Today, the city sent inspectors to check street sanitation. People from nearby communities mobilized early in the morning, each armed with a garbage bag and long metal tongs, taking to the streets to clean up what the sanitation workers had missed.

Xia Xia was assigned to an old residential complex, and responsible for cleaning the interior of the complex and several nearby alleys.

Under the scorching sun, Xia Xia finished one round of collection, drenched in sweat. She sat in the shade of grape vines to rest and took out her English study materials. The wind rustled through the leaves beside her ears. She looked up to see towering phoenix trees behind her, their dense leaves overlapping, and magpies perched on the treetops, singing in the brilliant sunlight.

The lush greenery improved her mood. Xia Xia put on her earphones and completed a set of English practice questions under the grape trellis.

After finishing the questions, her neck felt sore. She looked up and saw Xie Huai sitting on a stone stool not far away.

Xie Huai had been there for a while. Seeing her doing listening practice, he hadn’t wanted to disturb her. He held two cups of watermelon juice he’d bought on the way, which had become lukewarm after waiting so long.

Xia Xia exclaimed with delight: “Why are you here?”

Xie Huai: “I came to claim my reward.”

Xia Xia put away her books and made space for Xie Huai to sit beside her. Xie Huai inserted the straw into the watermelon juice and handed it to her. Xia Xia drank half the cup in one go, no longer feeling the heat. She leaned against his shoulder and used her phone to search for good food nearby.

Having stayed up reading until dawn last night and waking early to catch the subway this morning, she was sleep-deprived. Looking at her phone, her eyelids kept drooping.

Xie Huai took away her phone and pressed her head back against himself: “Take a nap.”

Xia Xia slept until noon, using Xie Huai’s shoulder as a pillow the whole time. The sweat and drool from her sleep had soaked his T-shirt.

She rubbed her eyes and smiled sheepishly: “I’m a bit tired today.”

Usually quite composed and resilient, she couldn’t help but act spoiled around Xie Huai. After waking up and stretching, she hugged Xie Huai and complained: “I cleaned up all the garbage from the surrounding streets. The community worker said there couldn’t be any trash on the ground. If the final inspection finds a problem on my street, they’ll deduct one point from my internship score for each cigarette butt. If there are ten cigarette butts, my whole internship will be wasted.”

“I can clean up the garbage, but how can I stop people from littering?” Xia Xia’s small face wrinkled up, “It’s crazy.”

While she was complaining, Xie Huai couldn’t help but laugh.

She glared at him: “I’m already so miserable and you’re laughing. It’s all because of that dog Cai Yun.”

Xie Huai: “I’m not laughing at you.”

His words were weak and unconvincing, and Xia Xia didn’t believe him.

A young man walked past them, a finished cigarette between his fingers. He casually threw the butt on the ground and stepped on it. As Xia Xia moved to pick it up, Xie Huai held her arm, keeping her seated beside him. He tapped his empty juice cup against the bench below, creating a distinctive crisp sound as plastic met wood.

He whistled, making the man turn around.

He looked at the cigarette butt the man had just thrown and said coldly: “Pick it up.”

The man seemed to hear something ridiculous: “Pick what up? A cigarette butt? Are you crazy?”

“South City has been working on environmental protection for so long. Don’t you see the cleaners and community volunteers picking up trash every day? My girlfriend just cleaned this road, and I don’t want her picking up your garbage.” Xie Huai’s voice deepened, his expression stern. “Pick it up. Don’t make me say it again.”

The man looked Xie Huai up and down, seemingly evaluating whether he could win in an argument or fight. After comparison, he realized his chances were slim. It wasn’t just about physical differences, but presence.

Xie Huai sat there, calm and cold, with a natural confidence in his tone that was beyond reach. It seemed innate but was more like the superior bearing cultivated through extreme material and spiritual abundance. Even without doing anything, the man already dared not conflict with him.

The man hesitated for a few seconds before bending down to pick up the cigarette butt and throwing it in the trash can. Still somewhat resentful, he muttered some curses at Xie Huai, which Xie Huai heard but ignored.

However, Xia Xia frowned when she heard him repeatedly saying “idiot”: “Who are you cursing at?”

The man looked back at her once but said nothing more before walking away. Xie Huai was indifferent: “Let him curse.”

He changed the subject, asking: “Do you know where Zhao Shanqi is interning?”

Xia Xia: “I heard she’s in the street office, just reading newspapers and drinking tea all day, occasionally writing a brief report.”

She changed her tone, pretending to be jealous: “What’s this, Brother Huai cares so much about her?”

Xie Huai made an affirmative sound, deliberately playing along: “Miss her terribly.”

Xia Xia punched his chest playfully, and he smiled: “Zhao Shanqi got that internship not because she’s exceptional, but because she has a good uncle. If Brother Huai were more capable, you wouldn’t have to endure these hardships.”

Xia Xia: “Why are you suddenly saying such things? I never said you weren’t good enough. You’re only twenty-one, already much more accomplished than others.”

“It’s how I feel,” Xie Huai said. “I have some money now, but I can’t do much with it. I can’t even afford a larger apartment in South City. I’m still far from the life I envision.”

Xie Huai frowned as he pondered. Xia Xia quietly kept him company, occasionally reaching out to brush away the dust that fell on his head.

Whatever Xie Huai spoke about must have been thoroughly considered. Whether he would act on it or not, he always thought things through before making decisions. Xia Xia just needed to listen attentively and stay by his side.

“Brother Xu found me last week. He wants to set up a factory and asked if I wanted to join him.” Xie Huai spoke softly as if talking to her while also sorting out his thoughts. “Society’s information flow is too advanced now. Many engineering contractors directly contact manufacturers for supplies. The profit margin in selling panels is limited, at most a few hundred thousand per deal. It gets harder as time goes on. Trading is far less profitable than manufacturing.”

“Xu Dalong doesn’t have a business mind, but on my own, even with loans and financing, the money still isn’t enough.”

Xia Xia didn’t interrupt, letting him think it through.

After a while, Xie Huai asked: “If I fail in my business venture and lose everything like my father did, would you be angry with me?”

Xia Xia thought for a moment: “As long as you don’t give up, I can handle anything.”

She had always felt that Xie Huai wasn’t meant to stay in the mud. Even if temporarily ground down, he would someday soar into the clouds. Being with him, she felt secure even if they ended up selling stinky tofu at night markets. Xie Huai was that kind of person – even if he sold stinky tofu from a street stall, he’d make it the most dazzling one on the entire street.

“Even if you fall, I can earn money to support you,” Xia Xia said. “I don’t need you to be rich or powerful, just don’t get hurt again.”

Her thoughts were simple, her desires modest. She couldn’t understand Xie Huai’s desire to cherish her and make her life worry-free. Her words seemed naive.

Xie Huai smiled, making Xia Xia somewhat confused.

“If you don’t want anything, then who am I working hard for?” He smiled, “I won’t let you live in rental apartments forever.”

He stood up to make a phone call, and Xia Xia slowly realized his meaning.

Xie Huai wasn’t short of money now. His debts were cleared, and his income was substantial, making him outstanding among students who hadn’t graduated yet. Even people who have worked in society for many years might not match their current income and savings. If he continued in this field for a few more years, buying a house and changing cars wouldn’t be a problem. This would be enough for a comfortable, well-provided life.

But Xie Huai felt it wasn’t enough, not because the money couldn’t satisfy his own needs, but because he hadn’t yet provided Xia Xia with his ideal life for her.

His efforts were for her, his struggles were for her.

Xia Xia wanted to tell him not to work so hard, but her throat felt dry, and the words she wanted to say couldn’t come out.

She looked at Xie Huai, this rebellious, unyielding person who seemed to care for nothing, and thinking about how he was striving and fighting for her, something incredibly soft stirred in her heart.

He was the youth she loved, with the world’s strongest backbone and most unrestrained smile, like a comet’s tail brushing across her starry sky, igniting a brilliant flame bright enough to illuminate her entire youth.

Xia Xia wiped her eyes, thinking she had cried, but they were only slightly moist, no tears falling.

She gazed at Xie Huai, at his straight posture and handsome features.

The gentle summer breeze brushed past her hair, a moment that felt like an eternity.

Xie Huai finished his call and waved to her. Xia Xia walked over: “Made your decision?”

Having made his decision, Xie Huai looked as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He raised an eyebrow: “If you still want to break up, better say it now. The offer won’t stand later.”

Xia Xia smiled: “Why would I break up?”

Xie Huai looked at the black plastic bag full of garbage in her hand: “If you don’t leave now, you only have two possibilities left in this life.”

“Either live happily ever after with Brother Huai without worrying about food and clothing or spend your whole life picking up garbage with Brother Huai. Think carefully about it.”

Xia Xia’s mind couldn’t help but conjure up a scene.

After a long, long time, long enough for Xie Huai to become a peculiar, difficult old man, and for her to become a wrinkled old lady. Xie Huai would pedal a tricycle with her sitting in the back, singing songs and chatting as they went through the alleys collecting recyclables. Even then, Xie Huai would still be cocky, fiercely yelling at passersby:

“Move your foot! You’re stepping on the garbage my wife wants to collect!”

Then he would turn around, carefully taking out a steamed bun from his chest pocket that he’d traded for with small bills that morning, and hand it to Xia Xia.

Age and time may have weathered them, but his love remained unchanged.

Xie Huai asked: “What are you smiling about?”

Xia Xia didn’t say, her smile growing brighter as she turned around, hands behind her back, walking toward the sun-lit path.

Xie Huai followed behind her, not understanding what made her so happy. Xia Xia hummed a tune, slowing her pace, and from behind her back, gently extended one snow-white pinky finger. Xie Huai smiled too.

He walked forward and tenderly linked his finger with hers.

The internship days were indeed difficult to endure, yet they passed in the blink of an eye.

During the day, Xia Xia did meaningless physical labor outside. At lunch break, Xie Huai would come to wait for her, and they’d eat together. Sometimes they’d wander through alleys looking for delicacies in South City’s old lanes; more often, they were too lazy to walk and just ate at the street office cafeteria.

In the evenings when Xia Xia got off work, Xie Huai would be busy, so she’d return to school alone for dinner and then study in the library.

Sometimes Xie Huai would return early, carrying his laptop to sit in the spot she’d saved for him, writing financing plans or preparing loan documents, occasionally stepping out to take calls.

When Xia Xia got tired of studying, she’d lie on his lap to sleep. When she woke up, Xie Huai would rush to the bathroom without a word, returning to seriously tell her that she must set an alarm before sleeping next time.

Xia Xia asked while laughing: “Why didn’t you wake me when you needed the bathroom?”

Xie Huai grumbled without answering. After Xia Xia asked several times, he finally said impatiently: “I didn’t want to wake you, okay? Why so many questions?”

Seeing Xia Xia taking out her phone to set an alarm, he quickly snatched it away and turned it off: “What alarm? I was just joking. Sleep as long as you want, I’ll just hold it in.”

Xia Xia asked seriously: “What if you hurt yourself holding it in?”

Xie Huai grinned mischievously: “If I hurt myself, who suffers? If Sister Xia doesn’t care, what does little Huai have to worry about?”

Xia Xia: “…”

Sometimes when Xie Huai came back late, Xia Xia would stay until the library’s closing bell rang before packing up her books to return to the dormitory. When she walked out of the library, Xie Huai would always be waiting by the fountain at the entrance. He’d walk her back to her dormitory before going about his business.

The short walk took only twenty minutes. Several times Xia Xia told him not to come, but Xie Huai wouldn’t listen, domineering as he covered her mouth to stop her from speaking. He’d lean his full weight on Xia Xia as they swayed down the path back to the dormitory together.

Students passed by alone – some just finishing evening classes, others returning from club activities, some coming back from off-campus.

Occasionally they’d run into couples they knew. When the men’s eyes met as they passed, they’d smile without speaking, each holding their girlfriend close.

The bright, clear moonlight cast sweet, unparalleled smiles on the faces below.

Xia Xia asked: “Why are you making eyes at another guy?”

“I wasn’t making eyes. He was conveying emotions through his gaze, complimenting how cute my girlfriend is.”

“Then what did you convey back? Out of politeness, did you also compliment that his girlfriend is cute?”

Xie Huai smiled shamelessly: “I said, thank you, I know my girlfriend is cute.”

The autumn air was crisp and clear, the sky a pristine blue.

Xie Huai and Xia Xia arrived late, finding the street office cafeteria packed with people.

While Xie Huai queued for food, Xia Xia saw Zhu Ziyu sitting alone by the window and went to join her.

Xin Pu, standing in line in front of Xie Huai, glanced several times in Zhu Ziyu’s direction and asked: “Was that video of the fight that circulated in the student group chat real? She didn’t become someone’s mistress, did she?”

Xie Huai glanced at him: “Don’t ask what you shouldn’t.”

“I don’t want to ask either.” Xin Pu said with a bitter expression, “We’re interning in the same community now, for over a month. The words she’s said to me could be counted on one hand. I don’t want to meddle in her love life, but I want to comfort her, help her be happier.”

Xin Pu said desperately: “We spend all day cleaning outside, and she’s the only person around to talk to, but she ignores me when I speak to her. If she doesn’t get happier, I’m going to get depressed.”

“Are you going to tell me?” Xin Pu said, “If you don’t, I’ll go ask her directly.”

He was about to go over, but Xie Huai stopped him: “Don’t.”

Xia Xia was chatting with Zhu Ziyu. These two sisters didn’t appear particularly close normally, but when something happened, they’d unite against others and become fierce. If Xin Pu went to ask so rashly, Zhu Ziyu might ignore him, but Xia Xia might beat him up.

Xie Huai wasn’t worried about Xin Pu getting beaten; he was afraid Xin Pu would make Xia Xia angry.

“She’s Xia Xia’s friend, her character can’t be that bad…”

Xie Huai thought for a moment, only telling him that Zhu Ziyu had been deceived in love, not mentioning anything about the abortion.

Xin Pu was stunned after hearing this: “That’s too tragic. Huai brother, you’re not often at school so you don’t know, but Zhu Ziyu, Zhao Shanqi, and Xia Xia are the three class beauties. The three most beautiful girls in the whole college are all in our class.”

Xie Huai had never heard about the three class beauties, thinking it seemed like something only high school students would care about ranking.

“Xia Xia has been with you since freshman year, so no one dared pursue her. Zhao Shanqi’s family is rich, so ordinary people couldn’t chase her. That left Zhu Ziyu – she’s beautiful, has a great figure, and is generous. She’s like a brother to the guys during class gatherings. Many guys in our class liked her.” Xin Pu said painfully, “Can’t believe she was hurt by some idiot from outside… the guys in our class would be furious if they knew…”

Xie Huai looked at him: “You liked her too?”

Xin Pu quickly said: “No, no… well, not exactly. I had a crush on her in freshman year, but it was just a slight attraction. A girl like her wouldn’t look at me anyway. After she got a boyfriend, I gave up on that idea.”

…

After hearing about Zhu Ziyu being deceived by Xie Huai, Xin Pu couldn’t calm down for a long time. By evening, he was still thinking about it, constantly asking Xie Huai what the guy did and what his name was.

Annoyed by his questions, Xie Huai asked coldly: “Why do you want to know? Planning to get revenge for Zhu Ziyu?”

Xin Pu blushed, muttered “no,” pulled the curtain closed, and went back to sleep.

Xie Huai stood by the window looking out. Xin Pu poked his head out again to ask: “What are you looking at?”

Xie Huai was watching for Xia Xia. He had just parted from her downstairs and had been back for a while. The dormitory was about to close, so Xia Xia should have returned by now, but the curtains in the girls’ dormitory opposite weren’t drawn, and only Cai Yun sat alone at her desk playing with her phone.

Zhao Shanqi rarely stayed in the dormitory, and Zhu Ziyu had something to do tonight and wouldn’t return, leaving only Xia Xia and Cai Yun in that room.

After another while, Xia Xia still hadn’t come in, but Cai Yun looked up from her phone as if hearing something at the door. Xie Huai couldn’t see her expression clearly, only saw her quickly walk to the door and turn off the room’s lights.

Having witnessed the whole thing, Xie Huai remembered how Cai Yun had locked Xia Xia out of the dormitory in freshman year, and had a bad feeling. He called Xia Xia, but her line was busy. He put down his phone and waited.

Twenty minutes later, Xia Xia called him.

She heard Xie Huai say “hello” but didn’t speak. Xie Huai didn’t mention seeing Cai Yun turn off the lights, instead playfully called her “baby” a few times and asked why she was calling so late.

Xia Xia sniffled: “Nothing really, just missed you a bit.”

Xia Xia was strong-willed, preferring to solve problems herself rather than asking Xie Huai for help. In all their time together, she rarely complained to him. If she didn’t want to talk about it, Xie Huai wouldn’t ask.

He spoke with a smile in his voice: “Didn’t we just part? You miss me already?”

“Yes.” Xia Xia’s voice was nasal as if she’d been crying. She paused, then asked, “I want to see you again, can you come out?”

Before Xie Huai could say “I just,” the girl said softly: “I’m hungry. I want to eat wontons.”

Xie Huai hung up the phone and pulled out his electric cooking pot from under the bed.

Xin Pu was dumbfounded: “It’s so late, the dormitory is about to lock up, where are you going with that pot?”

Xie Huai said calmly: “Going to make wontons for my wife.”