“Yuanyuan,” Qu Ling said, his hand half-circling the back of the chair, his face very close to mine, I could almost feel his cool breath. “Would you hate the real me? Not a gentle and refined gentleman, but just a domineering and stubborn brat.”
"So cute." I tilted my head and smiled. "Dean, the real you is so cute."
There was a light flowing in Qu Ling's dark eyes, which shone with a rainbow of colors in the sunlight.
Another north wind blew by, carrying his favorite October yellow, and a delicate yellow hue fell on my shoulder.
The fragrance of wintersweet is subtle and delicate.
The sound of breathing in the wind was almost audible.
Suddenly, I remembered the elegant man I met in the auditorium on the first day of school. The fragrance I smelled then, his breath, and the scent of this winter plum blossom were so similar.
The author has something to say: I have a thousand words in my heart, but since I'm already on VIP, saying more would be pointless.
I hope everyone can understand and be considerate.
I'll give everyone free points!!!
Definitely!
Fish roe crawled down with tears in its eyes.
ˇA Crab Song (Part 2)ˇ
Before the sun went down, Qu Ling had already pushed me to the other side of the riverbank.
"Dean, I should go back now." I tugged at Qu Ling's sleeve. He was gazing thoughtfully at the golden river under the sunlight.
"It's already so late!" Qu Ling raised her wrist to look at her watch and laughed, "Meetings usually feel like they take forever, but today they flew by."
"That's what they call hating its strengths and loving its weaknesses!" I blurted out, then immediately wanted to bite my tongue off. I really know how to flatter myself.
“That’s right, that’s exactly the point!” Qu Ling answered decisively, with a smile on her face.
On the way back, I couldn't help but ask Qu Ling, "Dean, you were so stubborn when you were little, why did you become so gentle after you turned fourteen?"
“Yuanyuan, I’m not becoming gentler, I’m just pretending to be.” Qu Ling walked behind me, I couldn’t see his expression, but his voice sounded very calm. “A person’s personality doesn’t change so easily. It’s just that as time goes by and you grow up, you realize that if you don’t restrain yourself, many things will do you more harm than good.”
"Is this what they mean by 'it's easier to change mountains and rivers than to change one's nature'?"
"Hehe, that's right. When I was fourteen, I met a good friend whose personality was completely opposite to mine. His gentleness and warmth came from the bottom of his heart; it was his true nature. After spending more time with him, I found that he was much better at dealing with people and things than I was. Gradually, I also learned to speak and smile gently, instead of always having a stern face and looking down on others."
(Have you all guessed who this friend is? It's Wu Jinshu, our beloved Jinshu brother who deserves our eternal remembrance! Tears... Jinshu, I'm so sorry, I've taken you to such a strange place.)
"Your friend is amazing; he's managed to influence you so much."
"Choose others to compensate for your own weaknesses. However, his tolerance and gentleness are consistent with his heart, while I am only doing the surface. Deep down, I am no different from when I was a child. Sometimes I hate someone so much that I want to bite them, but I wear an affectionate smile on my face."
"Dean! This is called hypocrisy!"
“Yuanyuan,” Qu Ling stopped and whispered in my ear, “Actually, the reason I’ve told you so much today is to let you understand the real me. The one who is two-faced. Now, don’t you feel disgusted by this side of me?”
"Of course not!" I answered quickly, turning to look at Qu Ling and smiling, "How many people in this world are truly consistent inside and out? To survive in this world, who doesn't have their own disguise when walking among people? Besides, the real you is also very cute, straightforward and persistent. Actually, Dean, I've always felt that the you who always smiles at school isn't truly happy. A life that suppresses your true nature certainly won't bring true happiness."
"You—" Qu Ling looked at me in surprise, then couldn't help but laugh after her initial astonishment: "You little girl who likes to overthink things!"
"Crab Qu—Dean, that's a really funny nickname!"
Qu Ling seemed relieved, her expression becoming much more relaxed. "Not everyone thinks like you, Yuanyuan. Some people might find me scary."
"What's so scary? At most, they'll just wave their pliers around and show off!"
Qu Ling smiled and gently pinched my ear, saying, "How about these pliers?"
I turned my head away and laughed, "The crab's pinching me!"
Qu Ling grabbed my ear and wouldn't let go, laughing, "Once you're caught in my crab claws, you won't be able to get away!"
For no reason at all, my face gradually turned red.
Fortunately, the sunset glow was like smoke, and the crimson light reflected on the river and dyed everything in the world red.
I turned to the side and secretly glanced at Qu Ling beside me. His face was also red in the rosy glow of the sunset.
****
When Qu Ling pushed me to the front door, we happened to run into my grandma who was returning from grocery shopping.
Grandma beamed with joy the moment she saw Qu Ling. No matter how much Qu Ling said he had things to do that evening, she insisted on taking him home for dinner. Qu Ling couldn't refuse, so he had no choice but to follow her inside.
As soon as I entered, I saw my uncle standing in the living room holding a large box. "Mom, why are you so late! Someone gave me a big box of blue-shelled crabs today. Doesn't Yuanyuan love crabs the most? Why don't you cook some for her tonight?"
"Oh, we can still eat crabs in the middle of winter!" Grandma chuckled as she took the box. "Qu Ling is coming over today, so I'm having him eat dinner. With crabs to eat, I can't let him leave!"
I looked at the picture of a large, menacing crab on the box and burst out laughing. I secretly glanced at Qu Ling, who remained calm, seemingly oblivious to the crab, and politely greeted my uncle.
After my uncle and grandma went to the kitchen, he glared at me and said, "Yuanyuan, if you dare to tell anyone my nickname, I'll eat you up!"
"How could I dare!" I quickly patted my chest to assure him. I wasn't ready to die yet and didn't want to be crushed to death by his pincers.
Qu Ling couldn't help but lower her head and murmur, "What a coincidence..."
****
That evening, Su Zhenzhen and He Yuncong brought Xiao Rouyuan back for dinner. Xiao Rouyuan still remembered Qu Ling and giggled as she jumped into his arms. After Qu Ling stuffed a piece of candy into her chubby little mouth, she loudly called out, "Daddy!"
He Yuncong's face turned green on the spot, but the rest of the family laughed so hard they were bent over. His aunt kept saying that Qu Ling and his family were destined to be together.
Although Grandpa did not approve of the marriage that Qu Ba arranged for me and Qu Ling, he was still very polite to Qu Ling. Since no one in the family mentioned the marriage, he pretended that Qu Ling was just an ordinary guest who came to eat.
When we were eating crab, I deliberately tore off the crab's two big claws first and waved them around in my hand. Qu Ling saw this, of course. He smiled and picked up a meatball, then took a vicious bite.