57 Reset Lights | Difficult to Speak
It shouldn't be long.
It should be almost New Year's Eve.
Beyond the hail of bullets, there is harmony.
Lin Weifeng sat on the bay window, wrapped in a blanket, watching the lanterns on the street corners light up one by one.
When the time came, the fireworks rehearsal began on the other side of the Jiangxian River.
Colorful flowers rise into the sky again and again, forming a picture against the ancient street scene.
It looks good.
But Lin Weifeng didn't dare to look or listen.
Lin Weifeng, who was escorted back to Jingjiang, was confused and had no idea where time had gone.
Operation Fanhua was a top-secret operation, and she could not tell anyone about her experiences and what she saw.
She didn't know what the final outcome was. Even Gu Chengxiu only knew that Lin Haidong was on a business trip and didn't know whether he participated in the operation.
The phone was placed next to his knees, the screen lit up and dimmed, and WeChat was stuck on the chat box with Jiang Yu.
However, Lin Weifeng couldn't organize his words well and didn't know what to say.
She and Jiang Yu did not comfort each other, nor did they take the initiative to care about each other.
Saying "I'm fine" is too light, and saying "I'm scared" is too heavy.
Asking “Did you succeed?” is top secret, and asking “Do you miss me?” seems inappropriate.
That day was too shocking, and she couldn't express her emotions in words as they were rapidly changing.
Fortunately, she knew Jiang Yu was safe.
Because when she picked up the phone, the five words "the bully can receive it" would always become "the other party is typing".
Staring at the words "the other party is typing" is her best pastime these days.
Gu Chengxiu came back from the supermarket with a lot of fresh food.
She knocked on Lin Weifeng's door and asked outside, "Breeze, do you want to make dumplings with your mother?"
Lin Weifeng slowly pulled himself together and replied, "I'm here."
Opening the door and walking into the living room, she heard her mother ask, "Did you have a nightmare again last night?"
At night, she occasionally dreams.
The gunfire in the abandoned village, the bullets flying extremely slowly, always approaching her, yet never reaching her.
She saw Jiang Yu leaning sideways to block the gun for her, and blood beads condensed in the air.
There was a time when she couldn't tell whether it was a dream or reality, and she woke up feeling very tired.
"Not last night," she said.
"Mom, you don't look very energetic."
"Oh, a little," she said obediently, "but it's much better. Don't worry, Mom."
"Um."
Gu Chengxiu smiled and shook his head, then he picked up the knife and chopped the shepherd's purse and meat into fine pieces, and cut the leeks, dried tea leaves and vermicelli into fine pieces, and put them all into the large basin.
Lin Weifeng also joined in, rolled up his sleeves, and slowly stirred along the wall of the basin.
She flipped the filling over and pressed it down, and with the moist rustling sound, the aroma of oil, chives, and dried tofu layered on top of each other, blocking the coldness from her nose and making her less likely to think of the smell of gunpowder in the warehouse.
"Your dad's business trip is really long this time," Gu Chengxiu said casually, "I wonder if he can make it in time for New Year's Eve."
Lin Weifeng gently touched the edge of the basin with the chopsticks in his hand, and said in a crisp voice: "New Year's Eve is the day after tomorrow, there is still time."
Gu Chengxiu picked up the bowl and placed it in the middle of the dining table. The two sat together and started making dumplings.
The two of them moved in unison, spreading the dough on their palms, dropping a spoonful of filling into it, folding it in half, and pinching pleats, all in one go.
The whole process was relaxed and casual.
"He didn't tell me when he would be back." Gu Chengxiu pinched the last fold.
"He hasn't either." Lin Weifeng answered quickly, his voice lower.
Gu Chengxiu naturally knew that Lin Weifeng was talking about Jiang Yu. He smiled, and the fine lines at the corners of his eyes were ironed out by the light: "Maybe they are together."
Lin Weifeng did not see Lin Haidong that day, nor did he receive any related hints.
But on second thought, for someone who is walking at the gunpoint, no news may be the best news.
She lowered her eyes, shaped the last dumpling, and gently placed it on the tray.
When I had finished wrapping all the vegetarian dumplings, someone knocked on the door.
Gu Chengxiu and Lin Weifeng looked at each other, immediately wiped their hands on their aprons, and walked to the door together to open it.
But when he opened the door, the people who appeared in front of him were Song Ze and Sun Zhengxiao.
Gu Chengxiu's expression changed from warm to indifferent. He smiled and greeted by the door, "Young couple, are you here to play?"
Song Ze's hands were full.
"Aunt Xiu, we bought some things from Liuguo and rushed to deliver them to you on the last day of the holiday." It was too cold outside. As he spoke, the white air he exhaled swirled under the lamp.
Sun Zhengxiao stood at the back, her nose red from the cold, and waved to Lin Weifeng.
Lin Weifeng asked them to come in quickly.
"Come in, come in, come in and warm up." Gu Chengxiu made way.
Gu Chengxiu put the wrapped vegetarian leek dumplings into a fresh-keeping box and pushed it into the refrigerator.
Song Ze washed his hands and helped her wrap the meat filling.
While stirring the filling, he vividly reported the "embarrassing things" of his honeymoon, especially emphasizing every little thing that made Sun Zhengxiao dislike him.
"On our first night in the Ryukyu Kingdom, Miss Sun complained about the hotel pillows being too hard, so she rolled up my down jacket and used it as a pillow. The next morning, the down had all fallen out, and I caught a cold the next day. But she took a photo, checked in, and posted it on her WeChat Moments, saying it was the 'artificial honey snow' of her honeymoon. I was so impressed."
Gu Chengxiu was amused and laughed.
Sun Zhengxiao ignored him, took Lin Weifeng's arm, and led him to the room: "Come on, let me show you some photos."
The door closed gently, blocking out Song Ze's chatter in the kitchen.
Lin Weifeng asked as they walked: "Are these photos from your honeymoon?"
"No, I posted all of them on WeChat Moments..." Sun Zhengxiao pouted, then suddenly remembered, "And you didn't like any of them."
"I really didn't see it." She sat on the edge of the bed.
"I believe you, a busy man." Sun Zhengxiao spoke word by word.
Lin Weifeng said lightly: "We should be good to each other."
Sun Zhengxiao sat next to her: "But what's wrong with you today? You seem absent-minded."
"Nothing, I haven't been sleeping well lately and I've been dreaming a lot." Lin Weifeng said nothing more, "What photos do you want to show me?"
Sun Zhengxiao mysteriously took out a palm-sized lacquered wooden box from her bag and opened it decisively.
Inside was a stack of developed photo paper.
The top photo has the mountaintop where Xun Song’s former residence is located as the background.
The camera captured the moment perfectly. As the sun broke through the clouds, the two stood side by side, greeting the people who were celebrating a wedding halfway up the mountain.
"Of course it's your wedding photo!" said Sun Zhengxiao.
“…”
Suddenly I remembered that there was such a thing as arranging a marriage for them.
Outside the window, the cold air is quietly thickening.
Inside the window, the lights and heat are strong.
Lin Weifeng looked through his "wedding photos" one by one.
The awkwardness amidst the spray of colorful ribbons, the ceremony of worshipping in the presence of burning red candles, and the drinking of wedding wine...almost all the procedures in the plan are there.
The photographer's skills are indeed very high. Even though everyone in the picture is "performing" this wedding with embarrassment, each frozen moment looks like it only contains sweetness.
Even the confrontation in the corridor was captured by the photographer through the wall, turning it into a fateful gaze.
We were arguing at that time.
Sun Zhengxiao said cheerfully, "The photographer, who didn't know who was who, sent me the compressed file and kept saying I looked great in photos and that I looked perfect with the 'groom'. I almost died of laughter."
Lin Weifeng smiled helplessly, looking at Jiang Yu's silhouette in the photo and said, "It can be seen that these two people in the photo are working hard to do their best both on and off the stage."
Sun Zhengxiao immediately coughed a few times and patted Lin Weifeng on the shoulder.
"The so-called 'acting' is relative to me and Song Ze," Sun Zhengxiao tucked her hair behind her ears, supporting herself on the bed with both hands, looking very comfortable. "But in these vivid shots, every glance and smile between you and Jiang Yu really happened. It's very real."
Lin Weifeng smiled faintly: "Okay." She carefully put the photos in order and put them away.
Sun Zhengxiao nudged her with her elbow: "Aren't you going to show him?"
Lin Weifeng paused and said, "He is still on duty."
After thinking about it, she felt that what Sun Zhengxiao said made sense, and then said, "Send me the electronic version."
Sun Zhengxiao immediately merged the original image and forwarded it. With a click of her finger, the progress bar quickly slid to 100%.
The phone vibrated and the photo was immediately added to Lin Weifeng's WeChat.
She clicked it open, her fingertip hovering over the screen.
I wonder why I didn’t dare send it to him.
"Did Ning Sicheng get into trouble when he went to the wedding that day?" Sun Zhengxiao asked casually at this time.
"No," Lin Weifeng answered truthfully, "She just expressed her love for Jiang Yu."
"Tsk, typical unrequited love, reckless and without any rules at all." Sun Zhengxiao curled her lips, disliking her from the bottom of her heart.
Lin Weifeng thought of the phone call that said she wanted to rescue her, and added softly, "She contacted me later."
Sun Zhengxiao: "Oh yes, she asked me for your phone number. Isn't it also for Jiang Yu?"
"She said she would save..." Lin Weifeng was afraid that his choice of words might be suggestive, so he swallowed the word "save" and changed his words, "Exactly, she's from Beiwan. When I arrived in Beiwan, she said she would help me if I got into trouble."
"Not for Jiang Yu?"
"Not sure."
"That's not like her," Sun Zhengxiao snorted. "The weasel is paying New Year's greetings to the chicken."
Lin Weifeng didn't respond.
She could hear Ning Sicheng's eagerness and sincerity on the other end of the line. However, the truth had not yet been fully revealed, so she chose to remain silent.
Sun Zhengxiao continued, "However, Ning Sicheng has been on a roll lately. Even though it's winter break, she keeps asking her advisor to help her decide on a thesis topic. She even claimed it would be published soon and declared war on me, saying she'd definitely secure a spot in the second phase of the restoration of 'Framed Ladies'."
"Is that so?" Lin Weifeng said weakly, "It's actually quite good. Don't be too influenced by her."
"I don't like her. She's emotionally unstable, likes to take shortcuts, and is difficult to communicate with." Sun Zhengxiao looked at Lin Weifeng and pursed her lips. "Speaking of which, before, there was Meng Lu who fell in love with Yang Xiuqi, and now there's Ning Sicheng who's obsessed with Jiang Yu. I don't know who has more trouble, you or me."
Lin Weifeng said: "The fact that you can think this way means that they can't influence you at all."
"After I got married, I became less prickly."
"Because of Song Ze?"
"A little bit."
"Although I don't say good things about Song Ze, he is indeed someone worthy of your trust." Lin Weifeng said softly.
Sun Zhengxiao sighed and smiled, "I've always had bad luck, but now I realize I saved all that luck just to meet you two."
Lin Weifeng wanted to argue: "Without me, he wouldn't have met him. Meeting me is more of a matter of luck, right?"
Sun Zhengxiao pushed her and said, "I'm really impressed by your high-quality sense."
After laughing for a while, the topic naturally turned to the restoration project.
Lin Weifeng asked, "How's the Framed Portrait of a Lady?"
"We just completed the first phase of acceptance, and will enter the laboratory for the second phase after the New Year."
"How are you being treated in Mingshan?"
"The person in charge has been spending the last few days in a cemetery outside the city, and can't take care of us."
Lin Weifeng hadn't paid much attention to international news these days. He casually searched for news about the Kingdom of Ryukyu but didn't see any reports on the discovery of the ancient tomb.
Probably not yet made public.
She continued, "Did the contact mention the return of the Bluestone Elephant?"
"Not a single word." Sun Zhengxiao frowned. "I was worried. You're not going to try to get the technology for free and then renege on your debt, are you?"
"Probably not."
Lin Weifeng looked out the window. With Sun Zhengxiao's company, she secretly restored her spirit. After all, there was still a lot of important work waiting for her.
Jiang Yu is busy with an old case.
She has to catch up with the new time.
The next morning, the sky was still gray-blue.
Lin Weifeng ended his long vacation early and went to Jinhe to work.
Sheng Xin was just coming out of the tea room, holding a New Year gift box prepared by the law firm for its partners. When he saw her, he paused, a look of genuine surprise flashing across his eyes.
"You can definitely come back after the New Year."
Lin Weifeng stood up and said in a clear voice: "Sister Sheng Xin, I don't feel any pain anymore."
"What's got you so anxious?"
"It's still the Flower Silk Book," she said with a determined look. "I heard that Mingshan Art Museum isn't very enthusiastic about returning the bluestone statue. While we haven't reached the point of breaking the contract, I think we really need a 'precedent' as a possible bargaining chip in future negotiations. For now, the Silk Book case is the only one I have, and I have to win it."
"Yeah." Sheng Xin nodded.
"Besides," Lin Weifeng added with a smile on his lips, "I am still carrying the hopes of the entire Jiangguan Village."
Sheng Xin patted her shoulder and said, "I know. You told me that the combined efforts of many people are always moving."
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