Solitary

The cemetery was shady, and He Jiqing didn't dare to sit for a long time. After a short rest, he dragged Lin Shu to continue walking.The two climbed along the slope next to the cemetery. Along the way, there were several dilapidated old villas, and an old banyan tree next to it was pierced into the wall.

Curious, Lin Shu stopped, stood under the tree and looked up, and found that the old banyan tree had not only stuck into the wall, but also had grown into the house.Through the dilapidated windows, you can see that the aerial roots of the banyan tree have covered the floor.Looks like a scene from a horror movie.

He Jiqing picked up his phone to take pictures, but Lin Shu stopped him: "Don't take random pictures!"

"Why?"

Lin Shu whispered: "It's not good if you shoot something!"

He believed in ghosts and gods, but was also afraid of ghosts and gods.He Jiqing thought his cautious look was cute, so he put away his phone: "Then I won't take pictures!"

As soon as he finished speaking, something jumped out of the villa and jumped onto the banyan tree. Lin Shu was so frightened that he grabbed He Jiqing and ran away.After running for a few meters, He Jiqing looked back and laughed wildly: "A cat, it's a cat."

Lin Shu slowed down and took a quick look back. It was indeed a big fat cat with yellow and white flowers. It had already jumped under the tree and was licking its paws calmly. It seemed that it had eaten something good in the villa.

Lin Shu held his chest and let out a long breath: "I'm scared to death!"

He Jiqing knocked him on the head: "I'm here, what are you afraid of!"

"Can you fight a ghost?" Lin Shu still held his hand tightly.

"I haven't tried it, so I don't know." He Jiqing smiled happily, and when Lin Shu ran, he pulled him.

Lin Shu dragged He Jiqing to continue walking, telling him as he walked that Gulangyu Island was full of old houses and ghost stories bloomed everywhere.

"In the past, there were three wives and four concubines. There must have been a lot of people who died because of fighting for favors and family wealth, and they were all full of resentment." Lin Shu said seriously.

He Jiqing couldn't laugh or cry: "You should write a novel."

"It's all true, I didn't make it up." Lin Shu stared seriously.

He Jiqing smiled and said nothing, letting him continue.

Lin Shu was silent, and took him by the hand to turn to a narrow alley. There were dilapidated old buildings on both sides. Unlike the villas, they were the houses of ordinary residents on the island. Some balconies still had clothes drying .Almost every old building's outer wall is covered with ivy.

The dark clouds in the sky cleared, and the sun filled the alleyway.

"I've read your new book." He said suddenly.

"How?" He Jiqing saw that his nose was soaked in sweat.

"It's so dark." Lin Shu sighed while looking at the ivy twice.He avoided He Jiqing's eyes, not wanting him to see his expression.

"You never wrote tragedies before," he added.

"When it's republished, I'll change it." He Jiqing imitated him and turned his head to look at him.

Lin Shu turned his head, and the two looked at each other: "Change it over and over again, the readers should scold you."

"I'll tell them, because my boyfriend doesn't like it." He Jiqing was very serious.

Lin Shu's face was on fire, but his heart seemed to be poured with vinegar, sore and bitter.

"Do you hate me?" He tried to ask, his voice tight.

He Jiqing stopped, and the two of them happened to be standing under a clump of bougainvilleas.The shadows of leaves and branches fell on the two of them, their faces.

"I hate myself." He Jiqing's eyes were in the shadow of the tree.

Lin Shu was surprised.

"I should look for you." He Jiqing said, "I should rush to Dongshan without hesitation, and dig three feet to find you."

If he had looked for it at that time, maybe Lin Shu wouldn't have had a car accident, wouldn't have those scars, and wouldn't have had to drive four nails into his leg.Even if the result is still separated, at least Lin Shu is healthy.

"I'm sorry." Lin Shu grabbed He Jiqing's hands and put them on his chest, "I'm sorry, He Jiqing."

He Jiqing hugged him: "It's all over."

Lin Shu shook her head in his arms, no, he didn't.How is he going to speak?

The two hugged under the bougainvillea, until someone talked in the yard next door, and He Jiqing let go of Lin Shu. His eyes were red, and his face was drenched with sweat.He Jiqing took out a tissue to wipe his sweat.

The people in the yard opened the door and came out. They were two well-groomed old men.The young man thought they had lost their way, and pointed to a weed path next to them and said, "If you want to go this way, you won't be able to go there."

He Jiqing thanked them, and Lin Shu thanked them again in Hokkien.

Two old men, holding hands, walked towards the opposite direction of the alley, talking in Hokkien while walking.The older one seemed to have bad ears and spoke loudly, while the younger one was louder than him, and leaned close to his ear, almost shouting.

He Jiqing dragged Lin Shu onto the path of weeds.

Lin Shu looked back while walking, He Jiqing asked him, "What are you looking at?"

"They seem to be a couple!" Lin Shu could understand their conversation.

He Jiqing also looked back, the two old people were walking slowly, the young one was helping the old one to fix his hair while walking, and the old one kept talking loudly.

"What do you mean?" He Jiqing asked Lin Shu.

"He said, don't do it, it's not about getting married." Lin Shu translated.

The young old man shouted a long list again.Lin Shu continued to translate: "He said, we just want to get married, get married every day, and get married beautifully."

The two old men walked away noisily.

Lin Shu asked He Jiqing, "They should all be over eighty, right?"

"Probably more than that." He Jiqing said.

"That's great." Lin Shu murmured.

He knew that in the age of the old man and the others, their relationship might have had more twists and turns, but the two of them still lived together hand in hand.

"We can do it too." He Jiqing also stroked his sweaty hair as he walked, pushing it all back so that his eyes could not be blocked, "Maybe I will be like them, when I get old and need you to help me walk, I can't hear , you have to speak to me loudly."

"Not necessarily." Lin Shu looked down at his legs, maybe he left before he could live to be sixty.Even if he lived to be eighty, it would be He Jiqing who would take care of him.

"Don't worry, I sent your case to an American doctor. You are still young and you will be fine in the future." He Jiqing saw through him.

Lin Shu grasped his hand tightly, "Doctors in China also say the same."

He Jiqing led him forward slowly.

The two walked around, finally returned to the pier, boarded the boat and left without any regrets.There were far fewer people going back, and there was almost no one on the second floor. The two were still sitting at the stern, holding hands side by side.

Lin Shu looked at the statue of Zheng Chenggong that was getting farther and farther away and said, "I will never come here again."

"Let's go to Spain next time." He Jiqing never forgot.

Lin Shu played with his fingers silently.

When the boat was about to reach the shore, Lin Shu suddenly let go of the hand he had been holding tightly and called softly, "He Jiqing—"

"Huh?" He Jiqing turned his head to look at him, thinking that something was wrong with him, but saw Lin Shu's serious and sad expression.

"What's wrong?" he asked him.

"He Jiqing—" Lin Shu shouted with difficulty.

The ship blew its docking whistle.

"I had never been in a relationship before my senior year, and I didn't dare to like anyone. I kept a distance from everyone," he said.

He Jiqing tilted his head and seemed to be listening very seriously.

"You know, my parents are very conservative," he added.

Just these few words, Lin Shu felt like he was about to suffocate.He gritted his teeth and said firmly, he had to say everything.

"I knew from a young age that I would never be able to marry a girl in this life, nor would I be able to be with a man. I have long planned to be alone for the rest of my life."

After he finished speaking, he saw He Jiqing's distressed eyes.

"But I'm not reconciled." He endured the resistance in his heart and continued: "I want to fall in love, I want to find someone to love."

He Jiqing's expression gradually changed.

Lin Shu smiled wryly: "So I made a plan to break up after graduation after falling in love in senior year. If you rejected me at that time, I would find someone else."

"Stop talking." He Jiqing finally spoke, and it was all over.

Lin Shu shook his head, he was about to finish.This was the rock in his heart, even if it would hurt He Jiqing if he said it, he would say it.

"I thought it was enough to experience it." It turned out that he thought too simply.Humans are greedy by nature. Once they have eaten something delicious, they want to eat it again and again.

"You are so innocent." He Jiqing said.

Lin Shu couldn't hear the emotion in his words.

"The trip to Tibet is planned, similar to a breakup trip. I know it's wrong, I've always regretted it, I should have told you earlier. I'm sorry for you."

He finally finished, and it took all his strength.He slumped on the chair, trembling slightly.

The electronic bell rang, and the conductor on the second floor shouted: "It's docked, get off the boat, don't forget your things."

He Jiqing held his hand: "Let's go."

Both hands were cold.The sky has changed, the sun is gone, and there are dark clouds in the sky.At the gate of the pier, there are many people selling umbrellas.

He Jiqing led him and walked slowly along the sidewalk.Lin Shu lowered his head and quietly followed behind him.

A child quickly passed between the two of them, knocking away their tightly holding hands.Lin Shu grabbed it again, and He Jiqing had already put his hand to his side.

There was a drizzle in the sky, Lin Shu looked up at the sky, the weather forecast said it would rain, but it didn't say when it would rain.

He Jiqing didn't go back to Jimei to stay at night.

When the two were having lunch near Xiamen University, he answered the phone and said to Lin Shu, "You go back first."

Lin Shu said yes without asking what the matter was.

When he returned to Jimei alone, it was already raining heavily.He bought a cheap umbrella on the side of the road and walked slowly to the subway station in the rain.

There are very few pedestrians along the way.It was already past meal time, and the restaurants on the roadside were also empty.No matter how careful he was, the rain still wet his trouser legs. The rain in June was hot, but it still made his legs feel cold and painful.After finally walking to the subway station, after getting off the escalator, he squatted against the wall with his hands on his knees.

The patrolman in the subway saw him and asked him, "Do you need help?"

He shook his head: "I'll just squat for a while."

The patrolman was worried and said, "Call us if you need help."

When the patrolman was far away, he stood up against the wall and walked forward with his aching left leg.

From now on, he will probably be like this, moving forward on his own.After getting on the subway, Lin Shu looked at himself on the window and thought.

In the evening, He Jiqing still sent him a WeChat message, asking him, "Are you asleep?"

He said, "No."

"Go to bed early." He Jiqing said.

"Yeah." He replied.

"The other party is typing" was displayed on the screen, but he held the phone and waited for a long time, but no message came.

"Good night." He sent out first.

"Well, good night." He Jiqing replied.

"Remember to take medicine and use hot water." He Jiqing added.

"Good," he said.

That's the end of the conversation.Lin Shu was lying on the pillow, playing a small game on his mobile phone. Doudizhu played cards randomly and lost several rounds. The points he had accumulated for a long time were quickly used up. Over 40 points.

A little bored, he turned over, sat up from the bed, and listened to the movement outside.The sound of rain drowned out all sounds, dogs barking and cats barking, children crying.

He bent his legs, but didn't want his left leg to suddenly cramp. He hugged his legs and rolled over on the bed. While taking a deep breath, he rubbed his calves vigorously with both hands, and at the same time stretched his left leg slowly as much as possible. After a few back and forth, he broke out in sweat , but the leg still throbs.He struggled to crawl to the side of the bed, took out the painkiller from the drawer of the bedside table, reached the palm of his hand, and stuffed it into his mouth indiscriminately.

The painkiller was swallowed down the throat, and after half an hour, the pain in the left leg gradually disappeared.Lin Shu was lying on the bed in big characters, and the doctor's words echoed in his mind: "If you recover well, this pain will disappear within a year. If you don't pay attention, it may follow you for a lifetime."

How long is a lifetime?

The days without He Jiqing felt like a lifetime.