Stringy Wind in the Ear - Chap 6
What Song Yang cared more about than becoming an apprentice was why Li Xun retired in the first place.
Archery is different from track and field, swimming and other sports that rely on explosive power. It has a relatively long golden period. As long as the physical and mental state can keep up, one can still participate in the Olympics in his thirties, not to mention that Li Xun is only twenty-nine.
After being away from the national team for such a long time, Li Xun’s physique and competitive state have been maintained at a very good standard, which is obviously not a state to “open a new chapter in life.”
When Song Yang recalled every time he hooked the arrow, put the arrow on it, and released it, his eyes still sparkled with the light that he only saw in the arena.
During lunch break, Li Xun drove back, and Song Yang and the lady at the front desk squeezed at the small round table in the corner to eat.
“I heard that you wanted to take Li Xun as your master. Did you succeed?” Zhang Huan asked.
Song Yang shook his head dejectedly. He called “Dad” in vain. Li Xun rewarded him with a lollipop and left. He was so inhumane.
Zhang Huan laughed: “He is just like that. He is not friendly to anyone and is hard to please. I wanted to learn archery from him before, but he said I was not suitable for it.”
“Why?” Song Yang raised his head from the lunch box.
Zhang Huan shrugged: “He probably guessed that I wanted to pursue him.”
Song Yang almost spit out a mouthful of rice from his nose, took a few sips of water and said, “Do you like him?”
Zhang Huan said generously: “He is handsome and pleasing to the eye. You don’t know that when he came to apply for the job, I was stunned when I looked up. My heart was pounding and my face was hot. After that, I didn’t dare to look him in the eye at all.”
This reminded Song Yang of the summer ten years ago, when his face was also very hot.
But feeling hot on the face doesn’t necessarily mean you like it, you just feel a little embarrassed when being stared at.
“Then have you watched his previous game videos?” Song Yang changed the subject.
“Yes, I saw it. I only found out later that he was a retired athlete. It’s a pity,” said Zhang Huan.
“It’s a pity indeed,” Song Yang asked, “Then do you know why he retired?”
“How would I know? But I know athletes work very hard and don’t make much money. They all rely on their passion to pursue their dreams. Except for those who win awards in world competitions and can earn some endorsement fees, the others have all disappeared. They either train juniors or change careers. I’ve seen world champions begging on the streets on the news. It’s miserable. Li Xun is almost 30 years old. If I were in their place, I would also like to find a more stable job.”
Song Yang suddenly remembered what Chu Zhi said a few days ago, that Li Xun would be urged to get married by his parents and would also go on blind dates.
Without his bow and arrow, he lived a trivial life like an ordinary person.
However, the sharpshooter in Song Yang’s mind should be one who lives a more brilliant life with boiling blood.
At about 1:00 p.m., Song Yang was woken up by a call from the takeaway. The fruit tea he ordered had arrived. To avoid affecting the taste of the fruit tea, he specifically noted that it would be delivered after 1:30 p.m., because the front desk said that if Li Xun went home for lunch, he would not be back until after 1:30 p.m.
Today was no exception. It was almost two o’clock when Li Xun finally arrived, with a little tail following him.
Little girl Li Chuzhi was wearing a little black suspender dress and a shirt with lantern sleeves. The flowing ribbon at the collar was tied with a bow, making her look very fashionable.
Song Yang ran over with the flyer in his arms, like a large, enthusiastic dog.
“Master, would you like some fruit tea? I ordered an extra cup and put it in the fridge next to your sandwich.”
“Thank you, I’m not thirsty.”
Li Chuzhi’s little ears were so pointed that he looked up and asked, “What kind of fruit tea is that? Is it delicious?”
Li Xun was so angry that he almost rolled his eyes on the spot. Song Yang smiled and said, “It’s delicious. There are so many fruits in it.”
“Uncle, I really want to drink fruit tea!”
Li Xun: “…”
Song Yang thoughtfully put a straw in the child’s mouth and said, “Hold it tight. The fork is in the bag. If you can’t tear it open after you finish drinking, you can call me. The mango inside is quite delicious.”
Li Chuzhi nodded: “Thank you, brother, you are as good as an angel.”
Song Yang laughed out loud and found for the first time that children could be so cute.
Li Xun asked: “How much is it? I’ll transfer it to you.”
Song Yang waved his hand: “No, no, I don’t have much money.”
Li Xun pretended not to hear it, clicked on the QR code and handed it over: “Add me.”
Song Yang thought that Li Xun had a cold personality and didn’t like to be close to people, so he was used to repaying favors in order to draw a clear line. However, what he didn’t know was that Li Xun just remembered what the front desk said early in the morning – he said that his family was not well off and he needed to earn tuition fees, so the boss asked him to hand out flyers.
Song Yang was in a bad mood the whole afternoon. He opened the chat interface with Li Xun several times, but there was only a notification about transfer and receipt.
Li Xun’s circle of friends was set to be visible for three days, but there was nothing. However, he memorized Li Xun’s signature.
——Later I didn’t become the person I wanted to be when I was a child, but they said that was normal.
I can feel the sense of loss even through the screen.
If a person’s state can be expressed by color, Li Xun used to be the color of the sky and lawn, and now he is the deep and melancholy color of the sea.
Adults have a lot of choices, but none of those choices seem to be what they want.
“elder brother!”
Song Yang was called back to his senses by the soft and sticky voice. He squatted down and asked, “What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know how to do this question.” Li Chuzhi poked the exercise book with the tip of his pen. The printed marks on it were almost erased by the eraser.
Song Yang figured out the answer by finding the pattern and filling in the numbers. However, he did not tell Li Chuzhi the answer directly. Instead, he patiently explained his solution. Li Chuzhi then pestered him to teach him other questions.
The two of them squatted under the shade of the tree, like a pair of wild animals who had just found food, and the atmosphere was extremely harmonious.
Why do children always have so much to talk about? Song Yang became thirsty from talking so he ordered Li Chuzhi to go in and get a bottle of water. His original intention was to ask her to go to the front desk to get mineral water, but unexpectedly the little thing came back holding Li Xun’s bottle of water.
Perhaps he was too lazy to make another trip, or perhaps he was too shy to ask the front desk for water, Li Chuzhi said nonchalantly, “Don’t worry, drink it, my uncle won’t be angry.”
It would be strange if I wasn’t angry.
Song Yang shook the transparent glass bottle.
Li Xun’s water bottle also fits his personal style, dark blue, minimalist sports style, with two slices of lemon at the bottom of the cup.
Li Chuzhi couldn’t wait to open the lid for him: “If it’s gone, I can pour it again, and my uncle won’t find out.”
Song Yang was like a primary school student who loved to make a fuss. He made a “huh” sound and said coyly, “I don’t want to kiss your uncle indirectly.”
Li Chuzhi asked: “What is indirect kissing?”
Song Yang scratched the back of his head, looking embarrassed. He had accidentally turned the conversation into something profound, and he didn’t know how to explain it.
“Just… for example, if I drink what your uncle has drunk, we are kissing indirectly.”
“Oh,” Li Chuzhi rolled his eyes thoughtfully, “Then I often drink water from Xiaoxiao’s cup. Does that count as indirect kissing?”
“Is Xiaoxiao a boy or a girl?” Song Yang asked.
“Girl, she’s my best friend.”
“Oh, it’s okay if you’re good friends. Besides, you’re still little girls, you don’t need to be particular. If a boy wants to borrow your cup, you have to refuse.”
Li Chuzhi said: “But I like our class monitor very much. I would be very happy if he borrowed my cup. Should I refuse that?”
Song Yang’s eyes widened in surprise, and then he immediately laughed out loud. He felt helpless and happy about the child’s innocence.
“I’m not sure about this. You’d better go back and ask your uncle.”
Li Chuzhi asked again: “Then is indirect kissing not good?”
“Well…” Song Yang scratched his cheek and put on a serious face, “It’s not very healthy anyway.”
Li Chuzhi hurriedly explained: “My uncle is very healthy. He is in good health and never gets sick. Don’t be afraid!”
“…”
Help!
How does Li Xun usually communicate with children about this kind of issue?
“What’s your uncle’s favorite drink? Coke?” Song Yang quickly changed the subject.
Li Chuzhi waved his finger: “He doesn’t drink bubbles. He likes to drink sour plum juice, but it’s hard to buy here.”
“Is it.”
Three days later, Li Xun opened the refrigerator at home and found two bottles of sour plum drink. He was a little surprised. This thing was his favorite in summer. It was not available in the supermarkets in South City, and he hadn’t drunk it for almost a year.
He casually opened a bottle and asked his father: “Who gave this to you?”
Li Guotao said: “Xiaochu brought it back and said it was distributed by the school. I guess he remembered that you liked to drink it, so he brought it back for you.”
At first, Li Xun didn’t suspect anything and even bought some soft candies for Li Chuzhi as a reward. But when the “school” distributed different brands and styles of plum juice for a week in a row, he felt something was wrong.
Before dinner one day, he called Li Chuzhi to the refrigerator and asked, “Is the school distributing sour plum juice again today?”
Li Xun’s appearance is not as friendly as Song Yang, and he always likes to frown. When he is not smiling, there is a sharp chill all over his body.
Li Chuzhi nodded, turned his eyes away guiltily, and tried to avoid the topic by saying he was doing homework.
“Then I have to call your teacher and tell him that since you don’t like sour plum juice, I will start distributing yogurt tomorrow.”
As soon as Li Xun took out his cell phone, Li Chuzhi confessed everything and sold out Song Yang completely, even adding fuel to the fire.
Song Yang’s original words were clearly “drinking something sweet will make you feel better”, but when it came to Li Xun, it became “he just wants to make you happy.”
The aftertaste of sour plum juice flowed in his mouth. Li Xun raised his eyebrows and asked casually, “Why does he know that I like to drink this?”
Li Chuzhi chuckled.
At around eleven o’clock that night, Song Yang had just finished his homework and was about to go to bed when he received a message from “x”. He immediately lost all sleepiness and jumped up from the bed.
However, rather than the fact that Li Xun would take the initiative to send a message, he would rather believe that Li Xun’s WeChat account had been stolen.
With this not-so-nice mentality, he clicked on the icon.
——Thank you for the water.
Song Yang grinned.
——How do you know it was from me?
The first time Song Yang saw the “typing” belonging to Li Xun, it felt so unreal. For some reason, a serious face always appeared in his mind. He even suspected that Li Xun’s next sentence would be “how much is the total amount?”
——You still expect an eight-year-old child to keep a secret for you?
——Did you drink it? How did it taste?
——It’s OK. Don’t send me this again in the future.
Song Yang’s shoulders slumped and he replied weakly with “Oh”. He thought the conversation would end there, but he didn’t expect the other party to start typing again.
You must ask how much it costs.
The other end suddenly paused, then continued typing, as if brewing something.
It’s a very long process that goes on and on.
For the first time, Song Yang felt that this function of WeChat was like a late-night torture.
——Are you coming to hand out flyers this weekend?
Song Yang was stunned.
——Send it.
——Then you should leave later and wait for me to finish class.
——What are you doing?
——What do you think?
