Jian Changnian smiled somewhat embarrassedly: "I'd like to borrow the office landline to call my grandmother. The phone booth in the corridor is under repair and can't be used for the time being."
"Okay, go ahead and do it. I'm going to the cafeteria to get some food. If I'm not back by the time you're done, remember to lock the door." Yan Xinyuan put down his needlework, picked up his pipe, and got up to leave.
"Okay, thank you, Coach Yan."
Jian Changnian picked up the phone on her desk, dialed a familiar number, and waited for the call to connect, her expression unusually cheerful.
The closed training meant very few opportunities to go out. Even when she had a day off, it was only for half a day at most. She hadn't seen her grandmother for a long time and really missed her.
Hearing Zhou Mu's loud and boisterous voice, a knowing smile appeared on her lips.
"How is my grandma?"
"Tsk, she goes straight home after school to visit her grandma for you, and you don't even ask me if I'm okay."
"Okay, okay, I know~ You must have a great appetite, be in excellent health, and have made progress in your studies, so you jumped into the top ten in the class in the monthly exam, right?"
Zhou Mu chuckled: "Thank you for your kind words. I'm still a bit short of the top ten. We'll be divided into different classes next semester, and I'm under a lot of pressure lately."
Because of this, Zhou Mu has been either taking extra classes or on her way to take extra classes these past few weeks. She only came home this week because her mother's birthday was coming up; otherwise, she would have come to visit her much earlier.
"Alright, alright, I'm not going to waste my breath on you anymore. I'll give the phone to Grandma."
Hearing the old man's familiar voice coming through the receiver, Jian Changnian covered the receiver, feeling somewhat excited.
"Grandma, how have you been feeling lately? Have you been taking your medicine on time?"
"Grandma's doing well, don't worry. Niannian, have you been especially busy with your studies lately? You haven't been home for over a month..."
Jian Changnian's eyes welled up with tears, and she told a lie.
"Um... the school has arranged for us to go out for internships. I'll come home to see you after the internship is over."
"Okay, okay, then you must work hard and not let the school and teachers down."
Jian Changnian responded softly. Her grandmother then told her to wear more clothes because it was cold and to take good care of herself. She chattered on for about ten minutes. Just as she was about to hang up, Zhou Mu's voice came in again.
"Hey, hey, don't hang up yet, um... I want to ask you... for a favor..."
"What kind of busyness are you being so coy about?" Jian Changnian teased.
"Oh dear, that's it—" Zhou Mu glanced at her grandmother, ran a little further away, and covered her phone as she spoke.
"It's getting cold, so I knitted a scarf for Senior Cheng. I have to attend extra classes recently, and he's also in intensive training. Could you please give this to him for me?"
Jian Changnian hesitated deliberately for a moment before saying, "I'm also in closed training."
"Oh dear, you live so close by, it's just going out the door, please~ please~"
Jian Changnian couldn't stand her using that affected, coquettish voice; it gave her goosebumps.
"Okay, okay, I'll go, alright? Just speak properly."
Zhou Mu then smiled again: "Then it's settled! I'll mail it to you when I go to school another day. Oh, and I also knitted one for you. Try it on and see if it's warm."
It's really impressive that she managed to knit a scarf for Cheng Zhen while tutoring her, and she still remembered her good friend.
Jian Changnian felt a warmth in her heart: "Okay, after I finish training, let's go out and have fun together."
Just as she finished her call and went out, Yan Xinyuan returned with his lunchbox.
"Oh, you're done playing?"
Jian Changnian stuck out her tongue: "I haven't seen my grandma for more than a month, and I miss her a bit, so I've been talking a lot."
"It's okay, no one uses the office phone anyway. If you miss Grandma, you can come over and call home."
Jian Changnian shook her head: "I don't have a landline at home, so I can only get one when Zhou Mu comes home. I can't keep bothering her."
Hearing this, Jian Changnian was a little curious. Other teaching assistants' families would occasionally come to the training base, but Yan Xinyuan always seemed to be alone, and she had never seen him talk to his family on the phone.
"Coach Yan, are all your family members in Beijing?"
My family lives far away.
Even though he said it with a smile, Jian Changnian felt a strange sadness.
"Coach Yan..."
Yan Xinyuan smiled and carried the lunchbox inside: "By the way, wait a moment, this clothing will be mended soon, you can take it to Xie Shi'an."
Jian Changnian followed him into the room and saw him put down his lunchbox, wash his hands, and then pick up his needle and thread again. She had seen him mending things when she came in.
"These clothes belong to Xie Shi'an?"
"Yes, I saw that some of your clothes that were hanging outside were torn, so I brought them over to mend them so they could still be worn."
Yan Xinyuan, wearing reading glasses and squinting, threaded a needle.
Jian Changnian looked out the window. The weather was nice today. All the balconies of the dormitory building were in the shade, so many people had strung up wires in the yard to hang clothes and quilts out to dry, all over the place.
She turned her gaze back and noticed that there were several pairs of torn boys' socks on the chair next to Yan Xinyuan, which she hadn't seen before.
"Here, it's done." Yan Xinyuan bit off the loose thread, smoothed out the mended cuff, shook out the coat to take a look, and was very satisfied with his work.
Jian Changnian took the clothes, somewhat surprised: "You can sew?"
"That's right, I used to sew and mend for my kids all the time." Yan Xinyuan smiled and took another puff of his pipe. In the swirling smoke, a hint of melancholy was hidden in his expression.
"Then I'll head back now, Coach Yan."
"good."
***
Jian Changnian returned to the dormitory building with the clothes in her arms. Seeing that Xie Shian and the others' dormitory door was closed, she gently knocked on the door.
"Who is it?" It was Qiao Yuchu who opened the door. Jian Changnian breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness it wasn't that icy-faced girl.
"Um, I was delivering clothes for Coach Yan. He noticed that the seam on the cuff of Xie Shi'an's jacket, which was hanging downstairs, was torn, so he took it to get it mended."
Qiao Yuchu took the clothes and looked at them: "Wow, Coach Yan has this trick up his sleeve. Shi An isn't here right now, but I'll tell her when she gets back. Thank you, Coach Yan, and thank you for making this trip. Come in and have a seat."
Compared to Xie Shi'an, who was taciturn and had an icy expression, talking to Qiao Yuchu was like a gentle breeze.
Her earnest thanks and invitation to come inside made Jian Changnian feel a little embarrassed.
"No need, no need, it's just a small favor."
Jian Changnian was about to leave, but remembering Zhou Mu's instructions, she turned back and asked hesitantly, "Um, I'm not sure about the training schedule at the swimming base. You and Cheng Zhen are friends, have you heard him mention it?"
A hint of amusement crept onto Qiao Yuchu's lips.
"You need Orange Juice for something?"
Jian Changnian scratched her head. She had never delivered a gift before. She needed to figure out their schedule before going, so she wouldn't be unable to find them when she arrived.
"Yes, I'm delivering something."
It's rare for her to be gossipy, so Qiao Yuchu perked up her ears.
"What is it? You can have someone deliver it to you, or Shi'an and I can help you deliver it."
Jian Changnian shook her head: "It's better if I deliver it myself."
Qiao Yuchu drawled out an "Oh," making Jian Changnian feel a little uncomfortable.
Those who noticed her embarrassed expression didn't make things difficult for her anymore.
"Their rest time is similar to ours; they should have an hour of free time from 6:00 to 7:30 pm every day."
Jian Changnian breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank you, I'll head back now."
Before leaving, Qiao Yuchu slipped a few apples into her hand: "Come visit again next time."
After Xie Shi'an finished showering and returned to the dormitory, Qiao Yuchu told her about it with a gossipy look on her face.
"Hey, don't you think Jian Changnian has a thing for Orange Juice?"
Xie Shi'an looked at her with an incredulous expression.
"How can you connect these things?"
"Think about it, something that must be given in person must be very meaningful, right?"
If we're talking about ideas, then Jian Changnian's friend Zhou Mu probably has the bigger ideas.
"What's the big deal? You've personally given me and Orange Juice things before."
Qiao Yuchu thought for a moment and said, "That's true. Jian Changnian is still young, but you are eighteen, Xie."
A smile appeared on Xie Shi'an's lips as she picked up the hairdryer to dry her hair.
"Ms. Qiao, don't make me remind you, eighteen is still not the legal marriage age."
Speaking of this topic, Qiao Yuchu remembered the question Cheng Zhen asked at her last birthday party and nudged her arm.
"Hey, at least other people have some kind of innocent and exciting feelings during their adolescence, but you're like a stagnant pool. Shi'an, don't you really have anyone you like?"
The hairdryer was too loud, and Xie Shi'an didn't hear what she said. He turned it off and asked, "What did you say?"
"I said—do you have someone you like?" Qiao Yuchu teased her deliberately, leaning on her shoulder and shouting loudly.
The distance was so close that Xie Shi'an's ears visibly turned pink, and his entire cheeks felt hot.
Xie Shi'an forced himself to remain calm, burying his head as he dried his hair with a towel.
"No, why do you ask that?"
Seeing that she didn't react, Qiao Yuchu walked away with little interest: "As the older sister who has watched you grow up, can't I be a little curious?"
"And what about you? Do you have any?" After she left his back, Xie Shi'an was finally able to breathe and speak normally, looking into her eyes and asking slowly.
Qiao Yuchu counted on her fingers: "I've been on at least three blind dates this year, but none of them have been particularly appealing."
A barely perceptible smile appeared on Xie Shi'an's lips as he began to dry his hair.
"The requirements are quite high."
"Why are the requirements too high? He's a man, around 27 or 28. I don't expect him to be successful in his career, but it's not unreasonable to expect him to have a decent job that can support him. Also, when he goes out in public, he doesn't have to be dressed in the most fashionable way, but at least he should be clean and tidy, not sloppy."
Xie Shi'an nodded: "That's true. So, do you have a type you like?"
Qiao Yuchu sprawled out on her bed, saying, "Hmm... let me think... He needs to be successful in his career, clean, not too short, mature and stable, gentle and considerate, and honest and truthful..."
Qiao Yuchu said a lot in one breath, then turned her head to look at her: "And you, Shi'an, have you thought about your ideal type?"
"My ideal type, no matter what she becomes, I will still like her."