Dead Trees Come Back to Life

The sun hung in the sky, its pale and weak sunlight streaming through the clouds, and the entire sky seemed to be oozing with moisture.

There is a dense flow of traffic on the Hangzhou River Bridge.

Bai Luo leaned his head back in a half-awkward manner, closed his eyes and pretended to sleep to kill time.

There was a lot of noise in the back seat of the taxi.

To be precise, the person next to her was looking for an angle to record the video, and his fingers were tapping on the phone screen.

Her half-brother.

——Meng Qi.

Wearing a shiny yellow crew cut, a tight white T-shirt and black jeans.

Bai Luo and Meng Qi had met several times when they were children, and their first meeting as adults happened to be during his rare return to China.

She went to the shopping mall to buy a mobile phone as a gift, but he threw the old phone into the airport trash can as soon as he got it.

At this moment, the new mobile phone in his hand is playing DJ songs.

His mother asked him to call Bai Luo "sister", but he refused and only called her "Baomei" affectionately. He asked her to call him "Qi Ge" instead.

He is clearly three years younger than her.

A typical free and unrestrained "spirited young man".

His mother arranged for Bai Luo to take him out for dinner. She had already booked a famous restaurant, fearing that he would have trouble acclimatizing after returning to China.

But he insisted on visiting her school and even insisted on having dinner in the school cafeteria.

Hangzhou University is open to non-campus visitors, but they must be accompanied by students from the university.

But she was afraid that the students in the school would look at him with curiosity or strange eyes after seeing him.

Although there are people with dyed hair of various colors and fancy clothes on campus, none of them is like him.

"Precious sister! Do the whole thing with me!"

Meng Qi suddenly thrust his phone in front of Bai Luo's face, the camera shaking like the flash lights in a disco.

He pulled off the big gold chain hanging around his neck and moved closer to the camera.

"Look at this solid gold Rolex of ours, inlaid with diamonds! I have to get it for my precious sister today!"

As he spoke, he twisted his waist and made a crooked "social shake" posture, with his butt bouncing up and down on the narrow seat.

He was humming an off-tune DJ song, with all the lyrics changed.

"Sister, look at me."

The driver was distracted by the commotion in the back seat. In the rearview mirror, Meng Qi's selfie stick poked the back of his head several times, startling him so much that he honked the horn twice.

Finally, he couldn't hide his anger and forced a cold reminder through his teeth.

"The two people at the back, be careful, don't block the rearview mirror!"

But Meng Qi was so immersed in his own "performance" that he seemed to be in a different world from the noisy sounds.

The taxi suddenly braked and staggered forward. Meng Qi was caught off guard and screamed "Ouch" as his butt hit the car door hard.

It turned out that the red light ahead suddenly turned on, and the driver stepped on the brakes as if in revenge.

He turned around and glared at Meng Qi, his eyes icy.

"Hey bro, if you keep waving your cell phone pole around like that, I'm going to call the police and say you're obstructing traffic!"

Meng Qi smiled awkwardly, put away the pole in disappointment, but still unwillingly pointed the camera at Bai Luo's profile, muttering softly.

"Brother, this is just for fun..."

The driver did not respond, but secretly turned the air conditioner temperature to the lowest.

The cold wind blew towards the back row, and Bai Luo shivered with cold. His eyelashes trembled under his eyelids, but he closed his eyes tightly and pretended to be asleep.

My ears were filled with Meng Qi's magical BGM, the "clicking" sound of the video recorded on his mobile phone, and his noisy commands.

"I'll put a beauty filter on you... Actually, you don't need it, your chin is sharp enough."

In a trance, the driver's suppressed laughter came from the front seat. Bai Luo finally frowned and glanced at him coldly.

"Be quiet."

The driver caught a glimpse of Bai Luo scolding someone with his brows lowered in the rearview mirror, and the corners of his mouth twitched. He muttered to himself, "What an actor!", but he exerted force with his feet, stepped on the accelerator suddenly, and the car shot out.

Meng Qi had no choice but to shut up in disappointment, his smile froze on his lips, and the car fell into a brief silence.

Half an hour later, the taxi stopped under the shade of the ginkgo tree at the school gate.

Bai Luo quickly walked into a grocery store, picked out a baseball cap, put on a black mask and black-framed glasses, hiding his face layer by layer.

Entry to the school requires verification through the facial recognition system, and among the students who come and go at the school gate, there are many who recognize her.

Whispers drifted into her ears on the wind.

"Look, that's Bai Luo!"

"Is the yellow-haired boy next to her her boyfriend?"

"So she likes the spirited type."

"Look at the big gold chain around his neck and his fancy belt."

Bai Luo caught a glimpse of Meng Qi waving casually to a girl passing by, and helplessly held his forehead with his hand.

"Leave."

After entering the school, Meng Qi looked around excitedly and asked questions non-stop.

Bai Luo patiently introduced him to the various buildings and attractions of the school.

It was school dismissal time, and we attracted a lot of different kinds of attention along the way, and many people took photos and videos.

Bai Luo gritted his teeth and led him through the hustle and bustle towards the second meal.

There were many figures under the eaves of the restaurant. She looked up inadvertently and met a pair of cold and playful eyes.

The young man leaned against the setting sun, his eyebrows raised provocatively, as if there was a hint of mockery in his eyes, and as if he was sneering silently, "Is this also to your liking?"

Bai Luo looked back at him in surprise, thinking to himself that he had already tied his long hair into the brim of his hat, the mask covered his facial features, and his eyebrows and eyes were hidden behind the black-framed silver mirror. How could he be easily seen through?

His eyes seemed to be able to see through all pretenses and pull her out from the vast crowd.

Chen Cisi, who was standing next to Bo Qi, was a very outgoing person. He walked up to Meng Qi with his hands in his pockets and casually picked up the big gold chain on his chest.

"Your chain looks so dazzling, is it real or fake?"

But Meng Qi was a community bull, and he immediately laughed out loud, hooked his finger and pulled the gold chain in front of him.

"No, buddy, are you questioning your brother Qi's character? Let me tell you, if this chain is fake, I, Meng Qi, can swallow it on the spot!"

He stiffened his neck and acted funny in a street-speaking tone.

"But...if you really want to hear the truth, you have to buy me a glass of iced plum juice first. There has to be a trade-off, right?"

As he spoke, he exaggeratedly wiped away the non-existent sweat and made an "exchange" gesture with his fingers in the air.

Shen Cisi was so amused by his actions that the corners of his mouth curled up wildly, and he squinted his eyes to look at Meng Qi.

His hair was dyed a dazzling yellow with a few strands of fluorescent green highlighted, and he wore tights with a white T-shirt, looking like the template of a spirited young man who had jumped out of a short video platform.

He stole a glance at Bai Luo, then started to make trouble while holding back his laughter.

"Plenty of iced plum juice! But I need to add your contact information so we can like and promote each other on our Moments. We're serious people!"

Meng Qi immediately took over, put his arm around Shen Cisi's shoulders and pulled him into his arms, his big gold chain jingling.

"Deal! Hey, double-click 666! Scan here for WeChat or Alipay!"

Shen Cisi was almost choked by him and could only cough while taking out his mobile phone to scan the code.

After Meng Qi succeeded, he turned on his chatterbox mode and dragged Shen Cisi to the restaurant, slapping his thigh as he walked.

"I'm telling you, this sour plum juice needs double the amount of hawthorn!"

Suddenly he stopped, looked back and shouted.

"Baomei, hurry up and catch up."

Bai Luo's ears were buzzing, and he followed stiffly under the gazes of a group of onlookers.

It’s not like she can’t afford to treat him to sour plum soup, and what’s more, is he short of money?

Is there anything on your body that is not a famous brand?

The darkness in Bo'er's eyes deepened behind him, and his Adam's apple rolled in irritation.

Baomei.

A very fresh name.

Bai Luo caught up with Meng Qi and Shen Cisi, and insisted on paying for a glass of sour plum juice for Meng Qi.

She took him to the stall again to order more omelet rice, but when she turned around to get the bamboo chopsticks, the figure disappeared.

The second dining area is spacious. It is the peak meal time and there is a constant stream of students from all walks of life, making it a huge crowd.

Bai Luo stood in the noisy crowd, looking around anxiously.

Perhaps some bystanders noticed the scene at the door just now, and a kind girl poked her shoulder and reminded her in a gentle voice.

"Your boyfriend is over there."

Bai Luo followed the guidance of the slender fingers and looked into the distance.

At a table in the middle of the restaurant, Meng Qi was holding a mobile phone selfie stick and recording a video with Shen Cisi accompanied by DJ music.

Bo Xi, who was sitting opposite them, watched their antics with a dark face.

Originally, Bo Xi was a celebrity in the school, and he was the focus of everyone's attention wherever he went.

With the addition of Meng Qi, a student from another school, everyone's attention in the restaurant was focused on their table.

Bai Luo pulled the corners of his lips stiffly.

"Thanks."

She pursed her lips, and with nowhere to hide, she carried the plate through the narrow aisle and walked towards the center of the storm.

The four-person dining table was neatly arranged, with Meng Qi and Shen Cisi sitting side by side, leaving only an empty seat next to Bo Qi.

He placed the bamboo chopsticks on Meng Qi's plate and sat down without thinking.

The two people sitting opposite were still absorbed in recording the video. Bai Luo glanced sideways and his eyes met the man with the black face.

A TV series was playing on the restaurant's projection screen, and the sound of sirens penetrated the screen and pierced the air.

Bai Luo paused holding the bamboo chopsticks and blurted out an explanation.

"He's my brother."

Afraid that he wouldn't believe it, I added another sentence to make it up.

"Born from the same mother."

The air conditioner above her head was blowing, ruffling her thin and unruly hair, and her eyes curved slightly under her brow.

"Your brother is quite trendy."

Quite social.

Bai Luo took a mouthful of rice and put it into his mouth, then glanced at the two people opposite him, half explaining and half not explaining.

"He lives in Japan, maybe..."

She knew very little about Meng Qi's temperament, and had no idea how his mother taught him.

Meng Qi is indeed a typical "spirited young man" with excess energy, who does whatever he thinks of.

I think he inherited his biological father's lively genes. When he was young, he was notoriously troublesome. But his mother liked "spiritual" things back then. Later, she divorced and remarried, and then he had his half-brother Meng Qi, who is a few years younger than him.

Bo Xi didn't ask any more questions, but responded thoughtfully.

There was a faint scent of jasmine floating in the air. After recording the video, Shen Cisi sniffed it with a sensitive nose like a dog.

"Why do you both smell like jasmine?"

Meng Qi, who was eating, immediately became alert. He put down his chopsticks and continued eating with sparkling eyes.

"It must have been passed on to this brother by Baomei. I also have the scent of jasmine on me. We are called walking jasmine essences. Doesn't it smell good?"

As she spoke, she turned around exaggeratedly, and the hem of her clothes swept across the table, making Shen Cisi burst out laughing.

He grasped the key words and looked at Bai Luo with raised eyebrows.

"You call her Baomei, what's your relationship with her?"

Meng Qi laughed and patted Shen Cisi on the shoulder with such force that he almost choked.

"She is my sister! My real sister! She is three years older than me. I just call her Baomei. She calls me Brother Qi."

Chen Cisi suddenly understood and joked with a smile.

"So she's the older sister by three years. No wonder Meng Qi is so lively. It seems like her genes are really strong."

After saying that, he turned to Meng Qi and teased.

"But your title of 'Walking Jasmine Spirit' is quite good. I'll have to make you a special label later."

Meng Qi immediately became excited, and he picked up the phone with his fingers flying, holding it in front of the mirror.

"Shoot now! Shoot now! I'm going to post it on WeChat Moments, Jasmine Essence certified!"

Bai Luo covered his face and sighed, while Bo Qi and Shen Ci Si were already laughing uncontrollably.

Bo Qi, with a frivolous smile and tilted head, suddenly approached Bai Luo's helpless eyes.

"He is the Jasmine Spirit, what are you?"

"You smell like jasmine, too."

The restaurant was crowded with people, all standing very close to each other, and Bai Luo's elbows were pressed against the close outlines.

Bo Xi noticed her trembling eyelashes, and leaned back as if unhappy, with his mouth curled up to reveal his sharp fangs.

"Really? I thought you infected me."

"What do you think, Jasmine?"

Intentional.

“…”

Too lazy to care.

At two o'clock in the afternoon, Bai Luo received a call from his mother.

When he mentioned that he wanted to take Meng Qi back to his hometown to visit his grandparents, he specifically asked her to take him to the designated place.

Bai Luo suppressed the tiredness between his brows, stood in front of the school gate for a moment, called back a dark gray taxi, and took Meng Qi to his destination on time.

Finally I feel a little relieved.

He then returned alone and took another bus back to campus.

Although I only spent a short time with my mother, I received a few caring questions from her for the first time.

Even if it's just a few words, I feel a warm current flowing in my heart.