Chapter 7
The rain in Fuzhou in May came unexpectedly.
Just moments ago the sky was clear and blue, but in the blink of an eye, dark clouds gathered, and large raindrops began to pelt down.
On her way home that evening, Sang jogged into a bus stop, where the shelter was already crowded with students seeking refuge from the rain. She stood at the edge of the crowd, her school uniform sleeves soaked through.
When she looked up, she saw Liang Fengshen.
He stood on the other side of the platform, wearing white headphones, leaning slightly against the billboard. Raindrops dampened his hair, sliding down his defined jawline.
He stared intently at the rain, his fingers unconsciously tapping the strap of his schoolbag.
Sang Sui stood still, not moving closer.
Being able to watch him quietly like this is already very good.
The bus slowly pulled into the station, and the crowd began to stir. Liang Fengshen took off one earphone and boarded the bus with the flow of people. Sang Sui followed behind him and squeezed on as well.
The carriage was stuffy and humid, with people pressed close together. Liang Fengshen stopped by the window and put his headphones back on. Sang Sui was pushed to his side by the crowd, two passengers away.
Rain streaked across the car window, blurring the street scene outside. As the car swayed, she could see the outline of his profile and smell the faint scent of laundry detergent on him.
Once, during a sudden stop, she stumbled forward and nearly crashed into his back. She hurriedly grabbed the railing, her heart pounding like a drum.
Liang Fengshen seemed to sense the movement and turned his head slightly. His gaze swept across the crowded carriage, passing over her face, but did not linger.
It turns out he really couldn't see her.
Sang Sui lowered her head, looking at the tips of her shoes, soaked by the rain. The carriage was filled with the damp smell of earth and sweat, making it hard to breathe.
The bus stopped at a bus stop, and even more passengers surged onto it. In the jostling crowd, the distance between her and him fluctuated. At the closest, she could almost hear the faint music leaking from his headphones.
But he kept gazing out the window, as if he were from another world.
The rain grew heavier, pounding against the car windows. She was on one end, he on the other, separated by a crowded throng and a sudden downpour.
In 2013, the Taiwanese drama "It Started With a Kiss" was rebroadcast in mainland China, and it quickly became popular again in Fuzhou. You could hear girls discussing the show in every corner of the school.
"I really hate Yuan Xiangqin, I think she's so stupid."
"Yes, just like mild intellectual disability."
"She's so ordinary, yet she has a crush on a prodigy like Jiang Zhishu. No wonder Jiang Zhishu doesn't like her."
Sang Sui hadn't had a chance to watch this wildly popular TV series yet. So when Zhao Yanqi, Qiao Chunzhao, and He Lili were discussing it, she had no idea what they were talking about.
I just keenly noticed some key words: "unrequited love", "ordinary", and "a prodigy".
It seems that every word is used to describe her and Liang Fengshen.
So she secretly memorized it.
Whenever Sang Sui was troubled, he would contact Jiang Yaoyue.
Jiang Yaoyue is her good friend, best friend, and confidante. To put it more poetically, she is more like her ibuprofen.
Sang Sui: Have you seen the popular Taiwanese drama right now? I heard it's called something like "It Started With a Kiss."
Jiang Yaoyue: I haven't seen it. What kind of idiotic idol drama is this?
Sang Sui: It's not a silly idol drama! I heard it's about unrequited love, I guess it's about an ordinary girl who has a crush on a very outstanding boy.
Jiang Yaoyue: Oh, so you're a young girl with many worries, are you projecting yourself onto the character while watching the drama?
Sang Sui: A little bit. Why do you insist on making this kind of TV show? An ordinary girl has a crush on an outstanding boy. It sounds like a very heart-wrenching drama, and I feel like it will end in a bad ending.
Jiang Yaoyue: Hahaha, you haven't seen it? What if it's a happy ending?
Sang Sui: That's too unrealistic, unless the female lead is an ugly duckling who turns into a swan.
Jiang Yaoyue: Well, Sang Sui, love has nothing to do with being outstanding or not. A person doesn't necessarily need to be valuable to be loved.
is that so?
What are the prerequisites for being loved?
Sang Sui did not know the answer.
On a weekend afternoon, sunlight streamed through the half-drawn curtains, spreading across the wooden floor.
Sang Sui curled up in the corner of the sofa and finally had the chance to turn on the TV and watch "Itazura na Kiss" being replayed on the screen.
She had only watched the first episode when Yuan Xiangqin tremblingly handed over the love letter, and Sang Sui unconsciously clenched the pillow in her arms.
"Jiang Zhishu, I like you!"
On the television, the girl's voice carried a do-or-die courage; even knowing she might be rejected, she still chose to express her feelings.
A subtle bittersweet feeling welled up in Sang Sui's heart.
Although Yuan Xiangqin was sometimes a bit naive, this kind of reckless courage was something she had never possessed before. She was even careful to glance at him in a crowd, let alone make such a bold confession.
Sang Sui then thought of Lin Shuning.
They are all such brave people, so what is there to mock?
"Watching this pointless idol drama again? I want to watch the football game."
Sang Chi appeared in the living room at some point and snatched the remote control without saying a word.
The screen instantly switched to a bustling green football field, with the commentator's passionate voice filling the entire living room.
Sang Sui didn't snatch the remote control back; she would never take her younger brother's things.
Since I've never had it, I simply stop trying to get it.
She silently got up and went back to her room, gently closing the door to shut out the noise outside. Her homework was still open on the desk, but she couldn't concentrate on reading a single word.
Outside the window, the sky over Fuzhou was a clear blue, with a few white clouds drifting slowly by.
Sang Sui suddenly longed to return to Linchuan and missed his grandmother very much.
She picked up her phone, hesitated for a moment, and then dialed that familiar number.
"Sui Sui, why did you suddenly decide to call Grandma?" Mo Luying's voice came through the receiver, carrying the soft, gentle accent characteristic of Linchuan. "How are you doing in Rongcheng? Is the school food to your liking?"
"Everything's fine," Sang Sui said, trying to sound cheerful. "I'm just missing your preserved vegetable pancakes."
Mo Luying smiled lovingly, "Grandma will send them to you right away, along with your favorite dried bamboo shoots and cured meat."
Sang Sui felt a warmth in her heart, but when she thought of the last time her younger brother threw the pancakes her grandmother made into the trash can, she swallowed the words that were on the tip of her tongue.
"Grandma," she said softly, "please send the package to our school, I'll pick it up after school."
After hanging up the phone, she stared out the window for a long time in a daze.
Feeling dissatisfied, uneasy, and unfulfilled.
Who is really not brave enough?
With the monthly exam approaching, a large number "5" was written on the blackboard at the back of the classroom after the countdown. The learning atmosphere in Class 3 became a bit stronger, but there were still some troublemakers.
During the afternoon self-study period, sunlight slanted into the classroom, casting interplay of light and shadow on the blackboard. Sang Sui was working on a complex physics problem.
Zhao Yanqi whispered to Qiao Chunchao, "The monthly exam is coming up soon, I'm so nervous."
Qiao Chunzhao: "I need to eat a chicken leg after class to calm my nerves."
Zhao Yanqi rolled her eyes: "I'm being serious!"
Just as Qiao Chunzhao was about to say something, the classroom door was suddenly pushed open, and Yuan Ying appeared in the doorway like a ghost, her gaze sweeping over the whole class like a searchlight.
The classroom instantly fell silent, with only the chirping of cicadas outside the window and the whirring of the fan overhead.
Yuan Ying's inspection of self-study sessions yielded another haul: a freshly peeled orange, half a bag of spicy snacks, and a Rubik's Cube.
Qiao Chunchao shook his head: "It seems the playground will be severely overcrowded this time."
The punishment notice was indeed posted the next day: all students who had violated the rules in the past two weeks should assemble on the playground after school, and for each mistake, they would have to run three laps around the playground as punishment.
The setting sun made the rubber track scorching hot. A dozen or so people stood scattered in front of the starting line.
"I'm sorry, Sang Sui." Zhao Yanqi appeared out of nowhere, apologetic, "If it weren't for me, you wouldn't be here."
Sang Sui shook her head: "It's nothing, a run is good for you. But why are you here too?"
Zhao Yanqi was a little embarrassed: "Before you came, I was caught sleeping once."
Sang Sui, feeling helpless, couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Yuan Ying somehow got hold of a whistle, and its sound pierced the evening air.
The team began to move slowly, their footsteps clattering against the track.
As soon as they started running laps, Zhang Da and Luo Kewei started arguing.
Zhang Da: "I give up. He insisted on taking that orange from me. He didn't get to eat the orange, so he has to run three laps as punishment."
Luo Kewei exploded: "Those oranges are mine! Who stole whose?!"
Zhang Da: "You won't even let me have a single orange. You're so stingy."
Luo Kewei exploded again: "I was too embarrassed to point it out, but someone bought a grilled sausage before, had a stomachache and couldn't eat it, so they insisted on taking it into the toilet, afraid that someone would steal it if they left it in the classroom."
"We're keeping an eye on people like you."
"Get lost."
The others following the two laughed so hard they almost couldn't keep running.
As Sang Sui completed the second lap, her breathing became rapid. The stray hairs on her forehead were damp with sweat and clung uncomfortably to her skin.
Not only Sang Sui, but several other girls also couldn't hold on any longer, and their breathing became rapid.
Zhao Yanqi was a sports student, so running a few laps was a piece of cake for her, and her breathing was relatively steady. She quickly caught up with Zhang Da and said, "Zhang Da, tell me some jokes to perk me up?"
Zhang Da: "I'm exhausted from running, what else is there to say?"
Zhao Yanqi: "You're a grown man, aren't you tired? I'm not even tired yet and you're already complaining about being tired."
Zhang Da remained unfazed: "You're a tomboy, I'm a sissy, you can't compare, okay?"
When Sang Sui and the other classmates heard this, they couldn't help but burst out laughing. It wasn't refreshing at all; they almost laughed themselves to exhaustion.
Luo Kewei muttered under his breath, "That's enough. Tell Zhang Da to shut up. He's shameless and has a really sharp tongue. He even insults himself. He'll be laughing so hard on the playground that no one can run away."
To ensure everyone ran three laps, Yuan Ying made the absurd suggestion that everyone run side-by-side, with faster runners matching slower runners, until the slower runners finished.
Everyone could hear what Zhang Da said.
Someone suggested, "Let's just shout slogans; maybe it won't be so tiring."
Zhang Da cursed, "You're crazy. Shutting up is the easiest way to save energy."
Zhao Yanqi, however, readily agreed, saying, "If the spring breeze has a heart to pity the flowers, may I be young again!"
Her voice was clear and bright, especially beautiful in the twilight. Soon, the other students joined in, chanting their favorite lines.
"Enjoy life while you can!" a boy shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Let not the golden goblet stand empty before the moon!" someone immediately chimed in.
Zhang Da also shouted, "Screw your morning exercises—"
"puff."
"Zhang Da, have you no shame?!"
A burst of laughter erupted from the group. A short-haired girl nearly choked with laughter, clutching her back and exclaiming, "I'm dying of laughter! This is definitely more tiring than running exercises!"
"I can't finish the math test—" A bespectacled boy, completely influenced by Zhang Da, suddenly let out a loud shout.
"I can't learn physical chemistry," the girl next to him immediately chimed in.
Luo Kewei retorted, not to be outdone: "The chicken legs in the cafeteria are never enough—"
"It's all Zhang Da's fault for eating too much!" someone chimed in, and everyone burst into laughter.
For a moment, the playground echoed with the boys' self-composed limericks:
"I don't have time for morning reading class—"
"I copy all my homework in the morning!"
"The homeroom teacher is watching from the back door—"
"I was so scared I almost dropped my phone!"
Even Yuan Ying, who had maintained a stern face, couldn't help but turn away and chuckle. Zhang Da, even more excited, shouted at the top of his lungs, "If you don't do well on the monthly exam—"
A dozen voices chorused, "We'll get a beating when we get home!"
Laughter echoed across the playground, startling the sparrows in the camphor trees.
The setting sun cast long shadows of the teenagers, their sweat glistening in the afterglow. The anxieties weighing heavily on their studies, the unspoken worries of youth, all transformed into hearty laughter at that moment.
On the last lap, someone started singing Jay Chou's "Sunny Day." The off-key singing drifted through the twilight, yet it was all the more moving.
The shouts on the playground grew louder and louder, attracting the attention of students from other classes who were passing by.
Every frame is a memory of youth that can never be relived.
So Yuan Ying, who was standing on the podium, took out her phone and pressed the shutter button.
After finally finishing three laps, everyone was exhausted and staggering. Zhang Da collapsed onto the grass, and although Luo Kewei said "You're so useless," he still handed him a bottle of water. Zhao Yanqi pulled Sang Sui to sit down under the shade of a tree; both of their school uniforms were soaked.
Sang Sui unscrewed the water bottle and took a sip, but still felt thirsty.
Zhao Yanqi pulled Sang Sui towards the convenience store: "I said I'd treat you to something, let's go today as an apology."
Several students were already sitting under the shade of a tree outside the convenience store. They found an empty seat, and Zhao Yanqi bought two servings of strawberry shaved ice. The shaved ice melted on her tongue, leaving a sweet and cool sensation.
"The college entrance exam break starts after the monthly exams," Zhao Yanqi said, scooping up a large spoonful of shaved ice. "Where are you planning to go?"
Sang Sui ate her shaved ice in small bites: "I'll probably just stay home and study."
"Don't study so hard!" Zhao Yanqi blinked. "I heard we'll be choosing between arts and sciences next semester. Have you decided what to choose?"
Sang Sui replied without hesitation: "I will choose science."
Zhao Yanqi nodded: "That's true, it seems like being a doctor requires choosing a path."
"And you?"
“I’m choosing humanities,” Zhao Yanqi said, looking down and pawing at the pebbles on the ground with her toes. “Next semester, we’ll be divided into science and humanities tracks, and we won’t be in the same class anymore. What if our relationship fades then?”
Sang Sui said confidently, "No, that won't happen."
"Really?"
“Hmm.” Sang Sui thought of Jiang Yaoyue: “True friends won’t drift apart so easily because of distance.”
Those who can leave are all just passing through.
Those who remain will be lifelong friends.
The school bell always rings especially nicely on Fridays.
The setting sun slanted through the teaching building, casting long shadows in the corridor.
Sang Sui carefully packed her schoolbag and walked out of the classroom. As she passed by Class 6 next door, she habitually glanced at the classroom.
I was a little disappointed not to see Liang Fengshen.
Sang Sui walked listlessly along the familiar tree-lined path toward the school gate, the camphor trees along the road swaying gently in the evening breeze.
Perhaps it was because she was so unlucky, having not had a chance to meet Liang Fengshen for so many days, that God took pity on her and allowed her to see two familiar figures when she passed by the student bicycle shed.
She spotted them immediately; Liang Fengshen and Song Shiyue were standing next to a bicycle, seemingly in trouble.
Sang Sui unconsciously slowed his pace.
"The chain fell off again." Liang Fengshen squatted on the ground, looking at the dangling chain, his brows furrowed slightly. The setting sun fell on his thick eyelashes, casting dappled shadows.
Song Shiyue saw Sang Sui first and smiled gently: "Sang Sui."
Sang Sui nodded, but her gaze involuntarily drifted towards Liang Fengshen. He was wearing a light gray hoodie today, with the sleeves casually rolled up to his elbows, revealing his smooth forearms.
The afternoon sun fell on him, turning the wispy hair on his forehead a light chestnut color.
"Hello." Liang Fengshen stood up and smiled politely at her.
Sang Sui's heart skipped a beat, and she replied softly, "Liang Fengshen."
These three words escaped her lips, carrying with them the unspoken thoughts in her heart.
"You two know each other?" Song Shiyue looked at them with some surprise.
"I've met him twice," Liang Fengshen said calmly, as if he were talking about something completely ordinary.
Sang Sui's gaze fell on the fallen bicycle chain. Suddenly, she thought of Yuan Xiangqin. She took a deep breath and mustered all her courage: "I can fix bicycle chains."
Be braver.
Stop being a coward.
"You actually know how?" Song Shiyue's eyes widened, his tone full of surprise.
"When I was in Linchuan, I often helped my grandma with repairs," Sang Sui explained softly, her voice low but firm. During those days with her grandma, she learned many skills that city kids didn't know.
Song Shiyue looked at Liang Fengshen with a questioning gaze.
Liang Fengshen shook his head: "The chain is dirty, no need to bother the girls. There's a repair shop near the school gate, it'll only cost ten yuan."
"I'm not actually that delicate," Sang Sui said softly.
Song Shiyue chuckled and smoothed things over, "If she knows how to fix it, let her give it a try. It won't delay anything anyway."
Sang Sui walked to the bicycle, squatted down, skillfully lifted the chain, found the gear, and gently snapped it. The chain clicked back to its original position.
The whole process was smooth and quick, taking less than two minutes. Although her fingers were slender, her movements were clean and efficient.
"Impressive!" Song Shiyue exclaimed sincerely. "I never knew you had this skill."
Liang Fengshen took a pack of Xinxiangyin tissues from the side pocket of his backpack and handed it to Sang Sui: "We don't have wet wipes, just use this to wipe yourself."
Sang Sui took the tissue, her fingertips inadvertently brushing against his fingers, a slight tingling sensation spreading from her fingertips. She lowered her head, carefully wiping the oil stains off her hands, her heart pounding as if it would burst out of her chest.
At this moment, she suddenly felt grateful for those days in Linchuan, those seemingly insignificant experiences that gave her a reason to get closer to him.
"Let me treat you to milk tea," Liang Fengshen said. "Consider it a token of my gratitude."
Sang Sui quickly shook his head: "No need, it's nothing."
"If you don't fix it for me, the money will still go to the repair shop anyway," Liang Fengshen said casually, with the carefree attitude typical of young people.
In the end, at Song Shiyue's urging, Sang Sui followed them to the milk tea shop near the school gate.
The setting sun cast long shadows of the three people.
Sang Sui walked quietly beside Liang Fengshen, and could smell the faint lemon scent on him, exactly the same as she remembered.
"What would you like to drink?" Standing in front of the milk tea shop, Liang Fengshen turned his head and asked her. His voice sounded especially gentle in the evening breeze.
"Lime milk tea will do," Sang Sui said softly.
Liang Fengshen raised an eyebrow slightly: "What a coincidence? I also like lime flavor."
While waiting for her milk tea, Sang Sui stood to the side, quietly observing his profile.
The slight pursing of his lips when he ordered, the slender fingers when he took the milk tea—every detail made her heart race.
When you like someone, even their smallest gestures seem incredibly charming.
"Here you go." Liang Fengshen handed her the milk tea, their fingertips lightly touching again. This time, she didn't immediately pull her hand away, letting the tiny current spread through her fingertips.
"Thank you." Sang Sui held the warm milk tea, feeling her palms burning.
Fine water droplets condensed on the transparent glass, just like her mood at that moment—calm on the outside, but churning with countless tiny bubbles inside.
The three said goodbye at the school gate.
Liang Fengshen pushed his bicycle, the setting sun casting a long shadow over him.
"goodbye."
He waved to her, got on his bicycle, and rode away.
Sang Sui didn't want to say goodbye; instead, she said, "See you next time."
She stood there until the figure disappeared around the street corner.
Sang Sui looked down at the milk tea in her hand, the refreshing aroma of lime spreading between her lips and teeth, with just the right amount of sweetness.
This was the first time she had ever drunk milk tea that he had treated her to, and it was also the first time they had talked so much together.
This little incident was enough to make this ordinary Friday afternoon exceptionally special.
Being brave doesn't seem to be a very difficult thing.
Spring has officially ended.
And summer is finally coming.
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