(1)
The story session around the campfire had almost become An Jing’s solo performance.
She’d started out stumbling over her words, but now she could fluently retell all kinds of stories she’d heard as a child about the Anhai Deity.
Everyone was genuinely interested in this obscure, real-life belief. At first they were just teasing her, but later they listened seriously. Some even started discussing the evolution of religion on the spot—like why the Anhai Deity’s image changed from terrifying to kind, when the human-shaped Anhai Deity first appeared, and whether the Slay-Halt Generals were actually a native belief of the island.
The classmates, who were usually joking around, suddenly showed a bit of erudition. There was always someone who knew a little about some obscure topic. It wasn’t just the good students who knew more; some of the not-so-good students also knew quite a bit.
For example, Sun Wei speculated that the “Slay-Halt Generals” were actually the Augment-Diminish Generals from the neighboring F Province, but their name changed after spreading to the island, and the details were modified over generations.
Exploring the origins of religion was a very interesting thing.
Sun Wei even concluded with a smug look: “In the beginning, religion was just like a novel story. It’s just that over time, many people stopped treating it as a novel and started seeing it as real mythology—that’s how it became religious belief.”
“Or maybe it’s been so long that the story was taken as recorded history,” Zhou Zhao added from the side.
“According to you guys, if we wrote a logically coherent novel now, and a lot of people read it, could it develop into a religion in a few hundred years?” Fang Qiang asked curiously.
“It might not necessarily develop into a religion. It could also become a supplementary story in the mainstream faith and mythology. For example, The Investiture of the Gods—that’s a novel, right?” Zhou Zhao habitually draped her arm over Fang Qiang’s shoulder, making his body stiffen. “But a lot of the plots in it were integrated into mainstream mythology, and even gave rise to new beliefs—like various temples and stuff.”
“Holy crap, if someone could really write a novel like that, they’d go down in history! That kind of work has more staying power than ordinary literature!”
“It’s not that easy…”
Just as the group was getting into the heated discussion, the flame in the oil barrel suddenly flickered. Then Yuan Lanque covered her head: “Huh? Water?”
“It’s raining!” Ye Wen stood up with a “whoosh.” She had been silently watching the students discuss, seemingly enjoying the lively atmosphere, so there was a hint of regret in her tone. “Everyone, go back to your rooms. Besides, it’s getting late. If you only brought one change of clothes, go wash them now. They should be dry by around noon tomorrow.”
“Teacher Ye, what time do we get up tomorrow?”
“Meet at eight in the morning. Get up at seven, and we still need to eat breakfast.”
“Wow, that means we can only sleep for eight hours.”
“Damn, eight hours isn’t enough?”
“Eight hours of sleep is a must, okay.”
“I can do with six hours.”
“I can do five.”
“I can even do four.”
“I can’t understand these guys…” An Jing twitched the corner of her mouth, turning her small face slightly toward Zhu Ying. “What’s there to compete about?”
“Just being competitive.”
“They’re not kindergarten kids anymore…” An Jing pouted. “Finally, I can escape back to the room—”
“Let’s go~! Where’s Xiao Ru?”
“Here.” Wang Xinru slowly raised her hand.
“Let’s go back to the room together. Up the stairs!”
“Too many people…”
“It’s only half the class.”
“But it feels like a lot already—Awei, what are you coming over for? Warning you, don’t mess around!”
“So pervy.” Zhu Ying also shot him a fierce glare.
“Damn, I just came over to chat with my buddy. You’re not usually like this, man. How come when you put on a skirt, you’re more cautious than a girl?”
“That’s exactly why I need to be cautious!”
“Damn.” Sun Wei raised his middle finger and deliberately distanced himself. “I’m just interviewing you guys. How are you three going to sleep?”
“Xiao Jing sleeps in the middle, while Xiao Ru and I sleep on the sides.”
“Damn! Damn?!”
“Jealous?” Fang Qiang teased.
“Aren’t you jealous?”
“It’s okay. With An Jing like this, she’s definitely the one to be pushed around.”
“Damn, Aqiang, how can you say that too!” An Jing complained loudly.
“Jealous of what? Come on, Aqiang, we’ll share a room.”
“Holy crap!” An Jing and Sun Wei said in unison.
“Ah, ah?!” Fang Qiang scratched his head hard.
“Pfft—you guys were so shocked. You didn’t actually believe that, did you?”
“Damn, ever since he got close with Zhang Qiqi, it feels like Zhou Zhao’s gotten a bit mischievous too.”
“Yeah…”
“Bullshit. Haven’t I always been like this?”
Sun Wei pressed his temples: “You two, one calls yourself ‘sis’ and the other ‘bro,’ why don’t you just get together?”
“Exactly. Besides, Zhou Zhao likes girls anyway.”
“I’m just afraid Zhang Qiqi won’t accept it…” Sun Wei shook his head.
“It doesn’t matter. As long as they’re good-looking, I can accept it.” Zhang Qiqi grinned and wrapped her arm around Zhou Zhao’s waist. “Tonight, I’ll spend a wonderful night with Zhou Zhao. I’ll make you guys so jealous.”
“Such a waste of a good thing!”
“Who was just trying to set them up?” Fang Qiang gave Sun Wei a sidelong glance.
“Hey, who touched me…”
“Um—” Yuan Lanque, who was walking behind An Jing, cleared her throat awkwardly. “That dress An Jing is wearing isn’t Zhu Ying’s, is it?”
“Huh? How do you know?”
“It feels really high quality, and the style is very simple. It doesn’t seem like something Zhu Ying would wear. N-not that I’m saying the clothes Zhu Ying wears are bad quality…”
“It’s fine, I won’t get angry over something like that.” Zhu Ying shook her head.
“Yeah… My dad bought this for me before. I think he got it from Paris.”
“No wonder…”
“Domestic brands have good quality ones too,” Zhu Ying pouted.
“Are the ones you bought domestic brands, Xiao Ying?” An Jing tilted her head.
“Yeah, handmade to order, because this style is hard to find.” Zhu Ying nodded lightly.
“So it really is Wang Xinru’s dress?”
“Yeah.”
“Yay, I guessed right!” Yuan Lanque excitedly whispered to her friends, though it was unclear why she was so happy.
Maybe it wasn’t that complicated. She was just happy that she judged correctly and felt a bit proud.
Back in the bamboo-style room, An Jing’s tense muscles finally relaxed. She plopped down onto a bamboo chair, spread her legs, and let out a long sigh.
“Ahh, finally no need to be so nervous.”
“So Xiao Jing still has to wear this dress to go out tomorrow?”
“Can it dry by tomorrow morning?”
“The jacket is hard to say, but the short-sleeved shirt underneath might.”
“I’d rather not wear the jacket and get bitten by mosquitoes! Anyway, this dress isn’t long-sleeved.”
“Does Xiao Jing dislike my clothes that much…” Wang Xinru seemed a little hurt.
“Huh? That’s not what I meant. Isn’t it weird? I mean, I’m still living as a guy right now!”
“Hehe, I’m really looking forward to high school. Then Xiao Jing can openly be a girl.”
“…You saying that makes me not look forward to it at all.” An Jing pressed her forehead against the bamboo table and shook her head back and forth. “Change back, change back, change back…”
“Even if you say that, it won’t change back. Give up!”
“If An’an could look like this but still keep a boy’s body, that wouldn’t be so bad…”
“Wouldn’t that be too weird?”
“It’s, it’s interesting… you know, the contrast.”
Zhu Ying tilted her face and imagined for a while. The number nineteen flooded her mind. She was sure it wasn’t her own thought, but something that had “flown in” from Wang Xinru.
“Mmm—since we’re not sleepy yet, let’s keep chatting!”
“Not sleeping? I’m not sleepy either, but we have to wake up early tomorrow.”
“Six hours is fine. We can sleep during the day anyway, right?”
“Nap time?”
“Exactly.”
“An’an, Yingying, there are candles on the cabinet.”
“Perfect then. Let’s light a candle and have a night talk! Just the three of us!”
“What do you want to talk about…”
“How about—tell me how you two met in the past?”
“Huh? What’s there to talk about? We just met like that. Nothing special.”
“Mmm…” Wang Xinru hesitated.
“Seems like Xiao Ru has a story to tell!”
“Trust me, it’s absolutely boring. Kids meeting each other, no story needed.”
“There is one… though An’an might not remember.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yeah.”
Zhu Ying took the candle Wang Xinru handed her and clumsily lit the cotton wick with a match. Then she got burned by the wax.
“Shh—!”
“Are you okay…” An Jing quickly grabbed her little hand. “Where did you burn?”
“On the side, here. Hey, don’t squeeze, it hurts!”
“What do we do? We don’t have band-aids here.”
“I have band-aids and iodine…” Wang Xinru said softly. “Should I apply some and then put on a band-aid?”
“Yeah, Wangwang, please.”
“Okay.”
“It’s fine. It’ll be better in a bit. It’s just a small blister.”
“No, no. What if it gets infected?”
“Hmph~ I’m not afraid.” Zhu Ying turned her face slightly, her legs swinging restlessly as if revealing her mood.
(2)
An Jing used the wax to stick the candle to the table, while Zhu Ying’s finger now had a small band-aid on it.
The water in the copper kettle had just been heated and was steaming. All three were holding bamboo cups, taking small sips.
“Come on, let’s all share one blanket.”
“Wow, what a big coat.”
“I told you I brought several sets. This is a winter coat. I brought it because I was afraid it would get too cold in the forest.”
“It’s amazing your backpack can even fit it.”
“I’ve got that skill, you know—Xiao Ru, come closer.” Zhu Ying, sitting in the middle, stretched out her fair arm toward Wang Xinru. “Come closer. It’s raining outside, so it’s a bit chilly tonight.”
“Phew, this coat is really warm.”
“Yeah…”
“Right~”
“So you should have let me wear this from the start!”
“But I only brought the coat, no matching pants.”
“It’s long enough. I wouldn’t need pants…”
“That would be a weird look.”
“It might be… tempting.”
“Huh?”
This time, both An Jing and Zhu Ying stared at Wang Xinru. Her face immediately flushed bright red, and she quickly waved her hands: “N-no, that’s not what I meant. Oh, right, Yingying wanted to hear how An’an and I first met, didn’t you? I’ll start from the very beginning. I still remember it to this day—”
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.