Chapter 3: In the Sunlight Under the Cherry Blossom Trees

Chapter 3: In the Sunlight Under the Cherry Blossom Trees

Time always quietly and inadvertently changes the vegetation and mountains.

However, after the unexpected confession last time, Chi Shu and Feng Yichen had not seen each other for a long time.

Chi Shu really wanted to apologize to Feng Yichen again.

But then she seemed to realize that the two of them didn't even have any contact information.

The reason for not having it was, of course, that until Chi Shu went to college, his cell phone had no privacy and needed to be checked by Ji Jinyi all the time.

At the same time, she suddenly realized that if their meeting that day wasn't a chance encounter, then had Feng Yichen been looking for her for a long time? Or perhaps, had he been waiting for her for a long time?

These questions made her feel both reluctant and regretful, and the bitterness in her heart spread uncontrollably for a moment.

The chaotic thoughts made Chi Shu feel that if she didn't find another way out, she might be overwhelmed by boundless guilt. Since it was her fault in the first place, she decided to go to the School of Economics and Management to find Feng Yichen.

——So, she found herself in vain in this dilemma of "fishing for the moon in the water", after all, the school was so huge.

And like all her classmates, she had been busy with various matters and courses.

She hadn't even had the chance to properly explore the campus, and now she had no clues at all. She didn't even know where in the college to go to look for someone.

It was futile, so she just took a stroll around the campus.

However, she felt even more moved when she was admiring the beautiful flowers along the way, which were like clouds and rosy clouds - winter had passed and spring had arrived, but the person she wanted to meet could not appear in front of her.

Chi Shu walked aimlessly, admiring the cherry blossoms blooming in early spring. Perhaps her voice was too loud, and it echoed inadvertently.

The person she had been thinking about appeared.

The person standing not far from her at this moment was clearly wearing a simple bamboo-moon-colored shirt and casual clothes, but Chi Shu felt that he looked indescribably fresh and unique. If you ignore the slightly messy hair and the heavy laptop bag.

Perhaps it was because the scenery at the moment was too romantic, but she only felt that it was truly "a graceful and elegant young man, as bright as a jade tree in the wind." The ancients were indeed right.

She just watched from afar, as graceful as a startled swan. She felt that Feng Yichen, beneath the cherry blossom tree, was as beautiful as a startled swan. So beautiful that she didn't dare disturb him rashly.

Therefore, she also thought that the joy and happiness in her heart at this moment seemed to be silent.

But the breeze seemed to express her feelings, gently shaking down the cherry blossoms like rain, which fell on the man's hair and shoulders, and then lightly blown to the ground by the wind, landing at the man's feet, and blending with the mountain cherry blossom petals all over the ground.

Chi Shu stared quietly, not knowing what she was thinking about, nor how much time had passed. The cherry blossom petals all over the ground seemed to be moving towards her step by step. When she finally looked up, she saw that all-too-familiar face.

But the dazzling light the sun cast on that person both stung her eyes and amazed her.

It was difficult to look away, and I forgot to say hello for a long time.

It lasted so long that a gentle chuckle suddenly brought her wandering thoughts and reason back.

Feng Yichen's eyes were filled with smiles as he just looked at her.

At this moment, all that was reflected in his eyes were the cherry blossoms and her figure——

The long dress with plain brocade and light shadows of flowers and plants looked even more graceful under the shade of cherry blossoms, and the pearl buttons shone with a lustrous luster in the sunlight; and the person in front of him was the "woody water source" who made his heart beat again and again.

He just lowered his eyes and looked at Chi Shu.

After a while, the two of them almost said in unison: "Long time no see."

Feng Yichen felt helpless but couldn't hide his heartbeat. He smiled gently, his voice as gentle and soft as ever:

"Yeah, I didn't expect so much time to pass by in the blink of an eye. If you're not waiting for someone, do you have time to enjoy the scenery together?"

Chi Shu reacted sluggishly for a moment, muttering to himself:

I'm waiting for someone, but the person I'm waiting for has already arrived...

Suddenly, she turned her attention back to Feng Yichen's eyes, which were filled with gentle smiles, and then looked away. Then she asked for his opinion: "We have time. Then why don't you sit here for a while?"

Feng Yichen certainly had no objection to this. He smiled lightly and nodded slightly: "Okay."

The two of them sat down together on a bench next to the cherry tree, not too far away from each other, but the air suddenly became scorching hot.

Such beautiful scenery, such a close distance, both of which caught Chi Shu off guard again. He didn't have time to digest and didn't know how to react.

Therefore, Feng Yichen beside him spoke first:

"It's already a new semester. How have you been lately? How do you feel about studying literature at this dream university? How are you adapting to this new academic life?"

His voice was still gentle and he kept to the point.

Because this topic swept away Chi Shu's awkwardness, he replied easily:

"It's great. Now that I'm here, I realize how new and wonderful those longed-for times are when I can actually experience them. Before, when we talked about literature, it was mostly based on imagination, but here it's completely different."

Feng Yichen listened quietly, occasionally responding to the topics with a gentle smile.

Chi Shu turned back into the radiant girl in his mind. She spoke slowly and enthusiastically about the many surprises she encountered in the Faculty of Arts. Her eyes were gentle and bright, as if she had collected many treasures. Her cheerful look was like the spring sunshine that dispelled the gloom of the past few days.

Seeing that the people around her were mostly listening attentively, Chi Shu paused for a moment, looked at Feng Yichen seriously, and called his name softly.

Hearing this, Feng Yichen turned his head and looked back at her, a little surprised for a moment:

"What's wrong?"

Chi Shu's voice came softly:

"How did you find me that day when you went to the Faculty of Arts?"

Hearing this, Feng Yichen paused for a moment, but this time he just said, "I asked your seniors in the same department," and said no more.

But Chi Shu had just experienced the difficulty of finding someone, so this time it was naturally hard to believe.

Feng Yichen didn't speak directly about this topic, but the reason was that he had been following the news about the College of Arts and Chi Shu's department since he enrolled. He hadn't come to see her before because it was too busy at the beginning of the school year and no one had much time.

And since he was already in the same school as she had wished, and knew she was doing well, Feng Yichen felt that there was no need to rush. After all, this moment was what he had requested. And it was his only request at the time.

But he would not tell Chi Shu all this, because knowing that she was safe was enough.

As for his confession that day, it was ultimately just a momentary delusion that had accumulated over a long period of time. He should have considered it more carefully, and he has already let it go.

But as the recipient of the affection, Chi Shu still felt guilty:

"Feng Yichen, I'm truly sorry for what happened that day. However, I can't repay your sincerity and kindness for the time being, and I... am also very sorry."

The floating and flowing air condensed at this moment, as if it was so hot that it could suffocate people.

Feng Yichen didn't respond for a moment, and Chi Shu also lowered his head and remained silent.

After a long silence, Chi Shu pursed his lips slightly, feeling like a fish almost stranded at the moment.

She gently turned around and took the white tote bag that had been placed beside her, and took out a rectangular black and gold gift box from it. Inside it were several NBA star souvenir ornaments made of pure gold neatly displayed.

This gift was specially customized based on what she had learned about Feng Yichen's sports preferences, but now she was inexplicably hesitant to give it to him.

However, at this moment, Chi Shu's eyes flickered in Feng Yichen's eyes, but the tone that reached his ears seemed to be extremely firm:

"This gift is for you. I hope you like it. Just keep it as a souvenir. I also hope you can get more precious things in the future."

Her voice was clearly gentle, but these words were like the bleak wind of that cold winter, making the early spring scenery lose some of its warmth. It seemed as if Feng Yichen's pupils lost their focus for a moment, and his heart sank in a trance.

Seeing such bright spring sunshine, reality forced him to fall into the bitter wind and snow that day.

As soon as he thought of that, the bitter taste that Feng Yichen had suppressed with great difficulty began to rise to his taste buds again, and for a moment, the smile on his lips became extremely bitter:

"What...is this? Is this your response to rejecting me?"

Chi Shu's pupils sank slightly when she heard this, and her hands holding the gift trembled slightly, but she couldn't say a word of denial. She just kept reminding herself -

This is just an apology, I can’t express any other feelings for now.

Even though she had such an intention, she couldn't say it too decisively.

However, when she heard those words clearly without any preparation, her heart was still like a pot of mixed feelings. It was hard to describe the feeling, but guilt kept spreading. She whispered:

"I'm truly sorry, and I appreciate your kindness, but I have nothing else to offer you in return right now... There's still a lot of time ahead, and I can't make promises easily. But I believe there will be better things waiting for you to discover in your bright future."

Feng Yichen didn't mind that she was still obsessed with this matter, nor did he mind that she would say it so directly. Because of her words, he suddenly realized -

Perhaps the reason he was able to see her at school this time was because she had come today for this matter. It was only because he was blinded by the surprise and scene of this chance encounter that he wanted to move past the unpleasant episode that day and talk to her about other topics that he put it on hold for the time being.

Sure enough, the next moment, what the person next to him said not only confirmed his guess, but also once again made him feel mixed emotions and confused.

Seeing that he hadn't accepted the gift yet, and that his expression was becoming increasingly hurt and difficult to understand, Chi Shu's heart began to beat like a drum. However, he simply put the gift down on his knees, folded his hands and rested them lightly on the gift box. He kept organizing his words in his mind, trying to dispel and ease the bleak atmosphere:

"Actually, I came all the way here today specifically to see you. Besides wanting to sincerely apologize to you once again, I also wanted to give you this gift, which I carefully prepared. Unfortunately, we haven't been in touch since we graduated from high school. I originally thought that since we parted ways, I didn't know when we would meet again, but time always likes to create surprises.

"However, when I came to my senses and wanted to contact you, I realized that we didn't even have any contact information. So I experienced the powerlessness and loss of "fishing for the moon in the water". I also realized how difficult it was for you to find me that day, and the thoughtfulness of coming to find me was truly rare.

"So, I really thank you, and want to give you this gift from the bottom of my heart."

Feng Yichen hadn't yet sorted out his thoughts. He had originally not wanted to deal with this gift with such complex implications, but now these words forced him to recall his memories and face the bitterness and sadness in his heart:

"Chi Shu, you already know my feelings. I won't take back what I said, but I won't force you to respond. Just... stop wishing me a better scenery. How do you know this isn't what I want? Meeting it is enough!"

Chi Shu was shocked when she heard this, and was quite touched. Before she could respond, she only heard Feng Yichen smile bitterly and then slowly said to her:

"You don't have to think hard about how to repay me, and you don't have to make a promise to me right now. You can think about it slowly. Besides, as you just said, there's still a lot of time to go, so you have plenty of time to think it over carefully.

"But don't put too much pressure on yourself. You're only half right. You do have to head for a bright future, but the best scenery is already there on that road.

"As for that day, whether it's the confession or the gift, it's all my own free will. Don't feel any burden."

Now Chi Shu really didn't know how to respond. At this moment, it seemed as if all the words she could think of became so thin, making her feel unable to express her feelings.

So she turned to look at the gift in front of her, her eyes lowered, and she remained silent. After a while, she raised her eyes to look at Feng Yichen beside her, and cautiously tested:

"Then this gift..."

Feng Yichen asked back:

"What's the reason for this gift? Or is it a return gift to reject me?"

Hearing his tone, Chi Shu knew that he had hurt him again.

Therefore, she quickly adjusted her mood, turned sideways to face Feng Yichen, looked back into his eyes, and said sincerely after carefully choosing her words:

"I'm sorry, Feng Yichen. I was wrong about what happened that day and just now. But besides that, I also wanted to give this gift as a token of friendship. It's not a return gift, but I customized it shortly after I graduated from high school. It's just that I haven't had the chance to give it to you because I haven't been able to contact you. If you don't mind, can you accept this gift now?"

It wasn't until Feng Yichen heard her words that his clenched heart suddenly relaxed, and his chest finally began to function, allowing him to breathe again. Then, the smile on his face finally gradually spread, and even brought a bit of surprise that he had not expected:

"Did you really prepare this after you graduated from high school? Especially for me?"

Seeing him finally smile, Chi Shu couldn't help but feel relieved. He said with great confidence, "Yes, and also to thank you for encouraging me to pursue my ideals firmly. It gave me some courage at that time, so that I could bravely choose the direction I wanted to go. I am especially grateful to you."

As soon as she finished speaking, she picked up the gift again, smiled brightly, and handed it to Feng Yichen.

Feng Yichen accepted the gift with a sense of relief this time. After sincerely thanking her, he took out his phone, turned to look at her, spread his hands and said, "Add a new contact number. This time, keep it safe..."

Let’s preserve both me and all the time that comes after this well.

Just by completing the note of this message, Feng Yichen felt filled with joy, as if he had found a precious treasure that he had lost, making him feel happy and fortunate from the bottom of his heart.

He also comforted himself: Don't be impatient, take it slow.

Indeed, meeting is like a flower blooming in the beautiful years. Even if it turns into spring mud silently in the deep winter, fortunately it will show a new look in the first spring breeze.

Even though it is too early for this prosperous and beautiful scene to bloom, people with a caring heart will know that beauty requires patience.