Li Ling picked up a soup dumpling, carefully tore off a corner, and slowly sipped the soup inside. Satisfied, she squinted her eyes and then scooped up a spoonful of tofu pudding to eat.
Mmm, this is so delicious!
At this moment, you ask Li Ling what happiness is?
He would say that happiness is a bowl of tender tofu pudding plus three delicious soup dumplings.
After swallowing the last bite of the steamed bun, Li Ling let out a satisfied burp, patted his bulging belly, and felt very happy.
She took out the book of Shakespeare's poems, a gift that Xiaoying had given to Xiaozhuang when they were children.
Li Ling took a small stool and sat down in the yard. Zhuang's father was no longer there; he must have gone to play basketball with his colleagues. That was Zhuang's father's hobby and talent.
Mr. Zhuang is passionate about basketball and very talented. After leaving the military, he became a basketball coach, which is a typical example of turning a hobby into a career.
Unfortunately, Xiao Zhuang doesn't like playing basketball, which makes his father, who is a basketball coach, very sad.
Basking in the sun, the early morning sun is bright but not dazzling or intense, it's very comfortable.
Li Ling flipped through "The Collected Poems of Shakespeare," but in fact, he had memorized all the contents of the book.
However, memorizing something does not mean that you have fully understood it. This is the meaning of the ancient saying, "Read a book a hundred times and its meaning will become clear."
Conversely, this means that simply memorizing many things is useless; you need to review them frequently to discover their true meaning.
As Li Ling flipped through the poetry collection, he silently recited the poems in his heart. After reading them several times, many of the contents now evoked a different feeling.
An hour later, Li Ling rubbed her slightly sore eyes; the breakfast she had eaten was now fully digested.
He closed the poetry collection, got up and put the book and stool back in his room, took out the small gift he bought yesterday from his schoolbag, and went out... to see Xiaoying.
Li Ling called Xiao Ying last night and arranged to meet today.
Stepping out of the yard and closing the gate, I saw that Mrs. Zhuang was still taking her beauty nap.
This is a military family compound, so there's no need to worry about bad people breaking into your home.
Li Ling started running, heading towards another part of the city, where the girl he longed for was.
...
I ran non-stop for a full hour, covering a distance of over twenty kilometers, and finally arrived at the agreed-upon place.
This is an old train station near the city's outskirts, with three intersecting railway tracks stretching into the distance, flanked by lush forests.
On a straight railway track, a pretty girl was waiting.
Li Ling ran over, and the pretty girl saw him from afar, a charming smile blooming on her beautiful face.
The girl jumped up and waved to Li Ling: "Xiao Zhuang, over here!"
Li Ling ran up to the girl and looked her over for the first time since he transmigrated. However, because of Xiao Zhuang's memories, he felt no sense of unfamiliarity with the girl.
Xiaoying wore a plaid shirt, loose jeans, and white sneakers. The simple clothes couldn't hide her graceful figure.
Xiaoying's long black hair was tied into two braids with a rubber band, and she was carrying a pink girl's backpack. She looked incredibly cute.
Li Ling stared blankly at the beautiful and lovely girl.
"Silly boy, what are you looking at?" Xiaoying felt a little embarrassed by Li Ling's fixed gaze, her pretty face flushed slightly, and she said coquettishly.
Li Ling snapped out of his daze and said to Xiao Ying with a grin, "Of course, it's to see my beautiful and lovely girl... Xiao Ying."
"You pervert." Xiaoying snorted, took out a white handkerchief from her pink backpack, stood on the railway tracks, and looked up to wipe the sweat from Li Ling's forehead. "Look at you, all sweaty from running. Are you tired?"
Li Ling smelled the faint fragrance of the handkerchief and chuckled, "I'm not tired. Seeing you makes me feel less tired."
Xiaoying rolled her eyes at Li Ling: "You smooth talker, you must have fooled a lot of girls at school."
Li Ling reached out and gently grasped Xiao Ying's small hand as she wiped his sweat, and said earnestly, "If I were to lie in this life, I would only lie to the beautiful and lovely Xiao Ying."
"Hmph, I don't believe it." Xiaoying pulled her hand away from Li Ling's grasp, but a happy smile couldn't help but appear on her pretty face.
At this moment, Xiaoying's image perfectly matched the image in Xiaozhuang's memory.
Xiaoying stood on the railway tracks and walked forward step by step. Li Ling also stood on the tracks next to her, and the two walked side by side.
The railway track was narrow, only about the width of Xiaoying's foot. It was inevitable that Xiaoying would lose her balance when walking on it. Li Ling reached out and grabbed Xiaoying's hand, and the two supported each other as they walked forward.
Under the sunlight, the shadows of the two people were stretched long, overlapping with the straight railway tracks and extending into the distance.
The two walked together, as if they could be like railway tracks, side by side, supporting each other, until they reached a very, very far place...
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Chapter 19 For the Rest of My Life, Please Guide Me
Are you really planning to apply to the directing program at drama school?
After walking along the railway tracks for a while, Xiaoying turned around and asked Li Ling.
“Yes.” Li Ling supported Xiao Ying’s hand so that she could walk more steadily.
"Going to drama school and becoming a director has been my dream since I was a child, and I must get in."
Going to drama school to become a director has been Xiao Zhuang's dream since childhood, and Li Ling has no intention of changing that, since he'll be joining the army anyway.
Li Ling continued, "The drama academy's entrance exams are starting next week, and I need to go to Beijing to take them. I might have to stay in Beijing for several days, so I won't be able to see you next weekend."
Xiaoying nodded: "Okay, then you must be careful when you go to the capital."