In early July, with the help of Lin Zeqiu, Lin Zhixia packed up her things and left her undergraduate alma mater.
Lin Zeqiu snatched all the heavy objects from Lin Zhixia. He dragged two suitcases, carried a huge backpack, and hung a heavy travel bag on his right shoulder.
July was the hottest time of the year, with the sun blazing and the heat rolling in. The streets were filled with heat. Lin Zeqiu's sweat came out from his forehead, slid down along the lines of his face, and stained his clothes, leaving a mark of neither deep nor shallow.
The handle of the suitcase was a little stuck, and the wheels were not smooth enough, but the suitcase was full of clothes, shoes, skin cream, and small items. Lin Zeqiu escorted his sister's luggage without complaint, and never complained about her heavy luggage.
Lin Zhixia was embarrassed: "Brother, are you tired? Give me the backpack and travel bag."
"It's not your turn to carry it," Lin Zeqiu refused. "Don't argue with me. You're just wasting my energy by pulling my bag."
Lin Zhixia had originally tightly grasped the strap of his schoolbag, but when she heard his words, she immediately let go of her hand.
On the way back, Lin Zeqiu took care of her. He bought her a box lunch for the train and washed a bowl of fresh strawberries—the strawberries he bought that morning, wrapped them in bubble wrap, stuffed them into his schoolbag, and brought them on the train. He also asked her, "Can you eat strawberries in Cambridge?"
"Sure." Lin Zhixia confirmed.
He still sighed: "There are guns and drugs abroad. You should stay in school and don't go to remote suburbs alone."
Lin Zhixia held a strawberry in her mouth and did not respond.
That night, Lin Zeqiu did not sleep well and woke up several times.
The wheels of the train rumbled. He propped up the bed with his right elbow and turned his head to look to the other side. He saw Lin Zhixia sleeping peacefully on the bed opposite. He remembered what she looked like when she was a child—so short, so thin, with only a pair of big and bright eyes. She always looked up at him and asked him some particularly annoying questions, which made him doubt that he was a fool and his sister was the normal person. But she suddenly grew up, understood others, and never hurt him again. She left without saying goodbye.
He used to be extremely annoyed by her. Why didn't God give him the same intelligence? Later, he finally accepted the reality, and she was almost seventeen years old.
She is no longer afraid of ghost stories, strangers, the dark, or the unknown.
She can stand on her own and take on the responsibilities on her own. Her parents are proud of her. In fact, he is proud of her too.
Lin Zeqiu's eyes were slightly moist.
The sky outside the car window gradually brightened, the dawn light broke through the night, the sky became bright, and the floating clouds were dyed like rosy clouds. He changed his clothes, sat by the window to enjoy the scenery, and slowly calmed down.
Although he had just turned twenty, he had to admit that his mentality was like that of an old bird watching a young bird fly away, with both high expectations and many concerns.
This summer vacation, Lin Zeqiu and Lin Zhixia stayed at home and had no travel plans.
The life of the brother and sister is full of routine. They go to bed early and get up early, and they keep exercising. However, Lin Zhixia occasionally sleeps in, so Lin Zeqiu goes out for a morning run alone. He often goes to a breakfast shop at the east gate of the community, brings back a few sesame cakes, soup dumplings, and tofu brain, puts them on the table, and then goes to wake Lin Zhixia up.
After dinner, Lin Zeqiu wrote code and Lin Zhixia read a book.
The doctoral advisor gave Lin Zhixia a list of books, which she quickly finished reading. She was looking forward to her upcoming doctoral life.
By now, her study abroad materials are complete and her visa is almost in place. The school has also assigned her a dormitory. She saw photos of the dormitory online - it is a single room with a set of tables and chairs, a single bed, a red sofa chair, and a separate toilet and bathroom.
The dormitory is very expensive, and the fee is calculated on a weekly basis, which is more than 100 pounds per week, and the total price per month is more than 6,000 yuan. Even though Lin Zhixia has a scholarship, she still feels distressed. After all, her undergraduate dormitory fee was only 1,000 yuan a year.
Lin Zeqiu asked her if her scholarship was enough, and she said it was enough, but she felt that the prices abroad were too high. Lin Zeqiu then taught her seriously: "When you talk to your classmates outside, don't tell them that you think this is too expensive or that is too expensive..."
"Why can't you say it?" Lin Zhixia asked.
Lin Zeqiu said earnestly: "It's a bit poor, do you understand?"
Lin Zhixia smiled nonchalantly: "I don't care what others think of me."
This answer was beyond Lin Zeqiu's expectations.
He sat on the sofa in the living room, watching Lin Zhixia sorting out the manuscript.
The TV was playing a TV series called "Iron Teeth and Bronze Teeth Ji Xiaolan". He and Lin Zhixia grew up watching this TV series. The soundtrack was the same as always, but he was absent-minded, thinking secretly: In just a dozen years, life has changed dramatically.
He leaned back on the sofa, his collar loose and his posture lazy.
Lin Zhixia closed the folder and said to him, "Tang Tingting and I will go shopping for clothes tomorrow and will not be home for lunch."
"What clothes do you want to buy?" Lin Zeqiu asked casually.
Lin Zhixia did not answer.
A few minutes later, Lin Zhixia ran to her parents' bedroom and spoke to her mother in a sweet voice, "Mom, Tang Tingting and I are going to buy clothes tomorrow and won't be home at noon. Don't wait for me, Mom, eat first."
"Okay," Mom was cleaning the bedroom, "Xia Xia, what are we having for dinner tomorrow night?"
Lin Zhixia began to order dishes: "Braised silver carp, braised prawns, and stir-fried rice stem with shredded pork, is that ok?"
Mom agreed readily, and Lin Zhixia was even happier.
The next morning, Lin Zhixia put on a moon-white dress and braided her hair very delicately. She put on a dark blue bow and applied a little coral lipstick before going out to play with Tang Tingting.
Tang Tingting was also dressed very brightly today. She and Lin Zhixia walked hand in hand on the commercial street. They really felt that they were the most beautiful girls in the whole block. Occasionally, when a boy asked them for their contact information, Tang Tingting would laugh and refuse on the spot, saying, "It's not convenient. Sorry."
They walked some distance along the street and found a lingerie store with a good reputation.
Lin Zhixia walked into the store openly, followed by Tang Tingting. She whispered to Lin Zhixia, "What's your size?"
Lin Zhixia said in a lighter voice: "My bust size has gone up a size. I want to buy some new underwear before I go abroad."
Soon, Tang Tingting discovered the magic of Lin Zhixia. Lin Zhixia was reluctant to try on clothes herself. She only needed to take a look at the structure of the underwear and stand quietly for a while, and it was as if she had completed the try-on through her imagination.
"Do you have... 3D image modeling technology in your brain?" Tang Tingting asked suspiciously.
Lin Zhixia smiled sweetly: "Maybe."
Tang Tingting was touched by her sweet smile.
After Lin Zhixia finished buying clothes, she and Tang Tingting walked out of the store arm in arm. They sat down to rest in the cafe next door. Lin Zhixia bought two strawberry sundaes, one for Tang Tingting and the other for herself.
Tang Tingting leaned close to Lin Zhixia's shoulder, took out her cell phone, took a group photo first, then took a photo of the strawberry sundae on the table, and finally added the text "Xia Xia and my summer vacation" before sending the photo to her QQ space, intending to show off in the circle of Provincial No. 1 Middle School.
Tang Tingting waited patiently for ten minutes.
Lin Zhixia was almost done with the strawberry sundae when Tang Tingting opened her phone again. She received dozens of likes, and Jiang Yubai was the first to leave a comment: "Very beautiful."
Tang Tingting asked him: "Who is more beautiful?"
Jiang Yubai actually said: "Strawberry sundae."
Tang Tingting made the sound of "oh" with her mouth: "He is really good. His emotional intelligence is much better than Duan Qiyan's."
"Duan Qiyan?" Lin Zhixia caught the key point.
Tang Tingting said: "He is a little silly."
"He's not stupid," Lin Zhixia tried to speak up for Duan Qiyan, "He was in the top 30 in the science section of the provincial college entrance examination."
Tang Tingting couldn't help laughing, but she didn't refute Lin Zhixia.
The scorching sun and dry air outside did not affect Tang Tingting and Lin Zhixia's determination to go shopping. They wandered around the street for a while, bought some small accessories, and had lunch at a cold noodle shop... It was not until after four o'clock in the afternoon that they reluctantly parted at the bus stop.
Lin Zhixia went home happily carrying the things she bought today.
At this time, it was already early August, and Jiang Yubai was still interning at a company in Beijing. He was busy from morning till night and had a lot to learn. In comparison, Lin Zhixia was obviously more free. She enjoyed her rare vacation and respected Jiang Yubai's work, so she never took the initiative to call him.
Lin Zhixia and Jiang Yubai kept in touch through QQ, text messages, WeChat, etc., chatting intermittently. The regular life continued day after day. In late August, Jiang Yubai sent Lin Zhixia a text message. He said that he would return to the provincial capital tonight and asked if she was free. He wanted to watch the fireworks with her.
Every August, the provincial capital holds several "Music Fireworks Festivals".
It is said that the grand fireworks are as beautiful as flowers and as brilliant as clouds, and can bloom into a fleeting and brilliant light in the night sky. As the light flows and changes, the bright moon and stars are eclipsed.
Lin Zhixia longed for it, but she had never seen it with her own eyes.
Jiang Yubai made the invitation and Lin Zhixia gladly accepted it.
That day happened to be Jiang Yubai's birthday, and Lin Zhixia brought a birthday gift specially prepared for him - it was a pair of small and cute wooden cat dolls. Lin Zhixia used a row of knives to carve out the kittens, one of which was named "Lychee" and the other was named "Strawberry".
Lin Zhixia clearly remembered that lychee was Jiang Yubai's favorite fruit.
This year's "Music Fireworks Festival" will officially open at 7:30 p.m.
At around 7:20, Lin Zhixia arrived at the park.
There were many citizens with their families in the park. Lin Zhixia looked around and saw old people holding palm-leaf fans and children being led by their parents... She wanted to call Jiang Yubai's name, but a familiar voice came from behind her: "I'm here."
Lin Zhixia turned around and happened to meet Jiang Yubai's gaze. They were standing by the lake in the park. She quietly approached a willow tree. The night wind blew her long skirt, and the light skirt fluttered. Her hair was a little messy, but in his eyes, she was impeccably beautiful.
The lights in the park were a little dim. She took out a pair of wooden cats from her bag and said, "This is for you. Happy birthday, Jiang Yubai."
He accepted the gift and thanked her.
She then asked, "Why do you want to watch the fireworks tonight?"
Before he finished speaking, the first cluster of fireworks exploded in the sky and loud exclamations broke out from the crowd.
The brilliant fireworks were as red as roses, embellishing the boundless night sky. The lakeside was like a dream, with ripples rippling in the beautiful reflections. As the ripples spread, the fireworks gradually dissipated in the deep lake water.
Lin Zhixia looked at the night view, but Jiang Yubai only looked at her: "Because I want to see you."
She was stunned for a moment.
He seemed to have endured it for a long time, his voice lowered even more, but he still said to himself: "I want to see you."
He looked up at the sky, his hands in his trouser pockets, his figure slender, standing still, like another tree rooted in the lake. He heard Lin Zhixia calling his name, and then he lowered his head and looked at her.
There were more fireworks in the sky, and the light and shadow were reflected in his eyes, and her heart was also full of waves. She felt the tension she had not felt for a long time. The hot night wind cooled the sweat on her palms, but it made her mind boil for a while. She suddenly said to him without any preparation: "Jiang Yubai, I like you, in the philosophical and biological sense."
Jiang Yubai was frozen by her words. At that moment, the fireworks in front of him were not fireworks, but a vigorous cosmic explosion.
On this night when he was seventeen, he almost cut off all the noise from the outside world, and could only hear his own accelerated heartbeat. So, he used the words that Lin Zhixia could understand best and asked her directly: "Is this a sustainable, non-accidental, and deterministic relationship?"
Lin Zhixia answered without hesitation: "Of course."
Her hair was blown in front of her eyes by the wind, and she raised her hand to straighten it out. However, Jiang Yubai pushed her hair behind her ears, and she unconsciously took a step back, leaning against the willow tree.
She heard his shallow breathing and saw his fingertips approaching her cheek, just one centimeter away from touching it, and he withdrew his hand in repression and restraint. Lin Zhixia smiled, held his wrist, and tilted her head slightly, her fair face just pressed against his palm.
Jiang Yubai also smiled: "So you like me so much."
"What about you?" Lin Zhixia asked him, "Do you like me?"
She already knew the answer.
But she still wanted to hear it from his own mouth.
He seemed to be paying tribute in a temple. He said calmly, peacefully, confidently and devoutly: "I like you very much."
Lin Zhixia felt that every word he said was sweet. She felt like she had just eaten a piece of honey, and her bones were softening. She asked, "Do I have many advantages?"
Jiang Yubai briefly summarized: "Countless advantages."
"When did you start liking me? In elementary school?"
"no."
"What about junior high school?"
“No.”
"high school?"
"I'm not sure."
Lin Zhixia held Jiang Yubai's hand and walked out of the park with him. The fireworks display had not yet ended, and they just wanted to find a place to walk. At the corner of the long street, there was no one around, and Jiang Yubai's right hand was so hot that it was about to burn. He held Lin Zhixia's hand, felt her finger bones, and stroked her fingertips. The simplest contact made him uneasy, and he actually wanted to take a step closer.
Lin Zhixia was still immersed in the joy of a successful confession.
Jiang Yubai found his driver and sent Lin Zhixia back to her home.
Lin Zhixia and Jiang Yubai said goodbye at the gate of Ancheng Community. Jiang Yubai got out of the car and stood outside the gate, watching her back disappear in the dim light.
The new semester is about to begin.
He had never been so excited about the start of school as he was today.