ATLAS TRANSLATES

Zhan Xi had a good dream, but her pleasant mood couldn’t fight off the virus. When she woke up Sunday morning, her fever had gotten worse.

When she got up, Zhan Jie had already gone to work overtime at the company, leaving only Qin Fei and Wei Wei at home.

Liu the real estate agent called Zhan Xi to ask about her decision. After some thought, Zhan Xi agreed to meet him after work on Monday to sign the contract. She decided to rent unit 802 at Qingque Gardens, planning to ask for forgiveness rather than permission.

—

Luo Jingyu arrived at the dessert shop half an hour early, not because he was too excited or nervous, but because he had miscalculated the travel time.

Walking into the shop, he removed his mask and looked around. At 10 AM, there shouldn’t have been many customers, but one area was crowded with over a dozen people, including five or six kindergarten-aged children.

Luo Jingyu couldn’t hear anything, but when he went closer, he saw the children doing crafts with their parents helping – it seemed to be a parent-child activity organized by the shop.

A female server approached him: “Welcome, sir. There are empty seats over there. You can scan the QR code to order.”

Luo Jingyu looked at the materials on the children’s tables and typed a message on his phone’s notepad to show the server: [Can I have a piece of paper?]

The server paused for a moment. Luo Jingyu pointed at the colored paper on the table, and the server smiled saying, “Of course.”

She brought him a pink A4 paper. Luo Jingyu accepted it and typed: [Thank you.]

The blushing server led him to a window seat. Luo Jingyu sat down and first cut the A4 paper into four squares, then began folding origami.

This was his hobby from his youth, perfect for passing time. Though it had been a while since he last did origami, and he’d forgotten some steps for the more complex designs, he could still fold simple animals.

There were children in the shop, so it was probably noisy, but Luo Jingyu’s world would never be disturbed by such noise. The bouncing children actually made for an endearing backdrop, bringing out his childlike spirit.

His ten fingers moved skillfully as he first folded a pink rabbit with two long ears, then a cat. Taking out the pen he always carried in his pocket, he drew black eyes on the rabbit and cat. While folding a tropical fish, his phone vibrated – Chang Ting messaged saying she would arrive soon.

This was Luo Jingyu’s first blind date. Chang Ting was his brother-in-law Gao Yuan’s colleague at the District Disabled Persons’ Federation. Half a year ago, Gao Yuan had introduced another girl to Luo Jingyu. After adding each other on WeChat, the girl had been very proactive, chatting with Luo Jingyu daily. Unfortunately, Luo Jingyu’s chat skills were terrible, and when he got busy with work, he wouldn’t respond for hours. After several unanswered messages, the girl got angry and blocked him.

This time, Luo Xiaomei instructed Gao Yuan not to let Luo Jingyu chat on WeChat – they should meet in person directly.

Her brother’s selling points were clearly his height and looks. If the girl saw him first, half the battle would be won.

After reading the message, Luo Jingyu put the origami and pen in his coat pocket and sat up straight.

“Egg Pudding” had told him to dress neatly and properly, so Luo Jingyu wore a down jacket, also in black, wearing it for the first time this winter. The jacket still carried the woody fragrance from the closet’s air freshener – a fresh pine scent with a hint of bitterness when inhaled deeply.

Soon, a young woman entered the shop. Luo Jingyu watched her look down at her phone, and almost simultaneously, his phone vibrated.

[Chang Ting]: I’m at the shop, where are you? [Big Fish]: I’m by the window.

Chang Ting turned toward the window and saw a young man in black clothing stand up and wave to her.

She hadn’t seen Luo Jingyu’s photo before, only heard from Gao Yuan that his brother-in-law was very handsome. Now seeing him in person, Chang Ting’s heart skipped a beat – he really was handsome! His hairstyle wasn’t as carefully styled as most working professionals, instead being black and fluffy with a student-like quality, with bangs partially covering his eyebrows. His skin was fair and clear, his features refined, nose high-bridged, and his shy smile carried a hint of timidity. He was also very tall.

Chang Ting smiled shyly, walked over and pulled out a chair to sit down. After Luo Jingyu sat down too, they looked at each other quietly before Chang Ting began signing first.

Chang Ting: [Hello, I’m Chang Ting.] Luo Jingyu: [Hi, I’m Luo Jingyu. Shall we order first?]

Compared to typing, sign language was Luo Jingyu’s mother tongue, making communication more natural and comfortable.

However, their method of communication naturally drew looks from other customers. Luo Jingyu was used to it and scanned the QR code at the corner of the table to order.

Many shops now use QR codes or tablets for ordering, or at worst paper menus where customers can mark their selections. Compared to traditional ordering methods from years ago, this was much more convenient for Luo Jingyu and Chang Ting.

Luo Jingyu showed Chang Ting the ordering page on his phone and signed: [What would you like to drink?]

Chang Ting ordered a coffee, while Luo Jingyu chose a hot lemon tea and an appetizer platter. While scrolling through the menu, he noticed “egg pudding” and immediately ordered two portions.

After ordering, he looked up to find Chang Ting still smiling at him.

Chang Ting was quite pretty and fashionably dressed. Luo Jingyu knew he wasn’t bad-looking either – many female classmates had liked him during school, but he had been even more introverted then, focusing more on his future than dating.

As the server brought their drinks and snacks, Luo Jingyu and Chang Ting chatted in sign language, learning about each other’s age, education, and work. Though Gao Yuan had told them this information before, as they discussed it in person, Luo Jingyu could sense that besides their similar age, there were quite a few gaps between his and Chang Ting’s life paths.

Luo Jingyu only had a high school education, hadn’t attended university, and in common terms, didn’t have a stable job. Compared to Chang Ting, who had a bachelor’s degree and held a secure position at the District Disabled Persons’ Federation, his circumstances were much more modest.

Chang Ting: [I’m not an only child, I have a younger brother who can hear. What about you?] Luo Jingyu: [I have an older sister who is deaf like me.]

Chang Ting was startled. Brother Gao Yuan was physically disabled but could hear fine, yet his sign language was fluent. When he said he wanted to introduce his brother-in-law to her, Chang Ting hadn’t expected his wife to also be hearing impaired.

Usually, hearing-impaired people had their own social circles and rarely dated or married hearing people due to the huge communication gap. If Gao Yuan’s wife and brother-in-law were both hearing-impaired, it raised a serious concern.

Chang Ting thought for a moment, tucked her hair behind her ear, and signed hesitantly, her gestures less fluid.

Chang Ting: [I’m sorry, but may I ask why both you and your sister can’t hear?]

Luo Jingyu was familiar with this question and answered quickly.

Luo Jingyu: [It’s hereditary. My father, mother, grandfather, and grandmother are all deaf-mute.]

Chang Ting’s expression changed. Luo Jingyu knew this was what Luo Xiaomei meant by “knowing what to say and what not to say, having discretion.” But this was the truth – how could it be hidden? He maintained a candid smile, looking at Chang Ting with gentle eyes.

Chang Ting: [I lost my hearing later in life, at age four, due to improper medication.] Luo Jingyu: [I was born this way, I’ve never heard anything.]

Chang Ting raised her hands as if wanting to express something more but didn’t know how. Her hands remained suspended in the air until Luo Jingyu continued.

Luo Jingyu: [I know you want to ask if this condition would be inherited. Honestly, I don’t know. My sister is married but hasn’t had children yet. Doctors say genetic testing is needed to determine if she carries the hereditary gene, and if so, what the probability of inheritance would be. Our family does have a history of congenital deafness, so I really don’t know. If this concerns you, I think you should consider it carefully. Personally, I lean toward not having children – I don’t want to take that gamble.]

Chang Ting watched very seriously as Luo Jingyu’s hands flew through this long series of signs. Afterward, she fell silent, which was within Luo Jingyu’s expectations.

A few minutes later, she said she had something to do and needed to leave. Luo Jingyu didn’t say anything.

After Chang Ting left, Luo Jingyu looked at the barely touched snacks and pudding on the table and began eating them slowly by himself.

The egg pudding at this shop was quite good – sweet but not cloying, smooth and silky. After finishing his portion, Luo Jingyu took Chang Ting’s untouched portion and ate it all.

He understood Chang Ting’s concerns perfectly.

Times were changing, society was progressing, and the concept of eugenics had deeply penetrated urban consciousness. Regarding marriage and childbearing, his grandparents’ and parents’ generations had simple views – they thought Luo Jingyu should marry and have children no matter what, which was why his mother persistently pushed him to go on blind dates.

Heredity? What was there to fear? They had all lived through it, and weren’t Luo Jingyu and Luo Xiaomei doing fine now?

Luo Xiaomei hadn’t married someone who was deaf-mute, which was already unusual in their family that lived under the shadow of congenital deafness. Luo Jingyu had discussed having children with his sister, and Luo Xiaomei said she wanted to try, since family cases showed inheritance wasn’t guaranteed.

Luo Jingyu asked what if it happened anyway? Luo Xiaomei didn’t answer. They both knew that when it came to gambling with probability and luck, no one could answer that.

After finishing the appetizer platter, Luo Jingyu wiped his mouth, paid by scanning the code, and took out the folded rabbit and cat from his pocket. He walked to the children’s area on the other side of the dessert shop and placed the two origami animals on the table.

A little girl with pigtails quickly grabbed the rabbit. She looked up at Luo Jingyu, her pink chubby face breaking into a smile, and asked loudly: “Uncle, is this for me?”

Luo Jingyu read her lips and nodded with a smile. The other cat was surrounded by three or four children fighting over it. The children who didn’t get anything looked enviously at the little girl, who was overjoyed: “Thank you, uncle!”

Luo Jingyu smiled, pulled up his down jacket’s hood, put on his mask, and left the dessert shop with his hands in his pockets.

Instead of returning to Qingque Gardens, he took the subway to the north of the city.

While swiping his card at the exit, he remembered the mix-up at this subway station a week ago. He glanced at the security guard, reluctantly pulled down his hood and removed his mask before slowly walking toward the exit.

Once above ground, he immediately armored up again, with only his eyes visible from his entire body.

Luo Jingyu couldn’t explain why he had this habit, but whenever he went out, he would try to “become invisible” as much as possible, reluctant to interact with people.

After walking for twenty minutes, he arrived at a busy residential area and entered a small street-side community supermarket.

His father, Luo Mingshong, sat behind the cashier counter wearing reading glasses. The glass counter displaying various cigarettes held a tablet playing a TV series, while the computer monitor showed surveillance footage from four angles of the supermarket, which Luo Mingshong would glance at occasionally.

There were people shopping in the supermarket. When Luo Mingshong saw Luo Jingyu come in, he smiled and signed: [You’re here? Have you eaten lunch?]

Luo Jingyu, with a stomach full of pudding and snacks, wasn’t hungry at all. He replied: [I’ve eaten. Where’s Mom?]

Luo Mingshong: [She went home to cook, she’ll bring food over later. Did you go on your date this morning? Did you treat the girl to a meal?]

Luo Jingyu removed his mask and sat beside his father. Luo Mingshong kept watching him, waiting for an answer. Unable to avoid it, Luo Jingyu had to sign: [I met the girl my brother-in-law introduced. When she learned my deafness was hereditary, she left.]

Luo Mingshong’s previously expectant expression immediately dimmed. He lowered his head, sighed heavily, then took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, removed his glasses, and pointed outside, indicating he was going out for a smoke.

Luo Jingyu frowned: [You should smoke less.]

Luo Mingshong smiled at him, though the smile was bitter. He walked around the counter to the outside, then stopped and turned back to sign to his son: [Little Fish, your father and mother have failed you and your sister, but you most of all. Dad knows you blame us in your heart, but you must understand that no matter what, you and your sister are our good children.]

Luo Mingshong went outside to smoke. Customers came to the counter after selecting their items, and Luo Jingyu stood up, using the scanner to check them out. A middle-aged auntie who lived nearby recognized him and asked loudly: “Little Fish! Haven’t seen you in ages! Here to visit your parents today?”

Actually, no matter how loudly she shouted, Luo Jingyu couldn’t hear, but louder speech made lip-reading easier. Luo Jingyu understood and nodded with a smile.

The auntie said: “Time flies! When your dad first opened this shop, you were just a little kid. It’s been over ten years, and now you’ve grown into such a tall and handsome young man!”

Luo Jingyu put all the items in plastic bags and handed them to her. After the customers left and Luo Jingyu had just sat down, his phone vibrated in his pocket. He took it out to look – surprisingly, it was a WeChat message from “Egg Pudding.”

[Egg Pudding]: Good student, how did your blind date go today?

Luo Jingyu unconsciously smiled and typed on his phone.

[Big Fish]: Not good, it failed.

[Big Fish]: [Crying Cat emoji]