30: Heh heh.

He barely managed to stay up until dawn, and as soon as daylight broke, he left immediately. Qin Yan didn’t dare to stay longer; the hospital was the place with the most dead people.

He had never associated the blurry shadows he had seen with Shurong.

In his stubborn impression, Zhou Shurong was a living, warm person—broad shoulders, long legs, always with a smile on his face.

Not some vague, indistinct shadow, unclear whether it had hands or feet.

Today was Children’s Day.

Qin Yan returned home. It was still early, not yet seven. He took a hot bath to wash away some of his exhaustion, then went back to bed for a nap. He could afford to slack off today, the activities didn’t start until nine.

Half an hour later, he got up to make breakfast, hesitating for a moment as he made two portions. He brought them to the dining table.

Today, he had picked up some ceremonial flair—both bowls of noodles had a golden fried egg on top, a handful of greens, and a spoonful of special chili sauce drizzled over them.

Zhou Shurong glanced at them, his mouth turned downward. He thought this was for Zhou Langxing. They had already agreed that Qin Yan would take Zhou Langxing to Xingyue Kindergarten to watch a performance.

Qin Yan spoke to the bowl of noodles: “Last night, I read a scary novel in the hospital all night—”

Upon hearing this, Zhou Shurong asked, “Really? So scared, and you fought fire with fire?”

“The book said that ghosts can eat food from the human world. The food that’s been eaten by a ghost is still there, but the taste is gone. What you’re eating is the soul of the food.”

Zhou Shurong thought of the incense sticks that had been gnawed on by a ghost baby. After burning, they were of no use anymore.

Qin Yan put his hands together. “I hope, every day, we can eat together!”

“Hmm, don’t you think it’s a waste? People who squeeze toothpaste until the tube is all metal—won’t they feel sorry? Right now, I can’t touch things, but someday, I will.”

Qin Yan started eating breakfast, and after he finished and washed the dishes, Zhou Langxing knocked on the door.

He brought breakfast—steaming hot dumplings.

Qin Yan said, “Sorry, I’ve already eaten. You can have it yourself.”

Zhou Langxing emphasized, “I bought these from Li Ji!”

“But I’m already full.”

“Alright then.”

Zhou Langxing was about to sit on the couch and casually eat a meal when he suddenly noticed the bowl on the dining table. “You haven’t washed the dishes yet? Let me do it.”

Qin Yan smiled. “That’s for Shurong.”

Zhou Langxing looked at him. Qin Yan’s face was calm, his lips curved in a smile.

Zhou Langxing was silent for a moment, then lowered his head to eat the dumplings. Qin Yan handed him a can of soda.

He instinctively said, “Warm.”

“It’s not good to drink cold ones this early in the morning.”

Qin Yan sat on the other sofa, his fingers interlaced on his lap. Zhou Langxing stole a glance at him while eating dumplings, seeing him with his head lowered, not knowing what he was thinking.

What’s he thinking about?

Worried about today’s performance?

“Ah Yan, don’t be nervous. I’ll cheer for you from the audience!”

Qin Yan chuckled and looked at him. “I’m not nervous. This kind of performance, I’ve done it many times. Teacher certification exams, interviews, teaching kids to dance with parents watching… Too many.”

“Then…” He lifted the camera hanging from his shoulder. “Can I take photos and record videos?”

“My honor.”

Zhou Langxing took a sip of soda. “What were you thinking about just now?”

Qin Yan thought for a moment, seeing strange black shadows, feeling like there were ghosts in the world, but he figured if he said it, they’d just think he was crazy. Qin Yan smiled and said, “Nothing.”

Zhou Langxing continued eating dumplings, sneaking glances now and then.

“Hurry up and eat. What are you staring at me for? Do I have flowers on my face?”

“I have a gut feeling you were thinking about something!”

Qin Yan raised an eyebrow, his clean face full of suppressed amusement. His intuition was spot on, but he didn’t want to tell him now.

So, Qin Yan just smiled.

“Does brother want to be a policeman when he grows up?”

This kind of underlying message could be understood by anyone who wasn’t pretending to be oblivious. Zhou Langxing had no choice but to stop asking, though he muttered, “What brother? We’re clearly friends!”

Qin Yan smiled and nodded, somewhat dismissively, but also somewhat seriously.

Zhou Langxing grumbled in dissatisfaction.

The weather today was nice, with soft sunlight, neither too cold nor too hot.

Qin Yan took an umbrella and went outside.

Zhou Langxing was about to say they shouldn’t take the elevator, but Qin Yan spoke first, “Let’s take the stairs.”

Zhou Langxing sensitively picked up on something. “What happened in the elevator yesterday?”

Qin Yan retorted, “What happened to you that night?”

“The elevator door wouldn’t open, very strange. It stayed closed for more than ten minutes before suddenly opening,” Zhou Langxing hesitated, then didn’t mention the strange wind.

“Hmm… I went through something similar.”

He still didn’t want to talk about the shadows. In the end, he’d only get some “calm down,” “how could that be,” “there are no ghosts in this world,” “don’t think too much” responses.

There were few people taking the stairs, and they only encountered someone when they reached the second floor.

Qin Yan opened the black umbrella and walked outside. Zhou Shurong was standing in the shadow beneath the umbrella, smiling.

“No wonder your skin is so fair,” Zhou Langxing remarked.

“Jealous? Don’t you want to use sunscreen?”

“Not at all!”

After a while, Zhou Langxing asked curiously, “Why are you holding the umbrella so strangely? Why tilt it to the other side?”

Qin Yan said, “I’m pretending there’s someone next to me.”

Zhou Langxing was silent for a moment. “How about I hold it instead? I’m taller than you. If brother hides under your umbrella, wouldn’t he have to bend down?”

He laughed. “What a weird position.”

Qin Yan gave him a strange look. “Zhou Langxing, do you want to go crazy with me?”

Zhou Langxing shrugged. “Isn’t that how you treat friends?”

Qin Yan stopped, and Zhou Langxing stopped as well.

Qin Yan stared at him, his eyes sincere. Qin Yan’s expression softened a bit, and slowly, he handed over the umbrella.

Neither of them saw it, but Zhou Shurong’s eyes flashed with disdain. He dove into the shadow beneath Qin Yan’s feet and vanished.

Zhou Langxing held the umbrella seriously.

He asked, seemingly earnestly, “Brother, is this height okay? Am I not hitting your hair?”

Qin Yan’s shadow gave two calm, undisturbed chuckles.

“Heh heh.”

—It was the first laugh.

“By the way, does your leg still hurt? I heard that people who’ve recovered from fractures sometimes feel pain at night.”

“It doesn’t hurt anymore. It’s just my dad, always calling to remind me to take my medicine.”

He said it was annoying, but he actually appreciated it.

Qin Yan thought to himself, that hypocritical guy.

Thinking about it, Zhou Shurong was pretty much the same. A lot of times, what they said didn’t align with what they actually thought.

In about half an hour, they arrived at Xingyue Kindergarten.

There were many adults queuing up at the entrance, and many people with umbrellas, though most of them closed their umbrellas when they entered. Zhou Langxing stood out.

He was the kind of person who cared a lot about what others thought. Right now, he was thick-skinned, pretending not to notice.

“There are so many people,” he couldn’t help but complain.

“We’re late. Here, give me the umbrella. You go register.”

Zhou Langxing said “Oh” and obediently handed it over.

After registering, they entered the kindergarten.

The inside had already been decorated, colorful and bright, the result of the teachers, students, staff, and even Zhou Langxing who had been enlisted as extra hands yesterday.

Thus, Zhou Langxing had already made an impression on the principal and the teachers.

Of course, his handsome face had a lot to do with it.

Children liked good-looking, friendly, and cheerful people. When Zhou Langxing wasn’t frowning, it was hard to tell that he was cool at all.

A little girl with braids from the Sunflower class saw Zhou Langxing and waved. “Wow! Handsome big brother is here again!”

Because they were coming to the kindergarten today, Zhou Langxing had dressed more gently, wearing only a sapphire earring on his left ear, which sparkled in the sunlight.

He walked over, and the little girl, not shy at all, smiled with her eyes squinted. “Big brother, can you push me on the swing? I’ll give you a candy!”

Zhou Langxing agreed with a smile.

The chubby kid next to them shouted, “Uncle! Push me too!”

The little girl bared her teeth at him, “Good-looking people are called ‘brother’! Not ‘uncle’!”

The chubby kid’s dad, who had just been called “uncle” while sitting on a tree stump, felt his heart go cold.

The chubby kid looked uncertain, glanced at his dad, and shouted loudly, “Uncle!”

The chubby kid’s dad: “…I’m your dad!”

Zhou Langxing couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

Human kids were just too funny, their brain circuits wired in a totally different way.

Seeing that he was adjusting well, Qin Yan felt quite pleased too. When Teacher Mi Zhou came to call him, he waved and said, “I’m going to get ready! You stay and play with them for a bit!”

While pushing the swing, Zhou Langxing made an “OK” hand sign.

The little girl earnestly added, “Alright, Teacher Dou Sha Bao I’ll keep them company properly!”

Qin Yan couldn’t help laughing and gave her a thumbs-up. “Good luck, class monitor!”

When Qin Yan went to change clothes, Zhou Shurong appeared.

The changing room was small, barely enough for one person. Zhou Shurong was practically pressed against the wall.

The bunny costume was folded on a bench in the corner. Qin Yan picked up one of the thin vests and clicked his tongue at how transparent the material was.

He slipped his fingers inside — even in the dim light, a bit of skin tone was visible.

“Hmm…”

Zhou Shurong pressed a finger to his lips. “A bit risqué.”

Qin Yan’s face was full of conflict.

Thankfully, the pants were of normal thickness. Qin Yan told himself several times it was fine before undoing his belt. These normal yet not-so-normal actions made the space feel oddly charged.

Zhou Shurong could almost sense something called “hormones” slowly filling the cramped changing room, like dough rising in an oven, soft and fluffy, crowding every inch — he felt like he couldn’t even breathe.

He watched as Qin Yan changed into a pure white outfit, put on a bunny ear headband, and had a fluffy white cotton-tail attached to his backside.

He couldn’t help but press his lips and let out a soft laugh.

Qin Yan adjusted the bunny ears, lacking confidence as he walked out of the changing room.

Teacher Mi Zhou had long finished changing and was waiting outside. The moment Qin Yan stepped out, her eyes lit up.

“Teacher Mi Zhou, I feel like…”

“Feel what? You look great!” her voice jumped up a pitch.

“It seems a bit see-through.”

“It’s nice and cool!”

Qin Yan squinted at her with suspicion.

“Ah come on, it’s just the vest that’s a bit sheer, not the shorts.”

“It’s still weird. Like, like…”

“Ahem.” She scratched her cheek guiltily.

Qin Yan stared at her. “Teacher Mi Zhou.”

She looked everywhere but at him. “Hehe… Teacher Dou Sha Bao.”

“Spill it. You can’t hide it anymore. I’ve caught your guilty tail. You bought the outfit, right? What keywords did you search?”

“Well…” She lowered her head in embarrassment. “You didn’t want a mascot costume, and everything I searched ended up being… a bit too themed. This was the most normal one I could find.”

Qin Yan had no choice. He comforted himself—it was still acceptable.

“You missed a fuzzy strip.” Teacher Mi Zhou picked it up and said, “See, there’s a small button on the collar. If you fasten it, it won’t be so see-through.”

Sure enough, it looked much better. The long fuzzy strip hung down in front and at least covered the most sensitive parts. Qin Yan’s expression relaxed a bit.

The event was about to begin.

Having run it for many years, the kindergarten staff were well-experienced. After a period of noisy chaos, they eventually separated the kids from the families. The kids sat at the front on cartoon stools, while the parents sat in the already arranged rows of chairs.

It was an outdoor event, held on the playground. Nearby under the shade were slides, swings, and other playground equipment.

There was no need to envy the shade — several large mushroom-shaped umbrellas were set up on the field. Each one was a different color: blue, red, yellow.

The principal gave a speech on stage. Below, the kids whispered among themselves about which mushroom umbrella color was the prettiest.

Qin Yan and Teacher Mi Zhou’s act, Waiting for a Rabbit by the Tree, was up first.

He was already dressed and waited inside for the signal.

His black umbrella was folded and hanging by the window.

At that moment, he suddenly thought of that mysterious and strangely familiar woman — Ah Ling — who’d said she wanted to come watch his performance. It had already been two days since they’d seen each other.

“Nervous?”

Teacher Mi Zhou, dressed in a farmer’s outfit, paced back and forth, occasionally stopping to sip water. Her voice trembled.

“Calm down. Just think—”

She cut in, “Can’t think about it at all! The more I think of all those people watching, the more I want to pee!”

Qin Yan offered a suggestion, “Then while the principal’s talking, just keep thinking about it. Go pee a few more times. By the time you’re on stage, you won’t have to anymore.”

“What if I don’t make it in time?” She was new and didn’t yet know the principal’s habits.

“Relax. Two years running, she’s never given a speech under twenty minutes.”

Relieved, Teacher Mi Zhou hurried to the bathroom.

During that time, more and more people arrived in bright costumes. The second act group was already dressed in Xinjiang-style dance skirts.

Teacher Mi Zhou went to the bathroom three times. Finally, the principal finished her speech, and the audience instantly perked up, clapping enthusiastically to welcome the teachers onto the stage.

Qin Yan looked at the sunlight outside.

“Go, go, go!” urged Teacher Mi Zhou.

He hesitated, glancing at the black umbrella by the window, but in the end, he didn’t pick it up.

What he didn’t know was that Zhou Shurong, smiling gently, was following behind him closely, not even a step away. The moment Qin Yan stepped into the sunlight, Zhou Shurong swiftly slipped into his shadow.

When the principal announced, “Let’s welcome our first performers, the guests from the Sunflower Class—Teacher Dou Sha Bao and Teacher Mi Zhou! Their performance is called ‘Waiting for a Rabbit by the Tree’. Welcome them!”

Zhou Langxing clapped so hard his palms turned red.

But as Qin Yan stepped onto the stage, Zhou Langxing’s eyes went wide. Holy—holy—holy crap… So seductive, so seductive, so seductive…

Only when the background music started playing did he touch his nose—no nosebleed. Thank goodness!

He raised the camera.

“A hardworking farmer living in the countryside, he was diligent and earnest, and his crops always grew better than everyone else’s. But one day, on his way home, he saw a silly rabbit run smack into a tree stump…”

On stage, Qin Yan—playing the silly rabbit—hopped around and crashed into a foam stump.

With an exaggerated “Ouch!” he stuck out his tongue and collapsed.

Zhou Langxing laughed so hard he shook, and the camera shook right along with him.

“The farmer was amazed. He picked up the rabbit and brought it home.”

On stage, the “farmer” grabbed the rabbit’s soft, floppy, pink-and-white ears. Qin Yan calmly reached up with one hand to press down the headband, making sure the ears didn’t get yanked off.

The red curtain hanging onstage slowly lifted.

The narration continued: “Rabbit meat is so delicious! Especially the rabbit head! Covered in spicy red chili oil—absolutely divine!”

Offstage, Qin Yan muttered to himself: This guy is inserting his personal cravings again!

The kids in the audience were teary-eyed—especially the ones from the Sunflower Class:

“Waaah… Poor Teacher Dou Sha Bao… He got eaten by Teacher Mi Zhou! She’s so mean!”

“Rabbits are so cute, why would anyone eat them!”

“Is rabbit head really that tasty?”

—Little Chubby was sucking on his fingers.

The narration went on: “Ever since then, the farmer fell in love with rabbit meat. He thought, since one rabbit crashed into the stump, surely another would come. So he stopped tending his crops and just sat by the stump, waiting for the next rabbit to fall from the sky.”

On stage, the red curtain lifted again. Now only the farmer remained, waiting beside the stump.

“He waited, and waited, and waited. Waited until the leaves turned yellow. Waited until the crops turned yellow. But no second rabbit came. All the other families had harvested their autumn crops, but his had withered and died.”

“He regretted it. There’s no such thing as a free lunch in this world—”

On stage, the “farmer” turned to the kids and asked with teary eyes, “Children, do you know what lesson this story teaches us?”

The principal nodded in approval—nice, there’s even audience interaction.

The kids shouted over one another, saying things like “Don’t eat rabbit meat!” and “Eat rice to get full!” In the middle of it all, Little Chubby raised a question—“Is rabbit head really tasty?”

The “farmer” shouted, “This story teaches us that there’s no reward without effort! If you don’t work for it, you won’t get any results!”

The performance ended, and everyone burst into applause.

Meanwhile, Zhou Langxing had quietly snuck off to the little room in the back. He was a step too late—Qin Yan had already gone into the changing room. Zhou Langxing let out a disappointed sigh and could only pull out the video he had just recorded.

The footage at the beginning shook from laughter, but it got steadily better. Unfortunately, Qin Yan’s time on stage was too short.

Qin Yan came out, and Zhou Shurong came out as well.

He lifted the corners of his mouth in a smile—gentle, yet with a subtle sense of pride, vanity, and delight.

Too bad Zhou Langxing didn’t see it—what a loss, it would’ve been fun.

Qin Yan had already changed back into his regular clothes: a maple-colored T-shirt and light brown casual pants—very proper and low-key.

Zhou Langxing hadn’t gotten his fill of the pure white bunny costume. Reluctantly tearing his eyes from the recording, he put the camera down and clapped loudly, making up for the applause Qin Yan didn’t get to hear onstage.

He said exaggerated things like “Amazing!” “You blew me away!” “I wasn’t expecting that!” “It was incredible!”

Qin Yan, amused and exasperated, shuffled by in his slippers. “Enough already. I’m going to wash my feet. I was hopping barefoot on stage—feels gross!”

Zhou Langxing hung up the camera. “I’m gonna wash my face too.”

Qin Yan picked up the black umbrella by the window and opened it. Zhou Shurong didn’t return to his shadow—instead, he slipped beneath the umbrella.