Chapter 35 Truth In The Open

Deming woke up with a headache. He sat on the bed, dizzy. Then he lay back on the bed. After lying in bed for a while, he realized that he was not in his own bedroom, but in someone else's room. The last thing he remembered was resting his head on the table at Dragon Inn. Then he remembered that someone was carrying him.

The door opened, and Guozhao Zhiqiang walked in with a tray on which on it were two bowls. He walked to the table and put down the tray.

Guozhao Zhiqiang looked at Deming and asked, "Are you feeling better?"

Deming complained, "I will never drink this much again. You drink too, right?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang nodded.

Deming asked, "Then why are you not like me?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang looked at Deming and said, "Don't drink again in the future."

Deming asked, "Why?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang said, "Your alcohol intolerance is not good."

Deming looked around the room and asked, "Where am I?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang, "You don't remember?"

"I remember lowering my head and someone helped me up," Deming said. He looked at Guozhao Zhiqiang. "Don't tell me, you are the one who brought me back here?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang, "Mm…"

Deming complained, "I am still dizzy. I want to sleep more."

Guozhao Zhiqiang grabbed one of the bowls and walked towards the bed, "Drink some green tea, it will help with your dizziness."

Deming took the bowl, drank the tea, and returned the empty bowl to Guozhao Zhiqiang.

Guozhao Zhiqiang asked, "Do you want some congee?"

Deming shook his head and lay back on the bed. Then he adjusted his body to face Guozhao Zhiqiang. Deming asked, "Is this your house?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang nodded, "Mm…"

Deming said, "Thank you for letting me stay for one night. If you're okay, I want to sleep a little longer?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang walked to the bedside and pulled the blanket up to Deming's chest. Then he said, "You can stay as long as you want."

Later in the evening, Deming woke up from a hangover. He still had some headaches, but he felt better. He walked out of the room and onto the porch. There are peach blossoms everywhere. He looked at the flower pedals fluttering in the wind, and every time the wind blew past him, he could smell the fragrance of the flowers. He looked down at the town. The lanterns outside the house look like hundreds of fireflies below.

Deming murmured quietly, "So this is the city in the cloud?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang asked, "Are you hungry?"

Deming was startled, then turned around and replied, "A little bit."

Guozhao Zhiqiang, "Come eat, dinner is ready."

Deming followed Guozhao Zhiqiang into an open space. On the left is the kitchenette. There are only three walls and a roof. Then on the right are two rooms. Further ahead is a road with wildflowers of different colors. He heard the sound of water running downstream. He was sitting at the table, Guozhao Zhiqiang brought two bowls of noodle soup and put the two bowls on the table. Deming started to eat; the noodles soup was tasteless. He has just woken up from a long sleep, and his sense of taste is a little off, but even though the food is tasteless, he still thinks the noodles are particularly delicious because Guozhao Zhiqiang made it for him.

Deming looked at Guozhao Zhiqiang then asked, "Do you often cook?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang replied, "No."

Deming asked, "Why not?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang, "I'm not a good cook."

Deming asked, "Who usually cooks for you?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang, "Junior Chuntao."

Deming looked annoyed and mocked Guozhao Zhiqiang, "Humph... I guess she also cooks, cleans, and does laundry for you? Am I right?" He tried his best to smile. "Lady Yang, is such a good housewife. If one day I want to get married... I will marry someone like her without hesitation." He started eating without looking at Guozhao Zhiqiang. He didn't understand why he felt irritated and annoyed every time Yang Chuntao's name was mentioned.

Guozhao Zhiqiang asked with a smile, "Are you angry?"

Deming coughed and cleared his throat, "No... I am not?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang said, "Your tone has suddenly changed, and your breathing has also changed."

Deming looked up at Guozhao Zhiqiang and said, "No, it didn't change."

Guozhao Zhiqiang said, "You don't want others to clean and cook for me, you have to learn to do those things."

Deming sneered, "Why am I wasting my time to learn those things?" He gripped the chopsticks tightly.

Guozhao Zhiqiang looked at Deming's hand and said, "Because I'm not very good at cooking, if you let me cook, it's just as tasteless as this soup. So, in the future, you must be the one who cooks for us." He picked up the bowl and drank the soup.

Deming looked at Guozhao Zhiqiang, his face suddenly became hot. He wonder if he said something last night that he shouldn't have said. He looked down at the clear soup in the bowl and said, "I'm not interested in spending my future with you here."

Guozhao Zhiqiang smirked, "Your mouth can deny it, what I value most is what is in your heart."

Deming gritted his teeth shyly, "You..."

Guozhao Zhiqiang looked at Deming and said, "Don't poke my eyes with those chopsticks."

Deming looked up at Guozhao Zhiqiang, "What?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang, "You said that yesterday."

Deming protested, "That's wine talk." He drank the noodle soup and put the empty bowl on the table. "By the way, where did the rushing water come from?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang said, "It is the water of the underground stream on the mountainside."

Deming's face was full of excitement, "Can we go take a look?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang replied, "Mm…"

The two walked along the flower beds road towards the rushing water. As the two got closer, the rushing water became louder and louder. The waterfall emerges from the mountainside to form a small pond, and then the stream flows down the mountain to form a second small waterfall.

Deming smiled at Guozhao Zhiqiang, "Wow, so beautiful." He approached the pond. "Are there any fish here?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang, "No."

Deming crouched down and touched the surface of the water. He continued, "You should really consider raising fish here." Deming saw his own reflection in the pond and realized he no longer had Deming's face. He doesn't mind spending a lifetime here with Guozhao Zhiqiang. He picked up a stone and threw it into the water. He murmured sadly. "Time goes by and everything is different."

Guozhao Zhiqiang stood behind him and asked, "Would you like to take a bath in the pond?"

Deming looked up at Guozhao Zhiqiang, "I did not bring any clothes."

Guozhao Zhiqiang glanced at Deming and said, "The old clothes are still at home."

Deming said, "Fine." He took off his the outer layer of his robe. He went into the pond. Then he turned to look at Guozhao Zhiqiang. "Are you going to take a bath too?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang then took off his clothes and walked into the pond. Guozhao Zhiqiang asked, "Are you shy to take off your clothes in front of me?"

Deming quickly said, "Is not like you have not seen me..." He just realized that he said something wrong. He quickly recovered. "Even though we are both men, I don't like to be naked..." He turned around, Guozhao Zhiqiang had stripped naked, and saw Guozhao Zhiqiang's strong chest, arms and abdominal muscles. His eyes are on Guozhao Zhiqiang. He slowly stared down at Guozhao Zhiqiang's body, and when his eyes approached the pubic hair, he turned around quickly. His heart was pounding. "Why are you naked?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang sneered, "Yes, we are both men, I don't mind being naked in front of you." He looked at Deming's back. "Sit here, I'll wash your hair."

Deming refused and walked towards the middle of the pond. He said, "I can wash it myself."

Guozhao Zhiqiang walked to Deming's side and wrapped his arms around Deming's body. Then he kissed Deming gently on the back of Deming's head.

Deming felt that Guozhao Zhiqiang's big body embracing him from behind warmed his entire body. Deming felt Guozhao Zhiqiang's warmth permeating his whole body. The joy in his heart was like fireworks shooting in all directions.

Deming softly said, "Brother Guozhao, please let go of your arms."

Guozhao Zhiqiang refused to let go of his arms, "I'm sorry, I wasn't by your side that day."

Deming, he knew what Guozhao Zhiqiang was talking about, but he pretended to be puzzled, "What?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang repeated, "I'm sorry I wasn't by your side that day." Guozhao Zhiqiang turned Deming around and faced him. Guozhao Zhiqiang raised Deming's face with the fingers of his right hand. "I should have taught you the summoning spell."

Deming, "Brother Guozhao, I think you are confusing me with others." He pushed Guozhao Zhiqiang away and walked quickly to his clothes.

Guozhao Zhiqiang shouted, "Deming." His eyes were wetted with tears.

Deming wanted to turn around and run back to Guozhao Zhiqiang's embrace, but Guozhao Zhiqiang's words 'I'll ask my girlfriend to make another one for me' were deeply imprinted in his heart, and he continued to walk away from Guozhao Zhiqiang.

Guozhao Zhiqiang shouted vigorously, "Deming!" Deming stopped. "You once promised me that you would be by my side as long as I wanted you. I always wanted you to be by my side and be my shadow until my hair turned white and my skin wrinkled, and even then, I still wanted you to be by my side."

With tears in his eyes, Deming was deeply touched by Guozhao Zhiqiang's words, but he found that Deming's body no longer existed. The body that Guozhao Zhiqiang loves is Deming, not this Dong Enlai.

Guozhao Zhiqiang said, "Your red string and silver bell has always been yours. If you don't want it, just keep walking and don't look back."

Deming took two steps forward.

Guozhao Zhiqiang's lips trembled slightly, and said, "However, if you still want it, turn around and return to the chest that has always been longing for you."