After the Lantern Festival, Xu Suinian returned to the imperial capital, and Tao Zhi also ended her long New Year holiday and started to get busy again.
She and Xu Suinian co-organized a cutting-edge photography exhibition.
Tao Zhi used to be alone in the darkroom playing with his own photos. It was the first time he held such a large-scale exhibition. Everything was unfamiliar, and all the processes were novel. I also got to know a lot of big stars in the photography circle who have won awards and filled the display cabinets at home, and they seem to be busier than Jiang Qihuai.
The two of them basically kept meeting two or three times a week. Jiang Qihuai would pick her up from get off work, and then the two of them would have dinner together. When they got home, they were basically busy with their own business, and they didn't communicate much with each other.
On weekends, Tao Zhi will take Jiang Qihuai home to eat with Tao Xiuping. Tao Zhi and Ji Fan are still arguing with each other, and Jiang Qihuai will accompany Tao Xiuping to play chess.
Every day seems to be without any thrilling, ordinary and ordinary life.
But it will make people feel comfortable and warm.
It seems that he really has more family members, and he can finally not have to rent a house and move around to work and study, and can be qualified to enjoy this kind of life called "life".
At the end of March, the temperature rose significantly faster, and the snow in the snow-covered city melted away in large areas, and the weather warmed up, and spring began to bloom.
Tao Zhi received a call from Li Shuangjiang when he was choosing a movie with Xu Suinian one day.
Li Shuangjiang still had a loud voice full of vigor: "Boss! Are you busy?"
"Busy," Tao Zhi said while flipping through the photos at hand.
"I'm busy after the next year, so take a few minutes," Li Shuangjiang said carelessly, "I just came back from a business trip. I got off the plane yesterday. Are you free this weekend? Come out and make an appointment for dinner."
"What time is it?"
"It's old time," Li Shuangjiang said, "By the way, you can pass it on to Brother Huai."
He clicked his tongue and said: "When you come here, explain it carefully, you two, ah, why did one of us accidentally become a traitor in our high school single dog alliance? And you even paired up and paired up two."
"Then you tell him yourself," Tao Zhi said with a smile, "Why do you want me to tell you?"
"If I can get in touch with him, can I still use you to convey it?" Li Shuangjiang said dissatisfied, and sent him several WeChat messages, but he never replied to me.
Tao Zhi came down, hung up the phone, pushed the things at hand forward, lay on the table with his mobile phone, and sent a message to Jiang Qihuai.
[Xiao Zhizhi]: Director Jiang!
Jiang Qihuai replied in seconds: [?]
Tao Zhi couldn't help but curl the corners of his lips.
She continued typing: [Li Shuangjiang said that he sent you many WeChat messages, but you didn't reply to him.]
Jiang Qihuai: [Busy and forgot.]
Tao Zhi, who was treated differently, replied in seconds, happily saying: "Then you reply to him, he has something to tell you."
She made a voice, and Jiang Qihuai also replied: "Yes."
Tao Zhi put down the phone and continued to work.
Li Shuangjiang, as the main initiator of most of the activities after graduation, has only a few restaurants he likes to go to over and over again. Everyone follows the elimination method backwards, and knows what he wants to eat next time with his eyes closed.
Zhao Mingqi was the first to protest, suggesting that everyone go to have a hot pot today, which received enthusiastic support.
When Jiang Qihuai came to pick up Tao Zhi, she was just busy with the work at hand, and when the two arrived at the hot pot restaurant, they were still the last ones.
When the box door was opened, the people inside were ordering food, Jiang Zhengxun waved to them: "We are ten thousand years late."
Jiang Qihuai walked in behind Tao Zhi, and closed the door behind him.
There was a moment of silence in the box, everyone looked from Tao Zhi to Jiang Qihuai, and from Jiang Qihuai to Tao Zhi.
Li Shuangjiang dragged on: "Oh—"
Fu Xiling cooperated dryly: "Oh—"
Zhao Mingqi: "Oh oh oh oh oh!"
Tao Zhi was embarrassed and amused by their booing: "Illuminator, can you stop acting like a monkey?" She rolled her eyes and looked at Ji Fan, "And you, don't roll your eyes over there, When I can't see."
Hearing the words, Fu Xiling turned her head away, and saw Ji Fan beside her, rolling her eyes until she couldn't see.
She stomped on him quietly under the table.
Ji Fan snorted, bowed his back in pain, and turned his head away.
"Pay attention to your expression management." Fu Xiling said seriously.
Ji Fan didn't dare to say anything, and silently restrained his exaggerated expression.
Tao Zhi looked secretly at Ji Fan, who was devastated, and sat down on the vacant seat left. The group of people had almost ordered the dishes, and when the menu was handed over, she added two plates of meat, and asked the waiter to take the menu away.
The huge copper hot pot was cooking gurglingly. We hadn’t seen each other for several months since we ate Japanese food together before. When we got together again, there seemed to be endless gossip and complaints.
Mingming seldom chats on WeChat at ordinary times, and even after graduating from high school, he has been busy for several months and half a year and has not seen each other once, but every time we get together, the familiar intimacy never cools down. .
After a hot pot meal, it was still early, because the next day was the weekend and he didn't have to go to work, so Zhao Mingqi proposed to continue singing for the next session.
Tao Zhi followed them out, turned his head and whispered, "Are you going to work overtime tomorrow? If you don't want to go, just tell them."
Jiang Qihuai raised his eyebrows: "Do I look so out of place?"
Tao Zhi looked at him with a complicated expression: "Are you serious about what you said?"
Jiang Qihuai: "..."
The hot pot restaurant happened to be in the business district, and there were several KTVs around. Zhao Mingqi called to book a box and walked there for about ten minutes.
The weather was cool and comfortable, a few people chatted all the way and walked there, Tao Zhi and Jiang Qihuai walked at the back, and everyone also put a little distance away from them sensibly.
After passing a certain intersection, Tao Zhi suddenly turned his head.
Jiang Qihuai's eyebrows and eyes were brought together in the brilliant lights, and the contours of his facial features became more profound. The streets were full of traffic and people coming and going, and the atmosphere was lively and quiet.
He noticed her gaze and turned his head: "what's the matter."
"It's nothing." Tao Zhi looked at him with a smile, "Jiang Qihuai, let's go out for a walk after dinner."
Jiang Qihuai didn't know why she had a sudden idea, but he still said, "Well, good."
"Get a cat or a dog," Tao Zhi continued, "go out for a walk every night, and walk the dog."
Jiang Qihuai nodded: "Look at the old people on the street dancing in the square and watering the flowers. You have entered the retirement period early."
"..."
This guy is annoying when he's mean.
Tao Zhi pouted, and heard him ask slowly beside him, "What kind of dog do you want?"
Tao Zhi thought for a while: "Alaska."
"Bigger than you."
"What about Teddy?"
"Too noisy."
"Where's the husky?"
"The house will be demolished."
"Why are you doing so much shit?" Tao Zhi dissatisfied, "Is it okay to raise a corgi? It's so cute."
"The legs are a little short," Jiang Qihuai reluctantly said, "All right."
Tao Zhi didn't want to talk to him anymore, and took two quick steps forward.
Jiang Qihuai lowered his head and curled the corners of his lips, pulled her wrist to pull her back, put it in his coat pocket, and walked forward holding her hand.
He couldn't help thinking about the scene she had described to him.
They will have a house with a few potted flowers, a dog, and they will walk together, watching her squint like a cat when she eats something she likes, and excitedly tugging at his hand when she sees something interesting smile at him.
He could finally open his eyes every day and see her peaceful sleeping face.
Jiang Qihuai actually doesn't have any great ambitions, he just wants to one day become strong enough to become a glass wall to protect his roses from wind and rain.
Then spend every day in an ordinary way, and grow old with her.
Li Shuangjiang and Zhao Mingqi became crazy after picking up the wheat, Ji Fan came over with a bunch of dice cups, and opened a few more rows of wine.
Originally, when eating hot pot, he drank a lot to make up for the bottom, but now after several rounds of sifting, everyone is a bit superior. Zhao Mingqi was originally a brave man, and now the whole world has become his world.
When he was singing, he pointed Li Mai forward: "What's the stud! What's the point of just drinking, come and play some dirt!"
He jumped down from the table.
The name of the game is "King". The rules are very simple. Shake the five sieves until all of them are the same. Do as he asks.
The first one to win was Li Shuangjiang, who won five ones in one swing.
His eyes drifted back and forth between Jiang Qihuai and Tao Zhi for a while, and he smiled maliciously and said: "The one who is in a relationship here is telling a secret that no one else knows."
Tao Zhi sighed, feeling that Jiang Qihuai would never say anything, just when she was racking her brains to think about some innocuous secret she had, she heard a cold voice from the person next to her Said: "I fell in love early."
Tao Zhi: "..."
Can it still be like this
She quickly interfaced: "I have cheated on you before."
"..."
Jiang Qihuai turned his head expressionlessly and looked at her questioningly.
"What do you see me doing?" Tao Zhi muttered softly, "You obviously stole it too, and you were hidden in the closet."
Everyone reluctantly let them go.
Then it was Jiang Zhengxun's turn.
Jiang Zhengxun has always been a quiet person, but he was all listless. He hugged the wine bottle and said, "If you still have your first love here, let's kiss one."
After he finished speaking, everyone looked at Fu Xiling.
When they were in college, almost everyone had been in a relationship. Even Zhao Mingqi had a short relationship with the music department next door for a week. Only Fu Xiling was always alone.
"Except for Fu Xiling, it should be gone?" Li Shuangjiang asked.
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Ji Fan lazily standing up beside him.
Tao Zhi: "..."
I really don't even want my face just to take advantage of it.
Li Shuangjiang was shocked: "Brother Fan, you are flying all over the world with flowers and butterflies every day, and you have never been in love? Do you believe it when you tell me?"
"Fuck me?" Ji Fan was also shocked, and he said violently, "What is a butterfly? I am very clean, okay!"
Li Shuangjiang glanced at Fu Xiling again with some hesitation: "Then..."
Tao Zhi was thinking whether to help his younger brother cheer up or help his best friend smooth things over, when Fu Xiling, who was sitting on the sofa, stood up gracefully.
Ji Fan turned his head to look at her, couldn't help but pursed his lips, and said, "Either count..."
He didn't finish his sentence.
Fu Xiling suddenly stood on tiptoe, raised her head, and quickly kissed him on the cheek.
Ji Fan: "..."
It was quiet, Ji Fan stood in front of the sofa like an idiot, even his eyes were lost.
Zhao Mingqi snapped back his jaw that almost fell off, and cleared his throat: "Go on."
Until the end of the show, Ji Fan was still sluggish.
He followed the crowd out of the KTV as if he had lost his soul, walked to the road with one hand and one foot, then stood by the road, suddenly raised his head and looked up at the sky.
It doesn't look normal anymore.
Li Shuangjiang and Zhao Mingqi put their heads together: "Brother Fan is okay."
"Brother Fan won't be kissed by a girl for the first time."
"I understand, I understand," Zhao Mingqi said, "It really feels like falling into heaven."
Li Shuangjiang turned his head and looked at him: "You've only been talking for a week, you're just pretending to be a fart."
Zhao Mingqi: "..."
When early spring arrived, everything was ready for the photography exhibition.
The studio has contracted the entire third floor of the West Side Museum of Art, with financial support provided by several seniors in the industry, mainly to encourage the new generation of photographers in the circle, so that they have a platform to show more of themselves.
This is the case in all circles. Many people soar into the sky, but more people are unknown and remain unknown.
When Jiang Qihuai arrived, Tao Zhi was talking to someone nearby, he didn't call her, and walked past the white exhibition boards.
Tao Zhi has been to many places over the years.
She went to Zhangye to take photos of Danxia land, went to a small mountain village in Yunnan to take photos of unknown small villages, went to Tianzifeng to take photos of the night moon and sea of clouds, and went to the polar regions to take photos of melting glaciers.
This place is full of worlds that he didn't know her eyes had seen, and there are footprints that she walked alone when he was away.
Regardless of whether there are other people around her, her life is always colorful, full and clear, just like her whole person, brilliant to the extreme, grand and brilliant.
Jiang Qihuai walked all the way until he stood in front of the last photo wall.
The photo hanging on the wall is not her work, and only two words are written on the signature: Anonymous.
Above are old photos, which were carefully protected and preserved in plastic packaging. Those photos are all too familiar to Jiang Qihuai. They used to accompany him quietly for several days and nights on the wall of his small bedroom.
The cat curled up on the corner of the street, the walls were gray and peeled off to expose the cement, and children's puzzles with curled edges were placed on the old-fashioned parquet floor.
And under the sky full of fireworks, the figure of the girl reflected dimly on the window of the Ferris wheel.
Jiang Qihuai lowered his gaze, and on the white wall next to the photo, there was a lead black mimeograph in his familiar unassuming handwriting, with a row of small characters written on it.
— my beginning, and my end.
Jiang Qihuai stood in front of those photos for a long time, at a certain moment, he suddenly turned his head away.
Tao Zhi was standing not far away, she probably just saw him, her expression was a little surprised, she soon smiled, and looked at him with bright and beautiful eyebrows.
She said a few words to the person next to her, and then walked towards him stepping on the broken and mottled sunlight.
Tao Zhi was actually a little surprised that Jiang Qihuai would come here.
She mentioned this to him the day before, but Jiang Qihuai responded indifferently, with a look of no interest at all, and told her that he was going to work.
This was her first serious exhibition, and although she was a little disappointed, Tao Zhi didn't show it, and she didn't expect him to come.
Running in front of him, raised his head: "Why are you here?"
She ran in a hurry, her broken hair fell down her cheeks, Jiang Qihuai raised his hand, and with his fingertips, he picked up her hair and hooked it behind her ear: "Why didn't I come?"
"Aren't you going to work?"
"asked for leave."
Tao Zhi smiled and said "Oh", and pulled him to those photos, looking at them one by one.
She told him all the interesting people she had met and the things that had happened in every place.
"Have you ever been to Russia? You don't know how cold Russia is," Tao Zhi chattered, "The little snow in our winter here is like light rain in Russia. It doesn't hurt or itch. Especially Pei Wake, in the far north of Russia, in the Arctic Circle."
She talked all the way, Jiang Qihuai listened quietly all the way, and didn't stop until she finally said she was tired.
"Do you want some water?" Jiang Qihuai looked at her.
Tao Zhi shook his head, then narrowed his eyes again: "Are you implying that I talk too much?"
Jiang Qihuai said helplessly: "Don't be so unreasonable."
Tao Zhi pouted.
There were not so many people at the moment, she looked around, saw Xu Suinian standing by the window, raised her hand to wave to him, and then pointed to the stairs.
Xu Suinian gestured OK to her from afar.
Tao Zhi dragged Jiang Qihuai out: "Let's go, we'll leave early."
Jiang Qihuai's lips loosened: "Can you leave early?"
"Anyway, Xu Suinian is here to watch," Tao Zhi said as he went downstairs, "It's not easy for you to have a holiday, let's go out for a stroll, and it's almost noon, so we just have a meal later. "
Jiang Qihuai followed her downstairs.
He said he wanted to go out for a stroll, but Tao Zhi didn't have any idea about where to go, but Jiang Qihuai didn't say anything, just sat in the driver's seat and drove all the way forward.
Until the scenery in front of him became more and more familiar, he parked the car at the entrance of Experiment No. 1 Middle School.
Tao Zhi looked out the car window and said "Huh", "Why did you come to school suddenly?"
Jiang Qihuai loosened his seat belt and turned off the engine: "Suddenly want to take a look."
Tao Zhi followed him out of the car, greeted the guard, and walked into the campus.
They came in just as the last get out of class in the morning was over, and the playground was bustling with excitement. The teenagers and girls in the school uniforms of No. 1 Middle School rushed towards the cafeteria, sitting in twos and threes at the entrance of the canteen, laughing and chatting, and the boys on the basketball court were all smiling. Recklessly, the orange basketball in his hand cut through the blue sky and fell into the hoop.
Tao Zhi walked all the way to the teaching building of the second year of high school.
She walked into the teaching building and stood in the front hall on the first floor to watch.
The honor showcases on both sides have already changed countless people, and now they are all young and immature unfamiliar faces. Among them, the photo of the teenager who occupies the largest space is pasted at the front, and a banner is even drawn below.
—Warmly congratulate Xu Baisen, a student from Class 1, Grade 2, who was selected into the national team for the Olympic Mathematics Competition.
Tao Zhi turned his head and looked at Jiang Qihuai with a smile: "Your Highness, you have a successor."
She looked closely at the boy, tsk-tsk said: "Don't tell me, this kid is quite handsome."
Jiang Qihuai gave a "tsk", expressionlessly pinched the tip of her head and pushed her head back, not letting her see: "You also know that he is a child."
Tao Zhi reluctantly walked forward with his head held down. All the way upstairs, to the gate of Class 1, Grade 2.
Just after class, the students filed out and couldn't help but look at them curiously as they walked out.
They stood at the door of the classroom and waited for a while, Tao Zhi couldn't help but sighed: "This is not our classroom anymore, is it considered trespassing if we go in like this?"
Jiang Qihuai went in without saying a word.
The people in the classroom had already left, leaving only a few people watching them curiously.
There are probably relatively few people in Class 1, Grade 2 this year, and the two desks in the last row next to the wall are empty, with no one sitting there.
Tao Zhi pulled away the chair by the wall and sat down. The girl who was sitting in her previous seat just turned around without leaving.
Tao Zhi smiled: "Hello, we are graduates from the previous class. I want to come back and have a look. Excuse me."
"Oh, it's okay, senior and senior sister." The girl Wen Wen said quietly, turning her head away.
Tao Zhi leaned forward on the desk, holding her chin, looked at the blackboard in front of her that hadn't been wiped, and suddenly sighed: "Jiang Qihuai."
Jiang Qihuai stood beside him and responded.
"I suddenly want to go back to high school." She said with some melancholy.
Jiang Qihuai looked at her and smiled.
"Then go back." He said softly.
Tao Zhi blinked.
Jiang Qihuai took two steps forward, walked to the girl in front, lowered his head, "Hello."
The girl raised her head hastily, a little panicked.
Jiang Qihuai pointed to the pad on her desk: "Can you lend me a pen and paper?"
The girl nodded, handed him her notepad, and drew a pen for him.
Jiang Qihuai took it over, thanked him, walked to Tao Zhi's side, pulled out the chair and sat down.
He tore off a piece of post-it note, then lowered his head to write with a pen in his hand.
Tao Zhi stuck his head out and looked over curiously.
He lowered his head and wrote very slowly, with every stroke and every stroke carefully, the handwriting was bold and sharp, and the four words fell neatly on the light yellow sticky note paper.
— Take my car.
He deliberately wrote "I" as "I".
I use a car to marry.
Tao Zhi raised his eyelashes slightly.
It seemed that in an instant, those past times were all pulled back by an invisible hand, inch by inch, back to the familiar classroom, back to her youth, back to the day she saw him.
Back to the early morning when she wrote this dictation for the first time, the cool wind blew up the light blue curtains, and the shallow sunlight spread obliquely on the desk.
The boy's eyes were light, and his voice was low and calm, looking at the words she said.
at that time.
The love of youth is rubbed into the cicadas and sunlight in the early morning at the end of summer. After the greenness and indifference are drawn out, the rest is tenderness.
Tao Zhi was quiet for a long time, then slowly took out the pen from his fingers, and continued to write after the four characters.
—Take me as a bribe.
That being the case.
I will take the dowry and marry you.
After the last stroke, Tao Zhi wrinkled his sour nose and raised his head.
Jiang Qihuai was looking at her.
His eyes are very quiet, and his eyes don't move for a moment, with a soft smile.
"That's all."
He says.
The school's radio station played a very old-style song, and the gentle male voice narrated the unknown rivers and lakes, as well as those strange, magnificent or ordinary and indifferent lives.
…
This is the end of his story, and there is no wine left.
The moon in the middle of the sky has fallen to the hills.
After experiencing all the end, it seems that everything can finally be settled.
From then on, I will be your way of coming, and I will also be your way of no return.
—End of text.