The Chinese New Year was early this year, at the end of January. Lin Sitao rarely went back home, so he had already started preparing gifts to bring home. Most of them were for his grandparents.
His flight was on the afternoon of the 28th of the twelfth lunar month, and He Xian personally sent him to the airport.
Lin Sitao has already explained his New Year's Eve plans to He Xian in detail.
"I got home on the evening of the 28th. On the 29th, I cleaned and prepared the New Year's Eve dinner. I stayed at home on the 30th. On the first day of the New Year, I accompanied my grandmother to burn incense. On the second day, I started visiting relatives. On the fifth night, I had a class reunion. I returned on the morning of the seventh."
His holiday schedule was simple and clear, and He Xian thought it was good.
"What about you?" Lin Sitao asked him, "How do you plan?"
He Xian's Spring Festival schedule is not a matter of arrangement, but a matter of how to put it together. He has given up trying to sort out his schedule.
"I'm only sure that the night of the 30th was definitely at my grandfather's. I can't say anything else."
He mentioned He Zhongcheng, which made Lin Sitao silent for a while. Lin Sitao had always been curious about this matter - did He Zhongcheng know that He Xian was with a man? Did he beat him up if he knew
But it was obviously not a good topic to ask before leaving in a hurry. Lin Sitao said: "Then we can only contact each other by phone."
He Xian seemed to remember something: "You said you had a class reunion during the New Year? High school?"
Lin Sitao hummed. He Xian said, "Will you meet your first love?"
Lin Sitao: “Ah?”
He Xian said, "Didn't you ask me before if I wanted to hear about your first love? I want to hear about it now. I hope it won't happen at the class reunion?" Class reunions are also evil things. They are the easiest to stir up a fire and rekindle old love. He never liked class reunions.
Lin Sitao laughed: "Don't you think Chunchun's first love story is too disgusting?"
"Just tell me, will we meet at the class reunion?" He Xian asked him.
Seeing that he was really unhappy, Lin Sitao comforted him: "You won't run into him. My first love is not my high school classmate."
He Xian was a little curious: "Who is that?"
Lin Sitao thought for a moment and said, "This is not a good topic at this time of parting."
He Xian thought he was really interesting: "It sounds like a story of 180,000 words."
Lin Sitao said: "The story does exist, it just doesn't have 180,000 words."
Before leaving, He Xian shook Lin Sitao's hand and said, "Next time we meet, remember to finish your story."
Lin Sitao smiled and waved to him.
A few hours later, Lin Sitao returned to City J.
Grandma and grandpa were waiting for him at home. When Lin Sitao got home, he saw that the house was clean and tidy. He even said that he would clean it up when he came back - but there was no need for that.
"Your grandma cleans every day and makes sure the house is extremely clean. She said a new house cannot be dirty." Grandpa said loudly with a smile.
This is probably the most satisfying thing for Lin Sitao in his life—seeing two elderly people spend their old age in peace.
Before the class reunion, Lin Sitao met Xu Dan first. The next day after returning, they made an appointment to have dinner together.
As soon as Xu Dan sat down, she showed Lin Sitao her diamond ring, a small one from Tiffany. Her fiancé had already bled.
"We went to Shanghai to buy things and played for two days. If Beijing wasn't too far away, I would have come to see you." She was still as lively as ever, talking nonstop.
Lin Sitao liked her like this. Whenever he felt that he had been away for too long and felt a little distant from the past, Xu Dan's voice would seem so familiar.
They talked about houses again. Xu Dan's new home was not far from Lin Sitao's house, and she would visit Lin Sitao's grandmother sometimes.
Lin Sitao was very grateful to her.
Xu Dan said: "Isn't it too polite for you to thank me?" What she really wanted to hear was what happened next between Lin Sitao and his elder sister.
“… How are you and her doing now?” she asked Lin Sitao.
It was time to make it clear in person, Lin Sitao said slowly: "Actually, I like men."
Xu Dan was stunned, and after a while she suddenly burst into tears. Lin Sitao handed her a piece of toilet paper and said, "I like men, why do I feel so depressed?"
Xu Dan sobbed and said, "I am crying for joy..."
The thing that bothered her the most in her youth was that Lin Sitao didn't like her. This was a very old dream. After meeting her fiancé, she thought she had forgotten it, but Lin Sitao finally gave her an answer. She was completely relieved now.
"You should have told me earlier." She complained to Lin Sitao.
Lin Sitao said: "Because I wasn't sure in the past."
Xu Dan already understood that Lin Sitao was certain because he met a certain person: "So, it's not the beautiful big sister, but the handsome big brother?"
Lin Sitao nodded.
Xu Dan's first reaction was: "There are many scammers nowadays, you must not be deceived."
Lin Sitao laughed: "It's OK for me to deceive him. But he deceives me? The only thing he can deceive is sex."
Xu Dan said: "Don't underestimate yourself. You are such a good person, innocent and serious. Some playboys pretend to be deeply in love, but in fact they don't treat people as human beings, and they run away after playing with them."
Lin Sitao said: "He is serious."
Xu Dan also understood that people in love are irrational. She smiled and said, "I don't know whether he is serious or not. But you must be serious. I wish you all the best. Feel free to contact me if you have any troubles."
On the fifth day of the Chinese New Year, there were about 20 people at the class reunion. After dinner, everyone went to sing. The party lasted until almost one o'clock. When Lin Sitao came out of the KTV, he saw two missed calls from He Xian, both of which were called around twelve o'clock.
While he was sitting in the taxi, he called He Xian back.
"You are not going to check on me in Beijing, are you?" He was a little drunk and spoke lightly.
He Xian said in a low and slow voice: "I'm worried about you."
Lin Sitao felt dizzy, and He Xian's voice in the middle of the night made him even more dizzy.
"I miss you as well."
He Xian said: "Really? You miss me?"
Lin Sitao smiled and said, "I miss you. I started thinking about you as soon as I got on the plane that day."
It's easier to tell the truth when you're drunk. The truth can be frivolous.
"Then wait for me." He Xian seemed to say this.
Lin Sitao returned home in a daze, took a shower and fell asleep. He slept until about nine in the morning. He was woken up by He Xian's phone call again.
"Hello?" He said hoarsely.
He Xian asked him: "Where do you live?"
"Huh?" Lin Sitao hasn't woken up yet.
He Xian said: "I'm in J City."