Chapter 52 p1
The four years of university passed by in a flash.
Xu Qingyan was busy with his major courses. In addition to his daily classes, his professor, seeing that he had a good aptitude, gave him some extra homework, which involved financial and monetary policies of various foreign countries. Sometimes he was so busy that he rarely had time to go home.
The most exaggerated time was when he stayed in the dormitory for three days without going home, and was finally dragged back by Lu Ze.
But this high level of study was not without its benefits. Xu Qingyan was like a sponge, desperately absorbing all the knowledge he could, and polishing this piece of raw jade to be more and more round and translucent, with a restrained brilliance.
In addition to his studies at school, in the past four years, every project that Lu Ze completed had more or less traces of Xu Qingyan’s participation. From “Qinglu” spreading throughout the country and becoming the leading luxury brand in the country; to the first land auction in Nanshi, where the two of them attended together; to the opening up of real estate policies, Lu Ze snatched up several pieces of land in major cities, and his reputation rose for a time…
Rongze Clothing Factory became Rongze Group, a behemoth that was unattainable in the eyes of outsiders, and the existence of Xu Qingyan, the chairman’s assistant, also added a bit of mystery to the group.
Who would have thought that a person who had grown up with the group was still a student who had not yet graduated?
Time flew by, and it was 1990. Xu Qingyan was already a senior and was about to graduate. While others were waiting for job assignments, he had already successfully obtained a postgraduate recommendation and was studying with an old professor who had greatly appreciated him in the past.
It was the New Year again. The number of people in the capital was visibly much smaller, and the usually bustling streets also slowly became deserted. Last year, Xu Qingyan and Lu Ze were busy with work and studies, so they didn’t go back for the New Year. Xu’s father and mother called and nagged for a long time, and came for a trip during the Lantern Festival. After staying for two days, they hurried back.
This time, for the New Year, they couldn’t not go back.
With a full trunk of goods, the two of them set off at dawn. It was not until the sun set in the evening that they finally arrived at the familiar place.
The village had not changed much in the past few years. A car driving on the road was still as eye-catching as before.
It was already the 28th of the lunar month. Xu’s father and mother knew that they were coming back and had started preparing New Year’s goods early on, including chicken, duck, fish, meat, steamed buns, and fried goods, even though they knew that they would not be staying for long and would not be able to finish all of this.
The moment the car arrived at the door, Xu’s mother was busy in the kitchen, and Xu’s father pushed his wheelchair and said with a smile, “You’re back!”
Xu Qingyan pounced on him as usual and chattered about everything that had happened recently. Lu Ze, on the other hand, took out the things from the car one by one, put them in the kitchen, rolled up his sleeves, and helped Xu’s mother prepare dinner.
Xu’s mother glanced outside and couldn’t help but shake her head. “Yanyan’s personality… he must have caused you a lot of trouble outside.”
“What do you mean by trouble?” Lu Ze skillfully picked up a fish and handled it, and said, “I’d rather he could be happy like this forever.”
Xu’s mother’s hand paused. She looked at him sideways, as if she wanted to say something, but in the end, she didn’t speak.
Dinner was a full table of dishes, without the exquisite presentation of the outside world, but it was full of the warmth and sincerity of home.
Coming back every year to drink with Xu’s father had almost become a fixed routine. Xu Qingyan couldn’t drink, and no matter how much he practiced, he couldn’t like drinking, so it was always Lu Ze who accompanied Xu’s father.
But this year was a little different. Xu’s mother also joined in the drinking.
Lu Ze’s action paused slightly. He did not refuse her action of pouring him wine, but just watched her drink one cup after another. He wanted to tell her to be careful, but he only got the reply, “It’s okay, Auntie is in a good mood.”
After three rounds of wine, the meal was not yet finished, but a wine bottle had already fallen.
Xu’s mother was smiling and seemed to ask casually, “Lu Ze, you’ll be 28 after the New Year. Haven’t you considered getting married?”
The smile on Lu Ze’s lips paused slightly, and he said, “I’m not in a hurry. It’s fine to wait a little longer.”
Xu’s mother patted his shoulder and sighed, “You have to hurry up.” She said to him in a heart-to-heart manner, “You’re not young anymore. It’s time to find a good girl and get married, and then have a child. Only then will the major events in life be resolved.”
As soon as these words were spoken, not only Lu Ze, but also the smile on Xu Qingyan’s face could not be maintained. “Mom, it’s the New Year. Why are you talking about these things…”
“And you, you too!” Before Xu Qingyan could finish, he was interrupted. Xu’s mother tapped his head. “You’ll be 22 after the New Year, and you’ll also be of the legal age for marriage. It just so happens that you’re also about to graduate. If you consider these things, I can also be at ease.”
The corners of Xu Qingyan’s lips pursed, and then he smiled again. “Mom, what are you talking about? I’ve just graduated from university. I still have to go to graduate school and get a doctorate. That’s still a long way off. Why are you worrying about this now?”
Xu’s father had been silent on the side, but at this moment, he also spoke up. “What your mother said is not wrong.”
He turned his head to look at Lu Ze. “Lu Ze, don’t mind that I’m speaking bluntly, Uncle, but your parents passed away early, and there’s no elder in the family to help you with these things. But you’ll have to get married eventually, right? While your aunt and I still have the energy, we’ll take on the role of an elder and help you look. In the future, when your aunt and I are gone, we’ll also have something to tell your parents in the afterlife, right?”
“Alright, what kind of girl do you like? I’ll have your aunt help you keep an eye out. I know that you’re doing big business now, and you must have all kinds of girls around you. The girls here are definitely not as good as the ones outside, but when it comes to being honest and frugal, they’re definitely not bad. You’re busy outside, and it’s just right to have someone to help you take care of the family.”
The room was silent for a moment.
Xu’s mother lowered her head and said to herself, “I heard that old Li’s daughter also got into university a few years ago. I’ve met that girl. She has a good personality, is patient, and has a good upbringing. I heard that she’s also working in the capital now, and she’s a good match for you in all aspects. Why don’t I help you ask around in a while? You two can meet?”
Xu Qingyan looked at his parents in a daze and opened his mouth. “Mom…”
He curled his lips. “What are you doing? It’s rare to come back, and you’re already rushing me to get married?”
Xu’s mother glanced at him and added, “And you, old Wang’s daughter from the factory graduated from high school this year. Although she didn’t get into university, she’s also smart and lively, and she’s very generous in her dealings. You should also go and meet her in a while…”
Xu Qingyan blinked slowly. He was about to say something, but Lu Ze grabbed his hand and shook his head at him.
Lu Ze was silent for a moment, then looked at the two elders seriously. “I’m sorry, Uncle and Aunt. I’m not planning to get married for the time being.”
Xu’s mother’s hand holding the wine glass trembled imperceptibly. She looked back at Xu Qingyan. “What about you? Do you think so too?”
Xu Qingyan’s heart trembled. He instantly understood something and said with some reluctance, “Mom…”
Xu’s mother drank the wine in her cup, raised her hand and wiped the corner of her eye, and lowered her head. After a long silence, she said, “You two, do you… have to be like this?”
“Mom!” Xu Qingyan’s breathing hitched, and his eyes were a little red.
Xu’s mother looked up, her brows tightly furrowed. This woman, whose back had not been bent by the hardships of life, was now choked with sobs. “Yanyan, will you listen to me? Don’t make a scene. Be a good boy, okay?”
Xu Qingyan knelt on the ground with a “thump,” his head lowered, his voice filled with a sob. “Mom, I’m sorry.”
Lu Ze followed him and knelt in front of the two elders, his voice low. “Uncle, Aunt, I’m sorry.”
Seeing this, how could Xu’s father and mother not understand? The sliver of wishful hope in their hearts instantly turned into a bubble. She kept shaking her head. “Why are you like this? Why do you have to be like this? Do you know what you’re doing? This is a disease! Go out and ask around, who wouldn’t say this is a mental illness? Who wouldn’t spit on you after hearing it?”
“You… you’re such good children. Why did you have to take this path? Why do you have to be like this?”
“Mom!” Xu Qingyan looked up, his face wet with tears. “This is not a disease. The World Health Organization has already announced this year that homosexuality has been removed from the list of mental illnesses. This is not a disease, it’s just a normal sexual orientation. Our country will also recognize it in the future. We are no different from ordinary people.”
“Whether it’s a disease or not, the fact that you’re different from others is the biggest crime!” Xu’s mother slammed the table and said angrily.
She thought of the time when they had gone to the capital during the Lantern Festival this year. They hadn’t told the two children in advance. It wasn’t until they arrived that they suddenly found that the two children had been living together all along, and the room next to them was completely empty! Although Xu Qingyan had said that it was because it was cold in the winter and it was warmer for the two of them to live together, how could Xu’s mother not see that there was no trace of life in the other room?
She was immediately suspicious, and on one occasion, she accidentally saw a mark on her son’s neck. As a mother, how could she not know what that meant?
But who could he be with? Who could he be with! The two children had been inseparable for the two days they had been there. Lu Ze was even more hands-on with his affairs, serving him food, washing his clothes, and cooking, and even brought him a basin of water to wash his feet! If they were of different genders, it would be no different from an ordinary couple!
How could Xu’s mother not be shocked, how could she not be angry? She suppressed her shock and thought of trying to test them when she came back this time to see if she could straighten them out. Who knew it would be this result?
Xu’s mother was so angry that she couldn’t help but cry. It was hard to imagine how the two children she was most satisfied with could have become like this. But on second thought, it seemed that they had been getting along like this for a long time, but she had never paid attention to it.
Lu Ze wanted to open his mouth. “Auntie—”
Xu’s mother raised her hand, one hand on the table, her gaze falling elsewhere. “You two, when did it start?”
Lu Ze opened his mouth. Xu Qingyan said, “When I was in high school.”
“When you were in high school?” Xu’s mother was about to laugh out of anger. “So it was the two of you, when you had just entered the city?”
Xu Qingyan did not refute. “A while before the New Year.”
Xu’s mother’s tears were streaming down her face. She raised her hand to wipe them away, but her cheeks were soon wet again. “You… who took the initiative?”
Lu Ze: “It was me—”
“I was the one who had feelings for Lu-ge first.” Xu Qingyan also couldn’t control his tears, but he said, word by word, with determination, “I was the one who liked him first.”
He looked up at Xu’s mother and gritted his teeth. “Mom, I’m sorry.”
Xu’s mother pointed at him, her whole body trembling. “How could you? How could you?”
“When did you pick up this bad habit? You were so obedient, so well-behaved. You weren’t like this before…”
Xu Qingyan: “It wasn’t a bad habit I picked up at some point. I’ve always been like this. I’ve never liked girls before. Mom, I can’t control it. I’m just naturally attracted to men…”
“You’ve never tried to like a girl? How do you know you’re naturally attracted to men?” Xu’s mother shook her head. “Xu Qingyan, did you think about me and your dad when you said that? We only have you as a son. Have you thought about what will happen to us if you’re like this?”
She turned to look at Lu Ze. “And you, Lu Ze. You’re the only heir left in the Lu family. Haven’t you thought about carrying on the family line? Haven’t you thought about how you’ll explain it to your parents and your ancestors in the future?”
Lu Ze was silent for a long time. “I have.” He looked at Xu’s mother. “But Aunt, in my situation, if I were to be with a girl for the sake of carrying on the family line? What’s the difference between that and harming her?”
Xu’s mother said excitedly, “You’ll live a good life with her! You’ll treat her well! How is that harming her?”
Xu Qingyan said, “But I don’t like her, and I don’t love her!”
“What’s love or not love? A good life is lived out! Look at me and your dad, look at so many people around, who has ‘like’ and ‘love’ on their lips?” She reached out to hold Xu Qingyan’s hand, tears streaming down her face, her voice sorrowful. “Yanyan, be a good boy. Listen to me. Can you two break up?”
Xu Qingyan shook his head. “Mom, we can’t break up.”
“You should understand me. When Dad’s leg was injured, Grandma advised you to remarry and find a good life while you were still young. Didn’t you also refuse?”
“You can’t leave Dad, and I can’t leave Lu-ge.”
He withdrew his hand with a trembling voice. “Mom, I’m sorry, I’m really sorry…”
Xu’s mother looked at him in a daze, then at Lu Ze. “So, you two are determined to be like this? You can’t change?”
Xu Qingyan bit his lower lip tightly. “Lu-ge and I, we’re living very well now.”
“As long as I think of being with him every day, I’m very happy. I can’t imagine what would happen if we were to break up one day.”
“Mom…” he looked at Xu’s mother with a pleading look. “Didn’t you say that your biggest wish in this life is to see me healthy and happy? I’m very happy now, and I won’t be happier than this in the future.” He slowly moved in front of Xu’s mother and rested his face on her lap, rubbing it gently like he did when he was a child. “Mom, you know my personality. I will definitely work hard to get what I want. I like a person, and I will never forget him in this life. Do you want to see us forced to break up, and then I’ll be unhappy for the rest of my life?”
The corners of Xu’s mother’s mouth trembled, and she looked away in embarrassment.
He said, “I’ve never asked you for anything, but this matter, only this matter.” His tears wet Xu’s mother’s clothes. “Mom, I’m begging you, I’m begging you. I don’t expect you to accept it immediately, but please just try to see. Lu-ge is very good, and we are also very good. We have been together for so many years, and for the many years to come, we will continue to be like this. We will not live worse than others. Mom, please see…”
Xu’s father, on the side, covered his face and looked away.
