Under Clear Skies Chapter 101: Wagging Tail

Chapter 101: Wagging Tail

Translated by KarateChopMonkey of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

 

Half a month later, Tang Heng met with Fu Liling.

The mother and son sat on the sofa in their old home, the house was a mess, showing signs of Fu Liling’s hasty departure for investigation. She had lost a lot of weight, but she still carefully applied makeup, so she didn’t look too haggard.

“Will they come looking for you again?” Tang Heng asked softly.

“I don’t think so,” Fu Liling smiled, comforting Tang Heng, “but this time it took a toll, your inheritance will be reduced in the future.”

Tang Heng didn’t respond to her words and asked again, “What about Tang Guomu?”

“He’s done for this time. You guys don’t know yet?”

“What happened?”

“Mo Wen—your aunt—suddenly submitted a lot of evidence last week.  on the surface, she seemed indifferent to everything these years, but she actually paid attention to Tang Guomu.”

Tang Heng suddenly remembered what Sun Jihao had said when he was in Guizhou, that his aunt was also like this with his uncle.

Tang Heng took a few minutes to digest this information, feeling a mix of emotions: Was it fate? He returned to Wuhan to investigate Tian Xiaoqin’s death because Sun Jihao mentioned Lu Yue’s matter, and another victim, his aunt, had been silently enduring for over twenty years… It seemed that those women who were hurt had never given up the fight, even though the result of this fight came too late, too late.

“You can go back to Macau now, but they will definitely contact you later…” Fu Liling sighed lightly, her words unfinished, tears suddenly falling from her eyes.

“Mom,” Tang Heng hurriedly took out a packet of tissues from his pocket, “don’t cry.”

“I’m fine, I’m fine…” Fu Liling wiped her tears and smiled with teary eyes, “I just can’t believe that one day we, mother and son, would become like this, so estranged, as if you don’t recognize me anymore. Tang Heng, you’ve really grown up… I used to think of you as a child, now you’re an adult and you have your own choices.”

Tang Heng didn’t stay long at the old house because Li Yuechi was still waiting for him to have dinner together. When he left, Tang Heng took his father’s guitar with him.

It was the same guitar that caused Li Yuechi to take a hit with a wine bottle that year.

“Tang Heng,” Fu Liling’s voice sounded pleading, “after this matter is over, come to Shanghai to see Mom.”

Tang Heng was silent for a moment, then opened his arms and hugged her lightly.

“Yeah, I’ll go.”

Finally, they could leave Wuhan. Tian Xiaohui had already been sent back to Hunan by Jiang Ya and An Yun. Tang Heng originally wanted to go to Hunan to pay respects to Tian Xiaoqin, but Jiang Ya said Tian Xiaohui had another month before the college entrance examination, so it was better not to disturb the child.

Tang Heng asked Jiang Ya, “When are you going back to the United States?”

“I’m in no hurry,” it was summer, and Jiang Ya bought a packet of boiled edamame to snack on every day, “I’ve asked for a two-month leave from my advisor—hey, do you want some?”

Tang Heng pushed away his edamame, “What advisor allows you a two-month leave?”

“I haven’t taken a break for years! I’ve been working in the lab even during Christmas!”

“When are you graduating?”

“Bothersome—” Jiang Ya grumbled, “If everything goes smoothly, probably next spring.”

He swallowed the edamame in his mouth, as if remembering something, “Hey, why don’t I go to Macau with you for a couple of days?”

“No,” Tang Heng coldly refused, “I’ll be too busy when I go back.”

“You do your thing, I’ll entertain myself.”

“There’s nothing fun in Macau.”

“I can go to the casino, my dad has been giving me money for years and I haven’t had a chance to spend it…”

Tang Heng said with a headache, “I really don’t have time to entertain you, maybe next time.”

“Then forget it,” Jiang Ya rolled his eyes, “I’ll go back to Guizhou with Yuechi, last time I found some students from Guizhou University to help you, I’ll treat them to dinner and climb a mountain.”

Li Yuechi said, “It’s inconvenient.”

“Huh? What’s inconvenient?” Jiang Ya leaned over, imitating Tang Heng’s tone, “Senior, I won’t cause trouble.”

Tang Heng said, “Get lost.”

Jiang Ya snorted, “What’s your hurry, I’m not going to Macau!”

Li Yuechi stared at him, silent for a few seconds, “I’ll go to Macau.”

Jiang Ya: “…”

An Yun sneered, “After all these years, why do you still like to be a third wheel?”

“Alright, Tang Heng, I’ve really misjudged you…”

“He really wants to go with me to Macau,” Tang Heng was driven to the brink by Jiang Ya’s persistence, so he had to tell the truth, “He can’t go back to Guizhou now… the village won’t let him.”

About ten days ago, Li Yuechi received a call from the village committee. It turned out that during the time they were away, Banxi Village had gotten a new village head, and of course, it was related to Sun Jihao’s bribery. The new village head was a recent college graduate, who repeatedly assured Li Yuechi that his family wouldn’t be affected and hoped that Li Yuechi would come back home after some time.

So Tang Heng reluctantly called Director Xu, and as soon as the call connected, Director Xu nervously asked, “Xiao Tang… your… your phone isn’t tapped, is it?”

Tang Heng thought for a moment, “It shouldn’t be.”

“Don’t scare me, Xiao Tang.”

“How are things on your end? How is Sun Jihao being handled?”

“Ah, you dare ask me,” Director Xu complained, “I’ve been writing situation reports for two weeks!”

“And then?”

“As for Sun Jihao, we managed to get him off lightly. After all, this matter is disgraceful; it wouldn’t look good if it blew up… Sigh, it’s easy to talk about in Macau, but it’s troublesome in Guizhou! The Poverty Alleviation Office leaders said we must thoroughly investigate, you know…”

“No wonder.”

“What?”

“The village got a new village head and told Li Yuechi to come back later,” Tang Heng paused, “They’ve even arranged a permit for him to travel between Hong Kong and Macau.”

“Indeed, wait until this blows over!” Director Xu’s tone shifted, “Wait! What do you mean? You’re coming back?!”

“Yeah.”

“Xiao Tang!!!”

“What?”

“When you come back, just come back properly,” Director Xu trembled, “Don’t cause any trouble, okay? I’m old, I really can’t handle it! You caused quite a stir in Wuhan, when you’re back in Macau, just keep a low profile…”

Tang Heng calmly smiled, “Don’t worry.”

So it was settled, Jiang Ya and An Yun stayed in Wuhan, planning to return to the United States in a while, while Tang Heng and Li Yuechi boarded the plane to Macau.

The plane began to descend slowly, and through the cabin window, they could see the azure sea. Macau was almost always sunny.

Turning his gaze, Tang Heng saw that Li Yuechi had fallen asleep, his eyelashes pitch black.

Tang Heng raised his hand, his palm hovering over Li Yuechi’s eyes, shielding them from the occasional flashes of sunlight.

If it weren’t for the low hum of the plane and the frequent noises of children from behind, Tang Heng might have doubted the reality of this moment. After earning his PhD in the UK, he had come to Macau alone and spent two years here, so even in his dreams, he had never dreamed of Li Yuechi appearing in Macau.

In his dreams, he and Li Yuechi always met in rainy and gloomy Wuhan.

But there was no rain and gloom in Macau. It was either typhoons and storms or bright sunshine and scorching heat, coupled with the sea breeze that emptied the mind, as if all worries were forgotten.

So this place was suitable for tourism, suitable for shopping until one’s head overheated, and suitable for gambling until you lost all your money.

Tang Heng had once wondered what life would be like in the future. Probably like other mainland teachers’ who came to work in Macau, teaching for a few years, getting a Macau ID, taking out a loan to buy a house, earning a high salary, enjoying high benefits, and traveling abroad during holidays. The only difference was that he wouldn’t marry a mainland person.

Perhaps as long as time was long enough, everything could be forgotten and healed on this carefree little island.

Tang Heng was still lost in thought when his hand was suddenly grabbed.

Li Yuechi opened his eyes, pulled Tang Heng’s hand closer, and quickly kissed his palm.

Fortunately, the seat next to them was empty.

Tang Heng’s cheeks warmed slightly, and he whispered, “We’re almost there.”

“Yeah,” Li Yuechi glanced out the window, “Is it very hot in Macau now?”

“Extremely hot.”

“Where are we staying?”

“We’re staying… at my place,” Tang Heng was caught off guard by this question, “Don’t you want to?”

“Your place is the teacher’s apartment, right?”

“Yeah.”

Li Yuechi sighed, somewhat helplessly, “So your colleagues and neighbors will see you bringing a man home. You said it yourself, Sun Jihao knows about our relationship.”

Tang Heng hadn’t thought about this issue, in other words, he hadn’t considered it at all.

“Indeed,” Tang Heng said, “Then I’ll be quite prestigious, having gone on a business trip to Guizhou and coming back with a partner.”

Li Yuechi choked on his words, “…It’s not just that.”

“Hmm?”

“You’ve brought back a long-deceased lover from the dead.”

Tang Heng: “…”

Li Yuechi chuckled and asked, “Is it true? Teacher Tang has become a living person again.”

“Senior…”

“Mhm.”

“I’m sorry.”

“What else did you say?” Li Yuechi crossed his arms and leisurely said, “Tell me in advance, so I won’t be caught off guard later.”

“That’s all.”

“Am I a man or a woman?”

“…A woman.”

“How did I die?”

“…In a car accident.”

“Can you be more specific?”

Tang Heng rubbed his forehead, “I didn’t mean to… There was a time when a teacher wanted to introduce someone to me, so I said that…”

Li Yuechi silently smiled, and Tang Heng wondered if he was angry.

“Good boy,” Li Yuechi raised his hand and lightly touched Tang Heng’s cheek, “Since Teacher Tang has been a widow for me, it’s worth it even if I’ve been dead for several years.”

As the plane landed at Macau Airport and they stepped out of the terminal building, the sunlight pierced straight through. It was just past three in the afternoon, the hottest time of the day. When Tang Heng left, Macau was still cool with a gentle breeze, but now it was unbearably hot. Despite spending two years here, he still found it difficult to adapt to Macau’s summer.

They quickly got into a taxi and arrived at the school in no time. One of the best things about Macau was its small size; everything was close by.

On this hot Sunday afternoon, the campus was quiet. Li Yuechi dragged Tang Heng’s suitcase beside him, calmly surveying the university.

Unlike Han University, where towering trees were everywhere, the trees here were slender and short, held in place by a few iron rods, almost like fake trees.

“When Typhoon ‘Hato’ hit before, all the trees were broken,” Tang Heng followed his gaze, “The trees here now are newly planted.”

“Was the wind very strong?”

“Yeah, and there were water and power outages.”

“What were you doing at that time?”

“Nothing, just staying at home,” Tang Heng said, “Macau is quite boring.”

He led Li Yuechi to the elevator, swiped his card, and opened the door.

A faint scent of dust greeted them, but other than that, there was no other smell. Tang Heng never cooked for himself, so there was no food in the house. Tang Heng put down his luggage, took out his phone, and said, “I’ll order takeout.”

Li Yuechi looked around his home, frowning imperceptibly.

Land in Macau was expensive, so the teacher’s apartment only had two bedrooms and a living room. Li Yuechi didn’t know what other teachers’ homes were like—but Tang Heng’s home seemed too spacious. No, it wasn’t spacious, after all, there was a bookshelf filled with books in the living room. But the room in front of him felt bleak.

It was the kind of bleakness that lacked the vibrancy of life.

At a glance, the living room had neither a TV nor a sofa, only a thin white carpet laid in the center. Beside the bookshelf was a desk by the window, with wooden curtains drawn down, letting a few rays of sunlight through the cracks onto the empty desk.

At the foot of the table were two unopened bottles of mineral water. Yes, there wasn’t even a water dispenser in the room.

Li Yuechi asked, “Do you usually drink mineral water?”

“Yeah,” Tang Heng felt a bit guilty, “I’m too lazy to boil water.”

“What if you want something hot?”

“Then I’ll go downstairs and buy a cup of coffee…”

Li Yuechi couldn’t help but remember their home six years ago, that small rented house where they were cramped for space, where they could swing their legs from the bed to the chair without getting up, where they could reach for the water heater next to them, with their pot beside it…

“What do you want to eat?” Tang Heng handed him the phone, “There’s a good Sichuan restaurant nearby, or we can have Cantonese cuisine, the tea restaurants here are also good, there’s also a Korean cold noodle place…”

“Does the school have a supermarket?” Li Yuechi interrupted him.

“Yes.”

“Do you have a pot at home?”

“Yes… but it’s never been used.”

“Go buy some groceries,” Li Yuechi said, “Do you want to eat noodles? Like the ones I used to cook.”

Tang Heng’s eyes lit up, “Yes!”

That expression…  almost like he was wagging his tail.