HomeFalling In LoveZhui Luo - Chapter 34

Zhui Luo – Chapter 34

A person’s handwriting reveals their character.

When Zhou Wan saw the handwriting on the paper, Lu Xixiao’s image immediately appeared in her mind.

The young man was carefree and unrestrained, playing through life, untameable like a distant star that remained forever out of reach no matter how far one stretched.

Yet this same young man had written on the paper—Wan Wan.

Lu Xixiao had never called her that before.

This was the first time.

Wan Wan.

In the past, when her father pretended to be Santa Claus and prepared gifts for her, he would also write, Wan Wan.

Zhou Wan stared at the paper for a long while, then slowly broke into a smile.

After smiling for a moment, her nose suddenly felt sour, and an indescribable bitterness swept over her, almost overwhelming her.

She stood there, head lowered, pressing her palms firmly against her eyelids.

When all emotions had settled, her expression returned to normal.

Pushing her bicycle inside, Zhou Wan called Lu Xixiao.

It rang several times without answer, and as she listened to the ringing, it took her a while to remember that Lu Xixiao had just gone to sleep not long ago.

Just as she was about to hang up, the other end was answered.

“Hello?” His voice was hoarse, clearly still half-asleep, carrying traces of morning grumpiness.

“Did I wake you up?” Zhou Wan asked softly.

He didn’t answer, only asking: “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Zhou Wan’s finger rested on the bicycle handlebar, tracing the outline of the bell, “Thank you for the gift, I like it.”

“Oh, you saw it?” He laughed hoarsely, “I thought you wouldn’t see it until tonight.”

Zhou Wan felt moved but didn’t know how to express it at this point.

Lu Xixiao sat up in bed, took a sip of water, and his throat finally felt a bit better.

“What, this time you didn’t think it was from Santa Claus?” he teased.

Zhou Wan pressed her lips together: “I’m not that naive anymore, I’m grown up now.”

“Zhou Wan, there isn’t a Santa Claus in this world.”

His voice was deep, yet brought comfort to the listener, “But I’m here.”

I’m here, so I’ll be the one to make your wishes come true.

We’re not living in a fairy tale, and we can no longer believe in fairy tales.

But I’m willing to create the illusion of a fairy tale for you so that for just a moment, you can return to those carefree days of the past.

*

Over the next few days, Zhou Wan sometimes went home early to take care of her grandmother and sometimes had dinner with Lu Xixiao.

He started coming to school more frequently, though sometimes he would still sleep in and only arrive in the afternoon, waiting until Zhou Wan finished her physics competition training before leaving together.

Zhou Wan would make time every day to tutor him on previously taught content. When Lu Xixiao was sleepy, he would listen half-heartedly; when alert, he was much more cooperative and would complete the homework Zhou Wan assigned him.

Before they knew it, it was December 31st.

The last day of the year.

It happened to be a Friday.

By evening, the students had lost all interest in studying and were making plans to celebrate the New Year together, talking about a newly opened hot pot restaurant that was supposedly delicious.

Gu Meng turned around: “Wan Wan, they’re saying they’re going to watch fireworks at Xi Bridge tonight, want to come?”

“I have something to do today, can’t go.”

“What is it?” Gu Meng blinked, “Oh—are you going to be with Lu Xixiao?”

Beside them, Jiang Yan’s grip on his pen paused.

Zhou Wan smiled: “No, I need to accompany my grandmother for a hospital check-up.”

“Oh, all right then.” Though Gu Meng was somewhat disappointed, she didn’t say much more, turning to ask, “Jiang Yan, are you going?”

“I’m not going either,” Jiang Yan said, “I’m having dinner with my dad tonight.”

Gu Meng pouted: “But it’s New Year’s Eve, what’s so special about eating with your dad.”

Gu Meng turned back dejectedly, and after a moment’s hesitation, Zhou Wan turned her head and asked softly: “Is it… Lu Zhongyue?”

“Mm.”

“Just the two of you?”

Jiang Yan was quiet for a moment before saying: “I don’t know either.”

Zhou Wan turned back, staring at the test paper on her desk for a while before taking out her phone to ask Lu Xixiao.

[Zhou Wan: Do you have plans tonight?]

[6: No.]

[6: Why?]

Earlier, Lu Xixiao had asked about her evening plans, and Zhou Wan had told him she needed to accompany her grandmother to the hospital.

Zhou Wan pressed her cheek against the cold desk surface, closed her eyes briefly, let out a breath, and replied: [Nothing.]

Along with the New Year’s holiday came piles of homework. Zhou Wan didn’t let Lu Xixiao wait for her after school; after her physics competition training ended, she carried her heavy backpack and walked out with Jiang Yan.

Just as they left the teaching building, she saw a black car parked at the entrance.

Her steps suddenly halted: “I need to go back to the classroom.”

Jiang Yan asked: “What’s wrong?”

“Forgot to take some test papers, I’ll go get them.”

“Oh.” Jiang Yan said, “Then I’ll head off first?”

“Mm.”

Zhou Wan turned back into the teaching building, watching as Jiang Yan walked to the black car.

Lu Zhongyue got out of the car, smiling as he took Jiang Yan’s backpack, turning his head to ask a few caring questions, looking just like any other good father in the world.

But Zhou Wan found it laughable.

He had hurt his wife and young daughter, and his son had completely cut ties with him, yet here he was pretending to be a good father.

If he truly cared about Jiang Yan, that would be one thing, but in reality, he couldn’t even let Jiang Yan return to the Lu family.

Only after the car had driven far away did Zhou Wan come out.

Only her bicycle remained in the bike storage, and Zhou Wan retrieved it and rode home.

The hospital was full of infants in winter, with the vast hall filled with children’s crying.

By the time Zhou Wan finished accompanying her grandmother for the check-up, it was already dark outside.

Fortunately, the examination results showed nothing serious, and Zhou Wan could finally relax.

“Grandmother.” Zhou Wan said, “What would you like to eat? I’ll go buy something.”

“Don’t waste money, anything simple will do,” Grandmother said.

Zhou Wan smiled: “It’s the last day of the year, we can eat something nice.”

“Does Wan Wan want to eat dumplings?” Grandmother said, “We still have some dumpling wrappers in the fridge, shall we make dumplings?”

“Sure.” Zhou Wan’s eyes curved into a smile, saying, “But can your body handle it?”

“It’s not strenuous work, we can sit while making them, and didn’t the doctor say grandmother’s constitution is still quite good?”

Zhou Wan had planned to go to the market alone to buy some pork and Chinese cabbage for the filling, but grandmother insisted on going together, saying walking would be good exercise.

So they went to the market together to buy some meat and vegetables.

Back home, Zhou Wan chopped the filling while grandmother prepared the dumpling wrappers.

They had made dumplings like this before, so they were quite skilled at it.

Zhou Wan’s dumplings were small and delicate, with beautiful pleats.

They chatted while making dumplings, filling an entire large plate. Grandmother put some in the pot to cook, and the rest were stored in plastic containers in the refrigerator for future breakfasts.

Soon, the dumplings floated to the surface and were scooped into bowls.

Zhou Wan prepared a dipping sauce and ate one.

Grandmother asked: “How is it?”

She smiled with full cheeks: “Delicious.”

“If it’s good, eat more.” Grandmother smiled too, “Being a bit plump helps with immunity.”

“My immunity is great, I haven’t gotten sick at all this winter.”

After finishing the dumplings, Zhou Wan cleaned up the dishes and sat in the living room to watch TV.

She rarely watched TV, so her grandmother was curious and asked why she was watching today.

Zhou Wan: “I want to keep you company today.”

“Why keep an old woman company?” Grandmother laughed, “On a day like this, shouldn’t you be out having fun with your classmates?”

“Mm, I heard there’s going to be a fireworks show at Xi Bridge, they seem to have gone to watch together.”

“You should go watch too, why stay with grandmother?” Grandmother stroked Zhou Wan’s head, “Don’t we see each other every day after school? You’re always keeping me company.”

At this moment, Zhou Wan opened her Moments feed.

The first post was from Jiang Yan, a photo he had just posted.

In a Western restaurant, with exquisite dishes and soft lighting, showing a glimpse of Lu Zhongyue’s gray suit above.

Someone commented below, saying his father knew how to celebrate New Year’s Eve, as this restaurant cost several thousand yuan per person.

Zhou Wan lowered her eyes.

She exited Moments and sent Lu Xixiao a message.

[Zhou Wan: What are you doing?]

Lu Xixiao sent a photo.

In the dim background, a row of liquor bottles under blue spotlights.

Probably at a bar.

[6: With Jiang Fan and others.]

Before she could reply, Lu Xixiao called her.

Zhou Wan paused: “Grandmother, I’m going to take a call.”

She went back to her bedroom before answering softly: “Hello?”

Lu Xixiao’s end was quite noisy, with booming music and chattering voices drowning out even his casual laugh: “Have you eaten?”

“Just finished.”

“What did you eat?”

“Dumplings, we made them ourselves.”

He raised an eyebrow: “You even know how to make dumplings?”

“It’s very simple, as long as they don’t fall apart in the water.” Zhou Wan said, “What about you?”

“Going to eat later.”

Zhou Wan looked at the time, it was already past nine: “Then drink less alcohol, or your stomach will hurt.”

Lu Xixiao chuckled: “Oh.”

After a pause, Zhou Wan said softly: “Lu Xixiao.”

“Mm?”

“Happy New Year.”

He paused.

Just for a second, but in the noisy background of the phone call, that one-second pause seemed infinitely extended, making the silence feel heavy.

“Mm.” Lu Xixiao’s voice still carried that familiar lazy smile, “Happy New Year, Wan Wan.”

After hanging up, Zhou Wan’s mind still lingered on that second of silence.

It was as if he didn’t even know today was December 31st, or rather, he didn’t care.

Such holidays held no meaning for him.

Every day was the same, passing one after another.

He immersed himself in the noise of pleasure and entertainment, passing his days in apparent revelry.

But he remained detached from the excitement, his heart cold, his eyes calm, never truly becoming part of it.

Zhou Wan walked out of the bedroom, and grandmother asked: “Who were you talking to?”

She lowered her head, not daring to look at her grandmother directly: “Just a classmate.”

Grandmother smiled kindly: “Did they invite you to go play?”

“No, we just chatted a bit.” Zhou Wan sat back down on the sofa, watching the TV drama that was playing, a seventy-episode family ethics drama.

Her gaze was on the TV, but she couldn’t take in anything she saw or heard.

Grandmother watched her discreetly from the side, smiling knowingly: “Wan Wan, go play with your classmates, friends are important too, and since tomorrow’s a holiday, you can keep grandmother company tomorrow.”

Zhou Wan hesitated for a moment, then looked up to meet her grandmother’s smiling eyes.

“Then—” feeling guilty, Zhou Wan’s face unconsciously turned red, “I’ll go out for a bit, I’ll be back soon.”

“Mm, go ahead.” Grandmother stroked her hair, “Wear your scarf, don’t catch a cold.”

Zhou Wan changed her clothes and put on her scarf, then turned back at the door to take a box of dumplings from the fridge, cooked them and put them back in the box, stuffed them in her bag, and quickly left.

After boarding the bus, Zhou Wan remembered to send Lu Xixiao a message.

[Zhou Wan: I’m coming to see you now.]

[Zhou Wan: Is that okay?]

[6: Weren’t you supposed to accompany your grandmother to the hospital?]

[Zhou Wan: We’ve finished already.]

[6: I’ll come to you.]

[Zhou Wan: I’m already on the bus, just wait for me there for a bit.]

[6: Alright.]

The streets were very congested today, and the bus moved slowly, constantly braking. Zhou Wan kept lurching forward with the momentum until she started feeling carsick.

She opened the window, and the cold wind finally helped ease her nausea.

Forty minutes later, she finally arrived.

Zhou Wan got off the bus; the bar was just across the street.

She could see Lu Xixiao standing at the entrance from afar, leaning against the wall lazily, a cigarette between his lips, playing with his phone. The screen’s light reflected off his high, straight nose bridge, sharp and clean-cut.

Zhou Wan looked at him, paused for a moment, then ran towards him.

Lu Xixiao heard footsteps and looked up, smiling when he saw her.

The girl was wearing a thick down jacket, bundled up completely, a red scarf wrapped around her small chin, her face flushed white and red from the cold wind, like a piece of cream-filled candy.

“Why did you suddenly come?” Lu Xixiao asked.

Zhou Wan didn’t know why she had suddenly decided to find him.

Her cheeks were rosy from the cold, her nose tip pink. Instead of answering his question, she said: “Why are you waiting outside? Aren’t you cold?”

“Didn’t feel like staying inside alone.”

“Did they leave so early?”

Lu Xixiao stubbed out his cigarette: “Jiang Fan had something at home, and I’m not close with the others, didn’t feel like staying with them.”

Zhou Wan paused, then felt glad she had come.

Otherwise, Lu Xixiao would have spent the last day of the year alone.

Lu Xixiao raised his hand to touch her cheek, saying softly: “Where to?”

“You haven’t had dinner yet, right?”

“No.”

Zhou Wan’s hand tightened on her bag strap.

She had left in a rush earlier, thinking dumplings would be more fitting for New Year’s Eve, but had forgotten how picky Lu Xixiao was about food. The dumplings would be cold by now, and he definitely wouldn’t want to eat them.

“Is there anything you want to eat?” Zhou Wan asked.

Lu Xixiao raised an eyebrow: “Didn’t you already eat?”

“I can keep you company while you eat.”

“Forget it, I’m not hungry, we’ll figure it out later.”

Zhou Wan frowned, about to say that wasn’t good for his stomach when Lu Xixiao asked: “Where do you want to go for New Year’s?”

“My classmates said there will be fireworks at Xi Bridge today.”

There would be plenty of food vendors there too, so he could get something to eat.

“Let’s go then.”

He spoke calmly, seemingly not excited about the holiday atmosphere at all, going only to accompany Zhou Wan.

Xi Bridge was far from here, so Lu Xixiao hailed a taxi.

As they approached Xi Bridge, they could see the streets becoming noticeably more crowded with people and cars. In the distance, the bridge sparkled with lights, and red lanterns hung from the street lamps.

The taxi got stuck in gridlocked traffic, and the driver turned around saying: “Young man, why don’t you get off here? It’s too congested, and the meter fare to the bridge won’t be cheap.”

Lu Xixiao agreed, paid, and got out with Zhou Wan.

He was wearing a black jacket with what appeared to be just one layer underneath. Zhou Wan asked: “Aren’t you cold?”

He looked down at her: “Not cold.”

Zhou Wan didn’t quite believe him.

How could he not be cold-wearing so little?

She reached out from her long sleeve and held Lu Xixiao’s hand.

Surprisingly, it wasn’t cold at all, even warmer than hers.

Lu Xixiao raised an eyebrow, a magnetic laugh resonating from his throat, his expression playful: “Zhou Wan, you’re quite smooth.”

Zhou Wan paused, instinctively looking up at him.

Under his teasing, flirtatious gaze, she couldn’t help blushing again, explaining: “I just wanted to check if your hands were cold.”

“Oh.” He nodded leisurely, “Is that so?”

Zhou Wan was telling the truth, but his teasing made it sound like a poor excuse.

“…”

Knowing she couldn’t win against him, Zhou Wan simply looked away, deciding not to talk to him anymore.

“Are you angry?”

“No.” Her voice was mumbled.

Lu Xixiao laughed again: “So, were my hands cold?”

“Warmer than mine.”

“Really?” He dragged out the word, teasing mischievously, looking incredibly wicked. Then he reached for Zhou Wan’s sleeve, “Let me feel.”

Like peeling an orange, he extracted Zhou Wan’s hand from her down jacket sleeve, held it, and put it in his pocket.

Zhou Wan froze for a moment.

She instinctively turned to look at Lu Xixiao.

He was tall, so she had to look up at him.

From her angle, the young man’s profile was smooth and clean-cut, looking at the river and bridge in the distance. His bone structure was so perfect it seemed divinely crafted, one corner of his mouth curved up in a wicked smile.

Zhou Wan’s heart suddenly skipped a beat and then started beating rapidly.

Her hand was being held in his pocket, and Zhou Wan didn’t pull away, letting him hold it.

Soon, her palm became as warm as his.

Many people were walking on the street, mostly young people, all heading toward Xi Bridge.

Tonight’s fireworks show had been well-advertised, drawing an especially large crowd, making it quite cramped.

After walking for a while, they could see the bridge was packed with people, completely shoulder-to-shoulder. Zhou Wan looked around and spotted some snack vendors.

“Are you hungry?” she asked Lu Xixiao again.

“Not hungry.”

Knowing his irregular lifestyle, sometimes waking up in the afternoon, he might not have eaten anything all day. Zhou Wan took it upon herself to get him something to fill his stomach.

“Let’s go look over there.” Zhou Wan pointed to one of the stalls selling chicken wing rice rolls.

Lu Xixiao walked over: “What do you want?”

“Honey chicken wing rice roll.” Zhou Wan said slowly, “But one portion is too big, I can’t finish it alone and it would be wasteful, why don’t you share it with me?”

Lu Xixiao made a sound of agreement, bought a chicken wing rice roll, and also bought a cup of bubble milk tea.

“Aren’t you having any?” Zhou Wan asked.

“I don’t like drinking this.”

Zhou Wan held the milk tea while Lu Xixiao carried the chicken wing rice roll. When they turned to find a place to sit, they discovered all the plastic tables and chairs outside were occupied.

Lu Xixiao looked around and led her to some steps nearby.

This area was dimly lit, with few people around.

It was like a natural barrier separated them from the crowd, with noise and bustle on one side and quiet darkness on the other.

He took off his jacket and threw it on the steps, put his arm around Zhou Wan as they sat down, opened the takeout box of chicken wing rice rolls, and handed the chopsticks to Zhou Wan.

Zhou Wan held her milk tea, saying: “I’ll eat later, you eat first.”

Lu Xixiao smiled, giving her a knowing look: “Setting me up, huh?”

Zhou Wan paused, and blinked, pretending not to understand: “What?”

Lu Xixiao didn’t expose her, opened the disposable chopsticks’ packaging, peeled the chicken wing skin, and picked up some rice.

It wasn’t good, the rice was half-cooked. Lu Xixiao put it down after a few bites.

Zhou Wan looked at him: “Not good?”

“No.”

“Then, do you want to buy something else?”

“No need.”

All the vendors nearby were small food stalls, their food was all similar, and Lu Xixiao wasn’t used to it.

Zhou Wan puffed her cheeks but didn’t say anything more, continuing to drink her milk tea.

The warm milk tea made her whole body feel cozy.

Suddenly, Lu Xixiao asked: “What’s in your bag?”

She had placed her bag by her feet, and the dumpling container was visible inside.

Zhou Wan paused for a moment and made a soft “ah” sound, but Lu Xixiao had already bent down to take out the box of dumplings, raising his eyebrows.

Zhou Wan felt a bit embarrassed: “I was worried you’d be hungry, thought about bringing them for you to eat.”

“You made these?”

“Most of them, some were made with my grandmother.”

Lu Xixiao opened the container and picked up a dumpling with his chopsticks. Zhou Wan tried to stop him: “Don’t eat them, they’re cold now, they definitely won’t taste good.”

He put a dumpling directly in his mouth.

Indeed, they were cold, and the dumpling skin was a bit hard, but the filling was very flavorful and packed full.

Zhou Wan watched his expression: “Are they edible?”

Lu Xixiao chewed the dumpling skin, saying: “Better than that chicken wing rice roll.”

He said it reluctantly.

But Lu Xixiao continued eating one after another until he finished all the dumplings in the box.

Zhou Wan was self-aware enough to know that her dumplings were only ordinary at best, not particularly delicious, especially now that they were cold.

She hadn’t expected Lu Xixiao to eat them all.

“Let’s go,” Lu Xixiao stood up, “the fireworks are about to start.”

Zhou Wan followed him as they continued walking toward the bridge, finally finding a good spot by the river with an open view, perfect for watching the fireworks.

She rested her hands on the riverbank railing, catching Lu Xixiao pressing his hand against his stomach from the corner of her eye, his brows slightly furrowed.

Probably from eating too many cold dumplings, they must be sitting heavily in his stomach.

Zhou Wan couldn’t help but laugh softly.

“What’s so funny?” Lu Xixiao asked.

Zhou Wan didn’t dare tell him the real reason, just smiled at him.

The young woman’s eyes were bright, her smile radiant. Zhou Wan usually had a gentle, pure appearance without any edge, but at this moment she was exceptionally brilliant. Lu Xixiao looked at her, his heart settling for a moment, his Adam’s apple bobbing.

She smiled and said: “Lu Xixiao, it’s almost the new year.”

“Mm.” Lu Xixiao unconsciously smiled too, “Do you have any New Year’s wishes?”

“Are you going to be Santa Claus again?”

“I’ll be your boyfriend.”

That’s right, Santa Claus wasn’t real.

Lu Xixiao was real.

Just as he said, there isn’t a Santa Claus in this world, but I’m here.

The smile in Zhou Wan’s eyes grew deeper, her eyes sparkling, but then she seemed to suddenly think of something, and her smile stiffened, the joy fading a bit.

“That’s okay,” Zhou Wan said softly, “I’m already very happy now.”

Suddenly, a cheer erupted from the crowd.

“Wow–!”

Hundreds of firework columns shot into the sky simultaneously, lighting up the entire night, then blooming and falling in the darkness.

It was like a romantic tragedy, countless fireworks rising, countless fireworks blooming, countless fireworks falling, disappearing into the horizon, but immediately followed by more columns of light, rising, blooming, falling.

Zhou Wan tilted her head back, watching intently.

“Lu Xixiao,” her eyes were bright, “look quickly.”

Amidst the cheers and exclamations, Lu Xixiao took Zhou Wan’s hand again.

Zhou Wan paused, turned to look at him, and after a moment, she gave him a brilliant smile.

In that smile, Lu Xixiao felt his whole body go numb, electricity spreading up from his spine, his temples throbbing like being pricked by needles.

Zhou Wan smiled so wide her eyes became crescent moons: “It’s so beautiful.”

Lu Xixiao looked at her, unable to look away.

He just kept looking.

Hundreds and thousands of people around them were looking up at the sky, but only he was looking at Zhou Wan.

The brilliant fireworks cast different colors across Zhou Wan’s face.

After a while, he lowered his eyes and smiled: “Mm.”

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