Mai Dong had informed his family of his arrival time, but his mother only reminded him to stay safe on the way and didn’t mention coming to pick him up. Now, standing at the exit of the station, Mai Dong was taken aback.
Yan Xuming was stunned for a moment, watching his boyfriend dart out and embrace a woman from afar after scanning his ID and leaving the station. He understood the situation and didn’t move. Although Mai Dong clearly wasn’t mentally prepared, he was seen, and not greeting would be impolite.
Yan Xuming dragged his luggage, maintaining some distance, and smiled as he greeted, “Hello, Auntie.”
Amidst the hustle and bustle of the station, Mai Dong’s mother hadn’t noticed Yan Xuming. Her mother-son moment was interrupted by the sudden greeting. After a moment, she recognized Yan Xuming. Smiling, she nodded. “Hello. Are you Mai Dong’s classmate? Did you both come back together ya?”
Yan Xuming confirmed, “Yes, it’s quite a coincidence. Mai Dong and I both studied at Nanjing University, so we came back together. I won’t disturb you any longer, Auntie. I’ll head off first.”
Mai Dong’s mother reached out to stop him. “Ai, has someone from your family come to pick you up? Shall I take you home? It’s not easy to get a taxi with so many people. I noticed quite a few people queuing for taxis outside.”
Then, she whispered to Mai Dong, “Why didn’t you say you were with your classmate ya?”
Mai Dong didn’t dare to explain anything.
Yan Xuming waved his hand and lied, “My family is also here to pick me up. They should be outside. I’ll go ahead, Auntie.”
Only then did Mai Dong’s mom nod, “Alright.”
As the two got into the car, Mai Dong’s mother continued to question him, “Is this your high school classmate? I’ve never heard you mention any high school classmates going to Nanjing University with you.”
Mai Dong hugged his backpack tightly, hoping it would provide some sense of security. He answered vaguely, “Um, he’s a senior from high school, not in the same year as me.”
His mother nodded understandingly. “I thought so. I don’t remember any of your classmates going to Nanjing University. Ai, but this person looks somewhat familiar ah. What’s his name?
Mai Dong cleared his throat, feeling guilty. He had a strange feeling that simply mentioning the name would give him away. Licking his lips, he changed the subject, “Is the air conditioning too high? It’s a bit hot.”
His mother didn’t seem l to notice his clumsy attempt to evade the question. She reached to adjust the air conditioning. “I was worried you might feel cold on the ride back, so I turned it up.”
Mai Dong nodded. “Thanks, Mom. It’s warm enough inside the high-speed train.”
His mother returned to the previous topic. “What’s your classmate’s name?”
…
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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Mai Dong quickly corrected, “Four points.”
His mother burst into laughter. “What’s your relationship with him?”
Mai Dong turned his face to look out the car window, his face flushing red, refusing to speak.
As luck would have it, they hit a red light, and the car came to a stop in the traffic. Mai Dong’s mother finally had a moment to glance at him, teasing, “Why is your face so red?”
Mai Dong struggled to find several excuses within a few seconds. “It’s too hot in the car, and the red light is shining on me. It’s normal to blush.”
Mom: “Oh, really?”
Mai Dong: “Of course!”
Mai Dong hadn’t been home in six months. Originally, he had planned to return home during the National Day holiday. However, his determination to go home wasn’t strong. It had only been a month since school started in September, and he hesitated after learning that Yan Xuming would definitely stay at school during National Day. With this hesitation, he failed to grab a ticket home for the National Day holiday.
Later, he planned to go home for the New Year but unexpectedly ended up dating Yan Xuming and serving as a translator for the international debate team. Going home completely slipped his mind. His mom complained that he never seemed to miss home while at school, and she didn’t understand why he didn’t visit more often since the elders of the family always missed him.
For the first time, Mai Dong felt guilty because he truly hadn’t thought much about home in the past six months. He was too happy at school, with no spare mental space to think about home. Feeling guilty, he ate voraciously at the dinner table.
His parents whispered to each other, while his grandfather held a small wine glass, probably more interested in asking about his grandson’s love life. “Any news from our Mai-zi lately ah? Campus romance is wonderful. You’re already in your sophomore year; you shouldn’t just focus on studying all the time ah. How about dating?”
Mai Dong almost choked on his roasted duck roll. He quickly swallowed and replied, “No, no ah. I’m not dating.”
His grandfather squinted at him. “How can you be like this? You get shy at the mention of love. You’re nothing like me at all ah. Do you know how I pursued your grandmother back then?”
Mai Dong had heard the story of how his grandfather courted his grandmother countless times. He always talked about it with great interest and pleasure. Apparently, in high school, his grandmother was an excellent student while his grandfather was a punk. Despite his grandmother’s initial disdain, his grandfather publicly presented her with a bouquet of wildflowers gathered from the roadside.
Whether this story was true or not was anyone’s guess. Mai Dong’s grandmother had passed away long ago, and he didn’t even have memories of her.
Grandpa was just telling the story of how the principal was furious and ordered him to stay away from school for a few days to reflect at home when Mai Dong’s phone discreetly vibrated. He took it out and saw a message from Yan Xuming.
Yan Xuming: “Having dinner?”
Mai-zi: “En!”
Yan Xuming: “At home or at a restaurant?”
Mai-zi: “At Xianghe Court. My dad is friends with the owner.”
Yan Xuming: “Got it, rich second generation.”
Mai-zi: “And you?”
Yan Xuming: “Also outside, hot pot.”
Mai-zi: “My grandpa is telling us how he chased my grandma.”
Yan Xuming: “Can I listen?”
Mai-zi: “Huh? How can you listen?”
Mai Dong hadn’t even processed it yet when Yan Xuming’s call came through. He hastily answered and discreetly placed the phone on the table, letting the receiver capture the fervent voice of his grandfather.
“I know you young folks nowadays have a term called ‘Puxin Man’, right? Let me tell you, we didn’t have such a term back in our day. Honestly, now that your grandma is no longer with us, I often reflect on myself. Times have changed, and the women of today are different from those of the past. If it were today, I would be considered a ‘Puxin Man’. If someone didn’t like me, I would still publicly send her flowers. Nowadays, I’d probably get criticized online for such behavior, but back then, it was just how things were, and everyone cheered me on until she agreed to be with me.
“So I often wonder, ah, did she actually not like me back then and was forced to marry me? She’s probably secretly relieved now, finally drawing a clear line with this old rascal.
“You know, if your grandma, such a strong-willed person, could have lived into this new era, she would have definitely accomplished remarkable things. I’m definitely not as good as her. It’s a pity she left us early, didn’t do anything in her life, just became my wife.”
Mai Dong listened in astonishment, never expecting his grandfather to say such things today.
He used to boast about how he wooed his grandmother, always emphasizing how captivating he was. Unexpectedly, Yan Xuming overheard and his grandfather began reflecting on himself. Mai Dong wasn’t used to hearing his grandfather speak like this, recalling what his father told him about their strong bond. Mai Dong had seen the video of his grandmother’s wedding, her eyes filled with happiness.
But his grandfather’s words were true; many women swept up by the tides of the times were as capable as men, but unfortunately, they had no room to flourish, even now.
Love always seems to leave something lacking. As his grandfather grew older, he missed his departed loved one more than ever.
Mai Dong clenched his phone, making an excuse to slip out of the room quietly. He hid in a corner of the lobby, whispering to Yan Xuming.
Speaking into his phone, his voice somewhat subdued: “Hello, are you still listening?”
The response came quickly from the other end: “En, did he used to say things like this too? I thought it was just showing off love, wanting to learn a thing or two from Grandpa, but I didn’t expect to hear his privacy.”
Mai Dong shook his head, then realized Yan Xuming couldn’t see him and quickly replied, “No, it wasn’t like this before. I didn’t expect him to say something like this today.”
Yan Xuming asked, “What kind of person is grandma?”
Mai Dong indeed couldn’t remember much; his grandmother probably passed away when he was around one or two years old.
But from what his parents told him, his grandfather became very different. In his grandfather’s era, families who were involved in the arts were not common. His grandfather had many flaws in his character, being lofty-minded but lacking practical skills. He always thought of himself as a great artist and refused to be down-to-earth. It was only after his grandmother’s death that he seemed to change. He would lock himself in his studio every day, avoiding social interactions, and tirelessly chisel away at stones and plaster.
Mai Dong couldn’t think of anything to say about his grandmother. He remained silent for a while, and Yan Xuming smoothly shifted the conversation.
He said, “Alright, let’s not discuss this anymore. Did you enjoy dinner?”
Only then did Mai Dong nod his head, “En, everyone from my family was there.”
Yan Xuming paused for a moment, then continued, “Everyone in my family was there too. My uncle asked me if I was dating anyone, told me not to focus solely on studying, and that it was time for some campus romance.”
Mai Dong was surprised, not expecting both parents to say the exact same thing. He was nervous yet hopeful, “So, what did you say?”
Yan Xuming chuckled, “Just tell the truth, is there any need to lie?”
Mai Dong immediately felt guilty and replied, “Uh… no need.”
Yan Xuming realized, “It seems that you lied.”
Mai Dong was about to explain when someone suddenly tapped his shoulder.
Startled, he instinctively covered his phone and turned around to see his mother standing behind him with a smile. He didn’t dare to greet Yan Xuming, hurriedly hung up the phone, and stuttered, “Um, Mom, why did you come out?”
Thank You for the new chapter (´,,•ω•,,)♡
You need to be patient with this kind of partner like Dr.Mai
Thank you for your translation 💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙
Thank you for the chapter!!🫶