Preparation
At nine o'clock on the morning of the second day of the Lunar New Year, Yang Zheng was already waiting in front of the Shen family's apartment building. Shen Anxia got into the car and drove the two of them straight to the neighboring city of Pusu.
Urasuk is a coastal city, but it was still a bit cold during the New Year period.
So Yang Zheng first took Shen Anxia to visit the former residence of a French celebrity from the Republican era. The tour guide explained that this building, which has survived wars and carries a rich historical heritage, is still well preserved today. They traveled through a century to experience the lifestyle and aesthetic taste of historical figures of that time, which was very rewarding. Then they went to the famous snack street in Pusu, where the two of them ate all their favorite foods. They walked through the romantic old street with the unique flavor of Pusu, as if there was a wonderful encounter at every turn. As night fell, the dark blue sky and the dazzling neon lights made the old street even more hazy and mysterious. In the evening, the two of them took a boat together and enjoyed the most beautiful scenery along the river.
From day to night, the two witnessed the most wonderful day in Puju together. Around seven o'clock, they drove back to Yian.
At first, the two could talk about their thoughts and plans for the future, but later Shen Anxia couldn't even lift her eyelids and fell asleep.
Yang Zheng turned up the car heater, glanced at Shen Anxia's sleeping face, and curved his lips into a smile. His eyes, which always seemed to be filled with gentleness, became bright, and he looked full of energy and drive. He even drove the car more nimbly.
Shen Anxia only woke up when the car stopped at the service area.
Yang Zheng noticed her rosy cheeks as she slept and asked, "Do you need to go to the bathroom?"
Shen Anxia shook her head.
Yang Zheng took out some diced mango and cherries from the back seat and handed them to her, saying, "There are also strawberries and blueberries in the back. Which one would you like to eat?"
To maintain her figure, Shen Anxia usually doesn't eat many snacks, but she does eat fruit. She took the mango pieces, picked up a small fork, and ate one: "Then I'll eat the mango first."
Just as he was about to put it in his mouth, he saw Yang Zheng looking at him with a half-smile.
"Why don't you eat first?" Shen Anxia kindly offered him some.
Yang Zheng laughed heartily upon hearing this and said, "You eat first."
Shen Anxia felt that his smile was a bit inappropriate at the moment, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what was wrong. She slowly put the mango pieces into her mouth.
After Shen Anxia finished eating, Yang Zheng finally spoke up: "I want to eat too."
Shen Anxia: "..."
I just asked you if you weren't going to eat? You already used the fork.
Looking at the back seat of the car, it seemed that there was only fruit and no other forks. Shen Anxia hesitated and picked up a piece of mango with the only small fork, wondering whether to hand it to Yang Zheng. Unexpectedly, Yang Zheng leaned forward and swallowed the mango on the fork.
Shen Anxia: "..."
"Shall we continue on our way?" Yang Zheng asked.
Shen Anxia nodded blankly.
The car moved forward again, and Shen Anxia stared blankly at the mango box in her left hand and the small fork in her right, her mind in turmoil.
Why is this person acting like this? Doesn't he have to wait until I finish eating before he eats? Surely his fork has some of my saliva on it too? Doesn't he mind? At least he let me take a bite first to taste it, which is kind of him, but! Now his fork is probably covered in his saliva too!
This is amazing!!
Next!!
How do you eat this?!
Shen Anxia pursed her lips speechlessly while secretly glancing at Yang Zheng.
When Shen Anxia saw the smile on Yang Zheng's lips that he couldn't suppress no matter what he did, she suddenly understood—he did it on purpose!
Shen Anxia snorted lightly, "Drool? Who hasn't eaten it before? When I and my roommates ate apples, not everyone got to taste their saliva. Let's just say he's a sister! Yeah, that's right, eating mangoes with my sisters, one bite at a time."
then,
A person feels happy to share a fork with someone they like.
One person felt that sharing fruit with their sisters was a double joy.
Ten minutes before eight o'clock, the two returned to Yi'an with the same joy and a different kind of delight. Yang Zheng still escorted Shen Anxia to the entrance of her apartment building.
Watching Shen Anxia's figure disappear into the building entrance, Yang Zheng felt a mix of joy and melancholy, muttering to himself, "I wonder if this method will even work." Then, he encouraged himself with anticipation, "At least it's much better than not knowing each other at all a few years ago. Take it slow."
Shen Anxia missed the gathering at her maternal uncle's house on the second day of the Lunar New Year, so on the third, fourth and fifth days of the Lunar New Year, she followed Shen Ke and Zhao Ping to visit several relatives in the small county town. She stayed in the county town at night and did not come back. Yang Zheng could not get an appointment with Shen Anxia every day.
It wasn't until the evening of the sixth day of the Lunar New Year that Shen Anxia's family returned to the city from the county town, and the two finally met.
Given that Shen Anxia had gained quite a bit of weight during the Lunar New Year, the two met at the coffee shop of the Yian Landmark Hotel. The coffee shop overlooked the bustling downtown commercial district, and the two sat at a corner by the window. Looking out through the floor-to-ceiling windows, they immediately felt a sense of grandeur, as if they were looking down on all living beings.
"How have you been these past few days?" Yang Zheng asked.
“It’s just eating at each house, lunch and dinner, and when we’re not eating, we play mahjong and cards,” Shen Anxia said, rummaging through her bag. “What about you?”
Yang Zheng looked slightly regretful: "I ate at every house too. I only got together with my brothers on the night of the fourth day of the Lunar New Year. It's a pity you weren't in the city. We went to set off fireworks first. They were beautiful. I took pictures, but the photos weren't as impressive as the fireworks exploding in person... What are you looking for?"
“Found it,” Shen Anxia said, handing Yang Zheng a white box. “A New Year’s gift.”
Yang Zheng's eyelashes trembled, and his dark pupils shimmered with a subtle light. He took the box, his voice rising with joy: "For me?"
"Um."
Can I watch it now?
"Why don't you go home and look at it later? I didn't do a very good job." Shen Anxia pressed the box down and pushed it aside, implying to Yang Zheng that he should look at it at home.
"You made it yourself?" Yang Zheng was even more surprised.
"Yes, I went to the store but couldn't find a suitable gift, so I made it myself." Shen Anxia stayed up for several nights to give it to Yang Zheng before returning to Xinfeng.
"Anxia, thank you. I used to feel regretful that we didn't watch the fireworks together, but I don't feel that way anymore."
Shen Anxia didn't feel regretful: "It's okay, we can set off fireworks together again sometime."
To Yang Zheng, this sounded like a promise, and he smiled and said, "Okay."
"Did you guys stay up all night?" Shen Anxia asked, having heard that he had stayed up all night at the last party.
"Yeah, we stayed up all night. It's rare to have a holiday and get together like this. After setting off fireworks, we played cards all night. I have to go back to work tomorrow, Anxia. Can we have dinner together every night while you're back in Xinfengqian?" Yang Zheng asked.
"Should we all eat together?" Shen Anxia wasn't sure, after all, she had exams at the end of March.
Yang Zheng seemed to know what she was hesitating about, and quickly added, "Let's find a place to sit right now. You can memorize your vocabulary, and I'll also practice my spoken English. I can ask you if I don't understand anything."
Shen Anxia asked in surprise, "You're learning spoken English too? Why are you learning it?"
Yang Zheng thought for a moment and explained clearly, "Actually, my English was not bad before, but I didn't practice speaking systematically. Now that I see you learning, I want to give it a try. It's always good to learn more."
Shen Anxia recalled what Yang Zheng had said before: that he had to wait tables and teach boxing in his spare time. She felt that he had enough time to "systematically" learn English.
However, remembering Zhao Ping and Shen Ke's expectations, she didn't want to discourage Yang Zheng. She nodded and said, "Okay, we can study together in the evening, but I have to be home before 10 o'clock."
Shen Anxia's eyes suddenly lit up as she looked at Yang Zheng. A smile spread from the depths of his eyes, like a dragonfly skimming across a shimmering lake, its light touch causing countless tiny stars to ripple and twinkle. Shen Anxia felt a little ashamed of Yang Zheng's eagerness to learn English, thinking to herself: It seems he really wants to practice his spoken English. It's good that I didn't refuse him because of his thirst for knowledge.
They agreed that from the seventh day of the Lunar New Year until the fourteenth, Yang Zheng and Shen Anxia would have dinner casually in a quiet place every day, and then study English together. Shen Anxia even lent Yang Zheng all her tools for practicing her spoken English. Shen Anxia felt that these days were fulfilling and enjoyable, and even felt that having such an English-speaking partner made her more efficient.
The effect is similar to that of Liu Shanshan.
Liu Shanshan is Shen Anxia's roommate, and the two have a very good relationship.
On the sixteenth day of the first lunar month, Shen Anxia officially returned to Yi'an. Yang Zheng was on a workday that day and couldn't take her back to Yi'an. He only took a short leave from work to take her to the high-speed rail station.
Watching Shen Anxia say goodbye and enter the station without any hesitation, the smile on Yang Zheng's face was replaced by sorrow.
Their relationship was like that of ordinary friends, or even less than that. In fact, he felt that Shen Anxia hadn't yet developed romantic feelings, and he didn't know how to get into her heart.
Saying that fate hadn't brought them together was just wishful thinking. Without her consent, he didn't even dare to hold her hand.
Recalling how he used to watch her from afar in previous years, Yang Zheng felt that things were already pretty good between them now.
Then let's keep up the good work.
——
Shen Anxia returned to Yi'an, and Liu Shanshan also arrived.
Before the winter break, Shen Anxia and Liu Shanshan agreed to prepare for the exams together after the New Year. They rented a two-bedroom apartment near the school, which was very convenient for daily life. One of them was preparing for the English major's Level 8 exam, and the other was preparing for the postgraduate entrance exam. They cooperated well as always.
The two had previously been study partners, though their directions were slightly different. What was rare was that their schedules matched, and some of their study content overlapped, allowing them to help each other.
In early March, Yang Zheng called Shen Anxia to ask if she was free on the weekend. Shen Anxia thought about it carefully and told him to make an appointment after the exam next month. Firstly, it would save him from having to travel back and forth every week, and secondly, she had a feeling that the dance troupe would have an event.
She would definitely participate in the dance troupe's activities and wouldn't miss any opportunity to stay with the troupe, so Yang Zheng might come all the way here only to come back empty-handed.
Yang Zheng listened attentively to Shen Anxia's words on the other end of the phone and gently said "okay".
However, Shen Anxia felt a sense of warmth because of Yang Zheng's exceptional cooperation. She could feel his extreme indulgence towards her, which made her even more hesitant to refuse. But these emotions were overwhelmed by the busyness of the upcoming exams at the end of the month.
A month passed in the blink of an eye, and the exam time arrived.
This point in time is a relief for students who have been suffering from the torment of exams.
When she left the examination room, the sun was shining brightly. Shen Anxia had a faint smile on her lips. She knew that she had passed the TEM-8 (Test for English Majors-Band 8) with flying colors.
She took out her phone to call home. After all, for the past month or so, she had been going to bed around 1 or 2 a.m. every night to prepare for the exam, and only checked her phone for ten minutes before going to sleep each night. Shen Anxia received messages from Yang Zheng every day. Sometimes he would ask if she was tired, sometimes if she had eaten dinner, and most of the time he would tell her to take care of herself. Sometimes he would also tell her to see her after the exam.
But on one other occasion, Yang Zheng surprisingly said: "Spring has arrived in Yi'an, and I've changed into summer clothes. I wonder if it's cold in Xinfeng now?"
Shen Anxia found it amusing; Yi'an and Xinfeng were only separated by one city, so of course they couldn't feel the temperature difference.
Shen Anxia would reply to all messages, including those from Shen Ke, Zhao Ping, and Shen Anyi, at 8:00 AM the next day to ensure that the other party was not resting.
Shen Anxia took out her phone and, as usual, saw messages from several people. After replying to her family members one by one, she finally opened Yang Zheng's chat interface.
[Anxia, call me after you get out of the exam hall]
Shen Anxia dialed his number, and it was answered before the notification tone had even finished.
"Anxia, have you finished your exams?"
Shen Anxia felt like she hadn't heard Yang Zheng's voice for a very long time, but he was still as gentle as ever.
"Yes, the exam is over." Shen Anxia was relaxed from the inside out.
"Go to the south gate of the school, I'll wait for you there," Yang Zheng said.
"Have you come to Xinfeng? I'm not at my school, I'm at..." Just as she was about to say her location, Shen Anxia suddenly remembered that when she received her admission ticket, she had told Yang Zheng which school she was taking the exam at, and that today was the weekend.
so,
Yang Zheng meant that
Is he at the south gate of the school where this exam is being held?
"You mean the south gate of my exam room?" Shen Anxia asked again, somewhat incredulous.
"Yes, the south gate of your exam room."
Shen Anxia composed herself, then turned and headed towards the south gate, quickening her pace.
A huge number of candidates poured into the examination hall from all directions. When they passed through the south gate, the flow of people was so large that it caused a momentary stagnation. In this bustling crowd, Yang Zheng stood in the golden sunlight, his whole body bathed in golden light, making everyone who came out of the examination hall slow down and take a second look.
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