The End of Youth

The bell for the final English exam pierced the classroom sharply, like a knife, cleanly severing everyone's tense nerves.

Xu Ying's pen paused slightly on the answer sheet, still checking one of the cloze test options in the last second. It wasn't until the proctor passed by and gently tapped her desk that she snapped out of her daze and released her grip, her knuckles white from the force.

The classroom erupted instantly. Some threw their test papers at the ceiling, others buried their faces in their desks and wailed, and a boy in the back row jumped onto his desk and tore up his study materials, sending pieces of paper fluttering down like snowflakes.

Xu Ying didn't move. She just sat quietly, looking at the dazzling sunlight outside the window and listening to the incessant chirping of cicadas.

Three years have passed just like that.

She bent down to pack her pencil case, her movements slow and deliberate, as if she were stalling for time. There were still teeth marks on the eraser, from when she bit it nervously before last week's mock exam; the cap of the ballpoint pen was a little loose and always fell to the ground with a "click," and Zongheng would always bend down to pick it up for her and flick her forehead.

Thinking of him, Xu Ying's fingertips unconsciously traced the marks on the pen.

Suddenly, a shadow fell, and a slender hand landed on her desk. The hand had distinct knuckles, and on the wrist was a black mechanical watch—the strap was a bit old, a birthday gift she had given him last year.

What are you spacing out for?

Zong Heng's voice came from above, carrying a familiar laziness and a hint of barely perceptible gentleness.

Xu Ying looked up and met his dark eyes. His school uniform collar was open, revealing a faint scar on his collarbone—a mark left last semester when he shielded her from a flying basketball. Blood had flowed down his neck then, but he had nonchalantly wiped it away and said, "Why are you crying? You're not going to die."

"How did the exam go?" she asked softly, her voice a little hoarse.

Zong Heng scoffed, picked up her schoolbag and slung it over his shoulder: "I could get into a top school with my eyes closed."

His fingers brushed against her shoulder, the warmth seeping through the thin fabric of her school uniform. Xu Ying instinctively shrank back, but then she heard him suddenly lean closer, his warm breath brushing against her earlobe—

Don't go home tonight.

Outside the classroom, chaos reigned. Some people were hugging each other, crying and laughing, while others were frantically searching for autographs in their yearbooks. Xu Ying stumbled slightly from the jostling, and Zong Heng immediately reached out and caught her around the waist, pulling her closer to him.

"Watch where you're going." He frowned, his tone fierce, but his palm held her steadily.

Xu Ying smelled a faint minty scent on him, mixed with the aroma of sun-dried cotton. She suddenly remembered last week's evening self-study session, when he also suddenly appeared at the back door of her classroom, carrying a bag of iced lemon tea, which caused all the girls in the class to whisper among themselves.

"Zong Heng!" A boy pounced on him from behind and hooked his arm around his neck. "Going to an internet cafe to stay up all night after the exam? I want to fight you ten times!"

Without turning his head, Zong Heng gave him the middle finger: "Get lost, I have an appointment."

The boy exaggeratedly clutched his chest: "You're prioritizing your girlfriend over your friends!"

His gaze lingered on Xu Ying with an ambiguous look.

Xu Ying's ears burned, and she quickened her pace, but Zong Heng grabbed her wrist.

"Why are you running?" He raised an eyebrow. "Are you shy?"

She glared at him, but he laughed even more unrestrainedly in return. Sunlight streamed through the glass windows of the corridor, casting dappled golden light on his eyelashes.

The lockers in front of Class 7 of Senior Three were crowded with people. Xu Ying squatted down to unlock them and found that they were filled with test papers and reference books. On top of them was a pink-covered notebook—her collection of math mistakes, with annotations written in red pen by Zong Heng on every page.

"You don't want any of these?" she asked softly.

Zong Heng leaned against the cabinet next to him, casually flipping through a physics book: "Why keep it? To remind me of someone?"

Xu Ying didn't reply, but carefully stuffed the notebook into her schoolbag.

"Tsk, what a hassle." Zong Heng suddenly snatched her schoolbag, emptied out all the messy things inside, and then stuffed his school uniform jacket into it, "To lighten your load."

"Zong Heng!" Xu Ying tried to grab it, but he dodged her.

He braced himself against the cabinet door above her head with one hand, looking down at her:

"Xu Ying".

"Um?"

Happy graduation.

His voice was very soft, almost drowned out by the surrounding noise. But Xu Ying heard it and saw the fleeting emotion in his eyes.

At that moment, she suddenly felt like crying.

On their way home from school, they walked slowly. The setting sun cast long shadows of the two of them. Zong Heng kicked at the pebbles on the roadside, while Xu Ying looked down and counted the cracks in the paving stones.

"Hey." Zong Heng suddenly stopped. "Look up."

Xu Ying looked at him in confusion, only to see him raise his phone and point the camera at her.

"Smile."

Before she could react, he put his arm around her shoulder. The phone clicked, freezing the moment—her slightly widened eyes, his smug smile, and the fiery sunset behind them.

"Delete it!" Xu Ying tried to grab the phone. "My expression was so ugly!"

Zong Heng held his phone up high and said with a wicked grin, "I won't delete it, I'm going to set it as my screensaver."

As they were playfully teasing each other, his fingertips brushed against her cheek, and they both froze.

The cicadas suddenly started chirping very loudly.

When they parted at the school gate, Zongheng returned her schoolbag: "I'll pick you up at seven o'clock tonight."

Xu Ying nodded and turned to leave, but he called her back.

"Xu Ying".

She turned around.

The boy stood in the sunset, his school uniform jacket draped over his shoulders, his smile both exuberant and gentle: "Don't forget, don't even think about escaping tonight."

The wind swept through the treetops, and the cicadas sang like a tidal wave.

Xu Ying knew that some things could never be the same again.

At seven o'clock in the evening, the afterglow of the setting sun slanted through the alley, casting dappled light and shadow on the bluestone slabs. Xu Ying followed behind Zong Heng, passing through the noisy crowd and turning into a narrow alley.

"Are you sure there's a hot pot restaurant here?" she asked softly, her fingers unconsciously tugging at the strap of her backpack.

Zong Heng glanced back at her, a slight smirk playing on his lips: "Afraid I'll sell you off?"

"Who's afraid?" Xu Ying retorted stubbornly, but still quickened her pace, shortening the distance between them.

At the end of the alley, a faded wooden sign hangs on the mottled brick wall—the four characters "Lao Liu Hot Pot" are yellowed by years of cooking fumes. Pushing open the door, a rich aroma of beef tallow wafts out, mixed with the numbing sensation of Sichuan peppercorns and the spiciness of chili peppers, instantly whetting one's appetite.

The proprietress, a slightly plump woman in her fifties, was carrying a copper pot to the next table. When she looked up and saw them, her eyes immediately narrowed into slits with a smile: "Oh, Xiao Zong is here! This is... your girlfriend?"

Zong Heng didn't deny it, and casually pulled out a chair: "Same as always, extra spicy."

Xu Ying's ears burned, and she lowered her head, pretending to adjust her skirt.

The copper pot was quickly brought out, its bright red broth bubbling and covered with a dense layer of Sichuan peppercorns and dried chilies. Zong Heng removed the utensils, rinsed them with hot water, and then pushed them towards her.

"Can you handle spicy food?" Xu Ying asked hesitantly. She remembered that at the last class dinner, he hardly touched the spicy hot pot.

Zong Heng was pouring chilled plum juice when he heard this and raised an eyebrow: "What, worried about me?"

"Who's worried about you!" she retorted immediately, but seeing the smile in his eyes, she realized she had been tricked again and angrily kicked him lightly under the table.

The proprietress brought over complimentary ice jelly, a crystal-clear jelly topped with hawthorn slices and raisins, and drizzled with brown sugar syrup. Zong Heng pushed it directly in front of Xu Ying: "It'll cool you down from the spiciness, eat it first."

She scooped up a spoonful, the sweet, cool taste sliding down her throat. When she looked up, she found Zong Heng staring at her, his gaze so focused that it made her heart skip a beat.

"What are you looking at..."

"You have brown sugar on your lips." He suddenly reached out and gently wiped her lips with his thumb.

That small patch of skin immediately caught fire.

The tripe was dipped in the boiling soup seven or eight times, and Zong Heng piled it all into her bowl, making a small mountain.

"I really can't finish it all," Xu Ying said helplessly.

"You've lost weight recently." He frowned. "Did you skip lunch during the two days of the college entrance exam?"

She froze. She had indeed vomited from nervousness after the last exam, but she hadn't expected him to notice.

The steam from the hot pot blurred her vision. Xu Ying lowered her head and bit into the piece of tripe. The spiciness instantly rushed into her nostrils, making her eyes red.

“Xu Ying.” Zong Heng suddenly put down his chopsticks.

"Um?"

"Come with me."

She looked up, still biting her chopsticks.

Zong Heng's eyes were more serious than ever before: "My dad has arranged for me to go abroad, my flight is tomorrow." He tugged at the corners of his mouth, revealing a smile that wasn't quite a smile, "But if you say 'okay,' I'll buy tickets and take you to Yunnan right now."

The hot pot was bubbling away, and the sounds of drinking games from the next table came and went. Xu Ying noticed the bulging veins on the back of his hand—he was nervous.

"Are you... serious?" Her voice was hoarseer than I expected.

Zong Heng immediately pulled out his phone, which displayed two flight booking pages: "USA, flight at 11 AM tomorrow."

Xu Ying's fingertips unconsciously traced circles on the tablecloth.

"Your dad's side..."

"Ignore him." Zong Heng sneered. "What else can the old man do besides cut off my financial support?"

The proprietress came to add more soup, her gaze lingering suggestively between the two. Once they were a distance away, Xu Ying lowered her voice: "What about university? Your offer..."

"Where you study doesn't matter." He suddenly grabbed her hand, which was resting on the table. "Xu Ying, just answer me—are you willing?"

His palms were hot and calloused, tightly enveloping her fingers.

At that moment, Xu Ying almost blurted out "Okay".

But then her mother's words from yesterday flashed through her mind: "Xiaoying, Zongheng's family is from a different world than ours..."

The spiciness choked her, causing her to cough suddenly and tears streamed down her face. Zong Heng immediately handed her some plum juice and gently patted her back.

After catching her breath, Xu Ying took a deep breath: "We can't run away."

Zong Heng's expression instantly turned cold: "Are you scared?"

"I'm afraid you'll regret it!" Her voice trembled. "That's your future, your family... If you act impulsively now, you'll hate me later."

"Bullshit!" He stood up abruptly, the chair scraping against the floor with a screeching sound.

The customers at the next table all turned to look. The proprietress peeked out, and Zong Heng threw down two banknotes, grabbed Xu Ying, and headed out.

The streetlights in the alley were dim. He pressed her against the brick wall, his breathing heavy: "What's the point of having a future without you?"

Xu Ying looked up at him. There was anger in the boy's eyes, but something deeper, like a whirlpool surging beneath the red broth of a hot pot.

"Zong Heng..."

The next second, he lowered his head and kissed her.

The kiss carried the spiciness of butter, the sweet bitterness of plum juice, and the reckless despair of youth. Xu Ying tasted the salty and bitter flavor, unable to distinguish whose tears they were.

The sound of a shutter closing came from afar. Zong Heng finally released her, their foreheads touching. "Wait for me," he said in a hoarse voice. "At most five years. I will definitely come back to marry you."

Xu Ying wanted to say yes, but her throat felt like it was blocked by chili peppers, so she could only nod.

Under the streetlights, she saw Zong Heng smile, a smile more scorching than the spiciest chili oil in a hot pot restaurant.

At 2:17 a.m., a bolt of lightning ripped through the night sky, followed by a deafening clap of thunder that shook the windows.

Xu Ying sat up abruptly in bed, a thin layer of sweat on her forehead. She had just had a nightmare—Zong Heng stood at the airport security checkpoint, disappearing into the crowd without looking back, no matter how much she called out to him, he didn't turn around.

The phone on the bedside table suddenly lit up, its glaring white light standing out starkly in the darkness.

"Go downstairs."

Just two short words, from that familiar number.

Her heart clenched, and her fingers almost dropped her phone. Outside, the rain poured down, the raindrops pattering against the glass. What was he planning to do so late?

Xu Ying didn't even have time to put on her slippers; she grabbed her coat and ran outside. The motion-sensor lights in the hallway turned on one by one with her footsteps, then turned off one by one behind her.

The moment she pushed open the unit door, cold rain mixed with wind rushed towards her. She squinted and saw a familiar figure under the streetlight.

Zong Heng stood in the torrential rain, his black T-shirt soaked through and clinging to his body, his hair disheveled and dripping with water. He had his head down, clutching something in his hand, his knuckles white.

"Are you crazy?!" Xu Ying rushed into the rain, her pajamas immediately soaked through. "What are you doing standing here in this heavy rain?!"

He looked up, his face deathly pale, but his eyes were surprisingly bright.

I want to see you.

Those four simple words made Xu Ying feel like something was blocking her throat.

Zong Heng pulled her into his arms with such force that she could barely breathe. His heart was pounding, rapid and heavy, and the sound traveled to her chest through her soaked clothes.

"I'm leaving tomorrow." His voice was hoarse, trembling in a way she had never heard before.

Xu Ying clung tightly to the back of his clothes, rain streaming down her cheeks, indistinguishable between rain and tears.

"I know."

Zong Heng suddenly cupped her face and kissed her in the pouring rain. The kiss was urgent and fierce, carrying the salty taste of rain and the burning despair of a young man. His teeth struck her lips, the metallic taste of blood spreading in her mouth, yet neither of them wanted to let go.

A car headlight swept by in the distance, illuminating the intertwined figures of the two, before quickly disappearing into the rain.

Zong Heng finally released her and took out a velvet box that was wet from the rain from his pocket.

"I was planning to give it to you during my graduation trip." He opened the box, inside was a thin silver chain with a small pear-shaped pendant. "I can't wait any longer."

Xu Ying took the necklace, her fingertips touching the raised engravings on the back of the pendant. In the dim light of the streetlamp, she could make out the small print—

XY&ZH 06.08

It was the date of their college entrance examination.

"Xu Ying." Zong Heng suddenly knelt on one knee, raindrops dripping down his chin. "Wait for me to come back, and marry me."

Her tears finally broke free.

The blinding headlights suddenly illuminated the entire alley. A black sedan silently pulled up to the side of the road, and two men in suits walked over, holding umbrellas.

"Young Master, it's time."

Zong Heng's expression instantly turned cold. He stood up and shielded Xu Ying behind him: "Go back and wait."

“The master has ordered that we must depart now.” One of the men glanced at his watch. “He insists that we must keep a close watch on you.”

Xu Ying felt Zong Heng's arm muscles tense. She gently tugged at his sleeve: "Go."

Zong Heng turned around abruptly and cupped her face in his hands: "Xu Ying, listen to me." His eyes shone frighteningly bright in the rainy night, "Five years, at most no years, I will definitely come back."

Rain dripped from his eyelashes onto her face, as hot as tears.

"What if..." her voice trembled, "...what if you don't come back?"

Zong Heng twitched the corners of his mouth, revealing that roguish smile she was familiar with: "Then wait until I find you." He took the necklace from her hand and put it on her wrist himself. "Wear it, don't take it off."

The moment the cold silver chain touched her skin, Xu Ying shivered.

The man in black urged her again. Zong Heng gave her one last hug and whispered three words in her ear.

Then he turned and walked towards the black car, his back as straight as a drawn sword.

Xu Ying stood there, watching the car lights gradually disappear into the distance and finally vanish into the rain.

She touched the necklace around her neck, and then remembered his last words—

"Wait for me to marry you."

Xu Ying didn't know how she got home. She stood in the bathroom, the hot water washing over her cold body, but she couldn't warm up.

In the mirror, the silver chain shimmered faintly at her collarbone. She gently grasped the pendant and discovered a small mechanism inside—pressing the top of the pear-shaped pendant revealed a miniature photograph.

It's a photo of them at their graduation ceremony. Zong Heng has his arm around her shoulder, smiling smugly and proudly.

Outside the window, the downpour gradually subsided.

It was almost dawn.

The college entrance examination is over.

Youth has come to an end.