He should have gone home to write his chapters.
But as an author with a terminal case of procrastination, he lived by the mantra of delaying everything. Before 7:00 PM, he could barely manage to type a single punctuation mark while sitting at his computer.
So, he chose to take a walk instead. The temperature wasn’t too cold today, and the accumulated snow after the recent clearing resembled a silver carpet. It easily brought to mind all sorts of stories about snow for Gao Sijin.
Snow was cruel, yet it was also romantic.
The cold made life difficult to endure, yet it was so holy and flawless.
If possible, Gao Sijin truly wanted to encounter a girl in the snow and have her tackle him into a snowdrift. Even if he and his lover turned into ice sculptures until the end of time, he would have no regrets even if he died nine times.
Before he knew it, Gao Sijin passed by Binhai City Tenth Middle School. Here, he could faintly see the shadow of his younger self. Back then, he thought they would meet again, unaware that graduation meant a permanent goodbye.
The girl he had embraced in a fit of ignorant emotion had eventually gone to distant Australia.
The girl he had mocked with childish words like “idiot” and “dummy” had become someone else’s lover.
Feelings that could never be voiced had long since turned into dust, blown away by the wind as time passed.
Even though this wasn’t the school Gao Sijin had attended, he could still feel his lost youth through the atmosphere of other schools.
*Ring-ring.*
The sky had darkened, and junior high students walked out of the school gates, carrying backpacks and wearing heavy school uniforms.
Parents crowded around the school gate, packed together like sardines in a tin.
One day in the future, Gao Sijin might become one of them, or perhaps that day would never come.
He stood some distance away, holding his Grilled Cold Noodles and Teppanyaki Squid.
Among the group of parents, there was a figure that looked completely out of place. She wore an OL uniform like a female secretary; it was Feng Xiaohe.
Gao Sijin was worried she would catch a cold because her legs had been trembling slightly for a while now.
“Xiaona!”
Feng Xiaohe called out to a girl who was brimming with youthful energy as she carried her backpack.
The girl immediately ran toward Feng Xiaohe’s position.
“Sister, school is over! Thank you for picking me up.”
Gao Sijin couldn’t see Feng Xiaohe’s expression, but he could feel the familial warmth from the backs of her and her sister.
The girl named Xiaona clearly loved her sister very much.
However, when a man in a suit stepped out of a Volvo, Xiaona’s smile immediately became somewhat stiff. Even Gao Sijin could tell that she was forcing a fake smile.
They all got into the man’s car and vanished from the school gate.
Gao Sijin wouldn’t say a word about what he had seen.
Even if Feng Xiaohe really was a “relay baton” passed between successful men, that was her own choice. In this era, everyone was fighting with all their might just to live.
“Yo, looking at beauties, are we?”
A fair hand slapped Gao Sijin’s shoulder, startling him so much he almost spilled the Starbucks he had just bought.
He turned around and saw Yu Qingxue. Her appearance, which rivaled that of a movie star, was truly unforgettable. Moreover, her valiant yet charming temperament was rare in this world.
Today, she wore a cream-colored long dress, and her brownish high ponytail made her stand out exceptionally well.
After sizing her up, Gao Sijin asked, “Don’t you women wear long johns in the winter?”
“In autumn, men give women their first cup of milk tea. In winter, women give men their first pair of black stockings. It’s called reciprocity,” Yu Qingxue said as she naturally hooked her arm through Gao Sijin’s. “Why haven’t you contacted me at all since we left our blind date?”
“I thought we were done.”
“You’re such an interesting human specimen; I could play with you for one year.”
Yu Qingxue smiled and pulled a cashmere scarf from her bag, wrapping it around Gao Sijin’s neck.
“What are you doing?”
“It’s cold in the winter, so don’t catch a cold. It’s a small matter if I get sick, but it would be bad if you did.”
“A Burberry scarf is too much. I can’t afford to enjoy this.”
“Yo, you actually know your brands.”
“My parents are at least somewhat wealthy, though no matter how much money they have, it has nothing to do with me…” Gao Sijin swallowed hard and took off the scarf, asking, “How much was this?”
“Less than 10,000. Consider it a return gift for the meal you treated me to. Just take it.”
Yu Qingxue looked indifferent. A wealthy girl who could afford a BMW i8 probably didn’t care about a scarf that cost less than 10,000.
But Gao Sijin didn’t like being someone who took advantage of others.
He pulled the scarf off and handed it back to Yu Qingxue.
“I won’t take it.”
“Sijin, don’t refuse a polite gesture. Giving you this scarf today means I think highly of you. If you don’t want it, I’ll have to consider replacing it with a dog collar next time.”
A sharp glint flashed in her eyes. For a split second, Gao Sijin associated her gaze with a murder scene.
Even if she saw a rotting corpse, Yu Qingxue would remain perfectly calm; she was just that kind of girl.
“Come, let me tie it for you, Sijin.”
As if worried that Gao Sijin would pull it off again, the woman deliberately tied a dead knot.
“Qingxue, what do you actually want from me?”
“Can’t I come find you for no reason?”
“I’m going home. I have a side job to work on.”
“Let’s go. Get in the car.”
Yu Qingxue took out her car keys, and the butterfly doors of the silver-white BMW i8 spread open like wings.
Before Gao Sijin could agree or disagree, Yu Qingxue grabbed his hand and dragged him into the car. The door closed, and she locked it.
It felt very comfortable sitting inside. Yu Qingxue turned on the stereo, which began playing a rock-style Touhou fan song.
Gao Sijin stole a glance at Yu Qingxue, feeling that she looked particularly cool while driving. Her black boots pressed down hard on the accelerator, and the surrounding scenery flew past like a blur.
In this enclosed space, with only him and Yu Qingxue, Gao Sijin could only smell her citrus-scented perfume.
Suddenly, Gao Sijin realized something was wrong and shouted, “Qingxue, my house isn’t in this direction! We already passed it!”
“Huh? That’s strange. When did I ever say I was taking you home?”
“Let me out! I want to go home!”
“Home? What home? Get your facts straight. You’ve been kidnapped by me. Since you had the courage to be my blind date partner, you must fulfill your duties and go a little crazy with me!”
She handled the car as if traffic rules didn’t exist, leaving Gao Sijin in tears.
The wind roared in his ears as Yu Qingxue drifted through a corner, heading straight for the highway outside the city.
“For the sake of me calling you ‘Dad,’ please slow down.”
“It wouldn’t matter even if you called me ‘Ancestor’!”
“My lady, where on earth are you going?”
“Anyway, you don’t have work tomorrow, so it doesn’t matter where we go, right?”
“But I have a side job!”
“How much does your side job make? I’ll pay you double. Why the long face? If we’re going to play, let’s have a blast!”
She held the steering wheel with one hand and, like a magic trick, pulled out a can of Stout beer with the other.
Gao Sijin snatched the can of beer away.
He swore that if he managed to get out of this car alive, he would never ride in Yu Qingxue’s car again.
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