Chapter 64: The Escaped Lesson on Civil Engineering
Chapter 64: The Escaped Lesson on Civil Engineering
Li Zian practiced punches and then stepped under the shower. Cold water splashed over his head, but the evil fire burning inside him refused to die down; instead, it only blazed fiercer. The things Yu Meilin had never given him—Mu Chuntao had.
After over twenty years, he finally experienced the feeling of being in love for the first time. It was like a child tasting sweetness for the first time; a craving stirred within him. With the shower over, Li Zian walked out of the bathroom. Usually, this would be the moment he headed to his bed to cultivate the Great Slumber Qi Refining Art. Yet, tonight, his mind couldn’t settle. As soon as he closed his eyes, he saw nothing but Mu Chuntao and the memories of their time together at the theater.
Minutes later, Li Zian quietly stepped out of the door. He dressed in a Tang suit he believed suited him most handsomely. This wasn’t just for appearances; the Tang suit’s elastic band on its trousers made it convenient for others as well as himself.
The shared hallway between the two apartments was deathly quiet. Li Zian approached Mu Chuntao’s door, his hand reaching out for the doorknob. A slight push cracked it open, inch by inch. His adrenaline soared with every fraction, his heart thumping loudly, and his breath growing ragged.
Entering her place tonight carried a weightier meaning than before. After all, Prof. Mu had hinted from every angle. This lesson was about civil engineering—she would teach him the intricate art of concrete pouring. She was prepared to offer what Yu Meilin had denied him. Prof. Mu truly was a virtuous and skilled teacher; her love was just as pure and selfless.
Why was the door opening so agonizingly slowly?
A minute had crept by, and it only spanned half a foot.
Still gripping the knob, Li Zian froze. He yearned to enter, to sit in her class, but at the brink of stepping in, he pictured Yu Meilin’s face, followed by Li Xiaomei’s little one. He recalled promising Prof. Mu that he wouldn’t think of Yu Meilin or Li Xiaomei today, but he couldn’t help it. Those two—one his wife, the other his Little Cotton-padded Jacket—held him back. While crossing a threshold is easy, finding your way out is the hard part.
Once inside, he would learn everything he needed to know, understand every nuance, and Prof. Mu would teach it to him with no reserve. But what came after?
What answer would he offer if she asked, “When will you divorce Yu Meilin?” Whether tonight, tomorrow, or eventually, Mu Chuntao would ask.
He was tangled in doubt. This wasn’t just about tonight’s lesson; it was a decision about whom he would spend the rest of his life with. The paternity test was not yet back. If Li Xiaomei truly was his daughter, he would be shattering her young life.
Were it just Yu Meilin, he would have pushed through the door long ago. But Li Xiaomei hung like a noose over his neck, ready to tighten at the faintest sign of betrayal and drag him back.
Inside the living room, Mu Chuntao stared at the half-foot gap in her door. Hope and nervousness clashed beneath her chest. She saw him right outside, his hand curled around the knob. Another shove should bring him in, but the gap remained frozen.
Waiting for this lesson hadn’t been easy. She’d spent two hours perfecting every brushstroke of her makeup and wore the prettiest clothes she owned. On the coffee table rested two glasses of red wine—savored and ready. It was her father’s finest bottle, one he treasured and rarely drank, but she uncorked it tonight for another man.
The table was all set: wine poured, mood softened.
Only one step remained: the man outside stepping in.
“Come in already, you coward!” Thoughts screaming, Mu Chuntao stood up, preparing to drag him inside. Before she could take even one step, a sharp ringing sliced through the silence.
Ding-a-Ling! Ding-a-Ling!
Startled by the sudden noise, Li Zian instinctively drew his hand back, snapping the half-opened door shut with a sharp click. Just like that, the door locked itself.
Prof. Mu’s heart silently broke apart.
Outside, Li Zian stared at the caller ID flashing on his mobile phone screen—an eerie sense of something ominous stirred in him.
It was Kang Haichuan calling. Only something urgent would have the Professor ringing at such an hour.
Li Zian swiftly answered: “Hello?”
“Mr. Li, get to my home immediately,” Kang Haichuan’s anxious voice rushed through.
Senses sharpening, Li Zian inquired: “Professor Kang, did you decipher those two symbols?”
“It’s better not to discuss this over the phone. Come here—I’ll explain face-to-face.”
“Where is your place?”
“Modu University’s faculty residential complex, Building 12, Unit 1, Apartment 101.”
“Understood. I’ll head over right now.” As Li Zian hung up and glanced once at her locked door, a suppressed sigh escaped before he turned toward the elevator lobby.
Had that hesitation really cost him the moment?
Footsteps faded briskly beyond her door.
Slumping onto her Sofa, Mu Chuntao eyed the forgotten glasses of red wine on the coffee table. Without another thought, she grabbed one and swallowed hard, then followed it with the second. Li, why are you so utterly spineless?
The nighttime roads were practically deserted. Within 20 minutes, his ride-hailing car pulled into the run-down staff quarters of Modu University. Six stories maximum, each building bore signs of haphazard life—from underwear drying on clotheslines to wilting potted plants on balconies.
An old guard slouched inside his post, glued to a flickering screen TV. Li Zian passed through the gates without even the dignity of a glance his way. There were no formal gate checks, and Li Zian wasted no time striding into the clusters of houses.
He soon stood at Building 12, Unit 1. Window light leaked faintly from Apartment 101, silhouetted by freshly washed laundry hanging on its balcony. Some brightly colored pieces looked young and stylish—Kang Xin’s, he guessed. Thick curtains blocked the inside from view. Since the ground-floor apartment sat slightly raised, Li Zian skipped the stairs, walked to the door, and rapped his knuckles against it.
Soft padding footsteps approached. The door opened. Kang Xin stood behind it, bits of cucumber slices still clinging to her cheeks. She met his eyes, bewildered. “How do you know where I live?”
“Your father called me,” Li Zian replied simply.
“It’s late. Why are you here?”
“Professor Kang asked me to come.”
Kang Xin pivoted slightly, then moved closer to Li Zian. Whispering, she pleaded quickly: “Please don’t tell him about Tian Zhongshan. If he knew, Dad would chew me out completely! Okay?”
Li Zian smiled softly. “Don’t worry. He won’t know.”
At his reply, Kang Xin stepped aside to invite him in.
She was clearly dressed to retire for the night, wrapped in a light nightdress that seemed transparent under the glow of the lamp. Li Zian made it a point not to stare. Still, the sight tugged his thoughts back again to Mu Chuntao’s door. If not for Professor Kang’s phone call…
Would he be sitting obediently at her lesson on civil engineering by this time? Or would he still hesitantly linger with his palm pressed silently to her door?
Fate was so strange. You never knew when something would happen and quietly change the course of a person’s life.
But as long as the car didn’t flip over, it was fine.
“My dad is in the study. I’ll take you there.” Kang Xin walked ahead.
Li Zian followed behind her. He couldn’t stop his eyes from studying the fabric structure of her nightgown. The nightgown was actually quite loose, but he still felt she could have worn a larger size.
He didn’t see Kang Xin’s mother, and he didn’t feel it was right to ask.
Kang Xin came to a door and reached out to knock on it.
“Come in.” It was Kang Haichuan’s voice.
Kang Xin pushed the door open but didn’t go in, instead stepping aside from the doorway.
Li Zian walked in.
This study room was just like the ones in the library. Two bookshelves were filled with books. The space, not very big to begin with, seemed even smaller because of the shelves and the books.
But Kang Haichuan seemed very comfortable in this environment. When Li Zian entered, he was buried in a book, looking very focused.
He really was a professor. In just these few seconds, he was already immersed in the ocean of knowledge again.
Li Zian spoke up to greet him. “Professor Kang.”
Only then did Kang Haichuan lift his head to look at Li Zian. He then stood up, looking very excited. “You came right after I called. Were you nearby?”
Li Zian: “…”
It had been half an hour already.
Kang Xin said a line. “Don’t mind him, Uncle. My dad is sharp with history and Symbols, but he’s muddled about everything else.”
Calling him Uncle again.
Li Zian glanced back at Kang Xin, feeling speechless.
Kang Xin pursed her lips and smiled. “Uncle, what would you like to drink? How about some tea?”
She was doing it on purpose.
“Thank you, I’m not thirsty. Please don’t trouble yourself,” Li Zian said.
But Kang Xin stood at the door and didn’t leave.
Kang Haichuan glared at Kang Xin. “What are you still doing standing there? Go back to your room and sleep early. You have class tomorrow. And another thing, cucumbers are for eating. What are you putting them on your face for? That’s a waste.”
Kang Xin pouted, turned around, and left.
Li Zian couldn’t help but wonder, seventeen or eighteen years from now, would he be saying things like that to Li Xiaomei? And would Li Xiaomei have the same unappreciative look on her face?
“Mr. Li, please, have a seat. Let’s sit and talk,” Kang Haichuan said.
Li Zian looked left and right. In this small study, there was still only the one chair behind the desk. Was he supposed to sit on the floor?
“No, no, it’s fine, Professor Kang. You sit and talk. I’ll stand and listen.”
Kang Haichuan gave an awkward smile. “Oh dear, I forgot. There are no extra chairs here. How about we go talk in the Living Room? There’s a Sofa there.”
“Really, no need to be so polite. Let’s talk business, Professor Kang. Did you discover something?” Li Zian got straight to the point. He had come all this way and even skipped Prof. Mu’s Civil Engineering class. He didn’t come specifically to sit on a Sofa.
“You gave me a Symbol, remember? I took a photo of it and sent it to an old friend of mine at the Cultural Relics Administration. He’s the director there now. His name is Ma Fuquan. Do you remember me telling you about those people who went missing in the sandstorm all those years ago? He was the only one the rescue team found.”
Li Zian said with surprise, “He was also a member of the Archaeological Team back then?”
“Yes, but he didn’t see the skeleton himself. He only saw the photos I took. Later, he searched for Huang Bo with me, and also looked for clues about the mysterious Symbols on that skeleton, but we found nothing.”
“You showed him the Symbol I drew? What did he say?”
“He wants to meet you.”
“Tonight?”
Kang Haichuan nodded. “Yes, I invited him over too. I expect he should be arriving just about now.”
Knock. Knock.
A knocking sound came from the door.