Chapter 10: Before

Chengqing’s body was limp and leaning on me, and my nose was already starting to sting.

In the end, no matter who the missing person is, it’s not that person, is it?

“But it’s not right. Master lied to me… I’ve experienced all those memories with my uncles, right? How can I find them? I envy you, I really do… because I want to have a reunion like this, too. Unfortunately, Master left first… I can only wait for the next life to reunite with him!” Chengqing is already drunk.

I didn’t know how to comfort Chengqing, and the strong drink burned in my chest, but I just wanted to drink more.

Sometimes, it is no wonder that men have a special way of expressing their feelings. It is to drink in silence. At some point, words are useless. The meaning of drinking with you is to express that you are with you through thick and thin, that I understand your pain, that I am as sad as you are, and that I will walk with you.

The alcohol dripped down my chin and onto my collar, burning my throat, chest, stomach, and lower abdomen, and then rushing up to my brain… Chengqing didn’t stop me from drinking. Maybe in this lonely and lost moment, having someone to drink with is also a kind of comfort.

“Chengyi, you said that I will be able to see my master again, just a little later than you guys, right?” I helped Chengqing walk towards the house.

The rising smoke from the kitchen had stopped, and the smell of food was coming from inside. It looked like it was almost time to eat. I had only one thought in my head: I had to take Chengqing back to eat, and let everyone warm him up. When he asked me the question, I answered very firmly, “Yes!” As long as he was better, it was all right.

“Chengyi, Master Jiang said that we are going to be fugitives. I just want to spend more time with Master now. I should spend more time with him, right?”

“Yes!”

“Chengyi, after we flee to the ends of the earth, we may never return. Don’t avoid this. Who can guarantee that? So you say, am I right? It’s okay to spend more time with him, even if he gets drunk, right?”

“Yes!”

“Chengyi… even if you die, at least we can meet again a little earlier, right?” Chengqing’s voice suddenly became low.

“No, Chengqing, everything is fate. We have been through thick and thin together, how can you be lonely? You can be envious, but you can’t be lonely.” I wiped the wine off my mouth, and this time I didn’t say yes. With the help of the wine, I said what I was thinking.

“That’s right. I’m the eldest brother, and you guys are really troublesome, especially Chen Chengyi, you’re a real trouble maker! I have to keep an eye on you…” Chengqing’s speech began to slur.

“I’m the eldest brother!” I jumped up and started to argue.

Chengqing grabbed me by the neck and said, “I’m the eldest brother, I am! I am!”

“I am!”

“I am…”

“Ha ha…”

Chengqing didn’t eat lunch after all, and fell asleep on the bed. This cold and indifferent guy, I saw him drunk for the first time, but it’s good. Suppressing your thoughts and not being able to vent them will cause internal injuries.

In the middle of the trip, the master and the uncles came and went to see Chengqing a few times. One time, I even saw Uncle Chen wiping Chengqing’s face. I don’t know if it was my illusion, but I saw Uncle Chen crying, and my master standing by the window looking at Uncle Li’s grave and wondering what he was thinking.

When he came out, my master said something inexplicably: “It’s better to be drunk than not to know that you’re drunk. It’s terrible not to know that you’re drunk.”

Is that so? At that time, when the master left, was it better for me to be drunk than not to know that I was drunk? Maybe it was, otherwise, I think I would have gone crazy.

I don’t know how many more days I would have had in the quiet days of the Bamboo Grove. Anyway, when Chengqing woke up that night, Master had not mentioned leaving, and everyone was doing their own things and chatting as if it were a secret that could not be revealed.

It was already late at night. After I had chatted with my parents and sister for a while, I was about to go to sleep when Master came to me.

“Come with me,” Master said simply.

I didn’t know what the master wanted to do, but I still stood up silently and followed him.

The night was quiet, with Master’s back in front and mine behind. The road was familiar. Wasn’t that the shed behind the bamboo forest hut where I used to go for a bath when I was little?

In fact, we were also looking at that place. After we walked in, a familiar scent rushed into my nose. Looking at the rising steam, I, who had always told myself not to cry easily, suddenly had tears in my eyes.

This is something I have dreamed of many times. When I was a child, I spent night after night quietly bathing. Now, is it really possible…?

“What are you still doing? Take off your clothes and get in. Chen said your wound has healed well and the hot spring is no longer an issue.” The master brought a stool over and placed it next to the familiar wooden tub.

Of course, I was no longer stunned, and quickly took off my clothes and everything else, leaving only a pair of shorts, and jumped into the wooden tub in one go… The familiar fragrance and warmth immediately surrounded me, and the familiar refreshing feeling made me feel relaxed and sleepy at the same time.

At this time, the master also lit his pipe. Finally… finally everything was in order. The fragrance of the fragrant water mixed with the smell of the pipe tobacco. This was the smell of the quietest and warmest nights of my childhood. This kind of satisfaction made my eyes red again. I couldn’t help but pick up a handful of water and pour it on my face twice, trying hard to hold back the tears that were surging up.

“Silly!” Master scolded, then took a towel, dipped it in water, and began to wipe my body. His voice came from behind me: “I thought this big wooden tub was useless, but I didn’t expect it to be so clean. It can be used after being scalded with hot water. Just like the first time I visited the bamboo hut, I thought it must be deserted and overgrown with weeds… but it’s actually very tidy! In recent years, I think your parents must have been cleaning it.”

I closed my eyes and felt a warm feeling in my heart, but I said lazily, “Master, I really don’t know. Maybe it is?”

“Well, then it should be.” The master’s voice was very calm.

We were silent for a moment, and then he suddenly said, “Chengyi, I have been wandering all my life. When I built this small bamboo house, I really didn’t know that I would have such a deep affection for it. For some reason, this place has become like a home. I used to think that the place where I had a master was home.”

“Master?” I didn’t understand why Master suddenly said this, and couldn’t help but ask in a low voice.

“People get old and become attached to their homes! I was just making a metaphor. If one day I get old and forget everything, I want to spend my old age here, and I want you to be by my side.” Master suddenly said this, and he even showed signs of weakness… Master never acts like this!

I suddenly felt like my heart had been stabbed in the softest place, and I couldn’t help but say loudly, “Master, what kind of question is that? Of course I want to take care of you in your old age! When you were young, the place where your master was was your home. When you are old, of course the place where I am is your home! If you like, we can stay in the bamboo forest cottage. How could you be so old that you don’t know people? Taoists don’t grow old like that.”

The master suddenly stopped wiping my body. He was a little stunned, which made me anxious. I just wanted to ask why, but I felt a pain in my head. It turned out that the master had slapped me.

“What are you so excited about? I just wanted to test your filial piety. You little brat, I’ve been worried about you since you were born. I practically raised you when you were little! I still want to see if you have filial piety. Can’t I?” The master said to me in dissatisfaction.

I rubbed my head, which was a bit sore, and grumbled in dissatisfaction, “Do you have to do that? If you don’t have filial piety, the whole world will be looking for you.”

“Forget it, let’s talk about it later. This time you know that we are going to run away, and we don’t know if we can come back.” The master put a wet towel on my face.

I took the towel, wrung out a handful of water, and placed it on my forehead. Leaning against the wooden bucket, I said comfortably, “Who cares? It’s not a bad thing to be on the run. Compared to the days of wandering around looking for you, I would rather be on the run.”

“It’s not that simple.” The master sat down on the stool again and couldn’t help but knock me with his pipe.

I laughed and said, “Master, how did you get this news?”

“Wu Liyu, that guy. You think he’s been running this business for so long and doesn’t have any connections in the organization? It’s about time.” The master took a puff of his pipe, and the thick smoke rose with the heat to the roof of the shed, forming droplets that fell to the ground.

“So when are we leaving? Who is helping us to delay these days?” I have always been curious about this question.

But the master was silent. Suddenly he patted me again and yelled, “Take a good bath. It’s hard to say who will help us, but at least I have an idea about who will help us on the surface!”