Chapter 382 - Always Keep the Original (2/2)

Qin Sheng and Qin Ran wanted to go downtown, but they couldn’t go now. Endless villagers and childhood peers came, and they all chatted with Qin Sheng excitedly. Some praised Qin Sheng’s success, admiring his progress thanks to studying at the top-ranked university. Some asked about Qin Sheng’s experiences these years and worried about him since he seemed to disappear. Some asked him about his job or business. Some also asked whether he had a girlfriend or was married. Some said something out of jealousy, especially those who looked down upon Qin Sheng and thought that they were better than him.

All kinds of topics with various purposes flooded toward Qin Sheng, who was used to these and good at dealing with those people since he grew up in such a complex environment.

Qin Ran was even more popular than Qin Sheng. After all, beautiful young ladies were people’s focus everywhere. She was willing to chat with the villagers and ask about Qin Sheng’s childhood. It was the best way for her to know deeper about Qin Sheng’s past. Since such a beautiful young lady was interested in a topic, those villagers almost rushed to the fore to tell her more and were extremely happy when Qin Ran giggled at the stories they told.

They stayed at Qin Sheng’s house for three hours and didn’t leave until they had to. They had a flight to Beijing tomorrow and had some other plans today.

Since people here had not seen Qin Sheng for a couple of years, they had countless things to say and questions to put to him. They were unwilling to let Qin Sheng leave. Some people said that Qin Sheng should spend the Spring Festival here. Some of his childhood peers said they wanted to hold a party for Qin Sheng.

Qin Sheng knew that these people were really good to him, but he had to go, for he was going to meet with Auntie Wang and Xin Xin. He explained to the villagers and expressed his apologies. Qin Ran did the same as him. Qin Sheng felt that some people’s attitudes changed by his leaving, perhaps thinking that he was a successful man now and didn’t want to spend time with them. But Qin Sheng didn’t bother to care about these people.

Huzi’s parents knew that Qin Sheng had to leave and said at least he should have dinner in their home.

Qin Sheng was willing to stay longer and chat more with them. But he had a tight schedule this time, so he had no choice but to refuse Huzi’s parents.

The others finally gave up on trying to persuade Qin Sheng to stay and saw the two of them off with disappointment.

At the gate, Qin Sheng held Huzi’s hands and said, “Huzi, I’m really busy this time. I hope people understand me. I’m not looking down upon anybody. I’ll stay in Xi’an for a long time next year. We’ll definitely meet then.”

“All right. Everybody will understand you. As for those who don’t, forget about them,” Huzi said thoughtfully.

Qin Sheng felt relieved and patted Huzi’s shoulder. “Huzi, I’ve given you my phone number. Keep in touch. You know, I was born and grew up here. I was helped by people here. So no matter where I go or what I become, I’ll never forget that I am rooted here. If anything happens in the village, call me. I’ll come to help.”

“Hahaha, of course. I’ll keep it in mind,” Huzi answered firmly.

Qin Sheng enjoined Huzi about something else and then said goodbye to the villagers. “Everybody, I’m sorry. I have to leave now. Please forgive me. I’ll come back to see you next year.”

Most villagers waved their arms and said goodbye to Qin Sheng kindly. Though some were unhappy with Qin Sheng, he didn’t care at all. Qin Ran looked at these and kept it all in her mind.

Qin Sheng and Qin Ran finally got in the car. They rolled down the window and waved farewell until the car turned to the highway.

Qin Sheng didn’t plan to go back to the village. This accidental meeting gave him complex feelings. His childhood peers had all changed a lot. Some experienced ups, some downs, and some both. They were finally shaped into totally different persons by the power of life.

They used to care about nothing, hunting bunnies on the mountain, fishing in the river, and playing hide-and-seek in the forest. But the sufferings given by life rotted their original innocence, making them sophisticated and numb. This route, however, was part of everyone’s life. As it was with Qin Sheng. He was not the innocent child anymore.

Qin Sheng had special emotional connections with this place and the people here. He finally led a smooth life now. If he went back to Xi’an, he would often come to visit the people here. He was born here. If he just disappeared, those villagers would gossip about his dead grandpa, for his grandson had become successful and forgotten his origin.

His grandpa in heaven might not care about this, but Qin Sheng did. His grandfather rested here. He had the responsibility to protect their family’s reputation.

“Don’t think too much. You can never satisfy everyone.” Qin Ran noticed that Qin Sheng’s mind was wandering, so she held his hand to comfort him. She thought that Qin Sheng felt uncomfortable because of some villagers’ harsh comments.

Qin Sheng’s mind then returned, but he just smiled and said, “I’m all right, sis. They didn’t mean it. I’ve gotten used to these since my childhood.”

“That’ll be fine.” Qin Ran felt quite relieved.

Qin Sheng smoothed his emotions and thoughts, putting himself in a good mental state. Now, he was going to do something really important.