✅🏳️‍🌈[BL] Di Di |English(Completed)

1

The abundance of life hit him in the face like a fist and made his body burn.

Xu Ping found a young labour worker squatting by the road and handed him twenty yuan.

"Get me a branch from that tree."

The young fellow looked at Xu Ping and the tree with a frown and stayed squatting. "I'll get fined."

Xu Ping pushed at his glasses. "I'll give you twenty more."

Forty yuan to climb a tree? That was a good deal. The young man threw his cigarette butt on the ground and asked, "How many you want? I'm chargin' extra for more."

Xu Ping arrived at the hospital with a branch dotted with pinkish-white flowers and a bag of apples.

His dad looked very good that day. Xu Ping stuck the branch in a vase and placed the vase by the bed. His dad even smiled at him.

Compared with the average-looking Xu Ping, his dad had a handsome face that not even old age could spoil.

His dad had been an actor his whole life, a supporting role if there ever was one. When he was young, square-set jaws and bold brows were in. Wide shoulders and a broad frame in general were desired for a Herculean effect. He was so good-looking, however, that he had the bad-boy aura instead. When it came time for the distinctive cutie-type to gain popularity, like Andy Lau, Aaron Kwok and Edison Chen, he was already an old man.

Xu Ping grabbed a chair to sit by the bed and started peeling an apple for him.

The sickly man kept his eyes on his elder son.

He was so skinny that he was practically all bone and the veins jutted out along his arm. Eating and speaking had become extremely painful because of the cancer. Despite this frail state, not a single hair was out of place on his head.

Xu Ping cut the apple into small pieces and placed them on a plate before helping him up. The man took one piece, chewed it and swallowed it painstakingly. After, he nodded at his son with a smile, meaning it was good.

Xu Ping took out today's paper and asked in a gentle voice, "Why don't I read the paper for you, Dad?"

He nodded.

It was May 17th, 2006, a day of sunshine and peace. The paper was filled with insignificant news, as though the world was free from disasters and accidents on this day. The King of Cambodia was visiting China again. Tokyo was going to host an international summit next month. A Polish writer had been translated and published in Chinese for the first time.

He listened quietly while lying on the bed.

His throat started to hurt by the time Xu Ping finished every column. Xu Ping folded the paper back and talked about work and his brother. He stayed at the hospital in the afternoons and not much can happen in twenty-four hours, so he finished fairly quickly.

The two sat across from each other, wordless.

Xu Ping asked after scanning around, "Do you want some water, Dad?"

His dad shook his head. Xu Ping's own throat was so dry it could catch on fire, but he held back.

When Xu Ping finally broke the silence, he said, "I was thinking, why don't I bring -Zheng along to visit tomorrow?"

After some thought, his dad slowly shook his head.

It was clear what his dad wanted. He didn't want Xiao-Zheng to come to the hospital.

Xu Ping opened his mouth to speak but let it go in the end.

"Then I'll come by myself tomorrow." Xu Ping took a look at his watch and got up to leave.

His dad made a writing motion with his right hand. Xu Ping took out a pen and paper from his bag.

With a shaking hand, his dad wrote:

"Don't abandon your brother."

Xu Ping felt a sting in his nose and tears threatened to burst forth.

"What are you saying, Dad. He's my brother. I'd never just leave him!"

His dad wrote another line.

"Don't tell him. He doesn't understand."

Don't tell him. Don't tell him what?

Xu Ping felt terrified but did not dare show it on his face. He nodded furiously, "Don't worry, Dad."

"Is there anything else you'd like for me to do?" he inquired softly.

His dad shook his head and handed the pen and paper back to Xu Ping. He patted Xu Ping's right hand and tried to raise his hand higher, but he hadn't the strength to.

Xu Ping held his bony hand up to his face.

Their fingers were of the same shape and size. The knuckles protruded a little and the index finger was longer than usual.

Xu Ping thought, this really is my dad. We share the same blood. The creator even made my hand to look exactly like his.

But this man is about to die.

Unable to fight back the emotions, he let out a cry, "Dad!"

His dad pulled a smile and winked at Xu Ping.

An actor his whole life, he no longer needed language to speak.

What he said was, "Alright. I'll see you tomorrow, son."

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The term used to describe the type of face popular during Xu Chuan's youth is literally "face like the character 国". Here is a face said to be so.

Here are pictures of the other stars mentioned in the chapter to have a similar face as Xu Chuan.

Andy Lau

Aaron Kwok

Edison Chen

(they just get pointier and pointier, don't they???)

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
ayszhang: Here is the first chapter! I apologize but this story won't have a patterned release schedule, but I will put it up on the sidebar (top on mobile) when I know. I do have to say that I think this story might be a better read in one go since chapters skip through time and space, but I will leave that up to you :)