Literary Master 1983

Chapter 22 The Soul's Resting Place (Part )
A thought flashed through Yu Qie's mind. That girl named Zhang who was two years younger than him, yes, this girl happened to live in the staff housing estate, so she matched him.

That's why she's so lively? She didn't say anything at first, but suddenly her attitude changed. This is because there is a natural connection between them.

Yu Qi’s seventeen-and-a-half-year-old young wife, that person is her, and can only be her.

However, Yu Qie said: "Zhang Li, I will go to the capital, Yan University tomorrow. The art performance tonight is my last day in Chengdu. What do you think of you? Look at you..."

"Yu Qie, don't you want me anymore?"

Now that the conversation was over, Zhang Li carefully watched Yu Qie's reaction. Her small leather shoes pointed inwards and she couldn't help but move closer. She was very nervous.

Zhang Li said, "I guess you already know who I am?"

"I know. You're my fiancée! If I didn't know that, I'd be a fool."

"When did you know that?"

"Just now."

"Did you know anything about it yesterday afternoon?"

Yu Qie smiled bitterly and said, "I should have known that, but I don't believe in such coincidences. So, I didn't think about it that way. Later, you behaved very abnormally, so I became suspicious, and this morning I was completely sure."

Zhang Li said: "Yes, I also understood it after seeing your library card. At that time, I thought that the heavens had sent the person I wanted to me..."

She was completely different from yesterday. She had a smile on her face, but also looked indifferent, as if she was not surprised. Then she took a step forward and approached Yu Qie, as if Yu Qi had suddenly appeared in front of her yesterday.

"Before you came to me, I was wondering what kind of person Yu Qie was?"

"You finally came to me, and then I realized that you are this kind of person. But, in fact, you don't know me, and I don't really know you either... Just like the book we are going to borrow today, Dream of the Red Chamber, they all say that this book is good, but few have read it. Only those who have read it are qualified to comment on its wonderfulness. There are also many people who don't like Dream of the Red Chamber."

Zhang Li said seriously.

What she said and thought was far more mature than her age.

Yu Qi suddenly thought of what Alai said: a place where the soul rests.

What Zhang Li meant was that although they both developed into good people - Zhang Li joined the art troupe at the age of twelve, was highly regarded and served as the main dancer; Yu Qie was admitted to Yanjing University and showed extraordinary talent in writing.

However, the two have not been together for the past ten years or so, and these superficial "good things" can only be evaluated after they have really been together.

But the problem is that there is not enough time to spend together anymore.

Yu Qie was going to Yanda University, and Zhang Li was going to be a dancer in her art troupe.

Yu Qi's words "I'm going to the capital tomorrow" clearly showed his doubts and asked Zhang Li to think about it again.

Are we going to decide a lifetime relationship just by meeting a few times?

However, Zhang Li did not answer the question immediately, but asked Yu Qie to take her to the library as usual, as if nothing had happened, which made Yu Qie temporarily put aside his doubts. Yu Qie pushed the bicycle and Zhang Li followed beside him. This morning, Yu Qie was still thinking about how short the 1.5 kilometers from the provincial theater to the library was, but now he didn't know how many times he could walk it.

Zhang Li said: "Last night, I told my parents about you. I wanted to invite you to my house today to introduce you to them and let us get to know you. I didn't expect that you would be leaving tomorrow. You have such a bright future, of course it's good. Rather than getting to know you, I hope you can get to know me better."

"Since you're going to the capital tomorrow, have you packed all your things?"

"I got up early and cleaned everything up."

"Then you are ready." Zhang Li said, she tasted Yu Qie's determination.

Then he made a request: "After we all finish the performance tonight, it will be the last night. I will introduce to you how I grew up here in the past seventeen years. Since you are asked to get to know me, I don't know what to tell you. I have no stories to tell. The past seventeen years have been very monotonous. I just lived here for seventeen years, and then you lived in another place."

After returning books at the library, Yu Qie and Zhang Li returned to the People's Theater. Zhang Li changed into her skirt and went to the People's Theater to put on makeup. Yu Qi realized at this time that Zhang Li had prepared this dress for going out with him.

Someone from the art troupe saw her coming and asked, "Zhang Li, why are you here so late? This is not like you."

"Oh, I just came too early... I should have waited until the performance started, put on my makeup and stood on the stage. Don't say I'm the lead actress, everyone knows it... If I come too early, I have to introduce myself. When people ask me what I'm doing here, I have to say that I'm the female lead..."

"Little girl, you are so talkative!"

"Yu Qie!" Zhang Li didn't bother to play around anymore and turned around to say, "It's a good thing that you got into Yanda. I can't delay you, but how can it be so strange that if it's good for you and me, it's bad for both of us? You go to Yanda first, and I'll come along."

Noon, afternoon, evening. The show officially begins.

A family-friendly performance was staged by the art troupe, young writers from the seminar and soldiers on leave. Advanced representatives were elected to boost everyone's morale.

Zhang Lizhen is the lead dancer of the dance troupe. The host introduced how she came in at such a young age, and how she followed the propaganda team to the outpost in the Himalayas and performed for the border guards carrying oxygen cylinders.

Yu Qie was the star writer at the seminar, he produced the most and scored highly on the exams.

"Yu Qie is a student of the Economics Department of Yan University. He is not a graduate of a professional school, nor does he write by chance. He combines his thoughts on the world with delicate words and is creating a piece of war literature. He has a different way of thinking than others."

Alai witnessed the two people speaking on stage and the heartfelt applause from the audience. He had heard about Yu Qie's bizarre experience and said with emotion, "Yu Qie, the interesting thing about this world is that the similarities between you on stage have become the river that temporarily separates you. But in our mythology, there is a King Gesar who was ordered to descend to the mortal world and subdue the man-eating demon. He will eventually make everyone completely free, because everything that is about to come will eventually come."

The rotating low-quality light sources at the show kept sweeping over Yu Qie's body, arranging and projecting into countless symmetrical and smooth shuttles, like some kind of spread lotus petals.

Yu Qie casually said, "Alai, if King Gesar gets the admission letter from Yanda, will he make friends first?"

The poet Alai seemed to be hit by a bullet, and a storm exploded in his heart! His eyes were bright, and he said in a trembling voice that I didn't notice:
"Teacher Yu, I have told this myth many times, and you are the only one who said that you are King Gesar."

"Alai, I didn't say that. I just said that if he got the admission letter from Yanda University."

Alai did not reply. He swallowed and suppressed the excitement in his chest before saying, "Everything you want will come back to you."

(End of this chapter)