Ruan Mian returned home in a daze. Duan Ying was sitting in the living room with Zhao Shuyang warming themselves by the fire. The TV was playing a cartoon.

Seeing her come back, Zhao Shuyang crawled up from the sofa and trotted over to her, speaking softly: “Are you on vacation now?”

“Mm, on vacation.” Ruan Mian pulled out a few White Rabbit milk candies from her pocket and handed them over. “Want some?”

Zhao Shuyang took two. Ruan Mian bent down and put the rest into his pocket, then straightened up and patted his head. “Go watch TV.”

He clutched Ruan Mian’s backpack strap and wouldn’t let go. His mouth was full of candy, his cheeks bulging.

Duan Ying turned her head to look over, her expression indescribably apathetic. “Yangyang, come here.”

“Don’t want to.” As soon as he spoke, he couldn’t hold the candy in his mouth, and saliva dripped down from the corner of his mouth. Ruan Mian took a tissue to wipe it for him, then raised her head toward the sofa: “Grandma, I’ll take Shuyang upstairs to play for a bit.”

Duan Ying glanced at her and nodded. “Go ahead.”

Only then did Zhao Shuyang release his grip on her backpack strap. He turned around, held onto the staircase railing beside him, and climbed up step by step. Ruan Mian let out a light breath and followed behind in small steps.

There were five or six LEGO sets piled in Ruan Mian’s room. A few were bought by Zhao Yingwei for her when they first moved in, and the rest were brought over from Nanhu Garden—all purchased previously by Ruan Mingke.

Zhao Shuyang bounced into the room. Ruan Mian opened a new LEGO set for him and placed it on the carpet. She squatted down and said: “Is it okay to play with this one?”

He nodded and took off his shoes to sit directly on the carpet.

Ruan Mian poured the pieces onto the blanket and pulled over a floor cushion to sit down. She absentmindedly helped Zhao Shuyang build LEGO for a while.

She turned her head to look at the heavy snow outside the window, unable to help wondering where Chen Yi was now, what he was doing, whether he was still with Sheng Huan.

With such heavy snow, would he walk her home?

The answer was unknowable.

Thinking about it made her uncomfortable. She let out a long sigh and picked up the phone beside her. On QQ, she found Chen Yi’s name, clicked in but didn’t know what to send, so she casually scrolled up through their chat history.

Adding Chen Yi on QQ happened over a month ago. Not long before that, Chen Yi had said he would teach her to write and gave her a reading list.

Ruan Mian had gone to buy the books that weekend. When she came back, she saw a new friend request on QQ. She clicked in and saw the verification request had the two characters “Chen Yi” written on it.

She’d been stunned at the time, exited and clicked back in. After confirming she hadn’t misread, she immediately clicked accept.

Chen Yi’s profile picture was that photo of the orange tabby cat from his QQ space. His username was also simple—just one character: [Chen].

Throughout this semester, even when Ruan Mian and Chen Yi had been deskmates, she had never thought about adding him as a QQ friend. Actually, it wasn’t that she didn’t want to—back then it was more that she didn’t dare.

Usually sitting together they had nothing to chat about—would adding each other as friends suddenly give them more to say?

The result, of course, was—

No.

Even though Ruan Mian and Chen Yi had been QQ friends for so long, their chat history consisted of only a few sparse sentences, mostly about whether the book report was written and when to turn it in.

Aside from that, other content was pitifully scarce.

Right now, it took Ruan Mian less than two minutes to finish reading through her chat history with Chen Yi. She returned and typed out a sentence in the input box. Her finger hovered over the send button for a long time, unable to press down.

Winter evenings always came earlier than other seasons. Ruan Mian sat in the dim room watching the street lamps of Pingjiang Mansion in the distance light up one by one.

When all the street lamps were lit, a faint glimmer of light touched this distant corner. She hesitated no more and raised her hand to press down. The message was quickly sent successfully.

Ruan Mian placed her phone on the desk and walked over to the door to turn on the room light.

The moment the light came on, the phone buzzed twice on the desk. The phone body pressed against the wooden surface, wobbling with the vibration frequency.

She walked over to pick it up. It was Chen Yi replying to the message.

Half a minute ago.

[Ruan Mian]: I’ve already read half of the reading list you gave me.

Half a minute later.

[Chen Yi]: Mm, finish the rest during winter break.

[Chen Yi]: Turn in the book reports together when school starts.

Ruan Mian replied with an okay.

[Chen Yi]: Mm.

Ruan Mian stared at the screen for a while and didn’t reply again.

In the following days, Ruan Mian’s life was unremarkable. She kept her appointment with Meng Xinglan. When she had nothing else to do, she took Zhao Shuyang walking through the streets and alleys, or spent half an afternoon at Li Zhi’s shop.

Li Zhi really did as he said before and paid Ruan Mian the modeling fee from last time—two orange-flavored lollipops.

Going back to school to get report cards was the day before the lunar new year’s minor celebration. After consecutive days of heavy snow, Pingcheng suddenly stopped. The long-missed sun climbed out.

At school, the grade-wide rankings had already been posted on the announcement wall at the bottom of the teaching building.

Ruan Mian arrived early. There weren’t many people around. She stood there with her soy milk bag in her mouth, scanning down line by line. On the first page, line forty-nine, she saw her name and grades.

Chinese 112, Mathematics 149, English 109, Science Comprehensive 289, total score 656, class rank 25th, grade rank 49th.

Chen Yi still dominated the first place in both grade and class. Ruan Mian finished the last sip of soy milk and was about to leave when someone came over beside her.

“Why did you come so early?” It was Jiang Rang.

Ruan Mian screwed the cap back on the soy milk bag, speaking warmly: “I live near here. I woke up early this morning, and since I had nothing to do, I came over first.”

Jiang Rang made a sound of acknowledgment, raised his head to look at the rankings on the wall, and smiled. “You did pretty well this time. Chinese didn’t drag you down much.”

Ruan Mian was modest. “It’s alright. Probably because the essay didn’t go off-topic again.”

Jiang Rang laughed. “But your English still isn’t good enough.”

“…” Really bringing up the sore spot.

Jiang Rang turned his head to look over. His lips were red and teeth white, his appearance handsome. “About the winter break tutoring I mentioned before—have you thought about it?”

“Probably won’t work. I already told my grandmother I’m going back tomorrow.” On the second day after winter break started, Ruan Mian had told Fang Ruqing about her decision not to stay in Pingcheng for New Year’s. Although Fang Ruqing wasn’t very happy, she ultimately agreed.

“I see. Then let’s talk about it after school starts.” Jiang Rang laughed with some disappointment. “I was hoping to learn from you and improve my math.”

His tone sounded pitiful. Ruan Mian hesitated and said: “Then let’s contact each other on QQ.”

She remembered that her grandmother’s house had an old computer that Ruan Mingke had previously discarded. Although it couldn’t play games, it worked fine for normal use.

Jiang Rang’s eyes curved with his smile. “That works.”

Ruan Mian stared at that smile for a few seconds, then turned her head away.

The classroom door wasn’t open yet. Some students who had arrived stood in the corridor, while others went to Zhou Hai’s office. Ruan Mian went to Teacher Zhao’s office.

Zhao Qi was not only the Chinese teacher for Science Class 1, but also the homeroom teacher for Liberal Arts Class 2. For distributing report cards, he would definitely come.

When Ruan Mian arrived, he had just separated the Chinese test papers for several classes. Seeing her knock on the door, he rarely showed a smile. “You did quite well this time.”

From his smile, Ruan Mian could tell her essay probably hadn’t gone off-topic this time. Her anxious heart finally settled. “Thank you, Teacher Zhao.”

Zhao Qi pulled out her test paper. The essay was forty-one points. Although not high, compared to before, it was considerable progress.

He smiled and said: “Seems like your time studying with Chen Yi has been very useful. Go back and thank him properly.”

Ruan Mian nodded. “Teacher Zhao, can I take the test paper home?”

“Take it. Just don’t lose it—we still need to review it when school starts.” Zhao Qi put away the remaining test papers into his drawer.

“Okay, thank you, Teacher Zhao. I’ll go back to the classroom now.”

He waved his hand. “Go ahead.”

Ruan Mian returned to the third floor. The classroom door was already open. The seats in the classroom were still arranged in single columns from the exam. Everyone had randomly grabbed a chair to sit down.

Meng Xinglan pulled Ruan Mian over to her spot, her face full of smiles. “After you get your report card today, do you have anything else to do?”

“Probably not.” Ruan Mian folded the test paper in her hands. “What’s up?”

“Jiang Rang said we’re going to the haunted house in the city center this afternoon. He asked me to ask if you’re going.” Meng Xinglan bumped her shoulder, her expression ambiguous and tone gossipy. “Does he like you?”

Ruan Mian’s face heated up. “How is that possible?”

“Why not possible?” The more Meng Xinglan thought about it, the more likely it seemed. “I’ve known Jiang Rang for so long, and besides me, I’ve never seen him actively invite any other girl to hang out with us.”

Ruan Mian was helpless. “If you keep saying that, I won’t go out with you all this afternoon.”

“Okay, okay, I won’t say it anymore, I won’t say it anymore.” Meng Xinglan’s acting cute came naturally. She grabbed her arm and whined: “Good Mianmian, just pretend I farted just now, okay? Don’t not come out with us. Otherwise, I’ll be the only girl going into the haunted house.”

“Being alone is fine.” Ruan Mian looked at her. “Liang Yiran will protect you anyway.”

Meng Xinglan’s face flushed with embarrassment. She let go and cried out: “Ruan Mian!”

As they spoke, most of the class had arrived. Chen Yi also leisurely entered the classroom a few minutes before Old Zhou came in with report cards.

Boys this age all seemed not to fear the cold. Today he wore a long black down jacket with a white crew-neck cotton T-shirt underneath. Below was a pair of light gray jeans wrapping two long, straight legs. On his feet were black and white striped low-top canvas shoes.

As he walked, the hem of his pants revealed a small section of ankle bone. His Achilles tendon was deeply set, especially attractive. He looked like he hadn’t woken up yet, his eyelids drooping, his face written with fatigue.

He followed Jiang Rang to sit on Meng Xinglan’s side, leaning back against the wall, arms resting on the desks on either side, his posture lazy and casual.

Meng Xinglan and Jiang Rang chatted about the afternoon’s itinerary arrangements. Ruan Mian sat behind Chen Yi. Her hands, originally on the desk, moved to under the desk because of the boy’s arm suddenly resting there.

After several days apart, the class was still noisy. Chen Yi scratched his fluffy bangs twice, lowered his arm, turned his head to look to the right. “Did you get your Chinese test paper back?”

Ruan Mian’s expression froze slightly, as if puzzled how he knew she’d gotten her paper back.

Chen Yi’s hand resting on the desk lightly tapped the surface twice. He guessed what she was thinking. “I ran into Teacher Zhao at the stairwell just now. He told me.”

I see.

Ruan Mian nodded with an “oh” and left it at that.

He suddenly smiled. “What are you ‘oh-ing’ about? Let me see the test paper.”

Ruan Mian instinctively said “oh” again.

“…”

“…”

With a slightly flushed face, she took out the test paper folded into a square. Chen Yi reached out to take it, unfolded it, and looked through it from beginning to end.

It only took about two minutes, but Ruan Mian found it especially torturous. Partly because of her earlier embarrassment, and partly because of nervousness about whether his judgment of her performance would be good or bad.

During this time, Chen Yi frowned three times. Her heartbeat skipped three times. She was afraid this person would throw the test paper in her face the next second and say coldly “what is this you wrote?”

But—

After reading the girl’s test paper, Chen Yi refolded it along the original creases into a square and handed it back. “The essay is okay. Understanding is a bit off. Put in more effort during winter break.”

Ruan Mian breathed a sigh of relief internally. “I understand.”

He made a sound of acknowledgment and turned his head to join the conversation circle of boys beside him.

When handing out report cards, Zhou Hai really fulfilled his promise and prepared red envelopes for every student in the class. The amounts weren’t high—just a few dozen yuan.

Later, someone discovered that each person’s red envelope amount corresponded to their exam score. For example, Ruan Mian’s total score was 656, so her red envelope was 65.6 yuan.

Boys slapped their desks and jeered: “Old Zhou, you’re quite romantic!”

Zhou Hai smiled and made an agreement with everyone that when they got into university, he would give red envelopes matching their test scores—no empty promises.

The class burst into applause.

After getting report cards, there was nothing else to explain. Zhou Hai didn’t linger in the classroom. Ruan Mian had promised to go out with Meng Xinglan and the others that afternoon, so before taking the bus, she went home first.

She went home to get her phone and wallet, told Duan Ying she’d be back late today, and also called Fang Ruqing to report.

The bus stop was right at the alley entrance. When Ruan Mian came back after getting her things, a large crowd was queuing to board the bus. She joined the line at the back.

Meng Xinglan had saved her a seat on the bus. When Ruan Mian got on, she squeezed through the crowd. By the time she sat down, she felt like she was sweating from the heat.

She opened the window a crack. Cold wind rushed in. “Why are there so many people?”

“Ah, after you left, other classmates in class heard me and Jiang Rang talking about going to the haunted house this afternoon and said they wanted to come too. Then Shen Yu brought a few classmates from Class 2, and Liang Yiran brought classmates from their class.” Meng Xinglan spread her hands. “The result is what we have now.”

Their haunted house day trip group was so large that one bus could barely fit them all. Other passengers on the bus who didn’t know the situation thought they were going on a winter outing and smiled, sighing how great it was to be young.

Looking around at the crowded people, Ruan Mian actually spotted Zhao Shutang.

She tugged on Meng Xinglan’s arm. “Is Zhao Shutang also coming with us?”

“Yeah.” Meng Xinglan’s expression was somewhat awkward. “Actually, when Zhao Shutang was in first year, she was quite popular in her class. If you two didn’t have that kind of relationship, she wouldn’t target you like this. So, well…”

Ruan Mian smiled. “I know what you mean. I’m not bothered. I’m just a bit surprised.” Usually Zhao Shutang gave her the impression of being cold and aloof—not at all like someone who would come out to play with everyone.

Meng Xinglan hugged her arm. “Anyway, that’s not important. With so many people, you two probably won’t even run into each other.”

“Mm.”

The bus started up quickly.

Inside, Ruan Mian and Meng Xinglan sat in the back row. In front were Chen Yi and Liang Yiran.

Midway, the bus entered a short tunnel. The cabin suddenly plunged into dimness. Countless exclamations rang out around them. Ruan Mian borrowed the faint light from outside the bus to see Chen Yi’s vague profile reflected in the window glass.

The boy was leaning back against his seat, the wide brim of his hat pulled down covering his entire face.

The cabin was cheerful and noisy. Ruan Mian tilted her head against the window, her fingers resting on the glass, tapping lightly a few times. Everywhere her gaze fell, there was him.

And all the heartache and sadness that had once risen because of him also vanished into nothing as the bus emerged from the tunnel.

The haunted house in the city center had only opened for less than half a year. The group got off the bus in a grand procession and solved lunch at a nearby KFC.

During this time, Jiang Rang and Shen Yu tallied up the total number—thirty-nine people, exactly meeting the group ticket requirement, so they simply bought a group ticket.

The haunted house occupied an extremely large area with escape room characteristics. One main entrance had four entrances. Forty people could enter at once, with a maximum of ten people per passage.

The group Ruan Mian was in was connected through Meng Xinglan. The boys were Chen Yi, Jiang Rang, Shen Yu, Liang Yiran, and Lin Chuan, plus two classmates from Shen Yu’s class. The remaining girl was Ruan Mian’s deskmate Fu Guangsi.

These ten people were the first to group up. They picked the passage with the highest difficulty and horror rating and began lining up to enter.

This was Ruan Mian’s first time at a haunted house. She had strong logical thinking and remained indifferent to these supernatural things.

On the contrary, Meng Xinglan started backing out before even entering, trembling while hugging Ruan Mian’s arm from both sides with Fu Guangsi.

Jiang Rang following behind laughed. “If you two are like this, how will Ruan Mian walk?”

Liang Yiran walking in front looked back, silently reached out, and pulled Meng Xinglan’s arm to his side.

Shen Yu led the jeering.

Meng Xinglan was extremely embarrassed. She wanted to say something, but Liang Yiran’s hand on her shoulder moved up to cover her mouth. “Let’s go.”

Once they fully entered the passage, everyone scattered into a group, each looking for clues, chatting sporadically.

Shen Yu held a prop Rubik’s cube in his hands, asking Chen Yi in a low voice: “What’s the situation with you and Sheng Huan? She’s looking for you, sending messages all the way to me.”

“No situation.” Chen Yi felt for a string of numbers at the corner of the desk, trying passwords on the safe.

Shen Yu smiled. “You really don’t like her?”

“Mm.”

“But I heard from Jiang Rang that you went with her to watch a movie a while ago.”

As he finished speaking, Ruan Mian nearby stepped on something. A sound suddenly erupted in the cramped room. The three girls were all startled.

It was a phone ringing on the wall.

Jiang Rang, who was close by, answered it. First came a segment of eerie audio, then a woman singing opera—it was “Farewell My Concubine.”

It sounded like a useless clue.

Shen Yu and Chen Yi continued their previous conversation.

“I accompanied her to watch a movie. In exchange, she wouldn’t come to Class 1 to find me anymore.” Chen Yi sounded somewhat irritated talking about this.

Shen Yu laughed. “I think Sheng Huan is pretty good—beautiful and generous. Having such a girlfriend would give you a lot of face, wouldn’t it?”

Chen Yi glanced at him, his tone revealing no emotion. “Am I such a shallow person?”

“Hard to say.” Shen Yu finished assembling the Rubik’s cube in his hands. A clue fell out, hinting at where the next step was and what to do.

Chen Yi also opened the safe and found another clue.

Everything was proceeding in an orderly manner.

Ruan Mian, who had inadvertently overheard this gossip, stood there in a daze. Only when Fu Guangsi touched her arm did she come back to her senses. She gathered her thoughts and walked over to look for clues with her.

They passed through the first two rooms without major incident. Upon pushing open the door to the third room, a prop ghost rushed out from the corner.

The scene descended into chaos.

In the dim confusion, Ruan Mian was bumped by Lin Chuan, who was running around screaming. Her hand reached back to steady herself but couldn’t. Just as she was about to fall, a hand reached out from beside her, grabbed her collar, and pulled her up.

This posture really couldn’t be considered romantic.

The boy’s grip was strong. Ruan Mian was choked, almost unable to breathe. As soon as he let go, she immediately lowered her head and started coughing.

Chen Yi felt his way in the dark and moved two steps to the side, kicking away the stool behind her. “Are you okay?”

“No.” Having caught her breath, Ruan Mian held her collar, speaking in a low voice: “Thank you just now.”

“You’re welcome.” Honestly, Chen Yi hadn’t been scared by the ghosts in the room, but he’d really been startled by that scene just now.

A minute ago, he’d been walking this way. Lin Chuan ran past him. When he turned his head, he saw the girl falling backward. His gaze moved down—there was a stool by the wall.

If he hadn’t grabbed her just then, the consequences would have been unthinkable.

Thinking of this, Chen Yi raised his foot and kicked the stool aside again. Unexpectedly, with this casual kick, the already damaged stool completely fell apart.

“…”

Crash and clatter.

Ruan Mian, who had already walked ahead, turned back. “…What happened?”

Chen Yi’s expression was normal, his hands in his coat pockets. He walked forward on his own, his tone as calm as ever. “Nothing. Let’s go.”

That day’s haunted house trip didn’t end until evening. After eating dinner at the mall, everyone paired up differently to take buses home. On the return bus, there were only four people: Ruan Mian, Meng Xinglan, Liang Yiran, and Chen Yi.

The remaining Jiang Rang and Shen Yu took a different route and caught another bus.

Meng Xinglan and Liang Yiran’s homes were in the same area. They had to get off two stops earlier than Ruan Mian and Chen Yi, so when boarding, Meng Xinglan instinctively sat together with Liang Yiran.

Leaving Ruan Mian and Chen Yi sitting behind them.

Outside, the night was dark as ink. On both sides of the city center road were rows of towering buildings, their lights shimmering like the Milky Way.

Ruan Mian sat in the window seat, her entire body very tense. However she positioned her hands and feet felt awkward, as if she shouldn’t be sitting here at all.

In contrast, Chen Yi had pulled his hat down to sleep as soon as he got on the bus, his long legs slightly spread, fingers interlaced on his abdomen, sleeping completely oblivious.

The return journey was obviously much longer than the trip there. With much less noise in the cabin, Ruan Mian gradually heard the boy’s steady breathing amid the scenery flashing past the window.

She also slowly relaxed, turning her head to look out the window. The glass, like a mirror, reflected her faint smile.

…

Chen Yi slept until Liang Yiran and the others got off before waking. The bus restarted. He removed his hat, stretched his long legs outward, and raised his hand to rub his eyes.

Only two stops remained—a matter of minutes.

Ruan Mian followed the boy off the bus. The wind on this winter night was bitter and piercing. Having just come out from the heated bus, when the wind hit her head-on, she couldn’t help lowering her head to sneeze.

Chen Yi glanced back at her but said nothing, only slowing his pace.

Ruan Mian rubbed her nose, pulled the zipper up to her head, and seeing him walk toward the alley, couldn’t help asking: “Aren’t you going home?”

“Mm, going to Li Zhi’s place.”

Ruan Mian set off mental fireworks, celebrating that they could walk the same path for a bit, and even her steps became much lighter.

From the alley to Li Zhi’s family supermarket, there was a short stretch where the street lamps were broken. Winter days ended early and the weather was cold. Unlike summer when every household kept doors and lights open, at this time everyone turned off lights early or stayed inside with closed doors and lights on.

Faint glimmers of light leaked from windows.

The snow in the alley hadn’t been completely cleared. There were still piles of snow on both sides of the narrow road. Stepping on them with shoe soles made dull sounds.

They walked in silence for a stretch.

Ruan Mian tried hard to search her mind for any topic to bring up. “That…”

“What?” Chen Yi asked.

“About tutoring me in essay writing.” Ruan Mian bit her lip corner. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

“…”

Out of words again.

Ruan Mian frowned, raising her hand to scratch behind her ear. The down jacket fabric made friction sounds with this movement.

She thought and thought. Before she could think of what to say, Li Zhi’s family supermarket was already close at hand. The shop lights illuminated a large area at the entrance.

They had arrived at another world.

This was considered the marketplace area of the alley—shops full of various goods, people walking about, children running freely.

Chen Yi stood on the steps and turned back to look at Ruan Mian, who had fallen two steps behind. Thinking of her close relationship with Li Zhi, he politely asked: “Want to come in and sit for a bit?”

Ruan Mian shook her head. “No, it’s getting late. I should go back.”

“Alright then. See you next year.” His tone was casual, saying “see you next year” as if it were “see you tomorrow.”

“…See you next year.”

Chen Yi waited until she walked past before stepping into the shop. Li Zhi was standing by the shelves checking inventory. Seeing him enter, he raised his hand and pointed to the wall corner. “That’s the liquor my dad prepared for Grandpa Chen this year. Take it back with you.”

Old Master Chen and Li Zhi’s grandfather were brothers who grew up wearing split-pants together—their relationship ran deep. After the Li family fell on hard times, Old Master Chen never looked down on Li Zhi’s grandfather, still treating him like a blood brother. The Li family didn’t have anything precious to offer. It just so happened that Li Zhi’s father was skilled at brewing liquor, and Old Master Chen, with his scholarly tastes, particularly favored this. So every year, they relied on this old craft to bring a bit of heartfelt regard to Old Master Chen.

Before Chen Yi even walked over, he could already smell the light liquor fragrance. He laughed. “I’ll thank Uncle Li on behalf of my old man first.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Chen Yi leaned against the nearby shelf. “Are you staying here for New Year’s or going back to Xiping?”

“Going back to Xiping.” Li Zhi closed the notebook. “Leaving the day after tomorrow.”

“Alright, I’ll take you all back then.” Chen Yi glanced at him, adding the second half of his sentence. “And visit Grandma while I’m at it.”

Li Zhi’s grandfather had developed senile dementia two years ago. After diagnosis, he’d remained in Pingcheng for treatment, while Li Zhi’s grandmother, whose legs weren’t good, stayed in the countryside looked after by Li Zhi’s second uncle’s family.

Chen Yi had spent a summer in the countryside with Li Zhi when he was young, eating many meals cooked by Grandma Li. Saying he’d visit was normal.

But Li Zhi understood that Chen Yi mainly wanted to find an excuse to have the family driver take them back, not wanting his family to squeeze onto buses at the station in this freezing weather.

Li Zhi nodded. “Alright, I’ll tell my dad.”

“Okay, what time the day after tomorrow?”

“Eight o’clock. Can’t be too late—if we leave late, we’ll hit traffic.” Li Zhi returned behind the counter. “Who were you talking to at the door just now?”

Chen Yi walked over. “Ruan Mian.”

Li Zhi raised his eyebrows. “Were you together or did you happen to run into each other?”

“Together. Classmates went out to play this afternoon. We were on the same route back.” Chen Yi took a bubble gum from the counter. “I’m going. Heading back first.”

“Alright, don’t forget the liquor.”

“Won’t forget.” Chen Yi walked over and picked up the liquor. “See you the day after tomorrow.”

“See you.”

When Ruan Mian got home, she learned that Zhao Shutang had accidentally injured her leg on the way back. She was at the hospital now. Fang Ruqing and Zhao Yingwei had just gotten off work and returned home. After receiving the call, they were preparing to go to the hospital.

Both were in a rush. Duan Ying was also anxious. After Fang Ruqing and Zhao Yingwei left, she questioned Ruan Mian: “Why did you come back so late?!”

Ruan Mian was startled. “I went out with classmates.”

“Running outside every day. One does it, two do it.” Duan Ying muttered as she walked to the kitchen, making clanging noises inside.

Ruan Mian stood in place for a while, then silently went upstairs.

Her luggage had been packed first thing in the morning. According to the original plan, tomorrow morning Fang Ruqing would drive Ruan Mian back to her grandmother’s house in the countryside.

No one had expected this kind of accident.

Ruan Mian opened her suitcase and took out a letter from the inner lining—one Ruan Mingke had left, written for her sixteenth birthday.

She had opened and read it on her birthday night.

The letter didn’t say much—just some caring words. At first glance it seemed like nothing, but looking more carefully, Ruan Mian only felt sad.

If he and Fang Ruqing hadn’t divorced, these words wouldn’t be so heartbreaking.

There was a sound of the door opening. Ruan Mian raised her hand to wipe her eyes and closed the suitcase. Zhao Shuyang, who had struggled for ages to open the door, walked in with small steps.

Ruan Mian smiled. “What are you doing, Zhao Shuyang?”

The little boy didn’t call her anything, just walked over and tossed something in front of her.

Ruan Mian looked down—it was a White Rabbit milk candy. She was stunned for a moment. Before tears could fall, she raised her hand to cover her eyes. When she spoke again, her voice carried a crying tone. “For me?”

Zhao Shuyang nodded.

She smiled. “Thank you.”

Zhao Shuyang didn’t say anything more. He turned around, found a LEGO set he’d played with before in the room, and sat cross-legged on the carpet to start playing.

Ruan Mian looked at his small figure, sniffled, and stood up from the floor.

That night, Fang Ruqing and Zhao Yingwei didn’t return until late at night. Ruan Mian had insomnia and heard their movements outside.

Not long after, the two went out the door again. Before leaving, Fang Ruqing came to knock on Ruan Mian’s door—just once before stopping.

A few minutes later, Ruan Mian’s phone received a text message from Fang Ruqing.

Mom: Mianmian, your Uncle Zhao and I went to the hospital. Tomorrow we probably won’t be able to take you to Grandma’s until later. Pack your things at home first thing in the morning.

Ruan Mian didn’t reply at this time. Lying in bed, she would turn the screen on for a bit, then lock it again. After repeating this several times, she put down her phone and closed her eyes in the darkness to empty her mind.

The long night was sleepless.

The next morning, Ruan Mian woke with her alarm. No one was home. After washing up, she went back to her room to get her suitcase and backpack, then hailed a taxi at the alley entrance to go to Pingcheng Bus Station.

It wasn’t yet the Spring Festival travel rush. The bus station wasn’t exactly crowded but wasn’t empty either. Ruan Mian bought a ticket at the window and, following the signs, boarded the bus to Xiping.

The buses ran every half hour. The previous one had left over twenty minutes ago. When her bus started moving, she texted Fang Ruqing.

Ruan Mian: Okay, I understand. I’m already on the bus to Xiping.

The message had just been sent when Fang Ruqing’s call came in.

Ruan Mian hesitated before answering: “Hello, Mom.”

“Why did you go back by yourself? Didn’t I tell you to wait for me?” It was a bit noisy on Fang Ruqing’s end. After a moment, it became much quieter.

Ruan Mian picked at the bump on the back of her phone case, not answering but asking instead: “How is Zhao Shutang?”

Fang Ruqing was quiet for a few seconds. “Fractured lower leg, slight bone crack in her left hand.”

“How is it so serious? Did she fall?”

“Hit by a car.” Fang Ruqing didn’t let her steer the topic away. “Where are you now? Has the bus left? Did you bring everything?”

“The bus already left. I brought everything.” Ruan Mian turned to look out the window. “I’ll call you when I arrive.”

The receiver was quiet for a moment. Only Fang Ruqing’s sigh could be heard. “Alright then. Be careful on the road. I’ll pick you up when you come back.”

“Okay, I understand.”

From Pingcheng to Xiping was a two-hour bus ride. This was Ruan Mian’s third time taking the bus back.

Before Fang Ruqing and Ruan Mingke divorced, every winter and summer vacation, Ruan Mingke would bring Grandma Ruan to Pingcheng for a short stay.

Occasionally during some summer vacations, Ruan Mian would stay in the countryside with Ruan Mingke, not often going out, just staying in the courtyard eating watermelon and watching the moon.

This trip was actually Ruan Mian’s first time taking the bus back alone.

The two-hour journey wasn’t long. After lowering her head to sleep for a bit, Ruan Mian heard the conductor announcing through a megaphone: “We’re almost at Xiping. Passengers getting off, please get your luggage ready in advance.”

The auntie sitting next to Ruan Mian had gotten off at the previous stop. Ruan Mian had already taken down her suitcase then. Now waiting for the bus to stop, she could get off directly with her bag.

Xiping was a large town. A bridge over the stream connected North and South Xiping. The bus station was in the north, while Grandma’s house was in the south.

After getting off the bus, there were specialized tricycles for picking up and dropping off people nearby. Ruan Mian asked about the price. The driver would take her straight to her doorstep.

This was the Ruan family’s old house. Rural architecture was all similar—a few flat-roofed rooms plus a courtyard. Grandma Ruan had originally been a maid beside the young lady of the Zhou family in Xiping. She took the surname Zhou from her mistress family and was named Xiujun. After marrying Old Master Ruan, she’d lived here all along without moving.

At this moment, the old lady was in the courtyard sorting vegetables and chatting with a neighbor who’d come to visit. Hearing sounds at the gate, she stopped what she was doing and walked out.

“Oh!” Seeing Ruan Mian, the old lady’s face was full of delight.

Ruan Mian took the change from the driver and smiled toward the old woman. “Grandma.”

Zhou Xiujun stepped forward, taking the luggage from her granddaughter’s hands. “How come you came back alone? Where’s your mom? Didn’t she say she’d bring you?”

“She had something come up temporarily this morning and said she’d bring me in the afternoon, but I wanted to come early, so I took the bus back by myself first.”

Zhou Xiujun held her hand. “The journey must have been tiring. Come on, come inside and rest a bit.”

The neighbors sitting in the courtyard were all from nearby homes. Ruan Mian called them Auntie Zhang and Auntie Li one by one. Everyone praised her for being beautiful and sensible.

The old lady poured her a cup of hot water. The others didn’t stay long, leaving just the grandmother and granddaughter sitting in the courtyard.

Ruan Mian held the water cup, sitting on a small stool. “Dad went to the northwest. He’s not coming back even for New Year’s this year.”

“I know. Your dad came back before leaving and told me about it.” Zhou Xiujun asked while sorting vegetables: “How is your mom doing?”

“Mm, pretty well.”

“How is that family treating you?”

Ruan Mian took a sip of water. “Also pretty well.”

Zhou Xiujun raised her head to look at her. “You’ve gotten thinner since I last saw you.”

“No, I haven’t. When I weighed myself, it was still the same.”

“Thinner.” The old lady picked up the sorted vegetables, got up, and walked to the kitchen. “Your face is smaller.”

Ruan Mian touched her face, put down her cup, and followed. Without continuing this topic, she asked: “Grandma, what are you making for lunch?”

The old lady lowered her head to wash vegetables. “Braised pork ribs. Isn’t that your favorite?”

“Then I’m in for a treat.” Ruan Mian smiled until her eyes curved. “I’ll go call my mom first.”

“Go ahead.”

Ruan Mian walked out. Zhou Xiujun looked back at her, turned around, lifted her apron to wipe her eyes, then continued bustling about.

Standing in the courtyard making the call, Ruan Mian caught sight of the old lady’s actions. Her eyes stung. She looked away and after saying just a few sentences to Fang Ruqing, hung up.

At lunch, Ruan Mian ate until she was stuffed, consuming more than half the plate of braised pork ribs. After eating, Zhou Xiujun took Ruan Mian to visit other homes.

Over the course of the afternoon, the whole area knew that the Ruan family’s granddaughter had returned. Dinner was at her cousin’s house next door—a big family, lively and warm.

No one brought up matters in the city, pretending not to know.

Dinner ended close to eight o’clock. Ruan Mian and Grandma walked home arm in arm. After washing up, she didn’t go to her own room but insisted on squeezing into bed with Grandma.

“You’re so grown up now, still wanting to sleep with Grandma. Aren’t you afraid people will laugh at you?” That’s what she said, but Grandma Ruan’s eyes carried a smile.

“Who’s going to laugh at me?” Ruan Mian took her pillow and lay down. “Grandma, tomorrow I want to eat your mushroom and pork dumplings.”

Grandma Ruan smiled. “Alright, I’ll buy whatever you want to eat.”

“Then let’s go to the market together tomorrow morning to buy groceries?”

“You don’t need to go. Sleep in tomorrow morning. I’ll go buy them.”

“I want to go with you.” Ruan Mian hugged Grandma’s arm, her cheek rubbing against her shoulder. “Grandma, I really missed you.”

“Oh my, you’re so grown up now.”

The grandmother and granddaughter chatted for quite a while. Mostly it was Ruan Mian talking—from daily life to studies, everything big and small. Grandma Ruan listened attentively.

Talking about classmates in her class, Ruan Mian thought of Chen Yi. After being silent for a while, she suddenly spoke: “Grandma.”

“Mm?”

Ruan Mian held the old lady’s arm, her eyes slightly lowered. “I met a boy. After meeting him, sometimes I’m very happy, but sometimes I’m very sad. Grandma, do you think meeting him is a good thing or a bad thing?”

Zhou Xiujun smiled and sighed, raising her hand to stroke her granddaughter’s head, speaking earnestly: “People in the past often said that meeting some people is a blessing, and not meeting them is also a blessing. So if you had a chance to do it over again, would you still want to meet this boy?”

…

That night, Ruan Mian thought for a long time.

For the Ruan Mian of that time, no matter how many times she could start over, she would still choose to walk down that dim and lightless road on that summer night.

Then at the end of that road, she would meet the boy who, with just one glance, had found his way into the deepest part of her heart.