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Having decided to head towards the girls' dormitory, knowing it would be as deserted as a morgue, I hesitated, lingering there. Just then, I heard a voice call out, "Wen Yu—"

Someone was calling her name. Ye Wenyu looked up happily, but when she saw Jiang Zhiming walking towards her with a smile, her smile froze instantly.

It would be best if someone cared about her, but if that person was Jiang Zhiming, then she would rather no one care about her.

A light snow began to fall from the sky. Ye Wenyu was wearing a black down jacket and a red scarf. Her thick, black hair was parted in two and fell loosely over her shoulders. Her small face shone brightly against the leaden sky, but there was no smile on her face, and her dark eyebrows were slightly furrowed.

Looking at Ye Wenyu, Jiang Zhiming felt she was like a little girl from a fairy tale, so beautiful and so lovable. A throbbing pain gripped his heart. His hands were heavy with bags, which seemed to pull his arms downwards. He remembered the Buddha's words: the most precious things in life are what we cannot obtain and what we have lost. Ye Wenyu was what he could not have.

Today, on the eve of the Lunar New Year, he and Lin Tingyue ate at a Western restaurant before returning home. With Lin Tingyue's help, after his mother's cancer surgery, Jiang Zhiming decided to bring his parents from their hometown in the southwest to settle in S City for easier follow-up treatment.

Lin Tingyue was truly incredibly capable; to be precise, the Lin family was extremely powerful. In any case, with Lin Tingyue's help, Jiang Zhiming finally rented a large, sunny house. Lin Tingyue paid a year's rent for him in one lump sum, and his parents finally settled down in S City.

Now, the two elderly people, who have toiled their whole lives in the fields, are very satisfied with their life in S City. City life is far more convenient and comfortable than the rural mountain village. It only takes five minutes to get to the hospital, and it's also very convenient to get to their son's school. In addition, their son is already a sophomore in college and has found a beautiful, wealthy, sensible, and capable girlfriend. Once their son graduates from college and gets a job, their life will improve steadily. Their mother is also recovering well after her surgery. The doctor said she is basically clinically cured and there is no need to worry.

Therefore, the family was very happy during the Little New Year. The old man cooked a table full of food, and the family sat around watching TV while eating, chatting and laughing. Outside, light snow was falling like willow catkins, and the north wind was howling like knives. But inside, Jiang Zhiming's mother turned on the electric stove, which was very comfortable and warm. His mother also thoughtfully made him some pickled vegetables and placed two kinds of melon seeds and snacks in front of him. On the coffee table in the living room, there was a large bunch of bright red winter plum blossoms. His mother had deliberately gone to the nearby flower market to buy them for the New Year. When a person is in the mood to buy flowers, it means that she is very happy and is not forced by life.

Seeing his happy father, Jiang Zhiming was also very satisfied. His mother was proud of her capable and outstanding son. In this life, she did not enjoy the blessings brought by her husband, but she enjoyed the blessings brought by her son. Therefore, the old woman was busy making tea and peeling fruit for him from time to time, and busying herself to let him enjoy his leisurely winter vacation in peace.

It was at this moment that Jiang Zhiming thought of Ye Wenyu. He looked at the snowflakes falling heavily outside. At first, they were just scattered drizzles, small and fragmented, melting as soon as they hit the ground. But now, they had turned into large flakes, like cotton wool, and the ground and rooftops were quickly covered in white.

Looking out the window, the cars parked below looked like plump white steamed buns, and the road resembled a sandwich, black in the middle and white on both sides.

The sky was still filled with leaden-gray clouds, but they seemed frozen, remaining motionless despite the howling north wind. It seemed that the snow would continue to fall heavily and for a long time.

Jiang Zhiming looked at the snow falling heavier and heavier outside, then at his home. His parents had been brought to the big city by him, and their clothes and overall condition were much better than before. Since meeting Lin Tingyue, he himself had undergone a complete transformation—a change many people could never achieve in their entire lives. He was very grateful that he had met Lin Tingyue and made a wise decision, which had led to his current happy and comfortable life.

But--

Jiang Zhiming couldn't help but think of another person, the girl he met at the beginning of university, who, like him, had a miserable and pitiful life. Her name was Ye Wenyu. Was she doing well? Was she still struggling with poverty, like Don Quixote, bravely putting up a weak resistance against the cruelty of life? She had told him that her parents divorced when she was young, and her mother remarried and started a new family after she was admitted to university. She lost her home and her family overnight. She spent the Spring Festival at school last year. When she injured her foot, no one cared about her except him. She lived bravely in this world like an orphan.

So where will she spend the Spring Festival this year? Are there any people around her who care about her?

Thinking of this, Jiang Zhiming felt a pang of pain in his heart. He stood up abruptly and rushed out the door like a whirlwind, ignoring his mother's worried admonition: "Why are you going out in this cold? Wear more clothes!"

He thought to himself that compared to Ye Wenyu, he had a family and loving parents, and he was happy.

Standing before Ye Wenyu, Jiang Zhiming pulled his thoughts back from their flight. He felt a mix of joy and sorrow. He was happy that, as he had expected, she was homeless and would have to spend the Spring Festival alone in the girls' dormitory. He was also heartbroken because she was so pitiful and it pained him to see her like this.

Jiang Zhiming took a deep breath, stuffed the bags he was carrying into Ye Wenyu's hands, and said to her, "The New Year is coming soon, these are for you, Happy Chinese New Year!"

Ye Wenyu was caught off guard. Looking at the large and small gift bags in her hands, containing tea, snacks, and cooking oil, a warm feeling washed over her. Although these gifts seemed to be for the elderly, it was still a happy thing to have someone care about her and give her gifts during the New Year.

She said gratefully, "Thank you, Jiang Zhiming, but I cannot accept your gift without having done something for it."

Jiang Zhiming immediately smiled and said, "Take it, that's how it feels to celebrate the New Year. I have to go now, goodbye." As if afraid she would shove the gift box back at him, Jiang Zhiming ran away as if he were escaping.

Ye Wenyu was stunned. She wanted to call his name, but found that he had long since disappeared from the white snow, leaving only two lines of black footprints.