Encounter the Ice Age

Zhaoqing seldom took the initiative to talk to Chen Yang during the 'living together' these days, most of the time it was Chen Yang who raised the topic and Zhaoqing responded.

A few days ago, Zhaoqing was all focused on the funeral, and when she was done, she seemed to have lost her goal and was always in a daze.For some reason, he lay on the bed on time but couldn't sleep all night long, and often fell into a dream and woke up hastily. In the dream, the memories of the past and present were always overlapping.

There are the cold eyes of relatives in the "previous life", and the crying of children.

The successive departures of the Connors made Zhaoqing unable to help recalling the events of his "previous life". In his "previous life", Zhaoqing went to his uncle's and aunt's house when he was three or four years old. He had too little memory of his parents and sisters. Not sure if I ever really lived with my parents and sister.

After a few days of suffering, Zhaoqing's eyes are always light blue, and she looks very listless.Every time he stood at the door of Mrs. Connor's room and wanted to pack Mrs. Connor's belongings, but he hesitated and couldn't take the steps to enter Mrs. Connor's room.

Zhaoqing looks quiet and well-behaved, but since his "last life", he has been a person who hesitates and thinks too much. Even his own personality flaws often scare him back two steps before he takes action.

Chen Yang quickly swallowed his breakfast like a jujube, and now he is drinking coffee and watching Zhaoqing eat a second corner of bread.

Zhaoqing's ears were a little hot, and she pretended not to feel Chen Yang's gaze fixed on her coffee cup with her head down, not even daring to look away from the corner of her eye.

The more we get along, the more Chen Yang finds Zhaoqing interesting, and he has been chasing Zhaoqing for a long time.At first, I thought this boy was polite and alienated, but now I realized that Zhaoqing is a timid character, very funny to play with.

Chen Yang sat next to Zhaoqing from the opposite side, and asked: "How is it, today's egg looks pretty..." Sure enough, the tips of Zhaoqing's ears turned red.

Chen Yang, like Zhaoqing, speaks Chinese at home all year round. He told Zhaoqing that he moved from Wuhan to an English-speaking environment at the age of three. He had an older brother who went sailing outside and lived a very normal life. He joined the army in his early teens and became an Asian soldier.

Chen Yang is 31 and 29 years old and went to Seattle as a police officer professionally.

Zhao Qing can only nod his head and say, "It's delicious." At least today's eggs are not all battered, and he has made great progress.

Chen Yang naturally helped Zhaoqing wipe off the bread crumbs from his mouth, and even licked his fingers back.

Zhao Qing's face was a little hot and he didn't say anything else, but he didn't dare to look at Chen Yang.A few days ago, Chen Yang broke through the limit of being a suitor, came to his house to accompany him through difficulties, and did a lot of things for him besides pursuing.

At that time, Zhaoqing was too distracted to take care of her, and she had violated the rules many times, but now she reacts and refuses to be hypocritical.

Chen Yang stretched out his hand to touch Zhaoqing's head, and said in his heart that he couldn't stay any longer, otherwise he would definitely drag Zhaoqing upstairs.He has to be a normal person, and return to normal life in various senses to be able to support the people floating outside.

"I'm too late, you washed the dishes and put them aside?" Chen Yang said, stood up and picked up the uniform on the sofa.

Zhaoqing: "Okay."

When Chen Yang went to the entrance to change his shoes, Zhaoqing stood up as if remembering something, and chased him to the entrance.

"Chen Yang!"

"What's wrong?" Chen Yang stood under the steps of the porch and looked up at Zhaoqing.

"Today...it's raining today..." Zhao Qing couldn't continue talking.He just happened to hear the forecast on TV, and Chen Yang must have heard it at the dinner table.Then what is he talking about?

Chen Yang looked at Zhaoqing unconsciously entangled his fingers in the sofa towel, and replied, "Okay, I'm carrying an umbrella, and you should wear an extra dress when you go out."

Chen Yang wanted to hug Zhaoqing, but he didn't. He was always very patient with Zhaoqing, and said, "I'll bring home food tonight, how about some Chinese food?"

Zhao Qing nodded blankly, and saw Chen Yang smiling.

It was cloudy outside, and Zhaoqing didn't close the door until Chen Yang drove away.Chen Yang's smile was bright, and Zhao Qing felt warm when he smiled.But the more he was moved, the more uneasy he became, subconsciously thinking that Chen Yang should not be allowed to live in.

But Chen Yang has already moved in, what should I do?

At four o'clock in the evening, Chen Yang returned home on time with takeaways. When he entered the room, he saw Zhaoqing sitting on the sofa and arranging fruits on the plate on the coffee table.

Chen Yang: "What a fresh fruit, have you gone out?"

"En," Zhaoqing replied vaguely, walked over and put the paper bag in Chen Yang's hand on the dining table, and the two of them sat facing each other and took apart their chopsticks to eat dumplings.

Zhaoqing typed many drafts in his mind before saying, "Is there nothing to be busy with recently?"

"Us? The downtown area is a bit chaotic lately... By the way, you still have two days off, so I'll take you out to relax?" Chen Yang hadn't finished speaking before the classic iPhone rang.

"Say whatever you want." Chen Yang put down his chopsticks and listened to the phone for a long while, Zhao Qing saw Chen Yang's impatient face and also frowned.

"Oh, it's related to the performance at the end of the year? Well, then I'll go back right away." Chen Yang hung up the phone helplessly. It's not easy to live in the system, but he needs this job.

Zhaoqing couldn't see the entanglement in Chen Yang's heart, only saw Chen Yang put down the phone, stood up, went upstairs and then went to the back door, and Chen Yang came back to him a minute or two later.

Zhaoqing: "What's the matter, Chen Yang?"

"There was a shooting in the middle school. It is still impossible to determine the number of casualties. I don't know who the gunman is. I locked the windows and the back door," Chen Yang said, putting on the uniform he had just taken off, and opened the safety lock. The gun hangs directly in the holster.

Chen Yang didn't even have a trace of anxiety on his face, he reached out to pick up a few dumplings and threw them into his mouth, instead he told Zhaoqing, "After I go out, you have to check the windows and doors. You know that the gun at home is hidden by the side of the fireplace." , intended to deter, understand?"

Zhaoqing was a little puzzled, and replied, "I don't know how to use a gun..." Why did there suddenly happen a shooting.

"Besides me, don't open the door. If anyone breaks in, call me immediately." Chen Yang took his coat and went back to the entrance to put on his shoes.

In the past few days, Zhaoqing and Chen Yang have broken through the safe distance of life, and many unseen parts are unfolding towards each other.Zhaoqing noticed that Chen Yang had a strange sense of disobedience, he seemed very enthusiastic and upright but didn't seem to care much about what happened around him.

It was as if it was clearly a shooting at this moment, but Chen Yang didn't rush out to return to the team immediately as if he didn't care.But this is not important, for Zhao Qing, Chen Yang is still warm and meticulous.

Zhao Qing followed to the entrance and told: "Hey, pay attention to safety!" He was very embarrassed when he said this, and he was also embarrassed when he thought about why he said this.Just after asking Chen Yang if there was anything wrong, something big happened in a hurry.

"Okay, lock the door." Chen Yang stretched out his hand and squeezed Zhaoqing's wrist, and then took a deep look at Zhaoqing before turning around, opening the door and getting into the car unhurriedly.

Zhaoqing watched the police car drive slowly, and disappeared on the street after a while.

Zhaoqing closed the door and put the safety lock down, followed Chen Yang's instructions and walked around the kitchen. He checked repeatedly to ensure that all the windows were locked before sitting back at the dining table.

After eating two or three dumplings, Zhaoqing suddenly remembered, how did Chen Yang know where the only gun in their house was?

If you can't figure out a lot of things, you won't think about it anymore.

Zhao Qingwo sat on the sofa and watched the evening report, looked at the entrance several times, but there was no sign of anyone coming back.

The police were quick on the case, and now the news is about the results of the shooting investigation.The gunman was a middle school student. Two people died including the gunman, and three others were in critical condition and four were injured.The reason is that the father of the gunman died accidentally, and the home of the gunman was flooded due to continuous rain, which caused the gunman's mental breakdown.

Zhaoqing has reservations about the fact that guns are not allowed in the United States. Due to the influence of the social environment, even people as peaceful as the Connors would hide a pistol in the fireplace at home. He himself was killed by Connor when he was fifteen or sixteen years old. Mr. took it out and learned how to use a gun.

Zhaoqing's aim was so bad that even Mr. Connor couldn't find words of consolation. Lian Lian said that he could learn how to shoot into the sky.

Chen Yang called back suddenly, saying that he had been included in the emergency response team.Although there is a distance between the police station and the crime scene, all the police officers under martial law in the city need to strengthen patrols and cannot go home.He repeatedly asked Zhaoqing to lock the doors and windows. Frequent disasters have increased the number of refugees, and many people have begun to go to extremes.

Zhaoqing was a little dazed when he heard the report-style instructions on the phone. Before Chen Yang chased him, he always called, and he would not answer if he could.Now Chen Yang is allowed to live at home and it is not good if he does not pick up, and he does not know what to say if he does.

Zhao Qing could only respond gruffly, nodding to the phone in places where no one was watching.

Chen Yang's last word on the phone was "good boy", Zhaoqing hung up the phone and said, "Who are you talking about?"

This is a very strange feeling, Zhaoqing is not used to being cared for by people other than the Conners, especially by a man who clearly has an emotional need for him.A handsome man, a... man he had thought of.

This feeling was so novel that the back of Zhaoqing's head was a little numb after putting down the phone, he scratched the back of his head, not sure whether it was joy or timidity.He decided to find something to do, and planned to go to Mrs. Connor's room to collect the belongings.

Zhaoqing clearly understands that the human heart is uncontrollable, and the longer a person lives, the more clearly he sees things.He has lived deeply and shallowly until now, and understands that the more important relatives around him leave, the more vulnerable people are, the looser the defense of the heart, and the easier it is to be invaded.

Now Zhaoqing is in the most difficult state. In the decades of his two lives, he has never enjoyed the family affection brought to him by the Connors, nor has he sent away one family after another with his own hands.

The house left by Mr. Connor was very strong, but because of the successive departures of Mr. Connor and his wife, Zhaoqing felt that he was very lonely. He was so lonely that even an unfamiliar person would feel at ease living in the house.

After Mrs. Connor passed away, Sister Newen called several times a day to check on Zhaoqing. He always said he was fine.

After hanging up the phone, Zhaoqing would tell himself that it was okay, but he looked more haggard and thinner, with less flesh on his cheeks, and the dark blue under his eyes could not be relieved for a long time.

Zhao Qing didn't like his current state, he told himself that he had to cheer up, adjust himself first, and then face life with a correct attitude.

Zhaoqing still hasn't figured out whether to go back to the past, or to...Chen Yang.

Zhaoqing used to come to Mrs. Connor's room every night to accompany her to sleep before leaving.

And at this moment, he entered this room for the first time after Mrs. Connor passed away, and it seemed to be much easier after entering. Zhaoqing mustered up the courage to start packing up the things left by Mrs. Connor.

When Zhaoqing didn't notice, the expired cosmetics on Mrs. Connor's dressing table that had not been used for many years disappeared, and the bedding was neatly folded.

It was as if Mrs. Connor had called an ambulance after she had done everything she could do when Zhaoqing was at work. Everything looked so clean and tidy.

The more he cleaned Zhaoqing's heart, the warmer he felt. He didn't understand how he could be so lucky.

Zhao Qing stood in front of the dressing table with a letter in his hand, inside the letter paper were written crooked Chinese characters, marked with one, two, three, four.

To small

1. In the dark finishing box in the closet is a waistcoat, which should be worn in autumn.

2. The beige finishing box in the closet contains woolen trousers and woolen socks, which should be worn in winter without showing ankles.

3. In the second beige finishing box in the closet are scarves, which are matched with woolen coats of different colors.

4. There are all kinds of woven products in the attic, which are replaced regularly for sofas and beds. I bought a lot of carpets and change them frequently.

5. There are seeds I collected for you in the basement. Although I don't know what you are going to use them for, I hope you can use them.

6. Turn my mattress over.

You will understand that you are like gold, the most precious treasure in my life and your father's life, and I know you have a safe place to store it.

7. Be sure to tell your secrets to a reliable person who can accompany you for a lifetime.No one can live a life with a secret behind their backs, that's too pitiful.

You don't mind not telling us either.My child you did the right thing, nothing can contain everything but love.

Don't keep my and your father's things, find time to clean them up.My boy you don't need to drag the past, I believe you save enough money to redecorate.

9. Be sure to live seriously.

Ps, I am still very optimistic about Chen, I always think you like him.But this is an unimportant suggestion, you can plan your life according to your wishes.

No matter what you choose, your father and I will support you.Good night, my child.

love you mom.

Zhaoqing's hands trembled violently after reading the letter.He thought that all his secrets and moods were well hidden, and it turned out that he had been discovered a long time ago, and then someone would pretend to be ignorant behind his back but help him cover it up.

It was only then that Zhaoqing realized that the love he had received was not equal to the love he thought he had. How could he deserve such deep love from a pair of unrelated elderly people.

Zhaoqing's eyes were sore. He hid the letterhead and opened the cabinet. He saw woolen waistcoats of various colors and styles, pullovers, buttons, lapels, round necks and sweetheart collars, enough for him to wear all his life; many pairs of wool trousers of different thicknesses. Some of them are filled with cotton wool; there are scarves of all colors and different thicknesses, and the largest one can completely wrap him up; there are so many hand-crocheted gray and black wool socks that seem to have been prepared for him for a lifetime Replacement general.

Zhaoqing couldn't help crying. He had reasons to believe that Mrs. Connor's statement that she and Mrs. Smith occasionally played cards was true, but most of the time this stooped old lady was sitting on the sofa and knitting non-stop, but she Never tell or give him in advance.

But now the heavy truth is telling Zhaoqing: Even if Mrs. Connor is gone, as a son, Zhaoqing, the warm mother he needs in this life has already prepared for him.