Chapter 21 Bitter Summer (Third Update) A Fleeting Romance
"Knock knock knock".
A knock came at the bedroom door, and Shen Qingli finally snapped out of her daze.
She looked at the things in her hands, and heard someone calling her from outside the door: "Ali, may I come in?"
Hearing Shen Qingyun's voice, she hurriedly replied, "Wait a moment."
After saying that, she hurriedly put her diary and exercise books back into the cabinet and locked it. After confirming that everything was okay, she calmed herself down and opened the door for Shen Qingyun as if nothing had happened, asking, "Sister, is there something you need?"
"What were you doing just now? It took you so long to open the door." She walked straight in and asked casually.
"Oh... I was tidying up my desk just now." She smiled awkwardly.
Fortunately, Shen Qingyun didn't notice anything amiss. She nodded trustingly, then found a stool to sit down and said, "I heard from Mom that she bought you a new phone. Is there anything you don't know how to use?"
"Oh, no, I've used yours before, I've learned how to use it."
"That's good."
When the topic of using Shen Qingyun's phone came up, the two exchanged a knowing smile.
What happened at that time was a rare occasion in Shen Qingyun's life when she was criticized along with her.
Shen Qingli felt particularly guilty about this at the time, but the older sister in front of her seemed indifferent to being criticized.
At that time, she couldn't quite understand Shen Qingyun's thoughts. It wasn't until later that she realized that Shen Qingyun had always longed for everyone around her to treat her like a normal person.
Just thinking about that incident reminded her of the contact information she had lost. She didn't have a cell phone back then, so she couldn't save anyone's contact information.
Now she finally has her own cell phone. She had promised him that once she got a cell phone, he would be the first person she saved in her contacts.
But once she actually possessed it, many things were already out of her control.
Life is so unpredictable, always presenting challenges in unexpected places.
Shen Qingli once thought she would never see him again, but on the first day of school, she saw someone who shouldn't have been at Suzhou No. 1 High School. Xia Qing, no, to be precise now, should be Lin Xiaqing, but he walked past her indifferently as if he had never known her before.
At first, she thought he was angry because she had broken their promise, but later when they were alone, he still didn't mention anything about the past on the way home, and his words showed a clear distance between them.
Many questions she wanted to ask remained stuck in her chest, unable to come up or go. She felt she could no longer distinguish what kind of person this so-called Lin Xiaqing really was.
Perhaps she really didn't understand him at all, and couldn't comprehend how someone she had known for so many years could suddenly become the Lin Xiaqing that everyone talked about, someone from a different world than her.
Before all of this, she had thought about explaining to him and asking for his contact information again, but now she wasn't sure if Lin Xiaqing would still agree to her request.
After thinking it over, she couldn't help but sigh.
Perhaps because the sigh was too loud, Shen Qingyun noticed her looking up and glancing at her several times before asking with concern, "What's wrong?"
"Oh...it's nothing." She then realized there was someone else in her room, quickly wiping the hesitant look from her face, and said, "But, did you come to see me just to ask me about the phone?"
"Well... actually, it's not just that."
Noticing her hesitation, Shen Qingli pressed on, "Is there anything else? Is there something you want to tell me?"
Hearing this, knowing that she had been seen through, Shen Qingyun looked embarrassed and nodded somewhat shyly, then asked in a soft voice, "Ali, you and Luo Yiqiu, are you on pretty good terms?"
"Huh? Yes, we get along pretty well." She nodded, puzzled, not knowing why Shen Qingyun would suddenly bring this up.
"Did she mention... Yixiao to you?"
"Ah... Senior Zhao?" Sensing that the other person's words were not what they seemed, Shen Qingli raised an eyebrow slightly and said truthfully, "I think they mentioned each other before. Aren't they childhood sweethearts? It's normal for them to talk about each other."
"Oh, I see..." Whether Shen Qingyun got the answer she wanted or not, she nodded, concealing the awkwardness in her voice, and continued, "Then what do you think of Luo Yiqiu? How does she treat Yixiao?"
Hearing this, Shen Qingli looked up at her several times, wondering if she had realized that the intention behind her question was quite obvious.
Perhaps liking someone is something that's hard to hide; no matter how much you pretend to be indifferent, people can still tell at a glance.
She couldn't help but think back to the time she inadvertently mentioned Lin Xiaqing to Shen Qingyun. Was she just as clumsy and inept at getting information out of him back then?
She thought about it and noticed the other person's unusual behavior, but didn't ask any further questions.
Unfortunately, her relationship with Luo Yiqiu wasn't close enough for them to casually share their girlish secrets, so she wasn't sure whether Luo Yiqiu's feelings for Zhao Yixiao were just friendship or something more.
She only knew that many people were saying in secret that they were a good match, but Luo Yiqiu and Lin Xiaqing were also being gossiped about behind their backs. She didn't know how much of this gossip was true, or whether it was even true.
But Shen Qingli couldn't voice these doubts in her heart, nor did she want to.
Because if she says these things, only she and Shen Qingyun will be unhappy.
But she still told the truth, saying that she didn't know much about Luo Yiqiu's private affairs. Shen Qingyun seemed a little disappointed after hearing this. She pursed her lips, nodded dejectedly, and didn't ask anything further.
Shen Qingli looked at her but didn't press her to ask why she was so curious about Zhao Yixiao and Luo Yiqiu. She thought the answer was probably already known to everyone.
But she also had some curiosity about this matter, so she took the opportunity to say, "But, sis, I don't think I've ever known how you and Senior Zhao met before?"
"Huh? Why are you suddenly asking this?" When asked about Zhao Yixiao, she suddenly looked up again.
"Oh, I heard from Senior Zhao that you two knew each other before high school, so I was a little curious."
"He also told you about me." Hearing this, Shen Qingyun was surprised but finally a little happy. When she mentioned him, she smiled a little embarrassedly before starting to tell her story in detail.
“When I met Yixiao, we were both only eleven years old. At that time, I was in poor health and could only be hospitalized for observation. After a long time, I didn’t know anyone around except my parents. I envied the children my age who could go out to play and easily make new friends, while I could only stay alone in the cold hospital room. As a result, for a long time afterward, my birthday wish was to have a good friend. Then one day, Yixiao was transferred to the hospital room where I was. He has a very gentle personality. After he noticed that I was unhappy, he often pulled me aside to chat. Gradually, we became familiar with each other.”
When talking about the past, Shen Qingyun's expression became somewhat dazed. During that painful and unbearable time of illness, Zhao Yixiao was the only ray of light that appeared in her life.
Whenever she saw her parents worrying about her and not being able to sleep, she felt incredibly guilty. She felt that it was all her fault, and at this time, only Zhao Yixiao could relieve her worries.
-
That night, she talked a lot with Shen Qingli about the past, and Shen Qingli learned about things she didn't know about the past for the first time.
She also realized that Shen Qingyun had not been as happy as she appeared all these years. They were sisters, but they lived completely different lives. She had also felt resentful in her heart, feeling that it was all very unfair. But where in life is there anything completely fair?
Thinking of this, she suddenly didn't want to dwell on it anymore. At least she shouldn't resent Shen Qingyun for everything that had happened in the past.
In the room, she listened quietly to Shen Qingyun's words the whole time. When she mentioned that she and Zhao Yixiao were discharged from the hospital one after the other, they gradually lost contact. Until high school, when she saw the class information displayed on the bulletin board, she saw that familiar name again.
The joy I felt then was probably indescribable.
Speaking of this, she unconsciously curled the corners of her lips. Shen Qingli saw the smile on her face and laughed along, saying, "Then I think you two are actually quite destined for each other."
"Huh? Why are you suddenly saying that?"
"Because... I think that in one's life, one will meet too many people, and many will drift apart and separate. If two people have already experienced a separation, and can meet again on the journey of life, then it must be an extraordinary fate."
As she finished speaking, although she was talking about Shen Qingyun and Zhao Yixiao, she couldn't help but think of Lin Xiaqing.
If they can meet again, does that mean they weren't just fleeting lovers in each other's lives?
Shen Qingyun had no idea what she was thinking, but she seemed to be moved by Shen Qingli's words. She slowly nodded and said, "It seems so. You make this sound quite romantic, Qingli."
As she spoke, she lowered her head and chuckled softly. The pent-up frustration that had been troubling her seemed to have vanished into thin air.
"Since fate has already brought us together, we should cherish it. As for the rest... we can deal with that later," she consoled herself.
Shen Qingli overheard her mutterings.
Cherish it. She murmured those two words to herself.
If all of this was also fate's arrangement, then shouldn't she also take the initiative to find Lin Xiaqing? At least... she should return what belongs to him and explain why she broke her promise that summer.
...
At night, the two sisters, each with their own worries, found the answers they sought in each other's conversations.
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Author's Note: A fleeting romance...
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