The camphor trees on campus gradually turned from lush green to yellow, and withered leaves fell all over the ground. Soon it was winter again. This year, a rare heavy snow fell, covering the ground in a large expanse of white. The whole city was covered in silver and extremely quiet.

During the winter vacation, Su Xun went back to Huaicheng with his family. His grandmother's health had not been good in the past two years, and his mother had been going back more often. This time, they planned to stay in Huaicheng for a while longer. However, Su Mu was a senior in high school this year, and the school only gave him a week off, so he did not come along.

"Mom, how long do you plan to stay at your place this time?"

“Your grandmother is not in good health, and I haven’t been around her for the past few years. I may have to spend more time with her this time.”

"Is Su Mu alright at home alone?" In Su Xun's mind, Su Mu was just a child who couldn't take care of himself and spent all his time studying.

Her relatives used to say that she was a bookworm who only knew how to study, but Su Mu was even more of a bookworm than her. Nothing except physics could arouse his interest.

“He’s actually quite good at taking care of himself, you don’t know that since you’re often not home.” She is quite at ease with both of her children. Su Mu went through a lot of hardship with her in the past few years and is more sensible than most children. He’s just too obsessed with physics, spending all his time engrossed in books, as if he lives in his own world.

"And your Uncle He will also take care of things on New Year's Day."

Speaking of He Chengzheng, Su Xun had no idea what the two of them were up to. She thought that her mother would accept He Chengzheng after her divorce from her father, but it had been a year and a half and there had been no progress between them.

She sighed silently.

The two got off the high-speed train and boarded a bus back to the small town where the grandmother lived.

The scenery along the way changed, and red lanterns were hung on both sides of the road, creating a festive atmosphere. No matter how the outside world changed, this small town always seemed as peaceful as I remembered.

My maternal grandmother and uncle's family live in an ordinary residential area, which is a newly built residential area in recent years, and the surrounding area is quite convenient.

Lunar New Year's Eve is just two days away, and the family is preparing for the holiday. My aunt and cousin Chen Ying went out early this morning to buy things needed for the New Year, leaving only my uncle and grandmother at home.

Grandma sat on the sofa in the living room, and her complexion was indeed much worse than it had been two years ago.

Su Xun spent the whole afternoon talking with her grandmother. The two chatted and laughed in the living room, while her uncle and mother were busy in the kitchen, preparing a table full of dishes.

Around 5 p.m., my aunt and cousin came back carrying large and small bags, putting Spring Festival couplets, candies and other items on the storage cabinet.

Su Xun went out to meet her and met Chen Ying's strange gaze. Fortunately, she was used to it. Every time she came, her cousin would disapprove of her expression, but so what? She couldn't do anything about it.

She also disliked her sarcastic cousin and tried to speak as little as possible.

Just then, her uncle called everyone over for dinner, and Su Xun helped her grandmother sit down at the table.

"I heard Yingying has a boyfriend outside?" Grandma looked at Zhang Ying, who was fighting with Su Xun for a piece of chicken.

Seeing that Zhang Ying was determined to make things difficult for him, Su Xun gave up on the piece of chicken that had almost no bones and instead picked up another plate of vegetables.

When Zhang Ying heard her grandmother suddenly bring up this matter, she put down her chopsticks, looked a little shy, and slowly nodded, a hint of unease appearing on her face.

She had a crush on the older boy next door since she was little, the most handsome boy in their generation, named Lu Yufeng. He went to university in another city a few years ago, graduated last year and returned to Huaicheng, where he now works as a game developer. She confessed her feelings to Lu Yufeng a few years ago but was rejected, only winning him over at the end of the year.

In recent years, she has learned to dress up and has become much prettier. She has also successfully completed her apprenticeship at the hair salon and will be becoming the branch manager this year. She is living a good life and has now found an excellent boyfriend, so she can't help but feel a little proud.

“It’s that kid from the Lu family who used to live next door,” Auntie said at the right moment, her tone full of pride.

"You mean Yufeng? He's quite good. I've always thought he was a good kid since he was little. I heard he works for a big company now?" Grandma nodded.

"Yes, Yingying said that the annual salary is that much." Auntie held up a number, successfully attracting the attention of the others at the table.

Su Xun had a vague impression of Lu Yufeng; they had played together when they were young. He was indeed a pretty good person, and it seemed he was doing well now. Zhang Ying had liked him since childhood, and it would be great if they could get together.

"Su Xun, your boyfriend is from here too, right? Let us meet him sometime." Chen Ying couldn't hide her smugness. Su Xun said two years ago that her boyfriend was her classmate, but now he's just a poor student at best. How can he compare to Lu Yufeng? She always liked to compete with Su Xun, and now she could finally hold her head high.

Su Xun naturally sensed a hint of provocation and felt quite helpless. This cousin of hers was not a bad person, but she liked to compare herself to her in everything and hadn't made any progress over the years.

Can't you just shut up for a minute?!

"You always avoid talking about him, have you broken up with him?"

"Yingying, don't talk nonsense." Grandma spoke up from the side, full of disapproval. Su Xun had just been talking to her about school in the living room.

"Looks like I guessed right." Chen Ying muttered under her breath after being scolded.

"Yingying, you don't need to worry about my Su Xun's affairs. I, as his mother, will take care of them." Su's mother had always thought that Chen Ying was arrogant and proud, so she didn't take her seriously. Now that she was saying things that were getting more and more outrageous, she couldn't help but speak up.

Su Xun tugged at her mother's sleeve, signaling her to calm down.

"He's doing well, and we're doing well now," Su Xun explained vaguely, really not wanting to compare herself to Chen Ying in this kind of thing; it was really boring.

"Congratulations on finding such a great boyfriend, cousin."

Hearing Su Xun express his envy, Chen Ying finally quieted down, snorted through her nose, and started eating with her chopsticks.

When she reached out with her chopsticks to pick up the piece of chicken she had just been eyeing, she found it was gone. Turning her head, she saw Su Xun slowly taking a bite of a piece of chicken.

That's the same piece we just saw.

Su Xun took a bite and shook his chopsticks, thinking, "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

Chen Ying glared at Su Xun and angrily ate a big mouthful of white rice.

My cousin is such a fun person, and quite cute too. It would be even better if she didn't always go against her own wishes.

She returned to her room, where her phone already displayed several unread messages, all sent by Tang Shi.

"Su Xun, are you back yet?"

“Let’s go out for a meal. Let’s invite Pu Xiaochuan along. You and Pu Xiaochuan haven’t seen each other for years.”

A series of matching emojis followed, which is quite in line with Tang Shi's personality.

When Su Xun saw the name Pu Xiaochuan, he realized that he hadn't seen him in a long time. They had only added each other as friends, but because they were both busy, they rarely chatted.

She thought about it for a moment and then agreed.