Chapter 16 Cosmos (15) Lin Xia felt angry that this year...

He Chuan and Lin Xia stood at the intersection waiting for Liu Kairen and the taxi to come. These were their last few minutes together.

He Chuan glanced at Lin Xia's clothes and smiled:

"I thought you threw it away."

The skirt she was wearing today was the one he washed himself and asked Aunt Hao to mend after it was torn and dirty after he fell off his bike while riding her.

"How is that possible? This is a token of your love, how could I possibly throw it away!"

She wore this dress specially to give to him.

"It's a bit chilly this morning though."

A cool breeze blew, giving goose bumps to her exposed skin, and she moved her legs uncomfortably.

It is indeed colder in the mountains in the morning and evening, but it is not this cold usually.

He Chuan said: "Today is the beginning of autumn."

He discovered it this morning when he was tearing off the calendar.

Lin Xia was stunned: "It's already the beginning of autumn?"

Time flies.

The changes in the solar terms of Wangchun are particularly obvious. I don’t know if it is a coincidence or the wisdom of the ancients is really so magical and great. It will definitely rain in Qingming, it will definitely snow in Xiaoxue, and it will suddenly become cooler in the morning and evening in Liqiu.

"That's why I hate this most about the Northeast," Lin Xia couldn't help but complain. "Summer is so short. It's only August, and I don't even have a chance to wear pretty clothes."

Every summer, she has to race against time to wear out all the summer dresses in her wardrobe.

"I wasn't used to it when I first came here, but later I found it quite nice," He Chuan said. "The four seasons are distinct, and at least I can clearly feel the time."

"How can there be four seasons?" Lin Xia complained indignantly. "If you ask me, there are only two seasons in the Northeast: winter and the onset of winter."

He Chuan couldn't help but laugh:

"What you said... is quite accurate."

"I'm going to a city with very long summers and very hot temperatures. I want to wear skirts all year round!"

Speaking of solar terms, Lin Xia suddenly remembered,

"Do you remember what I said before, 'Rainy in Mid-Autumn and sunny in Winter Solstice'?"

"Remember."

"Why don't we give it a try this year? Mid-Autumn Festival is coming soon. If it rains on Mid-Autumn Festival, we must remember to see if it will be sunny on the Winter Solstice this year," Lin Xia said softly. "What do you think?"

"Okay," He Chuan agreed, "but the weather in Hong Kong may not be suitable for the proverbs in Northeast China."

Lin Xia smiled instantly, her heart and eyes filled with joy: "It doesn't matter! We will still celebrate the Winter Solstice in Wangchun anyway!"

This was the purpose of her making this agreement with him.

At the end of December, she and he would both be on winter vacation, and then they would verify the truth of this statement together.

As he was speaking, he saw a bright red taxi appear at the end of the road, driving towards him and about to be right in front of him.

He Chuan said, "I'm leaving."

Lin Xia then remembered that she had something in her hands and hurriedly took it to the front and handed it to him:

"Here's to you. These plums are very sour. Whenever I get carsick, I eat a few of them and they help. You've been riding cars, trains, and planes all this time, so you're bound to get sick. And here's this bookmark, which I drew. I'm giving it to you too!"

He Chuan took the bag of plums he had bought for her, and then took the bookmark. The yellowed cardboard was cut into palm-sized pieces, and on it were painted several cosmos flowers with gouache, alternating between rose pink and light pink, swaying gracefully, vivid and lively. The painter must have observed this kind of flowers thousands of times to paint it so realistically and naturally. Just one glance at it and you will be reminded of this mountain forest and this sea of ​​flowers in Xiaolin Farm this summer.

The sound of taxi horns was already close to his ears. As the separation approached, He Chuan carefully put away the two gifts and whispered:

"Lin Xia, thank you."

Thank you for meeting you this summer.

......

He Chuan's departure not only took away the entire summer, but also seemed to take away Lin Xia's entire summer vacation.

Living under the same roof with Lin Haisheng and He Ping is awkward, depressing and uncomfortable, which can no longer be simply described as boring.

Lin Haisheng had always been in poor health. He visited a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner in Beijing and received a plethora of medications. He Ping would light a small stove every morning and evening to boil the medicine, and the house was filled with a bitter, burnt smell. The daily meals on the table were once again something Lin Xia disliked. She tried to protest, but Lin Haisheng scolded her for being picky, causing her to eat less and less. The few pounds she had gained a while ago quickly shrank back. No one could take her to the city anymore. Lin Haisheng and He Ping wouldn't let her go out alone. After that, Zhang Ruinan organized two more gatherings, but she couldn't attend them. After she started high school, she had almost no contact with her junior high friends. She suspected this incident was related. Perhaps her petty deskmate, after being rejected by her, had said something bad about her while she was away.

As the weather grew cooler, Lin Xia would hide in her room every day, painting eggs, apples, and ugly pots and pans. Only Aunt Hao's calico cat would occasionally pop in through her window. All its kitties had been sent away, leaving it all alone. Lin Xia felt her situation was similar.

She stroked the cat's beautiful fur and asked softly:

"Do you miss He Chuan too?"

She thought about it too.

Lin Xia counted the days on her fingers every day, looking forward to Lin Xuedong's return. Finally, three days before her high school started, Lin Xuedong came to Xiaolin Farm and took her home.

But Zhao Qianyi did not come back with him. She stayed in the provincial capital and opened a vocal training class with Li Wen. In fact, she had resigned a long time ago before going to the provincial capital.

By the time Lin Xia learned the outcome, everything was already settled. Although she had expected it, she was still heartbroken. She cried secretly for several times and slept with a wet pillow at night for a long time, but an adult's decision would not be changed by a child's tears.

Zhao Qianyi may have felt a little guilty towards Lin Xia, so she called her and promised to return to Wangchun as soon as she was free. She asked her to study hard in high school, insist on painting in the studio, listen to her father, and take her to the provincial capital to play during the holidays.

Immersed in the longing for her mother after leaving her mother for the first time, Lin Xia began her high school life.

There are a total of twenty classes of freshmen in Experimental High School. Classes one to four are key classes strictly divided according to the top 200 students in the high school entrance examination. They are equipped with the best teachers in the school and occupy the most advantageous geographical location in the teaching building. They start evening self-study on the evening of the first day of school, racing against time to win at the starting line.

But none of this mattered to Lin Xia. Her academic performance wasn't even in the designated class, so she was haphazardly assigned to Class 13 of Grade 11, a place neither top nor bottom. After military training, classes resumed as planned, with a new deskmate, new teachers, and new classmates. While high school courses were challenging, the teachers weren't too demanding. Overall, it wasn't as daunting as she'd imagined. After a few exams, her grades steadily ranked in the middle of the class—just okay, but passable.

Her new homeroom teacher was Zhang Lanlan, a Chinese language teacher who had just graduated from the provincial teachers' college. She was in her early twenties and looked youthful, almost like a peer. This was her first class, and like all newcomers, she was enthusiastic and approachable, completely unassuming with her students. She told them to call her Sister Lan instead of Teacher, and to treat them like friends. And unlike other teachers, she didn't discriminate against art students. She thought Lin Xia was very talented and admired her. She gave her full responsibility for decorating the classroom and drawing the blackboard newspaper, and even bought her snacks and drinks after school as a reward. Lin Xia was particularly fond of her; it was the first time she had ever been so fond of a teacher.

After entering high school, to prevent premature love, boys and girls were no longer allowed to sit together; boys sat with boys, and girls sat with girls. Lin Xia's new deskmate was Xu Chang, a girl with thick glasses and shoulder-length hair who looked like a top student. But she later discovered that Xu Chang's grades were similar to hers. Although she had high scores in liberal arts, she was extremely biased in certain subjects and never passed math because she spent her math class time reading novels.

Xu Chang loves reading romance novels. There are so many books at home that the bookshelves can't hold them all. Every day after school, she runs to the book rental store across from the school to rent those thick and old novels. She never misses a new issue of magazines every month. She also downloads a lot of e-books on her MP3 player and hides them in her desk. She squints her eyes and peeks on the small screen during class and study. Lin Xia suspects that this is how her eyes are tired and she has become nearsighted.

Xu Chang also reads comics. She is a very nice and generous person. Every time she buys a new comic book, she lends it to Lin Xia. The two of them often get together to discuss the plot. Their families live very close to each other, and they go to and from school together every day, and their relationship grows deeper and deeper.

Although she was unlucky and didn't have any good friends from junior high school in her class, with Zhang Lanlan and Xu Chang around, Lin Xia felt that high school life was quite happy.

Some art students give up their specialties after entering high school and no longer pursue art studies, but Lin Xia is certain she'll pursue this path in the future, so she continues to study painting. Every Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday evenings, and all day Saturday, she goes to the studio to learn portraiture and sketching in preparation for the art exam. Although it's tiring, she doesn't find it difficult because it's something she loves.

Because her home wasn't far from the school, Lin Xia didn't live on campus and didn't have to ride a bicycle. She commuted to school every day, ate lunch in the cafeteria, and returned home at night. No matter how busy Lin Xuedong was at work, he would always come home on time to make dinner for Lin Xia. Over time, Lin Xia had almost gotten used to Zhao Qianyi's absence.

Zhao Qianyi seemed to be very busy in the provincial capital, busy with recruiting students and teaching them. She didn't go home for the Mid-Autumn Festival, National Day, or New Year's Day. She often broke her promise to call home once a week without even giving an explanation.

However, Zhao Qianyi also fulfilled one promise. She finally bought a mobile phone for Lin Xia.

This is the first mobile phone in Lin Xia's life. It is a very beautiful flip phone. It is advertised on TV every day. Female celebrities take pictures with it in beautiful and romantic ways. Lin Xia has secretly liked it for a long time. Now she can finally get what she wanted, and she is very happy.

She took her phone, got a SIM card, and called all her friends, announcing the news to the world. She saved their numbers one by one: her father's, her mother's, Zhang Ruinan's, Jiang Yuhua's, Xu Chang's...

But, there is no He Chuan.

They have no phone number, no mailing address, no closest friends, and no way of contacting them. Communication is so convenient in modern society, but it is also so easy to lose contact with someone.

High school's winter and summer vacations were much shorter than those of junior high. Exams didn't start until early January, and then the school closed. Lin Xia waited impatiently until New Year's Eve, when Lin Xuedong finally took her to Xiaolin Farm to celebrate the New Year. The relationship between father and son seemed to have improved recently, as this was the first time in several years that Lin Xuedong had visited Lin Haisheng's home for the New Year.

Lin Xia thought that she would finally be able to see He Chuan this time, but when she went there, she found out that He Chuan had not returned Wang Chun at all.

She wanted to ask why. Was he too busy with schoolwork? Did he fail to secure a return ticket? Was he traveling? Did he have a girlfriend?

But she couldn't ask anything, nothing. The tiny, awkward, almost nonexistent relationship between her and him, seen by everyone, wasn't enough to warrant excessive questioning or concern. So she could only remain silent, swallowing her questions, pretending not to care at all about the man she didn't know whether to call Brother Xiaochuan or Uncle Xiaochuan.

He Ping was cooking dumplings in the kitchen, Lin Haisheng and his son Lin Xuedong were playing chess, and Lin Xia was sitting on the sofa, staring blankly at the Spring Festival Gala on TV, without any joy in her heart.

This New Year's Eve, Zhao Qianyi didn't come back, and He Chuan didn't come back either. Lin Xia felt angrily that it was meaningless to celebrate the New Year.