A low, weak growl, sounding disheveled, came from behind her. Lin Shengmiao turned around and found that her view was blocked by a campervan next to her. The other person probably hadn't noticed her, and she had no intention of eavesdropping on other people's privacy.
"I'm sorry, but compared to the result, I care more about the process..."
The woman's voice was polite and very gentle, yet it also had an uncontrollable sharpness.
"Besides, a relationship can only go the distance if both people are at a similar pace. Your life is too fast-paced, and I really can't keep up. I'm sorry, let's break up. You will meet a girl who is more suitable for you."
man:"……"
Lin Shengmiao: "..."
Her hand, which was resting on the car door, paused, and she gave the young lady a thumbs-up from afar.
Her mouth and her eloquence are no less impressive than those of her mother, Ms. Pei Wei, in her youth.
The man seemed to say something again, but Lin Shengmiao had already gotten back into the car and could only hear it vaguely. Then, a few horns blared and several more cars stopped, and the conversation outside abruptly ceased.
"I'm back," Xu Xingyan said as she jogged back to the car, smiling as she handed Lin Shengmiao a grilled sausage. "I just bought it at the convenience store, it's still warm."
As he turned to put the bag of Chinese medicine on the back seat, his sleeves were slightly rolled up due to sweat, revealing a thin, long wound about five or six centimeters long on his arm. It wasn't deep, and it had already closed up, covered with a thin scab.
Xu Xingyan turned around and saw Lin Shengmiao holding a grilled sausage and looking at her. Just as she was about to ask why she wasn't eating it, she followed her gaze and saw the new scar on her wrist.
Slightly guilty.jpg
This happened a week ago when I was moving flower pots in the store. I accidentally dropped them and got cut by the flying ceramic shards. It should have healed long ago, but because she has poor healing ability and it's winter, when wounds don't heal easily, my girlfriend kept catching her.
When in a long-distance relationship, the desire to share doesn't actually diminish; it's just that they both start to share good news and not bad. They can often chat for hours about trivial things like what they ate or what gossip they had, freely recounting any interesting people and events around them.
But they rarely tell the other person how much work they've done that night, how many IV drips they've had and how much medicine they've taken, how they twisted their ankle going down the stairs, or how uncooperative colleagues have delayed them...
Not wanting the other person to worry unnecessarily is only one aspect; the main reason is that before they truly integrated into each other's lives, they had already grown into adults capable of weathering life's storms and were used to solving problems independently.
Just like when we met yesterday, apart from saying "I miss you so much," neither of us mentioned the sadness and grievances we had experienced while our loved ones were not by our side.
Lin Shengmiao looked at her quietly, his expression unfathomable. Xu Xingyan automatically read the eight ironclad words in his eyes: "Confess and you will be treated leniently; resist and you will be punished severely."
Luo Jing used to say that Xu Xingyan was like an abacus bead; she would only move when someone pushed her. Getting her to take the initiative was just a pipe dream.
However, Lin Shengmiao was an absolute exception in this matter, a blatant favoritism.
Xu Xingyan said decisively, "I was scratched by a flowerpot last Sunday, but it doesn't hurt anymore."
Lin Shengmiao: "So during the video call that night, you kept preventing me from seeing your arm."
"You must tell me earlier next time, otherwise I'll overthink it and become even more worried."
Xu Xingyan grabbed her hand and took a big bite out of the sausage. "Last Thursday afternoon, when I called you, your voice was clearly weak and you were almost asleep, but you still insisted that your phone was out of battery."
"Yeah, I'm so tired," Lin Shengmiao said. "I stayed up all night to finish a deal, and I had to rush to prepare for the afternoon meeting this morning. I just couldn't hold on any longer."
"You must be really tired, right?" Xu Xingyan measured her wrist with her fingers. "You've lost weight."
"Next time you encounter this situation, just tell me directly. You can call anytime."
Lin Shengmiao nodded and whispered to her about Ms. Fang Yi coming to see her.
After listening, Xu Xingyan thought for a moment and also recounted her unbearable hospitalization: "I had a total of seventeen nucleic acid tests and a ton of other tests in those few days. Luo Jing absolutely refused to let me leave the hospital..."
Lin Shengmiao didn't hesitate: "Hit her!"
Xu Xingyan covered her mouth and laughed, "No wonder you and Luo Jing always bicker as soon as you meet."
...
Grandpa Luo is the oldest member of the family, so he was naturally given priority when we came to Kyoto for the New Year. The New Year's Eve dinner was also arranged at Grandpa Luo's house.
Fortunately, Grandpa Luo was of a high enough rank to have a two-story villa with a garden. Little Luo Yang was panting heavily after helping his father put up a circle of "Fu" characters.
"You're so thoughtful."
Grandpa Luo smiled as he held the teapot with the pine and crane motif that Lin Shengmiao had given him. He took two red envelopes from the guard and gave one to Xu Xingyan and one to her. "Everyone gets a red envelope for the New Year."
With his age and experience, many things are no longer enough to move him. Whether someone is male or female is not important at all; what matters most is being able to walk together to the end.
Xu Xingyan: "Thank you, Grandpa Luo."
Lin Shengmiao held the red envelope in her hand and echoed her, "Thank you, Grandpa Luo."
At the door, Luo Jing, who arrived a little late, exclaimed excitedly, "Grandpa, Yu Hang and I brought some ham. Should we stew it or stir-fry it?"
Fang Yuan came out of the kitchen carrying a bowl of prepared filling and said, "We're not stewing or stir-frying, we're making dumplings today. Go wash your hands and come help."
Little Luoyang suddenly appeared out of nowhere and hugged Xu Xingyan's waist. "Mom just bought me an ant workshop. Auntie, will you come play with me?"
“Okay,” Xu Xingyan agreed, while giving Lin Shengmiao a look that signaled her to follow.
Lin Shengmiao shifted her knees, her eyes filled with hesitation. Should she go with the aunt and niece to steal a moment of leisure, or stay and help make dumplings?
Seeing this, Chen Yue's eyes lit up, and she immediately smiled and said, "Shengmiao, come and help me chop the vegetables. I can't manage on my own."
Lin Shengmiao readily agreed. Xu Xingyan had told her that Chen Yue was a senior prosecutor who lost both her parents at a young age and was raised by her grandfather, a retired soldier. She had a gentle exterior but a strong interior, and was very easy to get along with.
It must be said that Chen Yue did a great job of easing Lin Shengmiao's tension. She briefly explained everyone's hobbies and dietary restrictions in the family, while calmly and gently comforting her. She also chopped up several side dishes and put them on a plate. Lin Shengmiao thanked her softly.
"No need to thank me, it's all what I should do," Chen Yue said with a smile. "When I was dating and when I was newly married, Yan Yan helped me a lot, so it's my turn to repay her kindness."
Chen Yue told her that when Luo Bin first introduced her to his relatives, she had just finished a part-time job and was riding her electric scooter to the hotel when she bumped into Luo Bin picking up some elders. In front of a group of luxury cars, her little electric scooter was extremely conspicuous, and some of the older women looked at her strangely.
"Guess what Yan Yan said?"
Lin Shengmiao thought for a moment, then imitated Xu Xingyan's tone: "Sister-in-law, you look so cool riding your electric scooter!"
“That’s right!” Chen Yue still finds it funny when she thinks about it now. “She also said that she has always had a bad sense of balance and could never learn it, so she asked me if I could teach her.”
"And on my wedding day, which happened to be the Mid-Autumn Festival, it started raining from morning. One of Luo Bin's cousins kept saying it was unlucky. Yan Yan heard this in the bridal chamber and said with a smile, 'Of course it has to rain today. After all, the moon has come to my house. Shouldn't it let the moon make a fuss?'"
“That’s her tone. If it were me,” Lin Shengmiao laughed, “I would say that in my hometown, if it rains on the way to the wedding, it means the bride is too good and heaven is reluctant to let her get married. If it rains on the way to the wedding, it means the groom rode a dog when he was a child!”
“Yes, yes, yes, that’s a saying in my hometown too,” Chen Yue laughed. “If the groom rode a dog when he was a child, it will rain when he gets married. It’s so interesting.”
...
Luo Bin: "Mom, these chives should have been salted beforehand; they're too tough."
Luo Jing said sarcastically, "Oh, thank you for your suggestion, guest. Why don't you show us your skills right away and broaden our horizons?"
"Ugh, I can't even offer a suggestion?" Luo Bin felt wronged. "Only by offering suggestions can we make progress and do better, this..."
Chen Yue quickly stopped her husband from speaking: "Let's have some braised fish. I specially asked the chef to make it yesterday. It's been soaking in the broth overnight. Let's see if it's flavorful enough."
Luo Bin immediately felt that his wife was the best. He happily ate a couple of bites, but then he reverted to his old ways and started nitpicking, "I remember that authentic braised fish doesn't have its gills and scales removed. Why did you remove them all?"
Chen Yue smiled and said, "Shut up. You're lucky if we give you anything to eat. If you want something authentic, make it yourself!"
Luo Bin fell silent.
Little Luoyang's eyes darted around, and she secretly made a face at him, saying, "Daddy, be shy."
Luo Bin touched his little face with his soup-covered hands, which startled Xiao Luoyang, who dodged left and right.
After dinner, on the second-floor terrace.
Fang Yuan: "You visited Mr. Sun yesterday, how was it?"
Luo Jing: "He's a cunning fox, but he's old. He's probably paving the way for his children and grandchildren."
Thinking of the young man following behind Mr. Sun, Luo Jing pursed her lips and added, "But that Sun Ran's thinking is completely trapped in the logic of Westernization. I talked to him yesterday, and if he's not deliberately hiding his abilities, he probably won't be able to get out of it in the short term."
Xu Xingyan recalled the white-haired old man holding her hand yesterday and sighed with admiration: "As expected of the Fang family, which is famous for its integrity, their spirit remains strong even after so many years! Brother Fang is more fortunate than me!"
She paused for a moment, then continued, "I took some time to analyze the situation and talked to my father about it. Mr. Sun hasn't participated in the group's decision-making for many years. The current head of EK is his eldest son, Sun Chang, who is mediocre and has made several wrong decisions in recent years. In addition, EK has always had a high brand premium, and many of the group's veterans are dissatisfied..."
Xu Xingyan vaguely felt that her aunt was willing to go further, after all, there were only a few months left before the re-election, and with her age of over fifty and her political achievements over the years, she still had a good chance if she worked hard.
In that case, we need to be even more cautious during this period, and we need to think more carefully about some people and things.
Fang Yuan turned the plain silver bracelet on her wrist, a glint of light flashing in her eyes, and slowly said, "I understand."
After Xu Xingyan and Luo Jing left, Fang Yuan stood alone on the terrace, lost in thought, until her uncle Luo Heng came over and asked, "What are you standing here for? Aren't you cold?"
"I was thinking about something and got lost in thought," Fang Yuan said, crossing her arms.
Luo Heng very considerately draped his coat over her shoulders.
Fang Yuan smiled, looking at his sunken face, and couldn't help but pinch his arm, saying, "Have you been working on a lot of projects lately? How come you've lost so much weight?"
“The project is indeed a bit complicated, but that’s not why I’ve lost weight,” Luo Heng winked mischievously, his eyes clear and youthful. “My longing for you is like the full moon, its light waning night after night. I’ve become haggard for you, and A-Yuan has to make it up to me…”
Fang Yuan was amused by him again, and in that instant, all her worries and anxieties melted away into the night.
...
Downstairs, Yu Hang was playing chess with Grandpa Luo.
Xu Xingyan knew a little about the game, and after watching one round, she couldn't help but look at Yu Hang with new respect.
It is said that those who are good at chess have a deep understanding of the game. If Master Luo's chess skills are not the pinnacle, they are certainly at the level of a master. It is no easy task to fight him to this extent.
Luo Jing's eyes lit up, as if she had found a great treasure, and she was extremely excited.
After watching another game, Xu Xingyan pulled Lin Shengmiao to the small balcony on the second floor. The weather was perfect tonight; not only was the moon bright, but there were also a few stars to keep them company.
After quietly admiring the stars and moon for a while, Lin Shengmiao suddenly asked, "There's something I still can't figure out: how did Luo Jing find out about us back then?"
There was no confession or explicit declaration. At most, the two seemed to be a little closer. But girls often lack a sense of boundaries. Is Luo Jing's perception and imagination really that good?
Xu Xingyan lowered her head and smiled: "We've been doing our homework at the same desk since we were little. Sometimes she would borrow my novels to read. After reading one book called 'Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit,' she understood it on her own."
Sister Jing... is truly, truly intelligent!
Lin Shengmiao gave an "oh" and raised an eyebrow, but didn't ask any further questions. After all, it was really upsetting that Miss Xu, who was always so meticulous, had forgotten to put the book away properly. It was best not to mention it if possible.
A smile curved her lips, and she seized the opportunity to ask, "So when did you start liking me?"
Xu Xingyan paused for a few seconds, then turned and kissed her on the eyes. "Love at first sight."
Lin Shengmiao froze, trying hard to recall the scene of their first meeting, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't find anything about herself that made her fall in love at first sight.
The two of them didn't even remember to exchange names until the very end.
"That morning, I don't know why I put my grandmother's reading notebook into my schoolbag. After flipping through a few pages, I only remembered the sentence 'Deeply affectionate people are bound to be cold.' As I was pondering this, I looked up and saw you."
Xu Xingyan will never forget those eyes—
At first glance, she appears extremely calm and aloof, carrying a sense of mystery that she couldn't understand at the time, making people inexplicably want to get entangled with her. But upon closer inspection, this aloofness is like morning dew, which could evaporate at any moment. She is extremely fragile and sensitive, like a tough grass growing on the edge of a cliff, saying, "I am strong, you can't hurt me," while being hurt deeply by the wind and frost...
Do you know what I was thinking at the time?