Winter Returns

Chapter 59 Dumped Lu Qinglian? (Bonus Chapter 1)

The woman's name is already obvious.

It was still Lu Qinglian.

But why is it still her?
Zhang Shutong stood frozen in place, so surprised that he forgot to notice who was behind him. Since returning to 2020, countless things had puzzled him, but the most perplexing was—

Why did Lu Qinglian still die?
He quickly recalled past information. 24-year-old Du Kang told him that Lu Qinglian had stayed on this small island and guarded that temple for so many years. She had called him the night before she died, and her body was later found in waters called "Restricted Area." The investigation concluded that she had accidentally fallen into the water...

But Du Kang refused to believe any of this. He insisted that someone had killed Lu Qinglian because, eight years ago on December 10th, Gu Qiumian's body was also found in the restricted area.

They both died in the same place on the same day, eight years apart.

Therefore, the content of that phone call was also interpreted as a distress signal.

At the time, I didn't say anything or take it too seriously, mainly because eight years was too long, the two people's deaths were different, and the motive of the "murderer" could not be deduced... But how did Lu Qinglian still die?

Zhang Shutong wasn't saying that she had to commit suicide by drowning, but rather that... if she could live her life again eight years ago, she should at least offer some necessary reminders, if not resolve the matter perfectly.
Just like a missing call on a phone, if there is one, it means there's a problem. He couldn't possibly know something was going to happen and then do nothing.

But Lu Qinglian still died.

why?
Moreover, the fact that she called from her original timeline means that she must have needed to contact her back then.

But after going through all the call records, he realized that the two of them hadn't been in contact for a long time.

Zhang Shutong then thought that since the funeral was still scheduled for December 12, according to the island's customs, it meant that even her death date hadn't changed.

He suddenly felt powerless, simply because things that should have changed on this timeline hadn't changed.

At this moment, the person behind him sighed again:
"Let's go, Shutong, come outside and have a smoke with me."

Zhang Shutong then remembered to come see him. Anyone who could call him Shutong must be someone she knew. But the person who came was a middle-aged man, wearing a white shirt and black suit, with his hair neatly combed.

He wore glasses, and if it weren't for the stubble on his chin, he would have looked quite like an intellectual.

What was most striking about him was his height of over 1.8 meters; even in heeled leather shoes, he was almost a fraction taller than Zhang Shutong. He had a hooked nose, a square jaw… and so on. Suddenly, Zhang Shutong recognized him:
"Teacher Song?"

He exclaimed in astonishment.

This bespectacled, suit-wearing, and refined-looking man is actually Song Nanshan? Their rough-around-the-edges homeroom teacher?
Upon hearing this, Song Nanshan forced a smile:
"It's not like you're that surprised after all these years. Let's go outside and have a chat, just the two of us."

When he said this, it felt somewhat like the past. Zhang Shutong subconsciously followed his steps and saw his neatly ironed suit pants. She thought that in the original timeline, Lao Song should have resigned because of Gu Qiumian's matter, but now he was in good spirits. It must be the butterfly effect brought about by this change.

He felt a little comforted.

The two left the funeral home, walked a few steps forward, and leaned against the railing of the lakeside road.

Old Song handed him a cigarette. He lit it and took a puff. He didn't cough, felt unwell, or even feel refreshed. But this wasn't a good sign; it meant he was a heavy smoker.

He didn't know what to say for a moment, but then he saw Old Song take a deep drag on his cigarette before saying:
"No one could have predicted what would happen to Qinglian, so don't blame yourself too much."

Zhang Shutong originally wanted to ask Lu Qinglian what had happened, but he suddenly noticed a grammatical error in her words:

Wait, self-blame?
What is self-blame?

He wasn't unresponsive to Lu Qinglian's death; it was just that shock overwhelmed his grief. As someone who knew the truth, it was appropriate for him to use the word "self-blame," but why did Song Nanshan say it?
This reminded him of the first thing the other person said when they met:

Sorrow.

What does it mean to accept one's condolences?

It turns out that no one had ever said those two words to me when I attended the funeral.

However, news of Lu Qinglian calling him spread, and many gossipers said that her boyfriend had broken up with her, making him a "heartless man" that everyone condemned.

But now that the missed call has disappeared, what does this "please accept my condolences" mean?
Or was he just overthinking things, and Song Nanshan was simply offering his usual comfort as the homeroom teacher?

"Me and her..." Zhang Shutong couldn't find the words to ask.

Old Song didn't explain much, he just patted him on the shoulder:

"I'll go help out first, and then when I meet the other classmates... I'll sit down and chat. After all, you haven't seen them for eight years. What can't you talk about after all this time?"

"By the way, Ruoping just called me and said she'll be there soon. You can wait if you want."

Song Nanshan waved and left. Zhang Shutong stubbed out his cigarette, wondering what Old Song meant by "can't talk it out".

Moreover, he gleaned a new piece of information:
—It's been eight years since we last met.

So, he hasn't come back even once in these eight years?
The only thing I can do is ask Ruoping; she's the only one who hasn't lost contact with me in the past eight years.

Although it was cold outside, he didn't really want to go in. Seeing Lu Qinglian's portrait made him feel a tightness in his chest, so he just waited where he was.

Shortly after, a white SUV pulled up next to the funeral home, and a pretty young woman got out. She had short hair, and her originally neat bangs had been replaced with wispy bangs, giving her a capable and efficient look.

Perhaps it was the special occasion, but the woman was wearing a black fitted down jacket. Compared to her previous fiery personality, she had a more aloof and elegant aura. The girl named Feng Ruoping had grown up now.

Nevertheless, seeing her still brought a sense of reassurance. Zhang Shutong was about to force a smile and greet her when the woman frowned upon seeing him, her attitude indifferent, and her tone complex as she said:

"You really came."

Zhang Shutong's smile froze on his face. He didn't quite understand why she was being so distant. He was prepared for her to tease him, but it seemed like she... wasn't very willing to see him?

Ruoping continued:
"Since you're here, don't just stand around outside. Du Kang is here today too. Don't let the two of you meet later... sigh."

She sighed, seemingly unwilling to say more.

"Where is Qingyi?"

"He's too far away to come back in time."

Zhang Shutong nodded. Qingyi was the most stable one, but he didn't come back last time either.

He wanted to ask a few more questions, but Ruoping wasn't going to say anything more. She had already slung her bag over her shoulder and entered the funeral home. Only then did Zhang Shutong realize that the way the two addressed each other was not quite right.

When addressing them, just like before, I was used to saying "Qingyi" and "Ruoping". Ruoping was also used to calling me "Shutong", but this time I directly changed it to "you".

What exactly happened? Just the day before, everyone came down from the rooftop, taking their anger out on him, saying, "You two went to the movies and left us in the wind. Tell me, how are you going to make it up to us?" Then they were discussing whether to go out for a late-night snack. Why did he suddenly become like a stranger?

Yes, for him it was the day before, but for them it was a full eight years later.

But Ruoping wasn't like that back then. She even had the mood to joke about it, teasing herself about the rumor, saying:

"Hey, my little boyfriend, long time no see."

Now she remained silent. Zhang Shutong watched as she pursed her lips and walked quickly until she reached the mourning hall. She then bowed deeply three times to the portrait of the deceased, and when she straightened up, her eyes immediately turned red.

Zhang Shutong suddenly realized that not only had his relationship with Lu Qinglian changed, but theirs had also changed.

Because of the incident that night when they caught the poachers, Ruoping started calling him "Qinglian" (a term of endearment for a close friend). While they may not have become close friends, their relationship had definitely taken a big step forward.

Therefore, it's not surprising that he felt sad for Lu Qinglian.

So he whispered to Ruoping:

"Condolences."

Ruoping remained silent for a moment, only glancing at him without replying.

Anyone can say that, but you shouldn't be the one saying it!

Just then, a male voice suddenly rang out behind him. The man seemed to be suppressing his anger. Zhang Shutong turned around and saw a young man with a buzz cut and a baby face. Who else could it be but Du Kang?
Zhang Shutong was stunned for a moment before realizing that the words were being spoken to him, only to hear Du Kang angrily say again:

"Is this how you protect her? Zhang Shutong, you don't seem to feel anything at all? And you're even offering condolences... you..."

Many eyes turned to them, and Ruoping stepped between the two, raising her voice as well:
"Alright, what are you all arguing about now? Why didn't you do this before, you all love playing the hero so much?"

As she spoke, she became somewhat agitated:
"Now you're throwing a tantrum at Qinglian's funeral. If you're so tough, go outside and fight. Don't just stand here getting in the way and become a laughingstock. You're not ashamed, but I am!"

Du Kang fell silent. He slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, turned around, and left.

Zhang Shutong sensed that something was wrong. No, it wasn't just the atmosphere; their relationship had completely deteriorated. He whispered to Ruoping:

What happened to Du Kang?

Ruoping's gaze became even stranger, even carrying an inexplicable disappointment:

Are you sure you're asking me?

"I'm just a little... a little confused."

“Zhang Shutong, you’re still as cold-blooded as ever.” Ruoping’s words were like a sharp knife.

“…Sorry.” Zhang Shutong was momentarily speechless.

These words softened Ruoping's attitude somewhat. She stopped looking at herself and instead lowered her gaze, silently staring at Lu Qinglian's portrait. After a long while, she said:
“What’s the use of apologizing to me? After all these years, I know what kind of person you are, and I don’t have any expectations of you, but back then… you shouldn’t have treated Qinglian like that.”

Zhang Shutong was completely dumbfounded. When and how had he treated Lu Qinglian?

"Come out and talk," Ruoping said.

His mind was even more confused. He had just gone out with Lao Song, and now, after coming in for a short while, he had turned back. The two of them arrived at the highway guardrail. Zhang Shutong was about to ask what had happened when Ruoping unexpectedly changed the subject:
Are you still dating your high school girlfriend?

"Who?"

"It's that senior student, could there be someone else?" Ruoping sneered.

Zhang Shutong learned for the first time that he had a girlfriend, but then he heard Ruoping talking to herself:

"You shouldn't forget, right? In the first semester of our first year of high school, we went to the city to visit you without telling you. We wanted to surprise you, but we bumped into you and that senior girl shopping outside. When we all met, Du Kang was stunned..."

Zhang Shutong was stunned when he heard this. The discrepancy was too great. He simply stopped passively trying to find out information and asked directly, "I've forgotten everything after all these years. What exactly happened back then?"
Ruoping's eyes showed even more disappointment:

"You dumped Qinglian less than half a year ago, and you turned your back on her. You even got together with someone else. Now you have the nerve to ask me what happened?"
"Oh, of course. Anyway, you can say that the two of you never confirmed your relationship from beginning to end, so it doesn't count as dumping, but we, especially Du Kang, took it seriously!"

Zhang Shutong only opened his mouth a little bit.

Wait, what do you mean by "dumped Lu Qinglian"?!

(End of this chapter)