Ms. Fang Li has already retired, and this trip was specifically to visit Zhan Chunlan and Wang Wenchuan. Ms. Fang Li's retirement life should have been spent tending to flowers and plants in her courtyard in Haicheng, chatting and drinking tea with her neighbors. But when she learned that Zhan Chunlan would be interning at the Ministry of Foreign Trade during the summer vacation and wouldn't be able to return to Haicheng, she became somewhat restless.

Seeing Wang Wenfeng walking his dog to work every day, she couldn't help but feel annoyed: "Chunlan is working hard in Beijing, how can you be so leisurely in Haicheng?"

"Mom, I just finished surgery." Wang Wenfeng said wearily, holding Zhan Xiaoman's hand. Zhan Xiaoman rushed excitedly towards the door, not wanting to wait even a second longer: "I work very hard too. I haven't even had a sip of water since I got back, and now I have to take Zhan Xiaoman out. Is this considered leisurely?"

Looking at her tired son, Ms. Fang felt a little guilty, as she hadn't noticed earlier: "Well, you've had a hard time. I'll go to the capital to see Chunlan."

“Mom, Chunlan has just started her internship at the Foreign Trade Department, and it will definitely be very hard for her. If you go now, she will have to take care of you. Should we wait until her internship is over, and then I will go with you?”

Zhan Xiaoman couldn't wait any longer and dragged Wang Wenfeng out. Ms. Fang Li chased after them to the door before she could barely finish listening: "Fine, I'll wait for you then."

Fang Li was picking vegetables when she suddenly threw them into the bowl, her voice filled with annoyance: "Ugh!! This brat has confused me again! Who said I needed Chunlan to take care of me? It was clearly me who was going to take care of Chunlan!"

After waiting until the end of August, Ms. Fang Li urged Wang Wenfeng to come to Beijing.

Ms. Fang Li stayed with Zhan Chunlan in Beijing until the start of the school year. She rented a room outside and prepared all kinds of food for Zhan Chunlan every day, such as braised pork chops from Haicheng, spicy chicken cubes from Jiangcheng, twice-cooked pork, etc. She made everything that Zhan Chunlan liked to eat. In just a few days, she helped Zhan Chunlan regain the cheek fat that had disappeared.

When she started school, Ms. Fang gently pinched her cheek and carefully instructed her: "Even if you have to study, you can't forget about your health. Health is the foundation of everything. Without health, no matter how much you study, it's useless, understand?"

Zhan Chunlan nodded somewhat reluctantly. When did she become so "delicate"? Back in Jiangcheng, she didn't feel bitter washing clothes with cold water in the dead of winter, but now she would feel attached to a word of concern.

Sure enough, once a person has experienced warmth, it is difficult for them to endure the cold again. She even felt that she had become delicate and was not like Zhan Chunlan in Jiangcheng at all.

Meanwhile, on the northbound train, Fang Li was carefully organizing the gifts she was bringing for her youngest son. Besides local specialties, there was a thick photo album filled with pictures taken in Beijing—a group photo of the three of them in front of Tiananmen Square was meticulously pasted on the first page, and on the back was her elegant handwriting: "August 1979, Beijing."

She specially washed an extra sheet and left it for Zhan Chunlan.

Wang Wenfeng, who returned south, has already returned to his post at Haicheng Hospital. During breaks between surgeries, he would stand by the window of the duty room for a while, recalling the image of Zhan Chunlan standing on the platform when they parted—her white shirt fluttering gently in the wind, her smile carrying the brightness unique to their age, a mixture of ideals and tenderness.

Such longing is not bitter. On the contrary, it is like a pot of tea that needs to be savored slowly, quietly settling into a richer flavor amidst our busy days and nights.

They were indeed separated most of the time. From their first meeting, she was a fleeting visitor, and he was a guest from afar; later, she was transferred to Haicheng, and the two had a brief period of time together; but this didn't last long, as she worked in Haicheng while he went to Beijing to study; later, she went north to pursue her studies while he stayed at his post; now, she is beginning to realize her ambitions in Beijing, while he is honing his medical skills in Haicheng.

But it is precisely this distance that makes each reunion all the more precious—those few moments together are like stretched-out movie shots, each frame etched into memory: strolling side by side beneath the red walls of the Forbidden City, a cup of hot tea handed to you in a restaurant, a hesitant farewell at the train station platform...

Busyness became their most tender unspoken understanding. While Zhan Chunlan was researching international trade rules at university, Wang Wenfeng was racing against time at the operating table. Occasionally, she would receive a sincere and brief letter from him:

"The orchids at home are growing very vigorously. The old flowerpots can no longer hold their thick roots. The plump white roots are bursting out of the pots, reminding me that it's time to repot them."

Three surgeries were completed today, all successfully. From your letter, I know you've had a lot to gain lately, and I wonder how much effort you've put into them. Take good care of yourself.

Every day, Zhan Xiaoman would squat by the door for a long time until dark. Only after I told it that its mother hadn't come back that day would it slowly move back to its bed. It missed you so much!

There were no sweet words, but they reassured her more than any love confession. Even the simple phrase "I miss you" had to be uttered by Zhan Xiaoman, which made Zhan Chunlan both amused and exasperated.

Such a relationship may not conform to people's romantic imagination of "love", but it is just right for two independent and rich souls - striving forward on their own paths, and giving each other the most steadfast support when they meet.

After reading the letter, Zhan Chunlan smiled slightly and began organizing her internship report. After all, as Wang Wenfeng wrote in his last letter: "We are all striving for a better tomorrow, and that in itself is the most touching companionship."

Separated by north and south, each goes their own way. Having chosen the distant horizon, one should only focus on braving wind and rain—and knowing that in another city, someone else is also striving for their ideals, this tacit understanding surpasses countless days and nights of companionship.

In Beijing before the start of the school year, the first signs of autumn were already visible.

Holding a brand-new pair of jeans and a digital watch, Zhan Chunlan read the letters from Li Xiuxiu and Fan Hongying, and the corners of her mouth unconsciously turned up.

In their letter, the two recounted their experiences in Guangcheng in detail and vividly described their experiences setting up a stall in Jiangcheng.

On the letter, Li Xiuxiu's neat handwriting leaped with excitement: "Chunlan, you didn't see it! We just stood in front of the stall in jeans, and we didn't even need to shout! Lots of girls saw us from afar and came over to ask the prices."

In another letter, Fan Hongying detailed the data from her stall: "Fifty pairs of jeans sold out in three days, and digital watches were even more in demand. However, girls would have to come up with a legitimate reason to buy jeans, but men would buy digital watches without batting an eye. Even 'good men' who usually hand over their salaries could still afford to buy a digital watch."

“Xiuxiu’s father-in-law specially made a folding shelf, and her mother-in-law helps us take care of the children every day; Hongying’s husband comes to help pack up the stall after get off work, and her mother even brings us meals.” Reading these details, Zhan Chunlan was genuinely happy for her two good friends.

Although both of them were pampered and spoiled at home, things inevitably change after marriage and having children. Now, reading their descriptions in the letter, she realized that even after marriage and children, both her family and her husband's family fully supported their decision and took good care of them, which put her at ease.

What pleased Zhan Chunlan the most was that her two friends were not blinded by their initial success.

Enclosed with the letter was a notebook, which contained neat records of the types of goods, prices, and sales information in various markets in Jiangcheng:

"Xinhua Road Market mainly sells clothing, but the styles are outdated; the Workers' Cultural Palace Night Market sells small appliances well, but the supply is limited; Jianghan Road Pedestrian Street has high foot traffic and is suitable for selling high-end goods..."

Fan Hongying even summarized on the last page: "What Jiangcheng market currently lacks are fashionable and affordable goods. Guangcheng has a great advantage in clothing and small appliances, but it needs to solve the problems of transportation and inventory."

As Zhan Chunlan stroked the notebook, she seemed to see her two friends wandering through the streets and alleys of Jiangcheng. They were not only highly educated college students, but they had also learned to examine the market with a professional eye.