The Young Girl's Chronicles of Demon-Slaying

Chapter 23: The Video

In the afternoon, Lin Yuqin went back to handling the adoption paperwork, while Fang Heng, having nothing else to do, continued playing the piano in the music room. Time flew by. Lin Yuqin didn’t return all afternoon; she only called to check on Fang Heng. It wasn’t until late in the evening that she finally came back carrying the groceries she’d just bought. After dinner that evening, Fang Heng sat in the living room watching TV, while Lin Yuqin and Song Wencheng went upstairs—no one knew what they were doing—but a moment later they came back down and, as if on cue, sat on either side of Fang Heng. Fang Heng keenly sensed that something was off and glanced at the two of them with a puzzled look. “Hengheng, Mom needs to discuss something very serious with you,” Lin Yuqin said, glancing at Song Wencheng. “Mm-hmm!” Fang Heng tilted his head, gave a brief reply, and waited for Lin Yuqin to continue. “It’s about your name… Since Mom and Dad have adopted you, your name will have to change… From now on, you’ll take the surname Song. Do you have any objections?” Lin Yuqin said earnestly. Fang Heng wasn’t a child. Even though he wasn’t familiar with the procedures for adopting orphans, he knew that an adoptee would inevitably have to change their name. Otherwise, not only would they be unable to be registered on the household registration, but having a different surname suddenly appear in the adoptive family would likely feel awkward. Just as he’d prepared himself mentally to call them “Dad” and “Mom” when he’d decided to be adopted, he’d actually been mulling over the name change for quite some time as well. He’d already thought it through thoroughly, so when Lin Yuqin asked him about it now, he didn’t have much to say. He simply replied calmly, “I have no objections.” Hearing this, Song Wencheng and Lin Yuqin exchanged a glance and both silently breathed a sigh of relief. As long as the child had no objections to changing his name, everything else—including what to call him—would be easy to work out. Immediately, Lin Yuqin pulled out the list of names she’d discussed with Song Wencheng the night before and asked Fang Heng to choose, while the two of them huddled together, offering suggestions from the sidelines. Fang Heng took the list and saw more than ten names written on it—Song Baoling, Song Hye-kyo, Song Yunqing, Song Hanxu, and so on. It was impressive that the couple had come up with so many options, but when he scanned them quickly, he found virtually none that satisfied him. Without a doubt, these were all very feminine names—how could he possibly be satisfied under these circumstances? But at this point, he had no choice but to pick one. As he stared blankly at the names, Lin Yuqin and Song Wencheng were still standing nearby, offering suggestions and explaining which names were better and which carried deeper meanings—completely oblivious to the fact that Fang Heng’s attention had long since drifted away from the list. As he sat there lost in thought, he suddenly had the illusion that once he changed his name, he would no longer be himself. Perhaps this was just how things would be from now on? He sighed silently to himself: “Oh well, oh well. Living is like being trapped in a situation I’m powerless to resist—since I can’t change it, I might as well close my eyes and endure it!” Snapping back to reality, he saw that Lin Yuqin and Song Wencheng hadn’t noticed his distraction; instead, they were arguing with each other over which name was better. It seemed that when they’d originally chosen the names, the two had merely picked something rough to fill the quota, but in reality, they each had their own favorites. Now that they were arguing, they simply wanted Fang Heng to choose the name he felt best about. A name is a name for a lifetime. Since he couldn’t change it, Fang Heng had no choice but to pull himself together and choose carefully. After all, whether a name was good or not ultimately depended on his own satisfaction. There were more than ten names—not too many, but not too few either. He scanned them at a glance and had mostly memorized them all. Just as Fang Heng’s gaze lingered on a particular name, someone’s cell phone suddenly rang nearby. Lin Yuqin didn’t react, but Song Wencheng reached into his pocket, pulled out his phone, glanced at the caller ID, and said to Lin Yuqin, “It’s your son calling!” Lin Yuqin pursed her lips and said, “That kid must think I’m out of my mind—he’s calling you instead!” Song Wencheng laughed as he got up and left the living room, answering the call as he walked out the door. “Hengheng, hurry up! Now that the nuisance is gone, take a look and see which one you like!” Seeing that Song Wencheng had walked far enough away, Lin Yuqin hurriedly urged Fang Heng to choose a name. This left Fang Heng feeling a bit at a loss—what did she mean by “the nuisance is gone”? It was just that Song Wencheng had taken issue with the names she’d chosen. Besides, while some of these names were indeed pleasant-sounding and meaningful, most were rather tacky. Take “Song Meiyu,” for example—never mind how it sounded; just looking at it felt tacky. It was clearly just thrown in to make up the numbers. “You pick one! The most important thing is that you like it.” From start to finish, Song Wencheng and Lin Yuqin had merely offered suggestions; as for making the final decision, it was still up to Fang Heng. In this regard, both of them had given him complete freedom. Fang Heng had already made up his mind a moment ago. After being urged by Lin Yuqin, he pointed his finger at a name on the paper and said, “I’ll take this one!” “Song Jianqiu?” Lin Yuqin repeated the name Fang Heng had chosen, then smiled. “I came up with that name myself. I thought it was great right away, and now Hengheng has chosen it! You really do have the same good taste as your mom!” Yes, Song Jianqiu! This name perfectly captured his autumn-like mood, and with its positive connotations and literary ring to it, it was only natural that he chose it. “So, is this the one then?” Lin Yuqin asked. “Mm-hmm!” Fang Heng—no, he should be called Song Jianqiu now—nodded. With the change of his name, it felt as though something had been pulled away from her heart, leaving her with a sense of loss. “What’s up? Have you settled on a name?” Just then, Song Wencheng walked over, overheard their conversation, and asked. “Yes! It’s settled!” Lin Yuqin said triumphantly, waving the piece of paper in her hand. “From now on, her formal name will be Song Jianqiu, and her nickname will still be Hengheng, right?” The last question was directed at Song Jianqiu. Naturally, she had no objections and nodded; keeping the nickname “Hengheng” would serve as a cherished memento. “Hmm! I think that’s fine too.” Since it had already been decided, Song Wencheng naturally had no objections. He took the paper from Lin Yuqin, glanced at it, nodded, and then said to Lin Yuqin, “Your son has some free time right now. Why don’t we set up a video call so he can meet Hengheng?” “Sure!” Lin Yuqin nodded, but not before asking Song Jianqiu’s opinion: “What do you think, Hengheng?” “Sure.” Song Jianqiu agreed as well. After all, whether it happened sooner or later, they’d have to meet eventually. Since he was free now, there was no harm in seeing him. “The phone screen is too small and not very convenient. Let’s go upstairs and use the computer!” Song Wencheng suggested. Lin Yuqin and Song Jianqiu naturally had no objections, so Song Wencheng let Song Chenqing know, and the three of them headed upstairs together. Last time, Song Jianqiu had merely opened the door and peered inside from the doorway without actually going in. This was her first time stepping into Song Wencheng and Lin Yuqin’s room. As soon as she stepped inside, the first thing that caught her eye was a shelf standing against one wall, filled with all kinds of trophies and certificates. She took a closer look and saw that they were all from piano competitions—mostly first-place awards, with a few second-place ones as well. Regardless, such a large number of certificates and trophies clearly attested to Lin Yuqin’s talent. These certificates and trophies were also a source of pride for Lin Yuqin. Seeing her daughter’s curiosity, she began to proudly describe them, while Song Wencheng went to turn on the computer and chimed in with a smile from the side. Meanwhile, Song Chenqing was in the dorm room. Upon receiving the message, he hurriedly called out to the people behind him, “I’m about to video chat with my family. Those of you who aren’t dressed, be careful not to wander around—you might get caught on camera!” After he finished speaking, there was no movement from the beds behind him, but someone called out, “Is your new little sister—the one your mom raves about as a child prodigy—there?” “Isn’t it just because you adopted a daughter that you want to video chat with her?” Song Wencheng sighed helplessly. However, no sooner had he finished speaking than a flurry of activity broke out among the beds behind him. Before long, three fully dressed people got out of bed and lined up behind Song Chenqing. This reaction left Song Chenqing speechless: “So you guys just wanted to see what my ‘step-sister’ looks like?” They’d been sharing the same dorm for over a year and were already quite familiar with one another. One of them grinned and said, “We’re just curious! It won’t hurt to take a look!” After he said that, another person looked at the computer screen but saw only the chat window and no video feed, which struck him as odd: “What’s going on? Hasn’t it started yet?” “They thought the phone screen was too small, so they went upstairs to use a computer,” Song Chenqing explained. “Let’s wait a bit! It should be here soon.” A moment after he finished speaking, he received a video call request. He didn’t answer right away, but instead glanced around at his roommates standing nearby and behind him. After all, this was a video call between Song Chenqing and his family, and it wouldn’t be appropriate for outsiders to be in the frame. In fact, if it hadn’t been for Song Chenqing coming home earlier that day and going on and on about how his family had adopted a girl—and how she’d been praised as a pretty, cute, and gifted young girl—which had piqued their curiosity, they wouldn’t have had the slightest interest in watching this kind of family video call. The three of them understood Song Chenqing’s gesture and, in perfect unison, took a few steps back, positioning themselves out of the camera’s view. Song Chenqing nodded in satisfaction before accepting the request. Once connected, the figure of a girl appeared on the screen, though the camera angle seemed a bit off—a hand reached in from the side and began adjusting it. Taking advantage of this moment, he zoomed in on the video so his three roommates could see it more clearly. A moment later, the camera was adjusted and focused squarely on the girl sitting at the computer, with Lin Yuqin and Song Wencheng seated on either side of her. Seeing the girl on screen, Song Chenqing was a bit surprised—she really was quite cute. His mom hadn’t been exaggerating after all. Could it be that the “child prodigy” story was actually true? (End of Chapter)