reconciliation
Xu Hongqi smiled instantly and quickly sat next to Xu Nian.
The candle was still quite durable at this time. It had been more than half an hour since it was lit, and it had only burned a quarter of its length.
Xu Nian felt the burning gaze beside him, and his face became hot and irritated.
"What are you looking at? Do you want to eat or not?"
Xu Hongqi gently asked, "Do we need to make a wish when placing these candles?"
After hearing what he said, Xu Nian looked at his face in surprise, a little puzzled, "You still know how to make a wish?"
Xu Hongqi nodded and said, "Our history teacher told us that this is how birthdays are celebrated in the West." What he didn't say was that after the history teacher finished speaking, he had also wanted to celebrate Xu Nian's birthday in this way, but now the gap between China and the West is still huge, and some things can only be thought about for the time being.
He asked tentatively, "Then I blow out the candles and make a wish?"
Xu Nian snorted, "Whatever you want."
When she spoke in such a soft tone, Xu Hongqi finally felt relieved. This was a way for him to save face after she had calmed down.
Xu Hongqi no longer hesitated, clasped his hands together, looked at the person in front of him and said, "I wish Xu Nian could forgive me today."
Xu Nian was stunned for a moment, "Is this your wish for your twentieth birthday?"
"This is more important than any other wish."
"I thought you would allow me to take the entrance exam to your school this year."
Xu Hongqi slapped his head in deliberate annoyance, "Oh, I forgot about that. I was just thinking about getting you to stop being mad at me."
Xu Nian didn't know if all men were born with the ability to say sweet words, but she felt really happy about it. More importantly, she discovered that she did have a very important position in Xu Hongqi's heart. His temper for the past half month had made Xu Nian feel his stubborn determination, but she didn't expect that he, who was the least likely to compromise, would be the first to compromise.
Xu Nian is not the type of person who will not give in even if she is right. She just wants the people she cares about to be happy, and everything else is unimportant.
"Blow out the candle quickly, I'm starving to death." Xu Nian's anger subsided and he simply stopped pretending.
Xu Hongqi hurriedly blew out the candles, then removed them, opened the dishes in the lunch boxes one by one and placed them on the table.
Xu Nian picked up the chopsticks and picked up some of each dish for Xu Hongqi, put it on the lunch box lid in front of him, and began to eat and drink in big mouthfuls. She only slowed down her eating speed after her stomach was full.
Xu Nian saw that Xu Hongqi was also enjoying his meal, so he smiled and held it back, "You don't even know, I was so happy today."
"Beating the egg whites is tiring, but when I thought about giving you a special birthday, I instantly felt full of energy. I even ran to the supply and marketing cooperative twice to buy everything. After making the cream cake, I immediately went to do my homework because I wanted to give you a good birthday, but you scolded me when you came."
Xu Hongqi put down his chopsticks, regret evident on his face. "I'm sorry, I didn't pick you up at school. I thought something was wrong with you. When I came back, you seemed fine. And then I thought about how cold you've been to me lately, so I lost control of my temper. This is all my fault. I'm sorry."
Xu Nian was just a child not even eighteen years old. She was more focused on thinking about problems from her own perspective. When she was troubled by things, she forgot to put herself in Xu Hongqi's shoes and think about whether it would be more difficult for him to grow up alone.
But she was stubborn and said, "You are wrong. I will let it go this time for your birthday, but there won't be a next time."
She turned her body towards Xu Hongqi and said, "Let's make a pact. From now on, if there's anything we have to talk about, we must talk it out. We can't get angry at each other anymore. Even if we can't come to an agreement on the same day, we must not let it go unresolved for more than three days. If we break the rules, it will really be..."
Before Xu Nian finished speaking, Xu Hongqi immediately responded, "No, I won't break the agreement. My temper is worse than yours. Thank you for tolerating me."
Xu Nian coughed, feeling a little embarrassed. When they first met, she would definitely say that Xu Hongqi had the worst temper, violent and gloomy, but now, the two of them can only be said to be equally bad, and it is hard to say who is worse and who is better. If you don't want to be picky, then you can only say that Xu Nian is more coquettish in front of Xu Hongqi.
"Let's not talk about this. Have you finished your meal? I can't keep my cream cake any longer. It doesn't look good on the surface anymore."
Even though Xu Hongqi wasn't full, he still said he had eaten well. "It looks special. I've never seen it before. It smells so sweet."
Xu Nian curled her lips. She was not bragging, her pastry skills were the best in the class. Otherwise, it would be a miracle if she could do it with the simple tools at that time. Fortunately, she had worked hard in this area in her previous life to please her adoptive parents.
Xu Nian ran out to get a kitchen knife and a plate. The cake base was the egg cake she usually ate, but she bought the largest size. Now that it was filled with fruit and cream, it seemed a little more bloated. She cut it into two parts with a knife and placed them on two plates respectively.
He urged Xu Hongqi, "Eat quickly."
There was no spoon at home, so Xu Hongqi picked up a piece with chopsticks and put it in his mouth. The dense and delicate cream instantly melted in his mouth. Before he could savor it properly, the orange flesh was bitten open, and a fresh fragrance neutralized the greasy cream. Then, the small piece of cake disappeared in his mouth when it was sandwiched by the fluffy egg cake.
Xu Hongqi's eyes lit up. He felt that he had said it too early. His favorite food was not meat. His favorite was the cream cake made by Xu Nian. The sweet but not greasy taste took root in his heart. Looking at the girl next to him with an expectant look on her face, the corners of his mouth widened.
"You are amazing. This is the most delicious cake I have ever eaten and the happiest birthday I have ever had."
Looking at his expression, Xu Nian knew that he was fascinated by her. She lowered her head and took a bite of the cake. She felt the long-lost happiness, and all her tiredness disappeared in an instant.
The two of them ate each bite with cherishing care, unintentionally sitting closer to each other. No one brought up unhappy topics anymore. After a while, the food on the table was completely gone. Xu Hongqi said, "Niannian, it's too late. I'll help you with your homework."
Xu Nian clapped his hands happily, "Are you serious?"
Xu Hongqi nodded, "You go and write first, I'll come over to help you after I finish cleaning up..."
The two of them no longer had the estrangement from the previous few days. Xu Nian slept soundly all night, and the next day they chatted together again.
Xu Hongqi was influenced by Xu Nian. He thought that when Xu Nian's birthday came, he would also have an unforgettable birthday with her. In addition, Xu Nian was celebrating her 18th birthday, so he thought even more.
But no matter how much he thought about it, Xu Nian accidentally knew about his idea and shattered it in an instant, "I don't want to waste this time. Wait until I finish the college entrance examination, and take me to Beijing during the summer vacation."
Thinking of her increasingly tight study schedule, Xu Hongqi had no choice but to agree, thinking that he could only compensate her well after the college entrance examination. This time, he was naive and didn't think much about it.
Xu Nian had made up her mind. She thought that she would not apply to Renmin University for college. This was just a small regret for her, but she asked Xu Hongqi to accompany her to visit the school to erase the regret.
By mid-June the weather had become hot, and Xu Nian was feeling a bit irritated. She was a transfer student and could only study here but not take exams. She was struggling with whether to go back home now or wait until July when Xu Hongqi had his summer vacation and go back together.
The college entrance examination in 1979 was held from July 7 to July 9. Logically, she should have made it in time, but she was worried about encountering problems on the way. Yesterday, her third brother even called her to ask when she would be back.
Xu Nian felt a sense of urgency. On the way home from school, she told Xu Hongqi that she wanted to leave in two days. Xu Hongqi didn't say anything on the way.
When Xu Hongqi came to pick up Xu Nian from school the next day, he told her about this incident again on the way.
"Niannian, I've asked for leave from our counselor. We're going back to our hometown the day after tomorrow. I've asked someone to buy the tickets. I'll clean up the house in the next two days. I won't give up the lease yet, but I need to talk to the landlord and ask her to take care of it."
Xu Nian hesitated a little, "If you ask for leave, will your teacher have a bad impression of you? You are very busy every day now."
"No big deal. I'll take some of the information back with me and mail it when the time comes. Besides, the holidays are almost here."
Xu Nian breathed a sigh of relief when she heard him say this. She was still a little scared to go alone. Although the last kidnapping incident was not a shadow, she still felt uneasy.
She didn't mind the heat. She put her arms around Xu Hongqi's waist, put her face on his back, and mumbled something.
Xu Hongqi asked her to sit down, but Xu Nian didn't let go. "What are you afraid of? I'm already eighteen."
Xu Hongqi's face flushed. "What am I afraid of? Just study hard for the college entrance exam first, and then we'll talk about it after you finish."
Xu Nian rolled her eyes behind his back, "You're such a conservative person."
Xu Hongqi was unhappy. "Who are you calling old-fashioned? Just wait and see."
After a quick journey, they drank a glass of boiled water when they got home. Xu Nian was now completely relieved. After she finished her meal and homework, she began to pack her luggage. She only had two packages when she came here, and in just one year, she didn't know how she ended up with so many things that she couldn't bear to part with. She probably would die of exhaustion without carrying so many things, so she could only pay to have them mailed.
Before going to bed, Xu Nian thought about reporting to the head teacher tomorrow and saying goodbye to Ling Shuang properly. Suddenly, he remembered his cold deskmate Ding Zheng, and he had to say hello to her.
After a good night's sleep, Xu Nian was a little groggy in the morning. When she waved to Xu Hongqi weakly, Xu Hongqi pulled her aside and asked softly, "Are you tired of seeing me in your dreams? So now I'm not that attractive to you anymore."
Xu Nian didn't know how he could think of this. He looked quite serious and no longer in the mood to joke. "How could that be? How can the you in my dreams compare to the you now? You are not very attractive to me. Who else can attract me? It's getting late. I'm going to be late. You should hurry to school."
Xu Hongqi got a satisfactory answer, felt less entangled, and left happily.
When Xu Nian arrived at the class, he suddenly had an idea that Xu Hongqi was probably suffering from separation syndrome. She had not told him clearly that she was not going to apply to Renmin University, so he was uneasy and had been a bit clingy recently.
Xu Nian smiled, thinking that she should explain it to him clearly. She didn't have the habit of hurting others. Giving him reassurance would be good for both of them.
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