TV: You can count on me, anytime

A gust of cold wind hit Jiang Xu's face, making her shiver. She told herself that no one in this world was ever meant to depend on anyone else. Besides, she and Liang Xiaoqing weren't really all that close.

With that thought, her heartbeat gradually steadied. Even if she encountered the same situation again, she wouldn't be so shaken.

By the time they reached home, the sky had darkened. The fine drizzle had turned into fat raindrops that pounded against the two big trees in the courtyard, rustling loudly and making quite a racket.

Yang Man's house next door was brightly lit, warm orange light spilling from within. The door wasn't shut tight, and the aroma of chicken soup drifted out along with the light.

Liang Xiaoqing smiled. "Sister Yang, you're making chicken soup again? It smells wonderful."

"Is that Xiaoqing?" A slender female voice came from inside the house, still somewhat distant—Yang Man was tending to the soup in the kitchen, raising her voice. "It's cold out, so something hot will warm you up. Why don't you come over for some soup tonight? You're alone anyway and probably can't be bothered to cook. The chicken was a gift from a student in my class—a real free-range bird. I've been simmering it all afternoon, and the flavor is just right. You're too thin, you know. A bowl of soup will do you good..."

Yang Man didn't hear a reply. Usually, Liang Xiaoqing wasn't like this.

The two were neighbors, both having come to Qing Middle alone, and they always looked out for each other. Yang Man tasted the soup, hummed in approval, and stepped out still wearing her apron. The smile on her face froze when she saw Jiang Xu, who was being led by Liang Xiaoqing's hand.

Jiang Xu didn't look at her. She shrank behind Liang Xiaoqing, holding tightly to her hand.

As for Liang Xiaoqing, she smiled helplessly.

Yang Man was a little embarrassed, but she was good at smoothing things over. She stepped forward and said, "Oh, look at my memory. Forget it, no need to say anything more. Both of you come over for soup—I made plenty, and I can't finish it all by myself."

She smiled and gave Liang Xiaoqing a familiar tug. Liang Xiaoqing clearly thought it was a good idea and smiled back. There was no need to say much—with Yang Man's cooking skills, a meal like that was a real treat.

Yang Man glanced at Jiang Xu, understanding what Liang Xiaoqing meant. She warmly reached out and pulled at Jiang Xu too. "Come on, Jiang Xu. You and Xiaoqing come inside together. It's cold out there—don't catch a chill."

After all, she was Jiang Xu's homeroom teacher, and Xiaoqing clearly cared about this girl. It was only right to look after her a bit.

With that, she turned her attention to Jiang Xu's exam. "How did it go? I heard from Teacher Jin that this test was pretty tough."

But Jiang Xu stood there like a mute robot, unmoved by Yang Man's enthusiasm. She shrank back further behind Liang Xiaoqing, said nothing, and gripped Liang Xiaoqing's hand tightly.

"..." Yang Man laughed awkwardly and let go of her, saying to Liang Xiaoqing, "Still shy around strangers, huh."

Liang Xiaoqing looked at Jiang Xu. "Sister Yang, please don't mind her..."

Yang Man wouldn't hold it against a young girl. She chatted with Liang Xiaoqing for a bit, still urging her to come over for soup.

Liang Xiaoqing seemed to understand Jiang Xu's feelings and declined, saying she didn't want to be a bother.

Yang Man didn't insist.

The door closed, and Liang Xiaoqing turned on the lights, finally shutting out the damp and chilly air.

Liang Xiaoqing let go of Jiang Xu's hand, set her bag of test papers on the shoe cabinet, and hung her scarf on the hook behind the door. Jiang Xu took out both her and Liang Xiaoqing's slippers from the cabinet.

As usual.

Liang Xiaoqing paused mid-step as she took off her shoes. Jiang Xu had already changed into her slippers and was carrying the big bag of papers inside.

Liang Xiaoqing changed her shoes and followed. "Xiao Xu."

"Snap."

The cloth bag snapped—probably worn through from too much use.

The papers scattered all over the floor. Jiang Xu crouched down to pick them up.

"It's okay."

Liang Xiaoqing knelt to pick them up too. "That bag should've been replaced a long time ago."

Jiang Xu looked up at her.

Liang Xiaoqing leaned slightly toward her, sensing something off. "What's wrong?" She looked at her seriously. "Did the exam not go well?"

Jiang Xu answered immediately. "No."

Liang Xiaoqing smiled. "Then what is it?"

"Nothing," Jiang Xu mumbled quietly.

Liang Xiaoqing leaned in a little closer. "Then next time, you can't be so rude like you were just now, okay?"

Jiang Xu frowned and stayed silent.

"After all, you're the younger one, and she's your elder," Liang Xiaoqing said, patting her head. "And she's also your homeroom teacher. Just now she invited you for some chicken soup—"

"She didn't invite me." Jiang Xu suddenly spoke up, cutting off Liang Xiaoqing.

It was probably the first time Jiang Xu had gotten upset with Liang Xiaoqing since she'd moved in with her.

The moment she said it, Jiang Xu regretted it.

"I'm sorry." Jiang Xu hung her head, her long eyelashes trembling slightly. "If I could, I'd go back home."

Now it was Liang Xiaoqing's turn to freeze. "Xiao Xu."

Jiang Xu said nothing.

She continued, "How can you say that? Do you really want to let yourself down? What would you do at your age if you didn't study? Jiang Xu, look at me and tell me—do you really not want to go to school anymore?"

Liang Xiaoqing's tone gradually turned stern. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't have imagined that the girl who had agreed with her not long ago would give up so easily.

Jiang Xu said nothing, her head tilted stubbornly like a little donkey, ready to charge through a wall without looking back.

Liang Xiaoqing felt stifled, and a vague sense of frustration crept in. To be fair, she always hoped her students would come back to study, but Jiang Xu—out of all the students over the years—was the one she cared about the most.

After a moment of silence, Liang Xiaoqing didn't know what to say. Maybe Jiang Xu had something on her mind. She'd talk to her properly in a while.

Even though there'd been a little unpleasantness, Liang Xiaoqing still had to keep her promise. She stood up, mentally tallying whether there was enough food in the fridge for the two of them, and as she glanced over at Jiang Xu, she caught sight of her red-rimmed eyes.

Jiang Xu came over and took her hand. "Xiaoqing, am I being a burden to you?"

Jiang Xu had always known she was a burden—a burden for living in Liang Xiaoqing's home, for making her spend money, for making her worry over every meal. Liang Xiaoqing's decision wasn't approved of by the teachers at Qing Middle; they thought she was letting her sympathy run wild and asking for trouble.

And Yang Man, in subtle little ways, was reminding both Jiang Xu and Liang Xiaoqing of that.

Jiang Xu shouldn't have lost her temper, no matter how much she had to restrain herself. She didn't have that right. Her current life was built on Liang Xiaoqing's kindness.

But Jiang Xu still didn't feel safe.

People grew greedy. Clearly, Jiang Xu was slowly becoming unsatisfied.

She wanted Liang Xiaoqing's home to become a real place she could belong to. She needed something to prove that Liang Xiaoqing truly stood by her choice.

She needed a promise—a guarantee that would stop her from worrying, that wouldn't take away her options.

She wasn't good at gratitude, but she would thank Liang Xiaoqing.

Liang Xiaoqing paused. "How could you ever be a burden to me?"

She squeezed Jiang Xu's hand back.

Jiang Xu's lashes fluttered. Liang Xiaoqing finally understood why Jiang Xu had cut her off with such grievance.

"If, because of my support, you get into high school and then college, and one day you do well for yourself—wouldn't some of that glory rub off on me?" Liang Xiaoqing said, a dreamy look on her face. "Then more teachers would feel hopeful, and more teachers like me would appear, and more students would walk out of the mountains."

Liang Xiaoqing crouched back down, keeping her knees on the floor. The light from behind her cast a shadow that gently enveloped Jiang Xu. "Xiao Xu, you're not a burden. Even if everyone thinks so, you must never believe it. As long as you keep studying, I'll keep supporting you."

Her voice was soft and gentle, as ethereal as the dim yellow light. Jiang Xu squinted at Liang Xiaoqing's warm face, and the heavy stone in her heart finally settled.

Liang Xiaoqing said, "Do you trust me?"

Jiang Xu nodded. "Yes."

"You can trust me no matter what."

Jiang Xu silently memorized those words.

A sincere conversation brought them a little closer.

Liang Xiaoqing felt much better. "Can you handle spicy food?"

Jiang Xu didn't know her own limit, but she could definitely handle some heat, so she said, "Yes."

Liang Xiaoqing's eyes crinkled into a smile. "Great, I'll make a spicy hot pot base. I'll prep the ingredients, and it won't take long."

Jiang Xu said, "Okay."

The clatter of the cutting board and knife rang out for a while, followed by the sizzle of oil. From the kitchen, Liang Xiaoqing yelped, "Ow!"—probably splattered by hot oil.

Jiang Xu was gathering the papers scattered on the floor when she heard it. Worried, she ran over. "Are you okay, Xiaoqing?"

"I'm fine~" Liang Xiaoqing was busy bustling around the kitchen.

By the time Jiang Xu finished picking up the papers and went to help in the kitchen, the spicy fumes had her sneezing repeatedly.

Liang Xiaoqing glanced at her. "Xiao Xu, looks like you can't handle much spice after all." She nudged Jiang Xu out. "Go turn on the TV and switch to Channel X. The news is almost over."

Jiang Xu acknowledged.

Channel X's soap opera aired every Monday and Friday, and Liang Xiaoqing loved it. Whenever Jiang Xu had nothing to do, she'd watch along. But while Liang Xiaoqing was fully engrossed, Jiang Xu would often doze off.

By the time she'd regain consciousness, the soap opera would be over. She'd be lying on the sofa, her head pillowed on Liang Xiaoqing's lap, opening her hazy eyes to see Liang Xiaoqing staring intently at the TV, her eyes red from crying.

It was because Liang Xiaoqing empathized so deeply with the soap opera's hero and heroine. Still choked up, she seemed genuinely heartbroken over the characters' unwavering, bittersweet love story, and her voice came out thick and nasal: "Did I wake you?"

Jiang Xu shook her head and got up from the sofa, heading toward the bedroom. Liang Xiaoqing would then turn off the TV, walk toward the bedroom, dabbing her nose with a tissue as she went.

Someone as cold as Jiang Xu couldn't help but laugh, hidden under the covers.

After bustling around for a while, everything was finally ready. Jiang Xu turned on the TV and switched to Channel X, where the serial was the one Liang Xiaoqing loved.

Jiang Xu called out, "Xiaoqing, the show's starting."

"Coming, coming." Liang Xiaoqing carried out the small stainless steel pot and set it on the induction cooker on the coffee table.

Jiang Xu helped bring out the side dishes.

The pot was full, more than enough for the two of them.

Liang Xiaoqing watched TV while urging her, "Eat up." She scooped some wide noodles from the bubbling broth into Jiang Xu's bowl. "These are good."

It was Jiang Xu's first time having something like this, and she found it novel. She tried the wide noodle Liang Xiaoqing had picked for her.

Hot, spicy, and fragrant flavors flooded her tongue all at once. She squinted from the heat, slurping the noodle down, and a wave of spiciness surged from her throat to the tip of her tongue.

It made her forehead break out in sweat and her cheeks burn red, but Liang Xiaoqing ate at a leisurely pace, seemingly unaffected by the spice.

Jiang Xu ate a few more vegetables, and this time the heat had tears streaming from her eyes.

Luckily, Liang Xiaoqing was too absorbed in the TV to notice anything unusual.

A knock sounded at the door. Liang Xiaoqing went to answer it, and Jiang Xu took the chance to pour herself a glass of water—fortunately, the water in the kettle was still warm.

The cold wind that swept in made the steam from the pot waver. Jiang Xu's lips were swollen from the spice.

Still, her patience held. She pricked up her ears and listened to what was happening at the door.

"Sister Yang, you're too kind."

"It's still warm, drink it while it's hot. I simmered it a while longer, so don't be polite with me."

"Oh, thank you, Sister Yang."

"...and have Jiang Xu drink some too... tell the kid not to overthink..."

"..."

Click. The door closed again.

Liang Xiaoqing walked over carefully, carrying two bowls of chicken soup. "Here, Xiao Xu, have some soup."

Jiang Xu obediently took the soup and set it aside.

Liang Xiaoqing, thinking Jiang Xu had heeded her words, smiled in satisfaction.

The TV screen was a bit fuzzy, showing the heroine's delicate face, crying like a little white flower drenched in rain.

They'd just reached the part where the lead couple breaks up, and Liang Xiaoqing got swept up in the emotion, dabbing at her tears with a tissue. Because Jiang Xu was being so sensible, she said in a hoarse voice, "So touching."

Her voice was a little choked.

Jiang Xu watched the frames pass by one by one on the screen, completely unmoved.

She hadn't eaten much of the food—it was too spicy for her. Maybe it was the spice keeping her alert, but she idly tapped her chopsticks.

Like Liang Xiaoqing, she sat cross-legged on the floor, head tilted, watching Liang Xiaoqing get swept away by emotion.

People were strange sometimes. Jiang Xu watched Liang Xiaoqing for a long time, finally merging the stern-faced woman who scolded her with the one now crying like a little girl.