Birthday

Shao Linyin hasn't figured out what birthday gift to prepare for Tong Xiaolai yet, and the birthday is already tomorrow.

The installation of the mall's observation elevator was progressing very slowly. In order not to affect daytime business, the mall scheduled the installation after 10 p.m. and before 10 a.m.

But since it was not easy to ask them to work all night, they were given a full month to install the elevator. Installing a four-story observation elevator wasn't difficult, so they had plenty of time.

The elevator manufacturer's spare parts had just arrived at the site a few days ago, and they were unpacked today. As soon as the boxes were opened, Shao Linyin looked at the gleaming glass inside, which contrasted with the bright lights of the mall, creating a scene of pure cleanliness.

The first thing I thought of was his family’s smile.

As pure as Xiaolai.

He reached out and touched the glass, and suddenly knew what birthday gift to give Xiaolai.

After opening the box, counting all the accessories and confirming that there were no problems, he said goodbye to his master and left work.

I took the bus to a small wooden house by the sea and knocked on the door. The sign on the door read "Tingfeng Handicraft Workshop".

The person who opened the door was a young and beautiful girl. Shao Liyin smiled at her and said, "Sister Afeng, long time no see."

The girl saw him and recognized him at once. She was surprised at first: "Xiaoyin?" Then she looked around and cautiously pulled him into the house, "Come in and talk."

Shao Liyin looked around the room before she even sat down: "I haven't seen you in six years, Sister Feng, nothing has changed here."

A Feng poured him a glass of water and said kindly like an elder, "Isn't it better if you haven't changed? This way you can come to me anytime."

After that, he fell silent again, then looked up: "It's better not to come here. But speaking of which, why did you come here suddenly? There are still some unusual people hanging around here from time to time. It's not safe."

Speaking of this, Shao Liyin stood up and went directly to the operating table over there. She picked up some handicraft materials and looked at them: "Sister Feng, I want to make a birthday present for...for my lover."

A Feng: "! Xiaoyin is in love?" Then she stared at him with a smile on her face, "Yes, in the blink of an eye, Xiaoyin has grown so tall, and it's time for her to fall in love. My Xiaoyin is tall and handsome, and he and Aunt Qingxue..."

Afeng stopped talking, tilted his head and pursed his lips.

Shao Liyin smiled, pretending not to hear, and changed the subject, explaining why he was there: "I want to make one like this, using glass. Sister Afeng, can you help me take a look? How long will it take? His birthday is tomorrow."

On the paper was the idea that Shao Linyin had sketched out while on the bus. A Feng took a look and said, "It's possible, but if we make it now, it will take at least twenty hours, including the drying time. I'm not sure if we can make it in time."

Shao Liyin thought for a moment and said, "Sure, just teach me. I'll do it tonight and it will be ready tomorrow night."

Afeng didn't waste any more time and started preparing the materials. Shao Linyin took this opportunity to send a message to Tong Xiaolai.

[I have to work overtime tonight, so don't wait for me. Don't study too late at night and go to bed early.]

After thinking about it, I sent another one.

【Love you】

Then he called his master again and asked him to take a day off tomorrow so that he could work overtime in the next two days to catch up with the progress.

After waiting for a long time without any movement on the mobile phone information interface, he guessed that he was still doing the questions, so he put the phone in his pocket and began to prepare step by step according to the steps given by Afeng.

At eleven o'clock, he pushed Afeng in to rest and only asked her to tell him some things that should be paid attention to.

While waiting for the raw materials to melt, he took the carving knife and carved it bit by bit, carving it carefully. The light on the workbench was on all night, and next to him were pieces of broken and cracked scallop shells.

During the breaks, he kept looking at the temperature on the stove, paying attention to the melting of the raw materials.

It takes twenty hours to make one, which means there is no room for error...

He stared at the stove, then at the time clock on the table, not daring to blink...

It wasn't until seven o'clock in the evening of the next day that the thing was finally fully formed. Although it was not perfect, it still had the shape he wanted.

He stretched, took out his cell phone to check the time, and then saw the message Tong Xiaolai had sent him last night.

【Love you】

With just these two words, all the fatigue from not having rest for a day and a night was swept away, and a big smile appeared on his face.

Ah Feng looked at his appearance and said, "This is from your lover, right?"

Shao Linyin just smiled from ear to ear, picked out a satisfactory box from Afeng's shelf and packed it up.

When he was about to go out, Afeng walked around outside first, then came back and let him go to the bus stop. Before getting on the bus, Afeng also told him: "Don't come here again in the future. If you need anything, send me a message and I can send someone to deliver it to you."

Shao Liyin got in the car, looked at her and smiled: “I see, Sister Feng, this exception must be made by yourself, hehe.

Thank you, Sister Feng, go back now."

When he got downstairs, it was not yet nine o'clock. He thought Tong Xiaolai should not have come back yet. He always stayed at school until the last bus, and it would take an hour on the bus to get back, and he would get home after eleven o'clock.

He still had that broken phone, which was turned off. He went home, took a shower, charged his phone, and then ordered a small cake on his phone. When the cake arrived, Xiaolai came back.

Absolutely perfect.

But he didn't expect that when he opened the door, Tong Xiaolai was standing there. He was stunned for a moment, and then he remembered something. He reached out to smooth his hair which was a little frizzy after staying up all night, and rubbed his eyes which seemed a little swollen.

Then he smiled awkwardly: "Xiaolai, why are you back so early today?"

Before he could finish laughing, he noticed that Tong Xiaolai's eyes were fixed on him, his expression somewhat gloomy. "When you worked overtime all night before, didn't you always get a day off the next day? Your company is exploiting the labor force by doing this, which is a violation of the labor law."

As he said that, he took out his cell phone and prepared to contact Sister Chen first, and then contact the Labor Bureau.

Shao Linyin hurriedly grabbed him: "Hey, smile~"

He grabbed the phone, turned it off, and threw it on the bed beside him. "Don't be impulsive. This is my own business. No one is exploiting me."

As he said that, he pulled Tong Xiaolai to sit down and said, "Just sit there and read a book. Wait for me to come out of the shower, okay?" After thinking about it, he seemed a little worried again. He took the phone on the bed and went into the bathroom together, putting the phone on a shelf aside where it would not get wet.

He looked at Tong Xiaolai's phone and smiled helplessly. How did it turn out like this? The cake was gone. If he had known earlier, he would have ordered it before the phone turned off.

After taking a shower, Tong Xiaolai was still working on his homework at the desk. He sat quietly beside him, drying his hair, waiting for Xiaolai to finish.

Hearing the sound of the test paper being folded, he looked up and saw Tong Xiaolai standing up with no intention of doing anything else.

"Not doing it anymore?" He looked at the time. It was just ten o'clock, which was a very early time for both of them.

Tong Xiaolai came up to him, took the towel from his hand and helped wipe his hair: "No more. You've been up all day and night, you need to rest early."

Shao Liyin smiled, and put her arms around Tong Xiaolai's neck, pulling him down, tilting his neck up, and kissing him, then she smiled softly: "Xiaolai, happy sixteenth birthday."

Tong Xiaolai was still holding the towel in her hand. She was distracted by his series of actions and her eyes were a little dazed until a box was handed to her.

He had never celebrated his birthday. The birthdays of the children in the orphanage were all determined by the director, starting from the day they entered the orphanage. Shao Liyin had asked him about this once before, when he registered his household.

But he had never celebrated his birthday, and he never thought that Shao Linyin would think of celebrating his birthday.

He was still in a daze when Shao Liyin's lips gently left his and she took the gift box beside her: "This is your birthday present. See if you like it."

Tong Xiaolai opened the gift box. Inside the box lay a crystal clear wind chime. The bottom of the wind chime was sealed, and inside were two orange scallops tied together with a bow. When it was shaken gently, the wind chime made a crisp tinkling sound.

There seemed to be something carved into the inside of the scallop, but no matter how hard he shook it, he couldn't see it clearly, it was well hidden. He couldn't get it out, a completely sealed wind chime, and he had no idea how the shell had been put in there.

Everything is fine, except for the wind chime... I can only tell that it is a wind chime by guessing.

He swayed again, listening to the clear ringing sound, which stirred his heart layer by layer.

"Do you like it?" Shao Linyin asked cautiously.

Tong Xiaolai hung the wind chime on the wall right in front of his desk, where he could see it when he got tired of doing his homework.

"Brother Li, what's engraved on the scallop?"

Before Shao Liyin could speak, her face suddenly flushed. She then lowered her head and twisted the strap of Tong Xiaolai's sweatpants: "I won't tell you, you guess it yourself."

He thought about it, but couldn't come up with an answer, so he thought of teasing Brother Li: "If I break it, will I be able to take it out and see it?"

"You dare!" Shao Linyin suddenly raised his head.

He looked at the pair of eyes that were bloodshot from staying up all night, and heartbrokenly held Shao Linyin in his arms: "No. I will never break it. This is something more precious than my life."

"Pooh, pooh, pooh! Nothing is more precious than yourself, do you know that?" Shao Linyin looked up at him and covered his lips with her hand.

Tong Xiaolai reached out and grabbed his hand, brought it to her lips, kissed it, and asked softly, "Did you stay up all night to make this?"

"I don't have that ability, I bought it."

Tong Xiaolai laughed: "The merchant's business will probably be very bad. No one will buy from you except you."

Shao Linyin's face darkened: "If you don't like it, give it back to me!" He reached out to grab it.

Tong Xiaolai quickly put it behind his back and said, "Who said I don't like it? I just said it's ugly."

"Tong Xiaolai, tell me again who is ugly and how ugly they are."

"As ugly as Shao Liyin."

“…Give me back the wind chime.”

"What about Shao Liyin?"

"...Go away, I'm sleepy."

…………

"Brother Li..."

"Um?"

"Next time it's your birthday, we'll have cake."