Sweet Oxygen - Chapter 24

Chapter 24 – Blushing

Found her innocent and adorable

——

The scorching midday summer sun made even one’s hair feel burning hot, and Qin Han’s tears dried up quickly.

She crouched on Luo Shijin’s tricycle, took a deep breath, and, as if making up her mind, said seriously, “Let’s go.”

Luo Shijin glanced at Qin Han in confusion. “You’re coming with me? To see Grandma Zhang?”

“Mm!”

Qin Han wanted to visit the elderly woman who had raised Zhang Yuqing.

A 17-year-old girl didn’t know how to love someone, but she simply felt that she wanted to be involved in everything about the person she liked.

Grandma Zhang’s small courtyard wasn’t large—less spacious than Grandpa Liu’s, who sold books—but it looked neat and tidy.

The windows were wiped bright and clean, and there was a potted green plant in the yard.

Wait, no, it wasn’t a green plant—it was a pot of scallions.

“Grandma Zhang!” Luo Shijin called out.

Grandma Zhang was a very thin elderly lady, with small eyes and drooping eyelids that compressed them into slits, but she looked kind.

She was sitting in a wheelchair, basking in the sun at the door.

Hearing Luo Shijin’s voice, she slowly turned her head. “Oh, Shijin is here.”

When her gaze fell on Qin Han, Luo Shijin smiled and introduced her, “Grandma Zhang, this is Qin Han, a friend of mine and Qing-ge.”

Qin Han was a bit surprised. She had always thought that Luo Shijin didn’t like her much, yet he actually introduced her as a friend.

But what surprised her even more was Grandma Zhang.

The old lady, after hearing the introduction, suddenly put on a pair of small reading glasses hanging around her neck. Her eyes widened as she carefully examined Qin Han.

Qin Han felt a little embarrassed, even wondering if there was something dirty on her face. She took a small step back and greeted softly, “Hello, Grandma.”

“Grandma Zhang! Why don’t you put on glasses when you look at me? Am I not worth a closer look?” Luo Shijin protested loudly.

Grandma Zhang squinted her eyes, waved him aside with her hand, and said disdainfully, “What’s there to see about your chubby face? I can hear from your voice that you’ve caught a cold. Stay away from me, don’t infect me.”

Luo Shijin was at a loss for words, clutching his chest dramatically before lifting a plastic bag in his hand. “See this? I brought you medicine and apples!”

Unfortunately, Grandma Zhang treated him like air, focusing only on Qin Han. After a moment, she looked pleased and said, “Mm, such a pretty girl. Not bad, not bad, very good.”

Luo Shijin shook the plastic bag noisily and said, “Wait, Grandma, don’t get the wrong idea. Qin Han is not my girlfriend.”

“Of course not.”

Grandma Zhang gave Luo Shijin a slow glance and said, “A girl this pretty must be my grandson’s girlfriend!”

Qin Han’s face instantly burned, but she felt an odd reluctance to deny it.

In her 17 years, she had never been scheming, yet at this moment, she chose silence.

As if, by not denying it, she could really become Zhang Yuqing’s girlfriend.

Grandma Zhang wheeled herself closer and took Qin Han’s hand. “Come, let Grandma have a look. So your name is Qin Han? What a lovely girl—so fair and delicate, just like I was when I was young. I like girls like you.”

“I’ve seen your old photos, Grandma. You were pretty dark, not fair at all,” Luo Shijin said mischievously from the side.

“Does Qingqing treat you well? Has he bullied you?”

Qin Han didn’t immediately understand who “Qingqing” referred to.

She was stunned for two seconds before realizing with a smile—”Qingqing” was Zhang Yuqing.

But her little scheme had only lasted long enough for her silence earlier; it couldn’t hold up now.

Qin Han mumbled softly, “Grandma, I’m not—”

Grandma Zhang interrupted her firmly, “Even the way you talk, with that sweet and shy tone, is just like me! No wonder Qingqing likes you! He must treat you well—he wouldn’t bear to bully you.”

She pointed toward the house. “Come on, let’s go inside. I’ll show you my old photos. I really was fair when I was young.”

Failing to successfully deny the “girlfriend” identity, Qin Han’s face turned even redder, but she could only follow Grandma Zhang and Luo Shijin inside.

The photo album was well-worn, sitting on a small wooden table in the living room.

Its cover was old, like those faded books at Grandpa Liu’s shop, with its painted mountains and rivers slightly washed out.

Grandma Zhang’s wrinkled hands gently opened the album as if unveiling a treasure.

On the first page was a group photo, a young Zhang Yuqing stood beside Grandma Zhang, who was holding a little girl.

The little girl was chubby and adorable, with round eyes and a round nose, pouting with a bit of drool.

Qin Han thought, That must be Dandan.

There was something different about Dandan compared to other kids, but Qin Han couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was.

Grandma Zhang pointed at herself in the photo. “See? I wasn’t dark.”

“Your skin looks great,” Qin Han said.

“I’m old now, can’t see well, can’t walk, and all the household burdens are on Qingqing. He works too hard.”

As she flipped to another page, Luo Shijin suddenly said, “I took this photo for Qing-ge.”

The picture showed Zhang Yuqing in his high school uniform, squatting beside Grandma Zhang’s night market stall. While watching over the stall, he was also studying by the dim light.

His unsmiling face looked rebellious, with sharp brows and eyes, his gaze focused on a thick exercise book.

Qin Han recognized it—it was a 53 exam prep book.

In the photo, Zhang Yuqing appeared thinner than now. His slender fingers held a pen, and his furrowed brow suggested he was tackling a difficult problem.

So he had gotten into a top university under these conditions?

Qin Han thought about how, during her senior year, her family driver would pick her up after evening classes. At home, she’d be reminded to eat a hot bowl of sweet rice dumplings or silver ear soup. Her mother would bring her fruit while she studied, and at night, she had sleep spray and a steam eye mask before bed.

She had passed the university entrance exam in such a comfortable environment.

But Zhang Yuqing…

The picture seemed to stir Grandma Zhang’s memories, and she sighed, her voice weary with age. “For years, they said this old street would be demolished, and I thought, if it were, my grandson wouldn’t have to work so hard anymore. But it never happened.”

Qin Han had cried outside earlier, and now, revisiting this topic, her nose stung again.

But before she could fully sink into sadness, Grandma Zhang suddenly pulled out a red item and handed it to her with a smile. “Here, little girl, take this. You and Qingqing must be happy together—this is a token of love from me on behalf of my poor grandson.”

Sometimes, when Zhang Yuqing spoke to Qin Han, he also unconsciously carried that gentle, coaxing tone.

Like he was trying to soothe her.

Qin Han waved her hands repeatedly. “Grandma, I can’t accept this. I—I’m actually not Zhang Yuqing’s girlfriend.”

“This is a good thing, a red coral bracelet! Grandma is giving it to you, so take it!” Grandma Zhang acted as if she didn’t hear Qin Han’s refusal and firmly pressed the bracelet into her hands.

Inside the shop, Zhang Yuqing had just finalized a design with a customer. After waiting for a while and not seeing Luo Shijin or Qin Han return, he grew curious.

Beibei sat in the sunlight, panting with its tongue out. Zhang Yuqing picked it up and chuckled. Clicking his tongue, he muttered to Beibei, “Those two sure got close fast.”

As he was playing with Beibei, the familiar clattering sound of Luo Shijin’s nearly-falling-apart tricycle came rolling in from a distance.

He looked up and saw Qin Han stepping off the tricycle carefully, holding something in her hands as if it were a priceless treasure. She held it up close to her face, her expression one of extreme caution.

“Zhang Yuqing.”

The girl ran over to him, her cheeks flushed with a faint pink hue. With a nervous and uneasy voice, she said, “What do I do? Grandma Zhang insisted on giving this to me. I can’t accept it—it’s too valuable. Can you help me return it to her?”

Zhang Yuqing glanced at the beads she was holding. “What is that?”

As far as he knew, his grandmother didn’t own anything valuable.

Probably the only thing of worth she had was her gold tooth.

Qin Han’s expression was serious. “It’s a red coral bracelet.”

“Red coral?”

Zhang Yuqing raised an eyebrow, picked up the bracelet, and rubbed one of the beads between his fingers. Immediately, a faint red stain appeared on his fingertips.

What kind of red coral rubs off its color?

With that action alone, Zhang Yuqing was already certain the bracelet wasn’t worth much. But Qin Han didn’t seem to react at all.

She looked at Zhang Yuqing seriously and said, “Zhang Yuqing, your body has toxins.”

“What toxins?” he asked.

“If you rub this red coral bracelet with your hands and your hands turn red, it means you have toxins in your body! You have internal dampness!”

Zhang Yuqing set Beibei down, leaned lazily against the cabinet beside him, shoved his hands into his pockets, and raised his chin slightly. “Who told you that?”

“Grandma told me! This is deep-sea coral from 1,500 meters below the surface. It’s more valuable than pearls and amber!”

“Then it’s really expensive. Be careful not to drop it,” Zhang Yuqing suddenly said with a serious expression as he placed the bracelet back into Qin Han’s hands.

Sure enough, Qin Han stiffened and held it carefully, afraid to move. “But I really can’t accept this… it’s too valuable.”

She was truly naive, believing everything she was told.

Zhang Yuqing still had his hands in his pockets, but he bent slightly so that he was at eye level with her. With amusement in his tone, he said, “I was messing with you. If you like it, keep it. If you don’t, you can throw it away. It’s fake, not worth anything. A few years ago, Grandma went on a $90 group tour, and the tour guide gave it to her.”

“But the red color rubbed off…”

Zhang Yuqing glanced at her. “That’s just paint coming off.”

At the table, Luo Shijin, who had been eating rice dumplings the whole time, finally couldn’t hold back anymore and burst into loud laughter. “Qing-ge, Qin Han is so gullible! She held this plastic bracelet up the whole way here, thinking it was real coral, and asked me about it a hundred and eighty times.”

“A hundred and eighty times?”

Luo Shijin pinched his throat and imitated her voice. “What do I do? This is so valuable! I can’t accept it! What should I do, what should I do, what should I do?”

Zhang Yuqing suddenly let out a chuckle. Meanwhile, Qin Han was still dazed. “It’s fake? Just paint?”

“The tour guide tricked Grandma, and she believed it was a treasure.”

Qin Han thought for a moment, then carefully wrapped the bracelet in a tissue.

She gently placed it into her bag. “Grandma believes it’s valuable, and she still chose to give it to me. I have to take good care of it.”

For a brief moment, both men in the room were stunned.

Zhang Yuqing smiled but said nothing.

It was Luo Shijin who spoke up first, taking another big bite of his rice dumpling. “Qing-ge, where did you buy these rice dumplings? The red bean paste filling is pretty good.”

“Qin Han brought them.”

“Oh,” Luo Shijin slowed down his chewing. “Another money-filled one?”

Qin Han quickly shook her head. “These are the dumplings my grandma made.”

Later, Li Nan arrived too, carrying a bunch of makeup products. He sat with them and ate two rice dumplings.

Li Nan excitedly showed everyone his newly purchased medium-short bob wig. Qin Han even tried it on, but the hair was messy, making him look like Sha Wujing.

——Sha Wujing (沙悟净), also known as Sha Monk or Friar Sand, is one of the main characters in the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West (西游记) by Wu Cheng’en. Sha Wujing is often depicted as having a shaven head or messy, rough hair, along with a somewhat rugged and serious appearance.

Even someone as gentle as Zhang Yuqing couldn’t hold back and laughed with his shoulders shaking.

A 17-year-old girl’s affection is simple.

Qin Han liked Zhang Yuqing, but she had no urgent demands.

She just wanted to see him more.

For the rest of the summer break, Qin Han went to Yaonan Alley almost every day—Monday to Friday. She had heard from Li Nan that Zhang Yuqing had a lot of clients on weekends and would be very busy.

Besides, on weekends, Qin Han always had to go to her grandmother’s house with her parents.

Recently, her father didn’t seem as busy as before. He came home every day and even made time on weekends to be with her and her mother. It felt like everything was improving.

When she wasn’t going to Yaonan Alley, Qin Han would read a poetry collection that Zhang Yuqing had given her.

On a certain Sunday, the weather was unbearably hot. Even the cicadas hidden among the overlapping leaves on the treetops sounded weak.

Returning from her grandmother’s house, Qin Han sat in her air-conditioned room, looking outside at the city, which was glaringly bright under the midsummer sun.

For a moment, she suddenly really wanted to see Zhang Yuqing.

Even though she had just visited on Friday. And on Thursday, Tuesday, and Monday as well. She still wanted to see him.

Qin Han sent Zhang Yuqing a WeChat message—just an emoji.

She thought, if he replied late, it meant he was busy, and she wouldn’t disturb him.

She sent the message in the early afternoon, just after lunch. But when Zhang Yuqing finally called, it was already nighttime.

Qin Han didn’t even realize when she had fallen asleep on her bed. Hearing the ringtone, she instinctively answered the call, groggily putting the phone to her ear, her voice thick with sleep, “Hello?”

The person on the other end chuckled. “Fell asleep?”

Moonlight slid through the window, the air conditioner blowing cool air, but Zhang Yuqing’s voice always carried a lingering warmth.

Qin Han’s eyes snapped open instantly, her drowsiness gone. “What time is it?”

“A little past nine.”

Oh, that’s too late—she wouldn’t be able to go.

Feeling a little disappointed, Qin Han crawled to the edge of the bed and turned on the bedside lamp. She heard Zhang Yuqing ask, “Were you looking for me this afternoon?”

“Mm.”

She thought for a moment but couldn’t come up with an excuse. So, she told the truth, albeit in a reserved way. “I just wanted to ask if you were busy.”

Even that felt a little indirect.

She was too shy to say she wanted to see him.

But Zhang Yuqing seemed to understand what she meant. He chuckled. “Come by tomorrow. A customer taught Beibei how to wave goodbye today—you can come see.”

That voice, brushing against her ear, sent a shiver down her spine.

The air conditioner made the curtains sway gently. The soft yellow light from the bedside lamp illuminated a small section of her room. Qin Han lay on her bed, and even after the call ended, her heart was still racing.

An open book of poetry lay in front of her.

Haizi wrote, “We call the heart that dances in the dark the moon, and this moon is mainly composed of you.”

When Zhang Yuqing gave her these poetry books, he had said, “I think they’re good.”

So, he must have read them before.

He had not only grown up through hardships but had also immersed himself in these gentle verses.

The next morning, as Qin Han was washing up, her father told her he was going on a business trip to the south and would be gone for a few days. He asked if she wanted anything as a gift.

With a mouthful of toothpaste foam, Qin Han mumbled, “A poetry collection.”

Her father smiled. “Alright.”

But just as she was about to leave for Yaonan Alley, her mother suddenly came out of the room, carrying a small suitcase.

Her steps were hurried. Seeing Qin Han at the door, she didn’t stop. She quickly put on her high heels and said, “Baby, I’m going on a business trip with your dad. He forgot some things, so I’ll bring them to him. Might as well make it a trip. Do you want to stay home or at Grandma’s?”

“I’ll stay home.”

Her mother nodded, left a stack of cash, then thought for a moment and added, “Keep your money safe when you go out. Take care of yourself. You can invite friends over if you want.”

Qin Han found it odd—her mother rarely called her “baby.” Only her father did that.

But her mother’s “you can invite friends over” successfully derailed her thoughts. She blushed slightly, then nodded.

With her family away, Qin Han went to Yaonan Alley even more frequently, spending entire days at Zhang Yuqing’s shop.

Since she had stopped bringing expensive treats, Luo Shijin’s hostility toward her seemed to ease a little.

One day, while Zhang Yuqing was tattooing a client, Luo Shijin suddenly asked, “Hey, Qin Han, why do you come here every day?”

Because she wanted to see Zhang Yuqing.

She hesitated for what felt like an eternity before swallowing the words.

Pointing at Li Nan, she said to Luo Shijin, “Doesn’t Li Nan come every day too? And so do you.”

In fact, her argument wasn’t very convincing. Li Nan, after getting familiar with Zhang Yuqing’s shop, had also befriended the barber at the shop down the street and often helped female customers with free makeup.

And Luo Shijin wasn’t always in the shop—he spent more time at his fruit stand.

Only Qin Han stayed in the shop all day, quietly concealing her true intentions.

After finishing the poetry collection, she read essays and novels.

Occasionally, she would visit Grandpa Liu’s place to dig through old books.

Zhang Yuqing was always busy, spending entire days in the tattoo room. After sending off two clients, he noticed that Qin Han was still sitting by the window, unmoving, absorbed in her book.

She was an interesting girl—probably someone who had never experienced hardship. Sometimes, while reading, her eyes would suddenly well up, and she would murmur to herself, “So touching.”

Zhang Yuqing had caught her like this a few times and found her innocent and adorable.

Now, she was once again sitting still by the window. At first, he thought she was deeply engrossed in another story. But as he approached, he realized she was staring blankly at a lacewing that had landed on her hand.

“What are you looking at?”

Qin Han slowly lifted her head, her expression carrying a kind of innocent gentleness. She whispered, “I’m waiting for it to fly away.”

“Want me to move it for you?”

Qin Han shook her head, still speaking softly. “No, it looks so delicate. Its little arms and legs… I don’t want you to break them.”

Zhang Yuqing chuckled.

Then, as he laughed, he suddenly paused.

Qin Han had been coming here every day recently, but he hadn’t thought much of it. After all, Li Nan also came daily.

Plus, there was Beibei and Luo Shijin—his shop was fun for a girl her age.

And he knew she had fallen out with a close friend, so maybe she just preferred the liveliness of his shop.

But just now, he had caught a whiff of perfume.

A faint, sweet cherry blossom scent.

It was normal for a 17-year-old girl to like perfume.

But—

Zhang Yuqing leaned on the table, getting closer. “Still hasn’t flown away?”

Feeling his proximity, Qin Han’s face burned. “No…”

“Little girl, I have a question for you.”

Zhang Yuqing gazed at her, his dark eyes deep, then suddenly smiled.

“Why are you blushing… even in front of a substitute?”