When Jiang Siyang came out of the shower, Li Guoan was still sitting on the sofa in the same spot, staring blankly at the black screen of the television. His faint reflection was visible on the dark glass.
Wearing his slippers, Jiang Siyang walked quietly back to where he had been earlier. An ashtray on the coffee table held a half-finished cigarette.
"Siyang," Li Guoan called his name, his eyes still fixed on the TV.
"I'm here," Jiang Siyang replied.
"I was just thinking... thinking about what Yanlan would do if she were still here. If your mother were still alive," Li Guoan paused and actually let out a small laugh. "She would definitely be on your side. She’d probably spend over an hour doing 'ideological work' on me, running back and forth between us to act as the peacemaker. Don't you think?"
Li Guoan finally shifted his gaze from the television to his son.
People really did age quickly. Thinking of the man who once hadn't even feared death but was now so hesitant and lost, Jiang Siyang couldn't help but feel a pang of sorrow.
"Dad, all I know is that back in middle school, I had a crush on a girl." Jiang Siyang saw the look of astonishment flash across Li Guoan's face. "Mom found out about it, but she didn't scold me. She only told me that liking someone is unavoidable, and that if I liked her, I should do it properly."
Jiang Siyang smiled as he spoke. It had been a truly ridiculous day; he really hadn't understood how to like someone back then. He had clumsily tucked a written love letter into his clothes, only for the clothes to be put in the wash, leading Jiang Yanlan to discover his secret.
When Jiang Yanlan had walked into his room holding the half-soaked scrap of paper, he hadn't dared to say a single word.
He thought she would reprimand him, but instead, she said, "Siyang, I'm so sorry. Mom accidentally ruined the love letter you wrote. Do you want to rewrite it? I bought you a pink envelope; it looks much better than your white one, and girls like that sort of thing."
At the time, he had asked her why she wasn't angry, since it was "early love."
But Jiang Yanlan had said, "Emotions aren't something people can control. Liking someone is unavoidable. Since you like her, then like her well. You'll meet many more people in the future; can you control their feelings? All we can do is not destroy others' feelings and respect them."
"That does sound like something she would say. Your mother was always a bit of a literary soul, always spouting 'chicken soup' for the soul. Even before she passed, she was still talking to me about the next life."
Jiang Siyang listened as Li Guoan's tone gradually softened.
After all these years, it hadn't changed. Whenever the topic turned to his mother, Li Guoan’s voice would become gentle.
"The thing your mother regretted most in this life was that everything was too rushed—it ended before she could do anything," Li Guoan let out a long sigh. "Actually, if I think about it carefully, you're twenty-five, almost twenty-six now. In these twenty-six years, the total number of days our family has spent together doesn't even add up to two years. I never fulfilled my responsibilities as a husband or a father. What right do I have to demand anything of you? Even if you refused to recognize me as your father now, I wouldn't have any grounds to complain."
Jiang Siyang said hurriedly, "Dad, don't say that. I've never felt that way."
Li Guoan shook his head. "Don't try to comfort me. If you hadn't told me today, I wouldn't have even known you had a crush in middle school."
"That's all in the past," Jiang Siyang said.
Li Guoan suddenly stood up and placed a hand on Jiang Siyang's shoulder. The melancholy from before had vanished from his face, replaced by a smile.
"So, the fact that you're willing to share your life with me now makes me very happy," Li Guoan said.
Did those words mean...?
Jiang Siyang asked tentatively, "Then, about this matter...?"
"I've thought it over. Having two sons sounds pretty good," Li Guoan said.
Jiang Siyang called out from the bottom of his heart, "Dad!"
The heart that had been hanging in suspense finally settled. In his excitement, he pulled Li Guoan into a brief, firm hug before letting go.
"I really thought you wouldn't agree," Jiang Siyang said excitedly.
"Once a person has faced life and death, they learn to take everything lightly. I've nearly died so many times that I've become quite detached—it's gotten so bland I might need to add some salt. It's just that this was a bit of a shock; it took me a while to process it. Then I thought, you already went and knelt down, so what else could I say?" Li Guoan remarked. "That 'thud' when you hit the floor—good heavens, my own knees hurt just hearing it. Do your knees hurt?"
Jiang Siyang grinned. "I can't feel a thing now."
"Come on, let's get some water. I'm parched," Li Guoan said.
The two of them walked into the kitchen together.
Li Guoan filled a metal cup and gulped down half of it in one go. Then he asked, "But son, what happened with that girl from middle school?"
Jiang Siyang picked up a glass to pour himself some water. "Her? She turned me down later. She said it would affect our studies and told me to focus on school. So, I started studying."
Li Guoan laughed loudly. "Good lord, I remember there was a month where your grades shot up so fast. So it was for that girl. Well, we have her to thank for getting you to start studying properly."
Jiang Siyang continued, "Later, when we got to high school, for some reason she changed her mind and agreed to be with me."
"No way! And then? Did you agree?"
"No. By then, I thought she had been right—I really should focus on my studies—so I turned her down."
"Not bad. That's my son. Studying hard is the only way to go."
...
The two men ignored the sofa and chatted in the kitchen for over ten minutes. Finally, Li Guoan became too tired to continue, and they both headed to their respective rooms to sleep.
Lying in bed, Jiang Siyang looked back on the evening; it felt like a dream.
As he reflected, he took out his phone and opened WeChat.
Thinking it was too late to send a message, Jiang Siyang opened Zhang Jin'an's Moments instead.
Zhang Jin'an's Moments had started out filled with game screenshots, but gradually, landscape photos began to appear—many of which were photos Jiang Siyang had taken using Zhang Jin'an's phone.
Jiang Siyang scrolled through them slowly, growing sleepier and sleepier until he finally succumbed to exhaustion and drifted off.
When he woke up the next day, it was already nine in the morning.
Jiang Siyang walked out of his bedroom and saw that the door to the master bedroom was open. The quilt was folded neatly into a "tofu block" on the bed. Jiang Siyang wandered around and even finished brushing his teeth without seeing any sign of Li Guoan. He only saw soy milk, fried dough sticks, steamed buns, and pickled vegetables laid out on the dining table.
Everything was still warm.
"Looks like he hasn't been gone long," Jiang Siyang pulled out a chair, sat down, and sent a message to Zhang Jin'an.
[Jiang Siyang]: Have you arrived?
Zhang Jin'an replied almost instantly.
[Zhang Jin'an]: I'm here.
Jiang Siyang replied immediately.
[Jiang Siyang]: Where are you? Should I go to the neighborhood entrance to wait for you?
[Zhang Jin'an]: No need to rush. I'm on the elevated highway; about an hour away.
[Jiang Siyang]: Alright. What do you want to eat? My dad and I are going to buy groceries.
[Zhang Jin'an]: Anything is fine, I'm not picky. Spicy is good.
[Zhang Jin'an]: I've been craving your Cola Chicken Wings since last time. [Yellow face with heart eyes emoji]
[Jiang Siyang]: You got it.
[Zhang Jin'an]: I bought something for your dad. I don't know if he'll like it.
[Zhang Jin'an]: [Image]
Zhang Jin'an sent a photo of a Leifeng hat and a military greatcoat placed together.
Jiang Siyang's eyes lit up.
These were exactly the things Li Guoan loved most. All that was missing was a red scarf and black snow boots to complete the "Winter Four-Piece Set."
[Jiang Siyang]: Say no more. My dad will definitely love it. He's wanted a Leifeng hat for a long time; I tried to give him money for one, but he couldn't bring himself to spend it.
[Jiang Siyang]: By the way, I have good news.
[Zhang Jin'an]: What? [Yellow face question mark emoji]
[Jiang Siyang]: Victory in the first battle.
Jiang Siyang waited for nearly two minutes while he ate a fried dough stick before he received Zhang Jin'an's reply.
[Zhang Jin'an]: !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You told your dad?
So, one of those minutes had been spent purely on typing exclamation marks.
Jiang Siyang could imagine Zhang Jin'an's joyful expression in the car, and he couldn't help but feel happy himself. Only now did the reality of yesterday's confession truly sink in.
What an incredible sense of freedom and ease.
This was a massive step toward success. At the very least, when they eventually went public, his parents wouldn't be caught off guard.
[Jiang Siyang]: Yeah.
[Zhang Jin'an]: What did he say?
[Jiang Siyang]: My dad said he's died once or twice, so he takes everything lightly now.
[Zhang Jin'an]: That's it? Nothing else?
[Jiang Siyang]: That's it.
[Zhang Jin'an]: Is everyone in your family this good-natured?
[Zhang Jin'an]: I'm rushing over right now to admire the moon and share some wine with your dad.
[Jiang Siyang]: How are you going to admire the moon at noon?
[Zhang Jin'an]: Then we'll admire the sun and share some wine.
Jiang Siyang let out a chuckle and continued eating his steamed bun.
When Jiang Siyang was in a good mood, his appetite was excellent. He managed to finish four fist-sized steamed buns, two eggs, two bowls of congee, and a cup of soy milk.
