The next morning, before eight o'clock, in the dim light of dawn, Li Jing was already sitting in her usual spot in the library.
With books laid out in front of her, her gaze kept drifting towards the entrance of the reading room, and her fingers gripping the pen tightened slightly, revealing her inner anticipation.
As the clock approached 8:10, that tall, familiar figure finally appeared at the door, still in his military uniform, carrying a military-style crossbody bag.
The moment he appeared, Li Jing's heart skipped a beat, and she stood up almost reflexively, subconsciously waving lightly towards the door.
Guan Hongqi was clearly not expected to be greeted so directly. He paused for a moment, a look of surprise on his face.
When he finally recognized her and saw the obvious joy on her face, he snapped out of his daze, a slightly embarrassed smile spreading across his dark face, and he walked towards her.
As he approached, Li Jing lowered her voice, her cheeks slightly flushed, and spoke first, "Comrade Guan, good morning!"
"Good morning, Comrade Li Jing, you've arrived quite early."
As he spoke, he gestured for her to sit down first, otherwise the two of them standing there so abruptly would attract attention and affect other people's studies.
Li Jing realized that her behavior seemed a bit exaggerated, so she quickly sat down and explained in a low voice, "Um... I thought this spot had good lighting, so I reserved it for you first."
She pointed to the seat next to her, which she had indeed occupied with a thick dictionary.
Guan Hongqi glanced at the spot, then at her, his eyes filled with gratitude. "Thank you, Comrade Li, for your trouble."
"No...no trouble at all, not at all." Li Jing quickly waved her hand, urging him to sit down.
Guan Hongqi didn't stand on ceremony with her. Seating was indeed scarce here; if you arrived late, you'd have to sit on the floor.
He nodded and sat down.
Seeing that he had finally sat down next to her, Li Jing's heart raced for a few seconds. Then, as if remembering something, she quickly took out a glass bottle wrapped in a clean handkerchief from under the table.
The glass bottle contained milky white soy milk, with wisps of steam rising from its opening.
She gently pushed the bottle towards Guan Hongqi, her voice even lower, with a hint of barely perceptible nervousness, "Comrade Guan, I bought too much this morning. I can't finish one cup. It's chilly, so you can have this one. Don't waste it."
She dared not look him in the eye, afraid of revealing that she had gone to queue before dawn to buy two cups.
Guan Hongqi stared at the bottle of warm soy milk, clearly taken aback.
These days, soy milk may not be particularly rare, but it's still a thoughtful gesture.
He looked at Li Jing's slightly flushed cheeks and sparkling eyes. The girl's enthusiasm and kindness made him feel a little flustered, but a direct rejection would obviously be more inappropriate.
He hesitated for a moment, but still took it. He felt a warm touch in his palm. "Well... thank you, Comrade Li Jing."
"You're welcome." Li Jing felt a sweet warmth in her heart as she watched him accept the gift, feeling as if she had accomplished something great.
Guan Hongqi was holding the warm soy milk when he suddenly remembered something. He looked down and rummaged through his canvas bag, taking out a small square wrapped in gold foil.
Fortunately, He Sheng did indeed stuff some snacks into his backpack.
He took out something and carefully placed it next to Li Jing's open notebook. "Comrade Li, this... is for you to eat. Consider it a thank you gift for the soy milk."
Li Jing was surprised by this outcome, and her eyes widened slightly.
Guan Hongqi thought she didn't know what it was or that it didn't taste good, so she quickly explained, "This is something my sister brought back from the south. It's called chocolate. I heard that eating it can replenish your energy. You can try it when you're tired from reading. It's quite sweet."
So this is chocolate?!
Li Jing stared in surprise at the small piece of chocolate that shimmered with a peculiar metallic luster. She had only heard of it, but had never tasted it.
When she came to her senses, she looked up at Guan Hongqi, her eyes sparkling and curving into crescents. "So this is chocolate? Thank you, Comrade Guan! If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have known that chocolate looks like this."
She picked up the small candy as if it were a precious treasure, her fingertips able to feel the smooth, cool touch of the tin foil.
Seeing that she seemed to really like it, Guan Hongqi's eyebrows curved into a smile. "You're welcome. I'm glad you like it."
In order not to let him notice her overt joy and her secret thoughts, Li Jing resisted the urge to examine the chocolate immediately and carefully put it into the pencil case.
Then, she took a deep breath, picked up her pen, and turned to the book with feigned composure. "Shall we... start studying? I want to do math first today, and then physics this afternoon."
Guan Hongqi nodded. "Okay, you do the questions first. If you don't understand anything, we can discuss it together."
"good!"
While Li Jing was engrossed in her homework, Guan Hongqi unscrewed the lid of the soy milk, and a faint aroma of soybeans wafted out.
He took a sip of warm soy milk, opened his book, and focused intently on the words.
The reading room returned to silence, with only the soft sounds of pages turning and pens scratching across paper.
The sunlight gradually filled the table, illuminating the two young people sitting side by side.
The air still seemed to carry the warm aroma of soy milk, and a faint, almost imperceptible sweetness called a flutter of the heart.
...
For the next few days, Guan Hongqi came to the library almost every day, because he needed to work harder if he wanted to get into a good school.
Li Jing, rain or shine, always arrived earlier than him.
The best spot by the window, where the light is best, always has two books placed side by side, a sign that someone is there.
Every time Li Jing saw him, her eyes would light up first, and then she would purse her lips and reveal a reserved smile, casually pushing the cup of soy milk wrapped in a towel on the table towards him, "Good morning, Comrade Guan, the soybeans are ground very finely today, you should try it, it's quite delicious."
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