【013】
Guan Ning’s tone was laced with a self-righteous, bossy arrogance.
Before Yu Ting could answer, Lu Yan clicked his tongue. “Guan Ning, are you a dog, following the scent here?”
Guan Ning looked smug, the tip of his nose tilting up slightly. “You skipped the dinner Uncle Lu arranged for you, so I guessed my brother was here! I guessed right.” Joy practically leaped from his eyes, more intensely than the sizzling oil at the next table, as he looked at Lu Jue with sparkling eyes. “Brother, aren’t I smart?”
Lu Jue’s expression was indifferent. “If you want to eat, stay quiet.”
Guan Ning immediately pressed his lips tightly shut into a seamless line. But since his mouth couldn’t speak, he still had his eyes to interrogate Yu Ting.
“Just who are you!”
The moment he saw Yu Ting, alarm bells had blared in his head!
In all his life, he had never seen Lu Jue treat anyone so… so… amiable?
His Chinese was only at a daily conversation level; he was still learning idioms.
Under Guan Ning’s intense stare, Yu Ting answered concisely, “I’m Lu Jue’s classmate, Yu Ting.”
The corner of Lu Jue’s eye twitched, but he said nothing. He took the menu and added five more plates each to the beef tongue and pork belly orders. Unable to find iced water, he checked a pitcher of iced lemon water, adding a note—’No lemons.’
“Yu—Ting?” Guan Ning rolled his tongue, humming twice without opening his mouth.
Before Yu Ting could be surprised, Lu Jue spoke up beside him, “He’s mixed-race, always lived abroad. I’ve told him countless times not to call just anyone ‘brother,’ but he never listens.”
Guan Ning was about to open his mouth, but under Lu Jue’s impatient glance, he pouted and closed it again.
Yu Ting asked Lu Jue for a pencil and wrote “Yu Ting” in the blank space at the top of the menu.
Guan Ning stared at it several times, then gave a soft “Hmph.”
What was so great about that? He was diligently practicing writing every day now; eventually, he would write characters even more beautifully than Yu Ting!
After ordering, the food arrived exceptionally fast. It was mostly meat, so much that it solidly covered the generously sized table. That still wasn’t enough, as the waitress wheeled over a three-tiered serving cart.
The last thing brought was a pitcher of ice water. The waitress, afraid of making a mistake, confirmed with Lu Jue again before relaxing and crossing items off the menu, smiling. “All your dishes are here. Enjoy your meal.”
Lu Jue poured a glass of water and picked it up. Guan Ning had just lifted his eyes when the glass unsurprisingly landed in front of Yu Ting.
Guan Ning was extremely annoyed, muttering under his breath in a string of sounds. Lu Jue ignored him. He opened his milk tea lid and poured ice water into the cup.
Guan Ning’s pupils trembled in shock as he watched Lu Jue lift the watered-down milk tea and drink it all in one go.
The last time he returned to the country, he had meticulously chosen a baseball cap as a gift for Lu Jue, but Lu Jue hadn’t even opened it because the box was tied with a pink ribbon.
At that time, he thought Lu Jue really disliked pink, so he angrily fed the pink ribbon into a shredder.
Guan Ning couldn’t hold back. “Brother, didn’t you used to not like pink?”
Just then, another waitress came over, offering to grill the meat. Lu Jue took the tongs. “We’ll do it ourselves.”
The waitress left. Lu Jue first placed the pork belly on the grill, then laid out beef tongue to cover the rest.
Only then did he reply indifferently, “I like it now.”
Lu Yan was preparing dipping sauces. He asked for a separate small bowl and poured only the plain, original sauce into it.
Lu Jue moved efficiently, showing no sign of being a first-time griller. The beef tongue, cooking in seconds, was picked up and placed onto Yu Ting’s plate. He then tossed a piece of beef tongue onto Lu Yan’s plate. “Rongcheng’s cuisine is mainly spicy; how will you manage?”
Rongcheng was located in the southwest, worlds apart from Jing City, its flavors even more so, dominated by spice.
Lu Yan looked at the cooked beef tongue, silently clicking his tongue at Lu Jue’s “attentive service.” “I’ll manage however I manage. As long as I don’t die, it’s fine.”
Lu Jue’s gaze swept over Lu Yan’s wrist. Lu Yan never wore accessories. From kindergarten until now, the only things on Lu Yan’s body had been scars from fights. Today, he wore a string of black sandalwood beads with golden veining.
He withdrew his hand. Successive pieces of beef tongue were cooking, and under Guan Ning’s expectant gaze, he successively placed several pieces onto Yu Ting’s plate, casually mentioning, “Lu Yan is heading to the military unit in Rongcheng.”
Yu Ting wasn’t familiar with Lu Yan, but since the topic came up, he politely asked, “Joining the army?”
“Spend a few years as a soldier, then apply for the police academy,” Lu Yan replied.
Yu Ting nodded. He rarely dined out with others, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t socialize. On the contrary, he was quite a good conversationalist and proactively started talking about Rongcheng’s specialties.
For instance, Rongcheng wasn’t just about numbing spice; it also had many dishes suited to northern tastes.
His speech was unhurried, his voice clean and refreshing. Lu Jue listened even more attentively than Lu Yan, grilling meat while turning his head to ask, “You like Rongcheng?”
“Been there once.” Memories from age four were always fuzzy, but the sweetness of that trip to Rongcheng had always remained clear.
That dessert was called Cold Rice Cake, drizzled with a thick layer of brown sugar syrup. One spoonful, and the stifling summer day turned sweet.
“How about we just take him to Rongcheng after we eat?” Lu Jue said half-jokingly. “He’s taking a private jet; two more people won’t take up any space.”
Before Yu Ting could answer, Lu Yan spoke first. “Forget it. My dad’s afraid I might have it too easy and come home. He insists I take the hard-seat green train.”
Guan Ning finally found a chance to interject, asking fussily, “What’s a green train?”
Neither Lu Jue nor Lu Yan paid him any attention. The atmosphere instantly froze, so Yu Ting stepped in and explained.
Because Yu Ting acknowledged Guan Ning, Guan Ning immediately got energized. He was already quite beautiful, and when he acted sweet, he wasn’t as annoying. “Brother Yu Ting, what does your family do?”
“My mom runs a small flower nursery.”
Guan Ning was shocked. “Growing flowers! So she’s a gardener—”
The rest of his words died under Lu Jue’s glance. Another batch of beef tongue was almost ready. Guan Ning didn’t eat beef tongue, but afraid Lu Jue would pile it all onto Yu Ting’s plate again, he scrambled to frantically fill his own plate. Only once it was all in his plate did he relax, pick out a piece, and stuff it in his mouth.
After one chew, he yanked a napkin out and spat it out, barely covering his mouth. “So greasy!” He huffed a complaint, “The quality’s terrible too. How can anyone eat this?”
“Don’t eat it then.” Lu Yan put down his chopsticks.
Guan Ning wanted to retort, but Lu Yan had already gotten up and called the waitress. “Where’s the restroom?”
Lu Jue also stood. “I’m going too.”
Both of them left. Yu Ting’s plate was piled high with grilled meat. Lu Jue’s grilling service was decent; the texture of the grilled meat was very tender. Yu Ting was wrapping pork belly when Guan Ning across from him spoke again. “Brother Yu Ting, it seems like you and my brother have an especially good relationship?”
Yu Ting looked at the glistening meat and nodded. “Yeah.”
At the same time, in the restroom, Lu Jue was slowly washing his hands at the sink. When Lu Yan came over, he asked with a smile, “That Buddhist bracelet of yours, has it been consecrated?”
Letting the cold water run over the million-yuan beads on his wrist, Lu Yan frowned in disgust, tugging his left eyebrow. “Blame my dad. Scared I’ll die, he found some grandmaster to consecrate it. Just a bunch of broken wood, but he cried and threw a fit, demanding I wear it every day or he wouldn’t let me go to the military.”
Lu Jue then asked, “Any openings?”
Lu Yan was surprised. “You believe in this stuff too?”
The corners of Lu Jue’s mouth quirked up. “Just asking.”
Lu Yan didn’t comment further. He called his dad, got the address, and told Lu Jue, adding, “That grandmaster goes into seclusion tomorrow. He’ll be out in a month.”
Lu Jue said no more. He grabbed a paper towel, dried his hands meticulously, and was the first to leave the restroom.
When he got back, Yu Ting had more or less finished eating. Now Yu Ting was the one grilling meat, and Guan Ning was eating. Lu Jue frowned slightly but then, as if nothing had happened, returned to his seat.
For the rest of the meal, Yu Ting silently grilled the meat. Guan Ning mostly chatted about himself, while Lu Jue and Lu Yan exchanged a few words sporadically.
The meat on the table gradually emptied. When they were almost done eating, Lu Jue asked Lu Yan about borrowing the apartment.
“Gotta catch my train. Leaving first.” Lu Yan wiped his mouth, bringing nothing but his phone. “You can head over there today. Stay as long as you want.”
Lu Jue waved. “Thanks.”
Lu Yan couldn’t be bothered to reply, but he did smile at Yu Ting. He had a good impression of Yu Ting. “Classmate Yu, if you ever get the chance to visit Rongcheng, my treat.”
Yu Ting also smiled. “Sure.”
Lu Yan left. They ate a little longer, then Lu Jue went to pay the bill.
The barbecue restaurant wasn’t in a shopping mall. Stepping outside led directly into a residential area, not a bustling commercial hub, mostly consisting of low-rise buildings and rows upon rows of small shops.
Guan Ning knew Lu Jue would shoo him away, so he stuck close to Yu Ting. “Brother Yu Ting, when are you leaving?”
“The day after tomorrow.”
“Great! Let me show you around Jing City tomorrow!” Guan Ning said enthusiastically. “I’m not familiar with anywhere else in China, but I know Jing City inside and out! I know all the best food and fun spots!”
Just then, Lu Jue hailed a taxi at the curb and called out to Guan Ning, “Come here.”
Guan Ning trotted over excitedly. Just as he was about to speak, Lu Jue pressed a hand on his shoulder, shoved him into the taxi, gave the driver the address, and the taxi drove off.
After sending Guan Ning away, Lu Jue walked back to Yu Ting. “Let’s go back to the hotel to get your luggage. Lu Yan’s place is very quiet.”
Yu Ting nodded and asked him, “Bus or taxi?”
If it were just him, he’d definitely take the bus. It only cost one yuan.
Lu Jue raised an eyebrow. “It’s so close; let’s take the bus.”
‘Close’ might have been an overstatement; it was about 20 stops away, but at least it was direct, no transfers needed.
This area wasn’t a commercial center, and the dinner rush had passed. The two didn’t have to queue; they boarded directly. The bus even had more than half its seats empty.
There was a window seat in the back area, two connected seats. Yu Ting sat down in the inner, window seat. The bus’s AC wasn’t on, so he pushed the window open a crack. A sliver of wind immediately slipped in—not particularly cool, but refreshing enough on the face to relieve the heat.
Lu Jue soon sat down next to him. Yu Ting looked at the small shops receding outside the window and suddenly said, “Is there a shopping mall near Lu Yan’s place?”
Lu Jue turned his head to look at him. “Should be. You want to go shopping?”
Yu Ting also turned his head. “To buy gifts for my mom and aunt.” He thought for a moment, then added, “And a friend. His birthday is coming up.”
Lu Jue suppressed the urge to ask about that friend’s gender. His prominent, defined Adam’s apple bobbed a few times irritably before he replied noncommittally, “We’ll check when we get there.”
Perhaps because they had just eaten, or perhaps because the bus was so quiet, neither of them spoke further.
Yu Ting looked out the window. As evening approached, the Jing City sunset was a pinkish-orange glow. Several consecutive stops passed with no new passengers boarding. The empty, quiet bus passed through a lively little street and slowly turned onto a one-way lane lined with rose bushes on both sides.
The ground-planted Angela Roses were like flowering trees, growing just a bit taller than the bus. Right in the peak blooming season, the branches were laden with blossoms in deep and pale pinks. The road was narrow; occasionally, drooping branches almost brushed the bus windows, their layers of pink petals pressed against the glass.
The sunset enveloped the flowering trees, blanketing the sea of pink petals in another layer of dreamy orange light.
The driver deliberately slowed down.
Passengers who had been dozing woke up one by one, raising their phones to take photos.
Yu Ting thought Lu Jue had fallen asleep. Turning his head to wake him, he found himself caught in those pitch-black, deep, bottomless eyes.
His intended words were delayed for two or three seconds before he managed to say, “The scenery outside is beautiful.”
Passing another rose tree, the sunset shone through the glass, dappling and fragmented onto Yu Ting’s face. His facial contours were usually sharply defined and cool, but now, tinged by the sunset, the lines softened into an unexpectedly gentle, obedient look.
Even Lu Jue’s voice softened in turn. He chuckled lightly. “I saw it long ago. Beautiful to an excessive degree.”
