Chapter 23 First Snow
The ginkgo leaves along the tree-lined paths on campus fell one by one until the very end, leaving only bare trunks, and autumn was over. Early winter quietly arrived, the north wind howled, and Sunday was particularly cold. The weather forecast said it might snow, the first snow of the winter.
With final exams approaching, Nancheng No. 1 Middle School is holding a final exam mobilization meeting on the first day of school. Yu Bai and Jiang Jizhou will speak as representatives of the senior students.
This was Yu Bai's first time speaking on stage as a representative, and she had been practicing diligently, asking Jiang Jizhou for guidance.
As Chen Ma busied herself in the back, she passed through the living room and saw the radiant smile on Yu Bai's fair face. She felt extremely gratified. From being cautious and timid when she first came to the Jiang family, she had become much more confident and smiled much more often. Chen Ma was happy for Yu Bai.
"Bai Bai, you used to be so insecure. You look much better like this now." She patted Yu Bai on the shoulder.
Upon hearing this, Yu Bai turned to look at Chen Ma and smiled. She glanced at Jiang Jizhou and said, "It's all thanks to my brother."
It was his encouragement that made Yu Bai more confident.
The song she played at her previous birthday party wasn't just for everyone present; most importantly, it was for herself. In playing it, she cleared away the fog and found her inner self.
This is all the strength that Jiang Jizhou gave him.
“You are excellent by nature.” Jiang Jizhou rested his hands on the back of his head, leaning lazily on the sofa, his gaze towards Yu Bai revealing natural appreciation and affection.
Yu Bai's heart fluttered, her face flushed, and she changed the subject, "No, let's continue."
Jiang Jizhou smiled casually, but his eyes were focused intently on Yu Bai's speech.
Seeing this, Chen Ma smiled lovingly, as if she were looking at her own child.
A biting wind was blowing outside, but inside, joyful smiles filled the air.
This heartwarming scene was interrupted by Uncle Jiang's arrival.
This was the first time he had returned home since Jiang Jizhou had kicked him and his mistress Lin Yun out of the villa.
Perhaps out of fear of Jiang Jizhou, he did not bring Lin Yun back this time, but instead pushed open the villa door alone.
Yu Bai looked at Uncle Jiang in surprise. Compared to the last time he saw Uncle Jiang, he seemed to have aged a lot overnight, but his eyes and brows could not hide his excitement and joy.
Uncle Jiang opened his mouth to call out to Yu Bai, but Yu Bai glanced at Jiang Jizhou and saw that he had put away his smile, his eyebrows and eyes were cold and indifferent, with a slight hint of hostility.
Yu Bai was panicking.
Uncle Jiang walked towards Yu Bai, revealing a caring smile from an elder to a younger generation. "Bai Bai, I heard from your teacher that you've been first in the grade in the last few exams. You truly are worthy of being Yu Bai's daughter; you've inherited her intelligence."
Yu Bai forced a smile.
Uncle Jiang continued, "These past few days, your Aunt Lin is nearing her due date, and I've been taking care of her at the hospital. I've neglected to look after you, so please don't hold it against Uncle Jiang."
Hearing Uncle Jiang's words, Yu Bai's face paled a little. "No, I'm fine."
As she spoke, she stole glances at Jiang Jizhou's expression, worried that something might have happened to him, but he remained calm and detached.
Uncle Jiang had already walked up to Jiang Jizhou's side. "Jizhou, I was busy and didn't have time to wish you a happy birthday for your coming-of-age ceremony. I'm sorry, this is a gift."
He took out a gift box and gave it to Jiang Jizhou. Inside was a valuable wristwatch.
Jiang Jizhou didn't reach out to take it. His long eyelashes seemed to be covered with frost, coldly keeping people at a distance, and beneath his eyelashes was a contemptuous and indifferent gaze.
Uncle Jiang forced a smile, knowing he was in the wrong. He placed the watch on the coffee table and said earnestly, "Your father had a son late in life, and in my excitement, I was busy taking care of your Aunt Lin. After all, she was pregnant, and I neglected you. Jizhou, don't be angry with your father. Your Aunt Lin's baby will be born soon, and then you and your brother will be companions and can support each other. Your father is only thinking of you."
Jiang Jizhou raised his eyes and sneered, "Finished?"
Uncle Jiang was a little embarrassed, "Jizhou..."
Jiang Jizhou was getting impatient and interrupted him directly, "Get out of here after you're done talking."
"I'm your father, how dare you speak to your father like that!" Jiang Jizhou's words completely enraged Uncle Jiang, who frowned, his eyes filled with anger.
Jiang Jizhou gave a nonchalant, cold laugh, then ignored Uncle Jiang and went straight upstairs.
Uncle Jiang was already exhausted and physically weakened from personally taking care of the pregnant Lin Yun. Now, angered by Jiang Jizhou's attitude, he collapsed, trembling all over, and almost fainted.
Yu Bai hurriedly helped Uncle Jiang back to the bedroom, settled him on the bed, and was about to call a doctor when Uncle Jiang stopped him, saying, "No need, Bai Bai, Uncle Jiang is fine. Go get me a cup of hot water."
Yu Bai immediately ran out of the bedroom to pour Uncle Jiang a cup of hot water.
Uncle Jiang drank some hot water and felt better after a while. He sighed deeply, "Ji Zhou is becoming more and more distant from me."
You've cheated on me multiple times, and you even let your mistress drive Jiang Jizhou's mother to her death. How could he possibly still be on your side? Yu Bai grumbled to himself. Besides, you still don't think you've done anything wrong.
Yu Bai pursed her lips and mustered her courage to say, "Uncle Jiang, my brother just misses his mother."
Uncle Jiang closed his eyes, a tear falling down his cheek. "I'm sorry to his mother, but I am still his biological father."
Seeing Uncle Jiang's stubbornness and inflexibility, Yu Bai stopped talking and quietly lowered his head.
A cell phone rang; it was Lin Yun calling.
"Brother Feng, when are you coming back? The baby in my belly misses you."
Hearing Lin Yun's gentle and considerate voice, Uncle Jiang's brows immediately relaxed, and his voice softened considerably. "I was so angry with that brat Jiang Jizhou that I almost fainted. I'm lying in bed now. I'll come find you after I've rested. You stay home and wait for me."
Upon hearing this, Lin Yun's anxious voice came through the phone, "Ah, no, I have to come see you, I'm worried about you."
"You're pregnant, don't come." Uncle Jiang regretted telling Lin Yun the truth.
"No, I'll have the driver take me to your villa right now."
After saying that, Lin Yun hung up the phone.
Yu Bai frowned deeply. Jiang Jizhou wouldn't allow Lin Yun to appear at home. She advised Uncle Jiang, "Uncle Jiang, should we try to persuade her again not to come? I'm afraid my brother will argue with her, and it would be troublesome if he were to have a miscarriage."
Uncle Jiang also frowned deeply.
“I can’t persuade her. If I don’t let her come, she’ll make a scene.” Uncle Jiang comforted Yu Bai again, “It’s alright. Ji Zhou may be sharp-tongued, but she still knows her limits.”
However, a bad feeling arose in Yu Bai's heart.
She thought it best not to let Jiang Jizhou and Lin Yun meet, as she was afraid Jiang Jizhou would suffer.
“Uncle Jiang, I’m afraid they’ll start arguing. For Aunt Lin’s sake, I’ll send Jiang Jizhou away. When Aunt Lin arrives, you can go with her. Now, you can lie down here and rest. How about that?” Yu Bai asked with genuine concern and urgency.
After thinking it over, Uncle Jiang agreed to Yu Bai's request.
Yu Bai immediately went to find Jiang Jizhou. He got up and walked to Jiang Jizhou's bedroom, knocked on the door, and after a moment the door was opened. Jiang Jizhou was naked from the waist up, revealing his full abs, with clear water droplets running down his body. He was wrapped in a bath towel from the waist down. He had broad shoulders and a narrow waist, and was strong and slender without an ounce of fat.
Yu Bai's face instantly turned as red as an apple, the redness spreading to her ears, almost dripping blood.
She immediately covered her eyes with her hands.
Jiang Jizhou gave a playful smile, took a towel to dry his hair, and water droplets fell and splashed onto Yu Bai's hand, leaving a burning sensation.
"It's not like you've never seen it before, why are you so shy?"
Because the two lived under the same roof, such awkward moments were unavoidable, but Yu Bai still couldn't get used to it, and his face would turn red and his heart would race every time.
"Hmph." With a coquettish groan, the girl's shy anger had no deterrent effect; instead, it only deepened Jiang Jizhou's smile.
"What's wrong?" After a moment, Jiang Jizhou asked Yu Bai why he had come to see him.
Yu Bai lowered his head and hesitated, "It looks like it's going to snow for the first time today, let's go out and see the snow."
"Hmm?" Jiang Jizhou smiled, not caring whether it was snowing outside or not. "I'm going to change my clothes."
After closing the door, Yu Bai stood outside anxiously waiting for Jiang Jizhou, hoping that Lin Yun wouldn't come to the villa so soon.
"Let's go," Jiang Jizhou said to Yu Bai as he opened the door.
Yu Bai looked up and saw Jiang Jizhou wearing a gray coat, smiling slightly at her. He was tall, handsome, and elegant.
"Okay." Yu Bai smiled, pursing his lips.
The temperature outside was very low, the wind was biting, and there were only a few people walking on the street. Only the neon lights were still bright and dazzling.
Yu Bai and Jiang Jizhou strolled aimlessly side by side, their shadows stretched and overlapped by the streetlights.
Although they didn't say a word, their hearts were enveloped in a gentle and serene sweetness.
Yu Bai prayed for the arrival of the first snow.
Suddenly, as if the heavens had heard the girl's prayer, a snowflake fell on Yu Bai's nose, cool and wet.
Overjoyed, Yu Bai turned to look at Jiang Jizhou and exclaimed excitedly, "It's snowing, Jiang Jizhou!"
Under the warm yellow streetlights, fine snowflakes fluttered down, like shooting stars streaking across the dark night sky, stunning this cold night.
Yu Bai smiled and reached out to catch the snowflakes.
Jiang Jizhou watched her tenderly from the side, his indifferent eyes filled only with softness and doting affection.
The snow fell heavier and heavier, and gradually, the heavy snowflakes turned the whole world white, quiet, empty, clean and bright.
Snowflakes fluttered down onto their hair and shoulders.
Suddenly, Jiang Jizhou ran to a car parked on the roadside not far away. The car was covered with a layer of soft snow. He made a snowball, looked up and smiled, and threw it at Yu Bai.
Yu Bai cried out and nimbly dodged, then, not to be outdone, went to collect snow, made a snowball, and threw it at Jiang Jizhou.
Jiang Jizhou didn't dodge and obediently let her smash him.
A snowball landed on his coat, blooming into a white flower. His eyes were fixed intently on Yu Bai, and snowflakes fell on his hair, turning it white.
In an instant, Yu Bai felt the icy snowflakes falling into her palm melt into a pool of spring water, rippling across the surface, and her heart melted completely.
With snowflakes as our matchmaker, we can now consider ourselves to have grown old together.
The two played and joked happily until they got home. Even then, Yu Bai and Jiang Jizhou couldn't bear to wipe the snowflakes that hadn't yet melted from their hair.
Chen's mother scolded them worriedly, "It's so cold, why are you still playing outside? Hurry up and wipe your hair, it's covered in snow."
But Yu Bai and Jiang Jizhou just smiled at each other, neither of them willing.
They even wished the snowflakes would melt more slowly.
Chen Ma smiled helplessly; there was nothing they could do about it.
Thinking of Lin Yun, she put the matter out of her mind for the moment, quickly pulled Yu Bai to a corner, winked at her, and whispered, "Lin Yun is in your Uncle Jiang's room."
Yu Baixin shuddered. They had been outside for so long, had Lin Yun and Uncle Jiang still not left?
Just as I was about to speak, I heard a "thump, thump" sound of something rolling down behind me.
Chen Ma, who was the first to look up at the stairs, had a strange expression on her face and screamed.
Yu Bai turned around and was horrified to see Lin Yun tumble down the steps and fall to the ground, with a large pool of bright red blood flowing from beneath her. Jiang Jizhou stood at the top, his face indifferent.
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