Hearing his words, Xu Zhinan felt heartache and hugged him, stroking his hair.

His hair had grown longer now, about the same length as during their university days.

“I’ll give you red envelopes every New Year from now on,” Xu Zhinan said.

Lin Qingye smiled, his chest vibrating against her: “Alright.”

They continued embracing and cuddling for a while. Time was approaching midnight, and they were about to enter the new year.

Xu Zhinan’s bed was by the window, with one side against the wall. Looking outside, they could see fireworks continuously soaring into the sky and blooming, giving momentary light to the night.

She rested her chin on her hand by the window. Tonight, even the evening breeze was gentle, not too cold.

The surrounding buildings were brightly lit, probably watching New Year’s Eve galas on various TV stations. The sound was turned up loudly, mixing with the sound of firecrackers. They could even faintly hear the countdown coming from the television in the house across from them.

“Ten.”

“Nine.”

“Eight.”

…

The two of them leaned by the window without speaking, silently waiting for the final “three, two, one” and the “Happy New Year” at the moment the final bell rang.

“Happy New Year,” Lin Qingye said, his voice gentle.

Xu Zhinan smiled: “Happy New Year to you too.”

“Why haven’t you asked me what I’m giving you?”

Xu Zhinan turned to look at him. They were sitting on the bed, having removed their heavy coats, and she had no idea where he could have hidden a gift.

Xu Zhinan blinked and asked: “What?”

Lin Qingye took a wallet from his pocket, pulled out a bank card, and handed it to her.

Xu Zhinan was startled and didn’t reach out to take it, just looking at it.

He said: “My salary card.”

“…”

Lin Qingye’s salary card was no ordinary salary card.

What he earned could hardly be described as a “salary.”

Xu Zhinan swallowed emptily and said: “I just said I’d give you red envelopes every year from now on, and you’re giving me your salary card?”

She said softly, “Then how can those be called my red envelopes to you?”

“Take the red envelope money from the shop’s account,” Lin Qingye pushed the bank card into her hand. “Just finished paying off the mortgage, so there’s not much money.”

“Then what will you do when you need to spend money in the future?”

That card was the account where the company transferred various income shares, accounting for the majority of his income. But naturally, Lin Qingye had more than just this one card, and he still had cards for daily use.

However, he didn’t explain all this, just raised his eyebrows and said: “How about we register as family members, and you support me from now on?”

Xu Zhinan thought about it and agreed.

They fiddled with their phones for a while, binding their accounts as family members. Outside, the sound of firecrackers was finallyn’t so noisy, with only a few sporadic bursts.

Xu Zhinan suddenly thought of something, got off the bed, went to the desk, and rummaged around for a while. From the drawer, she pulled out a box, opened it, and inside lay a white instant camera.

This had been very popular in her high school class, with many girls bringing them to school to play with. Later, in the first semester of her sophomore year, Xu Yuanwen had bought this as a birthday gift for her.

“I mentioned before that we should take photos often from now on.”

She checked the film inside and returned to the bedside.

The two of them faced away from the window. Xu Zhinan held up the camera, counted down “three, two, one,” and pressed the shutter.

At the moment the flash went off, a burst of fireworks soared into the sky, illuminating the center of the window with a bright light.

Soon, the film came out, and after waiting a while, the image of the two gradually appeared on the photo paper.

The instant camera photos all had built-in filters. The surrounding environment was dark, but their skin appeared whiter.

Both were looking at the camera, with Xu Zhinan holding the camera in front, and Lin Qingye behind her, his back leaning against the windowsill, one hand resting on Xu Zhinan’s shoulder.

Both were smiling. When Xu Zhinan smiled, she revealed two small dimples, while Lin Qingye had his chin slightly raised, his eyes looking down at the camera, appearing mischievous yet with a hint of casual smile, a doting and lazy appearance.

Xu Zhinan held the photo and looked at it for a while, really liking it.

She then found a pen and wrote their names and the current time in the blank space below, putting the photo into a new album.

“In the future, we should fill this album too.”

Lin Qingye lowered his eyes: “Okay.”

It was almost one in the morning, and Xu Zhinan urged him to go sleep in the next room.

Lin Qingye hugged her, lowered his neck, and buried himself in her neck: “I don’t want to go.”

“This is too small, you won’t even fit,” Xu Zhinan pinched him. “Besides, it’s not appropriate. My mom is still here, and she’s already prepared the next room for you.”

Lin Qingye was used to being shameless with her, but he still didn’t dare to misbehave in front of Mother Xu.

He leaned against her neck, took a deep breath as if making a difficult decision, and finally straightened up: “I’m going.”

Mother Xu had probably gone to sleep early. Lin Qingye quietly went out and entered the guest room next door.

Xu Zhinan’s room became quiet again. She sat by the window for a while longer before closing it and lying down on the bed, but somehow couldn’t fall asleep.

In her mind suddenly appeared Lin Qingye’s earlier words when he was lying on top of her: “This is the first time I’ve received a red envelope.”

She felt heartache again, turned over in bed, took out her phone, and sent Lin Qingye another message.

[Xu Zhinan: Are you asleep?]

He replied quickly: Not yet, what’s wrong?

[Xu Zhinan: Nothing, I just realized I didn’t say goodnight to you earlier.]

Lin Qingye sent a voice message, a “goodnight” filled with a smile.

These two words floated into Xu Zhinan’s ears in the deep night. Curled up in her blanket, she couldn’t help but laugh softly, and similarly sent a “goodnight” back.

Early the next morning, the two washed up and went downstairs, staying for a while longer before leaving in the evening.

Just as they got in the car, Shi Si called: “Captain, do you have time to come over now?”

Shi Si had been busy with something recently, starting a side business. Since their group often met late at night for supper, he simply opened his barbecue restaurant.

Opening on New Year’s Day, it was now the first day of business.

Lin Qingye asked Xu Zhinan, then drove to Shi Si’s barbecue restaurant.

He drove directly through the back entrance. Shi Si was already waiting there, and the three of them walked from the back kitchen toward the private room. Through the wall, they could hear the bustling sounds of people enjoying skewers next door.

“Why does your barbecue restaurant have private rooms?” Lin Qingye asked.

Shi Si: “One of a kind. It’s because you’re here. You can’t sit with everyone outside, or it would cause a huge commotion.”

Lin Qingye smiled and followed him with Xu Zhinan into the private room.

Ji Yan and Guan Chi were already inside.

Outside, the lights were dim, and Shi Si hadn’t paid much attention, but under the bright lights of the private room, he instantly noticed Lin Qingye’s clothes.

Lotus pink.

Although it was a couple of outfits with Xu Zhinan.

But still!

It’s!

Lotus pink!

“Damn,” Ji Yan couldn’t help but curse. “Captain, your style change is too shocking. I think you could go on stage and perform the National Primary and Secondary School Students’ Radio Gymnastics ‘Young Eagles Take Flight’.”

Lin Qingye was “humiliated,” but wasn’t angry at all.

The clothes didn’t look childish on him, not as bad as Ji Yan described. It’s just that the contrast with his previous style was too great, making it difficult for his familiar friends to accept immediately.

But if fans saw it, they would turn into screaming chickens again.

Guan Chi gave him a thumbs up: “You look like a pure male college student now.”

Lin Qingye gave a disdainful snort, pulling Xu Zhinan to sit to one side.

Shi Si, now promoted to boss, went out to make another round before returning.

Ji Yan asked: “Is it okay for you to be hiding with us like this? Won’t your shop be gone when you go back out?”

“Bah, your dog’s mouth can’t speak ivory,” Shi Si glared at her, poured himself a glass of beer, straddled a chair, and sat down. “It’s the opening promotion, business is good, and my parents are outside too.”

Guan Chi was used to watching these two bicker, raised his glass, and tapped it on the table: “Let’s have a toast?”

“Sure,” Ji Yan also raised her glass. “We need a reason for a toast, right?”

Shi Si: “That’s simple, Happy New Year’s Day!”

Ji Yan laughed, mocking him: “How common.”

Despite saying this, everyone raised their glasses. Even Xu Zhinan rarely poured half a glass of beer for herself.

Everyone raised their glasses together, clinking them in the air, producing a crisp sound of glass collision.

The glasses were filled too full, and some beer spilled over the rim during the collision, dampening fingertips.

“Happy New Year’s Day!”

“Happy New Year!”

Two voices rang out with poor coordination.

Ji Yan and Shi Si then began to argue about whether New Year’s Day could be called “New Year,” with one believing it could, and the other insisting that only the first day of the lunar calendar could be called “New Year.”

Outside, voices were in an uproar.

On the lively New Year’s Day, the first day of the new year, everything seemed to be moving in a good direction, prosperous and flourishing.

“Alright, hey you two, it’s the opening, stop arguing,” Guan Chi smiled, smoothing things over.

Soon, a large plate of barbecue skewers was brought into their private room.

Guan Chi: “Nice, this must be a big expense for you.”

Shi Si waved his hand: “Eat as much as you want today. The opening promotion is meant to lose money anyway, I’m already numb to the losses.”

“By the way, Captain,” Ji Yan asked, “when are you planning to have your concert?”

“The time isn’t fixed yet, but the venue is decided.”

“Yan City?”

“No, T City.”

Guan Chi slapped the table: “Don’t tell me it’s that 80,000-seat Olympic Sports Center Stadium!?”

“Yes,” Lin Qingye smiled. “Will you all be able to come then?”

The three of them were stunned, still holding skewers, speechless for a good while.

These people had formed a band as early as high school, and honestly, it was impossible not to love music. Even the previous music festivals with less than a thousand tickets had ignited their blood to a boil, not to mention this large-scale concert with 80,000 seats.

Beyond that, they felt somewhat intimidated.

80,000 people.

It was just too many.

The entire venue would be filled with people coming to listen to the performance.

The pressure was invisibly magnified.

Ji Yan: “80,000 people… what if we’re not good enough…”

Lin Qingye raised an eyebrow and smiled: “Didn’t you all say that if I ever needed anything from you in the future, just ask?”

“Ah, that’s what we said,” Shi Si was unusually serious, frowning as he spoke. “But honestly, Captain, the reason our Locust Tree Band could become popular was 99% because of you. For music festivals, we’re used to performing in bars, so supporting is no problem, but for a concert like this, I’m really afraid we’ll mess it up for you.”

“You won’t mess it up,” Lin Qingye remained the same, but somehow he suddenly gained confidence from this statement.

The three of them were still hesitating.

Of course, they wanted it—such a big stage was something they dreamed of.

Lin Qingye took a sip of alcohol, leaned back in his chair, his chin slightly raised: “We never properly said goodbye to the stage when we disbanded. Why not use this opportunity to say a proper farewell?”

Xu Zhinan was stunned and turned to look at him.

The man truly had softened after wearing that lotus pink outfit, but the flamboyance and arrogance in his bones hadn’t diminished because of it. Instead, they burst forth even more intensely.

His whole body seemed to be wrapped in a halo of light.

At the time, the Locust Tree Band never announced their disbandment on stage. They performed their last song in the bar as usual and calmly walked off stage.

After that, the Locust Tree Band never performed “wild” again.

At that time, Xu Zhinan only went with Zhao Qian to see the Locust Tree Band’s last performance after hearing rumors.

Even now, she could still clearly remember what Lin Qingye looked like then.

He wore a white shirt, the light passing through, outlining the broad shoulders and narrow waist hidden inside. Standing at the front, he gripped the microphone stand, leaned in—

He said: “Locust Tree Band, Lin Qingye.”

After the screams died down, he unhurriedly added the last three words: “Good evening.”

Cold yet devilishly handsome.

When a song ended, everyone in the bar called out Lin Qingye’s name in unison.

No matter where he was, he shone brilliantly, effortlessly capturing everyone’s attention.

That young man who had won the Golden Melody Award and caused a sensation in the music industry, who was also the one who refused all olive branches and performed freely in bars, and who now, after the band disbanded and he entered the entertainment industry, still radiated incredible brilliance.

Xu Zhinan’s chest vibrated with emotion.

Not just her, but Ji Yan, Guan Chi, and Shi Si felt the same.

People can’t always make the most correct decisions in the moment. They had all regretted why they didn’t properly tell everyone when they decided to disband, why they didn’t say a proper goodbye.

It always felt incomplete.

“The new song I’m working on now, I plan to debut it as the finale at the concert,” Lin Qingye looked at them and said slowly. “It’s in the rock band style.”

The three were stunned.

The Locust Tree Band’s original aspiration was rock music.

Shi Si was moved to tears, raising his glass and shouting: “Rock never dies!”

Glasses raised high, colliding in the air again.

They drained their glasses in one go, poured another round, and clinked glasses again. With too much force, half the alcohol spilled, and another shout: “Locust Tree Band never dies!”

Guan Chi slapped the table: “It’s just fucking 80,000 people! When we played music on abandoned building rooftops, we were singing for the whole damn world to hear! Fuck it!”

The passionate result was that they all drank too much.

Except for Xu Zhinan and Lin Qingye.

Xu Zhinan naturally had a low alcohol tolerance and deliberately limited herself, not getting drunk. Lin Qingye had a good tolerance, and beer couldn’t knock him down.

Although Guan Chi, Ji Yan, and Shi Si weren’t completely drunk, their faces and necks were red, and their eyes were no longer completely clear.

“Alright, stop drinking,” Lin Qingye said first. “Any more and you’ll start vomiting.”

“Captain, you’re being a killjoy. Ji Yan was drunk, raising her hand. “No puking, no stopping!”

Xu Zhinan: “…”

Lin Qingye couldn’t be bothered with these drunks, stood up, and simply said: “Let’s go.”

Although the three of them hadn’t drunk to their hearts’ content, with the Captain’s authority, they had no choice but to get up as well.

Opening the door, they ran into Shi Si’s mother, who originally wanted to call Shi Si over to help, but upon seeing how drunk they were, she couldn’t help but scold them.

Unfortunately, Shi Si was too drunk and just giggled through the scolding, completely unfazed.

Shi Si’s mother punched him once, then turned to look at Lin Qingye.

She naturally recognized Lin Qingye and was grateful for his help to Shi Si over the years: “Are you heading back already?”

“Yes, I’ll send them all home. They’re all drunk.”

“Alright,” Shi Si’s mother thanked Lin Qingye again. “Thank you, this child is a handful.”

Lin Qingye had also been drinking, so driving back was impossible. He just went back to the car to get a baseball cap and mask to wear, and also pulled up his coat hood over his head.

But when he turned around, Ji Yan and Shi Si were already arguing.

Who knows what they were talking about, but alcohol makes tempers flare, and the smallest spark could set off an explosion.

Xu Zhinan stood beside them, wanting to mediate but not knowing where to start.

“A Nan,” Lin Qingye called.

Xu Zhinan turned around and came to his side: “Aren’t you going to stop them?”

“What’s there to stop?” Lin Qingye put his arm around her shoulder and leaned against the car, took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth without lighting it, saying indistinctly, “Isn’t it amusing to watch?”

They were so drunk that their arguments were slurred and unclear; only visually, they were gesticulating wildly.

Xu Zhinan watched from the beginning and only clearly heard Shi Si shouting in the middle: “You’re just taking advantage of the fact that I like you!!!”

Xu Zhinan: “…”

Huh?

Ji Yan shouted back without hesitation: “Did I ask you to like me!?”

The confession came out like an argument.

Xu Zhinan was very confused, looking at the two of them, but Lin Qingye didn’t seem surprised, only finding it quite amusing as he raised his eyebrows.

“Did you know about them… huh?” Xu Zhinan asked.

“More or less, I could tell, though Shi Si probably never said it directly,” Lin Qingye laughed heartlessly. “They’ll probably go crazy when they remember this tomorrow.”

“…”

“But it might be a good opportunity.”

After saying this, he walked forward, pulled the arguing pair apart, and hailed three taxis by the roadside, telling the drivers their respective addresses.

He was wrapped up thoroughly, deliberately lowering his voice, without arousing any suspicion.

After sending off the three drunks, Lin Qingye turned his head and asked: “How are we getting back?”

“Let’s walk. Taking a taxi might get you recognized. Besides, it’s a good chance to walk off the meal.”

“Okay.”

Their place was still some distance away.

But on New Year’s night, the sky was filled with brilliant stars, making even a walk very romantic.

The wind was still cold on the body. Lin Qingye pulled her coat hood over her head as well.

The two held hands as they walked along the road.

Xu Zhinan had an indescribable sense of excitement, though she couldn’t quite say why.

But it had to do with the Locust Tree Band.

Just thinking about them finally being able to perform a song together, seriously, at the concert made her happy.

After all, the Locust Tree Band was also Lin Qingye’s original dream.

She held Lin Qingye’s hand, unconsciously swinging it.

“Are you that happy?” Lin Qingye asked, looking down.

“Yes, this happy,” Xu Zhinan continued swinging his hand. “It’s been a long time since we walked together.”

He laughed, then suddenly thought of something and said: “Next month will be the new Golden Melody Awards ceremony. I should get a nomination.”

Lin Qingye didn’t like to tell people about things before they were settled, so this was the first time Xu Zhinan had heard about the Golden Melody Awards.

She didn’t know much about it, with her only impression being the one Lin Qingye had won many years ago.

“Will you attend the awards ceremony this time?”

“Yes, it’s being held in Yan City.”

“That’s great. Last time you won an award, you didn’t attend, right?”

“That time I did receive an invitation card for the nomination, but I never thought I’d win, so I didn’t decide to go from the beginning,” Lin Qingye squeezed her palm, downplaying it. “Hope I can win another trophy for you this time.”

Xu Zhinan’s heart trembled.

She pressed her lips together and lowered her head with a smile: “Sure.”

Xu Zhinan felt increasingly happy at this moment.

Not just because she was moved by the Locust Tree Band, nor just because Lin Qingye was nominated for the Golden Melody Award again, but because at this moment, she could see their path forward.

She liked Lin Qingye so much and didn’t want to see any of his goals unfulfilled.

But as he had said—”I am Lin Qingye.”

He could achieve anything.

He had enough talent, could be called a genius and all-rounder in music, someone capable of standing at the pinnacle of the pyramid.

Xu Zhinan thought of a scene she often dreamed of during those two and a half years when he wasn’t there.

Coming out of the arcade, sunrise, blue hair, young man.

Flamboyant and uninhibited, yet full of tenderness.

He had truly, genuinely come back.