CHAPTER 27: CRAZY
After the thing with Xiao Yiran, Zhang Yang did not feel
like talking, he just nodded and sat down. After that he was immediately
indulged in the book and then he felt as if the world is not that important,
what’s important were those words, those fragments of memories and the
boundless knowledge of ocean.
a minute….
An hour…
Two hours…
…….
Zhang Yang simply lost track of time, exchanging one book
with the other. Not only had he forgotten about all of his troubles, but also
his tongue that was bitten. He was seeking for the knowledge that led to the
secret of the rise of mankind. His own thoughts and those other memories were
unceasingly merging with one another.
At present, Zhang Yang was not limited to only one kind of
book, as long as there was something to read, he would pick it up to see as if
his head had been possessed by a mysterious force which was controlling him to
do the crazy learning.
Zhang Yang had a very wonderful feeling. It seemed that a
lot of books somewhat contained fascinating things but he could not tell it
specifically, especially when reading some old ancient books, there was a kind of
impulse that Zhang Yang felt, an explicable impulse as if those words contained
a hidden ancient secret in general.
Unconsciously, Zhang Yang’s reading aim changed its
direction to some ancient literature
Du Xue looked at Zhang Yang constantly standing up and sit
down again and again, and blankly forgot to read the book herself. She simply
could not understand why Zhang Yang was reading repeatedly in such a manner.
He’d picked up a lot of books and exchanged it in no less than twenty minutes,
even to the extent that some books were switched after only a few minutes of
reading. Of course, this was not reason why Du Xue was surprised, she was
rather amazed to see Zhang Yang with that kind of concentration and investment.
Du Xue was convinced that Zhang Yang was definitely a true pa.s.sionate reader,
only a person who is earnest about reading would have such single mindedly devoting and engrossed
expression …
A few hours later, Du Xue got a phone call and had to leave but Zhang
Yang did not notice her departure as if his whole body was possessed and
immersed amidst the vast sea of literature unable to extricate himself.
When human beings’ mental state undergoes an extreme concentration,
the pa.s.sage of time seems to be several times faster than usual. Du Xue had
been gone for few hours and the crowd inside the library grew smaller and
smaller, bartered with wave by another wave and only Zhang Yang was left sitting
there unceasingly getting up to take a book as he had even forgotten about
hunger …
“Zhang Yang, Are you still here?” A delicate voice
interrupted Zhang Yang’s thoughts.
“Uh Huh …”
Zhang Yang raised his head buried in the book.
“Have you had your dinner yet?”
“Ah, dinner … what?” Suddenly, a burst of extreme exhaustion
and hunger invaded his brain. Zhang Yang just remembered that he had actually
forgotten to eat and immediately the writings and the memories of intellect,
everything were tossed aside.
“Here you are.” Du Xue handed a red plastic bag to Zhang
Yang.
Looking at the pair of white delicate hands above the sweet
scattered fragrance of the cake, for a while Zhang Yang could not refrain from
remembering Xiao Yiran’s soft hands.
“It’s late, I’ll go out to eat myself.”
Zhang Yang sighed and stood up, put the book back on the
bookshelf and stepped out from the library. He did not want to spend a minute
with any other woman as he feared the evil mind inside his brain would again
take control of his body.
“Stop!”
Zhang Yang was walking to the door when suddenly a cold and
detached voice yelled.
“Ah …” Zhang Yang forcibly stopped his footsteps, turned
around and was astounded to look at the old maid leaning over the desk to
arrange some books.
“There’s some bread and water, you take it and it’s not to
be taken as a precedent (#idiom: not to be repeated). The old maid didn’t lift
her head as she pointed to a small cupboard next to the desk.
Zhang Yang was originally surprised, but in his heart he
suddenly felt a warmth, a kind of extremely familiar feeling spread through his
blood vessels. When the bookstore owner realized that he hadn’t eaten anything,
he said this sentence and this women also used the same sentence with the same
expression full of cold and unconcern but Zhang Yang clearly understood that
only those who is really paying attention to a person, or who cares about the
person’s time will be concerned about the other party not having a meal.
“Thank You.”
Zhang Yang hesitated a little to pick up the bread and water
while walking out, and yet from the beginning to the end the old maid did not
speak a word.
Looking at Zhang Yang disappear from the doorway, Du Xue holding
the food in her hands, with eyes full of tears turned around. She had specially
come to give Zhang Yang the cake but to one’s surprise Zhang Yang did not spare
her sensibilities even to a slightest degree and would rather eat the old maid’s
bread than to eat what she’d brought.
…..
Looking at Du Xue, an old man sighed and walked from behind
the old maid’s desk, he was the retired Harvard professor. He came almost every
day in the library waiting for Zhang Yang, but he was disappointed that Zhang
Yang seemed to have lost interest in mathematical calculations, and the books
that he read today did not consist of a single Math book at all.
“Why don’t you tell him to not to scribble on the books?”
“There’s no need, I’m free anyway.”
The old maid was still very busy, if Zhang Yang was to see
this then he would be extremely surprised, because, the old maid’s desk was
piled up with books and periodicals that he read and also on the above, a
number of notes and annotations that he unconsciously made with a pen.
Now, the old maid was in the process of conscientious use of
chemical pharmaceuticals to remove those handwritings with extremely careful
devotion.
“He is a genius!” said the old professor.
“Yes, he is a genius, so I cannot disturb him to read.” The
old maid carefully put a book aside. It seemed that her workload today was
still very large, because looking at the number of the books acc.u.mulated, she
hadn’t even finished the half of it.”
“Well ……., are you going to stay in this library forever?”
The old professor hesitated to ask.
“If he doesn’t come, I’ll stay here forever.” The old maid’s voice was so gentle that if
Zhang Yang were to see, he would be really surprised. The face which usually
looked cold and detached actually looked flushed as if a young girl was embarra.s.sed
to yearn for love in spring time.
“Ah ..” The old professor sighed and left.
“I’m sorry!”
Watching the old professor’s stoop and h.o.a.ry figure disappear
in the doorway, the old maid murmured with a look of apology.