Chapter 81 The World in Eternal Daylight

When Chen Yongjie came in after greeting his junior, he saw Ji Tong sitting on the back of a chair in the milk tea shop, drinking a latte with her head down.

The milk tea cup was wrapped in two layers of paper towels, but a lethal amount of ice was still visible.

Chen Yongjie wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but the atmosphere in the store seemed a bit strange. The couple on the left and the staff seemed to keep glancing in Tongtong and Lin Ge's direction.

Chen Yongjie walked over: "I'm all better now, Tong... why are your eyes so red?"

Ji Tong: "It's hot."

Chen Yongjie: "?"

Is it that hot?

Ji Tong didn't give him a chance to think and handed him the coconut latte directly: "Where's your junior?"

Chen Yongjie took it, inserted the straw, and said, "I'm going back to school now."

Ji Tong pushed the extra cups of milk tea she had bought towards him: "Then you can take them to her later."

"You even bought it for my junior?" Chen Yongjie asked, surprised and serious. "Ji Tong, you're making it very difficult for me, your senior, to act this way."

"Please have some self-awareness and stop radiating charm."

"My junior just glanced at you and started asking me who was next to Senior Gu Lin."

"To protect your and Lin's privacy, I didn't reveal your relationship. I only subtly indicated that you both have partners."

Ji Tong sincerely said, "You can point it out, I don't mind."

Chen Yongjie: "Then my junior sister can yell all the way from the school gate to the playground, and tonight, the news that 'Senior Gu Lin has a really handsome boyfriend' will spread like willow catkins throughout every corner of No. 3 Middle School."

Ji Tong immediately admitted honestly: "I'll say you bought the milk tea."

Chen Yongjie: "Very good."

"By the way, does your junior know Gu Lin?" Ji Tong turned to look at Gu Lin.

“Of course,” Chen Yongjie said. “Although Brother Lin only stayed at No. 3 Middle School for a month and kept to himself during that month, don’t underestimate the gossip ability of high school students. His looks and grades speak for themselves. On his very first day, the whole school knew about him, and even now, people are still asking for his contact information.”

Chen Yongjie blurted out, only realizing after speaking that the girl's boyfriend was still sitting there. He scratched his head and said, "Uh... the juniors didn't mean any harm, they just wanted to know her contact information..."

Ji Tong smiled and interrupted him, "It's nothing."

Chen Yongjie breathed a sigh of relief and gave a thumbs up: "Great!"

Chen Yongjie ordered several cups of milk tea to go. The waiter packed them up before the three of them got up.

As Gu Lin stepped out of the bubble tea shop, the sunlight hitting him made him repeat Ji Tong's words: "Are you alright?"

"What's wrong?" Ji Tong whispered in his ear, "Are you afraid I'll get jealous, or feeling guilty?"

Gu Lin remained noncommittal.

“I’m not that petty,” Ji Tong said earnestly, touching Gu Lin’s fingers. “I really don’t mind.”

"This is how you should be; this is who you truly are."

Its radiance is dazzling and cannot be ignored.

Instead of being all alone.

“But,” Ji Tong changed the subject, “exchanging contact information is fine, but chatting is not.”

"I'll get jealous."

"Tell your juniors that if they have boyfriends or girlfriends and want to chat, they should ask me to talk to them."

Gu Lin refused calmly: "I'll be jealous."

Chen Yongjie, who was forced to listen to the whole thing, said: "...In broad daylight, near the school, with the college entrance examination approaching, be careful about the impact."

Ji Tong laughed out loud.

Chen Yongjie had informed the school in advance, and the gatekeeper readily allowed him to enter. To his surprise, the gatekeeper recognized Gu Lin and even asked him if he was back to give a presentation while registering him.

After entering the school, Ji Tong never held hands with Gu Lin again.

He thought he had been very restrained, but his body had a memory, and every now and then he would hook his finger, grab his wrist, or at the very least stick his finger to his forearm. Chen Yongjie reminded him again: "It's broad daylight, be mindful of your behavior."

Ji Tong was shocked: "I didn't even touch him!"

Chen Yongjie: "...???"

So, you only call it touching if you hug and kiss?!

Chen Yongjie gave up struggling and accompanied the two across the playground, through the cafeteria, around the dormitory building, and finally into the senior high school building.

The class is still the same class, and the countdown to the college entrance examination is still written in the upper right corner of the blackboard, but the students inside have changed, and soon another batch will be replaced.

"Look, Brother Lin is sitting over there, in the last row."

“At that time, there were several students in our class who were recommended for admission. They had already been admitted in advance and hadn’t come to school yet. There were many empty seats in the classroom, so Lin Ge sat alone.”

"Want to go in and take a look? We won't touch the juniors' desks, we'll just wander around."

Ji Tong said no.

I'm no longer looking at Gu Lin's desk; I'll just take a look.

In the end, Ji Tong only took one picture with her phone.

It was during the holiday, so the No. 3 Middle School cafeteria was closed, but several privately contracted stalls on the fourth floor were still open. Ji Tong chose a noodle stall that Gu Lin had eaten at. He looked at the menu one by one and finally ordered a bowl of tomato noodles.

It's really sweet.

Unlike Ankyung.

When I left the school, it was already dark.

"Tongtong, have you booked a hotel yet? If not, would you like to stay at my place? Both guest rooms are empty, and my parents aren't home either."

"No," Ji Tong said, "I bought a plane ticket back to Anjing."

"Huh?" Chen Yongjie's thoughts suddenly stalled. "Didn't we say we'd stay for two days? I was originally planning to show you and Brother Lin around."

“Come again next time,” Ji Tong said. “Gu Lin’s maternal grandparents’ home is in Jiangcheng, so there will be other opportunities in the future.”

Chen Yongjie had heard Li Yuan mention this before and knew that Gu Lin's family was in Jiangcheng, but his maternal grandparents had been living in Germany for the past two years.

Chen Yongjie: "Are you in such a hurry to go back because something happened in Anjing?"

Ji Tong said no.

He had indeed planned to stay in Jiangcheng for two more days.

But after walking the path Gu Lin had walked, seeing the table he had sat at, and eating the sweet tomato and egg stir-fry, for some reason, Ji Tong really wanted to go back to the apartment.

He returned to the apartment where only he and Gu Lin were, where they could touch each other without restraint.

So he and Gu Lin wanted to go back to Anjing.

Gu Lin didn't ask any questions, and took out his phone to buy a plane ticket back to Anjing.

Ji Tong didn't let Chen Yongjie see her off; the two of them took a taxi to the airport.

The plane landed late at night.

Back at the apartment, the door was pushed open, and the entryway light turned on instantly. Ji Tong was then pinned against the door by Gu Lin.

The two shared a long, deep kiss.

"There's a picture of you on the display board at No. 3 Middle School," Ji Tong said, slightly out of breath.

It's on the propaganda corner on the first floor of the senior high school building.

It's a profile photo.

Gu Lin sat at his desk, writing on a test paper.

Judging from the angle, it was probably a snapshot taken on the spot; perhaps even Gu Lin himself didn't know he had taken such a photo.

Gu Lin genuinely didn't know: "When did you see it?"

Ji Tong: "When I left the school gate."

Just passing by, there were many photos on the display board, but Ji Tong spotted that one at a glance.

"I wanted to take it secretly, but so many younger students were watching, and I was too embarrassed to take it."

“Gu Lin,” Ji Tong said, brushing her boyfriend’s hair back for a long time, “you look better in the No. 1 High School uniform than in the No. 3 High School uniform.”

Gu Lin lowered his head and kissed him again: "Mmm."

The two took off their clothes and went into the bathroom together. Ji Tong was carried out, and then, in the middle of the night, he was soaking wet and carried back into the bathroom.

If he could, Ji Tong still wouldn't want those 195 days apart from each other, but what's done is done. Fortunately, he found Gu Lin's footprints.

Those marks told him that the long 195 days were just a period of being lost.

After they finished their respective journeys, they embarked on their return journeys to find each other again.

The peak season for flying catkins finally ended at the end of the long holiday. Chen Yongjie lived up to the expectations of the admissions office teachers and returned victorious, bringing back a "trophy" with him.

Ji Tong stared at the photo in his hand, speechless for a long time.

"The day after you returned to Anjing, Brother Lin sent me a message, asking me to stop by the display board downstairs in the senior high school building on my way back and bring back a photo."

“Tell me what you want.”

"I went to steal... cough, to retrieve it that very day."

"I just don't know when the younger students will find out, haha."

Ji Tong eventually brought this photo back to Haiyuan and placed it behind the graduation photo.

The long period of flying catkins ended completely in late May.

The calendar turns a new page.

On June 5th, the Ministry of Education issued a warning about the college entrance examination. My counselor forwarded it to the class group, saying that the college entrance examination coincided with the Dragon Boat Festival, and hereby solemnly reminds everyone not to participate in proxy test-taking, off-site cheating, or other behaviors that cross the legal line.

The comments below were all saying, "Teacher, you think too highly of us." Last time I went home to tutor my younger cousin, he almost mistook cos90 for CS:GO. The idea of ​​someone taking exams for you is pure nonsense, like a meeting of eunuchs!

The bell rings and falls; what others consider the most important exam in life is only a few days on the calendar.

The college entrance examination begins and ends; the winds of fate blow the young people to their respective destinations.

Two days before the results were released, Ji Tong and his group were still drafted by the admissions officers.

"I've already contacted the teachers at No. 1 High School. After the results are released this year, students from each class will return to school to help with their college application choices. They'll arrange a special classroom for Anhui University. Tongtong, you and Gu Lin can just stand at the door. You don't need to do anything, just stand there. We'll take care of the rest. As long as we stand there, we'll beat the school next door, understand?"

Some people received invitations even earlier than the admissions team.

[A Yuan: I've received confirmation that after the results are released, No. 1 High School will renovate the playground and the exterior walls of the teaching buildings, and also expand the library. It's said that the exterior walls of the teaching buildings will all be replaced with antique red bricks. Our old beige teaching buildings will become a thing of the past. Since the senior high school building is empty now, why not go back and reminisce about the old days?]

[A Yuan: I cordially invite you and Brother Lin to meet at 9:30 tomorrow morning at Anjing No.1 High School, Class 1 of Senior Three.]

[A-Yuan: The information is reliable; I've received a reply.]

【JT: 1】

Summer is getting stronger, and Ankyo is still unbearably hot in June this year.

The cicadas chirped incessantly among the dense foliage of the school, just like that summer.

On the day she returned to school, Ji Tong hadn't even gotten out of the car when she saw someone standing at the school gate with a water cup in the distance.

It was our homeroom teacher, Lao Yu.

The car stopped, and the two got out. Old Yu walked over with his signature potbelly sticking out.

His gaze swept back and forth between Gu Lin and Ji Tong, clearly indicating that he had figured something out.

Old Yu's gaze finally settled on Gu Lin: "You're back."

Gu Lin smiled and said, "Mm."

"You've worked hard," Lao Yu raised his hand and patted Gu Lin on the shoulder. "It's good to be back."

This year, Lao Yu is still teaching the competition class, which is also Class 1, but he is not the homeroom teacher.

Ji Tong stood at the door of Class 1, looking at the class that was almost the same as he remembered, his eyes filled with surprise.

Old Yu explained, "Your class's results were so outstanding that when the new senior students came in, they said the layout must have some feng shui implications, so we didn't change it."

As Lao Yu was speaking, his phone rang, and the caller ID showed "Li Yuan".

"Alright, stop standing here," Lao Yu pushed Ji Tong and Gu Lin into the classroom. "Go inside and sit down. I'll go to the door to greet those little rascals."

As Lao Yu answered the phone and walked away, Ji Tong could still hear Li Yuan's arguing through the phone.

"I wonder if the desks have been changed. I'll go look for them." Ji Tong walked around the classroom with great interest.

Gu Lin leaned casually against the door, smiling as he looked at him.

Three minutes later, Ji Tong stood in the first row by the window and waved to Gu Lin: "Here."

Although there were a few other marks on the desk, the fixing nail in the upper right corner was the one he had driven in.

Gu Lin walked over.

Ji Tong lightly rubbed the fixing nail twice, then grabbed Gu Lin's wrist and walked to the last row.

His seat was in the last row by the window, the same row as Gu Lin's.

The two sat down together, exchanged a knowing look, and didn't speak, but they both heard each other's voices.

"Are you thinking about our first meeting?" Ji Tong asked.

Gu Lin: "Mm."

That was the first name Gu Lin remembered in high school.

The man told him it meant the sun was rising and the sky was just beginning to brighten.

Ji Tong smiled, propped her hand on the table, and looked at him with her chin resting on her hand. As if she had suddenly remembered something, or as if she had been thinking about it for a long time, she said, "Gu Lin, haven't you told me the meaning of your name yet? Why did you choose the single character 'Lin'?"

Gu Lin: "It's our turn."

Ji Tong: "Hmm?"

Gu Lin: "It's the turn of the 'Lin' generation."

Ji Tong asked in confusion, "Shouldn't we add another character after '临'?"

There's no such thing as a single character.

"Since we haven't decided on a family name yet, we're thinking of just putting down a single name first and then choosing one later."

"And then you didn't choose anymore?"

"It just came out of my head."

Ji Tong: "..."

What kind of reason is that?

Ji Tong had thought about the meaning of Gu Lin's name before, but she had always forgotten to ask.

He thought that even if it wasn't a powerful and majestic poem like "Respectfully I stand before the four corners of the earth, and with flowing robes I govern the eight directions" or "The emperor bestows the seal of nobility upon me from his palace," it should at least be a leisurely and contented poem like "Enjoying the tranquility in the breeze, my thoughts linger long." Who knew it would be this?

“Then I’ll find the meaning of the character ‘临’ for you,” Ji Tong suddenly turned around to face Gu Lin, knee to knee, and cupped Gu Lin’s chin with both hands, his eyebrows curving into a beautiful arc. “In the future, if anyone asks you, just say that Gu Lin’s ‘临’ is the ‘临’ of ‘descent’.”

“It is the ‘临’ in ‘光临’ (guānglín).

Ji Tong tapped Gu Lin's cheeks twice with her fingers, as if playing a piano, making the sound even lighter and more cheerful.

"Thank you, Gu Lin, for coming into my life."

"Thank you, Gu Lin, for once again entering my life."

"So, are you satisfied?"

Gu Lin's Adam's apple bobbed slightly, and when he spoke, his voice was hoarseer than before.

"satisfy."

Ji Tong held out his hand to him and casually joked, "Since you're satisfied, then pay the naming fee. I want—"

Suddenly, something appeared in my hand.

Ji Tong was startled by the sudden touch. Looking down, she saw an envelope.

"What is this?" Ji Tong asked.

"Name selection fee," Gu Lin said.

Ji Tong stepped on his foot, and then, puzzled, opened the package to take a look—

A wish voucher, a school badge.

The wish coupon looks familiar.

It's the one he signed for Gu Lin back in his senior year of high school.

"This isn't..." Ji Tong was speechless for a moment, and it took her a while to find her voice, "Why did you still keep it?"

The paper of the wish coupon was yellowed, but the ink on it was still fresh.

Five words were written on it—

Together forever.

The wish I made on New Year's Eve was written on the new wishing ticket word for word.

Ji Tong was lost in thought for a long time before she could speak again: "If you say something else, that's called a 'fact,' not a 'wish.'"

“No change,” Gu Lin kissed his eyes, “This is it.”

The June sun shone on the windowsill, illuminating the last row of desks, the envelope, and the most secret thoughts of my youth.

"Okay, this is fine, I've already signed it." Ji Tong suppressed the bitterness in her heart and carefully put the wish ticket and school badge back into the envelope.

The belated love received a response in the height of summer in Ankyo once again.

Ji Tong put away the envelope, sat down, and was momentarily blinded by the sunlight.

In a daze, he saw Gu Lin sitting next to him again, wearing the school uniform of No. 1 Middle School.

Ji Tong smiled and reached out her hand to the person wearing the No. 1 High School uniform—

"Gu Lin, is that right? Hello, my name is Ji Tong."

The "tong" in "qianmenwanhu tongtongri" means the sun rising and the sky just beginning to brighten.

“From now on…” Ji Tong paused, “I’ll protect you for the rest of your life.”

Gu Lin chuckled softly, raised his hand, and intertwined his fingers with his own little by little.

The year the peach blossoms of Anjing bloomed wildly.

His sun descended upon his life.

Shine upon him.

The world is perpetually in daylight.

(End of text)