Chapter 13 #2
“I’m not going to share my snacks with you,” Zhang Yuwen warned him. “If you didn’t bring any with you, you must be planning to mooch mine.”
Huo Sichen laughed. “You saw through me.”
The bus came, and everyone boarded. Having an additional companion turned out to be a good idea; they were in pairs now, and no one would be left alone or need to sit on someone else’s lap.
Zheng Weize and Chang Jinxing leaned against each other and dozed off, and Chen Hong and Yan Jun sat together.
Zhang Yuwen, of course, shared a seat with Huo Sichen.
Apart from Chen Hong, Huo Sichen was unfamiliar with the rest of the group and couldn’t even remember their names.
He asked Zhang Yuwen to refresh his memory in hushed tones.
The gays had shown no interest in him at all after they swapped contacts at their last meeting, with only Zhang Yuwen reaching out to chat from time to time.
Zhang Yuwen was basically Huo Sichen’s only friend in the group.
“Chen Hong wants me to remind you to use up your remaining training sessions,” Zhang Yuwen told him.
“I don’t feel like it,” Huo Sichen said. “His training sessions are exhausting, and I’m lazy. I just want to have fun.”
Zhang Yuwen laughed, not expecting Huo Sichen to be so frank. “But you have a good physique.”
“I was born with it.” Huo Sichen raised an eyebrow. “I love to eat junk food.”
“I can tell.” Zhang Yuwen knew Huo Sichen bought a large cup of cola on his way to work every day and drank it at his desk. Carbonated drinks were strictly forbidden in Zhang Yuwen’s family because they led to calcium loss and weight gain.
The bus arrived at Elephant Gorge, one of the most famous peaks on the outskirts of Jiangdong City.
At an elevation level of more than three thousand feet, it had cable cars to transport visitors up and down the mountain.
The scenery was picturesque, with the Liujin River flowing through the gorge and the peaks extending north and south.
A naturally formed ridge resembling an arched spine connected the south and north peaks, evoking the image of an elephant’s trunk spanning across the river—hence the name.
Elephant Gorge had cherry blossoms in full bloom in spring, provided a cool refuge from the sweltering heat in summer, and offered a display of maple foliage in autumn.
It bustled with activity three seasons a year.
Only this time of year—when the first snow of winter had yet to fall, and the view offered only monotonous dark green pine trees and no snowscape—was a rare tourist offseason.
“Brrr, so cold!” Chang Jinxing exclaimed exaggeratedly. He had slept for almost an hour on the bus, and the blast of cold wind that greeted him as he disembarked made him shiver even harder. Zheng Weize, meanwhile, seemed to be dazed by the frigid cold.
“Start moving and you’ll warm up,” Chen Hong told them.
“Let’s go!” said Zhang Yuwen.
The group started hiking up the mountain at a leisurely pace. Their plan was to climb the mountain on foot, then take the cable car down.
Zhang Yuwen walked alongside Huo Sichen. “So you don’t usually exercise?” he asked.
“I play two soccer games a month with my university classmates from Jiangbei Athletics Hall,” Huo Sichen said.
Not only did Huo Sichen enjoy playing and watching soccer, he also liked soccer video games.
He had to be straight; most gay men didn’t like intense, competitive contact sports like basketball and soccer.
The ones who liked sports tended to prefer badminton or swimming.
“When are the matches?” Zhang Yuwen asked casually. “What position do you play?”
“Sometimes defender, sometimes goalkeeper,” Huo Sichen said, “depending on whether the goalkeeper pissed his wife off the night before.”
Zhang Yuwen laughed. He wanted to follow up and ask if Huo Sichen had a girlfriend or a wife, but that was a question that concerned his private life, so he prudently decided not to pursue the topic.
Huo Sichen had learned discretion from his time in the business world.
Since Zhang Yuwen didn’t ask him about his life, he refrained from asking any personal questions in turn.
When, on occasion, Zhang Yuwen did inadvertently ask Huo Sichen something personal, Huo Sichen took the opportunity to do the same.
Zhang Yuwen and Huo Sichen walked ahead of the others, chatting as they went. Zhang Yuwen couldn’t ignore Huo Sichen—he had invited him, after all—and besides, chatting with him was comfortable. Zhang Yuwen didn’t have to keep guessing what he was thinking.
“Let me carry your backpack,” Huo Sichen said to Zhang Yuwen when they reached a rest stop. The others, trailing behind them, were nowhere in sight.
“I’m not tired.”
“I know, but if I carry it for you, you won’t be able to refuse me when I ask for your snacks later.”
Zhang Yuwen burst out laughing and handed him the backpack. Huo Sichen lifted it effortlessly; it wasn’t all that heavy. They sat at the rest stop and waited for the others.
A group of female university students arrived, panting and sweating. They looked to be about eighteen or nineteen years old and probably from the same dorm. They took off their jackets and stood in front of the rest stop in their sweaters, fanning themselves.
“Where’s the restroom?” a girl asked her roommate.
Huo Sichen answered. “Follow this path down. There’s an entry sign at the rear entrance.”
The girls laughed, and even Zhang Yuwen, who was in the middle of drinking from his flask, almost spewed the water out. Flabbergasted but realizing he hadn’t made himself clear, Huo Sichen said, “I mean, there’s a signpost directing you to the restroom.”
The girl who had asked the question hurried, blushing, down the path. Zhang Yuwen teased Huo Sichen, who said nothing. When the girl returned, the group continued on their way, and Huo Sichen’s gaze followed one of them.
“She’s pretty,” Zhang Yuwen commented.
Huo Sichen came back to his senses. “She reminds me of my senior from university,” he said.
“Oh.” Zhang Yuwen nodded, his suspicions confirmed.
“Are you married?” Huo Sichen asked suddenly.
“Nope. I’m single. I broke up with my ex a year ago, and I haven’t dated since.”
“Why not?”
“Too poor,” Zhang Yuwen said simply. “Plus, I’m staying at a friend’s place. I can’t let the person I like live under someone else’s roof, can I?”
“Having rich friends is enviable, but it can also make you insecure,” Huo Sichen observed.
Zhang Yuwen smiled. “You’re right. But the rich don’t mind at all. Ultimately, it’s all in our own heads.”
“Everyone has pride,” said Huo Sichen.