Eat Less Fish in the Future - Chapter 16

“Mianmian, I just heard that some classes from our school are also doing sketching here, and some have already arrived at the headquarters,” Xiao Feng said.

Zheng Yimian looked at her, not understanding what she meant. “What about it?”

Li Min considered for a moment, then said, “It seems… Xiao Feng is staying at the headquarters.”

Zheng Yimian frowned. “…Xiao Feng? Who?”

“…”

Li Min glanced at her in exasperation, but still reminded her. “Do you only have a seven-second memory? Xiao Feng, the one who confessed to you under our dormitory after the welcome party, holding a big teddy bear. The candles were extinguished by the dorm aunt with a fire extinguisher. Don’t you remember?”

Zheng Yimian thought for a moment, then recalled. “Oh, I remember now.”

“Are you afraid it’ll be awkward?” Li Min asked her.

“No, why would I be?” Zheng Yimian was a bit puzzled, leaning against the window she said, “I can pretend not to know him. Besides, I really don’t remember what he looks like now. Also, being rejected is quite common, right? He might not even remember me.”

Xiao Feng, a face like a passerby, forgettable after a glance.

Li Min suddenly smiled, leaning close to her ear, teasingly asking, “…Then is Liang Yu’s face the kind you can remember after just one look?”

After saying this, she turned back, chiding herself. “What a stupid question I’m asking. Liang Yu and Xiao Feng aren’t even in the same league.”

The bus started, and the scenery outside the window retreated into a series of connected shadows.

Of course it counts, Zheng Yimian thought belatedly. She had seen him once in high school and remembered it very clearly until later.

It was only when she thought of this that she suddenly realized that she and Liang Yu had only known each other for a short month since the start of college.

And before college started, they had only met twice.

Although they had only known each other for a month, that kind of heartfelt familiarity couldn’t be faked, it was as if…

As if she had never met this person, yet this person had appeared in her life thousands and thousands of times.

The face blurred, the voice washed away, she tried hard to recall, but still couldn’t find fragments of memories.

…Before college started, had they really only met twice?

The slow-moving, enclosed bus always made one want to sleep. When Zheng Yimian opened her eyes, the bus had just arrived at the sketching headquarters.

Li Min stretched and turned to her, saying, “It’s twelve-thirty, you slept for three hours. Let’s go, if we get off now, we can have lunch too.”

Just like the first day at the branch, everyone first went to the cafeteria for a meal before getting their luggage.

Li Min tugged at Zheng Yimian’s sleeve from behind. “Xiao Feng and his group are also eating inside.”

“I know, it’s fine.”

At the dining table, Zheng Yimian immediately noticed a dish that looked different.

She turned to discuss with Li Min. “What’s in that plate? Dates?”

Apparently, in W City, she hadn’t experienced dates being served as a dish in a plate.

Li Min squinted to confirm. “Seems like…”

Liang Yu, who was next to her, had already reached out, picked up the plate, and handed it to her, gesturing for her to take one. “They’re dates.”

She and Li Min each took one, and Liang Yu put the plate back.

The dates were crisp, juicy, and very sweet.

The class monitor tapped his bowl. “Hey, hey, hey, Liang Yu, I haven’t taken one yet?”

“Who cares about you?” someone patted the class monitor’s back. “A child without love can get their own.”

“That’s right, that’s right, class monitor, why can’t you figure this out? What does it matter to others whether you’ve eaten or not!”

Everyone started eating amid laughter and chatter.

The class monitor, not giving up, asked Zheng Yimian. “Is it sweet?”

Someone turned the class monitor’s head back. “Stop asking such pointless questions, how could it not be sweet?”

The class monitor shook his head. “This class monitor’s heart is bitter.”

“As long as Mianmian’s heart is sweet, that’s all that matters.”

…

She hadn’t said a word, yet everyone was having a great time guessing her thoughts.

There were many people at the table, but only one bucket of rice was served.

Everyone took turns scooping rice, and when it came to Zheng Yimian’s turn, the rice had just run out.

Zheng Yimian’s hand had just reached out, touching the edge of the wooden bucket, when Liang Yu had already extended his hand first, taking the bucket out to get more rice.

After a short while, he came back from outside and placed the rice in front of her.

The dining table suddenly fell silent, everyone pretending to eat while actually watching Zheng Yimian.

Under everyone’s scrutinizing gaze, Zheng Yimian added rice to her bowl spoonful by spoonful, then reached out to Li Min. “Let me help you.”

Taking Li Min’s bowl, Zheng Yimian filled it level, spoonful by spoonful. Feeling as if there were thorns on her back, she turned towards Liang Yu, reaching out.

–Actually, it was a very ordinary action. In the past, when eating out, it was their table’s rule that the person closest to the rice was responsible for refilling.

But for some reason, here, amidst the gossipy atmosphere created by everyone, it felt particularly… indescribable.

Liang Yu didn’t hand over his bowl, but instead reached out to take the rice spoon from her hand, saying, “Let me do it.”

Zheng Yimian let go, feeling as if the air in this dining hall wasn’t circulating properly. Otherwise, why did she feel so… stifled?

It was as if she couldn’t breathe properly.

She opened her chopsticks, preparing to eat, when from the corner of her eye, she saw Liang Yu finish scooping rice for himself and reach towards Zhao Yuan, gesturing for Zhao Yuan to give him his bowl.

Zhao Yuan, acting exaggeratedly and imitating Liang Yu’s earlier manner, said coyly, “Let me do it.”

Liang Yu: “…”

Li Min and the class monitor couldn’t hold back, burying their faces in their bowls, shaking with laughter.

After finishing the meal, they got on the bus to retrieve their luggage. Just as Zheng Yimian was getting off the bus with her backpack, she saw Liang Yu pulling her suitcase out of the trunk.

A person only has two hands. Liang Yu was pulling his own large black suitcase with one hand and Zheng Yimian’s slightly smaller macaron-colored suitcase with the other, naturally carrying them upstairs.

Zheng Yimian followed closely behind him, worried he might not find her room.

The two of them were the first to turn into the corridor and go upstairs, their figures disappearing around the corner.

The class monitor rubbed his chin. “I feel like I could gossip about them for another 500 years.”

“500 years is not enough, make it 1000 years.”

Everyone gathered around, occasionally letting out “hehe” and “kekeke” laughs, as if conducting a grand and solemn… gossip discussion session.

After settling into the dormitory, Zheng Yimian looked around and finally had to admit — this dormitory didn’t even have a private bathroom, the air conditioning was broken, and there was only an electric fan brought up by the boss.

“So where do we go to take a shower?” Li Min asked while sorting out her clothes.

“There seems to be a bathroom downstairs, we’ll go check it out later.”

Li Min nodded. “Okay, let’s go to the supermarket first to buy some necessities, then we’ll check out the bathroom conditions when we come back.”

“Mm-hmm.”

After laying out the bedsheets they had brought, the two went downstairs, planning to go to the supermarket to buy some things.

They hadn’t brought basins for washing clothes, and there were no washing machines or laundromats here. But since they would be staying for over a week, doing laundry was definitely necessary, so Zheng Yimian and Li Min planned to buy a few basins.

Besides basins, they also needed to purchase some snacks and other daily necessities.

The supermarket was not close to the sketching base. They followed the road signs and walked for nearly half an hour before reaching it.

Just as they arrived at the supermarket entrance, Li Min started rubbing her stomach. “Coming here to buy snacks was definitely the right choice. Mian, I’m hungry.”

Zheng Yimian looked at her: “Didn’t we just eat?”

Li Min: “The food here doesn’t have much substance. We’ve been unpacking for so long, and then carried our suitcases upstairs… After doing so much, all our energy is gone. It’d be strange if we weren’t hungry now.”

Li Min had a point. The meals provided at the sketching base were similar to those provided by travel agencies, lacking in substance and indeed easy to get hungry after.

She patted Li Min’s shoulder. “Hold on a bit, we’ll be upstairs soon.”

The two took the elevator up. As soon as they arrived, they saw the owner of the sketching base pushing a cart full of potatoes out from the checkout counter.

Li Min’s eyes widened. “…”

At the same time, the supermarket broadcast was earnestly announcing. “Potatoes on special offer today, only 0.88 yuan per jin. Welcome to purchase. Repeating, potatoes on special offer today, only 0.88 yuan per jin…”

The moment the owner made eye contact with them, his expression froze for a second, then quickly formed an… awkward but polite smile.

Watching the owner go down the stairs, Li Min linked arms with Zheng Yimian and sincerely sighed. “No trickery… no business.”

Zheng Yimian pressed her lips together. “Looks like we’ll be eating all kinds of potato dishes for the next ten days.”

Li Min’s expression was complicated. “If we eat it every day, I might throw up.”

The two passed through the vegetable section, buying lots of snacks and drinks to ensure they wouldn’t starve in the coming days.

After buying a big bag of necessities, they each bought basins and flip-flops.

Coming out of the supermarket and facing the empty street, Li Min sniffled. “Oh god, we bought so many things, how are we going to get back…”

“We’ll just walk back slowly,” Zheng Yimian looked into the distance, “There’s no taxis or buses here, we can only walk.”

Just as she finished speaking, Li Min saw something and excitedly pointed behind Zheng Yimian. “There are bicycles!”

Zheng Yimian turned around and saw what seemed to be two tandem bikes not far away.

She said to Li Min. “Those are probably for sightseeing, look, it’s obviously…”

“Who cares,” Li Min didn’t care anymore, “Whether it’s for sightseeing or not, as long as it can carry our stuff and we can ride it, we can go back.”

“Alright, let’s go then.”

Just as Zheng Yimian and Li Min were about to go over, they realized the two bikes opposite had been borrowed.

Li Min felt like her life had turned gray. “God, I want to die.”

Zheng Yimian: “Why don’t we rest a bit before walking…”

Before she could finish, the people who had just borrowed the bikes rode steadily up to them.

Liang Yu steadied himself with his leg on the ground and asked Zheng Yimian. “Want to head back?”

She hadn’t noticed from a distance that it was Liang Yu and Zhao Yuan who had borrowed the bikes.

Zheng Yimian, holding a basket full of goods, nodded.

“Then we’ll take you back later,” Liang Yu parked the bike to the side, “Zhao Yuan is a bit tired, needs to rest for ten minutes.”

“Okay,” Zheng Yimian pointed to the rest area on the first floor of the supermarket, “Let’s rest here for a while.”

After sitting in the rest area for a while, Li Min nudged Zheng Yimian. “Mianmian, did you bring eye drops? My eyes are a bit dry.”

“Hold on, let me look,” Zheng Yimian searched in her bag and took out a small box, “I did bring some.”

Her eye drops were individually packaged, ten in a box, very hygienic. When giving them to Li Min, she could just open a new one.

Li Min didn’t know how to use eye drops, so she sat back in her seat. “I don’t know how to do it, can you help me?”

“Sure,” Zheng Yimian stood up, walked in front of Li Min, and placed her hand on her eyelid, “Look up, open your eyes… close them, done.”

Zheng Yimian returned to her seat and handed Li Min a tissue to wipe the excess eye drops from the corners of her eyes.

After handing over the tissue, surprisingly, Liang Yu also reached out to ask for a dose of eye drops.

Zheng Yimian opened one for him, and as she handed it over, she found herself inexplicably asking “Do you know how to use it?”

Liang Yu looked at her for a moment, then shook his head, honestly saying. “No, I don’t.”

She stood in front of him, gesturing for him to tilt his head back. “Then I’ll help you.”

After all, she had helped Li Min, so it wouldn’t be right not to help him.

Liang Yu tilted his head back as she indicated.

Zheng Yimian reached out, the pad of her finger resting on his eyelid.

Her fingertip was soft, carrying a faint scent of food and warmth.

Liang Yu’s eyelid trembled slightly, involuntarily, and then he opened his eyes, looking at her.

His gaze was deep and dark.