Chapter 12 "President Jiang is sitting next to you."...
The surroundings were quiet and cool, with small flying insects fluttering under the light, and tiny black dots dotting the ground.
Liang Kongxiang stood in front of the lamp, her slender shadow cast at an angle, not far from Jiang Jiaoming, who sat in the car with his arms crossed, looking at her with a cold expression.
The boy in the afternoon refers to Gao Hui.
It turns out that that fleeting glance wasn't unintentional.
“Classmate,” Liang Kongxiang said.
Jiang Jiaoming continued, "What are you talking about?"
"competition."
"They had a very pleasant chat," Jiang Jiaoming commented coldly.
Liang Kongxiang didn't want to pay attention to his imagination. She sighed and was about to turn around when a voice came from behind her.
Seeing that she didn't refute him, he felt as if a hot triangular iron had been pressed against his chest, and blurted out, "Does everyone make no difference to you? Am I any different from that man?"
"Is it that important?" Liang Kongxiang asked. The answer to Jiang Jiaoming's two questions was obvious; she wasn't stupid.
Her nonchalant tone...
Jiang Jiaoming scoffed inwardly, tightened his grip on the handlebars, and tossed out a parting remark before leaving: "It doesn't matter anymore."
He rode away.
The moonlight was beautiful, and the ground was bathed in silvery light.
The street has returned to its original state, and every night at 10:30, only Liang Kongxiang walks along the riverbank.
In early December, the small artificial lawn under the trees on campus had already begun to frost over, and in the morning, white breath would swirl in front of your eyes.
Liang Kongxiang went to the office to fill out a form with a pen. As soon as she pushed open the door, the heat inside and Jiang Jiaoming's gaze rushed over at the same time.
Two seconds later, Liang Kongxiang calmly looked away, closed the door behind her, and as she passed by him, she caught a glimpse of him holding a pen and writing the words "self-criticism" on a piece of paper.
“Teacher Wang.” Liang Kongxiang stood next to the homeroom teacher.
"You're here?" Teacher Wang, who had been looking at her phone, heard the student's voice and casually covered it with her textbook. She then took a freshly printed form from the top of a stack of documents and handed it to her. "You're here..."
He looked around and saw that the office was quite crowded, with no empty desks or seats. Even he himself was standing there while two students from the next class were working on their papers. So he said, "It's sunny outside, isn't it? You can write on the balcony and bring it in when you're done."
"Okay." Liang Kongxiang was holding the form and about to leave when she heard Old Li seemingly scolding Jiang Jiaoming.
"You've been writing for ages and you've only written two words," Old Li unscrewed the lid of his thermos, steam billowing out and instantly wetting his black beard. He wiped it away and blew on the mouth of the bottle. "Are you waiting for me to fix it for you or what?"
Jiang Jiaoming was annoyed. What was she doing in the office?
Ugh, how embarrassing.
Old Li frowned, waved his hand and patted Jiang Jiaoming on the shoulder: "You go out too, go write on the balcony." Out of sight, out of mind.
As soon as Liang Kongxiang opened the door, a blast of cool air and cold sunlight hit her. Before she could close the door, Jiang Jiaoming stopped her and said in a low voice, in a tone that urged her to leave, "Get out."
A familiar scent wafted in from all directions. Liang Kongxiang paused for a moment, but didn't turn around.
Jiang Jiaoming's tall body pressed down behind her as he slowly stepped out, the sound of the door closing reaching Liang Kongxiang's ears.
With a click, it seemed as if something else had been opened at the same time.
The entire corridor, including the green plants hanging down from the balcony, was bathed in the golden winter sunlight.
Liang Kongxiang placed the documents on the balcony and removed the pen cap.
Jiang Jiaoming clicked his tongue, squatted down against the balcony wall, and wrote on his thighs, looking like he didn't want to share the large balcony with someone.
Liang Kongxiang stood beside him, and out of the corner of her eye, she saw him seemingly putting pen to paper. She then realized that she hadn't written a single word on her form.
Startled, she refocused her attention on the form she was filling out. After a short while, she felt a strong sense of being watched. Liang Kongxiang calmly filled in the far right side of the form, glancing at the lower right corner out of the corner of her eye.
Jiang Jiaoming was tilting his head back, propping his face up, staring straight at her.
He hadn't written more than a few words when he unconsciously raised his head and stared blankly at Liang Kongxiang. The golden sunlight softly shone on Jiang Jiaoming's light brown, fluffy hair and amber-colored transparent pupils. The fierceness that the three white hairs on his forehead gave off was softened by the golden light, and his eyes were burning and straightforward.
Vines swayed in the air along the balcony, and on a December morning, two hearts were exposed to the scorching sun.
Liang Kongxiang quickly finished writing and organizing the forms, then pushed open the office door.
Before she could close the door, a force pushed against it from behind, and Liang Kongxiang turned around.
Jiang Jiaoming blocked most of the light with his body and looked down at her directly.
Liang Kongxiang withdrew her hand from the door and walked inside.
Teacher Wang glanced at the completed form: "Okay. Give me a copy of your ID card, and then we'll wait for the approval result."
Liang Kongxiang nodded: "Thank you, teacher."
"If there's nothing else, you can go back to class now."
Liang Kongxiang walked towards the door and heard Old Li start to earnestly persuade Jiang Jiaoming again: "You wrote a few words and then gave them to me, huh? If you're going to just give me a perfunctory answer, at least write a complete ending! Look at you..."
With a creak, the door closed, and Old Li's rambling voice could no longer be heard.
The classroom was noisy during break. Liang Kongxiang sat down in her seat and felt noisy for the first time. She wanted to find a quiet place to be alone for a while.
Ruan Jiayan leaned over and asked her what she was going to do. Liang Kongxiang looked at her and said after ten seconds, "To the office to fill out forms."
That night, Liang Kongxiang walked on the street covered with yellow leaves, wearing a long cotton-padded coat. There was no music in her headphones, nor did she hear the sound of bicycle wheels crushing dry branches.
On a snowy day, Liang Kongxiang left a trail of footprints on the road through the thin snow, and then discovered fresh tire tracks on the cycling path.
Her heart started pounding. She stood there for a while before quickening her pace, but then slowed down when she actually saw Jiang Jiaoming.
Jiang Jiaoming also saw her.
He got back on his bike and rode slowly and unsteadily across the snow, half his face buried in his scarf, making it impossible to see his expression. Several times he almost fell over, only managing to stay upright by bracing himself with his long legs.
Liang Kongxiang glanced at it once and then looked ahead again, as if casually reminding her: "Be careful of slipping."
Not hearing a response, Liang Kongxiang subconsciously turned her head but did not see Jiang Jiaoming. Looking back, she saw Jiang Jiaoming standing there, looking at her inquisitively, before quickly catching up.
The snowy night was cold. Liang Kongxiang had her hands in her pockets, and her ears and nose were a little red. When Jiang Jiaoming caught up with her, she wanted to continue walking, but he blocked her way.
Without saying a word, he took off his scarf and wrapped it around her neck, again and again. The scarf still carried a warm fragrance, the scent of Jiang Jiaoming.
"Didn't you accept the scarf from Gao Hui?" Jiang Jiaoming looked at her coldly. "Why don't I see you wearing it?"
...Gao Hui's scarf?
Liang Kongxiang frowned and denied it: "I didn't receive it."
Why won't you accept it?
"Not suitable."
Jiang Jiaoming found her words interesting: "What's inappropriate about it?"
“I have no relation to him and cannot accept anything from him.”
“Is that so?” Jiang Jiaoming pulled Liang Kongxiang’s hair out of the scarf and looked at her. “Then, will you take my scarf?”
“I said it’s pointless whether I accept it or not,” Liang Kongxiang said, “you’ve already put it on me.”
Jiang Jiaoming rephrased his question: "Can Gao Hui let you wear it?"
“No.” Liang Kongxiang said decisively.
Jiang Jiaoming said "Oh," in a good mood, and rode quietly behind Liang Kongxiang.
A string of footprints and a tire track were left in the snow. The two tracks turned into a long road in winter, becoming warm and a mark that could not be washed away even by heavy rain.
From that day until graduation, Jiang Jiaoming quietly accompanied Liang Kongxiang on that always lonely and dark road. For Liang Kongxiang, every night in the second half of her senior year was free and easy.
They would still go to the cinema to watch movies in the early hours of the morning. In the dark, their hands would accidentally touch. Jiang Jiaoming would then claim that he was a coward and hold on tightly, refusing to let go.
He would bring a box of fruit every day, saying he had spent an hour peeling it at home; occasionally he would pretend to fall, but actually tricked Liang Kongxiang into giving him a hug.
It was already starting to get slightly warm in mid-May.
When Liang Kongxiang finished washing up at home and was about to turn off the light, she felt something hitting the window. She pushed open the window and looked down. Jiang Jiaoming was looking up, holding a pile of pebbles in his hands. He was about to fire the next bullet when he saw Liang Kongxiang looking out. He paused for a moment, then fired the bullet at an angle. With a crisp "bang", the pebble hit the wall and bounced back to Jiang Jiaoming's feet.
Liang Kongxiang sat by the window, her hair loose, fluttering in the night breeze.
Jiang Jiaoming stood silently in the grass, fiddling with the pebbles in his palm.
Two young, flushed faces faced each other, one looking down, the other looking up.
Five minutes later, Jiang Jiaoming received a hug from Liang Kongxiang.
He held her tightly, burying his face in her warm neck, his arms wrapped tightly around her waist. "You are not allowed to accept gifts from Gao Hui."
"I didn't accept it," Liang Kongxiang explained helplessly.
"Go to a university."
Liang Kongxiang remained silent.
“I’m going to Songjin University,” Jiang Jiaoming said again.
"I understand." Liang Kongxiang smiled.
In reality, both Liang Kongxiang and Jiang Jiaoming ended up studying in Songjin City, one in the east of the city and the other in the west, a two-hour subway ride or a one-hour drive away.
After the college entrance examination, they never contacted each other again.
Summer days are long.
But the relationship was short-lived.
...
"...Is that so?" Chen Yun sat in Liang Kongxiang's room for a long time, still immersed in this past event, and hadn't come back to her senses. "You didn't contact him again after that?"
Could such a small amount of youthful affection really have such a powerful aftereffect? Chen Yun found it hard to believe.
Liang Kongxiang's alarm clock rang, indicating it was time for bed. She held it in her hand, watching it vibrate for several seconds before finally remembering to turn it off.
Even though Chen Yun was still very curious, she didn't bother her any further. There was still plenty of time; she could find out what happened next. After giving a few more instructions, she remembered the schedule and said, "But you and President Jiang are in the same circle, so you're bound to run into each other eventually. Are you really going to keep waiting like this?"
Liang Kongxiang knew what she was worried about, and as her agent, it was understandable that she was worried about these things. She shook her head: "We agreed that during the collaboration, we would put the past behind us and get along as ordinary friends."
It's ridiculous to keep an ex as a friend. Chen Yun saw through it but didn't say anything. Before leaving, she still mentioned it, "You'll have a lot of opportunities to meet. He will definitely be attending the film festival in a month as a judge."
Liang Kongxiang didn't think that far ahead; she was taking things one step at a time.
She nodded to indicate that she had heard.
Jiang Jiaoming had been paying close attention to and understanding the film industry since high school, and a project he invested in during his freshman year of college was shortlisted for the main competition at the Berlin Film Festival.
“Director He will be there too,” Chen Yun said. “We don’t have his connections, and the people he knows are people we haven’t met before. He has a lot of good projects, so we have to try our best to talk to him.”
Socializing isn't exactly Liang Kongxiang's forte, but she's far more career-driven than the average woman. She'll do anything that benefits her career, and she does it quite well.
After Chen Yun left, Liang Kongxiang lay flat on the large bed, feeling very light. Perhaps it was because she had talked too much to Chen Yun, but she felt that the memories had become much lighter, and even Jiang Jiaoming's face became clearer, as if it were imprinted on the ceiling.
But in reality, the ceiling was black, there were no faces, and no Jiang Jiaoming. There was only a tungsten filament lamp that hadn't completely gone dark emitting an extremely faint light, which grew dimmer and dimmer...
Until the darkness in the room blended in evenly.
Liang Kongxiang turned over and closed her eyes.
This was just another one of her fantasies.
The next morning, Chen Yun sent her a message.
[The seating chart is out; Mr. Jiang will be sitting next to you.]
A note from the author:
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Actually, that winter morning, someone secretly blushed [pats head]. Who was it? It's so hard to guess! Kong Xiang, do you have any clue? Hahahaha
Today's question: 1. Will President Jiang make a strong push at the film festival?
I reckon he'd only manage one chapter before he started to lick his lips; he couldn't possibly hold back even a little bit.
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