DSMIS CH8

Chapter 8: Roommates

Shen Xing quickly shifted the topic:

“Right, right, right. Alright, move your huge face out of the way and let me see Qianjin.”

The whimpering white ball of fur reclaimed the screen. At first, Jiang Lin had assumed the recipient of the call might be Shen Xing’s child, but listening to the sounds, it didn’t quite sound human.

“Don’t leave him in the crate tonight; sleep holding him in your arms.”

“Bro, do you have any idea how much a Samoyed sheds?”

“Our Qianjin takes the highest quality fish oil—he doesn’t shed that much. I want to cuddle him right now and can’t even do so. Stop acting like you’re suffering when you’ve got it good!”

“Fine, I’ll reluctantly cuddle him for the night.”

Jiang Lin: …So it really wasn’t human.

Hanging up the call, their eyes met once more.

Shen Xing, holding the hot water bottle, offered an explanation:

“The Samoyed I raise is afraid of thunder. Apologies for the spectacle.”

Jiang Lin stroked Heibao’s head as the dog rubbed against his leg, expressing understanding:

“Samoyeds do seem to be a bit more faint-hearted.”

Only then did he turn on the hair dryer. After drying his hair, he looked over at Shen Xing, noticing the doctor’s hair was still damp:

“Do you want to blow-dry your hair? Leaving it wet like that makes it easy to catch a cold.”

Having damp hair was indeed uncomfortable, but after a moment of hesitation, Shen Xing spoke up:

“No need, I just managed to warm up my spot under the covers.”

Noticing that the doctor seemed exceptionally sensitive to the cold, Jiang Lin unplugged the hairdryer from the outlet beneath the TV and moved it to the nightstand between their two beds, handing the dryer over:

“Blow-dry it right here then.”

Shen Xing felt a bit embarrassed—it made him look like some high-and-mighty lord expecting to be served. He quickly sat up and turned on the device. After a few moments of drying, he caught a whiff of burnt feathers. Jiang Lin looked over as well:

“Hold it a bit further away—you’re singeing your hair.”

Shen Xing realized the hairdryer wasn’t in great shape either and hastily pulled it back a bit. Still, despite its ancient appearance, a hairdryer that gets the job done is a good hairdryer. Now that his hair was warm and dry, he felt infinitely better than before. He burrowed back into his quilt, leaving only his head exposed.

Putting the hairdryer away, Jiang Lin asked casually:

“You haven’t spent much time in the South during winter, have you? Not used to the damp cold here?”

Shen Xing nodded:

“To tell you the truth, my winter survival relies entirely on central heating. I’ve never been down south during this season.”

“Then you’re in for quite an adjustment. Winter’s barely starting. Once it sets in properly, gloomy, rainy days like this get even colder.”

Shen Xing pulled the quilt over his head, feeling even more dismal inside. This really is exile. Compared to being exiled here, he’d rather go to Ningguta—at least Ningguta has central heating nowadays.

Jiang Lin sat on the edge of his bed, opened a pillbox, selected two or three types of medication, swallowed them, and then climbed into his sleeping bag. Turning his head, he spoke:

“I’m turning in. You can turn off the light whenever you’re ready to sleep. Good night.”

Shen Xing froze slightly. There are still people in this day and age who go straight to sleep without scrolling on their phone first? He sat up slightly, preparing to switch off the light:

“Let’s turn it off now. Looking at my phone in the dark doesn’t bother me.”

Jiang Lin opened his eyes, which he had just closed:

“Keep it on. Using your phone in the dark is bad for your eyes. The light doesn’t disturb my sleep.”

Shen Xing nodded. He noted that while the hero wasn’t particularly old, his daily routine was practically as disciplined as a retired cadre’s.

“Well then… good night.”

“Good night.”

Shen Xing turned off the light anyway. He wanted to try adopting a healthy routine for once. Setting his phone down, he closed his eyes. Less than ten minutes later, he opened his eyes, fished out his phone to unlock it, and began lurking under the covers—scrolling through feeds while waiting for a call from the repair shop.

It was almost midnight when the repair shop finally called. He answered immediately: they could patch it up. After settling on a price, they agreed he would pick up the car the next morning. Only then did he feel reassured enough to clutch the warm water bottle and fall asleep.

When he opened his eyes the next morning, he was the only person left in the room. He shot straight up and looked over: the sleeping bag on Jiang Lin’s bed had been packed away, and while his backpack and dog crate were still there, both the man and the dog were gone. He checked the time—7:10 AM.

He rubbed his eyes, got up, changed clothes, and prepared to wash up. Just as he shoved his toothbrush into his mouth, he heard footsteps coming up the wooden stairs outside, followed by the sound of the door lock turning. He turned his head.

The moment Jiang Lin stepped through the door, his eyes locked with Dr. Shen’s—whose mouth was filled with toothpaste foam and whose hair was sticking up like a shuttlecock. Shen Xing watched as the man held the dog’s leash in one hand and two plastic bags in the other. In the very next second, the aroma of food wafted into his nose, and his stomach let out an extraordinarily loud, timely rumble that echoed crisp and clear in the quiet morning air. His face instantly flushed red.

Hearing the rumble, Jiang Lin let out a brief chuckle and shook the bags in his hand:

“Heibao raised a fuss to go outside this morning—did he wake you? I picked up breakfast on the way.”

Dr. Shen, still groggy from sleep, shook his head. He hadn’t even realized when the man had left the room.

Once Shen Xing finished washing up and returned to the room, he saw Jiang Lin waiting for him, having set out the breakfast on the small table:

“I didn’t know what you liked. The breakfast rice noodles around here are pretty decent, and I got two portions of yellow pea powder. Have you tried it before?”

Shen Xing shook his head again. He had only entered Yunnan today and hadn’t had the chance to sample any local specialties yet.

After finishing breakfast, the two packed up their things and went downstairs. The rain had stopped, though the sky remained overcast. Jiang Lin drove Shen Xing to yesterday’s repair shop. Shen Xing went inside, retrieved his car, and paid the bill. When he stepped back out, he saw Jiang Lin leaning against his vehicle smoking a cigarette—looking identical to the very first time Shen Xing had spotted him at the service area. He walked over:

“Hero, I’m heading to Fulan County. Where are you off to?”

Jiang Lin smiled slightly:

“What a coincidence. I’m going to Fulan County too. It’s on the way, so let me drive alongside you. Just in case your fuel tank gives out, I’ll still be there to give you a pull.”

“That’s why you’re a hero! Deal—I’ll take the lead then.”

Jiang Lin made a “after you” gesture.

Shen Xing began moving his luggage from Jiang Lin’s truck back into his own car. As he hauled his bags, he suddenly vented:

“Yesterday on the road, I signaled several times to yield the lane to you, but you wouldn’t pass. Thinking back now, it’s a good thing you didn’t, or I probably would’ve been stuck lying in that ditch until midnight.”

Jiang Lin snuffed out his cigarette, his lying skill masterfully seamless:

“I was feeling pretty groggy back then, so I just thought I’d follow behind you.”

Shen Xing laughed. So he really was just using me to pave the way. Once his cases were secured, he called out a greeting to Jiang Lin and climbed into his car.

There were less than two hundred kilometers remaining. On a highway, that distance would take under two hours. But this wasn’t a highway. Rain had fallen all night, and this national highway was not a single bit easier to navigate than yesterday’s roads—muddy pits filled with standing water were scattered everywhere. Having learned his lesson from yesterday, Shen Xing avoided puddles wherever possible. When avoidance was impossible, he slowed down to a crawl. His average speed hovered around forty kilometers per hour—slower than a turtle—so that after nearly three hours of driving, they had only covered about a hundred kilometers.

Fulan County was located at the border of Yunnan and Tibet, and the elevation climbed continuously along the route. Glancing at the altitude reading on his hiking watch, Shen Xing saw they had ascended nearly a thousand meters in the past hour alone. Seeing that it was nearly noon, Shen Xing placed a hands-free call to Jiang Lin through his car system. It rang twice before being picked up.

“Hero, it’s lunchtime. Let’s find a place to pull over and grab a bite.”

“Sure, you lead the way.”

Shen Xing followed the navigation and turned into a small town along the way. This town was even more dilapidated—it felt like it had even fewer residents than the town they had slept in last night. They barely managed to find two tiny eateries that were open.

The two cars parked one behind the other at the roadside. Shen Xing rarely drove such treacherous roads, and stepping out of the car, his lower back and shoulders felt stiff and sore. As soon as Jiang Lin stepped down from his truck, he saw the man ahead swinging his arms and stamping his feet:

“Tired from driving?”

Shen Xing grabbed a can of Red Bull from his car and handed it over, popping open one for himself as well:

“Not really tired, just tense. There’s loose gravel every stretch of these mountain roads—I’m constantly worried that rocks from the slopes above aren’t secure and might come rolling down.”

“Mudslides are common around here, but now that the rain has stopped, it’s not so bad. You don’t drive mountain roads often, do you? I’ll take the lead for the rest of the way.”

Shen Xing smiled:

“Aren’t you afraid your hardcore off-roader will leave me in the dust?”

Jiang Lin pulled open the Red Bull tab with one hand and chuckled:

“I’ll keep an eye on you in my rearview mirror.”

It was a small diner with a single-page menu offering basic home-cooked country dishes. Neither Shen Xing nor Jiang Lin was picky—being able to eat something hot was already good enough.

After finishing, Jiang Lin fed Heibao his lunch before they got back into their vehicles. This time, the black Land Cruiser took the lead.

Shen Xing dutifully followed the tail of the car ahead. Truth be told, this was vastly easier than navigating alone; whenever a puddle appeared, he simply followed the path taken by the bro ahead. Throughout the afternoon, aside from stopping at a roadside restroom, the two barely paused. Finally, around four in the afternoon, they crossed into the borders of Fulan County.

Less than ten minutes later, the Land Cruiser ahead switched on its right turn signal, slowed down, and pulled over to the shoulder. Shen Xing pulled over behind him as well. Just as he was about to ask what was going on, his phone rang.

“Hero?”

The deep, warm voice sounded from the receiver:

“I’m dropping by a nearby village to visit a friend, so I won’t be heading into the county seat just yet. From here to the county town, it’s less than a twenty-minute drive. Take your time driving. This is where we part ways, Dr. Shen.”

Shen Xing paused for a brief moment. They had only met by chance, so parting ways was inevitable. Yet perhaps because of the grueling journey and being far away from home in a foreign place, he unexpectedly felt a slight, chick-like attachment toward this dependable Land Cruiser bro:

“Ah… will you still be coming to the county seat later? Given the chance, I’d love to treat you to a proper feast in town.”

“I’ll be there. We’ll likely meet again.”

Along the way, Shen Xing hadn’t asked what the man was doing in Fulan County—whether he worked here or was merely passing through. To put it bluntly, they were simply fellow drivers who had hit it off across these two hundred kilometers by coincidence. Compared to ordinary travelers who shared a stretch of road and parted with a honk of the horn, they had only a fraction more fate binding them together. Hearing his words—unsure whether it was merely polite chatter—Shen Xing smiled:

“Alright then. When you arrive in the county town, remember to let me know!”

The orange Audi surged past the Land Cruiser and drove forward. Jiang Lin watched it disappear into the distance before releasing his grip on the steering wheel, pressing his hand firmly against the area below his knee. He lowered his head, pressing his forehead against the wheel, closing his eyes to endure the searing, nerve-racking pang of pain.

Only after a long while did he slowly raise his head. His face was deathly pale, his temples drenched in fine cold sweat. Leaning back weakly against the seat headrest, his trembling, sweat-slicked hand reached into the armrest console to pull out a pillbox. He extracted three or four pills and swallowed them down with a gulp of mineral water.