'Till Death Do Us Apart 長相守

Chapter 6

VI

Au revoir, he said, which meant they were bound to meet again.

Shen Liangsheng really went the extra mile, bringing down his usual exalted exterior. He dressed casually and took the bicycle with him whenever he sought Ch'in Ching out. The places they went to were average and did not reek of greed and wealth.
Ch'in Ching usually took the tram to work but he hauled his dusty bicycle out of hibernation. The two of them wove through the ancient, narrow alleys and slipped past the London planes growing along the concession roads.
Late September and early October were the best times in the North if the gale did not hit. The temperature dropped but it was a fresh, crispy coldness. The sky above stretched for miles and miles. The dry leaves on the sidewalk crunched softly under the bicycle wheels
Shen Liangsheng never reserved seats at expensive restaurants again, instead letting Ch'in Ching pick. After trying several places, he decided his favourite to be the pao shop not far from the schoolmaster's house.
The shop was owned by a Hui man. Only beef and mutton pao were on the menu but they were as delicious as koupuli . When the pao were served, the steam would force Ch'in Ching to take off his glasses to clean them. Meanwhile, Shen Liangsheng would take this time to pour vinegar into his dish for him. His eyes were on the dish, but his peripheral caught the man's lashes and mole as he looked down, wiping at his glasses with his slim fingers.

They met about five times in the next two weeks or so - not too many and not too few. The tension between them disappeared and their interaction was like that of regular friends.
"Are you busy this Sunday?"
Ch'in Ching replied hesitantly, "I don't think so." He wasn't afraid of seeing Shen Liangsheng, but it was his Gregorian birthday on Sunday and he couldn't tell if he knew.

"I was thinking we could visit Ningyüan ."

If this were the old Ch'in Ching, he would have made a joke along the lines of, "Two grown men going to a park - that sounds like a delightful time." However, now he only chuckled and fell silent. Then, he smiled and agreed.

His reaction confused Shen Liangsheng, who in turn raised a brow. "What?"
"Nothing."

Hence, the two went to Ningyüan on Sunday. Its name came from the proverb " ning ching chih yüan " and traditional architecture and sights filled most of the park with a few modern buildings as exceptions. There was also a modest zoo in the northeast corner, housing a troop of monkeys.

The two watched the monkeys for a while and then climbed the Chih-yüan Tower. They analysed the memorial written by the director of Peining Railroads , Kao Chi-i . They then moved from Kao Chi-i to
Chang Hsueh-liang . Their conversation flowed smoothly as they strolled along the long, winding gallery on the lakeside.

"Care for some boating?" Shen Liangsheng invited, looking over at Ch'in Ching when they came upon the boat rental office.
"Sure."
Surprisingly, Ch'in Ching did not object. They rented a wooden boat and headed for the centre of the lake.
It was the season for outings, but the lake consisted of twenty-some acres and the boats were sparsely spread out.

Ch'in Ching complimented Shen Liangsheng on his rowing. The latter confessed proudly that he had been a substitute for the school's rowing team, and that the wooden boat was a walk in the park.
Shen Liangsheng stopped rowing when they reached the centre and left the boat drifting along the current. The cozy afternoon sun and the moderate breeze made it easy to fall asleep.
"Can you swim?"
"No."
"Ah, yes. Not many Northerners do," Shen Liangsheng realized. He added quickly, "Not to worry. I'll save you if the boat tips."
"Hope I won't ever have to take you up on that offer." Ch'in Ching flashed a smile while resting against the gunwale.
The smile made Shen Liangsheng want to lean in for a kiss, but he knew it wasn't time yet and held back. He went on to tell stories of his school days. He talked about Cambridge, about the River Cam, about the cherry blossoms in spring and weeping willow in summer.
Ch'in Ching listened while his eyes wandered down to the man's sleeves.
Shen Liangsheng was wearing a grey woolen sweater that he had bought as a student and kept as a memorabilia. The size still fit after five or so years but it had become worn, and was especially pale around the sleeves.
Ch'in Ching stared at the fainted ring of cloth. Shen Liangsheng must have dug the antique out from the back of his wardrobe. It was impressive that he had kept it all these years. Perhaps that meant he was a sentimental person?
With that, Ch'in Ching felt his heart flutter again. It concerned him that he might not be able to keep up his last line of defense if he continued this ambiguous relationship with the man. However, it also occurred to him that perhaps the man wasn't as heartless as he had assumed. He had held on to a piece of clothing for so many years. So perhaps...
That was when Ch'in Ching caught himself before he wandered too far. He chuckled at himself and averted his eyes to the water. Why bother thinking so much when the man might just get tired soon and stop all this flashy courtship?
"What are you laughing at?"
"Nothing."
Ch'in Ching glanced at Shen Liangsheng and spotted a rare look of puzzlement. He couldn't help but play a prank.
"There's a fish. A gigantic one," he said, pointing to the water.
"Where?"
Shen Liangsheng leaned out to look. They were sitting across from each other on one side of the boat and when he did so, the boat tilted. Ch'in Ching reached for the gunwale for balance, but instead grabbed Shen Liangsheng's hand.
He faltered at the cool touch of the skin, possibly due to the breeze. He tried to draw his hand back but Shen Liangsheng had already taken hold of it. After pulling and failing to break free, he gave up so as not to start a childish tug-of-war. He looked up at the man holding his hand.
However, after a few moments, Shen Liangsheng let go first, afraid to upset Ch'in Ching.
"Hey, relax. No one's looking," he whispered.
Ch'in Ching could feel the boat bobbing gently, swaying left and right like his fluctuating emotions.
"Ch'in Ching..." Shen Liangsheng called his name softly but switched to Cantonese,
"You know I'm trying to win you over, right?"
Crosstalk was an art of speech and wordplay and the Cantonese that Ch'in Ching knew was learnt for the sole purpose of performing. On the other hand, the Cantonese that Shen Liangsheng said was quick and muddled, so he could not catch the entirety of his utterance. Nevertheless, he could guess what the man must have meant.
His tone had been a bit playful that gave off a feeling of intimacy, just enough to lure Ch'in Ching in, just enough to give him a taste of sweetness.
Ch'in Ching was too afraid to dwell on that feeling and continued to feign interest in the water. Shen Liangsheng did not speak either. The boat eventually came to a lazy stop in the middle of the lake.