Lu Yang woke up from a dream once again.
Fortunately his body was dry, only slightly sweaty from the heat.
He breathed a sigh of relief.
The sky was just turning the silvery-white of a fish belly, still early before full daylight.
Lu Yang got up, went to the living room for a cup of cold boiled water, and stood pensively at the doorway on the open ground. The stars gave off weak reflections in the paddy fields and the pond.
This couldn’t go on.
Who dreams about their good brother’s back dimples every night?
Even someone as thick-skinned and insensitive as Lu Yang felt the situation was out of control.
Cold boiled water was tasteless, so Lu Yang went to look for honey. When he saw the box of passion fruit next to the honey jar, he secretly grimaced.
When he turned around, he was startled by Lin Oufei, who had appeared in the living room like a ghost.
“Why do you walk without sound?”
Lin Oufei’s face showed limited expression. “Did you have a nightmare?”
Lu Yang’s body stiffened for a moment, his expression also becoming unnatural. He couldn’t help retorting sharply: “What’s it to you?”
“Oh.” Lin Oufei observed his reaction and judged, “Seems like it was a good dream.”
Lu Yang’s expression changed several times. “I don’t understand what you’re saying. I’m going to buy breakfast.”
The breakfast cart from town would pass by the nearby villages a little after 6 a.m.
By the time he returned with breakfast, Xin Hexue would probably have just woken up.
Lu Yang went outside to check on Big Yellow and Small Yellow sleeping in the kitchen.
In the corner diagonal to the stove were two blankets and food bowls; this was Big Yellow and Small Yellow’s nest. The kitchen door wasn’t locked at night, making it convenient for the two big dogs to come and go, guarding the yard at night.
Big Yellow wagged its tail perfunctorily when it saw him, still lying on the blanket.
Small Yellow, however, jumped up lively, sniffing around Lu Yang, then crouching low and jumping up as if inviting play, clearly very familiar with this boy who played fetch with sticks with him.
Lu Yang patted Big Yellow’s head. Big Yellow had noticeably faded and whitened fur on its face, different from the two dot-like white marks above Small Yellow’s beady eyes; this was a change brought by old age.
Lu Yang told Big Yellow to rest well, turned around, raised his sharp, determined eyebrows, and said to Small Yellow: “I’m going to the village entrance to wait for the breakfast cart. Do you want to come with me?”
Small Yellow set off with a “Woof woof!”
………
Xin Hexue loved sponge cake, Grandma liked pork floss buns, Grandpa liked fried dough sticks, and the rest could be bought casually.
Last night, Grandma also asked him to buy two jin of dried river noodles and half a jin of fried tofu puffs if he encountered the breakfast cart. They had bean sprouts and beef at home, so they could make dry-fried beef rice noodles for lunch.
Lu Yang bought everything on the list.
It was only 7 a.m. on the way back, but a circle of children had already gathered at the village shop.
‘Don’t kids these days sleep in?’
With his high vantage point, Lu Yang saw the middle-aged man surrounded by the children from a distance.
He was thin and gaunt in stature with piercingly bright eyes, telling the children stories about his travels to the north and south in his youth.
This uncle was boastful and talkative. Curious, Lu Yang blended into the group of children and listened for a while.
He didn’t listen long before he knew this uncle was deceiving the children. Ultraman Tiga was from Japan, how could he appear in China?
Just as Lu Yang was about to leave, the uncle changed the subject, turning to the business he and his good brother started when they went south.
“This brother of mine and I are the best of friends. We were born in the same year and month, grew up together since childhood, the kind of relationship where we shared the same pants. Could I forget my own brother when making a fortune?” The uncle ate a lychee. “Back then, when we went south to venture into the world, I dreamed of building a business empire with my good brother!”
“…”
Lu Yang, who had started to move away, retracted his steps.
He caught the keyword. “Dreaming about a good brother…”
Lu Yang muttered to himself: “So it’s normal?”
The uncle overheard him: “That means your feelings are very good, so close you could go through fire and water, and take a bullet for each other!”
Perhaps because he hadn’t had such an attentive audience for a long time, the uncle was clearly in high spirits, but Lu Yang didn’t listen to the subsequent series of stories about the martial arts world.
He had a sudden realization.
So this was the feeling of wanting to achieve great things with Xin Hexue.
No wonder it felt so passionate!
Just thinking about it made his heart surge with excitement.
“Let’s go, Small Yellow, let’s go home.”
Lu Yang called the dog and quickly walked back.
………
Today’s weather was different from the usual brilliant sun, it was cloudy and chilly. According to the weather forecast, a typhoon was approaching the coastal areas.
Affected by it, the weather here wasn’t great either.
Thick clouds seemed to be holding rain. When the wind blew over, it felt damp and sticky on the body.
Since there was no sun, they didn’t sun-dry the grain today.
Xin Hexue held a basin, scattering a handful of corn kernels on the open ground. The hens pecked at them one by one.
He watched for a while, always feeling something was missing.
Back in the kitchen, he mixed the leftover rice with bone broth. There was also leftover beef from lunch, and Xin Hexue secretly mixed it all into Big Yellow’s food bowl.
He squatted in front of the big dog’s nest, stroking Big Yellow’s fur. “Time to eat, Big Yellow.”
The big dog wagged its tail at him, pushed itself up on its four legs, and slowly bent down to lap at the broth in the bowl.
It was indeed very old. The young master grew vigorously like a sapling, while its own much more limited life was gradually aging.
Big Yellow could no longer have the abundant energy it had as a puppy, carrying the young master on its back to fight “monsters” and run all over the mountains and fields.
It rubbed against the back of Xin Hexue’s hand. Its fur lacked luster, and its black eyes looking at the young master held a bit of worry and sadness.
Xin Hexue pointed to the fresh beef in the bowl. “Big Yellow, eat quickly. I’ll watch for you so Small Yellow doesn’t come and eat it later.”
“Even though Small Yellow is your child, if it steals your meat, I’ll get angry too.” He rubbed Big Yellow’s erect ears.
Big Yellow seemed to understand. The rhythm of its wagging tail showed it was happy, and it ate the beef in the bowl with great relish.
Seeing it finally had an appetite, Xin Hexue breathed a sigh of relief.
Before summer vacation started, Grandma had told him on the phone that Big Yellow was getting old and didn’t move much, had a poor appetite and spent most of its days sleeping in its nest or in the yard.
But recently, its condition seemed quite good, at least for an elderly dog.
As afternoon approached, sure enough, affected by the typhoon weather, the rain accumulated in the sky finally poured down towards the earth.
Grandma called “cluck, cluck”, urging the chickens and ducks back to their pens behind the house for shelter from the rain.
Chickens and ducks weren’t kept in the main house because of the strong smell.
Their pens, like the kitchen, were separate. There was a tin shed behind the house with straw piled inside.
Winters in Licheng weren’t cold, so keeping livestock in a shed was fine.
They were all helping to herd the chickens and ducks into the pens.
Xin Hexue wore a bamboo rain hat and a transparent raincoat. His vision was somewhat blurred by the rain. The long bamboo pole in his hand tapped the ground, correcting the ducks’ path.
Small Yellow suddenly ran over. He thought it was going to chase the chickens and ducks and cause trouble, but instead, Small Yellow circled around him, whining and whimpering.
People seem to have an instinctive premonition before major events happen.
Xin Hexue’s heart skipped a beat, feeling emptied out.
His gaze searched around the yard and under the trees. Lu Yang and Zhuang Tongguang were working together to herd the last hen back into the pen, and Grandpa was hanging the latch on the pen’s gate.
Everything seemed normal, and there was no apparent problem.
Xin Hexue hurried back to the kitchen, but the dog nest was empty. “Where is Big Yellow?”
His heart felt like it was jumping into his throat, and Xin Hexue called out, “Grandma, Big Yellow is missing!”
In front of the house, behind the house, by the pond, they called out in the rain.
“Big Yellow…”
“Big Yellow…”
Finally, guided by Small Yellow, they found Big Yellow, who had fallen asleep forever, in the dense bamboo grove behind the house.
Small Yellow obediently stayed by Big Yellow’s side, lying down.
Lu Yang’s concerned gaze fell on Xin Hexue.
Contrary to his expectations, Xin Hexue didn’t show any extra sadness, his expression was very calm.
He was also very composed as he shoveled and buried Big Yellow’s big bone, toys, and nest.
Seeing that everyone seemed worried about him, Xin Hexue curved his lips. “It’s okay. Big Yellow lived a very long life.”
Moreover, as a free-range rural dog, it hadn’t been poisoned by dog thieves, hadn’t been in a traffic accident on cement roads, had Grandma and Grandpa adding meat to its meals, and hadn’t suffered from illness in its old age.
It was just the decay of bodily functions, passing away naturally from old age.
If converted, a medium-sized dog, almost seventeen years old, was equivalent to a ninety-year-old person passing away.
Xin Hexue’s voice was very calm, carrying an unusually soft power. He looked at them and said firmly, “This counts as a happy funeral.”
………
The trees swaying in the typhoon didn’t calm down until well past midnight. The night was deep and still, and the village was enveloped in tranquility.
Lu Yang turned over and sat up quietly, making sure he didn’t disturb anyone.
Xin Hexue was curled up on the inner side of the bed. The thin blanket covering him had covered his head at some point. Afraid he might have trouble breathing at night, Lu Yang gently pulled the blanket down.
Xin Hexue’s fair and soft cheeks were pressed against the pillow, his eyes closed serenely.
The rain clouds outside the window dispersed layer by layer. Water pooled in the yard, and the moonlight was cool and clear.
It was also by such moonlight that Lu Yang saw the equally clear tear stains.
So he had hidden and cried secretly after all.
In that instant, Lu Yang didn’t know what he felt. His heart seemed to be gripped tightly, countless emotions swelling to the limit within the limited flesh and blood, then suddenly bursting open, the shattered pieces twisting painfully in his heart.
It hurt so much.
Lu Yang never knew he was afraid of pain before.
As if guided by ghosts and gods, he kissed Xin Hexue’s eyes.
The soft, moist, thick eyelashes felt like accidentally touching butterfly wings or a dragonfly’s wings.
After doing this, Lu Yang stiffened in place.
Without a doubt, when feelings are good enough, you want to achieve great things with your good brother and envision your future together.
But you wouldn’t want to kiss your brother, even if he is your good brother.
Lu Yang swallowed.
[I like him. I…]
But in the budding spring of first love, rather than the first taste of sweetness, Lu Yang first tasted the sour passion fruit and the bitterness of the tears of the one he liked.
Life is finite. The speed at which youth forces growth is so fast they hadn’t even realized it yet.
Big Yellow’s death, his brother going away to study in the autumn…parting was the lesson this summer taught Xin Hexue.
At the same time, the budding feelings it gave rise to were sprouting among them.
