Near the Convention Center, there was an old street. After the exhibition, Xia Li took the two elders out for a stroll.

The surrounding paths were narrow and crowded, so Yan Sishi parked the car a little farther away and walked over.

At the entrance to the old street, spherical stone bollards had been installed to block motor vehicles. Yan Sishi waited beneath a plane tree along the roadside, and before long spotted three figures emerging from the crowd.

Dai Shufang came out through the gap between the bollards, cradling a bouquet of flowers in her arms, with Xia Li following close behind.

Yan Sishi stepped forward to look at the flowers in Dai Shufang’s arms.

The bouquet was warm yellow in tone — at a glance, there were yellow roses and chamomile, wrapped in snow-white frosted paper, carrying the breath of spring.

“Well, that means he’s finally come to his senses,” Dai Shufang said with a smile. “We passed a flower shop while strolling just now. Xiao Xia gave them to me.”

Yan Sishi’s gaze naturally shifted to Xia Li. She was dressed casually, wearing canvas shoes, carrying a canvas tote bag, with her hair tied up — she looked like a student.

She also had a flower, just a single one — a yellow tulip, tucked diagonally into her canvas bag, all on its own, of fairly unremarkable quality, the kind that looked like an unsold leftover thrown in as a free gift from the flower shop.

On the walk back to the parking lot, Yan Sishi asked his grandmother how the stroll had been.

Dai Shufang said, “It’s a good thing Xiao Xia came along today to be my guide. All the instructions on the new machines at the exhibition were in English — without a translator, I really couldn’t have made heads or tails of any of it. Xiao Xia was so patient, keeping me company for nearly half the day, and her shoes were rubbing her feet the whole time — she’s got blisters on her heels.”

Yan Sishi immediately stopped walking, turned his head, and dropped his gaze.

The canvas shoes on Xia Li’s feet were, indeed, from that brand notorious for blisters.

When Yan Sishi stopped, Dai Shufang and Huo Jizhong both halted alongside him.

Xia Li felt immediately uncomfortable. She glanced at Yan Sishi and said quietly, “It’s fine — I put bandages on.”

His gaze lingered on her shoes for a few seconds before pulling away.

The car was parked in a designated spot along the road ahead. Yan Sishi was the first to pull open the passenger-side door.

Huo Jizhong was about to climb in when Dai Shufang grabbed his arm. “Let Xiao Xia sit in the front.”

Huo Jizhong was somewhat puzzled. “But don’t you get along so well with Xiao Xia? You two could sit in the back and chat.”

Dai Shufang shot him a look. “Xiao Xia’s feet hurt. The front seat has more room.”

After half a day of wandering around, the two elders were truly worn out. Once in the car, neither of them said much — both closing their eyes for a short rest.

The car window was half-open. Outside, dusk was settling in, and the air carried a misty fragrance of trees and flowers.

The quiet kept both Yan Sishi and Xia Li silent, afraid of disturbing the two elders resting in the back seat.

It seemed that over this half-day together, Xia Li had genuinely won Dai Shufang’s affection. His grandmother, who in Yan Sishi’s memory rarely paid much attention to other people’s private matters, now began asking Xia Li about her family.

“I heard from Luo Weiguo that your father and he are from the same hometown?”

“Yes.”

“Is your father still working at our factory? Which one?”

“He’s not anymore, Teacher Dai. He’s working as a security guard at a residential complex now.”

“And your mother?”

“She works as a cook at an after-school tutoring center.”

“I see.” Dai Shufang nodded with understanding, then looked over at Huo Jizhong and said, “Actually, we could ask them to come back and work at our factory.”

From Dai Shufang’s few words, Xia Li suspected she likely knew about Xia Jianyang’s situation.

That matter was long past, yet she still felt two parts lingering embarrassment, difficult to shake off. “Thank you for your concern, Teacher Dai, but my parents’ jobs are quite stable now, and the workplace is close to home.”

Dai Shufang said, “Well, if there’s ever anything I can help with, Xiao Xia, don’t hesitate to say so. You can find Xiao Yan, or you can call me directly.”

Xia Li smiled and accepted the offer.

After dinner, Yan Sishi dropped Dai Shufang and Huo Jizhong off at Taoyue Lane first — it was close to the restaurant.

He stopped the car at the entrance to the alley and told Xia Li to wait in the car for a moment; he’d be back after seeing them in.

As he spoke, he gave a light toss of his hand. “Hold this for me.”

Xia Li reached out by reflex to catch it.

It was his car key.

At night, the alley seemed deeper and more winding.

Matching the pace of the two elders, Yan Sishi walked very slowly.

Dai Shufang still cradled the bouquet Xia Li had given her. “Xiao Yan, since coming back to the country, have you been in contact with Tao Shiyue?”

“We added each other on WeChat a while ago.”

“Haven’t met in person?”

“No.”

“And your other high school classmates? Have you seen them?”

Yan Sishi said no as well.

Dai Shufang looked at Yan Sishi with a gentle smile, as though she had arrived at some conclusion but chose not to voice it. She only said, “I feel like you seem much more open and cheerful than when I last saw you.”

Yan Sishi neither agreed nor disagreed.

“And Dr. Meng — have you been to see him?”

“Sometimes.”

By the time they finished talking, they had already reached the door of Taoyue Lane.

Dai Shufang stood at the entrance and looked at Yan Sishi. “I know, Xiao Yan — coming back to develop in the country this time, it’s mostly for my sake. You’ve seen the results from my recent check-up. Your grandfather is in reasonable health too. The two of us don’t need you to worry so much about us. We only hope that you worry a little more about yourself.”

Dai Shufang turned her head, glanced at the nameplate on the door of Taoyue Lane, and gently reached out to touch the doorframe. Her voice grew a little softer. “You’ve always been a good child who knows how to reflect on himself. I’ve said this countless times — Xiao Yan, what happened to your mother was not your fault. I hope that someday, sooner or later, those words will reach you.” She finished with a wistful sigh.

Yan Sishi only lowered his eyes in silence.

Dai Shufang smiled, reached out to press the doorbell, and said, “Go on back now. Don’t keep Xiao Xia waiting too long.”

A moment later, the housekeeper came to open the door.

Yan Sishi wished the two elders a good night’s rest and watched as they went inside. He was about to turn and leave when something occurred to him — he called the housekeeper back and asked her to fetch something for him.

At the mouth of the alley, the car sat with its hazard lights blinking.

Xia Li sat in her seat, the car key pinched between her fingers. She could have easily dropped it into the storage compartment, yet she seemed to be faithfully carrying out the task of “holding it” — not setting it down for a single moment.

She hadn’t been waiting long when she spotted Yan Sishi emerging from the alley.

He arrived at the car but didn’t circle around to the driver’s side. Instead, he pulled open the passenger door.

It was only then that Xia Li noticed he was holding a dark blue non-woven fabric bag.

The bag was opened to reveal a pair of disposable slippers inside.

Yan Sishi set the slippers down on the black floor mat at her feet. “Traffic will definitely be bad on the way back, so the drive will take a while. Change into these — they’ll be easier on your feet.”

Xia Li froze for a moment, feeling almost overwhelmed by the unexpected consideration. “It’s fine, I’ve got bandages on. Really, it’s okay.”

Yan Sishi bent forward slightly, extended his arm, and made as if to reach for her ankle. “Then let me help you take them off?”

His voice was cool and faintly low, carrying not a trace of any suggestive undertone.

Just like his character — whatever he did, he did with clean directness and straightforward ease.

And she, in that instant, was so flustered she nearly lost the ability to speak. “No… I — I’ll do it myself.”

With that, she hastily kicked off her canvas shoes. Still not daring to look up, she kept her eyes down and found the slippers to slip on.

Yan Sishi paused for a moment, because he caught sight of her ear — exposed where her hair was tied up — that small, pale earlobe had turned completely crimson in an instant, the thin, fair skin looking as though it might chafe through with the slightest touch.

He averted his gaze, feeling oddly self-conscious.

He got in the car. Xia Li handed over the key.

Yan Sishi took it.

She had held it so long that the metal button surface had gone faintly warm.

The car started and merged into the night.

Yan Sishi said, “Thank you for today.”

Xia Li shook her head. “You told me not to stand on ceremony with you. That goes both ways. I’m glad I could help. If anything, lately I feel like I’ve been the one causing you trouble.”

“That isn’t causing trouble.”

Then what would you call it?

She had a feeling the sentence should have a second half, but Yan Sishi left it there — and for just a moment, her mood felt like catching a glimpse of a loose thread on a fuzzy piece of clothing, only to pinch at it for a long while and somehow lose it without quite grasping it.

A sense of restless incompletion.

Xia Li leaned her arm against the window and let her mind wander, until Yan Sishi’s voice broke through and pulled her back.

“What made you think to give my grandmother flowers?”

“We happened to pass a young man on the street giving his girlfriend flowers, and Teacher Dai complained about your grandfather — saying that for her birthday last month, she didn’t receive a single bouquet. And that he knew perfectly well she was having trouble typing lately, yet he still gave her those heavy gemstone bracelets that got in the way of everything she needed to do.” Xia Li said with a smile. “We were tired from walking by then, so I settled them at a café nearby for a rest — there was a flower shop right next door, and I just picked up a bouquet for her.”

For Dai Shufang’s birthday, Yan Sishi had given her favorite red tea leaves.

Hearing Xia Li’s account, he found himself reflecting — he ought to have added a bouquet of fresh flowers too.

It seemed that knowing how to look after someone’s feelings was something of a natural gift for Xia Li.

This gift had nothing to do with flattery or ingratiation, because for her it seemed no more than a small, effortless thing.

And yet the people she looked after would find in it a moment of comfort, or a whole day lifted into a better mood.

No wonder, after just half a day together, his grandmother had taken such a liking to her.

She truly was a girl who drew people in.

“And what about your single one — who gave you that?” Yan Sishi asked.

“The flower shop.”

Just as he had thought.

The soft April evening breeze made one feel pleasantly languid and drowsy. Xia Li yawned several times in a row.

Keeping the driver company in conversation was only proper — that was her sense of courtesy — but today she had walked more than fifteen kilometers over half a day, and she, a working drone thoroughly unaccustomed to exercise, was feeling very much like a battery drained to zero.

She yawned again, dabbed at the corner of her eye with a fingertip, and said, “Sorry — I’d like to sleep for a bit.”

Her voice had gone soft with exhaustion.

Yan Sishi said, “Go ahead. I’ll wake you when we arrive.”

When Xia Li opened her eyes, the car was wrapped in complete stillness.

The window on the driver’s side was open. The night breeze drifted in, gently curling wisps of smoke — and in the dim light, a faint ember glowed between Yan Sishi’s fingers.

He was more silent than the air itself. In the darkness, the profile of his face rose and fell like a quiet ridge of hills — his gaze settled somewhere in the dark, cool and remote.

Xia Li stared at him in a daze and said nothing.

The cigarette rested between his fingers, barely smoked.

When it came to this particular bad habit, he was no seasoned hand.

Perhaps it was something like how some people reached for drink when they were in low spirits — here, the cigarette was filling the role that alcohol might have.

Her silent observation was discovered all the same.

The cigarette had burned down halfway. When Yan Sishi drew his arm back and pressed it lightly into the ashtray, he turned his head abruptly.

Xia Li only just managed to shut her eyes — but her lashes fluttered a few times.

“Awake?”

“Mm…” Xia Li could no longer pretend to be asleep. She opened her eyes. “Why didn’t you wake me?”

“You looked deeply asleep.”

Xia Li lit up her phone screen and checked the time. Working backwards from it, he had waited for her at least half an hour.

A feeling rose in her chest — like running a finger along the skin of a peach, that kind of fine, harmless itch. Even after washing your hands, the sensation lingers.

“Are you in a bad mood?”

“No.”

“Then you were bored waiting for me.” Xia Li said with a laugh.

Not wanting her to misunderstand, Yan Sishi explained, “I was thinking about something.”

What he was thinking about, Xia Li didn’t press further.

The cigarette was out. The lingering trace of tobacco in the small space faded entirely after a moment.

Yan Sishi started the car and headed toward Xia Li’s neighborhood.

When he changed gears, Xia Li’s gaze drifted over and landed on the lighter she had given him. “Do you still like this birthday gift?”

“Of course.”

Two simple words — yet they left her with the light, buoyant feeling of a mood that had been washed clean.

Yan Sishi looked at her and, with a hint of deliberation, asked, “Any plans for the May holiday? Staying in Beicheng, or…”

Xia Li came back to herself and said, “I might need to go back to Chucheng for a visit — when are your grandparents heading back?”

Yan Sishi understood what she meant — she was wondering whether, if they were also returning during the May holiday, they might travel together.

“They’re leaving next week.”

Xia Li nodded.

Yan Sishi said, “If you need any help while you’re in Chucheng, feel free to reach out to them. No need to be polite.”

“Okay.”

Xia Li knew that unless absolutely necessary, she wouldn’t.

She had the deepest reluctance to spend any goodwill that connected back to Yan Sishi.

That night in the shower, when she peeled off the bandage, the blister on her heel stung where the water touched it.

Over the following days, the wound began to heal.

There was always a faint, persistent itch.

Dai Shufang and Huo Jizhong stayed for half a month before returning to Chucheng.

The May holiday followed shortly after, and Xia Li went home for a visit.

Chucheng had no airport and had yet to have a high-speed rail line. She took the high-speed train to the nearest city and transferred to a long-distance bus from there, arriving in the afternoon.

Jiang Hong and Xia Jianyang had been eagerly waiting for her, arriving early and standing by the roadside. The moment Xia Li stepped out of the taxi, they rushed forward to take her luggage.

They chatted as they walked home. When they learned Xia Li had only eaten a bread roll on the train, Jiang Hong quickly said, “The rice has been kept warm, the soup is ready too — go rest for a bit and I’ll stir-fry a dish, then we can eat.”

“Have you both eaten?”

“We have.”

Back home, Xia Li went to the bathroom first, splashed water on her face, then came back out.

She settled onto the old sofa and spotted a flyer on the coffee table. She picked it up idly.

It was a property advertisement for a new residential development. The floor plans listed were mostly around a hundred square meters, with an average price of around 3,500 yuan per square meter.

Xia Jianyang came out of the kitchen just then, carrying a plate of sliced apple.

“Were you looking at apartments?” Xia Li asked.

“No. Just a flyer someone handed me.”

“Which neighborhood is this?”

“Near the sports park.”

“You two should go take a look when you have time. If there are any particularly good units, worth keeping an eye on.”

Xia Jianyang looked a little flustered. “We couldn’t afford it even if we looked.”

“I’ll help with the down payment. You two can handle the mortgage yourselves.”

From the kitchen, Jiang Hong called out quickly, “You’ve only been working for a few years — how much have you saved? You need that money yourself.”

Living in Beicheng was expensive. After rent, food, and commuting, Xia Li’s monthly salary left very little behind.

But every year-end bonus she had received, she had saved.

Based on the average housing prices in the development zones, three to four months down payment was something she could manage to produce at once, without being stretched too thin.

Xia Jianyang added, “You’ll have your own life to build someday. We can’t spend your money.”

“Housing prices go up every year,” Xia Li said. “Buying now is the best value. And if you ever want to return to your hometown when you’re older, this apartment could be sold — it’s also an investment. Just go and take a look first. We can talk from there.”

Xia Jianyang and Jiang Hong didn’t say anything more after that.

Xia Li had a broader view of things than they did, and her decisions tended to look further ahead. On matters like this, they had come to trust her judgment.

Xia Li napped through the afternoon and got up around dusk.

Jiang Hong, who had been watching television in the living room, asked, “Your uncle Luo says he’d like to take you out to dinner tonight. Do you want to go? He says last time he came to Beicheng, the timing was off and he didn’t even get a chance to treat you to a meal. He feels bad about it.”

“Are you two going?”

“We don’t mind either way. It’s mainly up to you.”

“I’d rather not.”

“Alright, I’ll call and let him know.”

In moments like these, Xia Li often thought — one of the good things about having grown up and become independent was that she now had a much greater say in her own life.

In the past, she wouldn’t have been allowed to say no in situations like this.

That evening, Jiang Hong prepared several dishes — all things Xia Li liked.

Over dinner, Xia Li asked how the two of them had been getting on and, hearing that work was going smoothly, felt some of her worry ease. She also said, “I’ve scheduled a check-up for next week. Remember to go.”

Jiang Hong said, “Stop wasting money on that. You’re out there on your own, and we can’t do much to help.”

“It’s money that needs to be spent,” Xia Li said.

The conversation drifted into lighter territory. Xia Jianyang brought up, with an air of nonchalance, “Luo’s brother mentioned that Chairman Huo came to Beicheng last time, and you helped him as a guide?”

Xia Li asked directly, “Dad, what are you trying to say?”

“Nothing… I just wanted to ask. Get a sense of things.”

Xia Li understood immediately. “Is it that Uncle Luo wanted you to ask — about what my relationship is with Chairman Huo’s grandson?”

Xia Jianyang said nothing, but his expression made it plain that Xia Li had hit the mark.

“Dad.” Xia Li’s tone was even. “The jobs you and Mom have now — I’m the one who worked to find those for you. My thinking from the start was that we shouldn’t rely on others when we don’t have to, especially Uncle Luo. You don’t depend on him for your livelihood anymore. There’s really no need to keep tiptoeing around him.”

Jiang Hong said with a laugh, “Your father’s just so used to reading people’s faces, he can’t help himself.”

Xia Jianyang fell quiet.

“I already told you,” Jiang Hong said, “stop meddling in our daughter’s affairs. Here we are doing nothing and living comfortably, and you still aren’t satisfied.”

“It’s not that — I’m just…looking out for Li,” Xia Jianyang muttered, trying to defend himself half-heartedly.

There wasn’t much to do at home for entertainment, so Xia Li washed up early and went to bed.

The sheets and pillowcase had just been freshly laundered. Jiang Hong had also aired out the duvet and bedding on a sunny day. They carried a clean, dry fragrance.

After one more day at home, Xia Li headed back to Beicheng.

To catch the earliest high-speed train, she got up very early, and once on board, put on her neck pillow and went back to sleep.

She woke partway through the journey and checked her phone — there were new messages from Yan Sishi.

YAN: Heading back to Beicheng today?

Xia Li replied: Yes.

YAN: Which train?

YAN: I have some things to take care of over there. I’ll pick you up on the way.

Xia Li didn’t examine too closely just how “on the way” this actually was. She sent him a photo of her ticket.

After several hours of travel, she finally arrived at the Beicheng high-speed rail station.

Xia Li pulled her suitcase and walked toward the exit.

She spotted Yan Sishi from a distance.

He was dressed in white on top and black trousers below — a tall, slender figure, with the kind of refined, clear-cut features that made you wonder if he might be a film actor, and that ever-present air of cool distance that seemed to hold the world at arm’s length. It was impossible not to notice him at first glance.

Xia Li quickened her pace, and Yan Sishi, as if catching sight of her too, raised his eyes and looked over.

Walking under his gaze always felt like poling a small boat across a lake — the water appeared still on the surface, yet she always sensed hidden currents running beneath.

Even her footsteps felt a little unsteady.

She drew close and greeted him. Yan Sishi took her suitcase from her hand with natural ease.

As they walked, Yan Sishi asked, “You set out very early?”

From the corner of his eye he glanced at her — he could make out a faint look of travel weariness on her face.

“Yes. I wanted to arrive early and have some time to rest. If only Chucheng had a high-speed rail line someday — all this back-and-forth wouldn’t be such an ordeal.”

The wheels of the suitcase rolled cheerfully along the ground, the sound carrying a certain lightness.

They reached the parking lot. Yan Sishi unlocked the car and carried the luggage to the trunk.

Xia Li pulled open the passenger door — and stopped short.

There on the seat lay a large bouquet of pink roses, lush and full as pink puffs, each bloom a heavy, layered bloom the size of a small bowl, wrapped in double layers of paper — the inner layer a soft, white tissue paper.

The entire bouquet was so extravagantly beautiful it had almost a coquettish quality, like a pampered little princess.

She heard the trunk close. Xia Li looked toward the driver’s side.

The door on the opposite side opened. Across the interior of the car, Xia Li looked at Yan Sishi. “This…”

“For you.” Yan Sishi glanced at her, his expression as calm as ever.

So she hadn’t misread the situation at all.

When Xia Li lifted the bouquet into her arms, the sweet, lush fragrance rose up to meet her, and she found herself overcome with a strange sense of not quite knowing what to do with herself.

Yan Sishi seemed to misread her hesitation, and said, “You can put it in the back seat — it’ll take up less room.”

Xia Li thought about it — holding the flowers the entire way would probably look a little silly — so she pulled open the back door and set the bouquet there for now.

Once in the car, Xia Li was quiet for a good while.

A faint fragrance lingered through the air, like a rose garden after an early morning rain.

They both seemed to have a mutual, unspoken agreement not to mention the bouquet.

Xia Li asked, “What did you get up to over the May holiday?”

“Rested at home. Read.”

“No going out?”

“Had dinner with Wen Shubai.”

“That sounds a little dull,” Xia Li said with a laugh.

Yan Sishi’s gaze passed over her face — with something that seemed like a meaningful undercurrent. “It was.”

Her next question was cut off by a phone call.

She apologized and answered it.

It was Song Qiao’an calling, saying the New York side urgently needed a report and asking her to send it over that evening.

“…Wasn’t it supposed to be after the holiday?”

“The timeline’s been moved up. Their department head asked me for it personally. Do your best to push through this.”

“Don’t they observe the May holiday over there…”

Song Qiao’an laughed. “May Day — officially the International Labour Day, commemorating an event organized by Engels. Try explaining that to a capitalist country.”

After the call ended, Xia Li opened the report brief on her phone.

Yan Sishi asked, “Overtime tonight?”

Xia Li nodded with a pained expression.

For the rest of the drive, Xia Li was on and off the phone with Song Qiao’an going over the details of the report, unable to have a proper conversation with Yan Sishi. She felt genuinely sorry about it.

Yan Sishi, for his part, seemed entirely unbothered.

They arrived at the entrance to her residential complex. Yan Sishi got out of the car too and lifted her suitcase out, saying he’d walk her in.

Xia Li herself only had her small backpack, following behind Yan Sishi with the bouquet of pink roses cradled in her arms.

All the way in, they drew no small number of glances from passersby.

At the base of her building, Xia Li freed one hand to dig through her small bag for her key.

Her hand came up empty.

Yan Sishi looked at her.

“…I think I forgot my key.”

“Isn’t it in the suitcase?”

Xia Li shook her head. She wouldn’t have packed something so small into her luggage — too easy to lose — and she had just packed the case the night before. She was certain it wasn’t there.

She took out her phone and called Xu Ning.

Xu Ning: “Sweetheart, I have an eight o’clock flight tonight.”

Xia Li: “…”

Xu Ning: “Maybe find a Starbucks to wait in? Or just go to the office?”

Xia Li: “…Fine.”

She hung up and looked at Yan Sishi. “Xu Ning probably won’t be back until after eleven.”

Yan Sishi paused for a moment, then said calmly:

“You can wait at my place.”