The courtyard: the atmosphere of human life

On the way home, Zhong Yunxing, who had been able to remain awake, suddenly felt his head swelling and his feet floating, perhaps because of the wind.

Although I tried my best to restrain myself, I could only pedal slowly. I thought I was going in a straight line, but in fact I had already reached the center of the road.

Although the dog spirit Xizi has been following Zhong Yunxing, he walks behind Hua Congzi. This is something that the third brother has taught him many times, so that he can avoid people who beat the dog and prevent Xizi from being caught.

"Zhong Yunxing? Is that you?"

Zhong Yunxing heard someone calling his name in a daze, and looked up towards the voice.

"Eh? Pei Bin? Where are you going?"

Zhong Yunxing originally wanted to support himself with his feet, but his feet went soft and he and the car fell to the ground.

"Wow, how much have you drunk? You reek of alcohol. Can you go home alone so late?"

Pei Bin was also puzzled. He and Zhong Yunxing had not been in contact since graduation, but they had run into each other twice in just a few days.

"It's okay, it's okay, I can do it." Zhong Yunxing climbed up clumsily from the ground.

Seeing this, Pei Bin had no choice but to stop the car and help Zhong Yunxing sit down on the side of the road.

"Slow down first."

In fact, Pei Bin was having a fierce ideological struggle in his heart at this moment. Although he and Zhong Yunxing were classmates, their relationship was not that close. He was so drunk, so he should send him home. Erdaohezi was a bit far, but if he didn't send him, it seemed a bit inappropriate.

Before Pei Bin could figure out what was going on, Zhong Yunxing next to him suddenly started vomiting loudly.

Fortunately, Pei Bin was not sitting next to him. The moment he vomited, he immediately jumped a step away, holding his arm with one hand and stroking his back with the other.

"Oh my god, how many dishes are there? You've been drinking so much."

Zhong Yunxing vomited for a long time and felt that there was nothing left in his stomach to vomit. He then leaned on Pei Bin's arm, walked a few steps away, and then sat heavily on the curb again.

"I went to my girlfriend's house today. I don't know what happened to her dad. He kept forcing me to drink."

After vomiting everything out, Zhong Yunxing seemed to be much clearer in mind, and his originally weak legs seemed to be able to walk again.

"Haha, so you went to visit your father-in-law."

Pei Bin felt relieved when he saw that Zhong Yunxing seemed to be much more sober.

"How about it? When are you getting married?"

"Hey, I haven't even started dating yet. Today is my first visit, so I don't know if she likes me or not. Even if her family agrees, I'll have to wait. My partner won't be old enough until next year."

When talking about Da Rong, Zhong Yunxing's mouth corners unconsciously turned up, and the two deep dimples on his cheeks made him look particularly sincere.

"So small? You're quite capable, kid." Pei Bin poked Zhong Yunxing's arm with a sly smile.

I don’t know if it was because they had waited too long, or because Xizi already knew Pei Bin and didn’t think he was dangerous, but while the two were talking, Xizi quietly approached.

"Fuck, what the hell?"

Pei Bin suddenly exclaimed, jumped up from the ground, took two steps forward, then turned around and looked at the flowers behind him.

Zhong Yunxing was not frightened by Xizi, but was startled by Pei Bin's exclamation, and quickly stood up from the ground.

After seeing Xizi's figure clearly, Zhong Yunxing laughed.

"It's okay, it's okay, don't be afraid. This is my girlfriend's dog named Xizi. She was worried that I would go home alone after drinking, so she asked Xizi to follow me."

Looking at the familiar big dog in front of him, Pei Bin froze in place, his thoughts instantly pulled back to the past. It was once this big dog, sandwiched between two boys and girls, and heard countless sweet words from them.

"What's wrong? Are you afraid of dogs?" Looking at Pei Bin who lay motionless, Zhong Yunxing asked tentatively.

"Ah? No... I'm not afraid..."

Zhong Yunxing's voice brought Pei Bin back to reality. He walked closer to Xizi, leaned over and touched its head, his eyes flashing with complex yet warm tenderness.

"Drive slowly on your way. I'm going back first." Pei Bin stood up and looked at Zhong Yunxing, forcing a very forced smile.

"You should slow down too."

At this moment, Zhong Yunxing was fully awake. He could clearly see the complex emotions in Pei Bin's eyes, and he roughly understood what was going on in his heart.

Zhong Yunxing didn't stay any longer. He got on his bicycle, called Xizi, and headed calmly into the quiet summer night.

Pei Bin, who said goodbye first, was now nailed to the spot. His figure under the street light became unusually cold and lonely. He looked up at the bright moon in the starry sky, and the feeling of fragmentation in his memory came back again.

"Mom, I'm back. Is there anything to eat?"

After Zhong Yunxing vomited out all the alcohol in his stomach, he became sober, and his stomach became sober too.

"Is it because my mother-in-law didn't provide meals?"

Zhong Yunping, the younger sister who was originally concentrating on doing homework, looked up and joked with her older brother when she saw him come back and look for food.

"You've vomited it all out. You drank a little wine in the evening. You're the only one who talks too much." Zhong Yunxing tapped the younger sister on the forehead.

"Did you drink too much? Vomited in someone's house?" Mother Zhong had just taken out a steamed bun from the cupboard. When she heard Zhong Yunxing say he vomited, she nervously froze in place.

"No, I vomited on the way back. I held it in at her house, but I didn't help with anything. After drinking, I just sat on the sofa until I got home." Zhong Yunxing smiled awkwardly.

"Why do you drink so much? What if people think you are a drunkard?" Mother Zhong frowned and scolded Zhong Yunxing in a reproachful manner.

"It's not me who wants to drink, it's her father and her brother who force me to drink. I don't know why they force me to drink, but it seems like I have to drink."

"Hey, when you go to pick up Darong tomorrow, you can ask her yourself and see what her family says. If they agree, you can bring Darong home to introduce her to the family."

Mother Zhong sighed and took the steamed bun to the small side room to heat it up for him.

"Oh my God!" Mother Zhong jumped in screaming as she just walked out of the room.

"Mom, mom, don't be afraid, it's Xizi, the dog of Darong's family. I forgot about it."

When Zhong Yunxing heard Mother Zhong’s exclamation, he remembered that there was a big dog in the yard.

"You almost scared me to death because you didn't tell me about such a big dog."

Zhong Yunxing's home is in Erdaohezi, a village outside the town. The population density here is relatively low, and almost every family has a spacious courtyard, and the Zhong family is no exception.

Because there are poultry in the yard, the Zhong family does not keep dogs. Xizi's sudden appearance in the yard really scared Mother Zhong.

Mother Zhong stood in the main room for two minutes before she came to her senses.

Seeing that he had caused trouble, Xizi stood in the corner with his tail between his legs, not moving, glancing at Zhong Yunxing from time to time, like a child who had made a mistake begging for forgiveness.