Just then the early clatter of pots and pans drifted over from the canteen. The smell of warm rice porridge – sweet and salty broth mingled with floating grains – floated through the air. The canteen staff had begun breakfast early, anticipating that students like Li Wei might train outdoors. His stomach rumbled at the inviting aroma.
Inside the canteen, a young cook poured steaming of plain rice porridge into the container and put the pot of hot tea aside for each of them take as much as they like. They found a wooden table by the window that looked out at the campus garden. As Xiao Wu began ladling porridge into their bowls, she passed one to Li Wei. For a moment, their fingers brushed ever so slightly – the contact was quick, almost accidental, but a tiny spark of warmth jolted through Li Wei's hand. He looked up and caught Xiao Wu's eyes; she gave him a bright, gentle smile. Neither said a word about the brief spark, but in the comfort of the quiet morning, they simply went on filling their bowls as if nothing happened.
Li Wei felt his cheeks warm from the touch, but he said nothing. The sound coming from the entrance pulled him from his thought. Hearing the voice he know that the person walking here is Ning Rongrong.
The three bowls of porridge sat steaming, each topped with a little swirl of sweet bean paste and sprinkled with chopped spring onions. On the side plate were freshly fried radish cakes – golden outside and soft inside. Li Wei savored the morning sun on his face as he settled down follow by Xiao Wu and the newly arrived Ning Rongrong on the bench.
"Wow," Ning Rongrong murmured, taking in Li Wei's hearty morning portions. "Mr. Big-Hearted gets big portions, eh? And to think he's been slaving away with boulders since dawn. No wonder our walls keep rattling when he wakes up."
Li Wei grinned and lifted a spoonful of porridge towards his mouth.
"Well sorry about that. No one ever complain before, so I did not know that there were some noise coming from the training that I did."
Li Wei apologize for the disturbing their sleep. He never thought that there is really that big of commotion that he cause when he train.
Then Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong then talk about some girl talk. Hearing this Li Wei make sure that he stay away.
He already had a bad memory from before he join Shrek academy.
Li Wei wrapped his hands around the warm bowl of porridge, feeling the simple comfort of it.
______________________
Later, as the first few classes of the day ended, the sun climbed high and the rain clouds were long gone. Zhu Zhuqing found Li Wei, Xiao Wu, and Ning Rongrong and suggested they take a break by the koi pond. By mid-morning, the three friends strolled down a stone pathway toward the serene pond at the edge of the campus, where Zhu Zhuqing was already waiting with a low stone table. Above them, a cherry blossom tree was in full bloom, its pale pink petals drifting lazily down onto the clear water where colorful koi glided below.
"Come, sit everyone," Zhu Zhuqing said softly as the others arrived. "It's nice here in the shade." She poured each of them a cup of warm jasmine tea from a small clay pot, the steam curling upward. The koi lazily circled in the pond, and a few cherry blossoms floated on the surface. The air smelled faintly of flowers and spring earth. For a few peaceful moments, none of them spoke. Zhu Zhuqing sipped her tea with a quiet smile. Ning Rongrong nibbled on a sweet bean cake, gazing at the blossoms. Xiao Wu, with her knees pulled up to her chest, let a petal drift down onto her skirt. Li Wei wrapped his fingers around his cup and simply listened to the gentle rustle of leaves and distant conversations drifting in the breeze.
Zhu Zhuqing finally broke the silence with a light sigh of satisfaction. "You have such a large selection of tea here, Li Wei," she teased gently, passing her cup. Then, turning to look at them all, she added with a warm smile, "What is everyone's favorite food? I'm starting to get hungry." She looked at Li Wei. "Li Wei, what about you?"
Li Wei thought for a moment, then a small grin formed on his face. "I like spicy noodles," he said quietly, "and hotpot, actually. Lots of spicy hotpot."
Ning Rongrong's eyes lit up. "Oh, hotpot! It been so long since I last eat one. We have to take you to eat the hotpot sometime. The spices that they use will make people face go so red, but people keeps eating it anyway. Well for me it's a nice change of pace from the usual food they serve at home!" She giggled.
Xiao Wu nodded vigorously. "My face would melt if I tried something that spicy! You must have a dragon's stomach, Li Wei," she teased with a grin."
Li Wei chuckled softly, feeling more at ease with their gentle teasing. He took a sip of tea.
Li Wei joined in the laughter. He shrugged and nodded.
The girls burst into laughter at that line. Even Zhu Zhuqing gave a small, rare smile. Li Wei felt a comfortable warmth spread through his chest at their reaction. It felt good to be among friends who laughed easily with him.
Most of the student at shrek Academy can be said to be hard to meet. Ma Hongjun will disappear at the earliest morning, while Dai Mubai usually sleep throughout the day as he sleep close to dawn. Oscar always disappear trying a new sausage dish, he goes to the town trying to sell them.
Today, the four of them including Tang San has not come back to the academy. From the way that they conduct usually, they must be causing trouble.
After their laughter died down, Ning Rongrong put her tea aside and spoke gently. "Li Wei," she said, "we've never really heard about your life before coming here. You know about Xiao Wu and Tang San coming from Nuoding academy, you know that I came from Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan and Zhu Zhuqing situation is quite complicated. Not only that, you always seem a bit… mysterious. Do you mind telling us something about your past?" Her violet eyes looked at him kindly. Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing gave supportive smiles.
Li Wei froze for just a heartbeat. The others looked at him kindly, not accusingly, but with sincere curiosity. He set the tea cup down and glanced at the others: Xiao Wu sitting on the stone chair beside him toward the right, eyes gentle; Ning Rongrong also beside him on the left side looking up at him with innocent interest; and Zhu Zhuqing sitting opposite of him quietly with teapot poised, observing him with her soft, caring gaze. Sitting around the round table in this situation really set the pace.
A breeze drifted through, stirring the surface of the pond, and a few more flower petals fell like soft pink rain onto Zhu Zhuqing's dark hair. The afternoon sunlight shone through the petals above, bathing Li Wei's face in a warm glow. He realized that for the first time, he is at the crossroad.
Look like he cannot kept it a secret for too long. He need to at least answer some of them a little. Not saying anything will arouse suspicion from the others. Most of the Shrek relationship dynamic and a little about their background already been know by other even if it is a surface information. By talking with each other's everyday most already able to guess each other background from the conversation.
Taking a steady breath, he nodded. "Okay," he said softly. "I will talk a little about a place that I like then. When I was very young, I used to sit alone by a riverbank at night, watching the fireflies dance in the grass. It was peaceful... but also lonely. Every time a firefly lit up, though, it felt like someone else was there watching with me."
He paused, then added, voice steady, "When my dad was still alive, he used to take me there to watch the fireflies. After he died... it became a place where I could clear my mind. Even though he was gone, sitting there and watching the lights, I never felt completely alone. Maybe that sounds strange."
For a moment, none of them spoke. Then, one by one, they showed their understanding. Xiao Wu gently reached out and rested a hand on Li Wei's shoulder. Zhu Zhuqing poured a bit more tea into his cup and pushed it toward him reassuringly. Ning Rongrong's hand found his in a gentle squeeze. Li Wei took another breath, feeling the warmth of their concern.
He never told them that this is from the time that before he was reincarnated into this world. The only one know about this is him. Even his current grandfather do not know about this thing.
Unlike the previous world.
When he continued, his voice was steady. "I never actually knew who that person was. Maybe it was someone real, or maybe just a kind thought in my head. But it taught me that even when I felt alone, there was always something watching out for me. That memory… it stayed with me. It helped me believe that maybe I didn't have to be alone forever."
A comfortable silence fell over the table as Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong exchanged warm, understanding glances. The afternoon sun filtered through the cherry blossoms overhead, and the pond water rippled gently beneath them. After a long moment, Xiao Wu broke the silence with a soft smile. "I also understand that feeling. My mother also died when I was young, when I sit at the place where my mother always brought me, it always brought the memory of happy times."
Xiao Wu reached out and lightly placed a hand on Li Wei's shoulder. Her touch was warm and steady, friendly but also a little more than that – as if she were sending him a comfort wave without needing words.
Zhu Zhuqing, without a word, quietly refilled each of their tea cups from the teapot. The tea was warm and fragrant, and a few petals floated on the surface of her cup. Ning Rongrong finished the pastry she had been holding and carefully took another tea sip.
Li Wei looked at their faces and saw understanding and warmth there. His gaze met Xiao Wu's for a moment as she still rested her hand on his shoulder. It made his heart beat just a bit faster, a pleasant thump. He gave a soft smile.
"Thank you," he said softly. "I don't think I've ever told anyone that before."
Xiao Wu smiled back, eyes bright. "You're welcome," she replied quietly. "Just know that you're not alone now."
Zhu Zhuqing nodded. "Yes," she agreed softly. He had a really good father, she wonder if she able to have a father like that will her fate change. "We are all friends here. You don't have to face anything alone."
Li Wei let out a slow breath and felt his chest grow light for the first time in what felt like ages. Sitting among friends who cared about him, feeling the sun warm his back through the petals of spring, he realized it truly was easier to breathe here. A gentle sense of peace filled him as he returned their smiles.
"Thank you," he whispered. He allowed himself a real smile for the first time in a long while.
Li Wei cleared his throat, feeling a warmth spread through him. The late afternoon sun began to shift, the edges of the koi pond glowing golden. The conversation gently drifted back to lighter topics – the shadow play of koi on water and the sweet fragrance of jasmine in their tea. But for Li Wei, the world had a new stillness: a quiet assurance that the evening echoes of his past were fading as the morning light of this new day and these new friendships filled him with hope.
Maybe, just maybe. He should take thing a little slower than usual. To not rush it.
But when he thinks about what will happen to spirit hall in the future, it look like he do not have a lot of time for luxury. Maybe he should savor this moment of peace as it might be rare to have in the future.
The conversation drifted naturally after that, no one pushing him for more, no one prying. They talked about little things — food they'd like to eat, places they'd want to visit once they were stronger, funny moments from classes — and the heavy feeling slowly gave way to laughter once again.
Xiao Wu playfully flicked a cherry blossom petal at Ning Rongrong, who squealed in surprise and retaliated with a handful of petals right back. Zhu Zhuqing, ever the quiet observer, actually cracked a small laugh at their antics, hiding it behind her cup. Li Wei, unable to help himself, chuckled too, the sound low and warm.
When the petals finally settled and the laughter ebbed away, they lay back on the grass by the koi pond, staring up at the sky through the canopy of soft pink blossoms. Li Wei folded his arms behind his head, feeling the coolness of the grass against his back and the steady thrum of life around him.
He glanced sideways at Xiao Wu, who was humming quietly, her eyes half-lidded in contentment. Ning Rongrong was trying — and failing — to catch a drifting petal with her fingers. Zhu Zhuqing simply watched the sky, her dark hair splayed neatly around her like an ink painting on the grass.
In a quiet voice, almost as if speaking to himself, Li Wei murmured, "Maybe this is what peace feels like."