That evening, Lin Yiran’s shoulder had swollen significantly, with the center turning purple, looking alarming against her originally fair skin.
After a night, it looked even worse the next morning. Lin Yiran had avoided lying on the injured side all night, though it hadn’t affected her sleep since it didn’t hurt unless touched.
As soon as she woke up, Qiu Xing asked her, “How is it?”
Lin Yiran pulled aside her collar to show him a glimpse. It looked worse than Qiu Xing had expected. Qiu Xing frowned, “You’re sure the bone is fine, right?”
“Mmm, I’m sure,” Lin Yiran said, releasing her clothes.
She had just woken up with her hair still loose. She gathered her hair, most of it falling obediently down her back, though some strands remained slightly unruly, making her look a bit fuzzy around the edges, giving a warm, dry, and soft impression.
“It just looks serious, but it doesn’t hurt anymore,” Lin Yiran said.
This matter quickly passed, after all, it wasn’t too serious, just a minor external injury.
However, the subtle moment of applying alcohol lingered on.
There hadn’t been strong gender boundaries in the truck cabin before. Usually, Qiu Xing didn’t pay much attention to Lin Yiran being a girl, and some physical contact was unavoidable; neither of them minded.
But after applying the alcohol, the distance between them seemed to gradually widen.
This was more evident in Qiu Xing’s behavior, as if he suddenly remembered Lin Yiran was a girl. For instance, previously, when his short-sleeved shirt got dirty, he would change in front of Lin Yiran, but now he would first say, “I’m changing my clothes.”
The first time Lin Yiran heard this, she was momentarily stunned, then turned her back, saying, “Okay.”
Similarly, when Lin Yiran got out of the truck with nowhere to step, Qiu Xing no longer offered direct help. After all, supporting her legs to bring her down could be considered embracing her. Now Qiu Xing would at most extend a hand for her to use as support.
There were many similar instances of deliberate avoidance. Combined with Qiu Xing’s typically cold tone and expressionless face, it made him appear even more aloof. Sometimes the avoidance was so obvious that it seemed almost like disgust.
Due to the strange feeling when Qiu Xing’s breath had brushed against her ear, Lin Yiran initially accepted the distance Qiu Xing created with quiet understanding. But after several days, as Qiu Xing’s behavior became increasingly obvious, Lin Yiran began to wonder if she had done something to displease him.
In this inexplicable atmosphere, the two became somewhat more distant compared to their previous familiarity and unconscious intimacy.
*
This year has seen heavy rainfall, with frequent rain on the roads. This was why Qiu Xing had to laboriously cover the truck with tarpaulin each time; it wouldn’t have been so troublesome in constantly sunny weather.
Rain made the truck heavier, potentially causing it to exceed weight limits at weigh stations.
This day at noon, they stopped to eat, but when they tried to start the truck again, it wouldn’t start at all. The service area they had stopped at was small and had no repair station.
Qiu Xing’s old truck frequently encountered various problems on the road. Combined with the regular repairs at Brother Lin’s, and with Qiu Xing’s intelligence allowing him to remember everything after seeing it once, he understood most basic issues.
Qiu Xing took the toolbox down, calling Brother Lin while working to dismantle parts with taps and knocks.
Lin Yiran stood nearby, handing him tools; whatever Qiu Xing pointed to, she passed to him.
“Hmm, it’s not a rear axle issue. If it were the rear axle, I could still start it. Right now, I can’t start it at all,” Qiu Xing said into the phone.
“It’s not the middle axle either, it’s still a fuel system malfunction.” Qiu Xing bent down to look, pondering for a moment before saying, “I know you replaced it last time, but it should still be a fuel system issue. Is the throttle valve clogged? Did you change the throttle valve, Brother?”
Qiu Xing talked on the phone for a while, then said he would figure it out himself and try to get the truck moving. His tools were insufficient, and if parts needed replacement, he didn’t have any. If all else failed, they would have to call for roadside assistance.
The person on the other end said something, and Qiu Xing laughed, saying, “Well, there’s no choice. I need to work, right? If I don’t do long-haul trips and just drive around my hometown, I won’t earn any money.”
Qiu Xing hung up, handed the phone to Lin Yiran, and began fixing the truck.
Usually, Qiu Xing appeared ill-tempered, always frowning with a tense face, but when facing real trouble that was hard to solve, he was often very calm. He wouldn’t get angry, didn’t seem anxious, and always remained composed.
There were many trucks in the service area, and other drivers came over to chat. Those who drove long-haul routes were all semi-experts in car repair. Seeing Qiu Xing so young, they assumed he knew nothing, and several people started helping.
Later, it began to rain outside, but fortunately, the truck was almost fixed, at least enough to drive away.
Qiu Xing exchanged a glance with Lin Yiran, wanting to ask her to buy cigarettes, but then noticed Lin Yiran had already bought two cartons. Having spent this time with Qiu Xing, she had already learned his habits.
She was crouching at a distance neither too far nor too close, watching Qiu Xing, afraid of getting in the way. Her clothes and hair were half-wet, water droplets hanging on her face, crouching there small and thin.
Lin Yiran widened her eyes slightly toward him, asking what he needed.
Qiu Xing saw her crouching there watching him, smiled faintly at her, and pointed to the cigarettes in her hand.
Lin Yiran opened the pack, distributed it to the drivers who helped, and thanked them.
Qiu Xing’s hands were covered in black oil, so he didn’t participate. After Lin Yiran had distributed them all and the others had left, Qiu Xing told her he was going to wash his hands.
Lin Yiran glanced at the oil stains on his clothes and said, “Why don’t you change your clothes too? It’s uncomfortable to wear wet clothes.”
Qiu Xing turned away indifferently, saying, “I’ll change when I get back.”
Lin Yiran added, “Aren’t you uncomfortable changing in the truck?”
She said it very naturally. Qiu Xing looked back at her, then turned and walked away.
The engine oil couldn’t be completely washed off. Qiu Xing’s hands were used to being dirty, often smudged with black at unpredictable times. Qiu Xing returned to the truck, and Lin Yiran handed him a towel. Qiu Xing looked at her clean, light-colored towel and didn’t take it.
“No need,” Qiu Xing said.
Lin Yiran didn’t insist, putting it away and instead pulling out two sheets of paper for him.
Qiu Xing took them, wiped his hands casually, and drove away.
Having a truck break down on the road was quite troublesome, but at least they managed to get moving again. Otherwise, calling roadside assistance would have cost thousands.
This incident made Qiu Xing drive very carefully afterward, needing the truck to hold together until they reached their destination. Qiu Xing had a familiar repair shop; otherwise, getting repairs in an unfamiliar place was fraught with pitfalls.
However, his mood seemed good, and he chatted with Lin Yiran.
“The winter before last, I was driving to Daqing.”
He suddenly started the conversation. Lin Yiran looked at him, and Qiu Xing continued, “It started snowing at midnight, and my truck broke down in the middle of nowhere. Not a single car passed by.”
Lin Yiran listened attentively and asked, “Then what happened?”
Minus thirty-eight degrees Celsius. The truck wouldn’t start, and it was just as cold inside as outside. One of my phones was too frozen to turn on. I went outside twice, and my hands were almost numb.”
Lin Yiran listened anxiously, looking at Qiu Xing. Qiu Xing rarely initiated conversation so actively, especially about himself. Somehow, after experiencing the troublesome breakdown on the road, he felt like sharing.
“At that time, I thought, could I just freeze to death like this?”
Lin Yiran frowned as she listened and asked, “What happened then?”
“Then I thought I couldn’t freeze to death. I hadn’t paid off my debt yet,” Qiu Xing said. “My father burned to death, and if I froze to death too, my mother might as well not live anymore.”
Qiu Xing’s words were as sharp as a knife edge. Hearing this suddenly, Lin Yiran’s breath halted for a moment, and she tightly closed her eyes.
Qiu Xing had never mentioned how his father died, and Lin Yiran had never asked.
Now learning about it so unexpectedly, Lin Yiran’s heart sank. Qiu Xing mentioned it in such a casual tone, which made it even harder for her to breathe.
“As a last resort, I had to call 110 and report my location to the police,” Qiu Xing continued with a smile. “In the end, the police officer had to come out in the middle of the night to take me back. Fortunately, I still had a phone that wasn’t afraid of the cold.”
Lin Yiran couldn’t smile. Her eyes had already turned red.
She remained silent all along. Qiu Xing turned to look at her and saw that her nose and eyes were red, looking very upset.
Qiu Xing looked at her for a few seconds before turning back and saying, “So you should study hard.”
Lin Yiran didn’t understand why there was a “so” connecting what he had said with telling her to study hard, but she still listened carefully to what Qiu Xing was saying.
Qiu Xing returned to his usual calm tone and said, “You should let your life follow its original path, don’t fall.”
What was the original path? Lin Yiran wondered.
To grow up properly, go to school, be an excellent person in a relatively high social class, find a suitable person to date, and have a happy family.
She silently pondered Qiu Xing’s words for a while. Qiu Xing didn’t continue.
After a long time, Lin Yiran turned her head and softly asked, “Qiu Xing, will you still take care of me when I go to school?”
“Of course I will,” Qiu Xing answered.
“You are like me before I fell,” Qiu Xing said, looking ahead. “I won’t let you fall.”