Ah Heng opened her mouth, as if to ask something, but the doorbell rang, its sharp sound echoing in the cold, fragile winter day.
She went to open the door, and Siwan stood outside, wearing only a white T-shirt, her lips a little pale.
"Where did you come from? Aren't you cold?" Ah Heng was a little surprised. In sub-zero temperatures, this clothing was rather strange.
The boy's face was grim. He glanced at Ah Heng gently, then walked quickly to the living room, but stopped there.
He stared blankly at the gray-blue card in Yan hope's hand, then raised the identical card he was holding in his left hand—"Sure enough, you received one too."
Although the expression remained gentle, there was a hint of bitterness in her face, and even her dimples had faded somewhat.
Yan hope coughed, then chuckled, raising an eyebrow—"Siwan, Lu Liu invited us to Vienna for a vacation. Did he tell you that everything is covered? Otherwise, I won't go."
Siwan's expression calmed, her long hands resting in her pockets. Looking down, she realized she was still wearing slippers and gave a wry smile—of course. When had Lu Liu ever been someone she couldn't trust? Besides, Aunt Lu was going along this time too.
Yan hope turned around, her tone slightly hesitant—"Isn't she going back to America?"
Siwan exhaled – it seemed that the US branch was operating well, and Aunt Lin hadn’t seen Lu Liu for almost two years and missed him very much.
Ah Heng was sitting on the sofa, winding a ball of yarn, when she looked up.
Another two years...?
Yan hope stopped talking, stood by the window, stretched out his hand, and made one palm print after another on his breath, enjoying it immensely.
Siwan looked at him, feeling uneasy, but still asked, "Do you... want to go?"
Yan hope was nonchalant, his black hair falling across his brow—it didn't matter, it was all the same wherever he spent the New Year. The only thing was, he needed to buy a plane ticket.
to whom?
He gestured with his chin, pointed at the sofa, and gave a half-smile—who else could it be? My daughter isn't dead yet.
Siwan looked in the direction he was pointing, and there sat the girl quietly.
He had almost forgotten about her existence.
Aheng looked up at Yan hope, slightly stunned—Me? I can't.
She explained with a smile, "My dad called me yesterday and said he can't come home for Chinese New Year this year, so he wants me to spend it with him."
Siwan smiled too—So soon? Dad only told the family yesterday that he wouldn't be coming home for the New Year.
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On the day winter vacation started, the temperature dropped below zero and frost formed, but there was still no snow, just as Lu Liu had said.
When she dropped Yan hope off at his doorstep, Da Yi urged him to get in the car because he was in a hurry to catch his flight. The young man walked up to her, then remembered something, turned back, and stood in front of the door, gazing at her for a long time.
"What are you looking at?" Ah Heng asked him, puzzled.
Yan hope smiled, squinted, and looked at the iron plate in front of him—08-69. He remembered it.
What should I remember?
Our house number.
Why write this down?
What if I forget the way home...
boring.
Ah Heng smiled and, holding his hand, ran forward desperately—hurry up, can't you see Da Yi is so anxious his head is practically steaming?
The paper bag in Ah Heng's right hand rustled in the wind.
Yan hope pointed to the paper bag—What is this?
Ah Heng smiled, lowered her eyes, let go of his hand, handed him the paper bag, and then turned to Da Yi, who was sticking his head out of the car window, and said, "Da Yi, just two minutes."
Xin Dayi sighed helplessly, "It's just a few days away, do you two have to be so reluctant to part?"
Si'er sat in the passenger seat, glanced at Si Wan's hands tightening around the steering wheel, and gave a cold laugh.
Ah Heng took out a gray rabbit fur scarf from the paper bag, and gently stood on tiptoe. She was 1.73 meters tall, and he was 1.79 meters tall. Six centimeters was a distance, no matter how long or short it was.
Yan hope's eyes sparkled, and her first words weren't words of surprise, but rather a question—"Does Si Wan have any? Does Dayi have any?"
Ah Heng answered perfunctorily, "Yes, I have. They've all been given to me."
So, the boy pouted, but she was seized by a mischievous impulse. She took a light-colored scarf and wrapped it around his fair neck and slightly dry lips. The subtle sunflower patterns on the scarf bloomed brilliantly in the thin air.
There was also a pair of gloves hanging around her neck, still gray, with little rabbit-eared, big-eyed figures embroidered on them, cute and childlike.
Yan hope muttered, "What? That's so childish."
Ah Heng smiled and said, "Are you very mature? No, give it back to me."
Yan hope hugged his gloves tightly, as if guarding against a thief—"Once you're on my turf, it's mine!"
He was muttering incessant complaints, but his mouth was stretched almost beyond his scarf.
"Damn it! Is this never going to end!" Xin Dayi said angrily, dragging Yan hope into the car and waving at Aheng.
言希瞪大眼睛，拍坐垫——“大姨妈，你别得了便宜还卖乖，我们阿衡都给你们织围巾织手套了，你丫还想怎么样，再废话揍你昂！”
Xin Dayi's tears: "Who the hell saw that damned girl's scarf and gloves! She only asked me what I wanted, and then nothing more..."
Helpless, Siwan drove off in a cloud of dust.
Yan hope pressed his entire face against the rear window, his handsome face instantly flattened, making Xiao Bai laugh so hard that he pounded on the window.
"Aheng, Aheng, wait for me! I'll be back soon!"
Ah Heng was troubled, thinking that she had finally gotten rid of the old man. Then, with a wicked thought, she hoped that the little girl would get lost in Vienna and come back later.
Then, she... wished she could strangle herself.
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At the age of twenty-eight, she arrived alone in the city where her father lived, but she did not expect that the south was unusually cold and she was freezing.
Ah Heng traveled by train for nearly three days.
The mother originally wanted her to go by plane, but considering that Aheng had never flown before, and that there was no one to take care of the child, she was worried and decided against it.
She originally wanted to go on a warship herself, but her mother laughed and said, "You're still a child. How could you go to a place like that?"
I later learned that my father had originally taken his annual leave, but a friend from the Southern Military Region had invited him for a long time, and it seemed that he had something important to do, so he stayed.
Grandpa is getting old and it's inconvenient for him to travel far, so Mom naturally won't go. Siwan and Sier went to Vienna a while ago, so only Aheng is left.
When she got off the train, she didn't see her father in the distance, but she saw a boy in a green military uniform holding a sign high with two very beautiful and proud characters written in calligraphy: "Wen Heng".
Later, whenever Ah Heng thought about it, she felt ashamed. She had never imagined that her name could be written so sharply and pointedly.
The boy was upright and aloof to an excessive degree, dressed in military uniform, exuding a sharp and imposing aura.
She stood in front of him, hesitating about how to introduce herself. After all, they were strangers, and she felt a little awkward.
"Hello." Ah Heng smiled.
The young man remained silent, staring at her for a long time as if trying to see through her, before finally speaking calmly, "You are Wen Heng? Wen Anguo's daughter?"
Ah Heng nodded, looked up at the boy, and was startled.
His face was covered in pimples, a bright red patch, but he looked incredibly youthful.
"Come with me." He turned around, leaving behind his back.
Ah Heng huffed and puffed as he carried the box forward, smiled, and said nothing.
She thought it couldn't possibly be human trafficking.
Of course, upon reflection, I was puzzled myself for not even asking the names of the people who had gone with me.
That's too good to be true... You've been fooled.
Years later, when that person was in the same boat as her, he would always ask her the same question when he was thinking about kicking her off the rope: "Wen Heng, do you know what's the most annoying thing about you?"
She shook her head, obviously unaware.
"Be obedient. I've never seen a woman as obedient as you!!"
Ah Heng was a little depressed. Why was being obedient still met with dislike...?
Along the way, I tried to strike up a conversation several times, but was glared at by the man in the green uniform. For some reason, I remembered Yan hope's big eyes when he glared at people, so I looked at this man with an uncontrollable smile.
Oh dear, I'm afraid people will think I'm crazy.
With these thoughts in mind, she drifted off to sleep against the car window.
Fortunately, the man was not a fraud. When she woke up, the first person she saw was her father.
"Aheng, why are you sleeping so soundly? Xiaobai carried you all the way back to the dormitory and you still didn't wake up." Wen Anguo teased his daughter, and this was the first thing he said when they met.
Ah Heng was embarrassed, her face flushed for a long time before she finally remembered—"Um, who is Xiao Bai?"
A middle-aged man in military uniform walked out from behind Wen Anguo. He had a straightforward smile, thick eyebrows, big eyes, and the military rank on his shoulders gleamed.
"The kid who brought you back, my nephew." The man laughed, smelling strongly of tobacco, as if he were a heavy smoker.
Ah Heng looked around, wanting to express his gratitude, but the figure in the green military uniform was nowhere to be seen.
"Uncle, who are you?" She smiled, got out of bed, and stood properly behind her father.
Wen Anguo patted his daughter's shoulder—"Your Uncle Gu is the chief of staff of the military region, a good friend of mine from military school, who is treating us to a free meal."
"Hello, Uncle Gu." Ah Heng said with a smile.
She was living a very fulfilling life in the military region. Her father and Uncle Gu often drank together, and when they saw her bored, the girls in the art troupe would often drag her along to have fun. Since they were all around the same age, they vaguely developed a close friendship.
They came from different places and joined the army at a young age. They were much more mature than the girls in school and always acted like older sisters, patiently helping Aheng adapt to military life. They were very caring and warm. Only occasionally did they start chattering away, talking about the boys they liked and disliked, revealing their childlike side.
The little white thing is terrifying!
This was the conclusion they reached after discussing it amongst themselves.
Ah Heng found it funny and asked them what was so scary about it.
Their appearance, personality, intelligence, and business acumen are all terrifying!
This was their unanimous answer.
Ah Heng was confused. Her only impression of that person was from their first meeting, his aloof demeanor when he spoke, and the rest was a blank.
Appearance—"A face full of pimples, scary, right?"