In early September 2008, high school started.
Jiang Yubai walked into the gate of the international school carrying a backpack and wearing a student uniform.
He was assigned to Class A of the first year of high school. There were fourteen students in the class, including a girl named "Zhao Gefei" who often organized gatherings for the Chinese students in the class.
Zhao Gefei's attitude towards Jiang Yubai was particularly special, and he even made a lunch box for Jiang Yubai himself.
Jiang Yubai thanked Zhao Gefei for his kindness, and then distributed the lunch boxes to the whole class to taste, winning unanimous praise from everyone. However, he himself did not even touch a chopstick, which was really disrespectful.
Zhao Gefei was not discouraged.
She persisted for many days until a good friend of Jiang Yubai told her: "You cook for Jiang Yubai every day, you are tired, and he is annoyed too. This is 'a waste of time', it is completely meaningless."
Zhao Gefei suspected that Jiang Yubai had asked his good friend to pass this message to her.
Because, with that friend's level of Chinese, it is impossible for him to flexibly use such a complex, profound and rare folk proverb as "It's a waste of effort to get a good result."
Zhao Gefei is also a man of integrity.
She found Jiang Yubai and asked him in person: "Don't you like women who treat you well?"
Jiang Yubai asked her back: "Do you like men who treat you well?"
Zhao Gefei raised his eyebrows: “Yes.”
Jiang Yubai leaned on the railing and looked at the school gate in the distance.
Zhao Gefei followed his gaze and looked into the distance, and saw a dishevelled middle-aged man collecting plastic bottles.
She frowned and said angrily, "Are you kidding me?"
On the contrary, Jiang Yubai didn't want to play tricks on anyone.
He was just wondering whether the attraction between people could be divided into many categories
If his appearance changes dramatically, his thinking and personality will inevitably change accordingly. Every person's characteristics and temperament are closely linked.
Jiang Yubai said briefly: "Thank you for the lunch boxes you made during this period."
Zhao Gefei stepped forward and said, "That's not called a box lunch, it's called a 'love lunch box'. You're wasting it by giving the love lunch box I gave you to others, don't you know that?"
Jiang Yubai said, "If someone eats the lunch box, it's not a waste. That person can't be me."
His refusal was both tactful and direct.
Zhao Gefei questioned him angrily: "Jiang Yubai, don't you know how miserable it is to have a crush on someone?"
Jiang Yubai did not answer.
Zhao Gefei could only say: "You are awesome."
She turned and walked away.
Jiang Yubai took out a thermos from his schoolbag and filled it with half a cup of water using the lid.
He sat on the soft sofa at the end of the corridor, drinking water like tea. The cold wind made his hair messy. A group of boys aged fifteen or sixteen came down the stairs - they were all Jiang Yubai's friends. They surrounded Jiang Yubai like stars surrounding the moon, and discussed the group assignment assigned by the teacher.
Someone asked Jiang Yubai: "What did Zhao Gefei say to you just now?"
Jiang Yubai is used to hiding his personal affairs.
He said: "We didn't talk much. I just passed by and said hello to her."
A few days later, it happened to be the school's equestrian class, so Jiang Yubai and his classmates went to the stable.
The horse farm is some distance from the school. After the students got off the bus, a cool breeze blew across the open grassland. The equestrian coach took the students to the stables and allowed them to take one or two photos with the exposure turned off.
Jiang Yubai is the most active person in taking photos.
He ran away like a wild horse and took a panoramic photo. Then he ran back to the stable, slowly squatted down, and took a photo of the horse's majestic posture from an upward angle.
Liu Pu from the next class stood aside and asked Jiang Yubai's classmates: "Jiang Yubai from your class, has he never seen a horse, or is he... a photographer?"
A classmate said something good about Jiang Yubai: "He is two years younger than me and skipped a grade. Young people like taking pictures."
"Can Jiang Yubai ride a horse?" Liu Pu asked again.
The classmate pointed at a jet-black horse with his index finger: "That's the horse Jiang Yubai has raised since he was a child, named Litchi. Many people in our class have entrusted their horses to the school stables. It's quite convenient to have someone to take care of them."
Before he finished speaking, several professional coaches appeared around the stable.
The coach repeatedly explained the key points of the movements to the students and repeatedly emphasized that they must wear safety protection equipment before getting on the horse.
The students all looked well behaved, with none of them being troublesome. The coach was just about to praise them when he suddenly heard a shrill scream.
The coach turned around suddenly and saw a classmate named "Liu Pu" opening a wooden door and climbing onto a young, bad-tempered snow-white stallion.
The white horse raised its head and neighed, then spread its hooves and galloped wildly across the pasture.
Liu Pu yelled frantically, "Ah! Help! Teacher! Save me! Save me! This horse is so strong! I can't catch it!"
The more panicked Liu Pu became, the crazier Bai Ma became.
The coach thought to himself, "Someone is going to die."
The two coaches quickly mounted their horses and ran towards where Liu Pu was.
The students were in a mess, talking a lot.
Jiang Yubai took out his cell phone and dialed 120 emergency number.
Soon after he finished the call, Liu Pu fell off his horse. Jiang Yubai yelled at him, "Don't reach out! Curl up!"
Liu Pu was so nervous that he almost vomited. How could he listen to Jiang Yubai's words
Liu Pu's body was stiff, and he stretched out his arms like a zombie, sticking them straight into the ground. After a few seconds, he burst into a painful cry: "My hand is gone! My hand is gone!"
The equestrian coaches brought a medical kit, surrounded Liu Pu and gave him first aid.
There were four coaches on the scene. They followed the "first aid for fractures" treatment method and simply fixed Liu Pu's limbs to prevent him from struggling unconsciously.
Liu Pu's voice gradually weakened, and someone asked timidly: "Liu Pu won't die? He is only sixteen years old."
Zhao Gefei shouted: "Jiang Yubai called 120, Liu Pu will not die!"
The ambulance had not yet arrived, nor had the on-duty doctor at the racecourse—the doctor had been staying in the lounge on the east side of the racecourse. The coaches were still doing first aid for broken bones.
A coach took the time to call the locker room, but no one answered.
Jiang Yubai looked towards the lounge on the east side.
The next second, he jumped on the horse and galloped away.
He was riding a shiny black horse, the vast green grassland spread out before him, and the exclamations of his classmates echoed behind him.
Jiang Yubai pulled the reins tightly, fearless and only wanting to find a doctor as soon as possible.
The lounge was getting closer and closer to him. He slowed down in time and went around to the backyard of the lounge. Through a low wall, he saw the doctor lying on a deck chair and taking a nap.
Jiang Yubai sat on the horse's back, like a prince from afar. He said in a loud voice: "One of my classmates just fell off the horse. I called 120, and the coaches are waiting for you, doctor."
The doctor woke up immediately. He glanced at his phone and asked hurriedly, "It's only 1:40 in the afternoon. Don't you have classes?"
"We arrived early," Jiang Yubai explained, "while the coach was giving a lecture, my classmate secretly climbed onto the horse's back."
The doctor glanced at Jiang Yubai and pushed a small electric donkey over. He carried the medical equipment on his back and rode the small electric donkey towards Liu Pu at full speed.
Jiang Yubai led his black horse on the rippling grass. He saw the doctor kneeling beside Liu Pu from afar. A few minutes later, the ambulance arrived, and today's equestrian class had to end early.
Jiang Yubai raised his hand and stroked the black horse's mane. The black horse raised its head and stamped its front hooves vigorously.
The dark horse is named "Litchi".
Litchi was just seven years old, in the prime of life, and a very expensive purebred horse. Jiang Yubai's father spotted Litchi soon after Litchi was born, and gave Litchi to Jiang Yubai as a birthday present.
Young Jiang Yubai was extremely happy.
He often shoveled hay for Litchi in the stable, shoveling for most of the day, and sweating profusely. He heard that horses are social animals, not recognizing their owners, and being friendly to everyone they see, but his Litchi is different - since Litchi grew into a majestic and tall horse, it would put on an attitude of "I am noble, you are not worthy" in front of all humans.
The reason why Jiang Yubai placed Lizhi in the school stable was that he wanted it to learn some manners from other students' horses.
However, Lizhi's performance just now was very good. It carried Jiang Yubai to the lounge, as determined as a war horse, and the students' shouting did not affect it.
Liu Pu’s “horse-falling incident” came to an end.
Two weeks later, he returned to school with his left hand bandaged and his right leg in plaster, showing extraordinary tenacity.
His classmates welcomed him like a hero, which brought him great comfort.
Zhao Gefei from class A told him that Jiang Yubai was the first person to call 120. Jiang Yubai also rode to the lounge to find a doctor. The girls from class A and class B screamed for Jiang Yubai's handsomeness and bravery.
Jiang Yubai never mentioned this matter in front of Liu Pu, and didn't even ask Liu Pu to treat him to a meal.
Liu Pu had to admit that Jiang Yubai was a man of justice, open-minded, calm and rational, and never asked for anything in return, just like a great hero described in martial arts novels. He was originally quite resistant to Jiang Yubai, but later he somehow integrated into Jiang Yubai's social circle and brought Class A and Class B closer together.
Soon, students in Class A and Class B discovered that Jiang Yubai often carried a camera with him to take pictures of the surrounding scenery when visiting various venues.
It is not new for the second generation of rich people to play with photography. What is new is that Jiang Yubai’s friend accidentally revealed that all the photos of Jiang Yubai were taken for a girl.
Which girl
Everyone's curiosity reached its peak at one point.
Until they saw Lin Zhixia at the school gate.
It was a sunny weekend, and the students had just finished a lecture. As they walked out of the campus, they saw Jiang Yubai holding Lin Zhixia's schoolbag strap, and Lin Zhixia playfully tugged at Jiang Yubai's sleeves. The two had a very close relationship.
On Monday morning, Jiang Yubai had just stepped into the classroom when someone asked him, "Hey! Jiang Yubai, buddy, do you have a girlfriend in another school?"
Jiang Yubai refused to admit it: "I haven't talked about it, and I don't want to talk about it."
My classmates kept asking, "Who was that pretty girl next to you at the school gate this weekend?"
Jiang Yubai said in a high-sounding manner: "She was my classmate in elementary and junior high school. I have known her for six years and I am her friend."
Everyone said, "Wow, childhood sweethearts!"
Childhood sweethearts.
A simple idiom made Jiang Yubai lose his concentration for a moment unconsciously.
At that time, Jiang Yubai had just entered the second year of high school.
He lived in Beijing for a whole year.
During this year, he and Lin Zhixia were separated and developed the habit of video chatting.
Lin Zhixia also vowed: "Jiang Yubai, wait for me. Next year I will go to Beijing to attend university and we will be able to meet often. I am looking forward to it. I can see your horse with my own eyes. It looks so cute."
Jiang Yubai believed it to be true.
However, after Lin Zhixia went to college, her studies became increasingly busy.
In Lin Zhixia's lab, researchers must turn off their phones. So she often turns it off. She no longer answers Jiang Yubai's calls, doesn't reply to his messages, and her QQ is offline.
The photos Jiang Yubai sent her fell into oblivion, and she completely and utterly disappeared from his world.
Over the years, Jiang Yubai often heard Lin Zhixia say "You are my best friend". He was almost brainwashed by Lin Zhixia and wanted to approach everything from the perspective of "friendship".
He suffered from insomnia because of Lin Zhixia's sudden coldness.
The pillows seemed to smell like strawberries.
The word "strawberry" is tinged with a weird color.
In the dead of night, Jiang Yubai suddenly sat up, picked up a pen and wanted to write a letter to Lin Zhixia, but he couldn't utter a single word after struggling for a long time, as if he had returned to elementary school overnight.
He remembered a line of poetry that Lin Zhixia had told him: "It is difficult to write something I love, and I revise a poem thousands of times before I feel at ease.[1]"
The meaning of this poem is that because of the love for the work, it is difficult to start writing, and only after revising it thousands of times can one feel a little more secure in the heart.
Jiang Yubai sat quietly at his desk until two in the morning. There was only one sentence on the letter: "Long time no see, Lin Zhixia."
He overestimated his hand speed and underestimated his emotions.
The moon hid behind the dark clouds. There was not a trace of light in the pitch-black night. The negative emotions of boredom and impetuousness swallowed Jiang Yubai.
He fastened the cap on his pen, walked back to the spacious bed, took out a book called "Human Observation Diary" written by Lin Zhixia, and turned to the chapter "Exploration and Thinking on Quantum Field Theory". He saw a large area of densely packed physical formulas, and immediately felt sleepy, and fatigue poured down on his head like a waterfall.
He finally fell asleep.
Even though Jiang Yubai liked Lin Zhixia very much, he could not read Lin Zhixia's physics manuscripts.
While dreaming, Jiang Yubai remembered that a classmate once asked him: "Jiang Yubai, don't you know how miserable it is to have a crush on someone?"
He didn't know it before.
Now, there seems to be a clue.
In short, the year Lin Zhixia came to Beijing to attend university, Jiang Yubai lost contact with Lin Zhixia for several months.
Jiang Yubai asked more than a dozen people, and everyone told him that Lin Zhixia was having a great time in college and was highly regarded by her teachers. The senior students in the same laboratory building all praised her highly.
Lin Zhixia lives a happy and fulfilling life. A true genius should stay in the right environment.
Jiang Yubai couldn't describe his feelings.
Every night before going to bed, Jiang Yubai would open the quantum field theory notes that Lin Zhixia gave him - this was his hypnosis reading material and also a way for him to pursue his memories.
One night, after Jiang Yubai finished reading a page of notes, he had a bizarre dream.
He dreamed that Lin Zhixia and he remained friends until their hair turned gray and their backs became hunched. They walked on a tree-lined path with crutches, and Lin Zhixia said, "Thank you for living with me until I was 90. You are my lifelong friend, much more important than a partner. Why have you never been in love like me?"
Jiang Yubai in the dream replied: "You will never understand this."
Lin Zhixia asked: "Forever?"
Jiang Yubai is very secretive.
The next morning, when Jiang Yubai woke up, he still had a vivid memory of the dream.
He remembers the mottled and swaying shadows of the trees, the age spots on the backs of his hands, and the easy-to-carry electronic cane.
He put on his clothes as if possessed by a ghost and stood in front of a smooth floor-length mirror. The boy in the mirror was just sixteen years old, tall, long-legged and with black hair.
He roughly ripped open his collar, revealing a large area of muscular chest. Youth was forever preserved in this moment, and he began to think back to the strange dream he had last night.
Today is the weekend and there is no need to go to class. After finishing breakfast, Jiang Yubai went to his own stable to feed the horses.
He brought a bucket of feed mixed with carrots, strawberries, pumpkins and apples, while the black horse named "Lychee" still stood proudly in the corner, seemingly not welcoming Jiang Yubai's arrival at all.
Jiang Yubai called out in a low voice: "Lychee."
Lychee stomping hooves in place.
Jiang Yubai picked up the heavy wooden barrel with one hand: "You have no appetite? I'm leaving first."
Litchi almost rushed out of the stable.
Jiang Yubai placed the wooden barrel in the trough.
The Red Hare and Dilu horses in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" both understand human nature.
However, "novel" is "novel" after all. In reality, the horse that Jiang Yubai raised himself kept eating like a piglet. No matter what Jiang Yubai said, the horse did not stop eating.
Jiang Yubai didn't care whether Lizhi could understand or not.
He just needs someone to listen to his heart.
Although Jiang Yubai has many friends, he rarely opens his heart to others, probably because he grew up in a lonely environment. After all, loneliness is the norm in life.
Jiang Yubai's parents are very busy at work, and his grandparents often teach him to "be on guard against others." Since last year, he has participated in the company's management training courses. As his experience and age increase, his trust in adults is gradually decreasing.
In the first year of junior high school, Duan Qiyan often scolded Jiang Yubai for being scheming, having a bad heart, and not being a good person.
Lin Zhixia always argues with Duan Qiyan. She says Jiang Yubai is the best person in the world and her best friend forever.
Jiang Yubai asked Lizhi: "How long do you think 'forever' is?"
Lizhi finally finished a bucket of feed. It stretched its neck and approached Jiang Yubai.
The chestnut horse next door suddenly neighed because it found that Litchi had eaten a lot of good things, but it did not get the same feed.
Jiang Yubai rang the bell, and the staff in charge of the stables hurried over to give the chestnut horse a snack.
Jiang Yubai opened the door and Lizhi walked out slowly.
Jiang Yubai was walking in the garden with Lizhi. He said succinctly, "Lin Zhixia's physics notes are like a mystery. I can't understand them."
Lizhi lowered its head and let Jiang Yubai touch its head.
Jiang Yubai said, "I had a dream last night. I was friends with Lin Zhixia until I was 90 years old. I was single all my life, and I was free and easy until I died."
Lizhi let out a heavy breath and shook his head from side to side. Jiang Yubai deliberately misinterpreted his movements: "Are you trying to tell me that reality and dreams are completely opposite?"
He praised seriously: "You are right."
He patted Lizhi's mane and said, "You are worthy of being the champion horse I raised."
Not long after that, Lin Zhixia finally called Jiang Yubai.
Lin Zhixia said that she was too busy recently and she definitely didn't mean to ignore Jiang Yubai.
Lin Zhixia agreed to Jiang Yubai's request to "meet at least once a month". She became a frequent visitor to Jiang Yubai's home.
Jiang Yubai has a kitten named "Strawberry".
Lin Zhixia likes "strawberries" very much, and is also interested in "litchi". When she and Jiang Yubai strolled in the garden, litchi followed them obediently, and the sound of its hooves became soft and slow.
The cold wind of early autumn messed up Lin Zhixia's long hair. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and sat on a bench.
She opened her backpack and happened to find a box of cookies, so she asked, "I brought some strawberry cookies today, do you want some?"
Jiang Yubai nodded.
Lin Zhixia took out a cookie: "Ah, open your mouth."
Jiang Yubai pursed his lips tightly.
Lin Zhixia tilted her head: "Do you want to eat or not?"
Lizhi also tilted her head along with her.
Jiang Yubai turned his head and looked at Lin Zhixia.
She blinked, stretched out her hand, and the cookie touched his lips. He took a bite, and the crumbs of strawberry filling sprinkled on the corners of his lips.
Lin Zhixia was about to wipe his mouth with her fingertips, but suddenly felt a little embarrassed. She handed him a napkin and said, "You should do it."
Jiang Yubai took the tissue.
Lin Zhixia picked up a random topic: "How are you doing in school?"
"It's good to follow the routine of the class," Jiang Yubai summarized.
Lin Zhixia seemed to see through his thoughts: "Did anything happen to you? Tell me, I'll help you find a solution."
Jiang Yubai retreated to advance: "I can't waste your time."
Lin Zhixia was indeed very smart. She instantly understood Jiang Yubai's deep meaning: "Don't worry, I won't cut off contact with you again. I'll tell you the laboratory's landline number. If you can't find me, just call the landline number..."
Jiang Yubai handed her his cell phone and she immediately entered a series of phone numbers.
The autumn sunset fell, and the remaining light shone into his eyes, making his gaze warm and clear. Lin Zhixia was mesmerized, and he revealed like telling a story: "I had a dream not long ago."
"What dream?" Lin Zhixia was aroused by his curiosity.
He recounted in full what he saw in his dream: Jiang Yubai and Lin Zhixia, both aged ninety.
After hearing these few words, Lin Zhixia was stunned: "Really?"
“I felt like something was wrong,” she said.
Jiang Yubai asked back: "Don't you want to be friends with me for life?"
Lin Zhixia hesitated to speak.
Jiang Yubai remained polite and restrained. He changed the subject in time to avoid embarrassing Lin Zhixia.
Jiang Yubai is only sixteen years old this year. His emotional experience is as pure as a blank sheet of paper, and so is Lin Zhixia. He is not sure whether his feelings for Lin Zhixia can be regarded as "true love" - everything has two sides, and feelings are a double-edged sword. He will leave the good side to Lin Zhixia and digest the bad side himself. Those delusions related to anxiety, boredom, jealousy, and possessiveness have been suppressed to the lowest point by him.
This kind of secret love is not considered miserable because it is positive and sunny in itself.
In just a few seconds, Jiang Yubai figured it out. He stood up from his seat and said to Lin Zhixia, "It's getting dark. I'll take you back to school."
He extended his hand to Lin Zhixia, who grasped his fingers tightly. He pressed her fingertips, then released them with a little hesitation. They walked side by side in the afterglow of the setting sun, their shadows overlapping as if they had never been apart.
The author has something to say: [1] It is difficult to write a poem because of my hobbies. I have to revise it thousands of times before I feel at ease. - Yuan Mei, Qing Dynasty, "Expressing My Feelings"
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Red envelopes will be distributed as usual, thank you for reading