Seizing Dreams

—

Yu Hao instantly realised that the problem might be quite serious.

“Why?!” Yu Hao asked in disbelief, but at the same time it was as if a certain speculation in his heart had been confirmed.

Lin Xun appeared to have been observing Yu Hao’s reactions from the beginning, and at this moment he exchanged a look with the Dean — and Yu Hao was keenly aware of this exchange! They were hiding something!

“Let the other students go back to class.” The Dean didn’t ask Yu Hao any more questions, “Call Zhou Sheng in.”

The League Secretary stood up and went outside to notify the rest. Not long after, everyone else left except for Zhou Sheng, who entered and pulled out a chair to sit next to Yu Hao. He assumed a slovenly attitude as he looked at the Dean.

“Openly engaging in a group fight within the school.” The Dean said, “Xue Laoshi has given your father a call. He’ll be coming over later in the afternoon, we’ll see what he says.”

Yu Hao held his breath. Zhou Sheng frowned and didn’t respond, but his gaze shifted towards Lin Xun.

“Just say what you want to ba.” Zhou Sheng didn’t know whether to cry or laugh, “Why involve a parent? It’s not like I’m a high school student.”

The Dean said, “This is the kind of thing that only a high school student would do, so we can only handle it like how they would in high school.”

“Dean......” Yu Hao was about to speak when Zhou Sheng stopped him with a gesture.

“Oh.” Zhou Sheng said, “You’re gonna persuade me to withdraw again? How many times does this make it now?”

Lin Xun said to the Dean, “Just look at his attitude, he’s so arrogant and despotic.”

Zhou Sheng sneered, “It’s not like I’m a sandbag who lets people beat me up without putting up any resistance.”

“You’re just rumour-mongering!” Lin Xun roared angrily and slammed the table. Yu Hao jumped in fright.

“Zhou Sheng!” The Dean said angrily, “Do you even have any respect for your teachers?!”

Zhou Sheng said, “What the hell do you guys want? Can’t you just be more straightforward?”

Clearly, the Dean seemed like she had been thoroughly angered. Xue Long stood up and said, “Get out! Get out of here right now!”

Zhou Sheng looked like he was completely uninterested, “Fine fine fine. Asking me to come in one moment then chasing me out the next, all these mixed signals......”

He Jin and Yu Hao couldn’t help themselves from laughing with a pfft, but this only added fuel to the fire. The Dean’s face couldn’t look any uglier than it does now.

Zhou Sheng had just stood up when two knocks sounded on the door, and Chen Yekai entered.

Yu Hao immediately said, “Chen Laoshi!”

The first thing Chen Yekai did when he came in was to look at Yu Hao’s palm — Yu Hao’s palm was still wrapped in a layer of bandages.

Chen Yekai motioned for Zhou Sheng to sit down first, “I just heard about this, so I came over.”

The Dean said to Chen Yekai, “Go back and complete your handover, Yekai, the matters here have nothing to do with you.”

This was how Zhou Sheng learned that Chen Yekai was resigning, and surprise flashed through his eyes.

Chen Yekai said, “Before the handover, they are still my students. Everyone, please view this surveillance video of the volleyball court. I just obtained this from the gymnasium; his attitude is one thing, but we should still try to be as fair as possible, right?”

The Dean raised her voice, “Chen Yekai, are you trying to smash the pot to pieces just because it’s cracked?!”

Chen Yekai opened up his phone and actually ignored the Dean. He said to the League Secretary, “Help me lower the the projection screen. Yu Hao, Zhou Sheng, go and draw the curtains.”

Chen Yekai projected the video on his phone onto the projection screen. It played out everything, including the circumstances that led up to the group fight. Yu Hao thought, I definitely need to get a copy of this video from Chen Yekai later, Zhou Sheng looks way too handsome in this. Towards the end of the fight, he even took a billiard stick from the corner and used it like it was a Jingubang, and squatted on a vault like he was Sun Wukong as he looked down on the group of people that had suffered defeat at his hands.

“Lei Hongbo started the fight.” After Chen Yekai watched the whole video, he replayed it and walked up to the projection screen to point at the instant Lei Hongpo spiked a ball at Fu Liqun. Then he said to Ye Jin, “After we descended the mountains yesterday evening, Hongbo should have still been angry then, right? Ye Jin. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have sent me that WeChat message.”

Ye Jin was at a loss for a moment. Chen Yekai gazed at her with a serious expression.

“Yes.” Ye Jin said uneasily, “So I wanted to ask Chen Laoshi to......persuade Zhou Sheng.”

Chen Yekai said to the rest, “I had spoken to Zhou Sheng, and Zhou Sheng promised me that as long as Hei Longbo didn’t try to provoke him again, he wouldn’t start a fight. Okay, that’s it then, I’m going back to complete my handover. I’ll take my leave now.”

Chen Yekai retrieved his phone and pushed the door to leave. The Dean had never bothered to watch the surveillance video, and her face was now ashen.

“Chen Laoshi!” Zhou Sheng abruptly stood up as well and rushed out like a gust of wind.

Yu Hao also got up as he wanted to follow them, but the Dean said, “Yu Hao, stay behind. I have some questions for you. The rest of the teachers should be busy ba, all of you can leave first.”

The conference door closed once again, and only Lin Xun, the Dean and Yu Hao remained. Yu Hao narrowed his eyes and tried deciphering Lin Xun’s expression to obtain some clues, but the two people sitting across the long table were extremely calm.

“What are you trying to analyse?” The Dean said, “Student Yu Hao.”

“I wouldn’t dare.” Yu Hao answered, “Please, go ahead.”

“Kaikai!” Zhou Sheng chased him all the way out of the college and called out to Chen Yekai.

Today, Chen Yekai was wearing a slim, white long-sleeved T-shirt, and underneath his thin T-shirt, the outline of his shoulders and back appeared distinct and erotic underneath the illumination of the sunlight. His slightly long hair covered his eyebrow on one side. The youthful appearance of his side profile made him seem no different than the many students on campus who were walking around to and fro.

“Why?” Zhou Sheng asked.

Chen Yekai turned around, and his gaze looked a bit vacant.

“Zhou Sheng.” Chen Yekai answered, “I can only help you up to this point. In the future, you should......not......never mind.”

Zhou Sheng knew what he wanted to say: in the future, he should be more prudent and stop causing trouble or get into fights so easily. You can’t rely on resolving everything with fights in this society. But Chen Yekai’s words,’never mind’ were laden with emotion.

“Kaikai, I’m sorry.” Zhou Sheng, “For causing you trouble again. But why didn’t you even say a word before you......”

“Zhou Sheng.” Chen Yekai interrupted Zhou Sheng and said earnestly, “Actually, I’ve always been envious of you.”

Zhou Sheng’s brows furrowed. He really liked the cut brow styled by the barber Chen Yekai brought them to before. Now, every time he went to get a haircut, he would stubbornly insist on trimming his eyebrows.

“Sometimes, I really wish I could have a Jingubang in my hands.” Chen Yekai said, “So that I can utterly smash into pieces all those ugly and greedy things, all the hypocrites that I abhor, and even this entire world.”

Zhou Sheng remembered what Chen Yekai had said on the night of the first day of the New Year.

“But I don’t know how to play Sun Wukong well.” Chen Yekai’s smile contained an inexplicable bitterness, “So......” He thought about it for a bit before he said, “I can’t be your Laoshi. You’re not afraid of anything, and I envy you a lot, Zhou Sheng. I don’t know if that’s a good or bad thing. If it were another student, I might have said: you need to learn how to be more steady and mature in the future......”

Zhou Sheng’s expression became very complicated for a moment as he looked at Chen Yekai.

“But in you, I see the persistence and impulsiveness that I tried my hardest to retain, but was resigned to lose a long time ago.” Chen Yekai said, “Life has a way of slowly beating you down. I’ve already been battered so badly that I’m bruised all over now, so I’m no longer qualified to be your teacher. I can only say......”

Chen Yekai shrugged, “I wish you guys the best of luck. Learn how to protect yourself well ba, and also protect Yu Hao well.”

Chen Yekai turned around to leave, but Zhou Sheng suddenly said, “In this world, no one can bring me down.”

Chen Yekai turned his head and answered, “Everyone thinks that when they are 21. One day, you’ll realise how insignificant you are in the face of destiny.”

Zhou Sheng answered, “No, I’m not the same, because I have a shield.”

Within the conference room, Yu Hao calmly looked at Lin Xun.

“You’re doing pretty well in your major.” Lin Xun said, “But Psychology isn’t a so-called “manipulating other people’s thoughts” major, neither is it some sort of mind reading......”

Yu Hao continued, “It is a science of studying psychological phenomena, and a human’s mental functions and behavioural activities under their influence.”

“Un.” The Dean tried to make light of the conversation as she said, “You’re quite popular. Xue Long said that you’re adept at establishing social connections, so you get along well with your classmates in the sports classes.”

Yu Hao said, “Only Zhou Sheng, Fu Liqun and Chen Laoshi are my friends. Zhou Sheng is the one who’s popular. What does the Dean want to remind me of? I didn’t try to provoke anyone to start a fight.”

“I believe that you didn’t.” The Dean said, “Because of you, some things have occurred and I don’t think it’s completely unrelated to you, so I wanted to hear your thoughts.”

“What things?” Yu Hao became alert. He always thought that Lin Xun must have some other purpose or motive for being here.

Lin Xun fished his phone out and played an audio recording. The voice wasn’t clear, but he could tell that it belonged to Chen Yekai.

“......it’s him. When I saw him, only one thought filled my mind — in this reincarnation cycle, I’ve met another kid like Ryuusei again......”

“Yu Hao trusts me, and relies on me. I asked him to pick a shirt, and he picked Ryuusei’s favourite when he was still alive. This sounds really ridiculous......”

“Alright.” A woman’s voice said, “Nicky, stop wasting your time trying to find the impossible, you’ve gone a little mad.”

After a moment of silence, Chen Yekai said, “Of course it’s impossible. Even if we were to go by China’s reincarnation cycle timeframe, he wouldn’t come back to find me so soon. But I thought that, if it were possible, then perhaps, someday, I would have a new life......”

“Firstly, love is not all that there is in life.” The woman’s voice urged, “Secondly, Nicky, the society in China would not accept......”

Lin Xun stopped the recording.

Yu Hao looked up and met Lin Xun’s gaze. Scenes flashed through his mind — the white shirt at Chen Yekai’s home, the picture taken in front of the Iguazu Falls, and......

......their conversation before the precipice at Mt. Tianqing.

“Before Yekai returned to the country, there was a period of time when he suffered from quite severe hallucinations.” Lin Xun said to Yu Hao, “I thought that if his environment changed, his condition would improve, but I didn’t expect......”

“From the sounds in that recording, the venue it was recorded in should’ve been the flower cafe.” Yu Hao suddenly interrupted Lin Xun and said, “Replay it?”

Lin Xun, “......”

The Dean frowned as she scrutinised Yu Hao.

Yu Hao tried to sound him out when he asked, “I heard my voice in the background just now, ‘Mr. Wang, a cup of Matcha Milk Green Tea’.”

Lin Xun’s expression changed slightly, but he quickly composed himself. Yu Hao said, “At that time, there were only two people — Liang Laoshi and Chen Laoshi. Why did you eavesdrop on their conversation?”

Lin Xun’s expression changed instantly. The Dean said, “Watch your words! Student Yu Hao! Professor Lin has always been very concerned about Chen Yekai’s situation, so he had asked Jinmin to counsel him about his psychological problems at all times!”

Yu Hao, “Oh, is that so?”

Yu Hao always felt that he seemed to have developed a strange hobby that he picked up from Zhou Sheng — he now possesses the ability to shine and regards himself as a sun. Whenever he sees something murky, he couldn’t help but want to emit a strong light to illuminate it, as well as scrutinise the nervousness of that lump of darkness as it constantly tries to evade his light.

“Okay then.” Yu Hao said, “But what does that have to do with me?”

The Dean said, “On the premise that Chen Laoshi’s condition is deteriorating, he feels that he is no longer fit to be a form teacher. And I don’t want to hear any sort of rumours spreading from the college after his resignation. After all, under the current system......”

Yu Hao continued, “Homosexuality may not be considered a mental illness anymore, but it’s still undesirable.”

Lin Xun said, “Not just homosexuality, but also teacher-student relationships.”

The Dean answered, “That’s right. Personally, I wouldn’t interfere with the private lives of students and teachers. But you need to remind yourself that there is always a distinct line between one’s private life and one’s identity in society. There’s a time and place for everything. Likewise, in recent years, the domestic political environment and public opinion have been regressing in this regard, and you have no way of controlling that.”

Yu Hao didn’t respond. He now understood the meaning behind the Dean’s complicated gaze just now.

Yu Hao, “The development of human morality is filled with many twists and turns as it progresses.”

Dean, “That is true in the long run, but the key words are ‘twists and turns’. In the short run, it may not necessarily progress, and could only be filled with twists and turns. For example, the life of an individual.”

“Let’s view this from a different perspective ba.” The Dean continued, “Let’s discuss this as if it was a heterosexual relationship. On the premise of equality, teacher-student relationships are also against professional ethics, and this is true even in European and American countries, as well as in public and private universities. It not only affects the sense of fairness in that environment, but also destroys the ethical relations within it. The “seven red articles” of universities and colleges also explicitly prohibit this kind of behaviour.”

Yu Hao said, “We’re not in a relationship.”

“Someone saw you spend the night at Chen Yekai’s dormitory.” The Dean said coldly.

Yu Hao broke into laughter, “It’s not like I’m a girl. He was drunk that day, so I sent him back and I was worried that he had no one who would take care of him ......”

Lin Xun said, “If this recording didn’t exist, perhaps you would be innocent. But since Chen Yekai mentioned you, it is of quite some significance.”

Dean, “Yu Hao, I still believe that you’re not responsible for anything that is currently happening. I just thought that it was necessary for me to explain it to you clearly.”

“Does Chen Laoshi know that you guys were recording him?” Yu Hao asked towards the end.

“He resigned of his own accord.” The Dean said, “On the grounds that he needed to rest, so naturally no one would remind him of this.”

At this moment in the adjacent office, the faint roars of Zhou Laichun and the angry shouts of Zhou Sheng travelled over — they had broken out into a fight. Yu Hao immediately sat upright, then a loud noise sounded right after. No one knew what had been broken.

They’re smashing things in the college?! Yu Hao was restless, but the Dean was used to seeing all sorts of violent storms, so she was completely unperturbed as if nothing had happened.

“Thank you, Laoshis.” Yu Hao was beginning to worry about Zhou Sheng. He got up and said, “I have no further questions.”

In the end, Lin Xun said, “I hope you won’t contact Yekai again. Let him calm down by himself first ba. Today, for your sake......”

The Dean said, “Lin Laoshi, that’s enough.”

So Lin Xun didn’t speak further. Yu Hao was suppressing his fury, and if it wasn’t because Zhou Sheng had reminded him not to say too much, Yu Hao didn’t know how many ugly truths he would’ve unleashed upon Lin Xun, like a machine gun firing shots in quick succession.

–