"Xiao Chen, look at these kids, what a mess they've made! Take a picture of them, to remember the moment," Lin Ruomei said with a smile, lighting a women's cigarette and pointing at the group.
Xiao Chen looked at Lin Ruomei with some doubt and hesitated for a few seconds before speaking, "Yes, Chairman Lin."
"Ah, Yanxi, it seems like it's been a long time since I took a picture with you, hasn't it?" Da Yi put his arm around Yanxi's shoulder.
Siwan frowned slightly – “I remember, Axi hasn’t taken any photos in two years, but she’s always taking photos for other people.”
Yan hope smiled – “It’s two years and seven months. How do we film it?”
He stood there, melting cream dripping down, covering his face beneath the whiteness. Apart from the vague outline, he was like a sculpture, his eyebrows and eyes empty and pale.
"Sit down, okay?" He sat on the sofa, slightly raised his head, and smiled—"Is this alright?"
"Xiao Chen, you're always good at taking pictures. Make sure to take clearer shots today, so as not to waste Yan Xi's good looks." Lin Ruomei exhaled a smudge, her lips were like plum blossoms, and her eyes were full of starlight.
Xiao Chen's hand holding the camera was trembling.
"Give it to me," Ah Heng said calmly, standing opposite Xiao Chen.
"What?" The man was trying to appear calm, but she could feel the panic in his breath as she stood beside him.
"Give me the camera." She neither smiled nor got angry, neither warm nor cold, neither weak nor firm.
Xiao Chen looked at Lin Ruomei, but Lin Ruomei just smiled, indifferent—"Let her be."
Ah Heng took the camera, looked through the lens, and sighed softly. The boy, small and frozen in the frame, his left foot and right foot—did stepping on him bring him any peace of mind?
It must have been incredibly difficult... that I was willing to use the soul of my left foot to save the soul of my right foot, yet I dared not easily trust others.
"Yan hope, look up."
The boy straightened his neck with some difficulty, but what he saw was not a scene of malicious mockery like a black hole.
The girl had a smile on her thin lips, and her eyes held a gentle, serene gaze that seemed to drift into the distance, as casual as ink spreading slowly in clear water.
He was somewhat confused.
She looked into his eyes and smiled, her smile as bright as the mountains and rivers—"Yan hope, the camera, the camera, yes, look at the camera like this."
Yan hope smiled for a moment, his eyes meeting hers.
She blinked, clicked, and pressed the shutter at the same time.
The camera was pointed at the nameplate on the three-tiered cream cake on the table—"Yan hope, Happy Birthday."
Later, when the photos were developed, Aheng handed them to Yanxi—"Here, a belated birthday present."
Yan hope, the Yan Xi who appeared out of nowhere, the Yan Xi who says strange things, the Yan Xi who explodes when others bully her, the Yan Xi who gently tells her, "I know Yan Xi, I will definitely continue to be happy," the Yan hope who initially didn't want to say those four words, Yan hope...
Happy birthday.
Are you satisfied with this birthday gift?
The incomplete cream cake, with blurry lettering due to the close-up shot, was accidentally hidden away by him for a lifetime. Do you think he is satisfied with this?
Chapter 36
Yan hope's "The Rising Sun" has ended.
Then, he sealed it in the small attic on the top floor.
"What are you doing, exorcising evil spirits?" Ah Heng asked with a smile.
Yan hope didn't care—"That painting is painted very strangely, it seems to have gone off-topic."
At that moment, the new customer, Xiao Hui, was sleeping on A Heng's slippers, bathed in bright sunlight.
The so-called Little Gray is a very small ball, curled up like a towel. It likes Yan hope very much and always sneaks into the boy's bedroom. When he wakes up in the morning, he always stares at that ugly little thing, then freezes, screams, and wants to tear the whole roof off.
Then, Little Gray, who looks like a small towel, will be thrown out with teary eyes, amidst the gloating expression of the braised pork rice.
*Click*, the door locks—"Aheng, keep your dog under control!"
Ah Heng sighed, picking up Little Gray—"He doesn't like you, yet he always tries to get close to you. Sigh, silly dog..."
Yanxi's birthday had passed for some time, and when Aheng occasionally came home, Siwan would mention it—"Aheng, that day, you were very rude to Aunt Lin."
Ah Heng squinted, stunned—"What did I say?"
Si Wan smiled – “It’s precisely because I didn’t say anything that it’s not good. Don’t you think my hostility towards her is too obvious?”
Ah Heng pretended to be stupid—"I'm not good at speaking Mandarin, and I'm afraid I'll upset Aunt Lin."
“Aheng, you only say your Mandarin isn’t good when things are going against you.” Siwan smiled, handing Aheng an apple she had peeled without breaking a single sliver of skin. “You might not know, but Grandpa’s old subordinates left their jobs and went into business. Most of their businesses are intricately connected to the Lu family… Uncle Lu passed away early from illness, and now Aunt Lin is managing the Lu family…”
That's a subtle yet clear statement.
She could only think of her grandfather's lifelong integrity and uprightness, yet she couldn't escape these thoughts. But how could a human being be without desires? Moreover, she still had to consider the fate of the Wen family after her grandfather's passing.
Ah Heng held the apple and nodded slightly.
“Compared to Er’er, you are more suitable to be the daughter of the Wen family.” Siwan’s tone was calm.
Is it because she's too readily and obediently accepting of things that aren't clean enough?
Is it praise or dislike?
Seeing that Aheng had been pondering for a long time, Siwan was afraid that she was overthinking things and had come to some realization, so she smiled and said, "If you don't get along with her, just avoid contact with her in the future. Aunt Lin is a busy person and doesn't have much interaction with us anyway."
"What will Er'er do?" Ah Heng was thinking to herself, but unexpectedly, she said it out loud.
"What?" Siwan asked in surprise.
"To people I don't like."
Siwan looked at Aheng, feeling a little uncomfortable—"Well, if you don't like something, you'll show it very clearly."
oh.
Is it obvious that it's like it's for her and Yan hope?
She never understood why Er'er disliked Yan hope so much, as if Yan hope always indulged Er'er to the point of spoiling her.
****************************************point***********************************
Even in the north, rainfall is plentiful in August.
That day, at dusk, the setting sun, which was initially scorching hot, suddenly changed color.
Dark clouds gathered and the wind howled relentlessly.
Before long, it was pouring rain.
Ah Heng went to the bookstore to buy review materials. He saw some interesting novels and flipped through them. When he looked up again, the view through the French windows had changed completely. Raindrops were falling and flowing in streams, and it was pitch black outside the window.
This place is so remote, there are hardly any taxis around, let alone on rainy days...
This is a real headache, how do I get back...?
I checked the time; it was just seven o'clock, still early. Dinner was already prepared when I left, so going back later shouldn't be a problem; at least Yan hope wouldn't go hungry.
Ah Heng pondered for a moment, then picked up the book she had just read and continued reading, deciding to wait for the rain to stop before going back.
The bookstore was playing Michael Jackson's "You Are Not Alone," and Ah Heng hummed along a few lines, feeling quite content.
Heavy rain, the scent of books, love songs—what kind of loneliness could feel more comforting than this?
Hehe, if only there were Biluochun teapots made of Yixing clay. Her stomach had been spoiled by the good tea left by Grandpa Yan.
Yan hope is probably playing games again. Doesn't he care about his nearsightedness just because he has big eyes?
Occasionally, I would be startled by a sudden clap of thunder, and when I looked up, the rain outside seemed to be getting heavier and heavier.
Similar situations repeated themselves several times until night had completely fallen. Ah Heng frowned slightly, realizing he had miscalculated.
After waiting for a long time, the wall clock in the bookstore struck eleven.
"Boss, is there a hotel the nearest one?" she asked the bookstore owner after paying the bill.
"Bang!" A loud noise came from behind.
Ah Heng was startled and turned around, only to see a boy covered in rain.
At his feet was an umbrella that had been thrown down in a fit of anger.
"Yan hope?" A Heng was confused.
Why is this guy staring so wide-eyed? Who has upset him this time?
"Oh, Yanxi, was the pork ribs I made tonight too salty?" she blurted out, feeling a little guilty.
I was in a rush to get out in the evening, and when I was cooking, I didn't seem to have a good grasp of the heat.
He stared at her coldly, rain dripping down his black hair, his pink T-shirt stained with patches of dark and light water, his white canvas shoes splattered with mud, and he clutched a clean umbrella tightly in his arms, looking quite comical.
He turned around and said calmly, "Go home."
He didn't look at her, but simply handed her the clean umbrella in his hand, and then bent down silently to pick up the muddy umbrella that he had just angrily thrown down.
Aheng followed behind him, gazing silently at the boy's somewhat lonely figure, and spoke—"Yan hope."
Yan hope didn't turn around—"Shh."
He walked in front, she followed behind, silently, in the rain.
Ah Heng looked down at Yan hope's canvas shoes, so white, she had spent a long time cleaning them. Knowing it was going to rain, why did she still wear them?
She even clearly remembered what she said when Yan hope thought the shoes were too plain and wanted to add some paint—"Yan hope, these are shoes I've been painting for a long time, you know?"
It took a long time and a lot of effort to finally get the original version back.
She sighed softly.
She kept trying to restore the original, while he kept disrupting it. Given her usual personality, how long could she continue to suppress her emotions...?
The rain fills my eyes and ears, stirring up many things in life, tempting me to release them, but ultimately pushing them back little by little, carefully sealing them away.
When they arrived home, by the light of the streetlamp at the entrance, Yan hope wiped the blurry surface of his left wrist with his right hand, stared at it for a few seconds, and breathed a sigh of relief—"It's alright."
"Hmm?" Ah Heng frowned as she looked at him.
"It's not midnight yet," Yan hope muttered softly, her eyes still innocent.
He reached out and roughly wiped his hand clean on his pants, then glared at her, patted her head seriously, and said fiercely, "Ah Heng, Cinderella has to be home by midnight, understand?"