Chapter 5
He Xi and Xiang Yuzhi had been whispering to each other in the room for a while, and Yan Runqing brought over a plate of fruit.
"We've just picked some fruit from the rooftop. Eat and chat while you do it."
"Thank you, Auntie."
"You're welcome. Thanks to you, I can finally see some smiles on Xixi's face. Sometimes I'm really worried that she's getting more and more sullen. It's better to just follow her..."
When the words came to his lips, Yan Runqing choked again. He glanced at He Xi's face, then gently closed the door and went downstairs.
"Are you okay?"
He Xi's father died unexpectedly when she was less than ten years old. Over the years, she has become accustomed to her mother's temper from time to time.
"It's okay." She blinked at Yuzhi, showing no emotion on her face, but she couldn't help but feel sour in her heart.
Xiang Yuzhi silently reached out and hugged He Xi, "If you feel bad, just cry for a while. Our Xixi is already strong enough."
He Xi tilted his head back and closed his eyes slightly, and in just a few seconds his tearful expression returned to normal.
She didn't know when she learned to hide her emotions. Over time, she would only think of her father in the middle of the night when no one was around and let herself be overwhelmed by tears.
"Okay, okay, let's go out for a walk."
She calmed herself down, pulled up the person who was staying under the air conditioner and was reluctant to go out, followed behind him and pushed Xiang Yuzhi out of the yard.
The person in front of him was unwilling, and deliberately gave her all her weight softly as if to play tricks. He Xi smiled secretly and tickled the soft flesh on her waist.
"Hey—what's going on?!"
The man who was completely limp just a second ago suddenly screamed and ran out of the yard in a few steps.
He Xi's heart tightened, and he quickly followed. Then he looked over warily in the direction of Xiang Yuzhi's stunned gaze.
But they ran into this scene - the person who had just appeared in their conversation was sitting on a lounge chair in the opposite yard, completely lacking the domineering spirit he had on the court.
Xiang Yuzhi excitedly took out his cell phone and was about to take a secret photo, but He Xi quickly reached out and grabbed it.
Instinctively, she didn't want the girls in the group to know about this place, and she didn't want those self-righteous people to comment on it coldly.
On the entire Yixing Street, Grandma Li’s yard can be said to be the most out-of-place existence besides her own home.
At first glance, the narrow and long courtyard was blocked by a pear tree, most of the sunlight was blocked, and the old bungalow looked dark and dilapidated under the shade of the tree.
She vaguely remembered that before she was seven or eight years old, the yard of Grandma Li's house was still very big, and every year when the pear tree was in bloom, she would stay under the tree and play with the fairy flying flowers.
The trees were covered in white snow, and the wind blew like a rain of petals. Thinking about it now, it feels like a dream.
But that year, Grandma Li's daughter-in-law had a huge argument with her for several days for some unknown reason, and after that the huge yard was separated by a brick wall.
"Let's go. Didn't you say you wanted to go to the arcade before?"
He Xi suppressed his curiosity, took a quick look, and then pushed Xiang Yuzhi out of the alley.
Xiang Yuzhi finally saw the real person who was hotly discussed in the group. Her feet seemed to be stuck to the ground and no matter how she pushed and shoved, she didn't move at all.
The not-so-small noise made by the two people seemed to disturb the boy. He raised his eyes and glanced coldly outside the yard. His wary eyes relaxed slightly after he saw who they were. Then, without waiting for the two people to react, he lowered his eyes and looked at his phone again.
The recliner was not low, but when he sat on it, it was like an adult sitting on a children's chair, with nowhere to put his long legs.
"Xixi, why are you standing outside? Come in." Grandma Li came out of the kitchen with an apron on and a hunched back. Seeing He Xi outside, she hurriedly greeted her.
They should be...relatives?
He Xi's eyes swept between the two people in the yard, silently guessing their relationship, "No, grandma, my friend and I are about to go out."
"Then you must come over when you get back. I've been saving the first pears on this tree for you to pick."
The old man glanced at his grandson on the recliner and said, "I finally waited for Yuanyuan to come back this year, but this brat has grown up and his taste has changed. I'll ask him to climb the tree and help you pick it later."
“Yuanyuan…?”
He Xi looked at the boy in disbelief. He turned out to be the precious grandson the old man always mentioned!!!
Their eyes met, and the boy's eyes showed a strong resistance to communication. She choked and looked away unhappily.
"Why don't we pick pears first? It's a bit hot right now and I'm afraid you'll get heatstroke again if you go out."
Xiang Yuzhi watched the two of them interacting with each other and saw something was wrong with their expressions. He immediately wanted to watch the show.
"Grandma, I'm Xixi's good friend, you can just call me Xiaoyu."
"Okay, okay, Xiaoyu, you can pick some and take them back to try."
"Okay, thank you, grandma."
This was the downside of having a very outgoing friend, so He Xi had no choice but to bite the bullet and chase Xiang Yuzhi into the yard.
"Yuanyuan, go to the side wing and move the ladder over here."
"Hmm." The boy responded in a low voice, then dropped his phone, stood up and walked past her, with an expression on his face that didn't tell whether he was happy or angry.
"The brat didn't even tell me he was coming back. If I hadn't been feeling unwell today and didn't go out, he would have had to stand outside waiting for another day."
Is that really the case?
He Xi felt a burning sensation on her face when she thought of her previous speculations about Zhao Lin. It was embarrassing enough to have recognized the wrong person, but she actually mistook him for a gangster.
What a sin.
She glanced at the side building with a slightly apologetic look, then shifted her gaze uncomfortably when she heard the sound of the boy moving the ladder out.
"I'll help grandma in the kitchen. I'll leave the pear picking to you."
Seeing that she was about to slip away, Xiang Yuzhi quickly grabbed her and said, "Don't even think about leaving me alone!"
"I'm giving you an opportunity, so please don't be useless."
"Hmph, that's true."
The two were standing not far from the tree and had just whispered a few words when they heard the boy's cold voice, and his eyes were locked on He Xi.
"Come and help down the ladder."
Xiang Yuzhi winked and pushed her over. After Zhao Lin adjusted the angle of the ladder, the two of them helped him hold the two sides to fix the position.
The old pear tree in the yard was nearly twenty meters tall, and the ladder was far from long enough. In previous years, He Xi had only picked the pears from the lower branches, while Grandma Li had He Xu climb up the higher branches to pick the rest.
She looked up and saw the boy already stepping on the thick, forked branches to reach the green pears on the top. The branches were fragile and easily broken, and He Xi was terrified to see him, but he was walking on them as if it were flat ground.
"That's about right."
The small basket she brought up was full in a short while. She signaled to the person in the tree, worried that it would be difficult for him to climb down the ladder.
"How about I find a rope and lower the basket first?"
"No, just hold on tight."
"Oh." What would happen if he said two more words? He Xi puffed up his cheeks angrily and said nothing more. He held the ladder in a sullen manner as he requested, lowered his head and stared at his toes in boredom.
“Oh my god—!”
Xiang Yuzhi's sudden scream scared He Xi so much that her heart started beating wildly. She looked up at the sound and saw Zhao Lin, holding the ladder with one hand and holding the basket, approaching a few steps. Finally, he jumped with his long legs and landed steadily on the ground.
"Are you okay?"
He Xi's eyes darted over him a few times, a little cautiously. She remembered how He Xu once climbed over a wall and slid down a tree trunk, then went home and screamed for the entire afternoon.
"Yeah." Zhao Lin was stared at by her unclear eyes. He endured the burning pain on his skin, stuffed the basket to her, hummed calmly and walked into the main room.
"Damn it, what a mistake, what a mistake—"
Xiang Yuzhi saw the boy enter the room and rushed to He Xi's side. "I didn't even take a picture of that amazing move just now!"
"Promising!"
He Xi stuffed a pear into her arms in an unpleasant manner. She was the one who wanted to come in to pick the pear, and she was also the one standing beside her like a fangirl. She ended up being a tool!
She returned with a basket of pears. As soon as she entered the living room, Yan Runqing looked her over and asked, "Did you pick them from the tree?"
"I'm not that capable."
She took the green pears out of the basket and said, "Zhao Lin is actually the precious grandson that Grandma Li always talks about. I was wondering why he was there that day."
"He looks familiar. I didn't expect him to be her son."
"ah?"
He Xi heard his mother mumbling something confusing, and when he asked again, she was dismissed with a few words.
"Why didn't you tell me I was a child when I was working? I heard gossip and there's a discrimination chain."
Seeing the palm-leaf fan about to fly over, she grabbed the basket and ran out of the house. She took Xiang Yu up to the rooftop, picked some fruits and vegetables, and refilled the basket before returning it to Grandma Li.
"Grandma, my mother asked me to bring it to you."
There was no one in the yard, so He Xi walked towards the kitchen with the basket. As soon as she looked inside, she bumped into a boy sitting in front of the stove, making a fire.
In the west-facing kitchen, the afternoon sun streamed through the windows, piercing the floor. The boy's temples were already covered in beads of sweat from the fire. His shirt, buttoned to his collarbone, was unbuttoned, his long sleeves half-rolled up.
She went into the house and placed the basket on the stool next to the locker. Before leaving, she told Zhao Lin, "Um...I'll put the basket here for now. Remember to tell Grandma Li."
But the man acted as if he didn't hear anything. He stared at the burning flames without even raising his head.
He Xi was so angry that he turned around quietly and rolled his eyes before leaving.
Steam slowly gathered on the stove, making a gurgling sound, and the flame became much smaller.
Zhao Lin bent down to pick up the firewood beside him. The moment he bent down, the sleeves of his shirt rolled up a lot, revealing a small piece of skin on his elbows and waist.
Several clear, interlaced red marks were exposed, and they were very conspicuous from the angle she was standing in. Perhaps he had noticed something, and he quickly straightened up and turned his head to glance at the door warily.
"…You need to apply medicine to your arm. The wound looks inflamed."
"How long do you plan to see it?"
The two spoke almost at the same time. He Xi was irritated by his continuous cold words and no longer cared about whether he was hurt or not. He gave him a cold look and turned to leave the kitchen.
Xiang Yuzhi, who was waiting outside the yard, knew something was wrong when he saw her come out with a dark face, "What? Did you meet that guy again?"
"Are you two not compatible?"
Logically speaking, the two had just met for the first time a few days ago. Although there were some awkward misunderstandings, it was not to the point of being cold to each other.
Moreover, based on her observation at that time, although Zhao Lin looked a little cold and arrogant, he was not petty at all.
"Who knows?"
He Xi didn't say anything, but he was secretly worried. "If you ask me, you should stay away from him in the future, and you should stop getting involved with those people in the group."
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