Chapter 58 Snowing Days: Snowing days and rainy days are no different. ...

With an average of three performances a week, Liang Yizhi receives a bouquet of flowers after each show.

The first day featured white peonies and misty purple tulips; the second day featured bright yellow roses interspersed with a few lilies; and the third day saw the change to pink and white fairy kisses.

Layer upon layer of flowers create a large expanse of soft pink. The arrangement, designed by a florist, features petals carefully turned outwards, further emphasizing their fullness and vibrant life.

Each time, Liang Yizhi reluctantly accepted the flowers amidst gasps of amazement from the crowd.

Colleagues praised her, saying the person who picked the flowers had excellent taste, always changing the patterns. Seeing Liang Yizhi's expression, they even joked with her:

"Yizhi, who sent this? He beat those guys to a pulp before!"

"Honestly, Yizhi, if I were you, I would have gladly agreed to him right away. Why do you look like that!"

...

Liang Yizhi couldn't explain her own thoughts. The flowers were indeed beautiful, and it was clear that a lot of effort had been put into their arrangement. But she just... felt very uncomfortable.

On her way home, she held the enormous bouquet of fairy kisses and sat quietly in the car.

Gu Yinyan parked his car downstairs at her house.

He turned his head to observe Liang Yizhi's expression. Seeing that she remained silent, staring at the flowers in her hand, he tentatively asked:

"dislike?"

Liang Yizhi remained silent for a long time before saying, "Gu Yinyan, don't send me flowers anymore. I don't like them, and I don't need them."

Gu Yinyan replied quickly: "Okay. If you don't like it, I won't send it to you again."

Liang Yizhi kept her head down.

Why does she still feel a tightness in her chest even though she has already spoken her mind?

Leung Yik-chi: "It's not just flowers that I don't like."

Gu Yinyan's jaw tightened slightly, but he maintained his usual expression: "Yes, I know."

"Gu Yinyan, do you really understand what I'm saying?"

Gu Yinyan said indifferently, "What's so hard to understand?"

“You can argue with me.” Liang Yizhi lowered her head even further. “You can say that I have no taste because I don’t like flowers, that giving gifts depends on what others give me, not what I want. You can say anything…”

"I just don't want to see you like this, as if you're trying to please me."

From initially picking her up and dropping her off at work and preparing necessities for her, to frequently appearing in front of her and using flowers to project a strong presence, the scales of the relationship had been tipping wildly in her favor.

Such a humble attitude is nothing like Gu Yinyan.

Although Gu Yinyan had considered her feelings before, he would never be like this, constantly watching her every move in order to please her, putting her first in everything, as if he would be plunged into the abyss if she said anything bad.

Liang Yizhi didn't want to see Gu Yinyan become like this because of her. She hoped their relationship could be balanced, and even if they broke up, it should be a give-and-take. She would rather be blamed than have him be the only one heartbroken.

Liang Yizhi didn't want him to be like a puppet who obeyed her every whim.

That's strange.

Humans are truly contradictory creatures. How could her feelings become so awkward and complicated when facing Gu Yinyan?

She reiterated, "I don't need you to do that."

Gu Yinyan looked at the empty road ahead. The wind made the shadows of the trees in front of the car tremble, only disturbing a few specks of dust in the air.

He said, "Liang Yizhi, have you ever considered that no matter what I do, you can't accept me with a clear conscience?"

"You don't have to take my likes so seriously." Gu Yinyan's face darkened as he glanced at the flowers in her arms. "If you really don't like them, just throw them away."

The feeling of tightness in her chest grew stronger.

Gu Yinyan didn't stay long tonight. After Liang Yizhi got out of the car, he drove away.

He told her to throw the flowers away, but Liang Yizhi certainly wouldn't listen to him.

She carried the flowers into the house, carefully unwrapped them, trimmed the stems, took out the last few vases from the cabinet, and put them in.

Liang Yizhi placed the vases on the TV cabinet, where a row of vases already stood. Fresh flowers don't last long; she checked the ones she had already put in, and some, judging by their condition, would probably have to be thrown away tomorrow.

Liang Yizhi sat cross-legged on the ground, rested her chin on her hand, and sighed as she looked at the large pile of flowers.

-

The next morning, Liang Yizhi was awakened by the sound of the cold wind hitting the windowpane.

She was surprised to find out after getting up that there were only two days left until the new year.

She got up; she was going to the orchestra today, and she had also arranged to meet He Xintu after work. Initially, He Xintu wanted to ask her out for New Year's Eve, but Liang Yizhi changed the date to today.

Although she hasn't made any plans for New Year's Eve yet, she has already prioritized it in her mind, reserving a more important time slot for another group of people.

During their lunch break, Liang Yizhi took Wu You to a nearby restaurant for lunch.

It was a Cantonese restaurant, and they ordered steamed chicken feet, boat congee, shrimp dumplings, and stir-fried beef noodles.

The waiter came over and refilled their tea.

A small teacup sits in front of me, the dark brown tea reflecting the light overhead.

Liang Yizhi spoke up: "Wu You, I have a question for you."

Wu You: "What?"

“For example,” she thought, “you have in front of you a cup of fine tea that has been steeped for a long time and has a mellow, aged flavor, and a packet of the latest puffed snacks that taste amazing but have little nutritional value.”

"If it were you, which one would you choose?"

Without a second thought, Wu You said, "This tea sounds very old-fashioned. I'm a young person, so I'll choose junk food."

"It has nothing to do with being old. Be more objective."

Wu You withdrew his thought and reconsidered: "Well... it depends on what the current situation requires."

"If I were lying at home watching TV right now, I would definitely want a bag of low-nutritional-value snacks to satisfy my cravings; but if I were facing a table full of delicious and rich food, I would choose a cup of good tea to cleanse my palate. It depends on the specific situation."

After thinking it over, she added, "However, I think your current viewpoint is very wrong. Tea and snacks are two different things, and they don't conflict. Of course, you can choose to drink tea while snacking; that would be a wonderful combination."

Liang Yizhi looked troubled: "...It might not be a good match."

Wu You smiled meaningfully and gave her a look: "Hey, you're using this as a metaphor for someone, aren't you?"

"Let me guess, could one of them be Gu Yinyan?"

When Liang Yizhi was caught red-handed, she immediately denied it: "...Don't make wild guesses."

"Of course I'm not just guessing," Wu You said confidently. "I already knew."

"You... you already knew something?" Liang Yizhi asked in surprise.

“Of course I know he’s interested in you. He takes such good care of you, anyone can see that, okay?” Wu You said. “Although I don’t know if he’s just my type or something else, I’m on Gu Yinyan’s side.”

Liang Yizhi picked up her chopsticks and put them down again.

"It's impossible for us."

"Why?"

"We've been friends for so long, don't you find it strange that we're suddenly getting together?"

Like flowers that appear on time. They already had familiar patterns and boundaries in their behavior, and suddenly breaking those would be difficult for her to adapt to.

Wu You comforted her, saying, "Yizhi, I've always felt that you shouldn't have so many burdens."

"Feelings are not something that can be planned and imagined again and again. They are like a flood or a beast; once they come, there is no escaping them."

-

Liang Yizhi spent the entire afternoon pondering Wu You's words.

She thought that after the argument, Gu Yinyan would probably give up his ways and stop picking her up. But when she came out of the concert hall after work, she saw his car again.

Gu Yinyan sat in the car and rolled down the window: "Get in."

Before Liang Yizhi could even refuse, Gu Yinyan interrupted her, saying, "It's cold outside, let's talk in the car."

Through the car window, Liang Yizhi immediately noticed that there was oden, her favorite food, in the cup holder between the driver and passenger seats. It seemed that she had bought it at a convenience store near the concert hall.

Liang Yizhi said, "You can go now. I have something to do after get off work today, so I won't be going home."

Where to?

"I have a dinner appointment with someone."

"I send you."

“No need,” Liang Yizhi said frankly. “I have an appointment with He Xintu today.”

Gu Yinyan didn't react much to these words, and simply hummed in agreement: "I'll take you there."

Liang Yizhi was stunned.

In her eyes, it was like throwing a powerful bomb, but the response was less than that of a small pebble thrown into the water.

"You...aren't angry?"

"Don't be angry."

“I said I’d give it to you, and I’ll only give it to you. I won’t interfere in your affairs, and you shouldn’t treat me like some kind of jinx.”

Gu Yinyan wanted to say something more, but his expression suggested he was afraid that saying too much would backfire. His complex thoughts ultimately condensed into a single, brief sentence:

"Just remember to let me know if anything happens."

Liang Yizhi understood. He was still worried about her, and feared that something might have happened to her without her telling him.

Thinking of this, she felt a little reluctant, but in the end she opened the car door and got in.

Upon arriving at the agreed-upon location, Gu Yinyan kept his word and left after dropping her off. She watched the car's taillights disappear at the intersection before turning and entering the restaurant.

Liang Yizhi arrived early, before He Xintu, and took her seat. He Xintu finally arrived about ten minutes later.

He sat down opposite her with a smile: "Sorry to keep you waiting. It's so cold outside today, how did you get here?"

"Take a taxi." Liang Yizhi wasn't telling the truth.

"Then you should have told me, and I would have come to pick you up."

Liang Yizhi thought to herself, "So many people want to pick me up lately." Luckily, He Xintu was just talking; otherwise, if the two of them ran into each other, it would definitely give her a headache.

There happened to be a menu in front of Liang Yizhi, so she pushed it over and said, "Take a look and see what you'd like to eat?"

After ordering, she and He Xintu chatted while waiting, sharing their recent updates. He Xintu is a very good conversationalist, and today he talked much more than Liang Yizhi.

He Xintu didn't mention the drinking incident from last time, which had embarrassed her. He spent most of the time talking about the preparations for his new store and some new wines he was thinking about developing.

The ease of not having to speak much during the conversation caused Liang Yizhi to drift off into a daze without realizing it.

Outside the window is a bustling night scene with heavy traffic.

Liang Yizhi suddenly realized that when Gu Yinyan was with her, was she also like this, always only focusing on sharing her own topics?

Does he get bored while listening? But his expression doesn't seem like he's daydreaming. And although Gu Yinyan always argues with her, he always helps her with her tasks.

...

The more I think about it, the further away it gets.

He Xintu, sitting across from her, noticed her gaze drifting towards the window and said, "You're a little quiet today. Are you too tired from work?"

"Ah—I'm sorry, maybe a little."

"It's okay, I experience this when I'm at work at night too."

He Xintu smiled faintly.

They chatted about trivial matters related to work and life, and only after they finished their meal and left the restaurant did they realize that it had started to drizzle outside.

Liang Yizhi frowned slightly and said softly, "Why is it raining?"

Liang Yizhi didn't particularly like rainy days, and she hated rainy days in winter even more. Winters in the south are damp and cold, and when it rains, the wind and chill penetrate straight to the bone.

Whenever she's in a bad mood, it always rains. This makes rainy days easily remind her of negative emotions.

"I wish it would snow," she thought.

There's hardly any snow here in winter; it might only snow once every few years. She's always envied people from the north since she was little.

He Xintu didn't notice her downcast mood, and just glanced at the rain and said, "It's alright, the rain isn't heavy, I'll take you."

They jogged to the car, got in, and Liang Yizhi asked He Xintu, "By the way, you said your family is from the north, does it snow a lot where you are?"

"There are quite a lot. But I don't really like snowy days."

"Why?"

"The roads are dirty and slippery when it snows, making it very inconvenient to go out. And if you slip and fall on the icy ground, it hurts terribly."

"All right."

Liang Yizhi suddenly felt disheartened. A snowy day was no different from a rainy day.

The car was driving on the road, and because of the rain, the road was a little congested. Liang Yizhi was turning her head to admire the rain scene, and her hand, which was placed on her thigh, was covered by another kind of warmth.

She realized it, but didn't turn around or say anything.

Liang Yizhi thought that Gu Yinyan had been picking her up and dropping her off every day recently, and she had ridden in Gu Yinyan's car for so many days, but he hadn't touched her hand.

No, no, why am I thinking about him again...

Liang Yizhi inwardly cursed herself for being so strange. When Gu Yinyan came, she hoped he wouldn't show up; now that he wasn't here, she kept thinking about him.

When they arrived at the entrance of the residential area, Liang Yizhi thanked He Xintu and was about to get out of the car when He Xintu said, "Don't go, sit for a while longer."

His hand lingered on the back of her hand, and he took it from her grasp.

Have you thought about me these past few days?

He Xintu's voice was as intimate as that of a couple deeply in love.

When Liang Yizhi heard this, her first reaction wasn't romance or cheesiness, but rather a bit of unease.

He Xintu looked her face up and down, then reached out and patted her head with a tender expression.

"I thought you would come to me on your own initiative, but you didn't call me even once."

In the scene before her, He Xintu was smiling at her, while behind him, raindrops pattered on the bed, blurring the darkness of the night.

Liang Yizhi suddenly felt that He Xintu was like a snowy day she was unfamiliar with.

When I'm far away, I associate him with romantic scenes and novel experiences. But when I'm closer, I keep thinking about how nice it was when it wasn't snowing.

She replied, "I've been a bit busy lately, and I was afraid of bothering you."

He Xintu just smiled, then suddenly leaned over and took something from the back seat: "A gift for you."

"What's this?"

"Try the wine I brewed when you get back. It should taste pretty good."

"Thank you." Liang Yizhi looked at the wine bottle in her hand and suddenly asked him.

"Mr. He, may I ask you something? What do you like about me?"

He Xintu seemed surprised that she would ask this question at this critical juncture.

He parted his lips and answered without much thought, "Does the reason matter? When we're together, isn't it enough to be happy? I don't like thinking about those rules and regulations; I just follow my feelings."

Liang Yizhi returned home with those words in mind.

At night, she lay in bed with her eyes open, the nightlight casting a halo of light through the lampshade on the ceiling. Wu You and He Xintu's words still echoed in her ears.

—Is it really unnecessary to think? Will following one's heart always lead to a good outcome?

...

She wanted to find an answer herself.