Just then, Mu Wenxi called. Wen Nanyin quickly answered, and Mu Wenxi's chattering voice reached his ears. She seemed unaware of what had just happened to him.
Mu Wenxi chatted with him about some recent events: "I won the first prize in the scholarships awarded by our school this semester."
Wen Nanyin forced back the tears welling up in his eyes and praised her, "Yes, you're great."
Mu Wenxi paused for a moment, then asked, "And you? How are you now?"
Wen Nanyin didn't want Mu Wenxi to know about this: "It's fine as it is."
Mu Wenxi: "Alright then, I was thinking of inviting you out to play, but it seems I won't have that honor so late."
Wen Nanyin: "Out for fun?"
Mu Wenxi: "Yeah, guess where I am? Sigh, it's been so hard chasing after someone."
Wen Nanyin had an unbelievable guess in his heart, and he sat up abruptly in bed: "You're not here with me, are you?"
Mu Wenxi said playfully, "Guess?"
Wen Nanyin quickly put on her hat and mask, preparing to go out: "Really? Where are you?"
Mu Wenxi said one sentence and then hung up the phone: "Open the door."
Wen Nanyin didn't even bother with his slippers before rushing to open the door. Sure enough, the person he had been longing for was right in front of him. Mu Wenxi was about to speak when Wen Nanyin pulled her inside. The door slammed shut, and Wen Nanyin pulled Mu Wenxi into his arms.
Mu Wenxi patted him: "Alright, alright, what's wrong?"
Wen Nanyin's voice, muffled from wearing a mask, said, "Someone called me an ugly monster."
Mu Wenxi left Wen Nanyin's embrace and gently pulled down his mask: "Let me see, hmm, his nose is very straight, his eyes are very deep, he's very handsome on the left, and on the right? He's handsome on the right too, they must be blind."
Wen Nanyin finally revealed her sweet dimples.
Mu Wenxi looked at him and thought the person in front of him was even more handsome: "You're obviously very handsome. People who say you're ugly are just jealous of your good looks."
Wen Nanyin: "That's right."
Mu Wenxi helped him put on his mask, then took out a scarf she had prepared from her bag and covered most of Wen Nanyin's face: "This is a New Year's gift I prepared for you, I'm giving it to you in advance."
Wen Nanyin touched it with his hand, looked at it carefully, and his eyes lit up: "You knitted it yourself?"
Mu Wenxi nodded: "That's right."
Wen Nanyin: "I like it very much."
Mu Wenxi then put a thick cotton coat on him: "Let's go, now no one will recognize you."
Two boys dressed like bears explored the quiet atmosphere of this unfamiliar city on a cold night. Hand in hand, they walked from one place to another, passing bustling shopping malls and walking through quiet alleys, until they finally returned to their hotel late at night.
No one on the road suspected that this person was Wen Nanyin, which made him feel a long-lost sense of freedom and tranquility.
Mu Wenxi's hotel room was on the floor below Wen Nanyin's. Wen Nanyin personally escorted her to her room before returning upstairs.
Mu Wenxi: "Good night, Xiaoyin, I hope you have a good dream tonight."
Wen Nanyin: "Good night, Xixi, sweet dreams to you too."
The two smiled at each other. No matter how many troubles Wen Nanyin had, they would all disappear as soon as he met Mu Wenxi. She was his safe haven.
During the New Year period, the Mu family celebrated the New Year in City B, while the Wen family, whose hometown was not in City B, returned to their hometown a few days earlier with large bags and small packages to celebrate the New Year.
In their hometown, a small county town, many villagers came out to greet them upon learning of their return, numbering around twenty or thirty people.
Wen Nanyin was stunned for a moment by the scene, and found the chatter of the villagers somewhat amusing.
An old woman grabbed Wen Nanyin's hand: "The star kid is back."
"You've grown up and gotten taller."
"Handsome young man, you dance really well."
After the villagers finished celebrating, they went home to cook, as if the welcome had been a tacitly accepted ritual. No matter who came back, everyone wanted to join in the fun; their lives were the most important thing to them.
Wen Nanyin stepped into his own courtyard. He remembered that the courtyard looked just like this when he was a child, and it still looks the same now. He had been away for several years, and everything had changed, but it seemed that only this small county town and this small courtyard had not changed.
He lay on a rocking chair in front of his small courtyard, basking in the sun. The air around him was very fresh. He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, his eyebrows and eyes relaxed. He didn't need to wear a mask and could even breathe freely. No one bothered him, no worries, no responsibilities weighing on him. Everything was fine.
Wen's parents cooked in the house using an old-fashioned wood-fired stove and freshly pressed rapeseed oil that their neighbor had just brought over. The rice they cooked smelled especially good.
Every now and then, a child would peek out from behind the low wall and make eye contact with Wen Nanyin. He would smile back, and the child would run away quickly, embarrassed.
Wen's mother said, "They were all very excited. They heard that a big star had emerged in the village, so they all came to see him."
Wen Nanyin: "He's not some big star."
Aunt Li from next door said, "All the kids in our village look up to you. They show you dancing on that 'Good Youth' show every day. You got into the best high school in the city. Not only are your parents happy, but everyone else is too."
Wenma: "It's 'The Best of Boys', right?"
Aunt Li: "Yes, yes, that's it."
Wen Nanyin was both amused and exasperated. No wonder so many children kept peeking at him, making him feel a little embarrassed.
In the following days, Wen Nanyin slept until he naturally woke up, ate a meal, strolled around the village, and basked in the sun in the afternoon. Occasionally, children would come to him with their homework and ask him questions, which he would answer one by one, patting the children on the head.
When it's time for the New Year's Eve dinner, every household opens their doors wide, and people come to my place for a few bites, and I go to yours for a few bites.
Wen Ma sighed, "Actually, this village is only lively during the Spring Festival. Now, the young people in the village, like us, have all gone out to do business. Only the elderly are left in the village. Those with elderly people will come back for the Spring Festival. Some have bought houses outside and have taken their elderly people to live there. They don't want to come back to live in this old and dilapidated house."
Wen's father: "The older generation is nostalgic. Look at the old people in the village, they don't want to live in those new houses. They would rather stay on the land they've lived on for decades. Some of them have no choice but to do so because of their children's schooling. Let's come back and visit more often in the future."
Wen Nanyin nodded; he really liked the slow pace of life in this county town and village.
After dinner, he took out his phone to check. There was no Wi-Fi here; he could only access the internet using mobile data, but the signal was weak and the network was slow. He typed out a text message and sent blessings to everyone around him. Finally, when he got to Mu Wenxi, he called him directly.
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