This morning, Luo Binhan was tearing open a new bag of salt when the doorbell rang. He deliberately got up earlier than Zhou Yu and poured the remaining salt in the seasoning box into the steaming coffee pot to see if Zhou Yu could tell the difference. He thought in his heart that it couldn't be done, because Zhou Yu's dependence on caffeine was completely functional. Even if he brewed the coffee until it was like a basin of dirty water washed with a burnt rag, Zhou Yu would probably drink it while reading a journal. Go down.
Just as he was thinking about whether his prank would really work, the sudden sound of the doorbell made him involuntarily put some force on his hand. The salt bag was almost torn in half, and salt particles were scattered everywhere on the cooking table. Luo Binhan cursed vaguely, then walked over to check the cat's eye.
At this time, the genius had just dawned, and he couldn't think of anyone who would choose this time, and how to clean up the spilled salt bothered him even more. But when he saw clearly who was ringing the bell outside, the story about salt and pranks suddenly disappeared from his mind. He instinctively took a breath, stood there for a few seconds, and then opened the door as if nothing had happened.
If this was a visit with clear intentions, then the young man standing outside the door at this moment - Luo Binhan could no longer use the word young to describe him - did not look prepared at all. In fact, when he met Luo Binhan, he looked really surprised. That reaction also made Luo Binhan secretly puzzled for a few seconds, suspecting that he had mistaken the purpose of the other party's visit. A coincidence? Just to find Zhou Yu? Want to ask some questions from seniors in the same major? He did see that the other party was carrying a heavy black schoolbag.
But then, he noticed that the other party had returned to calmness. The current college student didn't ask anything after seeing him suddenly appear, but just waited a little nervously. So Luo Binhan thought to himself: No, this is not a coincidence. He knew it before he came.
"Come in." Luo Binhan greeted him.
Luo Jiaotian walked in slowly. Luo Binhan wanted to take advantage of these few silent seconds to take a closer look at the other person, but the latter walked with his head down, and people taller than him could hardly see his face clearly. Luo Binhan could only see some traces of his past from his body and clothes: he was still a little fat due to lack of exercise, and he also had a hunchback caused by working at a desk for a long time. He wore a low-key and simple black sports coat that he had worn in high school. Swiss mechanical watch. On his cheek near his chin, Luo Binhan also saw a small sunken red mark, like a scar left after acne healed.
He walked in, silently put on a pair of slippers prepared for him (after all, not many people would come to Zhou Yu's house as a guest), and then stood still at the junction of the entrance and the living room. He seemed to feel that he shouldn't sit on the sofa talking to himself, but he didn't have the courage to take the initiative to say hello to Luo Binhan. He never spoke first when he was around strangers or older people. This had not changed at all, and had even become worse. In the past, he could always nod and say hello when he saw Luo Binhan.
If someone was not familiar with him, they might take this silence as arrogance and rudeness, but of course Luo Binhan knew what it was about. Luo Jiaotian's personality is exactly the opposite of his name. His biggest wish may be to escape into the ground so that others can never find him again. In Luo Binhan's opinion, this is of course an unrealistic idea, and sooner or later it will be a bigger trouble, but he has no intention of pulling up an unripe radish from the ground now. He also knew that Luo Jiaotian was actually very reluctant to be alone with him. It seemed that every time he was present, Luo Jiaotian became more silent and anxious.
Sometimes he would think about this question a little sinisterly: If he talked about a rich man's illegitimate child in front of Luo Jiaotian, or the scandal of a celebrity's marital infidelity, would Luo Jiaotian turn around and run away? Or trying to become completely invisible? He really couldn't imagine Luo Jiaotian being angry, although he knew that people who looked clumsy might have amazing explosive power in their bones. No, Luo Jiaotian is not the kind of person who looks plain but is actually very colorful. He is truly a kind-hearted and unhappy nerd at heart, and the more pressure and torture you put on this kind of person, the thinner and paler he becomes. Even on the day when the coffin is closed, this kind of person will be no threat to the outside world.
how could this be? Luo Binhan couldn't help but ask himself. Even he didn't know where Luo Jiaotian's temperament was formed. It didn't look like either of his parents, just like a water lily growing on dry land. But so what? If reproduction could accurately inherit all the characteristics of the ancestors, things would be easier or more terrible.
Luo Binhan asked him to sit down in the living room and asked him if he had had breakfast. Luo Jiaotian paused for a few seconds, seemingly forgetting whether he had eaten. Luo Binhan estimated that he was either nervous or afraid to eat with him.
"Anyway, Zhou Yu hasn't gotten up yet," he said to Luo Jiaotian in a casual tone, "I'm just making something casually. You don't have any condiments that you can't eat, right?"
Luo Jiaotian nodded forcefully, so Luo Binhan walked into the kitchen again, wanting to find him something to drink first. What was embarrassing was that there was already a considerable amount of salt in the large pot of newly brewed coffee, and he was sure that there was nothing wrong with Luo Jiaotian's taste. He had to find another drink, and while he was rummaging through the boxes, he heard Zhou Yu's bedroom door open. Then came the sound of Zhou Yu and Luo Jiaotian saying hello again.
"Why are you here today?" he heard Zhou Yu ask.
Luo Jiaotian answered in a very low voice, probably because he didn't want the answer to reach the third person's ears. This move makes no sense at all, because Luo Binhan can always ask Zhou Yu about this. Despite this, Luo Binhan could actually hear clearly - somehow he actually had good hearing now.
"I would like to borrow some study materials." He heard Luo Jiaotian reply. This is a foolproof answer, because Zhou Yu does have a large number of professional books stored in his home, some of which look quite unpopular from their titles, and Luo Binhan estimates that they are not easy to find online. However, he did not forget Luo Jiaotian's reaction before entering the door, and he could not help but suspect that learning and communication was only a superficial reason.
If Zhou Yu had the same idea as him, at least Luo Binhan didn't notice it from his voice. Zhou Yu just continued to chat with Luo Jiaotian for a few words about school and professional courses, and then walked into the bathroom. Luo Binhan took advantage of this time to fry some of the leftover steaks from last night, and added some omelettes. As the omelette sizzled in the pan and gradually took shape, he couldn't help but think of an old saying: You can't make an omelette without breaking the eggs. But secretly, he always felt that this sentence was a bit weird, because he couldn't think of anyone who would regret the eggs used when making omelets. Who wouldn't want to break an egg? A hard-suffering hen? But for a hen, what comfort can an omelet made at the expense of eggs bring to her? What an inexplicable warning.
When he went out with the plate, Zhou Yu was already discussing the topic of a certain book with Luo Jiaotian. It seemed that Luo Jiaotian was not sure what symptoms the X-ray photo of the human torso represented, and Zhou Yu was pointing out to him which areas represented typical characteristics. Very typical, he heard Zhou Yu say emphatically, it can be recognized at a glance in textbooks, but it is rare to encounter such perfect cases in clinical practice. He has a book that specifically contains this type of special cases, which can make Luo Jiao Take it home and read it slowly. Luo Binhan almost rolled his eyes. Very typical, he also said in his heart, it can be solved by photocopying, scanning or sending a few photos on the chat software, but nerds rarely think of such an effective method. They seem to have a general fetish for paper books.
As soon as Luo Binhan appeared, Luo Jiaotian stopped asking questions. He silently put the book back into his bag and followed Zhou Yu's movements to get the cup and coffee pot. Luo Binhan had to stop him with a bit of embarrassment and put a can of squeezed juice in front of him: "You can drink this."
Luo Jiaotian said nothing, but looked a little embarrassed, while Zhou Yu looked at the coffee pot questioningly - it was more than enough for three people.
Luo Binhan said seriously: "I put arsenic in it."
Zhou Yu agreed and began to slowly sip his own cup. Luo Jiaotian sat stiffly, a little nervously, as if waiting to see whether Zhou Yu would really die suddenly.
"How is it?" Luo Binhan asked, "What do you think it tastes like?"
Zhou Yu explained to him that highly purified arsenic should theoretically not have a taste. If it is slightly dissolved and forms arsenic acid, it may taste a little salty. But that is a theoretical situation. After all, it has a lot to do with concentration, impurities and solvents. From the known cases in history, the poisoned people often taste nothing and they just rush towards death.
Luo Binhan thought for a few seconds and asked, "But don't you think it's a little salty?"
Zhou Yu tried to drink two more sips and told him with certainty that arsenic could never reach this level of saltiness, even if it contained impurities.
"Indeed," Luo Binhan admitted, "I poured half a bag of salt into it."
Zhou Yu nodded clearly, acknowledging this reasonable explanation, and then took two sips. Luo Jiaotian looked at them in confusion, while Luo Binhan just shrugged and pushed an egg cake to him.
"Don't think about how your teacher Zhou lives," he said to Luo Jiaotian, "he is a god."
Only then did Luo Jiaotian seem to understand that this was just an irrelevant joke. But this didn't make him feel more at ease at all. He was like a tiger shrimp that was poked by a finger and couldn't wait to bury itself in the sand. The situation is simply worse than it was two years ago.
For a brief moment, Luo Binhan felt a smoldering fire in his stomach, making him want to smash something immediately. He even thought a little irritably that Luo Jiaotian was so stupid... No, not stupid, just clumsy and slow. It may be unreasonable to say that a person with such excellent test scores is clumsy, but he looks more like a domesticated animal, bloated and harmless, trembling with fear of unfamiliar surroundings. No hunter would be proud of dealing with such livestock. They would even think it was too cruel, leaving the prey with no chance of escape. But if such an animal is slaughtered, no one will really take it seriously. There may be a few pretentious sighs and some discussion of kindness, but by the time the food is served, no one will stop using their chopsticks. How could one get himself to this point? It's as if the people around him are all predators on the upper reaches of his food chain.
Luo Jiaotian suddenly glanced at him, as if he wanted to ask him something, but in the end he still lowered his head and ate his own portion. Luo Binhan's sudden out-of-control anger suddenly disappeared. Of course he knew that what he just thought was somewhat unfair, because in the final analysis, all the troubles he was going to face were not caused by Luo Jiaotian. They just happened to be sucked into a big whirlpool, some knew how to swim and some didn't, some were wearing swimsuits and some were completely naked. He just had a problem that he had to figure out.
After the depressing breakfast, Zhou Yu walked into the study room to find some books that he thought Luo Jiaotian could use. Luo Binhan took this opportunity to stop Luo Jiaotian who was about to follow him.
"Do you have time to chat?" he suggested.
Luo Jiaotian was naturally very nervous, but he did not panic. He obviously knew that this was inevitable. Luo Binhan then suggested that they go downstairs for a walk together instead of being locked in the house. He agreed without much hesitation. Luo Binhan stood up to get his coat and signaled to Luo Jiaotian that there was no need to bring the heavy schoolbag with him.
"I heard that you did well in the college entrance examination," he said while putting on his shoes, "So... now you are Zhou Yu's junior?"
Luo Jiaotian nodded. Luo Binhan asked again: "How did you become interested in studying medicine?"
He didn't get an answer right away. When they reached the elevator, he heard Luo Jiaotian say: "I think medicine is very interesting." The voice did not sound very enthusiastic.
"That's it." Luo Binhan said, "What kind of disease are you specifically interested in? I mean, do you also plan to study heart disease and the like?"
Luo Jiaotian immediately denied this. He hurriedly said that he was only learning basic courses now, such as basic anatomy, basic chemistry, cell biology and so on. These are just public courses in the medical profession, and he is far from qualified to talk about specialist diseases.
Luo Binhan actually knew all this. He had already seen Zhou Yu's textbooks, and the daily life of medical students was nothing new to him. But he still pretended that he didn't understand anything so that Luo Jiaotian could describe it in detail. This was a simple trick, just to make Luo Jiaotian relax first, and it really worked. When their topics were far away from home and focused on the campus life that Luo Jiaotian was most familiar with, the latter's voice sounded much smoother and more confident. After all, this was what he was good at. Luo Binhan secretly thought that studying a topic might be easier than dealing with a family member, at least for Luo Jiaotian.
They walked slowly along the green path full of yellow roses, from the entrance of the community to the fork at the end of the road. Luo Jiaotian lowered his head and stared at the small patch of road under his feet, letting Luo Binhan decide the direction. He always walked like this outside, but he never bumped into anyone. Luo Binhan found it quite strange. Perhaps unsociable people have the ability to detect the approach of strangers without relying on sight.
"You should also go out for a walk more often." Luo Binhan said, "Exercise your body and so on. How is your relationship with your roommate now? Do you go out together occasionally?"
"We go out together sometimes." Luo Jiaotian said very cautiously.
"Maybe you can try joining an interest club." Luo Binhan suggested, "Find something else to do besides studying. No matter what, you can't do nothing but study, right?"
Luo Jiaotian agreed, but there was also no enthusiasm. Luo Binhan felt that it was difficult to talk about this topic anymore, so he paused and continued: "Of course it depends on your own thoughts, but walking outside more will definitely be good for you. Good health, this is On the one hand, when you see enough bad things, you will find that you have fewer worries. After all, good and bad are compared. You know, I went to Africa for a tour... and learned a lot."
Luo Jiaotian glanced at him quickly, and Luo Binhan couldn't help but suspect that he had not hidden the gnashing of teeth in his tone, but he still emphasized in a pleasant manner: "It's very helpful. Especially cultivating some interest in animals and plants, and of course getting to know them. More friends - speaking of friends, I forgot to ask, did anyone tell you that I was here with Zhou Yu today? Maybe it was someone from your school? "
He tried to make the last few questions as casual as possible so as not to cause Luo Jiaotian uneasiness. But for some reason, Luo Jiaotian looked at him in a daze, more surprised than he expected. After a while, he heard Luo Jiaotian say: "I received an email saying that you have come back. I want to confirm with the senior first."
"Email?" Luo Binhan asked, "Who sent it to you?"
Luo Jiaotian was silent for a few seconds and suddenly took out his mobile phone from his pocket. He looked at the screen again and again as if to confirm, and finally raised his head and said, "I thought...it was from you."
(End of chapter)
