Chapter 37 Love Story

Guozhao Zhiqiang woke up and reached out his arm to hug Deming but found an empty bed. He was lying alone. His heart was shaking as he lay on the bed. He suspected that last night was just a dream. He sat by the edge of the bed for a few minutes, then walked towards the door. He saw a bowl of rice congee and a note on the table. Deming wrote 'Going to class. Don't wait for me'. Guozhao Zhiqiang sat down with a smile and started to eat his congee.

Deming was the first person to show up for the morning session. He sat down in the chair but found that sitting upright made his backdoor hurts more, so he decided to lean a little more on one side, which would take some of the pressure away. After a while, the students began to walk into the classroom. Then the last person to enter the classroom was Teacher Li.

Teacher Li said, "Students, today we are going to learn about forgiveness. Why do we forgive?" He looked at the students inside his classroom. "How do we forgive?" He paused. "Anyone?"

After listening to Teacher Li's lecture on forgiveness for two hours, Deming felt uncomfortable in his chair. Every time he tried to sit up straight; he felt a slight pain in his backdoor. Sitting in the classroom and listening to Teacher Li's lecture was not pleasant, but he still endured the pain to get through the morning class.

Teacher Li closed the book, "Does anyone have any questions?" Everyone shook their heads. "Okay, I have nothing left after this class. The Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, and we will not have classes until after the festival. There are plenty of fun in Cloud City for young people such as yourself." Teacher Li smiled. "A lot of singles find love at this time of year."

The students all laughed at Teacher Li's comments.

Teacher Li continued, "I'm telling the truth. Third Master Fang and Teacher Lee met during the Mid-Autumn Festival in Peace Town. Does anyone want to hear their love story?"

The students shouted, "Yes!"

Deming wondered how long it would take if Teacher Li told a love story. He wanted to get out of the classroom and lie down quickly because the longer he sat in the class, the more burns he got on his backdoor. Since his seat was not the first seat by the door, he couldn't slip out slowly. He sighed and muttered quietly, "I shouldn't have come to class today."

Teacher Li said, "This is the love story between Master Fang and Teacher Li who met many years ago. The two are in their early twenties..."

Deming suddenly remembered the two people he met at the roadside pavilion when he came to Cloud City. He murmured, "Teacher Lee and Master Fang." Deming recalled the two men and twin boys in the pavilion by the road. He remembered the way Master Fang looked at Teacher Lee. After so many years, Master Fang still couldn't take his eyes off Teacher Lee.

Teacher Li began to tell his own version of the story of Fang Yaoting and Lee Dachin. He said, "At that time, the teacher and the master were new acquaintances. They walked side by side on the bustling street. The street vendors tried to attract their attention, but their attention was only on each other. It's like the world only belongs to the two of them." Teacher Li caught the attention of the students. "Suddenly, a beautiful gold and silver hairpin caught the attention of Master Fang. He asked the hawker how much it was, and the hawker told him that the hairpin was thousand gold coins."

The students were stunned and muttered among each other's, "Wow! So expensive."

Teacher Li continued, "Do you think so? But not Master Fang. He took out a large gold ingot worth more than a thousand gold coins and threw it to the hawker. Then he said 'No money is as precious as the smile of this beautiful person's face'. He picked up the hairpin and pinned it to Teacher Lee's hair. From that day on, the hairpin stayed with Teacher Lee. Later, that night, Master Fang and their friends gathered for a farewell party, and Master Fang then announcing his love for Teacher Lee in front of everyone. Master Fang stood manly on the rooftop and shouted, 'People on the street, please stop and listen'. He caught the attention of people walking on the street with his roaring. That night, Master Fang exhaled and shouted proudly 'I want everyone to know this person', he pointing to Teacher Li 'belongs to me'." Teacher Li paused and took a sip of tea. "The people on the street were cheering. Everyone congratulated them."

One of the female students said, "Teacher Lee must be very beautiful."

Teacher Li, "You are absolutely correct. Teacher Lee is indeed a very beautiful man."

The students were stunned, "Huh?"

Teacher Li laughed and said, "Forgot to say, Teacher Lee and Master Fang are both men, but that's beautiful. Love is between two people, no one else. Master Baiyu has a saying 'love is love and nothing more'. Don't think that their love is a straight line. From where they are today, their path has been filled with pain, rejection, tears and sacrifice, but their love for each other overcomes it all. They promise to love each other until death separates them. The moral of their love story tells us that true love exists in all shapes and forms." Teacher Li look at his students and continued. "That's why, in our principles, we respect everyone, and we choose to forgive. Hate is nothing more but the yoke that binds us to darkness. Through forgiveness, we untie that darkness that bind our wrists and legs to the wall of hatred. Only by releasing it, can we release ourselves."

Deming finally understood what Guozhao Zhiqiang wanted to tell him. He remembered the smiles on the faces of the two masters. He murmured to himself, "Only by releasing it, can we release ourselves."

Teacher Li said, "Okay, that's it for today's class, remember we don't have afternoon classes. I said before that we won't have classes until after the Mid-Autumn Festival, so enjoy it while you're still young."

The students stood up and paid their respect to Teacher Li, "Thank you Teacher Li for teaching us today."

Teacher Li walked out of the classroom slowly. The students also walked out of the classroom and towards their sleeping.