Her hand paused for a moment, she lowered her head, and continued working on the problem.
"What are you pretending for? Aren't you disgusting?" The girl's voice grew louder, and the whole class fell silent, turning their heads to look at Aheng.
She felt all the blood rushing to her head, and she wanted to say, "Siwan is my brother," but Siwan was such a dazzling person, and everyone liked him so much; she couldn't tarnish his reputation.
Having a younger sister who stutters isn't something to be proud of. She doesn't look down on herself that much, but in this environment, it's more foolish to think highly of oneself than to think lowly of oneself.
Of course, she had many teachers throughout her life, but none of them had ever taught her to endure insults.
Everyone was watching her. Their eyes held mockery, amusement, ridicule, smugness, and aggressiveness, but none of them showed honesty.
She quietly took a volleyball from the locker at the back of the classroom and hit the girl's shoulder with moderate force.
A cry of pain.
Ah Heng watched the girl grinning indifferently, her gentle eyes devoid of any emotion, and softly spoke—
Does it hurt?
The girl's face flushed red, and her shoulders stung. Feeling rudely treated, she was furious and glared at Ah Heng, demanding, "What are you doing?"
Are you faking it?
Ah Heng smiled.
How can one understand another's pain if they are not there in person?
She only reciprocates kindness with three parts of kindness.
But these three points precisely contain her self-respect, tolerance, and composure.
However, if this was a gesture of kindness and warmth, she reciprocated with double the gesture, showing thoughtfulness to the core.
Unfortunately, these people are unaware of this.
Xin Dayi, who would become very close friends in the days to come, remained silent at this moment.
Ah Heng never holds grudges, but she'll remember this one for generations to come.
In their spare time, they would use it as leverage to expose Xin Dayi.
"EVE, do you remember that year I got hit by a volleyball? I was so heartbroken, you know?"
Xin Dayi cried—"Sister, just ask for whatever you want."
Hehe. But even though Ah Heng benefited from Xin Dayi's actions, she still wouldn't forget it.
Because she didn't lie.
It's really so sad, all alone.
That year, that day.
Chapter 10
Chapter 10
In the north, the weather turns cold quickly; by mid-December, snow had already fallen.
When the first snow of 1999 gently fell, the people in City B were fast asleep.
Aheng grew up in the south and could count the snowfalls she'd seen on one hand. Moreover, every time it snowed, it would stop silently before she even realized it, leaving no trace. Therefore, her concept of snow was very vague: white, soft, cool, and, well, it would upset her stomach if she ate it.
Such adjectives are somewhat laughable, but when Siwan excitedly knocked on her door and said to her, "Aheng, Aheng, come and see the snow," all she could think of was such a meager and awkward image.
Therefore, the shock I felt the moment I opened the window was indescribable.
She almost desecrated this natural beauty due to her ignorance.
The sky was a vast expanse of blue, white, or any other color in the world. It was a solemn embrace that encompassed all that was beautiful or somber. It was unexpected yet rightfully there, with a powerful yet gentle presence.
In the vast expanse, snowflakes fluttered, each one blooming with purity.
Suddenly, Ah Heng remembered dandelions. It was when she was young. Her mother had saved up a lot of cloth to make her a cotton dress, but it was stained with pomegranate juice. Her neighbor, Granny Huang, told her that washing it with dandelion seeds would clean it. She waited a long time, and finally, spring arrived. She went to collect dandelion seeds, but the hillsides were covered with soft, white parachutes fluttering in the air; she found no seeds at all.
Such beauty was rarely seen in her life. It's just a pity that her feelings about it were different from those she had now when she looked at the snow. Back then, she had seen that sea of dandelions with mixed feelings, missing out on a beautiful moment, and to this day, the regret of not finding any dandelion seeds remains in her heart.
A vast expanse of snow stretches for thousands of miles.
It snowed heavily all night, and the snow on the road was already quite thick, soft and fluffy underfoot.
The sanitation workers on the street had already started shoveling snow, and Aheng was somewhat disappointed.
"Don't worry, it'll keep raining." It won't stop so soon. Siwan knew what Aheng was thinking.
Ah Heng squinted and looked up at the sky. A snowflake drifted right into her eye, making it feel cool and refreshing.
"Siwan!" The shouts echoed from a great distance.
Siwan turned around and smiled.
Wow, what a rare combination. Auntie and Ah-Xi have teamed up.
The three of them, along with Lu Liu who was studying in Vienna, grew up together. Only these two were absolutely incompatible; they were always fighting. When they got really into a fight, he'd try to break it up, pleading with them, but they'd just hook their arms around each other's shoulders, flashing their white teeth, and kicking him, laughing maliciously, "Dear Siwan, don't you know that hitting is a sign of affection? Isn't kicking enough?" He'd wipe away his tears and cry out to Lu Liu for help, but the man wouldn't even look at him, his voice gentle as water—"Who told you to interfere? It would be better if you beat them to death; then the world would be peaceful."
"Dayi, Axi." Siwan waved vigorously.
Ah Heng watched as the two figures gradually approached. One wore a white coat, the other a blue coat; they were about the same height, but Xin Dayi was much more robust than Yan hope. In Xin Dayi's presence, Yan Xi appeared even more lonely and aloof.
"I was just telling Yanxi that the person in front who looked so silly must be Wen Siwan, so I tried calling out, and it really was you!" Xin Dayi chuckled, her messy hair quite flamboyant.
"Get lost!" Siwan laughed and scolded, but then affectionately put her arm around the boy's shoulder and looked at Yan Xi with a smile—"Yan Xi, why are you going to school with Da Yi today? Don't you always leave the house before 7:50?"
Yan hope glanced at Si Wan indifferently, without saying a word.
He stood in the snow wearing a white down jacket. The snow reflected his face, revealing a young man with black hair, red lips, and fair skin like jade. He was quite handsome, but his expression was indifferent.
Ah Heng looked at him quietly, somewhat puzzled.
Yan hope seems to have two sides. On that day at her house, he was domineering, mischievous, and lawless. Today, however, he is the same as he was when she met him a few times before they met. He is cold and lazy, and doesn't care about anything.
"He's got a cold and's in a bad mood, don't talk to him," Xin Dayi whispered, glancing at Yan hope.
"Oh." Siwan nodded and then stopped talking to Yanxi.
When Yan hope is in a bad mood, absolutely, positively, do not talk to him, and never provoke him, or you will suffer a terrible fate.
This is the experience shared by Wen Siwan, a childhood friend, over seventeen years.
Unfortunately, Xin Dayi is a typical attention-seeker; she gets cocky when there are many people around.
"Yan hope, I'm not trying to criticize you, but why do you have to imitate a young girl's period, acting all fussy for a few days every month? You're such a jerk!" Seeing that Yan hope had always been quiet and harmless, Xin Dayi started to take advantage of him.
Siwan's face darkened, and she pulled Aheng aside.
In the blink of an eye, the boy in the white coat gracefully approached the oblivious boy in the blue coat, who was laughing innocently and contentedly. His long leg shot out in an instant, combining speed, ruthlessness, and accuracy. His white sneakers left a clear size 41 shoe print on the boy's buttocks, causing him to stumble and fall face-first into the snow.
Everyone cheered, "Good, very good, excellent!"
This stance, this angle, is not something an ordinary person can execute.
"Yanxi, martial arts?" Aheng asked Siwan in a low voice.
"Ah Xi doesn't know martial arts, she only trains as a human punching bag." Si Wan looked at Xin Dayi, whose butt was sticking up in the air, with a hint of sympathy, thinking it was worth it.
Xin Dayi was in tears—"Yan hope, I'll never forgive you! You fucking attack like that!"
Yan hope sneered, "I think I told you not to mess with my young master today. I can't control what I do when I'm in a bad mood. Don't tell me you forgot that I repeated it three times when we were drinking tofu pudding!"
Xin Dayi, feeling utterly defeated, finally managed to utter a sentence through gritted teeth: "Yan hope, don't think you can kick me just because you're a little bit pretty!"
Siwan collapsed in disbelief.
Yan hope smiled slightly, looking quite helpless—"I was born of my parents, and I didn't want to be loved by everyone like this."
Siwan got up and continued to collapse.
Ah Heng knew very little about her grandmother, but from Si Wan's few words, she could sense his longing for her.
Grandma passed away the winter of the year Aheng returned to the Wen family. Although Grandpa was an atheist member of the Communist Party, Grandma was a staunch Catholic. She often taught Siwan to be kind-hearted, to treat people and things with compassion, because all things are equal, one should not lie, one should be honest, and one should always be sincere and polite to others.
Influenced by her grandmother, Siwan is also a devout Christian.
When Ah Heng found out, he wasn't surprised.
Because Siwan is that kind of person—always gentle, polite, and kind to others. In his eyes, there is no distinction between beauty and ugliness, only good and evil. He can treat everyone with calmness and magnanimity.
However, this boy, who had never acted impulsively, disappeared three days before Christmas.
To be precise, Ah Heng hadn't seen Si Wan since that morning.
At first, the Wen family thought he had something to do and went to school. However, the boy still hadn't returned home by the next day. They called Yan Xixin and Yi, but both said they hadn't seen him. News came from where Si'er lived that she hadn't returned for two days either. The family panicked and asked the neighbors in the courtyard and the police station to help look for him.
Ah Heng was left at home to look after the house.
She thought about it, feeling that this had come completely without warning. Siwan was laughing and joking the day before she disappeared, showing no signs of anything amiss. How could she just vanish like that?
Ah Heng entered Si Wan's room, which was usually spotless but was now a mess. His family had just searched every nook and cranny of the room but hadn't found a single clue.
Siwan is always very clean; he'll be unhappy if he comes back and sees the room like this.
Ah Heng chuckled as she imagined Si Wan's furrowed brows upon seeing the room in such a mess.
She decided to help the boy tidy up his room.
I drew back the curtains, and outside the window, the snow was still pristine, but it was clearly nighttime.
Tonight is Christmas Eve. Ah Heng doesn't really understand Western holidays, but Si Wan talked about them so many times that she remembered them.
Eat apples on Christmas Eve for peace and safety.
Siwan is outside in the cold wind. Does she have any apples to eat? It's so cold, what if she gets sick from the cold and doesn't go home? How foolish of her! Why can't she talk things over properly? If she can't talk to her mother, she still has her grandfather.
Ah Heng thought that Si Wan might come back soon, so she cleaned up the room and went to peel an apple.
After shaving one, I thought that Er'er might come back with me, so I shaved one more.
When I brought it to Siwan's room, I looked up and my gaze inadvertently fell on the calendar on the wall. December was marked with line after line in black pen, finally stopping at the 22nd.
December 22nd was the day my grandmother was buried.
Siwan once told her that her grandmother was buried by her grandfather in the largest church in City B, but her grandmother did not like that church. Her favorite place to pray was a small church, and he said that her grandmother's soul must be there.
The Soviet Union... the Soviet East Church!