Still Frame Chapter 14

Chapter 14 The Dim Lamp (2)

Zhang Liuxin slowly opened his eyes. His mind was still hazy, but his gaze was clear. He propped himself up and said, “You should sleep first.”

“Lie down and don’t move.”

Wen Jin’s voice was slightly hoarse. In the darkness, Zhang Liuxin couldn’t see his movements, only sensing a faint sound coming from his left. Wen Jin had gotten out of bed. Zhang Liuxin didn’t know where he went, only hearing very light footsteps.

After a while, there was a sudden soft click, and a spot of orange-yellow light slowly spread out. The warm glow, wrapped in a faint scent of kerosene, outlined the silhouette of a pair of long, well-proportioned hands, carving a shallow, gentle hole in the thick darkness before them.

The halo of light moved closer to Zhang Liuxin. This small light illuminated Wen Jin’s face just right, allowing Zhang Liuxin to see his straight nose bridge and his thinly pressed lips.

Wen Jin placed the lamp on the floor, positioned perfectly to light up Zhang Liuxin’s side. The warm light seemed to soften his voice: “Sleep.”

“What about you?”

Wen Jin’s voice came from a slightly further distance. Zhang Liuxin used the dim yellow light to see him sitting on the rattan chair with his back to him.

“In a bit. You sleep.”

Zhang Liuxin asked him, “Did I disturb you just now?”

A deep sigh, like the night itself, came through the darkness: “Go to sleep quickly.”

Zhang Liuxin fell silent, closing his eyes. The air was so quiet he couldn’t even hear Wen Jin’s breathing.

Before his conscious awareness faded, he was still thinking about Wen Jin’s back in the dim lamplight.

The next day, Zhang Liuxin slowly opened his eyes, following his biological clock. The first thing that came into view was Wen Jin’s profile.

The hazy morning light shone in, casting a soft hue over Wen Jin’s face. Wen Jin in sleep was not as unapproachable as he was normally; he looked like a beautiful painting—quiet, sacred, and untouchable.

At moments like this, Zhang Liuxin always thought that the heavens were too generous to Wen Jin, as if eager to bestow every beautiful thing upon him.

It wasn’t until Wen Jin suddenly opened his eyes that Zhang Liuxin met those ink-black pupils, practically seeing his own stunned expression reflected in them. Only then did he belatedly shift backward, propping himself up, intending to get out of bed.

Unexpectedly, the moment he moved, an arm wrapped around his shoulder and pulled him closer. Wen Jin rubbed his shoulder, a movement that made him feel ticklish, but seeing Wen Jin’s expressionless handsome face, he didn’t dare move, lying there stiffly.

“How long have you been awake?”

“Not long,” caught in the act of staring, Zhang Liuxin awkwardly rubbed his nose. “Let’s get up.”

“Mhm.”

This scene felt somewhat strange to them. They had lived together for seven years at Wenfei Terrace, but because the house was so large, they had never washed up side-by-side, shoulder-to-shoulder, like this.

Seeing their synchronized movements in the mirror, Zhang Liuxin realized with a start that perhaps, at some point, he and Wen Jin had been subtly influencing each other.

After washing up, Zhang Liuxin put on his exoskeleton while worrying about its battery life. There was no specialized charger here. If the power ran out… Zhang Liuxin could no longer remember what life without the exoskeleton was like. It was difficult to go from luxury to frugality; he didn’t want to be disabled again.

“Good morning.”

Wen Jin greeted him in the Bernlin language he had learned last night. Because he had changed back into his own shirt, the collar was slightly open. He didn’t look as mature and steady as usual, but more like a young master from a noble family.

“Good morning,” Zhang Liuxin yawned, then suddenly remembered that when he woke up, he seemed to have shrunk into Wen Jin’s arms. “Oh, right, I don’t think I sleep very still. Should I ask Boss Tu if they have an extra mattress later?”

“No need. You were quite still.”

With that single sentence from Wen Jin, Zhang Liuxin didn’t know what else to say. But if Wen Jin didn’t mind, there was no need for him to be overly sensitive.

Last night, Tu Huisha had left some cash and a shopping list of ingredients at the front desk, telling them that there was a morning market today and asking them to buy some fresh fruit.

It shouldn’t have been a difficult task, but upon reaching the market, they realized that the fruits in Bernlin Prefecture were vastly different from those in Yin Prefecture.

The morning market was unfamiliar to both of them—bustling and noisy. Old people carrying woven baskets could be seen everywhere hawking their goods. Seeing Zhang Liuxin and Wen Jin as strangers, they enthusiastically called out to them. Zhang Liuxin couldn’t understand the heavy accents, so he could only smile politely, struggling to squeeze through the crowd.

“Liuxin.”

A weight settled on his shoulder as Wen Jin’s hand rested there. He shifted slightly, and Zhang Liuxin was shielded within his arm, his footsteps steady as he followed. “Be careful.”

“Okay.”

They walked this way until they reached the fruit section. As they stopped in front of a fruit stall, Zhang Liuxin noticed the stall owner’s slightly odd gaze. Only then did he realize that Wen Jin’s hand had somehow slipped to his waist and was now holding him tightly.

“Yue Zhuo.”

Unsure if it was embarrassment or urgency, Zhang Liuxin quickly pulled his hand away.

Wen Jin slowly withdrew his hand, signaling him to focus on the task at hand.

Zhang Liuxin showed the list Tu Huisha had written to the stall owner. The owner was a kind-faced, quick-handed elderly woman who quickly packed the items for them.

“What is this?”

Zhang Liuxin saw a very strange-looking lemon. It had the same rough yellow peel, but it wasn’t round like a regular lemon; its shape was somewhat messy.

“It’s our local specialty, Laidi Lemon,” the old woman picked one up. “You must be staying at Huisha’s shop. I’ll give you one. This one smells very fragrant, and the flesh isn’t as sour when cut open. You can eat it directly.”

Unable to refuse the generous offer, Zhang Liuxin was handed a Laidi Lemon. He sniffed it; it did have a unique fragrance, much richer than the ordinary lemons in Yin Prefecture.

“Wen Jin, this really smells good. Do you want to smell it?”

Wen Jin was carrying things in both hands. He lowered his head, and Zhang Liuxin held the lemon closer.

“Mhm,” Wen Jin nodded. “It smells like you.”

Clatter—Zhang Liuxin’s hand paused. He lost his grip, and the lemon dropped, rolling several times before stopping.

If he didn’t know Wen Jin’s personality, he would genuinely mistake Wen Jin for flirting with him.

However, hearing him say that, Zhang Liuxin remembered. He had a bottle of everyday perfume, a relatively niche scent. The base note was this interwoven fragrance of greenness and richness.

At the time, Levi had said this scent wasn’t professional or formal, forbidding him from using it for work or events, which was why he still had a small half left after using that tiny bottle for several years.

Now that he thought about it, perhaps it was due to his Bernlin heritage that he had unconsciously become fond of this scent.

After buying everything, they met Uncle Feng on the way back home. Seeing that Uncle Feng was struggling with large bags of groceries, Zhang Liuxin proactively took them, helping him carry the vegetables back to his house.

“Thank you, young men,” Uncle Feng’s voice was still loud and cheerful. “My son is coming home soon. Come visit the bookstore often; he always complains that it’s boring here.”

“We will.”

“Oh, right, didn’t you like reading newspapers? I have some old newspapers and magazines in my storage room. Take them if you don’t mind.”

“Thank you, Uncle Feng.”

Receiving a large stack of newspapers and magazines was a pleasant surprise. He hadn’t expected the residents of Bernlin Prefecture to be so enthusiastic. The simple and cheerful local customs involuntarily moved Zhang Liuxin.

Back at the shop, Tu Huisha was already busy in the back kitchen. Waves of bread fragrance wafted out, very tempting.

“Feifei, what are you doing?”

“I’m doing my autumn break homework.”

Bernlin Prefecture had a half-month holiday in autumn, the autumn break, which was meant for students to practice and explore nature.

“How do I do this one?” Duofei pointed to a question. “Collect ten different types of leaves.”

“If your mother allows it, how about this uncle and I go with you?”

“Yes, please!”

Tu Huisha was preparing to make jam inside. Zhang Liuxin carried the newly bought fruits in to help, while Professor Wen, who was useless in the kitchen, stayed outside to tutor the child with her homework.

“Is there anything I can help with?”

“Help me wash the raspberries,” Tu Huisha asked. “How did you sleep last night? That bed is a bit small.”

“Very well, thank you. If we hadn’t met you and Brother Tu, we really wouldn’t know what to do.”

Tu Huisha said, “It’s fate. Besides, aren’t you also considered a Bernlin person? You’re a fellow native.”

Zhang Liuxin smiled. “Yes, I suppose so. I stayed here with my mother for a while when I was very young.”

He sighed, “I wish I had grown up here.”

Tu Huisha couldn’t help but laugh. “It’s too remote here. It’s too underdeveloped for Bernlin as a whole. Many young people in town have gone to other cities for work.”

“But the people here are wonderful. Everyone I’ve met is very kind.”

“Are people in Yin Prefecture very bad then?” Tu Huisha joked.

Zhang Liuxin finished washing the raspberries and draining the water. He turned off the faucet and replied in a joking tone, “Yes, very bad.”

Seeing the smile fade from his lips, Tu Huisha didn’t continue the topic, instead turning to talk about her younger days with her husband. “Feifei’s father and I were high school classmates. He had good grades and went to university in another city, while I stayed in Selin City and attended the baking academy. Later, I returned to town to open the bakery.”

Zhang Liuxin helped her retrieve the butter from a high shelf, breaking it into pieces and placing it in the stand mixer as she had done. “You must have been an excellent student back then. Honestly, I’ve never eaten bread this delicious in Yin Prefecture.”

Tu Huisha chuckled. “Chen, you’re too kind with your words.”

“We dated in high school, but broke up after graduation. I thought we were going separate ways, but he came back to town after finishing university, and we got back together.”

Although Tu Huisha spoke simply, Zhang Liuxin could feel from her tone and expression that those years must have been incredibly beautiful and unforgettable for her.

“What kind of person was your husband?”

Zhang Liuxin guessed that she rarely spoke of her deceased husband, perhaps not wanting to worry her brother or show sadness in front of her daughter. So, at this moment, she might need someone to listen.

“He studied engineering,” Tu Huisha expertly kneaded the dough. “He was a man of few words, very quiet, and often said the opposite of what he meant.”

That characteristic sounded somewhat familiar.

Tu Huisha said, “It might be a bit offensive, but he was a bit like your husband—not talkative, and sometimes what he says isn’t very pleasant to hear.”

It was rare that Tu Huisha, despite the language barrier with Wen Jin, could describe him so accurately. A faint smile curved Zhang Liuxin’s lips.

“But I could feel that he loved me very much, and loved Feifei very much, he just didn’t know how to express it,” Tu Huisha placed the egg tarts, filled with custard, into the oven. “People always have flaws, don’t they?”

Zhang Liuxin said, “Mhm.”

But Wen Jin was different.