Winter Time Rendering

Gu Qiuyan’s family lived in a four-story villa surrounded by a large, iron-fenced yard.

The villa was built on a deserted hill overlooking a lake. The view might have been nice on a clear day, but right now, it just looked gloomy.

Song was quite thoughtful; he had an umbrella stashed in the car, which he handed to Gu Qiuyan. The girl asked if they wanted to come in for a bit, but the teacher and his student both waved her off. "It’s too late," they said. "You should go in and eat. We’ll be in touch if anything comes up."

They watched her walk into the light rain and stop before a black iron gate. It turned out to be an automatic gate, swinging open with a BEEP. Gu Qiuyan waved at their small car, then turned and walked into the villa.

The lights were on inside. She had a maid, so she could have a hot meal as soon as she got home. What a wonderful thing.

Zhang Shutong had the foresight to buy a steamed bun at the school gate, but Song was out of luck. He probably hadn’t eaten a proper lunch, and his stomach was growling with hunger. Zhang Shutong thought they’d hurry to a restaurant, but instead, Song pulled the handbrake, rolled down the window, and killed the engine.

"Let’s have a smoke before we go," his homeroom teacher said, brandishing a pack of cigarettes. He’d clearly been holding back the whole drive. "You come up front. Why are you still squeezed in the back? There’s another umbrella under the door."

Zhang Shutong had been feeling cramped too. He didn’t bother with the umbrella, just dashed through the rain to switch seats. With Gu Qiuyan gone, the two of them felt a bit more relaxed.

"Actually, I really did have something to tell you. I wasn’t kidding at noon," Song Nanshan said, finding his lighter. A small flame flickered to life in the dim space. "I contacted Gu Qiuyan’s dad this afternoon, but he can’t make it back. The earliest he can be here is Monday, so for the next few days... Hey, what are you spacing out for, kid?"

Zhang Shutong was recalling what Du Kang had said. He remembered him saying Gu Qiuyan had "disappeared" on a Monday, but the report wasn’t filed until Tuesday. He hadn’t understood the reason for the one-day delay, but now he had his answer.

"What did her dad say?"

"Her dad expected something like this. He said he’ll make arrangements."

"Anyone else besides the maid?"

"No, not at the house. Qiumian doesn’t like having strangers around. He probably just gave a heads-up to the commercial district or the police. I mean, think about it. The guy’s a big boss. He’s weathered plenty of storms. He’s seen more than I have, and more than you have."

But Zhang Shutong remained silent.

"Alright, stop worrying about it. That’s not what I wanted to talk to you about anyway. How could you not seize any of the chances I made for you just now?" Song nudged him with his shoulder, exasperated. "All you had to do was agree when I offered to take you guys out tomorrow. That would’ve been that."

"She said she didn’t want to go," Zhang Shutong replied absently, his mind elsewhere.

"That’s because you weren’t proactive. A girl only says that after waiting forever for you to ask. You have to pursue them, you know." Song was playing the love guru now. "Believe it or not, if I called her right now and had you ask her again, Qiumian would probably say yes."

"Let’s just drop it."

"When you’re out in the world, don’t you dare say I was your teacher. What a waste of those good looks," Song said with disgust.

Zhang Shutong finally snapped out of it. "Why are you so eager to set us up?" he asked, puzzled.

Song took a drag from his cigarette. "You’ve got a dirty mind, kid. When did I say anything about romance? I just want you two to be friends. You know, friends?"

Zhang Shutong pursed his lips and said nothing.

Before his cigarette was even finished, Song Nanshan began to reminisce wistfully about his youth. Back when he was in school, boys and girls were strictly forbidden from even talking to each other. If he’d had the chance to ride somewhere with a pretty girl, he would’ve been over the moon even if it were a donkey-drawn cart, let alone a car. "And here you are, not even cherishing it."

’This is so weird, getting relationship advice from him,’ Zhang Shutong thought. It wasn’t that their roles as teacher and student made it inappropriate, but that Song himself was single. ’If he really knew what he was talking about, he wouldn’t be trying to set me up; he’d be out with some girl himself.’ But he kept that thought to himself, only complaining internally.

He urged Song to get to the point, as he still had to make a trip to the commercial district later.

"You’re really planning to investigate this yourself?"

"Just taking a look," Zhang Shutong said. There was no point hiding it from him. Once Song knew, he’d definitely tag along, and having a helper wasn’t a bad idea.

He was planning to visit the Nanhu Fish Restaurant again. This time, he had a clearer objective. There was no need to beat around the bush; he could just get straight to the point. Speaking of which, his homeroom teacher’s appearance was more intimidating than his own. Maybe he could actually get some answers.

"Sigh. My days are just filled with babysitting you kids," Song Nanshan said, scratching his head. "But what are you getting out of this? I could understand if you liked Gu Qiuyan, but it’s like that business with the scarf—you do something good but don’t take full credit for it."

"Less trouble that way. Isn’t this fine?" Zhang Shutong replied distractedly.

"You’ll regret it sooner or later, kid."

"If I do regret it, that’s a problem for future me, right?"

"Trying to be clever with me, are you?" Song Nanshan chided with a laugh. "But speaking of which, what do you think of Qiumian as a person? Answer seriously now. I’m not asking about your romantic feelings."

’Please just stop asking,’ Zhang Shutong thought. ’If you ask one more question, I swear I’ll pour boiling water in your tea every day from now on. Can’t you just stick to your gruff-guy persona? Why do you have to be such a mother hen?’

"Actually, she was in a pretty good mood today," Song Nanshan said, flicking the ash from his cigarette.

"She was?" Zhang Shutong asked, confused. "I didn’t see her smile much in the car."

"You’re so dense. Let me tell you, you can’t tell if a girl is happy just by whether she’s smiling or not. Even I noticed it. Look for yourself—"

As he spoke, Song Nanshan pointed to the passenger-side window. Zhang Shutong turned his head and saw that Gu Qiuyan had "vandalized" the car’s window too. A faint goofy face was drawn on the glass.

"Even though I can’t tell what she was drawing, she was definitely in a good mood."

Zhang Shutong tilted his head and stared at the goofy face for a few seconds. It was truly ugly. "Well, I did see her laughing and joking with her friends during the break. It’s not that surprising, is it?"

What he found more surprising was how she had been in such a bad mood yesterday, only for it to suddenly clear up today.

Zhang Shutong thought for a moment.

"Is she the type who’s a bit carefree?"

"Bullshit!" Song messed up his hair. "You’re the one who seems heartless!"

"Then why?"

"There aren’t always ’whys’ when it comes to girls. Some are just easy to please," Song began to lecture. "I’m not supposed to be the one teaching you this, but since the opportunity’s here, your master will impart some wisdom. My girlfriend back in the day was a lot like that. A bit silly."

’Don’t think I can’t read between the lines,’ Zhang Shutong thought. ’Isn’t it a bit brazen to be calling her silly right in front of her house? Besides, Gu Qiuyan isn’t silly at all.’

"Isn’t she pretty smart?"

"Wrong again. She’s clearly a silly girl too."

But Zhang Shutong simply couldn’t associate the word "silly" with Gu Qiuyan, so he listened as Song continued to ramble on.

"This ’silly’ isn’t about high or low IQ. It’s a different distinction. A shrewd girl knows exactly what she needs, but a ’silly’ girl? They can’t really tell the difference."