1987 My Era

Chapter 598, accident

"Li Heng?"

"Ah."

Mai Sui asked with some delight, "Where are you? Are you calling me from Singapore?"

Li Heng replied, "Yes, in the hotel room."

Mai Sui asked with concern, "How's it over there? It shouldn't be cold in winter, right?"

"It's not cold, I'm only wearing one layer of clothing."

Li Heng responded, then asked, "And you, what do you do at home?"

Mai Sui said, "Many relatives came to our house today, and I helped my parents entertain them."

Li Heng asked, "You seem very busy. Have you had any time to think of me?"

Mai Sui glanced back at the guests, her face burning, and remained silent for a long time.

Not receiving a reply, Li Heng sighed softly, "Maisui, I miss you."

"Ah."

"I want to hold you."

"Ah."

I want to kiss you.

"..."

Mai Sui didn't respond with an "Mmm" again. Two unnatural blushes appeared on her fair face as she hurriedly changed the subject, asking, "Have you had breakfast?"

"I just ate something," Li Heng said.

Mai Suirou asked with a smile, "Judging from your tone, you didn't eat well?"

"Breakfast was alright, but I didn't have much of an appetite. Maybe it's because it's my first time abroad, and I'm not used to it yet," Li Heng said.

Just then, the door opened, and Zhou Shihe walked in with light steps, carrying a breakfast in her hand.

After closing the door, she quickly glanced at the breakfast on the coffee table, then gently placed the breakfast in her hand on it, and walked towards her room without looking back.

Li Heng held the receiver and looked at her without saying a word the whole time.

"Are you still there?" Mai asked on the other end of the phone.

Li Heng replied, "Yes, I'm here."

Mai Sui asked, "Is Shi He with you?"

Li Heng replied, "Comrade Shihe just returned from outside."

Upon hearing him mention her name, Zhou Shihe, who had just reached the doorway, stopped but didn't turn around. At that moment, she probably already guessed who he was talking to on the phone.

Sui Sui might ask her to answer the phone.

Sure enough, the next second, Mai Sui asked, "Should Shi He answer the phone? I want to say a few words to her."

"Okay, sure."

Li Heng called out from afar, "Shihe, Maisui, call."

Zhou Shihe turned around, met his gaze for a moment without joy or sorrow, then went to the other side of the sofa, gracefully took the receiver, and started chatting with her best friend.

Mai Sui's first question was, "Li Heng said he's not used to life in Singapore and hasn't had a proper breakfast. Shi He, how are you?"

At this moment, Li Heng shamelessly opened the breakfast that Miss Zhou had just brought back and ate it with relish.

Zhou Shihe glanced at him and said gently, "I'm fine with the teacher taking care of me. But you don't need to worry about him, Teacher Yu will be here soon."

Hearing this, Li Heng, who was enjoying his meal, suddenly felt uncomfortable. With food still in his mouth, he stared intently at Zhou Shihe, thinking to himself, "Girl, you have a terrible conscience! How dare you sow discord right in front of me!"

His bewildered expression as he ate looked quite comical. Zhou Shihe pursed her cherry lips, pretending not to notice, and turned halfway to avoid eye contact with him. Seeing her best friend teasing her, Mai Sui wasn't annoyed and said gently, "He doesn't like noodles or pastries, he likes rice. Shihe, try to take him to eat rice."

Zhou Shihe paused for a moment, then quietly said okay.

The two sisters talked for a long time, while Li Heng ate his second meal on his own, each doing his own thing and not interfering with the other.

This situation lasted for about four or five minutes until the door opened again and Yu Shuheng and Wu Yili walked in.

Li Heng felt something was off after not seeing Teacher Yu for a day, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. Something just felt off.

Yu Shuheng had been chatting and laughing with Wu Yili on the way. After smiling at Zhou Shihe when she entered the house, she went straight to Li Heng and sat down elegantly next to him, watching him eat the last few bites of breakfast.

Li Heng swallowed the food in his mouth and called out, "Teacher."

Yu Shuheng nodded.

He asked, "Have you had breakfast yet?"

Yu Shuheng replied, "I already ate on the plane."

She continued, "I have something to discuss with you."

"Okay." Li Heng replied, and then went into his bedroom with Teacher Yu.

Watching the two leave, Wu Yili couldn't help but lower her voice and ask, "Are Li Heng and Teacher Yu really having a relationship?"

Zhou Shihe didn't say anything.

Mai Sui listened in silence on the other end of the phone, and then fell silent as well.

After a long silence, Mai Sui said, "Shi He, I'm hanging up."

"Mmm," Zhou Shihe hummed in response.

After putting the receiver back, Zhou Shihe glanced at someone's bedroom door and said to the teacher, "Teacher, let's go for a walk."

Looking at her beloved disciple, Wu Yili recalled how, on the way from Lushan Village to the airport, her disciple had covered Li Heng with a coat and made him use a soft cushion as a pillow in the car. She felt a mix of emotions.

Wu Yili also glanced at Li Heng's bedroom, and then followed him out. In the elevator, she sighed, "I used to guess, but to see them enter the room right under my nose is really hard to believe. They are actually in a teacher-student relationship."

Through the elevator's metal wall, Zhou Shihe looked at her reflection, still silent. A scene flashed through her mind: the image of Teacher Yu drawing the curtains back in Lushan Village.

....
bedroom.

Yu Shuheng, who came in later, closed the door and said, "I have some not-so-good news."

Li Heng's heart tightened. "What news?"

Yu Shuheng said, "I heard from the rumors that this year's Mao Dun Literature Prize may be postponed."

Li Heng blurted out, "The reason? The reason is...?"

He froze halfway through his sentence, not asking any further questions.

Yu Shuheng said, "Young man, don't ask why. Even if you knew, the teacher wouldn't tell you."

Li Heng tried hard to recall information about this year's Mao Dun Literature Prize, but perhaps because it was too long ago, or perhaps because he was studying in his previous life and didn't pay much attention to this kind of thing, the information he could retrieve from his memory was limited.

Seeing that he remained silent, Yu Shuheng assumed he was upset. She took two steps closer, reached out her right hand to gently stroke his face, and softly comforted him:

"Don't worry, even if it's not held this year, it will be held again next year or the year after. With the enormous literary value and social influence of 'White Deer Plain,' you will definitely get this award."

Frankly speaking, both she and the *Harvest* magazine were eagerly anticipating Li Heng winning an award, especially a major one. They both understood that Li Heng was already quite famous, his works were very popular, and his market value was already proven. All that was missing was a weighty award to solidify his position in the literary world and further solidify his reputation.

Of course, Li Heng was quite confident about "White Deer Plain," saying, "I know."

After delivering the bad news, Yu Shuheng wrapped her arms around his neck and pecked his lips twice like a woodpecker. Suddenly, with a half-smile, she made a surprising turn: "Little brother, do you want your teacher to sleep with you tonight?"

P.S.: A few days ago, someone mentioned in the group chat that my 70-something-year-old mother had fallen ill, so I rushed back home halfway through writing in March. I thought it was just an old ailment, but it turns out she's still in the ICU and not out of danger. My mind has been a bit chaotic these past few days in March, and I haven't been able to focus on writing. I didn't want to mention family matters, but I broke my promise to update, so I'm sorry. Also, I didn't finish the "Ace" chapter, and unfortunately, I wanted to go back and revise it today, but my editing permissions were locked. I'm so frustrated. (I've been writing on my phone these past few days, please understand.)
The numbers have been calculated; Photoshop is free.

(End of this chapter)