"I panicked right then and there!" Su Tiantian said, holding her teacup and her eyebrows dancing with excitement. "Su Yuanyuan was locked inside, and she was locked up for a whole day and night. I kicked the door hard, bang—the door opened..."
"And then?" Everyone stared intently at Su Tiantian, the hero who saved her sister.
"And then?" Su Tiantian popped a peanut into her mouth and grinned mischievously. "Then I saw something inappropriate for children~~"
*Pfft*—Everyone spat out their tea at once, soaking Su Tiantian completely.
"You're going to get me killed, Su Tiantian! How dare you slander me behind my back and talk nonsense!" I ran over with a flushed face, grabbed a candy-shaped cushion from the sofa, and threw it at Su Tiantian's face.
"Ah~~ Su Yuanyuan, how dare you treat your savior like this!" Su Tiantian laughed as she dodged, "Am I wrong? You and Qu Ling are clearly..."
"How dare you say that!!" I rushed forward, grabbed Su Tiantian by the collar, tackled him onto the sofa, and plopped down on him, pressing him down hard. "I'll teach you to talk nonsense! Talk nonsense! I'll press you down from 184cm to 144cm!"
While I was fighting fiercely with Su Tiantian, Grandpa stood up from his chair, coughed loudly, and said, "Yuanyuan and Tiantian, stop making a scene. Come here, I have something to say."
I reluctantly let Su Tiantian go, sat down next to my grandfather, and listened to the old man's lecture.
"Qu Ling, come here!" Grandpa beckoned to Qu Ling.
"Yes." Qu Ling looked down at me, then walked to Grandpa's side with a faint smile.
"Qu Ling, the entire Su family is here today. I'm going to say everything in front of everyone. You... don't mind, do you?"
“Grandpa, please speak freely, please sit down.” Qu Ling walked to her grandfather's side and helped him sit down in the chair, supporting his arm. After sitting down, her grandfather grasped Qu Ling's hand, which was still on his arm. After a long silence, her grandfather took a deep breath and said, “Qu Ling, many things have happened before. Whether it was your grandfather's arbitrary and domineering marriage or your father's unexpected misfortune, now I want you to put all that aside and answer me purely: what are your true feelings for my Yuanyuan?”
I never expected Grandpa to ask such a direct question in front of the whole family. My face flushed red instantly. I quickly moved to Grandpa's side, took his hand, and whispered, "Grandpa... why... why did you ask that?"
Grandpa held my hand, his long, white eyebrows slightly raised, and looked at my face with the gentlest eyes, saying, "Yuanyuan is the treasure of our Su family. She grew up with me and her grandmother since she was little. Our greatest wish is for her to be happy. Qu Ling, compared to you, our Yuanyuan is too ordinary, too simple, and too clumsy. So... I always disagreed before. I only wanted Yuanyuan to marry an ordinary person and find the most ordinary happiness."
"Grandpa..." I met Grandpa's gaze, my eyes gradually stinging and glistening with tears.
Qu Ling slowly knelt down beside his grandfather, standing shoulder to shoulder with me. He gently placed the hand that his grandfather was holding next to mine, and said, "Grandpa, you're wrong. Compared to me, Yuanyuan is happier, kinder, and understands the wisdom of life better. So, the one who truly wants to reach out is me. I want to share Yuanyuan's happiness, to share her joy. What Yuanyuan possesses is exactly what I've been searching for. So, Grandpa, I want to ask you..." Qu Ling's face flushed slightly as he said this.
"What are you asking me to do?" Grandpa frowned as he looked at him, his eyes flashing behind his reading glasses.
"Please marry Yuanyuan to me." Qu Ling finally said with a smile, despite the burning gazes of the Su family.
"Yay! We did it!" Su Tiantian was the first to jump up from the sofa. The others joined in, laughing and clapping, making Qu Ling and me feel extremely embarrassed as we lay on our knees next to Grandpa.
My dad was stunned for a moment, then suddenly jumped in front of my mom and laughed loudly, "Yuanyuan's mom! Congratulations! We can finally send this lazybones out to cause trouble for others!"
My mom had been smiling with her lips pursed, but my dad's words stung her, and she couldn't hold back her smile any longer. She burst into laughter, slapped my dad on the head, and said, "It's all because of you, you big lazybones, that little lazybones you raised! You still dare to say such things now!"
That Lunar New Year's Eve is a night I will never forget.
That night, the lights stayed on, the fireworks never faded, the sun and moon shone together, and the stars shone brightly.
"In this life, who should I give up and who should I seek?"
Unable to let go of the endless waiting,
This tender feeling
Even if the world ends, I will never turn back.
How can flying solo compare to staying together forever?
The frost-covered forest at dawn is intoxicating, and everywhere one feels sorrow at parting.
Unable to let go of the idea of forever
Even if the world changes drastically, we will still wait.
How can flying solo compare to staying together forever?
Beneath the fireworks on the riverbank, someone was softly singing. Amidst the fragrance of winter plum blossoms, the song swayed gently in the air with the mist. Su Tiantian and I, along with Xiao Rouyuan, set off fireworks under the plum tree.
"Haha! Su Yuanyuan! Your gloves are all smudged again!" Su Tiantian pointed at my bear gloves and laughed so hard she almost rolled around on the floor.
"Hmph! Where are your gloves?" I asked, scratching at his hand in annoyance.
"I hid it a long time ago!"
"Let's switch! Let's switch!" I chased after Su Tiantian, trying to snatch his gloves.
"Yuanyuan!" Qu Ling walked over from the riverbank in the distance, and a golden firework quietly bloomed behind him.
"Qu Ling!" I pouted and rushed towards him, holding up my bear glove with a big hole burned in it, crying, "My glove! My glove is burnt!"
"Hehe, it's nothing." Qu Ling grabbed my hand and held it in her arms, laughing, "I'll keep it warm for you."
I playfully placed my cold fingers on his chest and whispered, "Will you keep me warm for the rest of my life?"
"kindness."
I nestled my head into Qu Ling's arms, secretly smiling.
After a while, I turned around and found Su Tiantian standing blankly on the embankment with Xiao Rouyuan in her hand, with Xiao Rouyuan's little white rabbit gloves hanging around her neck.
"Tian Tian! What are you thinking about?" I ran over and patted him on the shoulder.
Su Tiantian scratched her head and smiled, "I just suddenly remembered some things and found them a bit unbelievable."
"What did you remember?" I pressed.
Su Tiantian looked up at the night sky, "Many years ago, also on this riverbank, you burned your gloves, chased after me, and finally fell into someone's arms. Were we in the first year of junior high then? I think that person was Qu Ling..."
I was reminded of Zhong Zheng by Su Tiantian, and fireworks bloomed in the night sky, as if they had traveled through more than ten years.
Under the same starry sky, how many beautiful things can happen? And how many stories will unfold and twist?