AFMWDX Chapter 27.2

TL: Hua

Xu Baizhang had driven to the hospital aimlessly. Passing the Emergency Department, he was stopped by Zhong Yan, who had just finished a night shift. “Are you seeing patients today?”

Xu Baizhang: “No. Is something wrong? Let me treat you to a meal.”

“There’s something more important than eating.” Zhong Yan tossed him his car keys. “Wait for me in the car. I’m going to get Old Liang.”

The three of them were usually busy with their own lives; their last gathering had been the night before they left for Shigatse.

Zhong Yan drove, with Xu Baizhang and Liang Songsheng in the car.

Xu Baizhang didn’t ask where they were going; he just wanted to kill time.

In less than half an hour, he saw their destination through the window.

[23rd SD Animation & Game Fair]

Yu Qingtang was also here today.

Xu Baizhang had left early with the intention of giving his partner private space, but he hadn’t expected that Liang Songsheng’s fiancé would also be a guest at the convention.

After buying tickets, the three of them passed through security.

They arrived just in time for the guest interaction segment.

Zhong Yan glanced at the stage and turned to ask Liang Songsheng, “Which one is your family?”

The people on stage were either dressed in flashy colors or wearing masks. In Zhong Yan’s eyes, even their own mothers wouldn’t recognize them.

Liang Songsheng: “Third one from the left.”

Standing there was a person with white hair, a black mask, and an eye patch.

Zhong Yan: “…”

He can recognize him even wrapped up like that?

True love, indeed.

On stage, Nian Jiang was enthusiastically interacting with fans, his tone of voice sounding like it was stuffed with marshmallows.

Zhong Yan clicked his tongue and couldn’t help but ask Liang Songsheng, “This kid is this cute to strangers; isn’t he insanely cute in front of you?”

Liang Songsheng didn’t take his eyes off the stage. “No.”

Zhong Yan raised an eyebrow. “Is he playing this game behind your back?”

Liang Songsheng didn’t deny it.

Zhong Yan: “Why don’t you tell him you already know?”

Liang Songsheng didn’t answer.

Zhong Yan turned to the other side. “Old Xu, if it were you, would you tell?”

Xu Baizhang: “No.”

Zhong Yan: “Reason?”

“If he’s unwilling to say, he naturally has his reasons.”

Zhong Yan: “What if he doesn’t say it because he’s worried Old Liang won’t be able to accept it?”

Xu Baizhang: “Then one should reflect on themselves—why haven’t they earned the other person’s trust?”

Zhong Yan hissed. “This reaction… feels like there’s a story there?”

Xu Baizhang looked toward the stage. “Just watch the show.”

After Nian Jiang finished his introduction, the next guest took the stage, pushing the event to an even higher climax. Unlike Nian Jiang’s elaborate costume, this man wore only a mask and a very ordinary casual shirt. Aside from his hidden face, he looked no different from any regular person.

Once the screams from the crowd finally subsided, the man on stage spoke. “Hello, everyone. I am Qingfeng. It’s a pleasure to meet you all.”

The audience went wild. The screams and cheers were loud enough to blow the roof off the building. Zhong Yan’s head throbbed from the noise.

Rubbing his ears, he truly couldn’t wrap his head around it. “What does this guy do? Why is he so popular?”

Xu Baizhang stared intently at the stage. “Voice actor.”

Though the man’s face was completely obscured, though he was wearing clothes he’d never seen before, and though he was even using a deceptive vocal register—as long as he stood there, Xu Baizhang could see through everything. He recognized him at a single glance.

Zhong Yan: “What’s that?”

Xu Baizhang: “A dubbing artist.”

“Oh,” Zhong Yan muttered. “I remember now. Didn’t you join a dubbing club in university?”

Xu Baizhang nodded. “Didn’t you make me go?”

“Right, right, I remember.” Zhong Yan draped an arm over his shoulder. “You were so mysterious and strange back then—wearing headphones all day, clutching your phone like you’d lost your soul. I thought you were in love for a second; I was terrified you were being scammed for money or feelings.”

Seeing Xu Baizhang remain silent, Zhong Yan nudged him. “Hey, so did you actually date back then?”

Xu Baizhang: “No.”

Zhong Yan: “Really?”

Xu Baizhang: “Really.”

Zhong Yan: “So, did you get scammed?”

Xu Baizhang: “…”

Zhong Yan’s eyes widened. “Holy crap! Old Xu, don’t tell me you actually got—”

“Watch the interview,” Xu Baizhang interrupted.

After the introductions, the event moved to the next segment: guests would draw random lots to answer questions.

The host took the slip of paper from Nian Jiang, and her expression shifted from normal to subtle awkwardness. She hesitated to speak.

The audience craned their necks, waiting with bated breath.

“What is it? Look at that face!”

“Hurry up, stop keeping us in suspense!”

“Oh my god, I’m so excited!”

The host cleared her throat, stole a glance at Nian Jiang, and spoke into the microphone: “Please describe your first kiss in detail.”

The venue was instantly engulfed in screams. In the back corner, two of the onlookers simultaneously fixed their gazes on Liang Songsheng.

But almost immediately, the masked man took the microphone from Nian Jiang. “The kid is still young; let’s not make it difficult for him. I’ll answer this question in his place.”

Zhong Yan clicked his tongue. “Well, look at that good Samaritan. He’s not even going to give us a chance to eavesdrop.”

Xu Baizhang could feel his pulse racing irregularly. He looked at the stage, his grip tightening on his ring.

An experience of a first kiss.

The premise of answering was having had the experience.

Xu Baizhang’s fist felt like it was about to shatter. No matter how many excuses he made or how many ways he tried to reorder the facts, the person involved in that kiss wouldn’t be him.

He should have realized this sooner: out of sight, out of mind.

Zhong Yan called out to him, “Old Xu, are you alright?”

Xu Baizhang withdrew his gaze. “I’m fine.”

Zhong Yan: “Let’s go. Old Liang says he’s heading back.”

Xu Baizhang quickened his pace, wanting to escape the vicinity of Yu Qingtang. But the man’s voice and his “experiences” flooded into his ears like a torrential tide.

“The mood that day was just like the weather: bright sunshine and clear skies. Both he and I were very shy, stumbling through it like two children in the first throes of love.”

The voice pierced through his eardrums; every word felt like forced poison. Even as Xu Baizhang tried to block it out, the story he hated managed to burrow into his soul.

“The sky was so high that day. He sat on a haystack and told me stories about his childhood.”

“We blew dandelion seeds together. I can see the stars shining in his eyes. I was so nervous then—so nervous that the whole world was nothing but the sound of my heartbeat.”

“Amidst the swirling dandelion seeds, he secretly took my hand while we were in the hay. He looked at me, didn’t say a word, closed his eyes, and slowly leaned in.”

“I could feel his breath against my lips, and I could smell that unique scent he had.”

“We kissed for a long time. So long we didn’t want to let go.”

Screams erupted behind them, but in Xu Baizhang’s head, there was only the roar of thunder.

It sounds familiar and yet not quite.

“Old Xu, what are you dazing off for?” Zhong Yan snapped him back to reality at the exit. “Come on, get in the car.”

Amidst the continuous screaming, Xu Baizhang only cared about Yu Qingtang’s voice; he wanted to carve it into his very flesh and blood.

“Before we’d had enough of the kiss, we were interrupted by children teasing us. I was a little annoyed, so he wove a bracelet out of straw to cheer me up.”

Xu Baizhang’s body and soul seemed to snap back into alignment. His heart pounded violently. He suddenly turned and ran back inside. “I dropped something; I have to go back for it.”

“What did you drop?” Zhong Yan shouted after him. “We weren’t even in there for ten minutes!”

Xu Baizhang wove through the “colorful” crowds and “extravagant” booths. From a distance, he heard the host’s voice again.

“What a romantic and heartwarming experience. First love is always the most unforgettable—a beautiful memory we keep hidden in our hearts.”

“I’d like to ask Master Qingfeng: if you had the chance, what would you like to say to your first love?”

Xu Baizhang squeezed through the deafening, frenzied crowd. He craned his neck, looking over the sea of people, and finally saw the person who seemed to be radiating light. He heard that warm, steady voice.

“I’d like to say… my husband is my first love.”