My Deskmate Chapter 2 (Part 2)
Translated by Q the Panda (ko-fi)
Chapter 2.2
After evening self-study, Wen Xiao made a trip to the logistics department. Hearing that the uniforms had arrived, he paid for two new sets.
As he left the office, he ran into the Director of Discipline.
Noticing the new uniforms in Wen Xiao’s hands, Cheng Xiaoning looked puzzled. “So... your uniform really was taken by a dog?”
“Yes.”
“You're really unlucky. Well, now that you’ve got new ones, make sure to wear them. It's really bad for high school students not to wear their uniforms!”
Wen Xiao didn't reply, but stepped aside half a step to make way for the director. Cheng Xiaoning offered some standard words of encouragement about studying hard before walking off.
Due to this brief delay, the campus was almost deserted by the time Wen Xiao reached the school gate from the main building. Only a few students lingered on the street, waiting for their rides. As soon as the cars pulled up, they eagerly climbed in without a moment’s hesitation.
Wen Xiao stood still for a moment, staring ahead before snapping out of it and pulling his gaze away.
The buildings on Jiuzhang Road were old, their ground-floor storefront signs faded and dusty. Midway through his walk, he got a call from his grandmother, who mentioned the kitchen lightbulb had burned out and needed replacing. Taking a turn, Wen Xiao headed toward a brightly lit hardware store.
The store was spacious, with materials of all sizes neatly arranged. A little girl with a pink plastic butterfly clip in her hair and neatly braided pigtails was leaning on the glass counter, doing her homework. When she noticed Wen Xiao approaching, she looked up and asked, “What do you want to buy?”
Wen Xiao, hands in his pockets, didn’t get too close. “An E27 lightbulb. Second shelf, third one from the left.” Spotting a fridge nearby, he opened it and grabbed a can of Coke. “Add it to the total.”
The little girl put down her pen, retrieved the lightbulb from the shelf, and placed it on the counter. Then, she began carefully calculating the total.
Wen Xiao pulled open the Coke can with one hand, waiting for the hiss of white vapor to dissipate before taking a sip. His eyes drifted over the girl’s workbook on the counter. It read: 19 + 12 = 33, 29 + 19 = 51. The answer space for the third problem had been erased so many times that the paper was nearly torn, yet no answer had been written.
After calculating twice to be sure, the little girl said, “The lightbulb is nineteen, and the Coke is three. That’s... twenty-five!”
Wen Xiao handed over twenty-five yuan. “Where are your parents?”
After placing the money in the drawer, the little girl replied, “Hospital. They’re not back yet.”
With slender fingers still holding the Coke can, Wen Xiao gave a slight nod. “Thank you.”
The little girl chirped, “You’re welcome!”
“By the way,” Wen Xiao took a few steps before pausing again, “29 + 19 equals 48.”
Not long after Wen Xiao left, a black motorcycle roared up to the store, its engine purring as faint white exhaust smoke dispersed in the breeze. The rider was wearing a black mask and black utility pants. His long, straight legs braced against the ground were very eye-catching.
The little girl, pencil still in hand, lit up. “Ge!”
Chi Ye removed his mask, revealing a sharply defined lower face. He casually hooked the mask onto the bike’s rearview mirror and placed a hand on his sister’s head. “Have you finished your homework, Yaya?”
“Don’t mess with my hair! My butterfly clip is going to fall off!” Yaya wriggled but couldn’t escape his grasp, so she could only succumb to his evil claws. “Not yet. I’m doing math, and it’s so hard. Oh, by the way, someone came to buy a lightbulb and a cola today!”
Chi Ye tugged one of her braids playfully. “How much did you charge them?”
Yaya counted on her fingers. “Nineteen... three... twenty-five! I charged them twenty-five!”
“With your math skills, you’ll bankrupt our family sooner or later. Why can’t you get anything right when it involves the number 9?” Chi Ye pulled a new hair clip out of his pocket and pinned it neatly on her head. “Next time you see the person who bought the lightbulb, point them out to me. Got it?”
Yaya touched the new clip and chirped, “Got it!”
The residential building had no elevator, and Wen Xiao lived on the fifth floor. With his long legs, he took two steps at a time. As soon as he stood in front of the dark green security door, it swung open.
Wen Xiao quickly stepped aside. “Grandma?”
“I saw you as soon as you reached the downstairs floor. See? I opened the door just in time, didn’t I?” As Wen Xiao bent down to change into his indoor shoes, his grandmother closed the security door and asked, “Did you buy the lightbulb?”
Wen Xiao held it up and gave it a shake. “Bought it.”
“Good, good. Go change it right away. The light went out so suddenly, I haven’t even finished cooking. It’s getting late.”
“It’s okay. I’m not hungry yet.”
Wen Xiao glanced at the height of the kitchen light and saw he could easily reach it. He called out, “Grandma, just turn off the main switch. No need to grab a stool.”
With a soft click, the room went dark.
Using the light from the window, Wen Xiao tore open the bulb’s packaging and turned on his phone’s flashlight.
His grandmother stood nearby, smiling as she praised him. “It’s nice being tall, you can reach everything so easily.” She helped Wen Xiao hold the phone to provide light and asked, “How are you getting along with your classmates at school? Did you make any new friends? Is the class atmosphere good?”
Wen Xiao carefully screwed in the lightbulb along the threads, answering patiently, “We’re getting along well. I’ve made quite a few new friends, and the atmosphere is great. Don’t worry.”
His grandmother watched his profile as he worked, wanting to say something more. But when the words reached her lips, she let out a soft sigh and stayed silent.
When the food was on the table, she placed a piece of pork rib into Wen Xiao’s bowl first. “You still don’t look fully recovered. Your body is weak. Eat more.”
Wen Xiao didn’t refuse and finished everything in his bowl.
As she continued helping him with food, his grandmother added, “By the way, these next few days after school, don’t take that small path by the Qixia Road intersection. I heard there was almost a murder there.”
“Murder?”
“Yes, murder. Someone got into a fight, and a young person was stabbed. There was blood everywhere. The person seems to live near us. I don't know which family's child it is, but regardless of the reason, they shouldn't have suffered like that. The adults don't care either...”
His grandmother, a retired professor and a certified educational expert, always had plenty to say when it came to youth-related issues.
Wen Xiao waited until she finished her thoughts before raising his eyes to ask, “Did he die?”
She shook her head. “What are you thinking? Of course not. If he had, there’d have been police cars outside already. Oh, and apparently, he’s from your school. It was said that he was wearing your school uniform.”