Just like when she was little, every time Xu Xingyan finished her medicine and said it was so bitter, she would take out a prepared orange candy from her pocket, peel it, and feed it to her.
"Madam, madam..."
Awakened from her reverie by a gentle voice, Luo Jing suddenly realized that four or five different kinds of orange candies had been placed on the glass cabinet in front of her. They were exquisitely packaged and smelled sweet, like a gift from a Disney castle.
Are these all handmade candies?
Without hesitation, the boy used his gloved, slender fingers to slice through the pile of candy boxes, pointing to one and saying, "These are, the others aren't."
After thinking for a moment, she added, "Madam, please rest assured, these were all made fresh this morning and are very fresh. You can try one first."
Luo Jing was particularly sensitive to words like "taste test" or "try it out" today. After the familiar sweet orange aroma spread in her mouth, she asked in surprise, as if she had just realized what was happening, "Did you make all of this?"
The boy nodded and hummed in agreement, sounding both proud and a little shy.
“Not bad,” Luo Jing smiled and pointed to the one she had just sampled, saying, “Could you please pack two portions for me?”
The boy smiled, his eyes crinkling, and said, "No trouble at all."
Luo Jing leaned against the counter, watching his nimble fingers tie the exquisite packaging bag, and suddenly said, "Let's exchange contact information. I really like the candies you make, so I can know in advance if there are any new varieties in the future."
Seeing her sincere expression, the boy realized she genuinely enjoyed the candy he made, so after a moment's hesitation, he nodded and exchanged contact information with her.
Luo Jing looked down and fiddled with her phone, then said naturally, "By the way, my name is Luo Jing, Luo from 'Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River,' and Jing from 'quiet.' What's your name?"
A newly added contact sent me a message: "My name is Yu Hang."
Exchanging names before formally getting to know each other should be a common ritual for people all over the world, both ancient and modern, and suddenly an empty chat box is filled with a sense of reality.
The sky cleared after the rain.
Luo Jing walked into the crowd carrying the candy box, paused, and looked back as if she remembered something.
The name of that candy store is—
【meet】
Author's Note:
I'd love to see lots of comments...
Chapter 10 is redundant.
When Lin Shengmiao drew back the curtains in the morning, letting the first rays of sunlight into the room, it was exactly seven o'clock.
Her long-standing biological clock made her open her eyes promptly before six o'clock, but people on vacation have the privilege of lingering a little longer in the warmth of their blankets.
The guesthouse she's staying in is not far from a market, and she can even hear the vendors pushing their tricycles and calling out: "Selling steamed buns and fried dough sticks!" "Grandpa, would you like a bowl of tofu pudding?"...
The rich atmosphere of daily life allows one to instantly escape from the fast-paced urban lifestyle.
A short-term rental of such a guesthouse costs a little over two thousand yuan a month, which is much cheaper than staying in a hotel. It comes fully equipped with disposable amenities, and there's no need for cleaning, making it much more convenient than renting an apartment. Lin Shengmiao used to choose places like this when attending training or work events that didn't include meals or accommodation.
Another option is to rent a room in a small hotel and pay monthly. That's cheaper, but it's easy to get ripped off and not safe enough. It's a backup option when you're short on cash and hasn't been used for a long time.
After washing up and going downstairs, I saw the woman who had warmly welcomed me yesterday watering the flowers in the yard. She runs this guesthouse. During our chat yesterday, she mentioned that she had divorced years ago and has a daughter studying at a university in another city. She said her life was quite easy and comfortable.
"Oh, you're up so early!" The older woman put down the watering can and greeted her with a smile.
"Are you going to have breakfast? There are breakfast stalls all over the area to the east, but if you like xiaolongbao (soup dumplings), you have to go south. There's a baozi shop called Li Ji there, and it's the best in the area. Locals love to eat there."
Lin Shengmiao had only said that she was here for a vacation, so the older sister treated her like a tourist from out of town.
This statement isn't entirely wrong. Jinning Province has experienced particularly rapid economic development in recent years, and Nancheng City, as its provincial capital, has undergone even more dramatic changes. Yesterday, while sitting in the car, I only caught a fleeting glimpse of the skyscrapers, winding highways, and neat streets, which were completely unrecognizable from what I remembered.
Ten years have passed, and she has once again become a stranger in this city. Even the local dialect tunes she learned while walking with Xu Xingyan on the playground were quickly forgotten during her studies abroad.
Lin Shengmiao admitted that the landlady's recommendation of xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) was very tempting, but she still chose to go into a wonton shop.
The bustling morning market easily evokes memories, especially for Lin Shengmiao, who entered the city with a tender heart and was therefore even more easily moved.
In her few fond memories of her birthplace, there is always a wonton cart.
Although at that time my mother had already chosen to divorce regardless of everything, she didn't take any property, including her savings, clothes, and house. My father continued to drink and gamble, just without marrying a stepmother.
But sometimes being unsupervised is quite blissful. She can save up a lot of money by letting her classmates copy her homework, 50 cents or a dollar at a time. At least her dad won't go through her little stash. She can afford to buy stationery and extracurricular books, and occasionally she can even eat a grilled sausage or a bowl of wontons.
The wontons made on those wonton carts were cooked over a wood fire, giving them a natural aroma that was better than any wontons she ate later.
After finishing a bowl of wontons that didn't taste "authentic," Lin Shengmiao, guided by several elderly men and women, found the largest shopping mall in the vicinity.
"Hello ma'am, how can I help you?" The sales assistant greeted her with a sweet smile.
Lin Shengmiao succinctly asked, "Could you please get me a set of skincare products to give to an elderly female relative? She has combination-dry skin."
"Okay, these are some of our best-selling products, please take a look..."
A cheerful cell phone rang, and the saleswoman immediately and politely stopped making recommendations. Lin Shengmiao glanced at the caller ID—Uncle Zhang.
"Shengmiao, your mom and I are at the market. Is there anything you'd like to eat? We can buy it together and cook it at home." The voice on the other end of the phone was noisy, but Uncle Zhang's tone was warm and friendly, which made people relax unconsciously.
Lin Shengmiao casually ordered two simple stir-fries and then said gently, "Uncle Zhang, there's no need to cook so many dishes, it's too much trouble."
"No trouble at all!" Uncle Zhang laughed heartily. "It's rare for you to come back, and your mother and I are very happy. Your sister has also been wanting to meet you, her older sister! If you're free, come over soon. We bought a lot of fruit, as well as your favorite dried tofu."
After chatting for a few minutes, Lin Shengmiao hung up the phone, glanced at the display case, pointed to the most expensive one, and said, "This set is fine, wrap it up."
The sales assistant's smile remained unchanged, as if she hadn't heard the loud voice on the other end of the phone repeatedly saying, "Don't come over to buy anything."
"Okay, please wait a moment."
When paying the bill, Lin Shengmiao casually asked, "What kind of gifts are suitable for a thirteen or fourteen-year-old girl?"
The cashier was a young woman who thought for a moment after hearing this and replied, "Little girls this age usually like things that look nice. You could use a beautiful pop-up book, or perfume, a music box, Lego, or something like that... lipstick would also work."
...
When Lin Shengmiao knocked on her mother's door, she wasn't nervous at all, and even had the mood to admire the newly pasted New Year pictures on the door.
Returning to Nancheng meant this trip was inevitable, Lin Shengmiao had long known that. She hadn't been idle all these years; she had seen all sorts of big scenes. She only tended to panic when dealing with Xu Xingyan's issues.
The girl who opened the door was a girl with a ponytail. She was pretty and looked about six or seven parts like Lin Shengmiao. She was her half-sister Zhang Ting, who was thirteen years old and in the first year of junior high school.
It is said that daughters resemble their fathers, but this does not hold true for these two sisters at all. It is as if genes have their own aesthetic sense, and they have both moved closer to their mother, who was beautiful and was once a school beauty.
"Sister!" Zhang Ting cheerfully led her into the room, took out a pair of fluffy rabbit-patterned cotton slippers from the shoe cabinet, placed them beside her feet, and looked at her with a smile.
This enthusiasm, inherited from her stepfather, felt very familiar to Lin Shengmiao. She knew very well what she should say to express the sisterly affection in normal social interactions. So, she smiled gently and said in surprise, "You've grown so much!"
Zhang Ting smiled, revealing two small tiger teeth, "Yes, I heard that I was only three years old when we last met!"
Lin Shengmiao: "..."
Almost immediately, she realized that this younger sister seemed to have inherited Ms. Pei Wei's mouth.
In the living room.
Pei Wei sat on the sofa holding a magazine. On the coffee table was a plate of cut fruit, arranged in the shape of a smiley face, which was very pleasing to the eye.
Lin Shengmiao didn't look at it for too long. She knew that this was a arrangement made by her stepfather, Zhang Cheng, for her mother. It was a habit that had been in place since they got married, and it had remained unchanged for twenty years.
Even as a daughter, Lin Shengmiao had to admit that Ms. Pei Wei's decision to abandon her father and choose Uncle Zhang was undoubtedly the smartest and wisest one!
"Mother."
Upon hearing this, Pei Wei raised her eyes slightly, as if ten years had passed in the blink of an eye, and was not worth mentioning at all. She said indifferently, "Sit down."
As expected, at this long-awaited family reunion, the coldest attitude came not from the stepfather, nor from the half-sister, but from the biological mother.
Upon hearing the commotion, stepfather Zhang Cheng quickly ran out of the kitchen with a spatula in hand, wearing a Doraemon apron that made his otherwise ordinary face look childlike and adorable.
"Uncle Zhang."
"Shengmiao's here! Didn't I tell you not to bring anything? Why did you buy so much?"
"These were all bought before coming to Nancheng." Lin Shengmiao casually brushed off this part and distributed the gifts she had prepared for everyone.
"This aged white tea is quite good!" Uncle Zhang praised. "I've been drinking this kind of tea for so many years, it's rare that you still remember it."
Zhang Ting hugged the pink bottle of perfume, smiling broadly, "Thank you, sister, I really like it."
Pei Wei: "Thank you for your thoughtfulness."
Uncle Zhang turned and went into the kitchen. A moment later, he came out with a plate and three chicken wings. Lin Shengmiao saw that they were braised and sprinkled with white sesame seeds, just like Ms. Pei Wei's favorite.
Zhang Cheng laughed and said, "It's fresh out of the pot. You three eat first. Shengmiao, try it quickly and see if your uncle's cooking skills have improved under your mother's supervision."
The gas stove in the kitchen was still on. Uncle Zhang didn't stay in the living room for long. As soon as he left, Zhang Ting keenly sensed that the atmosphere between her mother and sister was somewhat tense.
Pei Wei leaned back on the sofa, spread the magazine on her lap, lowered her head, and after a while, turned a page.
Lin Shengmiao glanced at the magazine's name and realized it was the same niche literary magazine she used to subscribe to most often. She raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised that the magazine hadn't gone out of business after all these years.
Zhang Ting glanced at her mother, then at her sister, and ran to her room to bring back a tablet. "Sis, let's add each other on WeChat so we can video chat later."
Ms. Pei Wei and Lin Shengmiao paused at the same time, looked at her simultaneously, and their eyebrows twitched.
Yes, how rare!
Despite the widespread use of smartphones, this mother and daughter never once considered trying video calls, maintaining a contact frequency of once every two months to let each other know they were safe, and it was almost always Zhang Cheng who made the calls.
Feeling like she might have said something wrong, Zhang Ting quickly tried to salvage the situation, "Sis, why don't you stay for dinner tonight? We can have hot pot."
"No, I have plans with a friend."
"Huh?" Zhang Ting was a little disappointed. "Can't we do it another day?"
Lin Shengmiao gently but firmly refused her: "No, because you are a very important person."
...
At the dinner table, Zhang Cheng kept urging Lin Shengmiao to eat, and even made himself a bowl of corn juice, looking genuinely happy.
After dinner, he rejected Lin Shengmiao's suggestion to help wash the dishes, and told them to go to the living room to eat duck necks and dried tofu... while he busied himself in the kitchen, humming a little tune.
“Shengmiao, this is the money you’ve sent over the past few years. Your mother and I have been saving it for you.”
Uncle Zhang took a card out of the room and put it on the coffee table. “I told you on the phone before, but you didn’t listen. Don’t send money home. Your mother and I both have salaries and we don’t need money. But you, being alone out there, should keep more money on hand.”
Lin Shengmiao smiled and said, "Don't worry, I have savings."
Uncle Zhang sighed and said, "This isn't about savings or not. I can't take this money. Back when you went to university and then abroad, we couldn't help you much. I feel guilty taking this money. Please take it back!"