Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Duoyao really took her hat off to him. Although it was summer, the temperature difference between day and night was almost 20°C, yet he could still shower with cold water. “Aren’t you afraid of the cold?”
“I’m alright.” Yan Molun watched her intently for a while. Suddenly, he leaned over and asked softly, “Have you thought about my reward?”
Duoyao’s lips trembled for a while and she said softly, “One should derive pleasure from helping others. You shouldn’t keep thinking about getting a reward.”
“But I only went because I was thinking about your reward—I’m not so noble.” Yan Molun tilted his head and his gaze burned more intensely than before.
“How can you be like this?” Duoyao stomped her feet. She could never out-talk this man.
“I am like this.” Yan Molun folded his arms. “If you’re not going to come up with one, I’ll get it on my own.”
“I… I’ll cook for you,” Duoyao stuttered.
“I don’t want that. Why don’t you give me a kiss?” Yan Molun stared at her. His expression became solemn and he said word by word, “Duoyao, is it so difficult for you to take the initiative to kiss me?”
Duoyao was stunned and she couldn’t stop rubbing her hands against her jeans. She recalled his retreating back from when he left. Honestly, it wasn’t too much to ask for a kiss. She understood that too. Although she was shy, she couldn’t always make him walk towards her. Men needed some minor rewards from time to time. “You’re to blame… for being so tall. I can’t even reach you…” she protested softly. Yan Molun bent down a little more. He curled his mouth upwards. “Can’t you see that I’m already bending down?”
Her eyes darted around, and seeing that there was no one around, she stood on her toes and kissed his lips before dashing back to the dormitory. Although it was just a few steps away, her heart was thumping so vigorously as though she had just finished a marathon.
Yan Molun looked at her fleeing and found her funny.
Is there a need to be so shy?
In the subsequent days, Yan Molun didn’t mention going down the mountain. It seemed as though days passed by very quickly in the last month and in the blink of an eye, it was already the end of the third month. The children knew Duoyao was about to leave and they were all very reluctant to part with her. They were even more serious in class than before.
In the last class, the children wrote a letter to Duoyao. Although their words were crooked and there were also many spelling errors, each and every word came from the bottoms of their hearts. At the end of the class, the children all cried.
“Teacher Jiang, will we be able to see you again?” Luma cried while holding her hand. “Other than Principal Alongso, I’ve never met a teacher like you.”
Duoyao bent down and stroked her head. She said to the students, “We will meet again and I’ve decided to send all of you to the primary school nearby to study. From today onwards, all of you have to start studying hard. Don’t forget about the things I taught you all this while. We must work hard for our dreams. When you get to your new school, I will send a gift over as a reward to those who can score above 90.”
“Really?” The children’s eyes lit up upon hearing that. “But Teacher, you need a lot—a lot—of money to study.”
“You do need a lot of money to study, so you all have to study even harder and don’t waste any chance to make a turning point in your lives,” Duoyao said seriously, “Only knowledge can change your fate. Your parents have saved up to buy you books so that you can end up as useful individuals in the future and not be the way you are now, hungry and cold. When you enter your new school, I will come and visit you.”
After bidding farewell to the children, she stepped out of the classroom and Alongso held her hands gratefully. “Teacher Jiang, I want to thank you on behalf of the entire village. If the media comes to interview us, we…”
“Principal, I did all this not for myself but because I really felt that these children were quite pitiful,” Duoyao interrupted him. “If the media does come, tell them about your difficult situation. The country would only direct their attention to this area if you make use of the media to describe the poverty in your area, and that way, relevant government organizations won’t dare to neglect you again.”
“Thank you. I really don’t know what to say; you’re like the benefactor of our entire village.” Alongso clasped his hands together gently. “I hope everything goes well for you after you leave.”
—————-
The villagers came over that night successively to thank them all the way until past 10 pm before she and Xiling had time to pack their bags.
During that period, Xiling slapped herself several times. “Am I dreaming? I’m finally leaving this hell of a place.”
Jiang Duoyao stretched lazily and hugged her. “It’s been hard on you all this time.”
“Don’t say that; I’ve had my takeaways too.” Xiling smiled as she looked at Duoyao. “But I really didn’t think you’d be so kind. Your future is unknown, yet you promised to provide for these children’s educations.”
“There’s less than 10 children; it won’t cost a lot,” Jiang Duoyao said without a care. “After I get back, I must take a nice bubble bath, take care of my skin, and eat like crazy. Aye, this won’t do. The more I talk, the more I feel like leaving tonight. Pack quickly.”
After packing up, the two didn’t sleep well probably because they were too excited and agitated.
They woke up at 6 am to take selfies all around the classroom. When Yan Molun woke up at 7 am and saw them taking selfies in the field, he got a shock. “How rare for you two to be up so early.”
“We were so agitated we couldn’t sleep.” Duoyao stuck her tongue out at him.
Xiling raised her camera. “Do you want me to take a shot of the two of you?”
Duoyao got a shock upon hearing that and she looked at Yan Molun. He had already started walking over. He put his arm around her waist and her face flushed red in no time at all.
After the photo was taken, she rushed over to look immediately. She was wearing sneakers, jeans and a jacket on the outside, looking like a young and tender university student. Yan Molun was very tall and she was held in his embrace, looking like father and daughter. “Just like father and daughter.”
Yan Molun’s face sank. “Carry your luggage yourself later.”
After saying that, he turned to return to his room.
Duoyao’s face fell. Xiling patted her shoulder. “You deserved it. Isn’t the main point of getting a boyfriend all for today? Why did you still offend him? You’re too tactless.”
“I don’t think he would really refuse to carry my luggage for me.” Duoyao snorted.
…
In the end, when they left, Yan Molun carried his bag and helped Xiling carry two of her big bags, refusing to carry Duoyao’s.
Duoyao pulled her two large suitcases whiled holding a few bags here and there pitifully. Luckily, the villagers were kind. Seeing that she had so many things to carry, they all helped her to carry her things down.
On the way, she walked delightedly beside Yan Molun hands-free and even pulled a face at him, saying softly, “Look, without your help, there are still a bunch of people fighting to help me.”
Yan Molun couldn’t be bothered with her. Too childish.
After putting their things in the car, Duoyao bade the villagers farewell again before getting in the car.
The car drove on for quite a while but she could still see the villagers and children waving to her on the hill. Her eyes reddened. She might never forget these three months for the rest of her life. Although the villagers here were poor, they were more sincere and down-to-earth than anyone else. She was also a little reluctant to part with them when she left.
However, after the SUV drove for three to four hours, she started to brighten up. On the way, they could see some horses and Tibetan goats. Duoyao rolled the windows down and couldn’t stop saying, “Wow, look at that river. It’s so beautiful.”
“Wow, what a beautiful mountain.”
“How can this be so beautiful?”
“This world is really so beautiful.”
…
Xiling chimed in. “Aye, look, I wonder what bird is that. Gosh, the water is so blue. This air is so fresh…”
Yan Molun was a little speechless while hearing them from the front. “You sound as though you haven’t seen this before. Didn’t you take this road when you came?”
“I think so.” Duoyao blinked. “But I was in despair then and after traveling for days, I felt as though the entire world was grey. How could I be in the mood to admire the scenery? It’s different now. The entire world seems like a fairyland.”
“Yes.” Xiling nodded in agreement.
“Why don’t we take a break and rest for the night by a river?” Duoyao said as she leaned forward. “Let’s drive slowly these next four to five days. We can slowly look for food as we drive, just like a road trip.”
“… Up to you.” Yan Molun thought for a while and thought it wasn’t a bad idea.
In the evening, they parked by a large lake. The sun was setting and in the distance, one could see the river surrounded by mountains with a group of cattle and sheep grazing by the lake. All this was enveloped by the glow of the gigantic ball of red.
The two women took out their phones agitatedly to take photos. Yan Molun found a spot to set up the tent. When they returned, the blue tent was already up. Duoyao couldn’t help but give him a thumbs up. “I feel you resemble a robot cat (1. Referring to Doraemon) more and more. There’s nothing you can’t fix and you even have a tent.”
Yan Molun said lightly, “Don’t you think that I’m way more handsome than the blue fatty?”
Duoyao rolled her eyes at him. Thick-skinned.
Xiling felt more and more like a lightbulb. “Why don’t… I sleep in the car tonight? The two of you can sleep in the tent.”
Duoyao took in a deep breath and her face was flushed red. Sleeping together in a tent with Yan Molun at night…?
“No need. You two can sleep there.” Yan Molun smiled lightly. “Anyway, I’ll have all the time in the world to sleep with her when we get back.”
Duoyao: “….”
What does he mean by “all the time in the world to sleep”?
Also, was it really appropriate for him to say something so shameless like that in front of Xiling?