Chapter 7: The Tragic High School World (3)

  Things have become serious!

  The school insisted that the responsibility was entirely on Huzi De's own accord, despite some management flaws, as the school had repeatedly emphasized that no student was allowed to swim in the river. As for Huzi De's death, it was even more unrelated to Longbiao. Everyone knows that rescuing people in the water can only be done one by one, and Longbiao, a 14-year-old who is not good at swimming, had already created a miracle by saving two people. The tragic situation that occurred while rescuing Huzi De was unforeseen by anyone. Moreover, if Longbiao hadn't gone to rescue him, Huzi De would have died anyway. At the time, Longbiao had been dragged underwater for a long time by Huzi De. In such a critical moment, Longbiao's instinct to survive led him to shake off Huzi De, who was grabbing his pants. This was an act of self-preservation, and in that situation where not shaking off Huzi De would have meant certain death, everyone could only choose to save themselves, and it could even be said that there was no choice at all.

  Hutou Zhang thought it was Longbiao's revenge for the time Huzide beat him, and this time he could have saved Huzide but intentionally didn't. He wanted to make Longbiao take responsibility for intentional murder, with a determined look that he wouldn't rest until he had dealt with Longbiao.

  Hu Zhenchang, the head of Jiangping Town, had a nephew who was the director of the local police station. They were so brazen as to detain Long Bolin on suspicion of intentional homicide and beat him brutally in an attempt to force him to confess to killing Hu Zide. Liu Dongping and Liu Jingshan were also beaten, but thanks to their parents' efforts to bribe officials with money, they only suffered minor physical harm at the police station. However, Long Bolin was hung up by a rope and subjected to electric shocks, whipping, and kicking by officers wearing leather shoes, who vented their abnormal grief on the poor 12-year-old boy.

  Long Bao knew they were abusing their power to illegally interrogate and coerce him, he had saved two people, only because he didn't save the precious son of this parent official, he was treated as a heinous criminal by them. He was beaten until his stool and urine were bloody, his body and mind suffered extreme damage, but he did not ask for mercy from them, nor did he admit to being the murderer who killed Hu Zi De. His young heart was infinitely pessimistic and disappointed to see that the law, which should have upheld human justice, had become a mere scrap of paper in the face of power. What is law? What is power? What is justice? What is morality?! Scenes that he only knew from books were now happening so realistically on his body, he was puzzled by everything that society carefully touted, shaken and at the same time, he was at a loss!

  No matter how they beat him, he didn't shed a tear. He gritted his teeth and stared at the national emblem on the police officers' heads, sometimes glancing through the window glass at the bright red five-star flag fluttering in the wind in the courtyard of the police station. He remembered that his teachers always said that the bright red five-star flag was dyed with the blood of revolutionary pioneers, and that the police uncles were the guardians of the people, while the leading cadres were the public servants of the people, all serving the people wholeheartedly. But what about now? What about these people in front of him?

  Town Chief Hu ordered Longbiao to kneel before him, but Longbiao stubbornly stood still. A policeman pressed down on Longbiao's shoulder and forced him to his knees. Every time he tried to stand up straight again, the policeman would push him back down until finally Longbiao collapsed to the ground in exhaustion. No matter how they interrogated him, Longbiao insisted on one thing: at the time, he had only wanted to save Huzide and absolutely had not wanted to harm him.

  If Principal Wang had not risked being dismissed to mobilize all the teachers in the school to negotiate with Hu, the head of the town, and threatened to sue the court, report to the county government, and protest against the abuse of power by the police station, under the coordination and handling of the Municipal Education Commission, Longbiao would have been beaten to death by them at the police station.

  Principal Wang arranged for a teacher to take care of Grandpa Qi at the Long family home as soon as something happened, deceiving the old man into thinking that Long had gone to the city to participate in some competition. In this way, Long's hospitalization was not detected by his worried grandfather. After staying in the hospital for two days, Long was taken to Tianlei Chinese Medicine Store to recover from his injuries by Dr. Liu. It took more than a week to eliminate the external injury and swelling. By then, Liu Dongping, Liu Jingshan, and Cao Qiujie had already given up on taking the college entrance exam. Their parents even sent their children to live with distant relatives in order to avoid the revenge of Hu Town's mayor.

  Back on the mountain, Long Bao finally managed to deceive Grandpa's inspection. Grandpa was taken care of very well by the teacher, and Long Bao was extremely grateful to his mentors. Long Bao simply didn't go back to school again, staying at home to nurse his injuries in secret and review his lessons in preparation for the college entrance exams.

  Sometimes human hatred can be ignorant and crazy to an unimaginable extent!

  That day, Longbiao went to the mountain to cut firewood. The wife of Hu Zhenzhang and several relatives came to Xiongshan with a long journey, ignoring the distance, and rushed into Longbiao's home under the leadership of Village Chief Wu Xizhong, planning to beat Longbiao again so that he couldn't take the college entrance examination. They didn't find Longbiao, and one person slapped Qi Grandfather, who was lying in bed, twice. Perhaps because the old man's illness was too severe, he was afraid of causing death, so he didn't dare to hit him again. Instead, he used extremely vicious words to humiliate the old man. Later, they smashed all the things in the room and even drove the pigs out of the pigsty down the mountain.

  What can the 14-year-old Longbiao do in the face of all this banditry? What else can he do? Kill them with a bird gun? Then what about Grandpa Qi?

  Under Grandpa Qi's questioning, Long Bao could no longer hide it and had to tell Grandpa the whole story.

  The angry grandfather gritted his teeth in silence, with a surge of anger in his heart. However, he didn't dare say anything in front of Long Bao. He just felt more and more strongly that Long Bao couldn't be held back by him anymore, Long Bao had to leave Xiongshan to study abroad, attend university, make a name for himself and for the ancestors of the Long family.

  You must make something of yourself, you have to go to university and learn some real skills. This was the kind of thing that Grandfather had repeated to Long Bu countless times before his gaokao. But Long Bu had no idea that Grandfather had already made an irreversible decision in his heart.

  In July 1999, this was the day that all high school students had been eagerly waiting for. On July 5th, Liu Laozhong, a traditional Chinese medicine doctor, specifically instructed his son Xiongshan to replace Longbiao in taking care of Qi Grandfather and even handed over 100 yuan and a box of Western ginseng pills to Longbiao. Under the leadership of Principal Wang and other teachers, Longbiao and his classmates moved into the reception center in the county town. This time, more than 200 students from No. 12 Middle School came to take the college entrance examination, and the principal and teachers privately analyzed that at least 50 people would score above the specialized line.

  Three days of exams have passed, and all my classmates seem to be quite satisfied. But Longbiao's mood has become extremely depressed: If I go to college, what about Grandpa? If I bring Grandpa with me, where will the economic source for our survival come from? And now, going to college costs so much money, how can we afford it? Last time, the school lent me money to treat my illness, and that needs to be repaid! I owe so many favors to my fellow villagers, classmates, and teachers, how can I repay them? Moreover, all the furniture in our house was smashed by those people, and we need to spend money to buy materials to repair it! Grandpa's further treatment is already urgent, since that group of people came to our home last time, Grandpa's body has become much weaker...

  After the college entrance exam, Longbiao worked even harder, his whole body had been sunburned to a dark brown. He almost didn't stop for a moment, putting all his energy into making money. Picking medicinal herbs was time-consuming and troublesome, except for the few herbs that Liu Laoren wanted him to bring back, he basically stopped picking them. Catching stone frogs was also a hassle, and he couldn't catch many in a day. Since the pigs had been stolen, he simply didn't feed them anymore. Now he spent day and night fishing with nets, catching turtles and soft-shelled turtles, hunting wild animals, which brought in more money.

  Since the last time he encountered danger in the river, he seemed to have become a river god. In the water, he was more powerful than a fish and could even hold his breath for three or four minutes. He could accurately judge where there were fish in the river and when they would appear, so that almost every net he cast would catch something. In small streams, he could tell from the marks on the shore whether there were any soft-shelled turtles or not, and every time he went out, he would bring back a harvest.

  The little dog leopard is a powerful helper, with a keen sense of smell that no other dog can match. This man and dog duo fight day and night on rivers and mountains, basically earning over a hundred yuan every day.

  By early August, Longbiao's total savings had reached 6,000 yuan.

  This time, No. 12 Middle School in Shancheng made a name for itself throughout the country, with more than 200 examinees and over 70 of them passing the exam, including 27 undergraduate students and 5 key undergraduate students. The highest score among science students in Shancheng was achieved by Long Bao from No. 12 Middle School. Long Bao's scores ranked high in the entire province, and if it weren't for the Hu Zide incident, who knows how much better he might have done.

  No. 12 Middle School was not comparable to other schools in Shancheng, although the number of students from No. 1 and No. 3 Middle Schools who were admitted to top universities was much higher than that of No. 12 Middle School. At that time, those who went to No. 1 and No. 3 Middle Schools were all top middle school students in Shancheng, while those at No. 12 Middle School were just ordinary middle school students with average grades. The entire campus of No. 12 Middle School was filled with a joyful atmosphere, as everyone gathered together to discuss how to fill out their university application forms. Everyone suggested that Long Bao apply to Tsinghua University or Peking University, and with his grades, there was no reason why these two universities would not admit him. Moreover, Long Bao's age was still an attractive advantage, and it was believed that all schools would favor him even more.

  No one could have imagined that Long Bo would actually fill out the application for this school, no one could have imagined that Long Bo would actually apply for such a major, and no one could have thought that Long Bo would give up going to China's most prestigious university just because of such an idea.

  Naive! Gullible! Most people think this way about Long Bao.

  My life is limited to only thirty years, I must do something truly meaningful for my fellow villagers as soon as possible. The lives of the villagers are bitter and difficult. To change their bitter fate, we can only start from the familiar agricultural aspect, learn useful agricultural technology and spread it out, which is the most effective way to repay the kindness of the villagers. My grandfather's body cannot adapt to the cold weather in the north, so he must be taken care of by me, and my school must be in Hunan. Only the climate in Hunan can make him feel comfortable. I heard that this school is located in the suburbs of the provincial capital, where there is no noise from the city, and the living expenses should be relatively low. With this little money, we can maintain our lives, as long as I save a bit more, our lives will not be a problem. During winter and summer vacations, I will do more work to earn more money, so that we can make ends meet. As long as Grandpa can live happily, it doesn't matter if I suffer a little.

  Long Wanru was thinking about it.

  Liu Lao, the old Chinese doctor, Principal Wang, and all the teachers who knew Long Biao tried to persuade him. In their eyes, Hunan Agricultural University was just an ordinary undergraduate university that couldn't even fill its enrollment quota every year and had to lower its admission scores. Graduates from this school would have a hard time finding jobs, and it would be difficult for them to make a living in the future, let alone achieve their life goals. If he were to attend Tsinghua or Peking University, schools with a rich history and tradition of excellence, not only would his job prospects be guaranteed, but his future development would also be boundless. How could Long Biao settle for such an ordinary school?

  Longwan will always be Longwan, Longwan will always be just Longwan, and Longwan can only be Longwan forever.

  When Long Hui returned home and told his grandfather about his plans, his grandfather sighed softly and said: "Child, you've had a hard time!"

  "Grandpa, our savings have already exceeded six thousand. I think that by the time school starts, we'll have ten thousand yuan. Then we can rent a house near school to live in! Grandpa, you can also eat at our school's cafeteria." Longbiao said with a smile while helping grandpa massage his hands and feet.

  Grandpa looked at Longbiao deeply and said: "Good! Good, Grandpa hasn't had a university meal yet, haha, good kid, Grandpa has been looking forward to having a taste of your school's food all his life!"

  After a few days, Grandpa told Longbiao that he felt his feet were a bit numb and asked him to go up the mountain to pick some medicinal herbs and bring them back home. He wanted to use these herbs to rub his hands, exercise a bit, and let the medicine enter his body to see if it would have any benefits. Longbiao immediately went up the mountain to pick them, and Grandpa told him to put them under his bed.

  Two days later, Grandpa asked Longbiao to go dig up a few earthworms and find some small red-yellow insects about an inch long in the grass on top of Bear Mountain. After Longbiao brought them back, he instructed him to soak the insects in wine and said that if he added a type of herb called "Seven Leaves One Hair", it would be able to activate blood circulation and dissolve stasis. He also said that this was an old remedy passed down by a veteran farmer, and that rubbing this wine on the body had great effects. Longbiao immediately went up the mountain again to pick some Seven Leaves One Hair. Seven Leaves One Hair is a slightly toxic herb that cannot be ingested, specifically used to treat unknown swellings and poisons.

  In a few more days, Grandpa asked him to get some saltpeter from beside the toilet and said that it might be even better when mixed with wine.

  Afterwards, every time Long Bo helped Grandpa wipe his body, Grandpa would always say it felt as if his legs really had sensation again.

  By August 20, Longbiao's admission letter arrived, but it was not from Hunan Agricultural University, but from Changhan University's Water Conservancy Engineering major. The admission letter was in the hands of Principal Wang and had not been told to Longbiao. It turned out that Principal Wang and Teacher Liu had come to the mountain especially for his college application, seeking Grandpa Qi's opinion. As teachers who cared deeply about Longbiao's future, they could not let him act on his own ideas. Grandpa Qi only said one thing: "Let this child go to his mother's place to study!"

  On August 23rd, Wu Wenli came to the mountain specifically to chat with Long Bao. She and Long Bao attended the same university, but she was in the biological engineering department. Long Bao didn't return from the mountain until late afternoon, just before dinner, and Wu Wenli had already chatted with Grandpa Qi for half a day. She was a very beautiful young girl, and when she saw Long Bao, her face turned red, although she was already eighteen, but looked even shorter than Long Bao. Long Bao was already fourteen years old, and his height was already 1.65 meters, very sturdy, although his face was full of life's vicissitudes, but in this vicissitude, there was still a hint of childishness. Long Bao caught two pigeons, and the two of them happily made a sumptuous dinner together, after which Wu Wenli helped Long Bao wash clothes.

  Long Bao's home had only two beds, and at night Wu Wenli arranged for her to sleep on Long Bao's bed. She slept on Long Bao's bed, smelling a peculiar scent that was extremely pleasant, yet not a fragrance, nor the same as other people's body odor. In short, it made her dizzy and lightheaded, this young girl's heart racing with excitement as if it were about to jump out of her chest.

  Just as she couldn't fall asleep, she clearly heard Grandpa and Longbiao's conversation.

  "Long'er, come here, Grandpa has something to say to you."

  "Grandpa, what's up?"

  "Long'er, Grandpa is going to tell you about your ancestors today. You're already in college, it's time for you to know everything about the Long family." Grandpa paused for a moment, coughed a few times and continued, "Go under my bed and dig up the dirt on the ground..."

  She heard a commotion from the other room and then Long Bao said: "Grandpa, there's a wooden board here!"

  "Kid, lift it up!"

  After a while, Longbiao's voice sounded again: "Grandpa, there is an iron box here!"

  "Bring it out, bring it out!"

  "It's out, Grandpa! It's so heavy! What is it?"

  Wu Wenli could no longer sleep after hearing these conversations, and under the drive of great curiosity, she quietly got up to take a peek through the door crack!

  Grandpa saw the box and his eyes lit up immediately. He said to Longbiao with some urgency, "Quick! Help me get up! Help me get up!"

  Longbiao put the box on the table and slowly helped Grandpa sit up against the headboard.

  "Bring it over! Bring the box over!"

  Grandfather Qi's eyes were brimming with tears, his hands trembling as he stroked the box. The murky old tears fell one by one onto the box: "Children, this box was made from Xuan Tie Qing Tong by your first ancestor of the Long family over a thousand years ago..." Grandfather Qi seemed to be recalling that long-lost distant history, his aged voice echoing in the dark night with an unusual hollowness.

  Long Bao looked carefully at the box, and on it a black dragon faintly appeared to be swirling around. The four corners of the box were inlaid with golden threads, which were made into a flying dragon shape, with its mouth facing a bright and shiny thing.

  Grandpa took out a small knife from under the pillow and handed it to Longbiao, saying: "Child, this is the key to the box. You put it into that flat hole next to it and open the box!"

  Long Bao took over the small knife, the knife was no more than three inches long and five parts wide, and it felt heavy in his hand. He carefully opened the box, which seemed to contain a square object.

  "Kid, take this thing out!"

  Long Bao took it out and looked at it, huh, it was a copper-made book with several words on the cover.

  "Child, this is your family tree, the family tree of sixty-four generations of the Long family. You must remember it, this thing belongs to the Long family and cannot be lost."

  Long Wan let out a cry of surprise.

  "Open the last page with words on it!" Long Bao flipped through the pages one by one, and every single page was filled with words.

  "Grandpa, I've turned to the last page."

  "Read it out loud to Grandpa, what does it say?"

  "Sixty-third generation, Long Xing, courtesy name Qiu Li, born on the twenty-first day of the third month in the year of Ji Hai, at the hour of Shen. At birth, his mother dreamed of a great rain pulling an ox, which was not auspicious.

  Married to Wen Shi...

  Long Xing's wife, Wen Yan, from Han City, Hubei Province, born on the first day of the ninth month in the year of Geng Zi, at the hour of Hai.

  Gave birth to two sons, Long Quan and Long Bao...

  Sixty-fourth generation, Long Quan, born on the ninth day of the seventh month in the year of Geng Shen, at the hour of Hai. At birth, his mother dreamed of a drought-stricken field, which was not auspicious.

  Died in the year of Yi Chou, on the sixth day of the ninth month, at the age of five...

  Sixty-fourth generation, Long Bao, born on the twelfth day of the fifth month in the year of Yi Chou, at an unknown hour. At birth, his mother dreamed of a collapsing sky, but it is unclear what this means."

  "There are a few more sentences, 'Words to my son, Bao: The Dragon clan's lineage has been through hardships and narrowly survived, fortunate to have ancestors' protection, not to be cut off. Who would have thought that your older brother died young? Alas, cursed for a thousand years of reincarnation, could it be that the same calamity will recur on my body? Human life is like this, what's the point of it all! Our ancestor said 'We have committed crimes against heaven, there is no one to pray to', now I entrust you with these words from our respected ancestors, only hoping that Bao'er will take care of himself. Your parents love you, but cannot escape heavenly fate. Written by Father Long Xing and Mother Wen Yan."

  Long Bao looked on, two silent tears streaming down.

  "Is this written by my parents?"

  "Yes, there's also a letter from your mother here. She instructed that you can only read it when you're 16 years old. You must remember."

  Grandfather Qi patted Longbiao's hand weakly and said, "Child, this small knife is used to open the iron box. Without it, you can't open the box. You must find a safe place to hide them, don't lose them. These things are priceless family heirlooms passed down through generations, they absolutely cannot be stolen by others. Tomorrow, find a place to hide them, our home is not suitable for keeping them. The things recorded in your family tree are very important, be extremely careful!"

  He suddenly raised his head and said to Wu Wenli who was listening with rapt attention: "Girl, come out, Grandpa has something to say!"

  Wu Wenli's face turned red as she walked out, saying in a low voice: "Grandfather, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to!" After finishing speaking, she didn't dare look at Long Bao and Grandfather, hanging her head.

  "Girl, Grandpa doesn't blame you, but you must keep it a secret. This thing can't be lost, it's related to Bao'er's life and death. Do you understand?"

  "I know, Grandpa, I won't tell anyone." Wu Wenli nodded vigorously.

  "Girl, I know you like Long Er, you two must take good care of each other at school! Maybe Grandpa is still waiting to drink your wedding wine!" Grandpa's words made Wu Wenli so embarrassed that she couldn't help it, and Long Bao chuckled a few times.

  The two of them reburied the box and piled some miscellaneous items on top. Longbiao laid his grandfather's body flat, covering him with a quilt.

  Grandpa looked at them and suddenly said: "Long'er, go sleep with Yaotou together, otherwise she will be afraid at night!"

  Wu Wenli's face turned bright red, she turned around and entered the room, covering her head with a quilt, not even daring to breathe. As a result, that strange smell was even more overwhelming, almost making her faint.

  Boys and girls are different, Long Bao hesitated without moving his feet. Grandpa looked unusually serious: "Go! You're still kids, what's there to be afraid of? Go, listen!"

  Long Bao thought for a moment, and felt that he shouldn't disobey Grandpa. Ever since Long Bao had rescued Wu Wenli from Hu Zide's clutches, their relationship had been like siblings. Long Bao rather liked this beautiful older sister, while Wu Wenli had long considered Long Bao to be a fine young man who stood tall and proud. This was perhaps the feeling of first love.

  Long Bao entered the room, and he couldn't help but chuckle at Wu Wenli covering herself with a sheet. Suddenly feeling playful, he mischievously pushed against the sheet-covered Wenli and said: "Sister Li, be careful, my quilt was peed on by a leopard this morning, don't get it on your body!"

  Wu Wenli was so frightened that she threw off the quilt, pulled in her legs and pushed out with both hands, and sat up with a thud. Long Bao laughed so hard that his mouth was wide open.

  "Good grief! You're so gullible!" Long Bao pointed at Wu Wenli's reddening face.

  "You! ——" Wu Wenli suddenly understood, "I'm not going to bother with you anymore, I'm going to sleep!" After that, she still hid her head under the quilt, her palms sweating with tension.

  "Lijie, I'm sleeping here tonight, if you don't agree just say so!" Longbiao said intentionally.

  Wu Wenli was so ashamed and annoyed in her heart, she almost couldn't help but pinch Long Biao hard, secretly scolding him in her heart: Stupid fool, who asked you to speak so loudly! If you want to come, just come, it's embarrassing to death!

  Listening to Long Bao taking off his shirt, Wen Li's heart was racing like a drum, and she instinctively covered her well-developed chest tightly.

  It was sweltering in the summer, and Wen Li couldn't bear to be covered with a quilt, so she secretly stuck her head out from under the covers.

  Long Bao realized for the first time that a woman's curves were so beautiful, he looked at Wen Li wrapped in the quilt and presented soft lines, he suddenly felt that such beautiful lines were simply a poem!

  He couldn't help but say softly to Wen Li: "Sister Li, you're like a poem!"

  Wen Li heard this metaphor for the first time, and she savored it with a blush, feeling that it was refreshing and elegant, with endless charm.

  Sleeping next to Long Bao, the smell grew thicker and thicker. It wasn't a sweaty smell at all, what kind of smell was it? It smelled so comfortable! Why didn't Dad and Uncle have it? Wen Li thought to herself.

  It's actually the unique flavor of the Long family, it's their special genetic trait. Long Bao has just developed and isn't very obvious or strong yet, but this is already enough to make Yun Li suffer.

  Long Bao was a person who fell asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow. How could Wen Li, whose heart was racing like a drum, sleep? After a while, she realized that Long Bao had fallen silent and quietly turned over to gaze at this little man in her mind with a dazed expression under the dim moonlight.

  It was a bit chilly on the mountain at midnight, and Wen Li wrapped herself in a quilt and couldn't help but shiver. She suddenly remembered that Long Bao didn't have any quilts covering him, so she quickly put the quilt over his body.

  Long Bao slept drowsily and felt that there was something very warm beside him. His body instinctively leaned over, and one hand rested on Wen Li's body.

  Wen Li was wearing a nightgown, and she really hadn't expected this fourteen-year-old boy to be so bold as to hug her. For a moment, all the romantic scenes about this scene and what was to come flooded her mind. What, what, what should I do? If he... then I...

  Wen Li's hand had just slipped down when Long Bao was hugging her, and now it was being squeezed in the middle by Long Bao's treasure. Her nose was filled with Long Bao's intoxicating body scent, and her blushing face was tightly pressed against his chest. Those small hands were also closely attached to a hard, hot rod-like object.

  Wen Li knew what this was, it's clearly explained in physiological hygiene, this is a man's ***, called ***, it's just like little boys' ***, but why is his *** different from that little boy's?

  Wen Li was extremely nervous, so scared that she didn't dare to move, afraid that the slightest movement would wake up Long Bao. At this moment, her emotions, thoughts, and feelings could no longer be accurately expressed in words, she just felt herself flying... all the way to the clouds outside the ninth heaven.

  Long Bao felt the thing he was hugging getting hotter and hotter in his daze, he woke up to find himself hugging Li Jie, hurriedly using his hand to touch Wen Li's head, wow! So hot!

  He hastily asked Wen Li: "Sister Li, are you having a fever?"

  Wen Li woke up from her daze, not daring to respond, nor even face the scenes that had just flashed through her mind. She hastily turned over and tried to avoid Long Biao, closing her eyes tightly.

  Long Bao thought foolishly for a while, suddenly realizing that he must not have worn shorts and was discovered by Wen Li. He also felt a bit embarrassed, hastily put on his shorts, and smiled silently.

  After a while, he patted Wenli's shoulder with his hand and said in a low voice: "Sister, I like you!"

  Wen Li became more and more shy, in this shyness there was unspeakable joy, also unspeakable satisfaction, her tears quietly flowed out.

  Wen Li's mind kept replaying the fantasy of a kiss, recalling the beautiful words that described first kisses in books. She was both afraid and hopeful that Long Bao would come and boldly kiss her. But Long Bao was just a child, and he soon fell asleep again.