The Decade of Deep Love

Translator: Claire.KK

Zhishu stayed up all night long. He kept staring blankly at the tiny gap through which the light came in between the curtains until dawn.

He didn’t think himself a good person or deserved to be loved. He wasn’t as pretty as he used to be, wasn’t as likable as he used to be, wasn’t as healthy as he used to be. However, he had been staying in the doctor’s place like it was his own house, at the same time, hurting his feelings. But he just couldn’t respond to the doctor because he didn’t have the heart to see him sink deeper.

He wished that, when he was gone, he would just be some common guy that the doctor didn’t spend too much effort pursuing, that time would cure every wound, that the doctor would eventually be married and get back to a normal life instead of losing a most committed love that would agonize him for the rest of his life.

If the doctor touched him, it would be some sort of compensation, a debt Zhishu could pay off. And if he didn’t, Zhishu would keep Ziyu Ai in his mind for however much time he had got left.

Zhishu He left the bedroom very early. The dawn was only shimmering as it was not even six o’clock in the south of the country.

The living room had been well tidied up, not a single trace of Ziyu’s smashing from last night could be spotted. But around the room, there were several vases missing, as well as a full exquisite set of Song Kilned tea ware. But there was a white ceramic bowl that had melted crystal sugar and strawberries in it sitting squarely on the tea table. 𝑓𝐫𝑒e𝒘𝚎𝘣𝚗𝘰𝘷𝐞𝑙.co𝑚

Ziyu was sitting on the sofa looking at his cellphone, he put the phone down as soon as he saw Zhishu come out. “Wake up so early? Why didn’t you get more sleep?” He said in his daily gentle tone as if nothing happened last night.

But Zhishu noticed the dark circles under his bloodshot eyes right away. “Sorry…”

Ziyu chuckled, an implication of forbearance and indulgence. “Silly…” He opened his arms to Zhishu and gave him a smile that was meant to please him, “How could I get mad at you?”

“You stayed up all night.” Zhishu frowned but walked up into the doctor’s arms anyway.

“I’m gonna get some sleep now. Together?” The “together” was explicit and flirtatious.

Zhishu knew that the doctor was making fun of him. Not after he did a little reflection did he realize how bold he was last night, which was so embarrassing that his face turned beet red, from ears to neck.

Ziyu stroked his hair, “Have some strawberries, you ate nothing yesterday.”

What the doctor learned in college was what patients can or cannot eat, but now here he became a home cook.

Zhishu He went to eat some. The strawberries were quite good, he even took several sips of the soup.

Ziyu could tell that Zhishu had a rough night. He knew Zhishu wasn’t the type of person that tended to fail others. Heartache overwhelmed him when he calmed down. Looking back, Ziyu Ai felt he probably was too humiliated to stay calm, to be honest, it was not like he had never had those thoughts before.

He wasn’t blaming Zhishu at all.

Wenxu Jiang drove to Longjing Road by himself. Last night, the precise location of Ziqian Ai’s tea plantation was sent to his cellphone, he was going to go there at once but he then hesitated.

He didn’t want himself to look repulsive because of his stubble and messy hair; also he didn’t want to shock Zhishu He in the middle of the night.

He drove around West Lake for several laps last night but dared not to get off for a walk. He didn’t even need to be there in person to picture the scenes of the past in his mind, like the bench next to the fifth willow tree at the north of the lake was Zhishu’s favorite, like he rode his bike around West Lake in circles with Zhishu on the backseat, like his drawing of elephants for him, the kite he made for him, like they took a boat to the middle of the lake and he threatened him that they had to swim back if Zhishu didn’t kiss him...

Wenxu pressed hard on his nasal bridge, he told him that he wasn’t allowed to cry. He still had the chance to refurbish the rusty recollections with Zhishu.

It only took less than half an hour to drive from Wetland Hotel of West Lake District to Longjing Road. Wenxu didn’t really know the roads in the tea plantation areas, so he took another 40 minutes to find the place.

Ziqian Ai’s plantation wasn’t big; it was about 3000 square meters. The environment was nice and it had a little lake in it. In front of the three-story villa inside the tea plantation, there was a small parterre of jasmine seedlings protected by white fences.

Wenxu got off the car; from outside the wires barring the tea plantation, he saw a large golden retriever chasing something by the lake. Wenxu’s vision often got blurred lately, so he spent half a minute to recognize those little things. Those were some cats that the dog was playing with. Zhishu He’s cats.

He climbed over a low wooden gate to get inside. He kept his lips sealed and tried not to knock the door impatiently.

Ziyu Ai just put Zhishu in bed to get more sleep. As he came downstairs after closing the door, he heard someone knocking on the front door. The knocks weren’t rushed but ceaseless, which was really annoying.

He saw a man in his 30s that looked quite smart as he opened the tiny window on the burglarproof door. The man had a handsome manly face, but only his lips looked oddly blue. Perhaps his heart wasn’t doing very well.

“Who do you want?” Ziyu Ai asked.

As a sophisticated businessman, Wenxu could keep a record of everyone he ever saw, he immediately recognized that it was the man in the CCTV footage. He was so worked up all of sudden that veins were popping on his forehead. “Open up.”

Less chance, of course, for Ziyu to open the door. He wasn’t scared but he got Zhishu in the house. “Who are you?” He asked again.

Wenxu humphed. He suddenly banged on the door very hard but his tone was still calm and polite, “Family name Jiang, Wenxu Jiang!”

Ziyu Ai stood still for quite a long time or at least he thought he did. The fact was he didn’t even allow Wenxu to make a second bang. He pounced out like a leopard at the fastest speed in his entire life and he didn’t forget to shut the door.

“Fuck you, asshole!”