Chapter 244 – A Past That Is A Mixture Of Truth And Falsehood
In fact, Yang Yi had already planned to explain it, but he had been waiting for the suitable moment to say it. Now was obviously not the right time because he hasn’t demonstrated his violin skills yet, nor had he figured out how to let Mo Fei know about his composing abilities…
But now that Mo Fei has already figured it out, Yang Yi has to speak up, even if it wasn’t the right moment.1The phrase “赶鸭子上架” is an idiomatic expression in Chinese that literally translates to “to force a duck onto a perch.” Figuratively, it means to rush or push someone into doing something against their will or before they are fully prepared.
Yang Yi stood up and took down a military green cross-body bag from the bookshelf. It was the treasured item of his predecessor. Yang Yi sat back on the sofa, opened the cross-body bag, carefully took out several gold-plated bronze military medals from the inside, and arranged them in a straight line. Then he took out an officer’s ID card from the Wolf Warriors Special Forces unit, which absolutely couldn’t be exposed, and gently placed it on top.
Mo Fei knew that Yang Yi used to be a soldier, but after she became close with Yang Yi, she found that Yang Yi was very secretive about his past, so she didn’t inquire too much.
But now Yang Yi had laid them out in front of her. Mo Fei looked at the shiny gold military medals adorned with bright red national flags one by one and couldn’t help but think of the scars on Yang Yi’s body, especially the two bullet marks that pierced through his chest and back. Her soft heart trembled just like it did when she first touched them.
“Once, I was a soldier, a soldier in a special forces unit,” Yang Yi gently said, as if he was unveiling the fog that had shrouded himself to Mo Fei. “Our unit is a bit different from regular garrisons. Even in these seemingly peaceful and calm days, there are still many fierce small-scale battles that require our deployment. For example, drug lords in the southwest jungle or some unruly warlords of small countries.”
“Even our unit undergoes some special training that enables us to infiltrate certain special occasions and execute plans such as assassination or hostage rescue. For example, we once disguised ourselves and infiltrated a high-stakes gambling ship in international waters to rescue a kidnapped businessman.” Yang Yi began to make up stories, and Mo Fei, who had little understanding of real military operations, naively believed him.
Some people say that the highest level of lying is to tell 99% truth and 1% lie. Regardless of how much exaggeration Yang Yi’s explanation contained, he still mentioned some key points that Mo Fei wanted to hear.
“So, I received training in both hot and cold weapons2for those who don’t know, hot and cold weapon: “热武器” (rè wǔqì) refers to firearms or weapons that use explosive or combustion-based mechanisms, such as guns and rifles. On the other hand, “冷兵器” (lěng bīngqì) refers to cold weapons or weapons that do not rely on combustion, such as knives, swords, or other bladed weapons.
, as well as various miscellaneous courses, such as learning multiple languages… I can speak English too. I learned it during that time,” Yang Yi said.
“Oh, that’s right!” Mo Fei remembered the birthday song Yang Yi sang for Xixi, there was an English version too3Chapter 99. Although it was simple, Yang Yi was indeed able to articulated the words clearly and pronounced them accurately. It was evident that he couldn’t achieve that without learning English.
“I also know how to play instruments like the guitar, piano, and so on. Maybe I have a higher talent in music, and I learned better than other comrades!” Yang Yi said.
“Is that what you call higher talent? Your guitar and piano skills are similar to those of a beginner… wait!” Mo Fei said reproachfully, but she quickly realized something was off. She pouted and said unhappily, “You pretended, didn’t you?”
Yang Yi nodded awkwardly and said, “Yes… I originally wanted you to see my progress, and then when everything fell into place, when you wouldn’t feel overwhelmed by the sudden and unacceptable change, I would explain it to you in detail.”
In fact, Yang Yi not only prepared reasons for the explanation but also thought that if his true abilities were gradually accepted by Mo Fei, he would simply go with the flow. This way, he could write songs for Mo Fei using his true identity without needing to explain too much… Even if he abandoned the identity of “Mu Li’ang”, it wouldn’t matter.
Yang Yi didn’t want to enter the entertainment industry or seek fame, so it didn’t matter whether he kept the identity of Mu Li’ang. As long as Mo Fei didn’t suspect him of being a transmigrator, it was fine.
Mo Fei didn’t know that Yang Yi had thought about so much. She was still puzzled, saying, “No, I still don’t understand. When you first met me and when we met again after more than four years, why did you pretend to know nothing? Were you intentionally trying to annoy me?”
It wasn’t like pretending to understand nothing… The Yang Yi at that time really didn’t understand anything!
Mo Fei felt uncomfortable in her heart as she thought about it. She was a bit angry and said, “Do you think I’m an unreasonable woman or a vain woman? If you had told me from the beginning that you had received these trainings and showed me from the beginning that you could play the piano, play the guitar, and write songs, would I have clung to you shamelessly?”
These speculations have just popped up in her heart, and if she didn’t say them out loud, she felt like she would explode!
“How could it be! You haven’t even finished listening to my explanation yet.” Yang Yi saw that Mo Fei was getting upset and knew that he couldn’t keep her in suspense any longer, he quickly said, “My previous experiences required strict confidentiality. Even if I had to leave the army for some special reasons, I still had to sign a five-year confidentiality agreement! During these five years, I can’t mention my experiences in the army to anyone, and likewise, I can’t showcase the skills I learned in the army to anyone! It’s absolutely prohibited!”
There was indeed a confidentiality agreement, but it wasn’t to the extent of hiding all his skills. Yang Yi was still using 99% truth to cover up his 1% lie.
But Mo Fei naively believed it. After listening to Yang Yi’s explanation, her resentment immediately dissipated. After hesitating for a moment, she said, “So, before that…”
“That’s right, it was within the confidentiality period, so I couldn’t help it, and I had to watch you fail in your comeback,” Yang Yi said apologetically.
“It’s not your fault…” Mo Fei’s anger had completely dissipated now. She lightly caressed the military medals with her fingers, as if she could see the origins of the scars on Yang Yi’s body. “You were also restricted and couldn’t help it.”
“Then, is the five-year confidentiality period over now?” Mo Fei asked.
“It’s over,” Yang Yi nodded.
In fact, from Yang Yi’s retirement to his arrival, it was more than five years. If one calculated carefully, there were still a few small loopholes, but who made Mo Fei bad at math? She was being taken advantage of without even realizing it…
Mo Fei pouted her mouth, unsure whether it was a complaint or a grievance after her anger had dissipated. “Actually, I’m not that narrow-minded! If you had told me directly after the confidentiality period ended, I wouldn’t have minded at all. Was it necessary to deliberately be mean to me and make me resentful to you at that time?”
“It’s all my fault. Mainly because I care about you too much! I was afraid that you would be scared by my sudden change and leave me,” Yang Yi finally let go of the burden in his heart, and as he put away his military medals and officer’s identification, he said softly.
Perhaps moved by Yang Yi’s concern, Mo Fei was in a great mood. She puffed her cheeks and said, “Hmph, I won’t leave you because I’m scared! At most, I would be scared away by your meanness!”
“I, Yang Yi, swear to the heavens that I will never be mean to Mo Fei again, or may the sky strike me with lightning!” Yang Yi raised three fingers and swore.
“Don’t be in such a hurry to swear. I still have many questions to ask you!” Mo Fei pulled down Yang Yi’s raised fingers.
“What questions?”
“At that time, when you told me in the email that the song ‘You Exist In My Song’ wasn’t written for me, Mo Fei, but for a girl you deeply liked, quickly tell me, who is this girl?” Mo Fei pouted and asked.
Uh, this was about digging up old issues and getting to the bottom of it!
TN: If you like my translations support me in ko-fi: Here.
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