He Had Also Protected Him Once in Secret Part 1

The day before Chinese New Year's Eve, the urban area of Hai City was basically empty. Only a few large shopping malls were still open, but they were also deserted. The heavy snow hadn't stopped, and as afternoon approached, all one could see outside was a vast expanse of white. Snow had even accumulated on the windowsills.

Gu Qingzhou hadn't slept much last night. He pulled the curtains slightly open and saw the ice-cold whiteness outside. The sky, however, was pitch-black, like an overturned inkstone, its darkness gradually spreading. The two colors clashed, exuding an extreme, chilling condensation, and he pulled the curtains shut again.

There were ready-to-use ingredients in the fridge, but Gu Qingzhou didn't cook. He just made a cup of instant noodles. He sat on the rug by the coffee table, quietly waiting for the noodles to be ready. A few messages occasionally popped up on his phone—all New Year's greetings from friends. He glanced at them, gave a few simple replies, and put his phone back down.

Mother Gu had argued with him some time ago, but she didn't think her son would actually hold a grudge. However, after not being in contact for a long time, she felt a little uneasy. Seeing that it was almost Chinese New Year's Eve and there was no sign of Gu Qingzhou returning to City A, she finally lost her patience and called him.

The noodles on the table were ready. Gu Qingzhou stirred them a few times with a fork. When he heard his phone ring, he answered without thinking. It wasn't until Mother Gu's voice came from the other end that his movements paused slightly, and he subconsciously glanced at his phone screen.

Whether out of guilt or something else, Mother Gu's voice was no longer as hostile as last time. It carried a somewhat awkward and helpless amiability: "Qingzhou, tomorrow is the New Year. What time is your flight back? A family should gather together for a meal to make it feel right."

Hearing this, Gu Qingzhou put down his fork and pushed the cup of noodles on the table a little further away with his finger. His low voice held a faint, imperceptible trace of sarcasm. "A meal? What meal? Is the whole family eating at the hospital?"

Right now, besides the cook, there was basically no one in the Gu Family's mansion. They were all at the intensive care unit, staying by Old Master Gu's bedside. Although Gu Qingzhou was in Hai City, it didn't mean he was completely ignorant of the news from City A.

A flash of annoyance crossed Mother Gu's face. She felt an inexplicable sense of shame, thinking that this son was born to be her bane. Forcibly suppressing her anger, she spoke in a placating tone, "Since you know Old Master Gu is still lying in the hospital, what reason does a son have to be out enjoying himself? Isn't that just inviting people to gossip and call you unfilial?"

"Let them say what they want," Gu Qingzhou said, quietly staring at the steaming cup of noodles on the table. He watched the white plastic fork slowly sink into the broth but had no intention of fishing it out. "The old man is at such an old age, yet he still loves to fool around, going out and having fun with young models. If he's not in the hospital, who is?"

Gu Qingzhou had no feelings for this father in name only. He barely saw him a few times a year and couldn't even remember his face clearly. His only memory was of the man's cloudy, aged eyes, which were constantly roving over women.

For some reason, Mother Gu was silent for a long time. Her fingertips trembled with anger, but she was powerless to refute him. She stood up from the sofa and paced back and forth in the luxurious, cold living room. "He had another surgery the day before yesterday. The doctor said they can only take it one step at a time, and he probably won't last much longer. Just consider this Mom begging you, please come back for a visit. I know you don't want to fight for those things, but if you don't want them, they'll just end up benefiting Gu Ting and the others for nothing. Old Master Gu woke up a few times, but he didn't see you at all. Although he didn't say anything, he must be unhappy in his heart. When it comes time to divide the inheritance, won't you clearly be at a disadvantage?"

She was being so persuasive, yet it was all for the sake of scheming for that money. Gu Qingzhou's expression was blank. He subconsciously touched the side of his face, as if he could still feel the stinging numbness of being slapped back then. A chill ran through his entire body. "...We'll talk about it when the time comes."

Gu Qingzhou pushed himself up from the floor. "When that day really comes, you won't have to tell me. I'll go back."

He hung up after saying that. The instant noodles he had just made were already cold and inedible. Gu Qingzhou cleaned up the trash on the table and threw the noodles into the bin. After finishing all this, he looked around, standing still for a long while, suddenly not knowing what he should do, or what he could do to pass the time.

Jiang Xu's family didn't have many relatives, but they couldn't stop the neighbors from loving to drop by. Four or five people were squeezed into the living room, talking and laughing, scattering sunflower seed shells all over the floor. One matchmaking enthusiast was clamoring to introduce him to a wife, saying it was such a pity for a handsome young man like him to still be single.

Although Mother Jiang was also concerned about Jiang Xu's marriage prospects, she figured he definitely wouldn't be happy or have the patience for blind dates, so she helped refuse for him. "He has his own ideas, so let's not worry about it for him. When fate arrives, it arrives. Besides, he's busy with work right now and hasn't even bought a house. If a girl marries him, she can't just live on air, can she?"

Jiang Xu saw the house was a mess from all the foot traffic and felt annoyed, but he couldn't say anything. After helping Mother Jiang make tea and serve water, he found an excuse to slip out. He then wandered around downstairs. A group of children was setting off sparklers nearby, which crackled and popped.

Jiang Xu had gone to help at Da Hong's auto repair shop this morning and then helped Mother Jiang entertain relatives in the afternoon. Only now did he have a moment to catch his breath. He found a spot on a public bench by the road, not paying much mind to the light snow falling from the sky, and put on his headphones to call Gu Qingzhou.

The phone rang for three seconds before it was quickly picked up. The other end was still so quiet that not a single sound could be heard, completely lacking any New Year's atmosphere. Jiang Xu thought 'this idiot isn't planning on spending the New Year alone, is he?' and couldn't help but ask, "Are you still in Hai City?"

Gu Qingzhou didn't know whether to nod or shake his head, so he could only change the subject. "Are you done with your things?"

Jiang Xu said, "Tomorrow is Chinese New Year's Eve. I thought you'd have returned to City A."

After all, Gu Qingzhou wasn't an orphan. Unless he didn't have vacation time from work, what normal person wouldn't go home for the New Year?

For most of these past years, Gu Qingzhou had spent them alone and didn't care whether it was the New Year or not. He just missed Jiang Xu a little. He lay back on the sofa, covering his eyes with the back of his hand to block the bright light from overhead. He didn't know how to tell the other person that he never really had any family. After a long moment, he said with a smile, "...Actually, Hai City is pretty lively too."

The children by the roadside were setting off firecrackers. One piece happened to roll to Jiang Xu's feet, its fuse half-burnt. Without a glance, he stomped it out, kicked it away, and shifted his posture. "Give me a break. You think I haven't spent the New Year in Hai City before? It's empty everywhere. Even the thieves don't come out."

Snowflakes drifted down leisurely, landing a thin layer on his shoulder, which he casually brushed off.

Hearing this, Gu Qingzhou silently picked at the sofa. "Do you have to argue with everything I say?"

Hearing his tone, Jiang Xu was amused. "Now you're feeling wronged? How about you just come over to my place for the New Year."

Gu Qingzhou's expression froze for a moment. "What?"

Jiang Xu said, "Come have New Year's dinner at my house. It's only six now. There's not much traffic on the roads during the holiday. If you drive over and you're fast, you can get here around nine-thirty. My family's small, so it'll be livelier eating together."

Gu Qingzhou's heart tightened at his words. He couldn't tell if it was nervousness or panic. He subconsciously sat up from the sofa, then slid back down onto the rug. Out of nervousness, his eyelashes fluttered twice. He wiped his sweaty palms on his knees, pursed his lips, and said dryly, "I'm afraid your mom..."

Jiang Xu felt that Gu Qingzhou wasn't stubborn when he should be, but was pig-headed when he shouldn't be. For instance, right now. For instance, in bed. "Tsk, my mom's not a tiger. Is she going to eat you?"

After saying that, he suddenly remembered the time his mom chased him halfway down the street with a stick when he misbehaved as a child, and he shut his mouth.

Jiang Xu said, "I'll send you the location. Call me when you get there, and I'll come pick you up."

The town had many lanes and alleys, so GPS could only pinpoint a few major locations. Jiang Xu thought for a moment and sent the location of the bus station. Then, he brushed the snow off his clothes and turned to go upstairs.

The neighbors who had come to visit had left at some point. All that remained were piles of melon seed and fruit shells and a few plastic cups scattered on the table. Mother Jiang was cleaning up with a broom. Jiang Xu walked over to help clear the table, tutting, "It's like a swarm of locusts passed through."

Mother Jiang said, "They're all neighbors. You can't just kick them out."

Jiang Xu didn't say anything. A few minutes later, he said, as if nonchalantly, "Mom, a friend of mine came over, but the hotels aren't open right now. I was thinking of letting him stay at our place for a few days and spend the New Year with us."

Mother Jiang was wiping the table. Hearing this, she asked without looking up, "Are you two close?"

Jiang Xu nodded seriously. "Very close."

Mother Jiang said, "Since you're close, it's not a big deal for him to stay a few days. It's just that we don't have a spare room. I'm afraid we'll be poor hosts."

Seeing her agree, a smile unconsciously appeared on Jiang Xu's face. "It's fine. He can just squeeze into a room with me. We were high school classmates. His grades were excellent. You know A University, right? That's the university he went to."

Elderly people always had a very good impression of children with good grades. When Mother Jiang heard that Gu Qingzhou wasn't one of the bad influences Jiang Xu used to hang out with, she was mostly relieved. She wiped her hands on her apron and said, "He's the one who got into A University, not you. Look how happy you are. If you were half as good as him, Mom would be content."

Mother Jiang had said things like this countless times before. Jiang Xu always let it go in one ear and out the other. Hearing it now, he just helped clean up, lest it look messy when Gu Qingzhou arrived.

Gu Qingzhou had never felt that doing something required so much courage. His hands gripping the steering wheel were still damp with sweat. He drove along the empty road, his headlights illuminating the dark path ahead, making it seem smooth and unobstructed. But it was a road he had never taken before; he could only blindly follow the GPS.

Jiang Xu was worried he would get lost, so he would call every so often to ask where he was. Gu Qingzhou would tell him his location based on the nearby road signs. Only after Jiang Xu confirmed the route was correct would he hang up.

When Gu Qingzhou was about to arrive at the station, he called Jiang Xu. "What's your house number? I'll drive straight over."

The weather outside was frigid. He didn't want Jiang Xu to come all this way.

There was no way Jiang Xu was going to let someone with no sense of direction find the way himself. "You won't find it even if I tell you. Besides, there are a lot of small alleys here. It's easy for a car to get in, but hard to get out. Stay there and wait for me. I'm on my way."

Hearing this, Gu Qingzhou pursed his lips and patted the steering wheel, then asked curiously, "Are you going to ride a bicycle to pick me up?"

Jiang Xu was amused by him. "I'll walk over on my own two legs, alright?"

Gu Qingzhou ignored him and hung up the phone. The heater in the car was on full blast, but it did little to alleviate his anxiety and nervousness. He simply got out of the car to clear his head in the cold air and observe his surroundings.

It was late at night, but a few small restaurants on the street still had their lights on. The owners were probably locals who didn't need to go home for the New Year. The utility poles were covered in a dense web of wires stretching from one end to the other, all covered in a thick layer of snow. The nearby bus stop sign was plastered with small ads. Gu Qingzhou tried to peel one off with his finger, but it wouldn't come off, so he gave up.

He stared at the scene before him, lost in thought about something. He stuffed his hands into his jacket pockets and paced back and forth near his car. A nearby auto repair shop was closing up. The metal roller shutter door came clattering down with a harsh sound, breaking the silence of the night.

Gu Qingzhou subconsciously looked up and saw a man in a leather jacket with a buzz cut and stubble. His face was unclear in the dark, so he looked away again. The faint light from a nearby streetlamp fell, clearly illuminating his somewhat cold eyes and brows.

"Hey?"

A slightly rough voice suddenly sounded in Gu Qingzhou's ear. "Aren't you that guy... Gu Qingzhou?"

Hearing the voice, Gu Qingzhou subconsciously looked toward the source and saw that it was the auto mechanic from before. He straightened up instinctively, taking a better look under the light, and found that the man had thick eyebrows and big eyes, with features that were strangely familiar.

Gu Qingzhou hesitated before speaking. "Da Hong?"

Da Hong responded with a hearty voice, "Hey, that's me. I saw you from a distance just now and thought I was mistaken. I didn't expect it to really be you. What are you doing here? Looking for Jiang Xu?"

He paused for a moment before asking the last question.

Back then, Da Hong and Jiang Xu were the closest of friends, so he knew everything about their situation. He was the sole insider and observer of that absurd period of their youth. Hearing his words, Gu Qingzhou tapped his fingers twice inside his pocket and nodded. "Yeah, I was free during the New Year, so I came over to look around."

Da Hong said casually, "You must be really free then. Where's Jiang Xu? Why isn't he here?"

Gu Qingzhou said, "He'll be here in a bit."

The town was small, and luxury cars were a rare sight, so Gu Qingzhou's car was inevitably a bit conspicuous. If Da Hong hadn't been curious and taken a second look, he might not have noticed him. Seeing Gu Qingzhou's fine clothes, he remarked with genuine admiration, "This car is really beautiful. Hey, since it's your first time here, as the host, I have to treat you to a meal. There's a restaurant nearby that makes great dumplings. Come on, let's go eat."

Da Hong had a very straightforward personality. After speaking, he beckoned for Gu Qingzhou to walk ahead. Gu Qingzhou hesitated, afraid that Jiang Xu wouldn't be able to find him, but after glancing around, he felt it would be rude to refuse and nodded in agreement.