After Wu Runzhi learned that four of his classmates had died, he began to cry again. He felt that he still had a lot to say to them.
Lu Yingjiu could only comfort him, saying, "As long as you wait until the last day, the environment is still there and you will have a chance to meet some of them."
Wu Runzhi felt better, wiped his tears, and said: "I must find out what wishes they have not yet fulfilled! I will do my best to help them realize them!"
Lu Yingjiu: I believe you, I believe you, stop crying.
The flow of time in the illusion is weird.
Just like Lu Ying's hotel, it is almost three times that of the real world, and it is even faster at night when people are active.
After evening self-study that day, when the lights in the dormitory were turned off, the clock on the wall started ticking.
In just ten minutes, the whole night was over.
In the blink of an eye, it's already a new day.
After eating breakfast, the students yawned and came to the classroom one after another.
Wu Runzhi attended class with them, and Chu Banyang even collected a round of homework - he was determined to be a good study committee member.
Yao Gou was not interested in class, so he strolled outside the school and grabbed a bag of snacks from the canteen.
Lu Yingjiu and Jing Xian took a physics class.
It was class, but in fact they kept gossiping for the entire class, causing the evil teacher to look at them frequently, looking very dissatisfied.
So as soon as the bell rang, Lu Yingjiu took Jing Xian and skipped class.
Only Wu Runzhi and Chu Banyang were left in the classroom.
Before leaving, Lu Yingjiu heard Wu Runzhi pulling Yu Yu and asking, "Brother Yu, do you have any other wishes?"
Yu Yu was puzzled and asked, "What wish? I want to eat lobster tomorrow morning. Can you make it for me?"
Wu Runzhi turned his head again, pulled Jiang Ruoyun and asked, "What is your wish?"
Jiang Ruoyun said: "I want to get first place in the next mock exam." She thought for a moment, "I was only two places away from first place last time, I hope I can do it this time."
This sentence touched Wu Runzhi's tears again. He started to sob again and forgot about asking about his wish.
Lu Yingjiu and Jing Xian walked around the campus, found an empty office, pulled out the folding bed under the desk and rested for a while.
Now in the real world, it should be night.
Lu Yingjiu closed his eyes and slept for a long time. Jing Xian sat next to him, flipping through a book.
When Lu Ying sobered up, the sky outside the window was filled with sunset glow again.
He yawned and sat up: "... How long have I slept?"
"About three hours." Jing Xian replied.
He has almost finished reading the book in his hand.
"Then let's go to the classroom and take a look." Lu Ying asked.
As soon as he opened his phone, he saw a text message from Chu Banyang:
During the morning class, an electric fan hit and killed two students
A classmate choked to death while eating lunch
During lunch break, a classmate suddenly had a stroke and died.
A classmate was hit on the back of the head by a football during physical education class and died
Lu Yingjiu: “…”
This class is really dying. Hopefully it can hold out until the day after tomorrow.
They went to the classroom.
School was over at this time, but Chu Banyang was still sitting in his seat.
After Lu Ying finished drinking, he asked him, "Why didn't you leave?"
Chu Banyang shook his head slightly, and after a while, he said, "Chu Qianju used to teach senior high school and became a history teacher, but I don't know which class he taught."
"Let's wait and see," Lu Ying said, "maybe he will show up soon."
It seems that Chu Banyang has been waiting here just to see Chu Qianju.
-Although Chu Banyang is not good, it can be seen that he and Chu Qianju have a very close relationship.
Chu Banyang was about to answer, but suddenly he stared at the door and stopped talking.
Lu Yingjiu followed his line of sight and looked at him:
A man in a shirt and black trousers walked into the classroom holding a history book. He put one hand in his pocket, and although he didn't use much force, the beautiful muscle lines of his arm could still be clearly seen.
He is young and handsome, but has an indescribable unique aura.
Mature.
This maturity is inconsistent with his age.
Cao Cao Cao arrived, and Chu Qianju actually showed up.
Chu Qianju's gaze swept across the classroom, without lingering on Lu Yingjiu or Chu Banyang's faces for more than half a second.
After all, this is an illusion, not a real person.
When Yu saw him, he called out, "Teacher Chu!"
"Yeah." Chu Qianju nodded, picked up a piece of chalk, and wrote a few lines on the blackboard: History homework: Exercise book pages 76 and 77
His handwriting is beautiful.
She was so beautiful that Lu Yingjiu felt she looked familiar.
—Chu Banyang’s handwriting is similar to his ten-character handwriting… In fact, it can be said to be exactly the same.
Lu Yingjiu recalled that in Lintian Village, when they were searching through Chu Qianju's personal belongings, they found some talisman paper that he had drawn.
Now that I think about it carefully, even the way the talisman paper was drawn is the same as Chu Banyang's.
Individual styles vary greatly from one exorcist to another, and this level of similarity cannot be a coincidence.
With this idea in mind, Lu Yingjiu looked at Chu Qianju and felt that he was right. In this illusion, Chu Qianju might have just attended a meeting, wearing a black suit, a men's watch, and a dark blue tie tied in a half Windsor knot.
Chu Banyang's most common clothing, the way he tied his tie, and the posture of putting one hand in his pocket were exactly the same.
Then, a strange thought appeared in Lu Yingjiu's mind.
He felt that Chu Banyang was simply... deliberately imitating Chu Qianju.
From handwriting, clothing to talisman drawing methods.
Maybe there are more details he doesn't know.
Chu Qianju was still writing on the blackboard. Chu Banyang sat in his seat, staring at him intently.
When he finished, he instructed, "Yu, tell everyone that tonight's homework has been corrected."
"Okay!" Yu responded.
Chu Qianju nodded and prepared to leave the classroom.
"Chu Qianju!" Chu Banyang shouted.
Chu Qianju looked up at him: "Student, do you have any questions?"
Chu Banyang stared at him for several seconds.
He finally shook his head: "No, I have no problem."
"Okay," Chu Qian said, "If you have any questions, feel free to come to my office. My office has been changed to Room 308."
After finishing his homework, he hurried out of the classroom with the history textbook and blended into the crowd of ghosts.
After he left, Chu Banyang was visibly uneasy.
Lu Yingjiu asked: "Why are you..."
"I'm fine." Chu Banyang stood up suddenly. "I'll go to the dormitory to check. According to the frequency I counted, someone is going to die again."
As soon as he finished speaking, he stood there motionless for a full five or six seconds.
I was distracted again.
"What's wrong with you?" Lu Yingjiu looked at him. "As soon as you saw Chu Qianju, you seemed to have lost your soul."
"I didn't, you're just overthinking it." Chu Banyang said, saying one thing and thinking another as always.
Lu Yingjiu tapped his desk with his knuckles: "Just lie to me. How about the second place winner, let's chat alone?"
Chu Banyang's face darkened and he protested against the title of "second place".
Lu Yingjiu, however, decided to get to the bottom of it.
It's not that he always wants to gossip about Chu Banyang's past, but since it involves Chu Qianju and the curse, he always has to get to the bottom of it.
He whispered to Cuxian, "I'll get up quickly," and then went out first.
Behind him, Chu Banyang's face was full of unhappiness and awkwardness, but he finally stood up and followed his pace.
The two walked all the way up to the rooftop.
The rooftop has a wide view. Xiaoguang City has good air quality, clear skies, and colorful sunsets, all of which are extremely beautiful scenery.
They stood at the fence.
Lu Yingjiu was lazy and maintained his usual laziness, like a cat leaning against a fence to bask in the sun.
Chu Banyang stood straight, his hair was combed neatly, his shirt was not wrinkled at all, and he maintained a good image at all times.
In fact, Chu Banyang was not so self-disciplined that he could not slack off at all. After all, he was not a cold machine and could not always be perfect. It was just that in front of Lu Yingjiu, he always subconsciously maintained the best image, as if this would allow him to surpass Lu Yingjiu in other situations.
The current situation is no exception.
Lu Yingjiu leaned against the railing, looking at the scenery in the distance and asked: "How did you and Chu Qianju know each other?"
Chu Banyang was silent for a while before answering, "I learned the art of exorcism from him for a while before, especially the art of summoning gods."
He spoke slowly, as if he was thinking about his words and didn't want to reveal everything.
He is not a person who opens up easily or is honest.
He continued: "Chu Qianju doesn't like to teach people the art of exorcism. I'm the only person he has taught."
Lu Yingjiu understood:
Chu Banyang was gifted, and no matter what the Chu family thought, they had to force him to be taught by Chu Qianju.
"Then there was nothing else," Chu Banyang said. "I studied with him for three years, and then he went out on his own. He went to Lintian Village and this middle school, and did many different things. I kept in touch with him intermittently, but it wasn't long. After that, the Peacock God lost his mind, and Chu Qianju died trying to stop it."
"Oh," Lu Yingjiu nodded, "So that's how it is."
He supported himself on the railing with one hand, jumped lightly, and sat on the bed. His white shirt rustled in the evening breeze, and the corners of his shirt were stained with orange-red light.
Chu Banyang looked at him and spoke silently, but his heart was surging.
Just as Lu Yingjiu guessed, he did not tell the whole story.
After many years, he finally saw Chu Qianju, and many emotions surged in his heart, a mixture of sweet and sour, bitter and spicy.
The story with Chu Qianju starts from his childhood.
Chu Banyang's talent for exorcism is second to none. No one in his three generations can compare to him. He has all the qualities a genius should have. He has a strong ability to understand and accept things, and he knows how to draw inferences from one instance and integrate them into his whole. When he first learned to read, he was already reading a large illustrated book of ghosts and monsters.
With such qualifications, he could make a name for himself even without working hard.
What's more, he has been competitive since he was young. When others got 80, he always wanted 90 or 100. When others spent 3 hours training, he would spend 5 hours. When others took two commissions, he would force himself to take four or five. In short, he wanted to be better than others.
His peers are not good enough to beat him.
Chu Banyang was not satisfied with comparing himself with them, but wanted to compare himself with other ancestors.
For example, Chu You, the former head of the Chu family.
Chu You was very talented, so Chu Banyang took out his previous achievements and reviewed them.
Then he wrote a list in a notebook, stroke by stroke, in his slightly childish handwriting, and stuck it on the head of the bed.
When Chu You was 13 years old, he had already taken on several commissions, and he also wanted to take on more commissions.
When Chu You was 14 years old, he wanted to reach and surpass the level of summoning gods that had been achieved.
He would challenge everything Chu You had done.
…
There were many other people's deeds on his bedside, covered with colorful sticky notes, each of whom was his imaginary enemy.
When the alarm rings at 7 o'clock every morning, Chu Banyang opens his eyes on time, quickly glances at the entire wall, and immediately wakes up from sleepiness.
This kind of ambition is far beyond that of others, and perfectionism is engraved in his bones.
Others all felt that Chu Banyang lived a tiring life. He wanted to achieve everything to the best of his ability. He had no time to relax and worked like a machine.
But Chu Banyang enjoyed it.
To him, life is like a vigorous train, which must arrive at the station on time, depart on time, and overtake others along the way. He enjoys the feeling of being in control every step of the way.
His peak plan had been going on successfully until it failed because of Chu Qianju.
On the first day of his marriage, he prayed to the gods in front of Chu Qianju.
The peacock descended upon him, surrounded by swirling blue-green feathers, magnificent in its splendor, and a surge of power surged through him.
He was confident in his own level.
But Chu Qianju sat at the table, glanced at him, lowered his head to drink a sip of tea, and said coldly: "That's totally wrong, just practice."
Mr. Chu was proud and arrogant. No one had ever spoken to him like this before. He felt very aggrieved and was even more angry with Chu Qianju.
But the good thing about his character is that he is open-minded and willing to learn. In order to improve himself, he still studies seriously even if he is unhappy with Chu Qianju.
However, the more he learned, the more he realized the gap between them.
Even if Chu Qianju had no memory of the past, the memory would not be erased.
In the eyes of others, Chu Banyang is a genius and is already good enough.
Only Chu Banyang himself knew that there was a gap between geniuses. If he was called a genius, then Chu Qianju was a rare prodigy, and no matter how hard he tried, he could never surpass him.
For several nights, he stayed in his small study, looking over and over again what Chu Qianju had done in the past.
Chu Qianju eliminated the evil ghost, Chu Qianju subdued the big monster, which talisman paper did Chu Qianju improve...
What research did Chu Qianju do, what new ideas did Chu Qianju have for summoning gods, what did Chu Qianju do to seek inspiration...
Chu Banyang secretly worked hard towards his goal.
As a result, none of them can compare to their opponents.
—Thinking back on it, most of his hostility towards Chu Qianju originated from this point.
Chu Qianju was on good terms with the Chu family and only took care of Chu Banyang for three years.
Chu Banyang originally thought that their master-disciple relationship would end in such a dull manner.
Chu Qianju was indifferent and had no feelings towards his cheap disciple, and he was unable to fulfill his wish, which would always be a knot in his heart.
At this moment, standing on the rooftop of the school, Chu Banyang could still remember the resentment he felt at that time.
Sour, astringent and bitter.
Like sour lemon juice dripped into cold, bitter coffee.
He dropped his eyes.
When he raised his eyes and looked at Lu Yingjiu who was sitting on the railing, his expression softened a little.
The surroundings are quiet, and this is a place where people can feel at ease and is extremely suitable for pouring out their thoughts.
... Maybe, it's okay to reveal it. Chu Banyang thought so, as if he had finally peeled off a layer of the shell.
He suddenly said: "In the year when Chu Qianju was about to pass away, he took me to the Chu family's memorial service."
"Worship?" Lu Yingjiu was stunned for a moment, "Are you talking about a ritual to worship the Heavenly Dao?"
"Yes," Chu Banyang nodded, "Because it was held together with the Zhang family, there were many people, and usually only adults were present. But that year he made an exception and brought me in."
At that time, Chu Qianju stood in front of the mirror, carefully adjusting his suit.
There was some slight noise behind him. He looked up and saw the young Chu Banyang looking at him from behind.
Chu Banyang had just finished a piano performance in the concert hall and was also wearing a small suit.
"… What?" Chu Qianju continued to tidy up in front of the mirror, and said in a light tone, "You want to do it too?"
"No." Chu Banyang said proudly, "I don't want to."
Little did he know that his face was filled with the expression "I really want to see it!" and he couldn't hide it from anyone.
After Chu Qianju tied his tie, he turned his head and waved at him: "Come over."
Chu Banyang was reluctant, but he still walked through it with his head held high.
Chu Qianju took a packaging box from the side.
When he opened it, he saw a brand new dark blue tie, finely crafted with gorgeous dark patterns.
He took out his tie, wrapped it around Chu Banyang's neck, and was about to tie it for him -
Chu Banyang took a half step back and said with a straight face: "I can tie a tie."
"I've never seen you tie a half Windsor knot." Chu Qianju didn't let go of his hand and continued to slowly wrap the tie. "Try it today. This is my favorite way to tie it."
He insisted on doing so, and Chu Banyang tilted his head slightly to let him finish tying his tie. As soon as Chu Qianju let go, he took a half step back.
"How about it," Chu Qian said, "Come with me to perform the ceremony? You have nothing to do this afternoon anyway."
Chu Banyang wanted to say a few more arrogant words.
Chu Qianju knew his awkward personality very well, so without saying much, he just took him out.
After being stuffed into the car, Chu Banyang inexplicably set off on the road to the ceremony.
Although Chu Banyang had been looking forward to the ceremony for many years, when he actually attended it, he did not think it was anything special.
It was not that everyone was facing a square black stone tablet, some bowing, some kowtowing, some chanting incantations, with a huge momentum.
Chu Banyang and Lu Ying were drinking: "The specific ceremony was quite interesting, I don't remember the details. I just remember that we had dinner together afterwards and I drank some wine."
“Drink?” Lu Ying, the drunkard, thought about Chu Banyang’s alcohol tolerance. He would become drunk after a little bit of alcohol. “Your alcohol tolerance is so poor. Is it really okay…”
“There must be something wrong.” Chu Banyang said, “I… I think I said something accidentally.”
That day, Master Chu, who had no idea of his alcohol tolerance, took a few sips of brandy.
As you can imagine, it was all over. He got drunk and couldn't get up.
It was Chu Qianju who carried him on his back.
On the way, Chu Banyang spoke the truth after drinking and was very talkative.
After all, he was still immature, full of the mentality of a young man, and confessed all his thoughts in the past three years. He grabbed Chu Qianju's collar and kept muttering: "I tried so hard, why can't I be as good as you..."
"You don't like me, don't you? You've never smiled at me."
"I have drawn those talismans many times, I have read all the books, and I have done the commissions seriously. I just want to be the first. Can you give the first place to me?"
"I want everyone to remember my name. What should I do?"
Chu Qianju said nothing along the way and just listened silently.
There was a little snow on the road, but it wasn't cold. Only a little white snow fell on their hair.
After an unknown amount of time, when Chu Banyang was tired of talking and muttering to himself, Chu Qianju finally spoke: "Banyang, have I ever told you about my dream?"
“W-what?” Chu Banyang forced himself to cheer up.
"I've dreamed about you a lot recently." Chu Qian said, stepping on the fine snow on the ground. "They all asked me how powerful I was hundreds of years ago, but I can't remember anything. Recently, I vaguely remembered a little bit in my dreams."
"It all started on a rainy day. I was passing by a desert and saw a dying peacock..."
This was the first time he took the initiative to talk about his personal affairs with Chu Banyang.
Chu Qianju spoke slowly.
It tells how he and Peacock met, how they made a contract to summon the gods, and how they exorcised ghosts together.
Talk about how they love each other and how they say goodbye.
Talk about the curse that they have brought upon themselves.
Chu Banyang was very drunk and listened to most of the story. His final impression was: the snow was getting heavier and heavier, and Chu Qianju's body was really warm.
Thinking of this, he actually put his hand on Chu Qianju's neck to keep warm.
—Under normal circumstances, he would never do such a thing even if he was beaten to death. The strong liquor really caused him a lot of trouble.
There was a coldness on his neck, and Chu Qianju was stunned for a few seconds.
Afterwards, the expression that had been indifferent for several years softened.
He actually smiled slightly and said, "You see, we actually have a lot of similarities."
"We both dislike ginger and would specifically pick out ginger when eating. We both like sunny days, watching football games, eating fried rice and laksa, and drinking coconut milk by the sea."
"We all like suspense movies, detective novels, abstract oil paintings and jazz."
"We are both quite talented, and not very good at expressing our feelings. Just like it is difficult for me to say to you directly, 'Chu Banyang, I have never hated you, on the contrary, I like you very much.'"
He smiled and said, "But now that I've gotten it out, it's not as difficult as I thought."
Chu Banyang buried his head in his shoulder, his face burning from the alcohol.
"But," he did not give up, still repeating his wish, "I can't catch up with you, I want to be the first..."
Chu Qianju smiled softly for the last time and said, "I want to survive, too."
Chu Banyang was stunned.
The alcohol numbed his nerves and slowed his thinking.
Chu Qian said: "There are so many people in this world. You can't always be number one. There will always be someone who is a little bit better than you."
"Maybe one day I can get rid of the cycle of reincarnation, and you can calmly accept that someone is better than you, but it will definitely not be today, not now. That's why I say that we are similar."
"I can't reconcile with the past, and you can't reconcile with yourself."
"The difference is that you still have many years to live, but I don't have time anymore. You asked me 'how to make people remember your name', now I tell you, as long as you live well, you will be famous enough."
"You are a very capable person. They will all remember your name. One day, you will surpass me."
Chu Banyang: “…Oh.”
"As for me," Chu Qianju paused, "as for me, I hope to die in his arms in this life."
Chu Banyang didn’t remember what happened next.
He fell into a deep sleep due to the alcohol, and when he woke up it was already the next morning, he was lying in his own bed.
He and Chu Qianju never mentioned what happened that day.
They did not mention a word of this until three years later, when Chu Qianju decided to leave the Chu family and go out on his own.
It was a sunny day when we said goodbye. Chu Qianju stood in front of the car and asked, "So I'm leaving?"
"Yes." Chu Banyang nodded, "Have a safe trip."
The young man's figure grew taller quickly, and he was almost at Chu Qianju's shoulder.
Chu Qianju suddenly patted his shoulder again: "If one day you meet someone you like, you should be more straightforward and express it. How can others know if you always hide it?"
“…Why are you talking about this?” Chu Banyang was stunned for a moment.
"I'm just worried that you'll miss someone." Chu Qian said, "I won't nag you anymore. I have to go."
The two people who were not good at expressing their emotions didn't say much in the end.
The car drove away from the Chu family and headed far away, with no end in sight.
They kept in touch intermittently, and a few years later, Chu Banyang learned of his death.
He was not overly sad, nor did he cry secretly - in fact, he hadn't cried for many years.
It just doesn’t feel real.
He looked at the willow tree that had just sprouted branches outside the window, and thought to himself, Chu Qianju finally died in the arms of the peacock. The morning glow in the sky was warm, and the talisman paper spread out on the table, every stroke was the painting method that Chu Qianju taught him.
"… "
Chu Banyang took a deep breath and said, "This is probably our story."
Lu Yingjiu listened quietly beside him.
Chu Banyang said: "I know I'm a perfectionist. If someone surpasses me, I will remember it for a long time, maybe even for the rest of my life."
So, he wore the suit that Chu Qianju often wore, with his handwriting and his favorite half-Windsor knot.
The most unfair thing about separation between life and death is that mourning and longing are reserved for the living.
Chu Qianju will have the next reincarnation, but he only has this life, where he can slowly recall and savor those short three years.
Later he met Lu Yingjiu.
Chu Qianju left, and then Lu Yingjiu showed up and snatched away his first place.
… Just thinking about Chu Banyang makes me depressed. I am second again. I am so unlucky.
Chu Banyang rubbed his brow and said, "This is the instability of my character. It's my nature."
Lu Yingjiu was silent for a while: "It's rare for you to be honest today. You actually told me so much."
“I won’t do that again.” Chu Banyang adjusted his tie. “I only told you because you asked.”
He lowered his head and looked at the expensive homemade watch on his wrist: "Look at the time, someone in class is going to die again. I have to take a look."
After that, he turned around and left.
—If you observe carefully, you will find that his steps are hurried and awkward, as if he is trying to escape quickly.
I can tell at a glance that I regret having just said these things.
"… Speaking of this," Lu Yingjiu said from behind him, "Whenever someone surpasses you, you will always remember it. I have a question for you."
Chu Banyang nodded.
Lu Yingjiu was still sitting on the railing.
Chu Banyang looked at him, looked at his soft black hair being blown by the wind, looked at his slightly lazy expression, looked at the huge setting sun behind him, as if he would fall into the embrace of the sunset if he just leaned back slightly.
The light sculpted his perfect waist lines that looked like a work of art, and his white clothes were clean and crisp.
As beautiful as the day I first saw her.
"What's the problem?" Chu Banyang asked.
Lu Ying asked: "Chu Banyang, do you like me?"