“Nan Nan, Dad—”
Xu Zhi sighed and smiled casually, “Dad, you could have told me earlier. It’s fine.”
Xu Guangji’s smile froze on his face, a bit at a loss. “Dad was planning to tell you after some time—”
The corridor was bustling with injured patients being brought in. Many doctors rushed back from all directions to help, quickly changing into their white coats and hurrying to the emergency room. The scene was both heart-wrenching and intense.
Afraid of delaying others’ work, Xu Zhi hurriedly said, “It’s okay, I’ll head back now. Next time, invite Auntie over for dinner, so we can have a proper introduction.”
Chief Wei nodded with a gentle smile, “Alright, thank you, Xu Zhi.”
When Xu Zhi returned home, she saw a lone bowl of wontons on the kitchen table. She let out a long, endless sigh.
In the quiet, empty room, the sound of bowl and spoon clinking echoed as Xu Zhi sat alone, eating her wontons in silence. She hadn’t turned on the lights, and the room was dim. Moonlight spilled in through the window, faintly outlining her small, slender figure, like a winter plum blossoming in the snow – looking rather desolate, yet resilient.
Suddenly, an abrupt knocking broke the silence.
“Bang bang bang— Bang bang bang!”
“Xu Zhi! Xu Zhi!”
Startled, Xu Zhi hurried to open the door. She saw Cai Yingying standing there, out of breath, still in her pajamas, looking frantic. “You’re home! Why didn’t you answer your phone?”
Xu Zhi uttered a sound of realization. Her phone was in her room; she had left in such a hurry earlier that she forgot to take it. Plus, after the recent battle of wits with Old Xu, both their phones were on silent mode. Their phones had barely rung at home. It was only when Xu Zhi was about to eat the wontons that she noticed his phone kept lighting up on the dining table, realizing he had left it at home.
Xu Zhi stepped aside to let Cai Yingying in, watching her fumble to change her shoes, and asked, “What’s wrong? I just went to deliver my dad’s phone. There was a fire at a school, and your dad rushed back too.”
Cai Yingying looked like she wanted to give Xu Zhi a beating, her voice nearly cracking, “Do you know Chen Luzhou has been frantically looking for you?!”
Xu Zhi instantly realized and rushed to her room to get her phone. Cai Yingying followed, hastily putting on slippers. She had a bit of a cold, so her voice sounded muffled as if stuffed with cotton. She strained her voice, speaking urgently, “If Old Cai hadn’t given me back my phone a few days ago, he wouldn’t have been able to contact me. Zhu Yangqi said he was even booking a flight ticket. You’d better call him back quickly.”
Xu Zhi wasn’t panicked at first, thinking she could just call him back and explain. But when she picked up her phone and saw the call log:
Missed Calls (45)
Xu Zhi’s heart suddenly felt blocked, as if the long dry riverbed in her heart was slowly filling up again, rising bit by bit, flooding the entrance to her heart, leaving her anxious and uneasy.
The phone lit up again. Xu Zhi snapped out of her daze and immediately answered, hurriedly asking, “Where are you?”
The other end seemed surprised that she answered so quickly this time. There was silence for a moment, his breathing slightly rapid. Hearing her voice, he seemed to gather himself. After a long while, he let out a long sigh of relief, his voice cold: “Airport.”
Without thinking, Xu Zhi said, “The competition is about to start, are you crazy?”
“Why didn’t you answer my calls? Can’t you keep your temper in check?” His voice was suppressing anger, hoarse, as if sparks were flying. Xu Zhi could imagine how cold his arrogant face must look now, more chilling than an icy beer in summer. It made her heart tremble.
Xu Zhi initially wanted to explain, but being scolded like this made her feel something stuck in her throat. She was afraid that if she opened her mouth, he would hear some unnecessary emotions.
“… I really can’t with you.” His voice was extremely low as if muttering to himself helplessly.
Xu Zhi’s throat tightened even more. She took a breath and asked softly, “What time is your flight?”
“One-thirty.”
“Don’t push yourself. The competition is about to start. If the weather’s bad and you can’t make it back, all your efforts these past days will be wasted.”
He didn’t speak.
Xu Zhi asked, “Chen Luzhou, what are you nervous about? Afraid I’ll break up with you?”
He still didn’t speak. His breathing was uneven, like a little beast that had just been calmed. The airport announcement reminded passengers to board.
After a while, he finally spoke, his voice tired: “I don’t know how to say it. Maybe it’s because we haven’t seen each other for so long. Lately, either I’ve been busy or you have. We haven’t talked properly in a long time. I was really afraid something had happened to you. When you didn’t answer the phone just now, I kept thinking, what if those people from before had come after you again.”
“We live in a society governed by law now,” Xu Zhi chuckled.
“Murderers still exist.”
“I just went to the hospital.”
He paused on the other end, “What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell somewhere?”
Xu Zhi said, “It’s nothing. My dad got an emergency call, and he forgot his phone, so I went to deliver it to him. I happened to meet… my dad’s girlfriend. That’s why it took a while before I got back.”
He couldn’t help but curse, “Damn, I thought you were jealous—” Then he belatedly realized, “Your dad’s… girlfriend?”
Xu Zhi let out a long sigh, “Yeah, he found a girlfriend. So, Chen Luzhou, now I only have you. As long as you don’t mention breaking up, we won’t break up.”
The other end was silent for a long time, then his voice came through, sincere and solemn:
“Wait for me at home. I’ll come back as soon as the competition is over.”
Xu Zhi smiled and said, “I’m fine. I’m happy for him.”
“I understand.”
Just that one “I understand” almost made Xu Zhi choke up. They had similar yet not quite the same voids, but he understood it all.
Before hanging up, Xu Zhi said, “But I’m a bit angry now. You yelled at me earlier. Chen Jiaojiao, you might as well change your name to Chen Fierce-fierce.”
“I was really worried. How about this, when I get back, you can hit me. However you want, I won’t make a sound, or I’m not worthy of being your boyfriend. Okay?”
“Does moaning in bed count as making a sound?” Xu Zhi joked.
Chen Luzhou was caught off guard by the innuendo and coughed, “…Don’t mess around, there’s a kid drinking milk next to me.”
Xu Zhi laughed hard, “You’re watching someone breastfeed?”
“Bottle!”
Xu Zhi chuckled and stopped teasing him, “Alright, alright, hang up now. You should go back, it’s late.”
After Xu Zhi hung up, her WeChat buzzed twice. Chen Luzhou had sent her a location.
Salt: [The house I rented, just two buildings away, 903. The password is our birthdays. I haven’t unpacked yet, just brought a few clothes. It’s a bit messy. If you can’t stand it, feel free to throw everything out. Decorate it however you like. If in the future there’s an auntie at home and you can’t stay there, you can go to my place. But don’t overthink it, trust your dad. There will always be a place for you in his home.]
Xu Zhi: [You just want a free interior decorator, putting it so nobly.]
Salt: [I’ll pay you, girlfriend rates, double.]
Xu Zhi: [Can I throw tantrums on your bed?]
salt: [Just don’t pee on it.]
Xu Zhi: [You think I’m a dog?]
Salt: [That won’t do, not even for dogs. But a paralyzed Xu Zhi is okay.]
Xu Zhi: […]
**
When Chen Luzhou returned to the apartment Zhu Yangqi had rented, the others were enthusiastically eating self-heating hotpots. Hearing the door open, they looked at each other puzzled, wondering who it could be so late at night. Seeing the familiar figure enter, they were stunned for a moment, their chopsticks suspended in mid-air. “You missed your flight?”
Wang Yue and Li Ke were both there. Chen Luzhou took off his mask and tossed it in the trash, then removed his coat and threw it on the sofa. He went to wash his hands, then came out and went straight to turn on the computer. “Let’s start. Let’s finish the competition first. I need to get back early to be with her.”
Wang Yue added one last piece of beef, put down his chopsticks, and went over to turn on his computer. Still chewing, he said indistinctly, “Come on, I’ll tell you guys about the few modification suggestions Teacher Bai made. Although it’s called the American Mathematical Contest in Modeling 95% of the participating teams are from various Chinese universities. So our thinking patterns might all be similar. Relatively speaking, we might need to innovate within these fundamental thought processes.”
Chen Luzhou leaned back in his chair and thought for a moment. “Innovation can easily go wrong. Last year’s Outstanding Winner paper was quite standard. I remember it was about fingerprint recognition. We’ll discuss topic selection later. Let’s not talk about that now. Let’s first fix the issues Teacher Bai sent earlier.”
Wang Yue nodded, clicking his mouse on the computer, and asked Chen Luzhou, “By the way, didn’t that senior student under Professor Liu contact you before the holiday?”
He looked at the computer, checking the translations of some English academic terms. The MCM required even more English translation, but fortunately, they could refer to literature and materials. He lazily made an affirmative sound.
Wang Yue said, “Is Professor Liu trying to poach people? I heard that in previous years, some groups changed their advising professors after the internal competition ended.”
The internal competition was essentially a selection process. Some professors, seeing students with good results, would extend invitations. Whether to accept was up to the individual, and no one would say anything. Generally, people would accept, after all, professors had more resources.
Chen Luzhou finished checking the words and handed the materials to Li Ke. He then casually glanced at Wang Yue, not saying much, “That was probably the intention. I told her I had already registered, and the advisor’s name had been submitted.”
“Didn’t you register after the holiday—” Wang Yue suddenly realized what this meant, and understood its significance. Having a familiar top professor at school would indeed make things smoother in many aspects. But Chen Luzhou hadn’t chosen to take this shortcut. Wang Yue felt a warmth in his heart and said somewhat embarrassedly, “Thank you.”
Li Ke glanced at him and chuckled, “Ah, young people are so easily moved.”
Chen Luzhou was looking at the 2013 MCM problem, which was about heat distribution in rectangular and circular pots. He was thinking about how boring the MCM problems were. Hearing Wang Yue’s shy self-indulgence, he couldn’t help but find it amusing. He shrugged indifferently, tugging at the corner of his mouth, “Don’t be so sentimental. By the way, we might need to translate the MCM problem independently.”
Previously, Wang Yue had expressed concern that his English might hold them back a bit, and he didn’t want to participate in the MCM. Li Ke had strongly persuaded him, saying they had someone whose English was incredibly good who would be responsible for translating the paper. But a few days ago, they learned that the problem might need to be translated independently.
“I’m a bit worried.”
Chen Luzhou made a document of the professional vocabulary used in recent MCM competitions and sent it to him. “This should be enough. The problem shouldn’t be too big.”
Li Ke suddenly said, “Teacher Bai asked us to pay more attention to recent biological prediction problems, like improving the ecological environment through global model proposals. In recent years, MCM seems to be more concerned with global biology, climate, and such. Is the schedule out yet? Whatever happens, we should strictly follow the schedule and not get stuck on any single problem.”
Wang Yue: “You just need to control yourself.”
Chen Luzhou smiled without saying anything.
…
For those few days, the three worked day and night, barely leaving the table except for a few hours of sleep. Sometimes when Zhu Yangqi got up in the middle of the night, he’d see Chen Luzhou and Wang Yue still researching at their computers. He sighed softly, “Li Ke likes to sleep, huh? Lucky kid. Look at these two teammates, they’re giving it their all.”
By the time Li Ke opened his bleary eyes, it was already daylight. Chen Luzhou and Wang Yue had gone back to their rooms to sleep, and he continued with the work they had left.
That year, the Lunar New Year fell on February 8th. A few days before the holiday, Qingyi experienced an unprecedented light snowfall. The snow barely accumulated on the ground, but it covered the rooftops with a thin layer of white, resembling a delicate blanket.
Cai Yingying, who had grown up in the south, looked forward to these rare snowfalls each year as an opportunity for snowball fights. She insisted on dragging Xu Zhi downstairs to play in the snow.
However, after experiencing an exhilarating snowball fight in Beijing, Xu Zhi lost interest in such light snowfall. It was during that snow fight in Beijing that she truly felt Chen Luzhou had entered her life – that romantic, idealistic youth who lived life to the fullest.
“When are they coming back?” Cai Yingying asked, scraping together a small handful of snow from a tree, as there was barely any on the ground.
“I’m not sure. I heard they haven’t booked tickets yet. There’s heavy snowfall in Beijing, so they might have trouble getting flights. They should be back by the third day of the New Year at the latest,” Xu Zhi replied.
“Is Zhu Yangqi coming back too?” Cai Yingying inquired.
“That little tagalong? Of course, he is,” Xu Zhi laughed, leaning against a tree as she watched Cai Yingying. “Why are you so concerned about Zhu Yangqi?”
Ignoring Xu Zhi’s teasing, Cai Yingying gazed at the tree, its branches dusted with snow like a white-haired head. A memory suddenly surfaced, and she exclaimed, “Do you think this tree might have a gold necklace in it, like the one outside Chen Luzhou’s place? Haha!”
She began shaking the tree vigorously, causing snow mixed with remnant leaves to shower down on them.
“Hey! Cai Yingying!” Xu Zhi called out.
Cai Yingying continued laughing and shaking the tree, shouting, “Gold necklace! Gold necklace!”
Memories can indeed be beautiful.
The two girls returned home with their heads covered in what looked like bird droppings.
Director Cai was at the door putting up Spring Festival couplets. He turned to see the two girls covered in scattered white spots, looking disheveled. He approached to sniff them, then recoiled instantly. “Cai Yingying, Xu Zhi! Have you two been raiding bird nests again?! How old are you?!”
Cai Yingying replied mysteriously, “You don’t understand, Old Cai. There are gold necklaces in bird nests. I’ll let you in on a secret – you can reach into any phoenix tree you pass, especially the ones under apartment buildings.”
“You’re crazy!” Director Cai muttered, continuing to put up the couplets. “How did I end up with a child like this?”
Xu Guangji, hearing the commotion, rushed out of the kitchen with a spatula in hand. He looked at Xu Zhi in disbelief, asking, “You went nest-raiding too?”
Xu Zhi answered honestly, “There are gold necklaces.”
Xu Guangji didn’t take it seriously. “… It’s okay, sweetheart. Dad will take care of you even if you’ve gone silly. Go take a shower and get ready for dinner.”
During the days when Chen Luzhou was at the Math Olympiad, his phone was mostly silent. Xu Zhi heard there was network monitoring, so she didn’t dare disturb him. She usually sent messages to Zhu Yangqi instead.
Xu Zhi: [Are you coming back before or after the New Year?]
Tagalong: [It’s hard to say. His competition ends around New Year’s Eve. I heard they still need to analyze something after the competition. We haven’t booked our tickets yet. We’ll decide once they’re out of school.]
Xu Zhi: [Is the snow heavy in Beijing?]
Tagalong: [It’s okay for now. Some roads might be closed, but everything else is fine. We’re mainly worried about flights being canceled. If we can’t make it back before the New Year, we’ll be back by the third day.]
Xu Zhi: [My dad is taking me to our hometown to pay New Year’s visits on the third day.]
Tagalong: [Worst case, we’ll see each other when school starts. We’ll meet eventually. Missing him that much?]
Xu Zhi: [Forget it, I’m not talking to you about this.]
On New Year’s Eve, as usual, Old Cai and Cai Yingying spent the holiday at Xu Zhi’s home. Old Xu prepared the reunion dinner, while Director Cai brought out a long-treasured bottle of Nü’er Hong (daughter’s red rice wine). He generously offered, “I brewed this the year Yingying was born. I originally planned to open it on her wedding day, but given her personality, who knows when that’ll be? I’ve decided not to torture myself anymore. Let’s drink!”
Cai Yingying, munching on their appetizers, said meaningfully, “I’ll find a boyfriend to show you next year.”
Old Cai scoffed, ignoring her. He clinked glasses with Old Xu, took a sip, and mused, “I don’t know why, but even though we have the same number of people as always, something feels different this year.”
Old Xu replied, “Yingying’s made such progress in her final exams. Your attitude has changed.”
Old Cai agreed, “That’s true.” He turned to Cai Yingying, “Honey, Dad doesn’t have high expectations. A key university will do. I don’t need 211 or 985 schools. A regular first-tier university is fine. It’ll make it easier for me to arrange a job for you at the hospital. As long as your education is passable.”
Cai Yingying protested, “I don’t want to work in a hospital. My dream is-“
Old Cai interrupted, “Your dream is to change the world. I know.”
Cai Yingying corrected him, “I’ve changed my mind. Now my dream is to be a beautiful teacher.”
Old Cai conceded, “Alright, at least it’s a dream. You’ll contribute to our country’s education by tearing down walls and breaking tiles.”
The dinner table was lively with witty banter and playful arguments.
Xu Zhi glanced at her phone. No messages or WeChat notifications. She wondered if the competition was still ongoing.
After dinner, they all sat on the sofa, engrossed in the annual must-watch program. The host’s voice was as high-pitched and vibrant as it had been for the past decade-
“This year, Beijing experienced a heavy snowfall during the Spring Festival. Many worker comrades couldn’t return home to reunite with their families as they were busy building our nation…”
Old Cai and Old Xu watched with great interest, occasionally chuckling, “That’s funny.”
Xu Zhi and Cai Yingying watched expressionlessly until it was nearly midnight. Although firecrackers were banned in the city, some people still set them off. It wasn’t as lively as in previous years when the firecrackers were so loud that you couldn’t hear the TV.
This year was more subdued, but you could still hear sporadic pops and crackles outside. Xu Zhi looked out the window to see colorful fireworks lighting up the sky above the entire city like a giant stone dragon breaking through the clouds.
Director Cai had finally been lulled to sleep by the Spring Festival Gala, snoring loudly on the sofa, his snores muffled by the hopeful sound of firecrackers.
Old Xu had gone to the hospital to deliver some food to Chief Wei’s son, who was hospitalized with a fracture and couldn’t have a New Year’s Eve dinner.
On TV, the host was passionately counting down to welcome the new year.
Cai Yingying asked, “Xu Zhi, shall we go downstairs to set off some fireworks?”
Xu Zhi replied, “It’s not allowed in the complex.”
Cai Yingying explained, “Not the skyrockets. You know those steel wool balls that many of our classmates have been playing with recently?” She made a circular motion with her arm and continued, “You just need to keep spinning it. It’s really pretty. Come on, you can take a video for me to upload.”
Xu Zhi glanced worriedly at Old Cai, “Won’t he choke on his snoring? I’ve never heard it this loud.”
Cai Yingying assured her, “Don’t worry, it’s much better than your dad’s drill-like snoring.”
Xu Zhi laughed and retorted, “You’re the one with drill-like snoring.”
Cai Yingying pulled Xu Zhi along, and they tiptoed downstairs.
There was an open space at the foot of the apartment building, where a few people were enthusiastically playing with pop-pops, throwing them on the ground with loud cracks, clearly enjoying themselves.
Xu Zhi didn’t look closely and was about to ask Cai Yingying where they should play when she heard Cai Yingying say from the stairwell entrance, “Here, I’ve brought her down as you asked. That’ll be two meals.”
For a split second, Xu Zhi thought Cai Yingying had sold her out until she heard that familiar lazy voice seriously discussing human trafficking: “She’s worth at least ten meals.”
Only then did she notice someone leaning in the dark stairwell of the first floor, with a suitcase beside him.
At that moment, she realized the figures playing with pop-pops looked familiar too. As she looked over, they turned and waved at her, still throwing firecrackers and greeting her jokingly.
“Xu Zhi! Have you gone crazy missing him? I didn’t mean to keep it from you!” It was Zhu Yangqi, his face beaming with the satisfaction of a successful plan.
“We’ve brought him back to you! I didn’t even have time for a sip of water on the way here.” It was Li Ke, his face also relaxed and smiling.
“Chen Luzhou said he’d cut ties with us if we didn’t bring him back before the New Year.” This was Jiang Cheng, surprisingly present as well.
Each of their faces wore the same kind-hearted teasing smile of youth. Cai Yingying, for some reason, felt a warmth in her eyes seeing this relationship so fiercely protected by everyone. Of course, her eyes grew even warmer as she looked at Zhu Yangqi, thinking, “Where did this hunk come from? He’s quite the eye candy.”
As Cai Yingying went to greet Zhu Yangqi, Xu Zhi couldn’t help but walk into the darkness to look at him.
Chen Luzhou was wearing a white tracksuit, zipped up to the top, with a loose black down jacket over it that reached his knees, left open. Now that he was truly standing in front of her, if it weren’t for the sound of Zhu Yangqi and the others throwing pop-pops, Xu Zhi’s brain might have needed a moment to process the reality.
It was strange. Before seeing him, she thought everything was fine, but the moment she laid eyes on him, all the heartache and grievances she had suppressed involuntarily spilled out. She instinctively reached out to hug him.
It was as if a small boat that had been drifting and rocking on the vast sea for days had finally found someone to grab its mooring rope when she felt most helpless.
Chen Luzhou simultaneously and naturally extended his arms to hold her tight. Sensing her distress, he gently stroked the back of her head.
“I’m sorry I’m late.”
“Happy New Year, Xu Zhi.”
“There’s something I wanted to tell you in person. In my home, there’s only room for you. There won’t be anyone else.”