Wild Fire Bids Farewell To Summer Chapter 22
byBefore the cold dew
17:00.
Huang Jinye stood on the edge of the cinder track on the west side of Huizhi Building.His right spike shoe stepped into the ground, and the steel nails embedded in the cracks of the slag, making a scraping sound.The right knee was bent, and the water swayed in the joint cavity, making it gurgling.He was holding a hard object in his hand – a blood scab the size of a fingernail, which came from a mixture of cinders and blood embedded in his palm six days ago. The edges were sharp, purple-black, and the surface was cracked.The fingertips rubbed the blood scab, which was rough, and the sandpaper polished the bones.
The wind blows from the Guixi River, fishy and sweet, sinking to the ground.
Gymnastics music blared from the radio in the distance, electric currents made sharp noises, and metal wires scraped against ceramics.A phalanx of high school freshmen lined up in Jiujiu Square. Their camouflage uniforms reflected the sunset, making the spots dazzling.Huang Jinye did not turn around.He stared at a dark brown stain at the fourth bend of the runway – the blood that had been dripped six days ago had oxidized and turned black, and the surface was covered with white frost. It had been trampled by countless spikes and embedded in the cinders, becoming part of the road surface.
He squatted down.The right knee made a dry rubbing sound, and the accumulated water squeezed the meniscus, causing sharp pain.The index finger of his right hand dug into the blood stain, and his nails scraped against the slag, making a harsh sound.The blood stain was hard, and a piece of it was picked out, with black cinder particles on the edge.He held the fragment tightly, his fingertips were cut, and new blood seeped out, mixing with the old blood, making it warm and sticky.
“Huang Jinye.”
The voice came from behind.Guiliu dialect has a sinking final sound.He did not stand up, remained in a crouching position, and turned his head to look.
Li Min walked out of the shadow of Huizhi Tower.The navy blue cheongsam had slits that exposed her calves, and the fabric made a rustling sound.The black patent leather high-heeled shoes, with a heel of five centimeters, hit the cinder floor with a muffled sound, out of step with the rhythm of the broadcast gymnastics.He held a red plastic lighter in his right hand, and a cigarette between the index and middle fingers of his left hand. The white cigarette paper was unlit, and two shreds of tobacco were leaking out and falling to the ground.
The perfume arrives first.The fragrance of cheap jasmine, mixed with the astringency of tobacco, sinks at knee height, fighting against the wind of Guixi River.
Huang Jinye stood up.The right is heavier, the left is lighter.The right is heavier, the left is lighter.The steps dragged, and the spikes made two shallow marks on the cinders.He turned around and faced Li Min, keeping a distance of 1.5 meters, which was exactly the width of the lane lines.
Li Min stopped.The high heels sank into the cinder cracks, the heels tilted.She held out the cigarette with her right hand, hovered over Huang Jinye’s shoulder, and stopped.There are white cigarettes lying across it, and there are light yellow stains on the filter. The unlit tobacco is dry and exudes the original astringency.An old brown stain was exposed on her sleeve, which was round and blurred at the edge. It was iodine or old blood, which could not be washed away, causing a color difference with the navy blue fabric.
“Go on.” Li Min said, his voice low, as if talking to himself.
Huang Jinye didn’t move.His eyes crossed the cigarette and landed on Li Min’s sleeves.The brown stain appeared purple-black in the sunset, the same color as the blood scab on his palm.He smelled that besides perfume, there was also a hint of medicine on her body – bitter, heavy, oozing out from her cuffs or pockets.
“Wei can’t smell the smoke.” Huang Jinye said.The voice was squeezed out of the chest, rough, and hoarse with congestion in the vocal cords.
Li Min’s hand hovered for three seconds.His fingers trembled, and a few more tobacco pipes leaked out.She retracted her hand and put the cigarette back between her fingers without lighting it.With her left hand, she took out a white medicine bottle from the side pocket of her cheongsam. It was made of plastic. The label was half torn off, revealing the word “Vera”, and the bottle cap was frayed.She unscrewed the cap of the bottle, poured a white pill into the palm of her hand, and swallowed it directly without water. Her Adam’s apple rolled and the pill scraped against her esophagus, making a slight sound.
“Let’s talk.” Li Min said.
She turned around and walked counterclockwise along the track.The high-heeled shoes were looking for a fulcrum on the cinders. The heels occasionally slipped and made a crisp sound like breaking.Huang Jinye followed.The right is heavier, the left is lighter.The right is heavier, the left is lighter.The accumulated water swayed and gurgled in her right knee, counterpointing the sound of her high heels.
The broadcast gymnastics music switches to the body rotation section.The loudspeaker current sound increases, tearing the fabric.In the distance, the arms of the freshman in high school cut through the air neatly, making a whirring sound.A figure paused at the edge of the square – short hair, red sports vest, holding a stopwatch, looking towards the track.His eyes touched Huang Jinye, and he quickly moved away. He lowered his head and looked at the watch. The stopwatch hands moved and clicked.
Li Min walked on the inside track.Huang Jinye walked outside, and her shadow was lengthened by the setting sun, casting on her body and covering her navy blue cheongsam.Huang Jinye stopped when he passed the dark brown blood stain at the corner.
“Look.” Li Min said and stopped.She pointed to the ground, holding the medicine bottle in her right hand, with the bottle cap not tightened, “It’s been six days. It’s oxidized. If you pick it off now, it can be used as a pebble to kill a bird.”
Huang Jinye lowered his head.He spread his right hand, palm up.The piece of bloody scab that had just been picked off lay in the palm of the hand, purple and black, embedded with cinders, and the cut skin on the edge was oozing blood, a mixture of red and black.He clenched his fist, and the blood scab was squeezed and shattered in his palm. The powder leaked out from between his fingers, fell on the cinders, and merged with the large blood stain.
“The physical education test will be added in April,” Li Min said, her voice still low, but her words were broken, “The coach from the city… will come next month. Your knees… are water… worn out.”
She held out the cigarette again, this time with her right hand, in the same hand as the pill bottle.The white cigarette and the white medicine bottle are juxtaposed, like two pieces of evidence.The brown stains on her sleeves reflected in the sunset.
“My father used to…” Li Min’s voice got stuck in his throat and turned into a hissing sound of airflow.She paused and glanced at Huang Jinye’s right knee, “It’s also this month…Lung cancer. Don’t ruin your future.” The last word “future” was pronounced vaguely, and the last sound was covered by the jumping music of radio gymnastics – the beat accelerated and the heart beat too fast, “One, two, three, four, two, two, three, four…”
Huang Jinye looked at the smoke and then at the medicine bottle.He didn’t answer, but stretched out his left hand and grabbed Li Min’s right wrist.Fingers dug into the skin, pressing on the pulse.The heartbeat is fast and chaotic, more than a hundred times per minute.Li Min’s fingers spasmed and the cigarette fell. The white cigarette paper touched the cinders and was blown away by the wind in an instant. It rolled and stopped at the edge of the blood stain. The cigarette paper curled, white and brittle.
Huang Jinye let go of his hand.He doubled over, his right knee making a sharp scraping sound, the fluid prickling under the pressure.He picked up the fallen cigarette from the ground. The paper was wrinkled and stained with cinder dust.He did not hand it to Li Min, but broke it off. The tobacco was scattered on the blood stains. The white fibers were mixed with the purple and black blood scabs and black slag, and the red, black and white colors were mixed.
Li Min looked at the broken cigarette.Her right hand was still hanging in the air, maintaining the posture of passing the cigarette and stopping her movements.The fingers are spread out, the joints are stiff, and the medicine bottle leaves white indentations on the palm.The radio gymnastics music stops.The current buzzes for two seconds and then cuts off.Silence fell, and a layer of heavier air sank to ground level.
In the distance, a cleaning crew appeared from the end of the track pushing a broom cart.Orange vest, long-handled broom scraping cinders, making a rustling sound, from far to near.When passing by the two of them, the broom paused, staying next to the blood stain for half a second, then continued, and the rustling sound faded away.
Li Min took back his hand.She stuffed the medicine bottle back into the side pocket of her cheongsam. The fabric was tight and the outline of the medicine bottle was highlighted.She turned around, her high heels scraping against the cinders, and walked towards Huizhi Building.The steps were quick, and the heels dug deeper. The hem of the navy blue cheongsam swept across the blood stain, and the fabric rubbed against the cinders, making a dry sound.
Huang Jinye stayed where he was.He opened his palm, and the broken blood scab powder was mixed with the tobacco.He clenched his fist, and the powder embedded itself in the palm prints, filling the ravines where the three parallel scratches were four days ago.He turned around and continued walking along the track, past the curve, past the dark brown blood stain, and past the edge of the square formation of high school freshmen.
Cun Tou stood in front of the phalanx.When Huang Jinye passed by, Chun Tou gave him a look. Without saying a word, he just raised his chin, pointed at Huang Jinye’s right knee, and then quickly lowered his head.Huang Jinye did not respond.He walked over, heavy on the right and light on the left. The spikes left new marks on the cinders, forming a new sequence with the blood stains six days ago.
He stopped in front of the blood stain and knelt down on one knee.The right knee hit the cinders, the scab cracked, and new blood seeped out, dripping onto the old blood stain.Wet spots appear on the dark brown surface, and the color deepens, changing from black purple to dark red.He dug at the edge of the blood stain with his right index finger, and his nails scraped against the slag, making a harsh sound.Pick off a larger fragment, about the size of your thumb, hard, with sharp edges, and cut your fingertips.
He put the fragment into his school uniform pocket, along with a piece of eucalyptus candy.The metal rubs against the candy wrapper, making a rustling sound.
The radio gymnastics music sounded again, it was the finishing exercise section, with a slow rhythm and a countdown.Huang Jinye stood up, his kneecaps making a dry rubbing sound.He looked down at the blood stain that had been scratched off the edge. The gap was fresh brown and the edge was moist, like a newly cracked rock formation.
He turned around and walked to the grass outside the track.The canvas shoes stepped on the grass, making a subtle rustling sound, soft and swallowing.His right hand was inserted into his pocket, holding the bloody scab fragment. The blood from the cut fingertip seeped out, forming moist marks in his trouser pocket.
The setting sun sinks into the gap of Green Cen Mountain.The cinder track turned the color of rust, and the stain of blood melted into the shadows, becoming a black depression.Unlit tobacco shreds were scattered on the blood-stained surface, and white fibers, together with black slag and dark red blood clots, were deposited in the evening before the cold dew.