The raccoon gulped down the water, wiped its mouth, and continued, "Did you even understand what I was saying?! I've been talking for so long, are you a blockhead?!"
Ah Heng smiled gently—"Miss Meng, you are very cute, and you are very similar to Yan hope. You are also a good match for him."
Equally dazzling, equally proud, equally beautiful.
Ah Heng suddenly felt a chill, and a mournful voice drifted from behind her—"Ah Heng, she doesn't resemble me at all..."
Turning around and tilting his head, it was Yan hope.
Ah Heng pinched her right hand with her left, extinguishing the instant heat on her face, and chuckled—"You can make a sound when you drink water, this is very similar."
Feeling guilty, Yan hope didn't dare look at Aheng, but he timidly took her hand under the table—"Are you sober now?"
Ah Heng felt the coldness between her fingers, which was Yan hope's slightly cool body temperature. She frowned slightly and gently squeezed back – "Did you drink again just now?"
Such warm, soft hands.
Yan hope felt that he seemed to have a fetish for hands; he had been unable to resist Aheng's hands for a long time.
He wasn't particularly beautiful, but his fingers were long and slender. When we held hands, there were fine calluses on his palms, which were warm and irresistible.
The aunts saw this and gave it a half-smile, their faces full of gossip. Ah Heng coughed lightly and pulled the white silk handkerchief from the hem of her long dress to cover their hands.
The raccoon girl was no longer calm—"Wen Heng, you, you, how could you molest Yan Xi's hand!"
Ah Heng was speechless and choked with emotion, then quickly stopped.
The aunties rolled their eyes—that's what young couples call romance, where did this kid come from to be such a fool!
Yan hope twitched, then gave Miss Meng a forced smile—"Grandpa Meng seems to be drunk. Tanuki, would you like to go check on him?"
Miss Meng raised her head—"No, my grandfather told me to come and find out what your relationship with Wen Heng is. I won't go back until I find out."
Then, after thinking for a moment, she said shyly, "I'll let you go, but you have to hold my hand."
Yan hope's face turned completely green. Aheng covered her head in her hands. Wen's mother asked Aheng what she was doing. Aheng wanted to say that she should take precautions against Yan Xi's spittle, but before she could finish speaking, Young Master Yan had already exploded—"Meng Li Mao, who the hell do you think you are? You think you're something special? I'm giving you a little leeway, and you're already trying to take advantage of me! If you keep talking nonsense, believe me, I'll kick you to the other side of the world so you can hold hands with African natives all you want, all the time!"
The raccoon roared, "Then why were you holding Wen Heng's hand?!"
Then, Yan hope shouted something that became a source of amusement for the elders for the rest of their lives—"Damn it! Do I need to consult you before I hold my wife's hand?!"
Ah Heng beat someone up. Yan Xi, tears streaming down his face, cried, "Wife, no, daughter, I didn't mean to! Please forgive me! Everyone says you're my wife, and I heard it so many times that I just blurted it out..."
Ah Heng beat him up badly.
Yan Xihao—Aheng, I really never thought about incest, you have to believe me TOT
Ah Heng paused for three seconds, then continued his relentless beating.
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She had many birthdays in her life, but he was rarely by her side. She had many memories of that day, but it seems that as she remembered them, she unconsciously forgot them all in the vastness of time.
When life came to an end, the children cried bitterly. She remembered nothing but that this reunion was probably forever.
Over the years, among the birthday gifts he gave her was a pair of crystal shoes, delicate and exquisite. He had prepared them for her when he was nineteen and she was eighteen, but he didn't give them to her until she was thirty-nine.
She remembered that when she was eighteen, she asked him for a birthday present, and she remembered him saying that he hadn't prepared one.
That year, when he was seriously ill, he handed her those little crystal shoes.
He smiled, his face gaunt and emaciated, closed his eyes, and sighed softly.
I'm sorry, Ah Heng, it seems I can't be with you for the rest of my life.
I didn't originally intend to give it to you. The glass slipper, the Brothers Grimm said, could bring a prince. I know... you don't believe in that, but I bought it anyway.
She laughed—"You bought it, but you won't give it to me? What kind of logic is that?"
The man slightly opened his eyes, smiling slyly and innocently—Aheng, you don't know, that day, I got drunk and kissed you.
Therefore, the glass slipper, no matter what, cannot be given to you.
Ah Heng, that was my first kiss. Not my first kiss, but a first kiss that I would cherish for my future wife.
So, what would you do if you found another prince who wasn't as good as me?
He's better than me, so what should I do?
Chapter 57
During the Spring Festival of 2001, Wen's father was busy with military affairs and did not return home for the New Year. He only asked someone to send birthday gifts to his two daughters. Si'er received a sheet music containing many precious piano pieces and a string of dazzling pearl necklaces; Aheng received a Huzhou purple-haired brush and a Duan inkstone.
The purple hair in that purple-haired brush is made from the soft yet firm hair of a wild rabbit's neck and back, while the handle is made from green bamboo that has been soaked in medicine to remove roughness and then dried. Holding it in your hand, it feels smooth and warm; while this Duan inkstone, naturally formed, has many water patterns and sky blue, with the subtle appearance of a small bridge over a flowing stream, yet it carries a strong, proud spirit, and is very elegant and aloof.
Ah Heng loved it dearly. Wen's mother, however, found it odd and laughed, "This doesn't seem like your father's style."
A few days later, Wen's father called and learned that he had asked someone to find these two items, which were said to be the former owner's beloved possessions.
Ah Heng was a little uneasy; it wouldn't be good to take something that belonged to someone else.
Father Wen laughed and said nothing else, only telling her to cherish it and use it, which would be enough to repay its former owner.
Ah Heng agreed, and Si'er noticed Ah Heng's gift; her sour face, which had been sullen for days, softened a little.
Writing brush, ink, and inkstone are not particularly valuable items.
Ah Heng was secretly delighted with the two birthday gifts, and spent all day holding them, grinning foolishly, rarely paying attention to others, such as someone who had made a mistake at the birthday party.
Yan hope, with tears in his eyes, cried out, "Daughter, look here! Look here! I'm here!" He stood forlornly behind Aheng, released the small flying tiger, and flicked it to attract the girl's attention.
"Whoosh," "Snap."
Ah Heng smiled slightly, pretending not to see anything, and calmly walked past.
Xin Dayi, who was digging a hole and burying a torpedo to scare passersby, was startled instead. She poked out her dark, dusty head and looked at him with disdain—"Yan hope, can you stop being so childish?"
"I'm happy, so what?" Yan hope rolled up his sleeves, lit a torpedo, threw it directly into the pit, and continued to chase after Aheng with teary eyes.
"Bang!" "Boom!"
Xin Shi Dayi was buried in this pit. His campaign was unsuccessful, and the heroes' tears will forever fill their lapel.
Therefore, this person is dead, and you should burn paper money for him.
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It's the third year. Ah Heng counts the days, tearing off a page from the calendar.
The college entrance exam is getting closer and closer, it feels like a hurdle. You may not feel anything if you pass it, but if you don't, you always feel like you're missing something compared to others.
Yan hope was so engrossed in reading physics and chemistry books that he contemplated jumping off the second floor of his house several times, and that's how he passed away.
Ah Heng squinted, peered out the window, and estimated the distance, speed, wind direction, and resistance. She smiled and said to Yan hope, "Jump, jump! It's okay, you won't die, you're not even in danger of being crippled."
Yan Xi clenched his fist, his expression resolute—Chairman Mao said, although everyone dies, we cannot be spineless like chicken feathers, discarded by American imperialism like KFC; we must be like Mount Tai, crushing the three reactionary mountains of physics, chemistry, and the college entrance examination; Chairman Mao also said, Yan hope, since you were born so gloriously, you must die a glorious death! So, Ah Heng, don't worry, I will not commit suicide!!!
Xinda Yi ⊙ o ⊙ ——……
mary╮(╯_╰)╭——……
Ah Heng = =——……
At the front of the classroom, a countdown clock hangs on the blackboard, showing xx days until the college entrance exam. Every day, when you come to school and occasionally forget the date, when your mind goes blank, you inadvertently see the countdown clock on the blackboard, which has lost another day. The feeling of cold sweat and the thought of wasting time is indescribable.
Everyone was in a hurry, but Ah Heng was in a daze, not knowing what he should be busy with.
Her life has always been well-organized, and the rhythm has remained unchanged since her first year of high school. While everyone else was working extra hard, she remained the same as always.
However, Wen's mother felt that Aheng and Yanxi were about to take the college entrance examination and were under a lot of time. She felt sorry for her children who were using their brains, so she cooked different kinds of nourishing soups every day, such as chicken soup, duck soup, bone soup, pigeon soup, and pig brain soup. She never repeated the same soup twice.
Si'er is a year behind the two, starting high school, while Siwan is a year ahead of them, starting university. Both of them have been put on hold by the Wen family, and everything is going according to Aheng and Yanxi's wishes.
Therefore, the Wen family's daughter and the Yan family's young master were in high spirits and gained a lot of weight.
Although Xiaoxia got into Xilin University as he wished, the young boy in his first year of high school had become more sensible. He no longer clung to his older brothers and sisters all day long, but he still insisted on eating lunch with Aheng and the others in their classroom.
The young boy was very stubborn and self-righteous—"Sister Aheng and Brother Yanxi are my family, and family members should eat rice together."
Yan hope glanced sideways—"Then eat your rice, and don't drool over my ribs."
The little shrimp, with tears welling up in its eyes, said, "Brother, don't you love me anymore? Don't you love me anymore? No! If you don't love me, I'll die of heartbreak."
Ah Heng's lips twitched—Little Shrimp, your class is performing Shakespeare at the cultural festival?
The young boy was smug—"It's not that I'm playing the male lead in our original play, who gets dumped by the class beauty, bounces back, and then gets dumped by the school beauty again."
...
Kid, you're not the protagonist, you're at least a background character, or at most cannon fodder...
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Aheng was tearing off dates on the calendar to count the past three years, while the class was tearing off dates to count a certain day in July. The two things had nothing in common, but Da Yi suspected that she had pre-exam anxiety.
While whispering to Rousi, Rousi just rolled her eyes. "You think this is prenatal anxiety? Look closely who this person is. You think you can get pre-exam anxiety? Xin Dayi, are you kidding me?"
Idiot, don't make wild guesses if you don't know the reason.
Two weeks before the college entrance examination, the school conducted a survey on college application choices. Most of the graduating students chose City B and City S, one the capital and the other the richest city, which pleased the teachers and principal.
Yan hope was torn between B and S. If he chose B, he would spend his whole life working in his own backyard, which would be embarrassing; if he chose S, their lifestyles were too different, and he probably wouldn't be able to get used to it.
Finally, I casually drew a B, but when I looked at Aheng, it was a blank paper that she had handed in.
He knew she wasn't used to controlling her destiny; going with the flow and drifting with the current was Ah Heng's usual attitude. So he smiled and let her be.
He didn't know what it meant to pamper someone. While indulging and spoiling Aheng, he always envied Aheng's attitude towards him. Her cooking was neither too hot nor too cold, neither too bland nor too sweet, much like the ribs she made—addictive and irresistible.
Yet he could never do it. Often, being close to it breeds worry, while being far away breeds fear.
Later, during a moment of leisure, I suddenly remembered her and asked her why she didn't fill in a city.
She laughed—"I just don't want my life to become formulaic."
Life is already monotonous and offers little to look forward to; filling out a form to represent one's entire life only adds unnecessary worries.
Then, the countdown sheets in the classroom, torn to shreds, finally reached their end. The principal, in the auditorium, gave a pre-exam pep talk, his expression impassioned, his clothes soaked with sweat.
People are either confused, agree, catch up on sleep, do homework, daydream, or pick their noses—these are the myriad aspects of life.
Finally, with his mouth dry and his body trembling, the teacher said, "You should leave the school and prepare well."
The myriad aspects of life immediately united in cheers.