Chapter 70 "Little Liar."
Duan Zhuxian rubbed the half of Jiang Yao's head that was exposed, turned off the lights, and lay down, but his heart couldn't calm down for a long time.
Mingming was already prepared. In two days, when the right time came, he would tell Jiang Yao all his past thoughts.
But he started to feel nervous from now on.
Perhaps it's a feeling of being more timid when you're close to home.
*
The next day, the two of them didn't go anywhere and stayed in the old house shamelessly all day.
On the third day, Jiang Yao slept until noon before getting up. He stretched himself and went downstairs in high spirits. He heard the sound of cutting vegetables coming from the kitchen from a distance.
He leaned against the kitchen door, admiring someone's virtuous back for a while, then resisted the urge to go in and cause trouble, and turned into the living room.
The layout of this old house is also very old-fashioned. The living room, dining room, kitchen and study downstairs are neatly spliced together. The three bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs are also arranged in a similar manner, but the soft decoration style is unique and has a vigorous artistic atmosphere.
Especially the large area of light blue waves on the living room wall, which should have been hand-painted with special paint. When people are in it, their five senses will be disturbed if they are not careful, as if they are wandering in salty, warm water vapor.
Last night, when Duan Zhuxian and I were hugging each other on the sofa, I had the illusion that I was at the seaside.
The house with floor heating was as hot as summer, and the bright incandescent lamp was the scorching sun hanging high in the sky. Sweat slid down the forehead to the cheek and fell into the kiss.
A salty, sea-flavored kiss.
Jiang Yao planned to go on vacation to the beach with Duan Zhuxian next time.
As he walked to the sofa, his beautiful memories were interrupted by a photo album on the coffee table.
This photo album seemed to appear out of thin air. He didn't seem to have seen it yesterday, or maybe he just didn't pay attention.
Pick up the photo album and open it. It is full of casual photos that record the cultural landscape of the small city of Yuanshi.
There is a handwritten note by Duan Zhuxian behind each photo, which is ten years old.
Sure enough, an unplanned trip is full of surprises!
Hearing footsteps not far away, Jiang Yao raised his head, shook the photo album in his hand towards Duan Zhuxian who was carrying dishes out of the kitchen, raised an eyebrow and said, "I know what our next arrangements are."
*
After dinner, the two changed into spring clothes suitable for the climate of Yuan City and went out hand in hand.
The first stop was the place where the first photo in the album was taken, an old-fashioned photo studio called "Laiyun". All the photos in the album taken with a film camera were developed here.
Slowly walking out of the winding alley, you will see a wide street market in front of you. Although it is the Spring Festival, many shops have already started operating in advance, and everywhere is bright and bustling.
Jiang Yao particularly likes this down-to-earth atmosphere, which is a bit like the small southern town where he is from, very prosperous.
But he didn't expect that someone like Duan Zhuxian, who was indifferent to everything, would also wander around the city with a camera.
But then he thought about it again, and remembered what Chen Tang said, about Duan Zhuxian who was about ten years old and tried his best to please his friends in order not to be left behind, and his heart suddenly felt sour.
The next moment, he smiled, pointed at the red characters "Laiyun" that appeared in front of him, and grabbed Duan Zhuxian's hand: "We're almost there!"
Duan Zhuxian was taking out his cell phone to take a picture of Jiang Yao when he was suddenly pulled to run. He had to reach down to grab the phone to prevent it from falling to the ground.
Looking at Jiang Yao's smiling face, his lips curved into an indulgent arc.
During the Chinese New Year, many people came to take family photos, and the small photo studio was packed. Jiang Yao stood at the door and wandered around for a few times, then gave up the idea of going in to join in the fun.
A car stopped next to me and a newlywed couple in formal attire opened the door. They must have just returned from taking wedding photos.
When following the photographer into the photo studio, the man hugged the woman's waist tightly to prevent her from being bumped by other people. The woman snuggled up to the man's chest, her red lips pressed against his ear as she spoke. The two looked at each other and smiled, as sweet as if no one was around.
Witnessing this scene, Jiang Yao suddenly thought of the day when he and Duan Zhuxian took their wedding photos.
He thought that putting on makeup, styling, and shooting everywhere were too troublesome, and he was not very serious about the whole process. He thought that just taking two photos would be enough just for the sake of appearance. After all, it was a marriage by agreement, so there was no need to do all these fancy things. He even had a sudden idea and suggested that they could just use photos for synthesis.
He still remembered how cold Duan Zhuxian's face was when he made this proposal, which made him reflect on the spot. It must be because of his lack of cooperation that Duan Zhuxian had no way to report to Old Master Duan.
So he changed his mind and asked Duan Zhuxian if he could simplify it a little, but was still rejected.
In short, Duan Zhuxian insisted on finishing filming all the scenes.
He couldn't resist and had to continue complaining. Whenever he had free time, he would take out his mobile phone to play games. Only when the photographer called him would he move reluctantly.
Later, when he received the photos, he didn't look at them carefully. The first time he saw the finished photos properly was at the wedding.
All the guests that day pointed at them in the photos and sincerely praised them for their handsomeness and perfect match. But only Jiang Yao himself knew how careless he was in those photos.
Thinking of this, Jiang Yao couldn't help but feel a little guilty. He pretended to tease Duan Zhuxian and said, "Since you fell in love with me before we even got the marriage certificate, then I didn't take the preparations for the wedding seriously from beginning to end. You must be heartbroken, right?"
Duan Zhuxian said, "I'm used to it."
Jiang Yao was stunned for a moment, and automatically interpreted the word "habit" as habit to his careless and cynical character.
He curled his lips and said, "Let's take another set of wedding photos in two days, right here in this photo studio."
When Duan Zhuxian heard this, his eyes flickered for a moment, and he held Jiang Yao's hand a little tighter.
He nodded. "Okay."
Jiang Yao said "hmm" and hurriedly lowered his head to look at the photo album in his hand, looking for the scenery of the next stop, pretending not to see the joy on Duan Zhuxian's usually indifferent face.
He suddenly realized that Duan Zhuxian was much more satisfying than he had imagined.
It seemed that Duan Zhuxian would be happy for a long time if he just gave in a little bit.
*
The photo albums are turned page by page.
The two walked onto the bustling stone arch bridge, passed through the quiet Paper Umbrella Alley, and passed by the large lawn dotted with spring outing tents.
Holding two cups of steaming hot fragrant tea, a specialty of Yuan City, we continued walking along the wide and straight ancient road.
Due to the pleasant climate, the flowers on both sides have bloomed with the warmth of spring, and the air is filled with intoxicating floral fragrance.
The cheerful sound of drums drifted in the wind, and Jiang Yao's heart couldn't help but jump with joy. He looked in the direction of the sound and saw someone sitting on the steps playing the drums in the corner of the wall not far away.
He thought of something and quickly flipped through the photo album. Pointing to one of the photos, he asked Duan Zhuxian, "Is that guy playing the same kind of drums that you photographed?"
Duan Zhuxian nodded: "Yes, African drums."
Jiang Yao had never seen this before, so he was very curious. He walked over to the old man playing the drums and listened for a while. He felt like trying his hand, so he asked the old man, "You play the drums beautifully. Can I try?"
The old man raised his head from the intoxication of the music and said with a smile in his Yuanshi accent, "Of course you can, young man. Come over and sit down. I'll teach you."
Jiang Yao immediately stuffed the photo album into Duan Zhuxian's arms and sat down to learn from him.
He has a good sense of music and can quickly beat a drum beat.
He raised his head triumphantly and asked Duan Zhuxian loudly, "Does it sound good?"
Duan Zhuxian smiled and said, "It sounds nice."
As he spoke, he picked up his phone, focused on Jiang Yao's cheerful face, and took a photo.
Then, he put this photo together with the photo taken ten years ago in the album, and the corners of his lips couldn't help but curl up.
The same corner, the same stone steps, the same old artist beating the drum, only with an additional handsome man beating the drum and chatting and laughing.
The seemingly small difference makes all the difference.
The entire scene changes from static to dynamic, from heavy to light, from a glimpse on the paper to a memory that is forever engraved in the heart and cannot be erased by any external force.
After saying goodbye to the old man playing the drum, the two continued walking towards the setting sun.
Jiang Yao, who was looking around and flirting with other girls, suddenly turned around and caught Duan Zhuxian's gaze which had been on him for who knows how long, with a triumphant expression on his face.
"Duan Zhuxian."
"Um?"
"I feel like you didn't really enjoy the scenery along the way. Don't you enjoy revisiting old places?"
Duan Zhuxian said calmly, "When revisiting an old place, what's important isn't the scenery, but the people you're traveling with."
Jiang Yao was stunned when he heard this. He turned his face away for a while, revealing the tip of his crimson ear. He snorted twice, "This is not a reason for you to waste such a good time."
Duan Zhuxian did not refute this time, but just rubbed Jiang Yao's head.
When he was seventeen years old, he was aimlessly taking pictures of these scenes. His whole heart was filled with Jiang Yao, but he had no idea what to do.
In the infinite interweaving of sweetness and sourness, he also had unrealistic imaginations -
If Jiang Yao were present in every scene he passed by...
Therefore, what he saw along the way was not the monotonous scenery, but every moment with Jiang Yao by his side.
*
At dinner time, Duan Zhuxian took Jiang Yao to a nearby restaurant that had been open for twenty years.
As soon as the two sat down, a woman in her fifties who looked like a proprietress came from behind the counter and looked Duan Zhuxian up and down.
"Xiao Duan? You haven't been here for ten years, right?"
Duan Zhuxian: "You still remember me."
"Of course. You always came over for dinner during the long holidays. My daughter always said that a boy as handsome as you is hard to find even with a lantern." The proprietress said cheerfully. She looked at Jiang Yao and smiled, "I didn't have a lantern today, but I saw another one."
Jiang Yao leaned against Duan Zhuxian and greeted her: "Happy New Year, and may your business be prosperous."
"Oh, Happy New Year!" The proprietress smiled and returned the greeting. Seeing the two sitting side by side, behaving intimately, she asked Duan Zhuxian, "Who is your partner?"
Duan Zhuxian grabbed Jiang Yao's left hand with his left hand, and the two rings shone brightly under the light: "We are already married."
The proprietress opened her eyes wide, and after a long moment, the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes, which had been stretched out in surprise, were once again gathered into a smile. "Congratulations, congratulations! Time flies! The last time I saw you was probably ten years ago in the summer. You were sitting right here, lost in thought, and stayed until I closed."
This time it was Jiang Yao's turn to be surprised. After the proprietress left, he asked Duan Zhuxian, "Are you worried about anything else?"
Duan Zhuxian said, "Everyone has worries."
Jiang Yao: "..."
Although this is true, Duan Zhuxian is a person who never shows off. Even when he suffered thousands of grievances and injustices in the Duan family, he was able to endure and lie dormant until now, making it impossible for anyone to see through his thoughts.
It can be seen that the thoughts that Duan Zhuxian couldn't hide must be not simple!
But Jiang Yao was afraid that if he asked rashly, he would dig up some sad things that Duan Zhuxian didn't want to mention, which would ruin the atmosphere of the honeymoon.
After ordering the food, Jiang Yao looked around at the walls covered with sticky notes and suddenly had an idea.
Since Duan Zhuxian is a frequent customer of this store, are there any traces of Duan Zhuxian left here?
Thinking of this, he sent Duan Zhuxian out to queue up to buy fruit tea for him, then turned around and began to look for Duan Zhuxian's handwriting on the wish wall.
Just as he was dazzled, he heard the proprietress behind him ask, "What are you looking for?"
Jiang Yao didn't hide it: "See if there's anything written by him."
The lady boss laughed and said, "Ten years have passed, and the sticky notes on this wall have already been replaced several times."
Jiang Yao heard this, touched his nose, and felt a little disappointed: "Is that so."
The proprietress paused, then suddenly slapped her forehead and said, "Oh, oh, oh, I remember my daughter seemed to have torn off Xiao Duan's sticky note and put it away separately. Let me look for it."
Jiang Yao's eyes lit up: "Thank you for your help!"
Maybe he was lucky today, the boss lady actually helped him find a small stationery bag from under the counter, which contained a heart-shaped note.
The proprietress handed it over and said, "Look, is this it?"
Jiang Yao took it immediately.
The handwriting on the paper was neat and clean, with slightly connected strokes. One could tell at a glance that it was written by Duan Zhuxian.
The first thing that caught my eye was a sentence: Happy birthday in advance to the little liar.
There is another line of small words below: May he get what he wants.
It looks like it was added later. The pen tip is a little dull, and there are ink clumps left by the pen tip staying on it for too long. It feels a bit insincere for some reason.
Little liar?
Who is the little liar?
First of all, it's definitely not him.
How could he be such an upright person and a liar!
So ten years ago, Duan Zhuxian had a little liar in his heart who couldn't even let go of eating?
Jiang Yao narrowed his eyes and planned to ask Duan Zhuxian directly.
But he was happy today, so he decided not to worry about it for now, to give Duan Zhuxian some face, and to re-examine the case when he returned.
Thinking of this, he folded the note and put it in his pocket.
When Duan Zhuxian came back with two cups of fruit tea, Jiang Yao had already sat back in his chair with the last page of the photo album spread out in front of him.
It's the sunrise on the top of the mountain.
It is majestic, grand, magnificent and incredibly beautiful.
Jiang Yao tapped the photo lightly with his fingertips and sighed, "What a pity, we can't reach this last stop today."
Duan Zhuxian hummed, sat down, and helped Jiang Yao put the straw into the fruit tea. As if he had made up his mind, he suddenly said, "Tomorrow, let's go watch the sunrise together."
【Author’s words】
Someone's secret love story is about to be revealed
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