Pandora’s Box

The door opened quickly. Zhuo was startled to see that it was me, and then he gently asked, “What’s wrong?”

He hadn’t slept yet, as indicated by the candle flickering near the bed with a book placed next to it. Wearing glasses, he appeared distant and unpredictable.

I smiled and said, “Well then, come and chat with me.”

He was little surprised but reacted with a smile, “Are you still scared?”

Already exposed, I laughed dryly, “Hahaha.”

He suggested, “Lets go to your room.”

I was moved by his words.

“Just in case you are scared when you go back to your room next time,” he said as he brought along a candle and book.

Although I claimed that I only wanted to talk to him, my heartbeat jumped wildly after entering my room. I didn’t know what we were going to talk about.

After staring at each other for a while, I awkwardly asked, “Why don’t you continue reading? It can put me at ease.”

He gave me a look, nodded, and sat in the chair before continuing to flip through the book. It was still windy and stormy outside the house, but I was more relieved now that I had someone by my side.

Zhuo Wenyang was truly upright from head to toe.

I thought he may be the type of individual who’d be able to survive at the end of a horror movie. If I transmigrated into a horror novel, I would definitely follow him closely to ensure my survival.

I asked, “Hey, aren’t you afraid of ghosts?”

He glanced at me and answered, “Not afraid.”

“Is it because you were once scared by Uncle Chen?”

When mentioning his father, he laughed, “That’s right. I’ve heard plenty of horror stories since I was a child. Besides, there’s no reason to be afraid of fiction.”

I thought for a while and asked, “But, how do you know if these ghost stories are not real?”

He looked at me, “Hm?”

“People only believe in what they can see and feel. There are some things that we firmly believe are fake because we can’t feel them, but what if they do exist?”

He raised his eyebrows and commented, “It makes sense.”

“…..”

I didn’t expect him to agree and accept my rebuttal so easily. Exactly like Cheng Yichen.

Then, he lightly added, “However, even if that is true, I don’t think ghosts are scary. In this world, people are more terrifying than ghosts.”

“…..”

For some reason, when he said that, I felt more creeped out.

I felt a shiver underneath my quilt and said, “Tell me a story.”

“What do you want to hear?”

“The kind that doesn’t scare people.”

He said, “Then let me tell you about the ruler of Sagittarius, Jupiter.”

“Yes, yes.”

He spoke of the largest planet in the solar system, powerful storms that existed on its surface, and its ability in transforming into a star. Although it was not the closest planet to Earth, it had always protected Earth. With its strong gravitation and large body, it had endured numerous asteroid impacts for Earth…

I leaned against the pillow and watched him. He spoke intellectually, and his voice was soothing. Unconsciously, my eyelids gradually became heavier and heavier until I couldn’t see his appearance clearly anymore.

I had a dream. In the dream, I saw the vast universe, stars that littered the sky, the big and pitiful Jupiter, Earth that was cared for unknowingly, and Zhuo Wenyang.

I slept too deeply so I woke up late the next day. Not only did I miss breakfast, but Zhuo Wenyang was also gone. The house was empty. I could only see Cheng Yichen working at his desk through the opened study room.

I knocked on the door. Cheng Yichen turned around in response, seeing me and smiling. He said, “Are you up? Lunch is not ready yet. Let me cook something for you first?”

“No, I’ll just drink some soy milk.”

He placed his book on a reading rack with a rice paper spread in front. It looked like he was practicing calligraphy.

I curiously asked, “What book is this?”

Cheng Yichen showed me the cover, “A Woman of No Importance” by Oscar Wilde.

“Is the book written by this person good?”

He had quite a few books by this author.

Cheng Yichen smiled and answered, “You must have seen his work, such as ‘The Happy Prince.’”

Recalling back to the student days of primary school, I remembered and said, “Oh.”

I did remember that the Happy Prince had eyes made out of gemstones and his body was covered with gold. Yet, in the end, he became and had nothing but a swallow who froze to death at his feet.

I looked to see what he was writing. Repeated on the paper was a neatly written excerpt that read, “Every said has a dark past, and every sinner has a pure and flawless future.”

“Was this written in the book?” I pondered, “Forgetting about the first half of the sentence, but isn’t the second half too wishful?”

He slightly lowered his eyes and agreed, “Yes.”

“By the way, Uncle Chen,” I finally remembered what I had been pondering about for a while now, “I want to ask you to recommend some books for me.”

He raised his eyes and asked gently, “Okay, what about?”

“Astronomy.”

Surprised by my answer, Cheng Yichen inquired further, “Astronomy? Why are you interested in this?”

Scratching my head, I replied, “Zhuo Wenyang’s presentation was very interesting. I just want to find some books read and understand more.”

He smiled, “Okay, I’ll find you some in a few days.”

Two days later, I went to Cheng Yichen’s bookstore, and he really selected a few books to place in front of me.

“To start, I didn’t prepare a lot of books to not overwhelm you. Christopher Galfard’s ‘A Minimalist History of the Universe’ is a good science book. I think it’s a good introduction. ‘Introduction to Astronomy,’ ‘Observation of the Starry Night Sky,’ and this other book,” he hesitated, “is the most suitable for beginners.”

I looked at the lovely font of the title on the cover; it read “XXX for children’s reading” at the bottom.

Cheng Yichen added, “This book is actually very interesting. It is a very professional children’s astronomy book. It’s rich in information and easy to read. This won’t discourage you from getting started. I don’t know if you mind, but Wenyang liked it very much when he was young.”

I immediately said, “To be honest, children’s books are suitable for me to read.”

He laughed.

I didn’t know why but in front of him, I could lower my guard and think of myself as a child.

He poured me a cup of tea and placed a small plate of candy in front of me, saying, “Take a look first. Call me if you have any questions.”

“Mm,” I acquiesced.

Although I took the initiative to request for a few reading books, as soon as these books were placed in front of me, my scalp inevitably went numb and I felt the urge to pee myself.

Thinking about our textbooks, there were more than a dozen pages of content daily. Yuan Keke had to persuade and scold me, but I could barely keep up with her progress. I was not that bright so how would I dare challenge myself?

Aside from children books, I suspected that the first page of the book would be abandoned like my memorization attempts of English words.

Cheng Yichen watched me with a smile and said, “It’s okay. Read slowly and don’t worry if you don’t understand.”

“The feeling of reading a good book is like,” he thought for a moment and said, “like a hard candy with filling in the middle. When it gradually melts, your mouth will be filled with good taste.”

“Mm…..”

Because of Zhuo Wenyang and Cheng Yichen, the things I generally avoided before was gradually getting better.