NH chapter 033

Chapter 33: Catching Chickens

In a village, meals are served in large pots at several round tables set up in the yard; you can eat a feast every day.

After Huo Ye finished buying groceries, he tied on an apron and helped in the kitchen. The kitchen was small, crammed with aunts and grannies; the old men in the village just ate and didn’t do any work, only boasting and drinking.

At nearly twenty, Huo Ye still confidently sat at the children’s table, pretending to eat a couple of bites before secretly packing some food to go next door to find Shen Tingyu.

Huo Ye originally thought that Shen Tingyu, used to delicacies, wouldn’t adapt to the simple food here. To his surprise, Shen Tingyu only picked up his chopsticks and poked at the chicken leg Huo Ye had given him, looking quite disdainful but finishing the whole bowl without a word.

In the afternoon after lunch, Huo Ye said he wanted to take him to catch chickens. Shen Tingyu confirmed three times, ensuring he hadn’t heard wrong: “Catch what?”

“Chickens, the kind that go ‘cock-a-doodle-doo’, those farm chickens.” Huo Ye said seriously, pointing to the back mountain, “We’ll eat them tonight. Don’t worry, you won’t have to kill them.”

Shen Tingyu came here in a hurry and didn’t bring any luggage, still wearing Huo Ye’s jacket. The clothes for changing he had were recently bought by Huo Ye in town. But he disliked the new ones for being ugly and uncomfortable, only wanting to wear the one that had just arrived, washing it quickly and putting it on as soon as it dried.

“This is the only decent piece of clothing I have.” Shen Tingyu said incredulously, “You’re taking me to catch chickens?”

“Ah, we might as well experience life now that you’re here. If it weren’t for the timing, I’d even take you to pick corn in the fields; the young people in our village all pick corn when they come back.” Huo Ye said earnestly.

Shen Tingyu: “……”

He suddenly realized how necessary technological advancement for rural revitalization really was.

Fearing someone might come looking from the mountainside, Shen Tingyu had his phone turned off for the past few days, not answering anyone’s calls.

In today’s world, without the internet, it felt like living in primitive society; not to mention they were deep in the mountains, almost cut off from the world.

Not being able to use his phone was boring, but Shen Tingyu had more time to look at the clouds winding around the peaks, the streams flowing gently in the valleys, and the thin frost and snow resting on the azure branches.

Actually, speaking of snow, it wasn’t real snow, just a layer of crystalline frost flowers. Children from the south rarely get to see snow.

“I’ve always wanted to see snow, big fluffy snowflakes, like in the movies… have you ever seen it?” Huo Ye asked.

Shen Tingyu didn’t understand his obsession with snow, responding rather indifferently, “I’ve gone skiing on the Matterhorn many times before.”

“Matterhorn?” Huo Ye blinked, “Where is that?”

“In the French Alps, I have pictures, but I can’t show you right now.”

Huo Ye nodded in understanding, falling silent as he led Shen Tingyu toward the chicken farm. Shen Tingyu put his hands in his pockets, his chin tucked into the scarf Huo Ye had given him, only half of his delicate face visible.

That scarf was knitted by Huo Ye himself; he was quite skillful, and many of the knitted scarves and gloves in his family came from his hands. Because knitting supplies were expensive, buying yarn was quite cheap.

The deep red scarf had a distinctly autumn-winter vibe, highlighting Shen Tingyu’s pale complexion even more, with only his eyebrows and eyes appearing as if stained by ink, beautiful and dark. His refined nose turned red in the cold, so he rubbed it further into the scarf, making the small action quite cute.

Huo Ye often felt an unconscious urge to look at Shen Tingyu, as if his gaze and Shen Tingyu’s face were magnetic. Each time he saw Shen Tingyu, he couldn’t help but gaze at him inch by inch.

The way he frowned in annoyance, the way he lifted his chin in pride, the way he tried to maintain an aloof demeanor but couldn’t help but laugh, clearly shy yet reluctant to admit it, and the way he got flustered and angry when pressed.

Each of these expressions carried an appealing youthfulness.

Shen Tingyu was very different.

Huo Ye thought.

Even wearing a faded black old coat and a cheap woolen knitted old red scarf while walking on muddy rural paths, Shen Tingyu stood there with a kind of presence that felt out of place, eternally cold, noble, and imposing like a beautiful white swan wading through a muddy puddle.

The mud spots didn’t tarnish his purity; instead, they highlighted the whiteness of his feathers, making one feel a sense of shame just by comparing.

Having inexplicably fallen into silence for half a minute, Shen Tingyu suddenly quickened his pace, lightly bumping into Huo Ye’s shoulder, his voice muffled in the scarf and not very clear, “Huo Ye, after we finish our college entrance exams, I’ll take you skiing in the Alps.”

“…… Us?” Huo Ye was taken aback. More than how beautiful the snow scene in the Alps was, his first reaction was a bit bashful, saying, “Going to such a far place would cost a lot of money.”

“Not much, you don’t need to worry about it.”

Shen Tingyu’s gaze was steady ahead, as his breath turned into a warm mist in the cold air, his words soft but distant: “Speaking of which, I haven’t seen snow for a long time myself. When the time comes, accompany me to see it.”

Huo Ye turned his gaze to him, the peach blossom eyes slightly curved, resembling a gentle crescent moon. After a moment, he softly said, “Thank you, young master.”

Shen Tingyu responded with a low “mm,” the tips of his ears and the back of his neck turning a faint red, not looking back, seemingly quite pleased.

Huo Ye noticed that Shen Tingyu was someone who didn’t handle compliments well; even if you complimented him casually, he couldn’t help but wag his fluffy tail, not realizing his appearance betrayed that he was only pretending to be calm while feeling very happy inside.

Thus, after contemplating this a bit more, it wasn’t hard to guess that Shen Tingyu’s parents had probably been very demanding of him throughout his life but were stingy in giving him the rewards and praise he deserved. Long-term neglect made him numb to emotions, believing he didn’t need them, but forgetting that Shen Tingyu was only seventeen or eighteen this year.

Realizing this, Huo Ye seized every opportunity to compliment Shen Tingyu during their daily interactions, even over small things like, “Your clothes look really nice today,” “You got this tough math problem right; you’re so smart,” “You finished all the food in your bowl, that’s impressive,” or “You didn’t scold that scruffy puppy for looking ugly, you’re really polite.”

A positive and healthy relationship would allow a person to learn more from the other and become better themselves.

Amidst this continual chorus of compliments, Shen Tingyu truly seemed to be growing slowly toward a better direction, because Huo Ye said he was good, so he worked hard to become even better.

“Do you want to ride horses?” Shen Tingyu asked him.

Huo Ye nodded, “I do.”

“I’ll take you. There’s an equestrian club in Iceland where we can ride near glaciers, waterfalls, and volcanoes; it’s magnificent.”

“That sounds great, but I don’t know how to ride.”

“I’ll teach you.”

Their topics jumped quickly, and after a while, Huo Ye, mimicking Shen Tingyu’s earlier gesture, gently bumped his shoulder.

“What’s up?”

Huo Ye sincerely said, “I want to see the aurora.”

“Sure, we can go to Finland to see the aurora.” Shen Tingyu responded positively without diminishing the mood, “I’ll take you on a big sled dog ride, the reindeer there are very friendly; you can pet them.”

“Are they the same kind of reindeer that Santa uses?”

“No.”

Huo Ye tilted his head in confusion and saw Shen Tingyu raising his eyebrows somewhat smugly, that invisible fluffy tail perked up again, looking self-satisfied, saying, “In previous years when you made wishes to Santa, how many of them came true? You might as well make wishes to me; I’m better than Santa. Whatever you want, I’ll help you realize one by one; I’m your Santa.”

“Pffhahahaha…” Huo Ye burst out laughing.

Shen Tingyu stopped in his tracks, annoyed, “What are you laughing at?”

“Nothing, I just feel lucky. Those places you mentioned, I’ve never even thought about them, and no one has ever said they’d take me there.”

Huo Ye smiled genuinely, “Thank you—my Santa.”

“……” Shen Tingyu paused, turned his face away, “No need to thank me.”

The two walked along the road, chatting casually, occasionally bumping into each other’s shoulders, their posture intimate and natural.

They made many promises to go far away together, to ski in the French Alps, to ride horses in Iceland and Moscow, to see the aurora at the Patis River in Finland, to see mountains, oceans, and the world together.

The future was so beautiful, filled with all the romantic hopes and expectations, just thinking about it made one feel the happiness of existence.

The chicken farm at the back mountain was vast, filled with well-fed farm chickens all over the place, with tags tied around their ankles, each one shiny and energetic, looking delicious.

“Want to give it a try?” Huo Ye encouraged, “Just herd it into a corner, grab its wings, it’s really easy.”

Shen Tingyu questioned, “Really?”

“Really, I’ll help you herd it; you just need to catch it.”

As they opened the fence and stepped inside, the smell of rotting corn mixed with the scent of chicken droppings wafted over, but thankfully, it was winter, and the air was dry, so it wasn’t too “moving.”

Shen Tingyu’s brow hadn’t relaxed at all, his face contorted as if he couldn’t bear it, tentatively bouncing around, deeply worried about stepping in it.

“Don’t hide, okay?” Huo Ye said, “The chickens are hiding from you; how can you catch them if you hide from them?”

Shen Tingyu’s face darkened, serious, “Don’t make noise. I have my own rhythm; just wait.”

Huo Ye was caught between laughter and tears, nodding, “Alright, I’ll wait.”

Shen Tingyu moved from the left, giving a signal; Huo Ye understood, sneaking up on the right to surround it quietly.

Taking advantage of the chicken not paying attention, they both moved simultaneously, but unfortunately, this chicken was annoyingly clever, darting away swiftly.

—At this moment, they were both distracted by the chicken, having both missed their targets. Huo Ye’s body swayed, his forehead bumped straight into Shen Tingyu’s ribs, both letting out muffled and painful grunts.

Dammit, they got played by a chicken!

Huo Ye staggered upright, looking at Shen Tingyu; one was holding their forehead, the other their ribs, both with tears in their eyes.

Shen Tingyu was infuriated, but Huo Ye had the urge to laugh.

“Young master, you’re so hard.”

Shen Tingyu shot him an awkward glare, retorting, “You’re in no position to talk; you’ve been practicing iron head skills?”

“Does it hurt a lot? Let me see.”

Shen Tingyu refused to lift his shirt, only complaining, “It hurts like hell.”

“So, should I massage it for you?”

“……”

“It’s all your fault.”

Huo Ye slipped his hand inside Shen Tingyu’s coat, moving down across his clothes to massage through the layers, leaning his head down, getting very close.

“Wow, aren’t you cold enough? Your hands are so cold.” Shen Tingyu’s warm palm pressed over to hold Huo Ye’s.

Huo Ye subconsciously looked up, “No, I…” But upon meeting Shen Tingyu’s gaze just inches away, it felt like a spark, and both of them froze, locked in place, neither willing to avert their eyes.

——So close.

Even as two boys, this was not an appropriate distance.

Huo Ye’s heart raced; he pulled his hand back from under Shen Tingyu’s palm and returned it to his pocket, calmly saying, “Oh, I’m just like this in winter; my hands and feet won’t warm up, maybe it’s an old illness from before.”

Shen Tingyu didn’t have a big reaction, seeming to not notice his odd demeanor, shifting his attention back to a chicken not too far away, “Yeah, it’s cold; next time bring a hot water bottle.”

“Do you want to keep catching?” Huo Ye asked.

Shen Tingyu silently zipped up his jacket, “You catch it yourself.”

“Oh, okay.”