Six twenty-eight in the morning.

Little Chengzi was banging on the door, shrilly calling “Mami” and “Daddy,” alternating between Chinese, Spanish, English, and French to greet her bed-loving parents.

The white thin blanket, rolled into a cocoon, stirred. First emerged a fluffy head, squinting handsome eyes and sighing helplessly, running fingers through short hair. Within his embrace, a graceful figure supported herself to sit up, urging him: “Put your clothes on first.”

The banging nearly broke through the door, but Little Chengzi followed their previous agreement – without permission, she absolutely, could not open the door herself.

“Daddy— Mama— the sun’s gonna shine on your bottom—”

Chen Yi shouted back through the door: “It’s the weekend, why are you up so early?”

“I haven’t seen you all night, I miss Daddy and Mama so much.” Little Chengzi switched to Spanish, sweetly sprinkling sugar. “I dreamed of you all night long, thought about you the whole night.”

Miao Jing’s heart was melting, already eager to get up and open the door, but Chen Yi entangled her limbs. He calmly conversed with their daughter: “Didn’t you promise Oscar you’d go feed squirrels while cycling this morning? And promised to say good morning to Leo first thing after waking up, and give Lola your homemade fragrant cookies?”

“Yes, I’m toooooooo busy!”

Little Chengzi stomped at the door, then ran to Meigisi: “Grandma, shall we bake nut cookies together? I need to call Leo, and then…”

The bedroom door fell silent.

Chen Yi’s arm blocked Miao Jing as she was pushed back onto the pillow, both wearing knowing smiles. He winked at her, proudly clicking his tongue: “She’s gone.”

“How can you trick Little Chengzi every day?”

“Exploit the enemy’s weakness, buy me some time.” He propped his head on his arm, fingers caressing her cheek. “How did my little sister become so beautiful after one night’s sleep?”

Her clear, bright starry eyes remained unchanged. Time had completely stripped away her youthful coldness and pride, her relaxed expression showing life’s smoothness and contentment, blending mature charm with ethereal grace.

“Who’s your little sister?” She wrinkled her nose against his. “Shameless.”

“Haven’t I called you that enough?” He smiled mischievously, expression slightly vulgar. “Want some adult time?”

He kissed her soft red lips, tongues entwining. The white thin blanket bunched at their waists, revealing strong, proportioned shoulders and back, beautiful flowing muscles tracing firm lines along his spine. His clean tanned skin and muscular lines appeared sensual and powerful, that handsome face exuding mature male attractiveness.

The thin blanket pulled higher, the space intimate, all sound muffled, ambiguous, and dreamy, the plain white bed curtains rippling like water.

The timing was perfect. Little Chengzi’s attention only diverted for half an hour before she knocked again, now granted entry. She found her father’s hands lazily resting on the balcony rail, a cigarette held to his nose for a light sniff. Knowing her father’s habit, she climbed onto a stool to reach his broad back, hanging onto him.

“Papa, you can only smell it, no smoking, okay? Smoking men smell bad.”

“You little rascal, what do you know about good and bad smells?” Chen Yi tweaked her nose. “Did you bake the cookies?”

“They’re in the oven. Is Mama showering? Mama smells nice. Teacher Luna at kindergarten smells nice too, she loves rose perfume. When I grow up, I want to wear perfume too, orange scented…”

“Okay, okay.” Chen Yi carried his daughter into the bedroom, pulling on a T-shirt. “Where do you want to play today? Mama and Daddy will go with you. We’ll have Chinese lessons first, then play soccer, how about pizza for lunch?”

“I like Journey to the West, but I don’t like learning Chinese. No one at kindergarten understands when I speak Chinese.” Little Chengzi sat on the sofa, staring at her old father. “Daddy, when are we going back to China?”

“When you’re a bit older.”

“What about my friends? What about our home? When will we come back? Why do we have to go?”

“We have a home in China too. That’s where Daddy and Mama grew up and lived.”

“Did you and Mama know each other since childhood? Just like me and Brother Oscar? Mama called you brother too, you got married and had a baby. Does that mean I’ll marry Brother Oscar in the future, or Brother Leo…”

“Stop right there.” Chen Yi covered Little Chengzi’s mouth. “You’re still a child, you can’t get married. Oscar and Leo are just your good friends. Girls can’t marry just anyone.”

Last year Little Chengzi entered an international kindergarten. She became inseparable from her playmates, roughhousing together daily. The sudden news of leaving left her teary-eyed, reluctant to part with her little companions.

Their return to China was scheduled for Little Chengzi’s kindergarten graduation, perfectly timed for the start of primary school back home.

Return to Teng City – after so many years abroad, it was the only place that left deep, meaningful impressions on both of them.

They would miss the years spent in this land, days rich with color, passion, and chaos. Every landscape viewed and every joy experienced, the various people met and different days lived through – they hoped these memories would reflect in Little Chengzi’s clear, innocent eyes, hoping she would possess open-minded and colorful qualities.

Little Chengzi loved Brother Gino’s family, Grandpa Pierre, Daddy’s company and factory, Mama’s cool automotive work, the street dancing and performances, small animals at the farm and bamboo shoots in the mountains, rushing into rainy season storms, the spicy cool seawater, and being praised by other children.

Everyone asked if she would forget Bogota, forget life here. Though so young, she patted her chest saying she wouldn’t. She buried her hair and fingernails in the soil, saying her DNA would remain in South America. Miao Jing and Chen Yi helped her bury treasures – small wooden boxes containing her beloved toys and her parents’ collected trinkets. One was given to Pereira who had cared for her since infancy, one buried under their home’s tree, one by the farm’s stream, and one in the coastal coconut grove. If they returned one day, they could dig them up, like Ali Baba finding the key to the treasure door.

Little Chengzi took photos with many friends as keepsakes, exchanging farewell gifts. She had so many friends – from neighborhood playmates to kindergarten classmates to children of her parents’ social circle. She wrote wobbly handwritten cards to all: “Friends Forever.”

Little Chengzi had aesthetic preferences, liking very handsome little boys – blue-eyed, fair-skinned European boys, Brazilian boys who could make her happy, slim fast-running Thai boys, Colombian friends who gave big hugs at every meeting.

She liked them all, reluctant to part with any, blinking her eyes: “You’re my best boyfriend.”

The boys unanimously replied: “Chengzi, you’re my best girlfriend too.”

“We’ll be best friends forever. I’ll think of you in China. You can’t betray me, you can’t play with Nana/Ruth/Sara… can’t play with other girls. You must always remember me.”

“Of course, you’ll always be my very best friend.”

Boys and girls linking pinkies: “My daddy says we’re too young, can only be friends… When we grow up, maybe we’ll meet again. You’ll find me, or I’ll find you, maybe then we can date, go watch movies together.”

Miao Jing listened to the children’s innocent words, exchanging bewildered looks, feeling somewhat scattered.

Little Chengzi returned home hugging a pile of exchanged gifts.

“Chengzi, you can’t do this.” Miao Jing held her head. “You can’t say such things to every boy. You’re just friends.”

“Daddy said we’re friends now, but I can have a boyfriend when I’m sixteen. I can scout for targets first.”

“Chen Yi—” Miao Jing roared. “How are you teaching our child?”

“What?” He lazily followed, scratching his head. “I just taught Chengzi to secure a boy she likes. How was I to know she’d say it to everyone, like casting a fishing net.”

“Can’t you stop corrupting her? How old is she!”

“Okay, okay, I was wrong.” He raised both hands in surrender. “You teach her, you have experience.”

Little Chengzi interjected: “What experience does Mama have? Was Mama like this before?”

“Daddy was like this before, and Mama reformed him.” Chen Yi grinned slyly. “Without Mama, there’d be no Daddy, and no Little Chengzi.”

Miao Jing shot him a fierce glare.

When finally leaving Bogota, Miao Jing and Chen Yi shipped many things back to China. They didn’t sell the house, leaving the keys with an agent. The company remained, entrusted to Gino. The family of three, carrying their luggage, prepared to embark on their journey home.

After more than thirty hours of travel, Chen Yi, holding the sleeping Little Chengzi, once again set foot on that familiar land.

Teng City.

Accustomed to Bogota’s cool highlands, stepping onto their homeland brought a rush of hot, humid air mixed with the bitter scent of vegetation, suddenly awakening distant memories.

Chen Yi held Miao Jing’s hand as they left the platform.

Bo Zai welcomed them home. Years had passed since they’d last met in the hospital when Bo Zai was a thin youth. Now he sported a slight paunch.

“Brother Yi!” Bo Zai grinned, then pressed his lips together seeing Miao Jing: “Sister-in-law.”

Chen Yi steadily patted his shoulder: “Thanks for your hard work these years.”

He was no longer that carefree troublemaker, no longer the lackadaisical pool hall owner, now carrying steady dignity and complex experiences.

There wasn’t any compelling reason to return, but they knew their roots were here. As long as the roots weren’t completely rotten, still delivering nutrients through stem and leaves, even if bitter-tasting, they lived through it. Perhaps one day it would flourish into its own space, blooming sweet flowers and fruits.

Little Chengzi suddenly woke in the car, saw the scenery outside the window, and burst into tears. She didn’t recognize the ever-changing high-rises and streets, couldn’t read the characters and faces on billboards, and didn’t even know this climate and temperature.

Miao Jing pointed out places to her – the roads her parents once walked, the malls they shopped in, the schools they attended. She still remembered it all, hadn’t forgotten after so many years.

They didn’t return to their original home. Bo Zai took them to another upscale community. Years ago, Chen Yi had already asked Bo Zai to buy property – a large apartment decorated similarly to their Bogota home, at least helping Little Chengzi adjust to new life.

On their first day after landing, the family stayed home organizing belongings. Miao Jing simply cooked three bowls of noodles for a makeshift meal.

After Little Chengzi fell asleep, Miao Jing continued organizing in the living room. Chen Yi pulled two beers from the fridge to help her stay awake through jet lag. They sat cross-legged on the floor sorting through various documents brought back.

“When should we go back to look? Wonder how it’s changed? Should probably deal with all that old furniture, probably all ruined by now.”

“No rush, handle what’s at hand first. You need to start at your company and find a school for Little Chengzi, I have things to handle too.” Chen Yi suddenly remembered something. “Right, is that Lu Zhengsi still in Teng City?”

“Left for another job years ago,” Miao Jing kept her head down. “Returned to Z Province, married with children now.”

He raised an eyebrow: “You two still in touch?”

Miao Jing smiled slightly without answering, then remembered: “My mother’s side… knows we’re back, might want to meet us, see Little Chengzi, and… see you. Though she still can’t cross that threshold in her heart.”

“Let’s meet. Who can cross that threshold?” Chen Yi shrugged indifferently. “If she’s willing to come, could I turn her away? Stepmother becoming mother-in-law, what’s a few old grudges? I’ll still have to reluctantly call her Mom.”

“Chen Yi.”

“Mm?”

She smiled beautifully: “Perhaps Teng City is my lucky city. Never expected to return here again and again. But when I first took the train here at eight, I had hopes for Teng City, just not having to endure snowy winters anymore. Whatever the future holds, this is a very, very good place.”

“Back then you were someone’s sister, now you’re someone’s wife – raise your standards.” He leaned back on one hand, squeezing the beer bottle, finishing it in one gulp. “If I had the ability, I’d buy half of Teng City for you – that would be a truly lucky city.”

“Keep dreaming.” Miao Jing glanced at him, eyes flowing with light. “This is good enough.”

Chen Yi sighed, reaching for his cigarette box in the luggage. He often kept a pack nearby but no lighter, habitually smelling the tobacco when thinking, rolling it between his fingers.

“Such a good day, can’t I smoke one cigarette as an exception? Feel like I need one puff to repay all these years of ups and downs.”

Miao Jing would only let him take one drag.

He got up to light it on the kitchen stove, and returned to sit beside her, offering the cigarette: “You take it.”

Miao Jing reluctantly approached the filter, finely arched brows furrowed as she took a shallow drag.

His lips immediately pressed against hers, sucking the nicotine-mixed sweetness from her mouth, smoke passing between their lips through the kiss, tasting her again, a smooth, sweet, dizzy sensation.

They fell onto the floor kissing, that cigarette still held between his fingers, never reaching his lips again. Time stretched long, pale smoke wafting around them, long ash quietly falling to the floor, everything finally settling into silence.

It felt like young love’s heart-fluttering sensation – a home just for them, cigarette-flavored kisses and intimacy, neither ever forgetting.

After returning to Teng City, new life filled up quickly. Chen Yi first got a car – after many years, driving a Cadillac again, just for nostalgia’s sake. Miao Jing joined a new auto parts company as a design engineer, right next to her original factory, conveniently buying a commuter car there.

As for Little Chengzi, soon to start primary school, besides finding her a school and a sense of belonging, they needed to help her find friends. Fortunately, Bo Zai had two children – they took them all to the amusement park for wild fun. Miao Jing even made an exception allowing Chen Yi to take her to the night market for late-night snacks at 10 PM. Little Chengzi was amazed by the brilliant lights and surging crowds – in Bogota, she’d never gone out after 9 PM, never bought ice cream from roadside shops without adult supervision.

Chen Yi busied himself with social obligations, first hosting Zhou Kang’an for a lavish dinner at home, naturally getting together with Bo Zai and others to eat, drink, and reminisce, bringing Miao Jing along. When Miao Jing appeared in the private room, the atmosphere briefly stiffened.

How could those in the know forget how cold and distant these two were as siblings before? Miao Jing barely acknowledged Chen Yi, never speaking politely, sometimes directly confronting him coldly. Bo Zai remembered more vividly – hadn’t forgotten Miao Jing’s public mockery of Brother Yi, the strange atmosphere at the hospital, and how Miao Jing solely supported the family those first couple years in Bogota while he resigned himself to housework. Unexpectedly, at the dinner table now, Miao Jing sat beside Chen Yi, gentle and compliant, quietly pouring his tea and water, shocking everyone.

“Brother Yi’s still got it,” everyone praised. “Successful wherever he goes, beautiful daughter, thoughtful wife.”

Chen Yi leisurely ate the shrimp Miao Jing had peeled for him, eyebrows raised proudly: “Outside business is one thing, but at home, you need some backbone.”

After dinner, Bo Zai accidentally saw Miao Jing kick Brother Yi while getting in the car.

Chen Yi had a small factory in China, jointly established with a Colombian friend in Guangzhou, mainly serving the Colombian market. Returning to Teng City, he needed to manage the trading company too.

He’d brought back investment funds, preparations had already begun before returning.

That day, Chen Yi finally took Miao Jing and Little Chengzi to visit their former home.

The residential area had deteriorated, the surroundings were completely demolished, and no trace of the past remained. Only those two old buildings stood lonely and gray in the strange environment, like elderly people, completely lifeless.

Large characters reading “DEMOLISH” marked the gray walls.

“Daddy, Mama, the houses here are so old,” Little Chengzi curiously looked around.

The key entered the lock with a rusty squeak. Pushing the door open, the layout seemed both strange and utterly familiar – a two-bedroom apartment, dusty old furniture, sofa, and TV covered in dust sheets. Forcefully opening both bedroom doors sent dust flowing into their nostrils. The rooms were simply furnished, two stark, bare beds prominent.

The left room was Chen Yi’s, and the right was Miao Jing’s.

“This is Daddy and Mama’s childhood home, the rooms where we lived.”

“Daddy’s clothes from his youth, Mama’s childhood textbooks, the alarm clock that rang for over ten years, cups we drank from together…”

Miao Jing’s fingers traced the wall, feeling the dust, suddenly finding her eyes stinging. Little Chengzi squeezed her hand, asking innocently: “Mama, did you and Daddy live together since childhood? Just the two of you in this home? Where were your daddy and mama?”

She forced a smile at her daughter, two tears sliding down her cheeks.

Chen Yi stroked his daughter’s head, dark eyes deep, saying nothing as he embraced both Miao Jing and Little Chengzi.

“Perfect timing – this whole area is scheduled for demolition. I’m buying this plot, Miao Jing. With such good feng shui, you can imagine the future… all of this will be yours…”

Perhaps he couldn’t buy her a city, but at least he could buy her a home—

At the place where they first met.

—The End—