When The Snow Falls In Autumn Chapter 52

Chapter 52

On Friday evening, the rain stopped, but the sky did not clear up. Thick, leaden-gray clouds were still piled up, weighing heavily on the skyline.The coolness left after the rain washed away in the air was mixed with the moist and fishy smell evaporating from the soil and vegetation. It was stuffy and not refreshing.

Ye Qiulan came out of the library, holding a few professional books he had just borrowed in his arms.In the afternoon in the library, she tried to sort out the ideas for her paper on local temples in the Tang Dynasty, but her pen tip kept drawing meaningless lines on the draft paper involuntarily.The brief but clear hug in physical education class, and the fleeting redness of Ling Xueqing’s ears, like two frames with the pause button pressed, stubbornly stayed in a corner of my mind, lingering.She could even recall the feeling of tight arm muscles under Ling Xuequing’s black sportswear, and the hot breath that was a mixture of sweat and cedar.

This made her a little upset.She knew that she should not, nor was she qualified, to chew on such an instinctive helping hand.Ling Xueqing probably forgot about it a long time ago.

When she reached the fork in the road leading to the cafeteria and the boulevard, she stopped.During dinner time, the crowd was denser than usual, and students in twos and threes passed by her talking and laughing.She hesitated whether to go back to the dormitory directly to eat instant noodles or go to the cafeteria to deal with it casually.

Just as she was about to turn around and walk towards the dormitory, out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of two familiar figures standing at the door of the convenience store downstairs of the graduate student apartment not far away.

It’s Ling Xueqing.And… the Alpha boy from the physical education department who played badminton with her last time in physical education class.The boy was very tall, wearing a basketball vest, showing his strong arms. He was smiling and talking to Ling Xueqing with a warm expression.Ling Xueqing’s back was facing Ye Qiulan’s direction, her expression could not be seen, but she still stood upright and seemed to be holding a small plastic bag in her hand.

Ye Qiulan’s footsteps paused.My heart shrank slightly for no reason, as if it was pinched gently by invisible fingers.She saw the Alpha boy stretching out his hand, as if he wanted to pat Ling Xueqing’s shoulder. His movements were natural and contained a kind of carefree intimacy common between Alphas, or in other words, between Alphas and Omegas or Betas.

Ling Xueqing turned sideways without leaving a trace, avoiding the hand.Her movements are small but definite.The boy seemed stunned for a moment, then he took back his hand, touched his nose, and smiled a little, but he quickly said something.

Ling Xueqing nodded slightly, as if in response, then turned around and walked towards the entrance of the apartment building.With steady steps and a thin back, he quickly disappeared behind the glass door.

The Alpha boy stood there for a few seconds, looking at the direction Ling Xueqing left, then scratched his head, turned and walked in the other direction.

Ye Qiulan stood there, his fingers tightening unconsciously, and the book in his arms made his chest feel tight.The evening breeze blew by, bringing with it a coolness, dispersing the indescribable sense of stagnation caused by the scene just now, but leaving behind another more empty and slightly astringent aftertaste.

She knew the Alpha boy named Zhou Xiao, who was on the school basketball team. He was quite famous on campus. He was cheerful and outgoing. He heard that his family background was also good.Are he and Ling Xueqing… very familiar?The cooperation in physical education class was tacit.That conversational gesture just now…

She shook her head, trying to dispel these unfounded associations.Whoever Ling Xueqing associates with is her freedom.What position do you have to care about?

However, the slight sourness in my heart is like ink dripping into clear water, slowly and stubbornly spreading out.She remembered that Ling Xueqing always kept to herself. Apart from necessary academic exchanges, she rarely had unnecessary contact with others.That Zhou Xiao…is he an exception?

She pursed her lips, stopped staying, turned around and walked quickly towards the dormitory.The steps were a little hurried, as if he was trying to escape from something.

Back to the dormitory, no one was there.She threw the book on the table, poured a glass of cold water, and drank most of it in one breath.The cold liquid slid down his throat, but it failed to extinguish the annoyance in his heart.

The phone lay quietly on the table.She picked it up, unlocked it, and moved her fingers unconsciously across the screen.In social software, the class group and course group messages are constantly bouncing, and they have nothing to do with her.The conversation between her and Ling Xueqing still stopped at the few words about ginger tea a few days ago.

She clicked on Ling Xueqing’s profile picture – it had a pure black background without any patterns or text.Her circle of friends is even more clean, with no updates at all. Just like her, she is airtight.

Ye Qiulan put down his mobile phone and walked to the window.The sky was getting darker, and the last traces of pale gray showed through the gaps in the clouds.The street lights downstairs turned on one after another, and in the hazy yellow light, students occasionally passed by on bicycles or on foot.

She saw Zhou Xiao passing downstairs talking and laughing with several boys who were also tall and strong. Their voices were loud and full of the unscrupulous vitality unique to young people.One of the boys punched Zhou Xiao and laughed and cursed something. Zhou Xiao dodged with a smile and replied, causing a burst of laughter.

Such a bright, public world, full of worldly fireworks, seems far away from a person as cold and calm as Ling Xuequing, who seems to be a universe of his own.But the scene at the convenience store door just now clearly connected the two worlds briefly.

Ye Qiulan couldn’t explain what he felt in his heart.Do you envy Zhou Xiao for being able to approach Ling Xueqing so naturally?Or…a vague, excluded loss?Or is it some kind of feeble peek into Ling Xueqing’s other side of interpersonal relationships that she doesn’t know about?

There was a familiar, vague feeling of bloating in my stomach.Only then did she remember that she hadn’t had dinner yet.But she had no appetite.

She sat back at the desk, turned on the desk lamp, and forced herself to return her attention to the boring paper materials.The words sway in front of my eyes, but have difficulty entering my brain.

After an unknown amount of time, the phone suddenly vibrated.It’s not a message, it’s a phone call.The name that jumped on the screen made her breath hitch – Ling Xueqing.

She stared at the name for two seconds before answering stiffly.

“Hello?”

What came from the other end of the phone was not Ling Xueqing’s usual smooth and clear voice, but a somewhat vague, obviously nasal and weak voice: “Ye Qiulan…?”

Ye Qiulan’s heart suddenly lifted.”It’s me. What’s wrong with you?” She heard something wrong in Ling Xueqing’s voice.

“…I’m in the dormitory.” Ling Xueqing’s voice was very low and her speech was very slow, as if she was trying her best to maintain clarity. “I’m not feeling well…can you…come over here? Help me…buy some medicine.”

The last few words were almost inaudible, carrying a rare, almost pleading tone.

There was a “buzz” in Ye Qiulan’s mind, what Zhou Xiao, what sourness, what thesis, all were instantly thrown out of the sky.She stood up suddenly, the chair legs making a screeching sound as they scraped against the ground.

“Wait! I’ll be right over! What’s your dormitory number?” she asked, grabbing her keys and wallet in a hurry, not even bothering to put on her coat.

Ling Xueqing reported the room number and her voice became weaker.”Thank you…” After she said these two words, there seemed to be a suppressed cough on the other end of the phone, and then the call was hung up.

Ye Qiulan held the mobile phone, his fingertips were cold.Ling Xueqing’s voice sounded… very bad.She remembered that Ling Xueqing was a little tired during the physical education class, she thought of her fever at the rainy night station, and she thought of her slightly pale profile at the door of the convenience store just now…Has she always been ungrateful?Is it serious again today?

Without any hesitation, she rushed out of the dormitory and almost ran downstairs.The cool night breeze flowed into her thin shirt, causing her to shiver, but she didn’t notice it.There was only one thought in her mind: Ling Xueqing was not feeling well, needed medicine, and needed help.

She first rushed to the 24-hour drugstore next to the school hospital, and based on her vague memory and the pharmacist’s advice, she bought several commonly used cold and fever-reducing drugs, anti-inflammatory drugs, as well as a thermometer and antipyretic patches.My fingers were shaking slightly when I paid.

Then she ran towards the East End graduate apartment.The campus roads were quiet at night, and the street lights lengthened and shortened her running shadow.Her mind was in a mess, filled with worry and self-blame.I was still worried about those unnecessary speculations in the afternoon, but I didn’t expect that Ling Xueqing might be suffering alone.

She ran downstairs to the brand-new graduate student apartment, gasped, and swiped the card to enter the door.The elevator goes directly to Ling Xueqing’s floor.The lighting in the corridor is soft and quiet, and the thick carpet makes no sound when you step on it.She found the room number, stood in front of the door, took a few deep breaths, and then raised her hand to knock on the door.

After knocking twice, there was a slight movement inside, and then the sound of the door lock turning.

The door opened.

Ling Xueqing stood inside the door.She was only wearing a thin, light gray long-sleeved home dress, her hair was disheveled and a little messy, her face was abnormally flushed, and her lips were chapped and white.She seemed to be unable to open her eyes, and her eyes were blurry. When she saw Ye Qiulan, she seemed to have tried hard to focus, and then she gently stepped aside.

“Come in…” Her voice was hoarse.

Ye Qiulan walked in quickly and closed the door gently with his backhand.The sight in the room stunned her slightly.

Extremely neat, almost empty.The light-colored wooden floor is shiny, a single bed is covered with plain gray sheets, and the quilt is folded squarely.Against the wall is a huge desk, with only a closed laptop, a few neatly placed professional books, a pen holder, and nothing else.A towering bookcase is filled with books and clearly classified.There were almost no extra decorations or personal belongings in the room. The air was filled with a very light cold fragrance of cedar belonging to Ling Xueqing, and there was an obvious, sickly hot smell at this moment.

This is not like a room where someone lives for a long time, but more like a temporary place to stay, or a carefully maintained model room.The only “mess” was probably a few torn pill packages scattered on the bedside table and an empty water glass.

Ling Xueqing was already a little unsteady on her feet. She was holding on to the wall beside the door, her back slightly arched and her breathing a little heavy.

Ye Qiulan quickly stepped forward to support her.”Do you have a fever?” Her hand touched Ling Xueqing’s arm, and she could feel the hot temperature through her thin home clothes.

“Hmm…” Ling Xueqing responded vaguely and let Ye Qiulan help her walk to the bed and sit down.Her body was a little weak, and she sat on the head of the bed with her eyes closed, her eyebrows tightly knitted, and her long and dense eyelashes trembling uneasily.

Ye Qiulan’s heart tightened.She quickly took out the medicine she bought, read the instructions, poured warm water, and handed the antipyretic medicine to Ling Xueqing’s mouth.”Eat this first.”

Ling Xueqing opened her eyes, her eyes were a little distracted, but she still obeyed Ye Qiulan’s hand, swallowed the pills, and drank some water.The act of swallowing seemed a little laborious.

Ye Qiulan took out the thermometer again and motioned for her to take her temperature.Ling Xueqing took it, put it awkwardly under her arm, and then leaned against the head of the bed, closing her eyes and panting, her chest rising and falling significantly.

During the five minutes of waiting, the room was unusually quiet, with the only sound of Ling Xueqing’s slightly labored breathing.Ye Qiulan stood by the bed, looking at her red cheeks and chapped lips due to fever, and the lingering lines of pain between her eyebrows. The remaining sourness and awkwardness in his heart had long been replaced by surging worry.Ling Xueqing, who was always calm and self-possessed, seemed to be omnipotent, was now as fragile as a fragile porcelain doll.

When the time was up, she took out the thermometer.Thirty-eight degrees seven.

“The fever is quite high.” Ye Qiulan frowned and took out the anti-pyretic patch, “It will make you more comfortable if you put this on.”

Ling Xueqing opened her eyes slightly and watched Ye Qiulan tear open the package and gently put the cold antipyretic patch on her hot forehead.The cold feeling made her sigh comfortably, and her brows relaxed slightly.

“There are other medicines…” Ye Qiulan picked up the other two. “The doctor said that taking them together will be more effective.” She read the instructions carefully and calculated the dosage.

Ling Xueqing looked at her focused side face, her cheeks that were slightly red from running and anxious, and her temples that were slightly sweaty.There was only one bedside lamp turned on in the room, and the warm yellow light enveloped Ye Qiulan, giving her a soft furry edge.

“Sorry to trouble you…” Ling Xueqing whispered, her voice still hoarse.

“Don’t talk about this.” Ye Qiulan interrupted her and handed over the divided medicine and water again, “Take the medicine first, and then have a good sleep.”

Ling Xueqing took it and ate it silently.Maybe it was because the medicine was starting to take effect, maybe because she was relaxing a little, but her eyelids were getting heavier and heavier.

Ye Qiulan helped her lie down slowly and tucked her into bed.His fingers inadvertently brushed the skin on the side of her neck, which was frighteningly hot.

“I’m right here, you can sleep. Call me if you need anything.” Ye Qiulan moved the only chair in the room and sat down beside the bed.

Ling Xueqing seemed to want to say something, but in the end she just nodded very lightly and slowly closed her eyes.Thick eyelashes cast a small shadow under the eyes, trembling slightly with breathing.The flushed face, against the backdrop of the plain gray pillowcase, showed a strange, almost fragile beauty.

Ye Qiulan sat on the chair and looked at her quietly.The only sounds left in the room were the shallow breathing of the two of them, and the distant hustle and bustle of the city that could be heard vaguely outside the window.The light is soft, and time seems to be stretched out, flowing thickly.

She thought of Zhou Xiao she had just seen downstairs.Are such a bright and flamboyant Alpha really from the same world as the fragile and silent Ling Xueqing who is suffering alone at the moment?

And what about her?She sat here, watching Ling Xueqing sleep, and her heart was filled with strange, soft care, and a heavy sense of responsibility, as if something important had been handed over to her.

Ling Xueqing chose to call her when she was unconscious.Not for Zhou Xiao, not for anyone else.

This knowledge, like a tiny fire, fell on the sour wasteland in her heart, quietly igniting a weak but scorching temperature.