processing methods. Deng Chuan didn't disturb her, simply pouring her a glass of water and letting Xu Wei drink from it while she held it.

This kind of thing had become very natural for the two of them, and neither thought anything of it. After the shocks of the past few days, Yang Jing had managed to achieve a state of seeing but not seeing, her heart as still as water.

Yang Jing ate her crayfish with a heart as still as water. Then she took off her gloves and crunched on some refreshing cucumber sticks while looking up travel guides for Chongqing on her phone.

In the past, when it was just her and Xu Wei traveling, they would usually just drive wherever they felt like, only deciding what was worth seeing after they arrived. This time, Deng Chuan was with them. Although she was quite reliable, she was still a kid. When traveling with a kid, it was better to be more prepared.

With the conscientiousness of a good older sister, Yang Jing looked up a bunch of guides, made a plan in her phone's notepad, and sent a screenshot to their three-person group chat.

Yang Jing: Is this okay? Take a look.

Neither of them replied. Yang Jing picked up her glass and took a sip of water. Seeing Zhou Liu peeking at her with his eyes half-open, she couldn't resist leaning over to rub his head.

She grabbed Zhou Liu's head, and he stared back with wide, panicked eyes. Yang Jing buried her face in his furry forehead and took a deep breath, getting her cat fix. Then she blew on his whiskers, intentionally teasing him.

Annoyed by the blowing, Zhou Liu deigned to let out a "meow—" and raised a paw to cover Yang Jing's mouth.

Yang Jing didn't give up, shaking her head from side to side in a battle of wits with him.

She was having a great time playing with the cat all by herself, so much so that Xu Wei, sitting beside her, couldn't help but glance over.

The file she sent was received, and she confirmed the final payment for the data processing had been transferred. Xu Wei sighed in relief, locked her tablet, and set it aside. Rubbing her neck, she picked up the glass of water Deng Chuan had placed in front of her and took a sip.

The table was a mess, piled with crayfish shells and disposable gloves. It had the lively aftermath of a late-night snack party. Deng Chuan was looking down at her phone, replying to someone's message.

Xu Wei subconsciously checked her phone too.

There were many work messages; even though school was on break, the notifications didn't stop. There was also the travel guide from Yang Jing. Xu Wei didn't care much about these things; for her, travel was just a way to adjust her mood. She opened the image, glanced at it, and replied "Okay." below Deng Chuan's response.

The kid's profile picture was a grinning Samoyed. It was just as pretty, but unfortunately, the person wasn't as silly as the dog. Thinking this, Xu Wei smiled to herself and casually clicked into Deng Chuan's Moments to have a look.

The content of Deng Chuan's Moments was very simple, just some scattered photos. The most recent post was a doodle from New Year's Eve, posted at midnight with the caption, "Good night."

Xu Wei stared at the picture, lost in thought for a while. She was only startled back to reality when Deng Chuan leaned over to kiss her cheek. She meant to lock her phone, but it was too late.

Deng Chuan studied Xu Wei's eyelashes with a smile and whispered, "What are you looking at?"

Xu Wei put her phone aside and stroked the chin that had leaned in close. Remembering the Samoyed in her profile picture, she said, "Looking at a silly dog."

"What?" Deng Chuan was confused for a moment, then quickly realized. "Are you talking about me?"

She laughed and offered her hand to Xu Wei.

Xu Wei naturally took it and asked, "What for?"

"Didn't you say silly dog? I'm not silly, I'm very well-behaved. I know to give you my hand without being taught."

"Oh," Xu Wei said, glancing at the messy table. "Other doggies know how to fetch. Since you're better behaved than them, go clean up the table."

"Okay," Deng Chuan said, adding, "Woof."

Xu Wei was just teasing, but she still went with Deng Chuan to clear the remnants from the table. Yang Jing also snapped out of her enraptured cat-petting state. The three of them worked together and quickly cleaned the tabletop.

It was getting late. Deng Chuan checked the time and got up to leave. Carrying the trash bag, she went to the door to say goodbye to Yang Jing and Xu Wei.

Yang Jing had seen enough over the past few days to know how clingy the two of them were when saying goodbye. She said "bye" to Deng Chuan, then gathered her clothes to go shower, considerately giving them some private space.

Deng Chuan stood there holding the trash, just looking at Xu Wei without speaking.

Xu Wei smiled, pressing her lips together, and kissed her on the cheek. "Alright, be careful on your way."

"Mm. I'll call you when I get home."

"Mm."

"One more kiss."

Xu Wei gave her another loud kiss. "There, happy now?"

Deng Chuan smiled too, turned, and walked into the elevator.

It was almost midnight when she got home. Tang Lijuan was curled up on the living room sofa playing mahjong on her phone. She was a bit surprised to see her come in. "Baby, where were you? I thought you weren't coming back tonight."

"I was at a friend's house," Deng Chuan said, then asked her mom, "Are you hungry?"

"Not hungry. I just had a late-night snack." Tang Lijuan was focused on her phone screen, not even looking up.

Deng Chuan asked her, "Mom. I'm going to Chongqing with friends tomorrow, is that okay?"

"Of course." Tang Lijuan finally looked up at her. Her daughter had just come in from outside, her face a little flushed and her forehead beaded with sweat. "Go have fun. Do you have enough money?"

"I do." Deng Chuan earned money from tutoring, and her family gave her plenty, so she wasn't short on cash.

"Okay, have a good time. Let Mom know if you need anything." Seeing there was nothing else and that Deng Chuan was always responsible, Tang Lijuan lowered her head and went back to her entertainment.

"I know."

Deng Chuan replied, went to her room, and first let Xu Wei know she was home. Then she took a shower, lay down on her bed, and called Xu Wei.

It was a video call. Xu Wei had probably just showered too. Droplets of water clung to her fair face, making her look hazy, like flowers in a fog. Even her voice sounded as if it were veiled in mist.

Xu Wei asked how her packing was going. "Have you finished packing?"

"Haven't started yet." Deng Chuan propped her phone on her desk, pulled a suitcase from the top of her wardrobe, and opened it on the floor, packing while she talked to Xu Wei.

Xu Wei was doing her skincare routine. After putting on a face mask, it was inconvenient for her to talk, so she grabbed a book to read. They kept the video call on, occasionally looking up to see what the other was doing.

The night deepened, and the wind picked up outside, making the trees in the residential complex rustle loudly. Deng Chuan packed her clothes and other things, added some bottles and jars of skincare products and emergency medicine, and after checking that nothing was missing, she closed the suitcase and said good night to Xu Wei.

Xu Wei was already about to sleep. Mindful of Yang Jing, she kept her voice down, whispering softly to Deng Chuan, "Good night."

The plane tickets they booked were for a little after eight in the evening the next day. They would land around ten, and after getting to the hotel, they could still grab a late-night snack and get a good rest before officially starting their trip the following day.

They arranged to meet at four in the afternoon to have dinner together before heading to the airport. Driving would be inconvenient, so Deng Chuan took a taxi from her house to pick them up, and they found a random place nearby to eat.

They had ramen. Xu Wei didn't eat much, and Deng Chuan wasn't very hungry either, so the two of them shared a bowl of braised beef noodles. Yang Jing ordered a bowl of bone broth noodles, proclaiming that she wanted to eat something light before they left.

Xu Wei shot her down: "Oh, please. A polarized diet in such a short time will only lead to one result."

Xu Wei didn't say what that result was.

Yang Jing retorted, "You're disgusting."

Xu Wei said, "I'm just analyzing this from a scientific perspective."

She added, "Just don't find yourself unable to leave the bathroom."

Yang Jing, annoyed and embarrassed, shot back, "Maybe that person will be you!"

"Oh, is that so?"

Deng Chuan moved some noodles from the main bowl to a smaller one to let them cool, listening with a smile as the two of them bantered with veiled jabs.

Suddenly, the battle turned to her. "Deng Chuan, you need to control your Teacher Xu. Does she always talk to you like this?"

Deng Chuan widened her eyes and played dumb. "What?"

Xu Wei chuckled and pushed the newly arrived bowl of bone broth noodles toward Yang Jing. "Hurry up and eat. Eat more. It'll cleanse your intestines and soothe your digestive tract."

This made Yang Jing grit her teeth in frustration.

Yang Jing paid for the meal. Neither Deng Chuan nor Xu Wei minded. When traveling, some things could be split, but there was no need to split everything. Xu Wei and Yang Jing were considerate of Deng Chuan, and Deng Chuan knew it. She didn't argue, figuring she would just pay as usual in the future.

The three of them hailed a car to the airport. The Didi driver was a capable-looking woman in her thirties or early forties. She wore white silk gloves for sun protection, which rested on the steering wheel with an elegance that spoke of someone who took life seriously.

As soon as they got in, the driver struck up a friendly conversation. "Going on a trip?"

"Yeah," Yang Jing said. "Going to have some fun."

"It's summer vacation, a lot of people are traveling. Are you all teachers?"

Yang Jing smiled but didn't explain further, just giving a vague affirmative sound.

Deng Chuan wasn't paying attention to their conversation. She was staring out the window, lost in thought, when she suddenly felt Xu Wei take her hand.

She turned her head and saw the vast sunset sky behind Xu Wei reflected in the rear window. And the center of that sunset was gazing at her.

Deng Chuan read her lips:

I love you.

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