The Withered Tree Always Welcomes Spring chapter 41

Before setting sail, Chen Xian called Wu Bie and gave him Shen Jun’s home phone number, saying, “Before leaving, I wanted to contact Xiao Shen, but Shen Jun said he’s already working in the county. If you get a chance, ask Shen Jun for Xiao Shen’s contact information.”

Even after seeing Shen Jixue off, Chen Xian still cared so much. Wu Bie couldn’t do anything about it. Just as he was about to agree, Chen Xian added, “Oh, and if you have time, go to the police station and help check if they’ve caught the hit-and-run driver.”

Wu Bie lost his temper. “Do you think Shen Jixue is a woman? Why are you so fixated on him? What are you after?”

That’s how Chen Xian was, just like with Jiang Ying back then. But at least Jiang Ying was his wife, a woman he lived with. It was reasonable for Chen Xian to be concerned. Now Shen Jixue was just a stranger they wouldn’t meet again, but Chen Xian couldn’t let go.

“I know I’m troubling you. It’s because I’m not at home,” Chen Xian sighed.

Wu Bie didn’t mean it that way. Between him and Chen Xian, these small things weren’t worth fretting over. He just thought Chen Xian, the old softie, needed to change his ways, or else he’d get taken advantage of again in the future.

Chen Xian knew Wu Bie wasn’t that petty. He explained, “If I didn’t know Shen Jixue, if I didn’t know his situation, I wouldn’t bother with this trivial matter. It’s just that now I know him and we’ve lived together for so long, and he’s still so young. I find it hard to just ignore it. Just think of me as overly worried. Once I get in touch with him and make sure everything’s okay, I won’t meddle in his affairs anymore.”

“Alright, you should go now and focus on your journey,” Wu Bie glanced at the overcast sky. “Looks like the weather’s not good. The forecast says it’ll rain for the next few days. Have a safe trip. Remember to call when you reach shore.”

After hanging up, with the cargo loaded and time still early, Chen Xian went into the cabin and took a nap.

He didn’t know how long it had been, but Chen Xian was awoken by a loud knock on the door. Opening it, the sailor in rain gear stood before him.

“Chen, the rain is getting heavy. We’re afraid of running aground, so we’re preparing to dock.”

Rainwater streamed off the sailor’s raincoat, forming a small puddle where he stood.

“The rain is that heavy?” Chen Xian was surprised. Without further questions, he hurried out with the sailor.

No one expected that once they docked, it would pour rain for three days straight without stopping.

Someone murmured, “With this much rain, can the dam hold? If it keeps up, could there be a flood?”

Everyone exchanged glances, unable to answer.

….

Business at the massage parlor in the county town was noticeably slower than in larger cities, with mostly regulars, many of them retirees whose spending wasn’t as high as city dwellers, thus tips were rare.

Shen Jixue managed to adapt. His colleagues at the parlor were in their thirties and treated this university student fairly well.

Suddenly, Shen Jixue felt that fate was unfair yet fair. Although he had encountered many hardships, he had also met many kind-hearted people.

Since arriving at the massage parlor, his uncle hadn’t come to see him once. Naturally, Shen Jixue didn’t know if Chen Xian had called.

When he first arrived, he didn’t dare to use the parlor’s phone. After getting acquainted with the boss, he finally mustered the courage to request to use it. The boss gladly agreed, but when he dialed that familiar number, no one answered.

Chen Xian was probably out on the ship. Even though he was mentally prepared, Shen Jixue felt disappointed. He also tried Chen Xian’s cell phone, but the signal was probably bad, as he still couldn’t get through.

Actually, when he had insisted on leaving initially, he had prepared himself to cut off contact with Chen Xian. He knew that as long as he stayed by Chen Xian’s side, Chen Xian would worry about him.

Wu Bie was right. They were just strangers who met by chance. When he couldn’t find his dad, he had an excuse. Now that he knew his father’s whereabouts, he had no reason to stay at Chen Xian’s house. He couldn’t take advantage of Chen Xian’s kindness; that would be no different from Chen Xian’s ex-wife.

Moreover, as someone like him, even family would get tired of taking care of him after a while. Did he really have to test Chen Xian’s patience? Chen Xian was more patient than most people, but one day, he would get fed up. Shen Jixue needed to be self-aware.

He really shouldn’t continue to contact Chen Xian…

After hanging up the phone, Shen Jixue walked slowly back to his seat. There weren’t many customers at this time, so the lobby’s television was on.

“Continued heavy rain…” the female news anchor’s voice came from the television.

Only then did Shen Jixue realize that it had indeed been raining heavily for several days. Because he didn’t go out much, the rain didn’t affect him much, except that his washed clothes didn’t dry. He didn’t face any other inconveniences.

“Heavy rain…” he muttered to himself. He wondered if such heavy rain would affect Chen Xian and the others on their boat…

After waiting for quite some time without the rain stopping, they finally received notice to return to port. The spot where Chen Xian’s boat was docked had poor reception, requiring them to go ashore to make calls, and even then, they had to walk a long way. During this time, Chen Xian and Wu Bie only exchanged a few phone calls.

“Returning is good. Staying here indefinitely isn’t a solution.”

“This is the first time we’ve been asked to return to port. I wonder what’s going on.”

Someone else chimed in, “I saw on the news yesterday that the water levels rose. If we don’t return soon, there might be flooding.”

During their time on the ship, they were cut off from a lot of news. Upon returning to port, they learned that flooding was widespread in many areas. In response to the national call for disaster relief, their unit decided to send some of the ships approaching their retirement age to assist.

It was a win-win situation. They could help with flood relief and solve the problem of ships that were nearing retirement age without the budget to buy new ones. The government would surely compensate them.

Originally, those who refused to leave their homes were now eager to go help as soon as they heard the unit was saved.

Wu Bie muttered quietly to Chen Xian, “Everyone’s quite practical. Now they know it’s time to show their worth.”

Chen Xian had just finished submitting forms in the office. Carrying his luggage, he walked out with Wu Bie. He smiled faintly, not blaming everyone for being practical. After all, everyone had to support their families and plan for their own future.

It was raining where they were too, though not heavily. There were few pedestrians on the road, and they quickly hailed a cab.

Once inside the car, Chen Xian first asked Wu Bie about the new team for the boat. Zhang ge was reliable and had accumulated many connections over the years in the unit. All procedures were progressing methodically.

After hearing this, Chen Xian also relaxed a bit. “Although there’s compensation now and the unit won’t collapse immediately, but…”

At this point, Chen Xian exchanged a glance with Wu Bie. Everyone knew the score. Even if the unit didn’t collapse in this downturn, it would only be hanging on, and layoffs were still inevitable; it was just a matter of time.

“It’s still more reliable to strike out on our own,” they both said simultaneously, and then chuckled.

Chen Xian took out his phone, which had been dead for a while. His smile gradually faded as he checked it, and Wu Bie glanced at him.

“Don’t think I haven’t taken what you said to heart. There’s no news from the police station, and as for that blind kid’s uncle, I called once but got nothing out of him. When I tried again, he wouldn’t pick up.”

It was a long shot; even intimidation wouldn’t work on him, let alone the fact that he wouldn’t even answer the phone.

Chen Xian knew what kind of person Shen Jun was, and Wu Bie was busy too, so he didn’t insist.

Just then, the car’s radio started broadcasting news about the flood. Many downstream provinces were affected by the flood, and when they mentioned the neighboring province, Chen Xian paused. That was where Shen Jixue’s hometown was.

Seeing this, Wu Bie hurriedly comforted him, “They’re talking about the city, not the mountains. There shouldn’t be… “

Halfway through, Wu Bie stopped, remembering that Shen Jixue had mentioned asking his uncle in the county town to find him a job at a massage parlor. He didn’t know if he had found one or not, or if there were floods where Shen Jixue was.

Wu Bie took out his phone and handed it to Chen Xian. “Why don’t you try calling yourself? If Shen Jun still won’t say, I’ll help you scare him.”

Chen Xian took the phone and quickly dialed Shen Jun’s home number, but it was constantly busy, filling him with a sense of unease.

“This can’t be just a coincidence,” Wu Bie muttered worriedly. “That blind kid probably went to the county town. His uncle was counting on him to support the family.”

Chen Xian looked at Wu Bie in surprise. “Support the family? Did Shen Jun decide to take him back for that reason? How do you know?”

“Well…” Three consecutive questions left Wu Bie tongue-tied. He scratched his cheek, knowing he couldn’t evade the truth. “The kid told his uncle himself. He went back to find a job to support the family. Otherwise, why would that old man Shen Jun be willing to take him back?”

“When did this happen?”

“Uh…” Wu Bie clicked his tongue. “The day we went to the crematorium, when you went to find a car.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Chen Xian had always thought Shen Jixue went back with his uncle out of familial affection.

“I knew once I told you, you would start thinking too much. It was the best time to send him off; he wanted to go, his uncle wanted him to go, so let them go,” Wu Bie added, “Everyone has their own path to walk. You can’t help him forever.”

Now thinking about it, Shen Jixue probably left to avoid causing trouble for him. Chen Xian sighed deeply, worried. “I really don’t feel at ease. In this situation, with no way to contact anyone, I don’t know how he’s doing.”

“Don’t…”

Before Wu Bie could finish, Chen Xian looked at him, “Before I didn’t know him, but now I do.”