Chapter 02. Old Classmates
Nineteen-year-old Ke Fan is devoted to studying professional books.
That day was the Youth League Day activity. She took the information to find the class teacher to check the process and sign, but was stopped in the corridor of the Youth League Committee office building where a teacher might appear at any time.
She pursed her lips tightly, and besides her usual impatience, a trace of embarrassment that she had never felt before surged in her heart.
Those usually gentle eyes were tinged with anger, and a thin layer of red appeared on the fair face:
"I don't know! Can you please move aside?"
The boy in the white shirt opposite her blocked her path as she tried to leave, his round, deer-like eyes looking at her with a wronged expression:
"I won't let you unless you tell me why you've been avoiding me."
Ke Fan opened his eyes slightly, feeling surprised by this question.
The huge scene this man made when he confessed his love to her downstairs of her dormitory a few days ago came to her mind again.
The star lights were stacked into the shape of a heart, and he stood in the middle of the heart holding a huge bouquet of roses.
This is eye-catching enough, not to mention it is evening when people are coming and going.
Soon, the crowd gathered in a circle, speculating and gossiping about the male and female protagonists.
The male protagonist has a handsome face, a straight figure, and his hair is combed up from his forehead. Under the dim streetlights below the dormitory building, he looks even more like a handsome young man from the golden age of Hong Kong films.
He stood straight, completely ignoring the whispers around him. However, when he raised the bouquet, his body could not help but sway slightly, and his face was flushed, obviously because of the courage given by a little alcohol.
The moment Yi Lingjia saw Ke Fan's figure appear outside the crowd, her eyes suddenly lit up, she raised the rose and shouted to her:
"Ke Fan! I--like--you--!"
The crowd's focus immediately shifted to the stunned Ke Fan.
"Is that the heroine? She's so tall and beautiful!"
"Why doesn't she look like she knew about this beforehand?"
Ke Fan, carrying her schoolbag, had just returned from studying in the library. She was holding a pair of half-removed white headphones, looking bewildered as a group of strangers stared at her and talked about her.
This was one of the moments in her life when she most wanted to find a hole in the ground and crawl into it.
Some gossipers have already started recording on their phones.
Ke Fan frowned, tightened the shoulder straps of his schoolbag, walked around the noisy crowd, and walked quickly into the dormitory building gate.
The moment the door closed, she turned around and saw Yi Lingjia's body stiffen, and his hands holding the flowers gradually dropped down.
In the next few days, Ke Fan deliberately avoided him, whether in the classroom or in the cafeteria.
I've been stuck in this corridor until today.
Why are you avoiding him?
"I'm not avoiding you, I just don't want to see you."
Ke Fan's cold voice rang out in the quiet corridor.
There was a long silence between the two.
"I'm sorry." Yi Lingjia bit her lip, and her long eyelashes cast a lonely shadow, covering her eyes that seemed to be shrouded in mist.
"I'm sorry, Ke Fan. I didn't know it was wrong to express my feelings like that."
He added cautiously, "I saw it done that way in the movies, and Nie Fei and the others said it was a good idea, so I really thought girls would like it."
He didn't want to talk any further, but seeing that he was still ignorant but sincere, Ke Fan couldn't help but speak:
"That's definitely wrong. Confessing your feelings in public is, to some extent, moral blackmail, unless the two people are 100% certain of the relationship and just want to go through the motions of romance. In other cases, don't you think it's putting the other person on a pedestal?"
After a pause, she added: "Especially for women, this is definitely not a good situation."
Her whole body was cold and silent, and there seemed to be a dark and bottomless vortex in her eyes.
There seemed to be a secret and obscure brokenness hidden in the vortex, but no one could touch it for the time being.
Yi Lingjia couldn't understand the deep look in her eyes, he only knew that he should listen carefully.
He nodded obediently.
Ke Fan breathed a sigh of relief and concluded briefly: "Don't make such a grand confession in the future, unless the other party agrees."
"Well, if you don't like it, I definitely won't do it again."
"I...I didn't say it was me." She was a little angry again.
"Ke Fan, I'm really glad you told me this. I know I'm a little bit stupid, but I will learn slowly."
In the dim corridor, the boy's eyes were like gems in a dark pool, gazing at her intently and sparklingly.
"Can you please stop wanting to see me?"
Nineteen-year-old Ke Fan felt his heart skip a beat for the first time. He left in a hurry, saying, "The teacher is waiting for me to sign, I'm leaving first."
Large patches of golden-orange sunset glow fell on the sea, and the tiny lights danced and flickered with the waves, like a dream. The clear cries of seagulls in the distance rose and fell with the salty smell of the sea water.
Twenty-seven-year-old Yi Lingjia walked step by step against the fragmented light in the sky. With every step she took, the immature and clumsy boy in her memory faded a little. In the end, the man standing in front of her was such a mature and cold man.
"What's wrong, Ke Fan? Don't you recognize me?"
He spoke calmly, pushing his gold-rimmed glasses with his slender fingers.
The gaze fixed on the pale girl opposite him revealed the huge waves surging in his heart at the moment.
Yi Lingjia had imagined his reunion with Ke Fan countless times. When the moment really came, the oncoming impact was like a raging storm, throwing him to the top. He didn't know when he would fall, and the bumpy and dazed ride left him with nowhere to hide.
It has been exactly six years since we last parted in early summer.
As the two of them sat in silence, he didn't know that he might not be the only one feeling bad.
Ke Fan's dull stomachache started to bother him again.
She gripped the railing in front of her, her lips slightly parted, and she tried her best to use a natural and ordinary tone:
"Long time no see, old classmate."
Yi Lingjia's expression paused.
"Boss Yi! Great, it's your boat!"
A surprised and loud male voice suddenly came from behind her.
Old Xie, having put on his life jacket, walked over quickly, a joyful smile on his dark face.
Yi Lingjia subtly withdrew his gaze from Ke Fan and nodded at him.
Old Xie briefly explained the malfunction of the maintenance vessel, and with a worried look on his face, he asked hesitantly:
"The control center doesn't have any support for a while... Mr. Yi, could you please help get us back to shore?"
Even though he knew that this request was a bit beyond his bounds, he had no other choice but to accept his fate and speak up.
About three years ago, Yi Lingjia emerged out of nowhere and became the owner of the largest fishery industry near the oasis.
He has the typical face of a rich young man, with handsome and unruly features, but he is a down-to-earth and hardworking person, and he does everything by himself.
When Old Xie went out to sea with the Oasis ship, he would meet Yi Lingjia, who was inspecting the fishing boats at sea, two or three times a month, and they would gradually start to talk to each other.
But that's all, the friendship is not that deep.
Asking the other party to help tow their boat back to the shore would take several hours, and the other party's itinerary might be completely disrupted, so it is not a small favor.
Fortunately, Yi Lingjia only hesitated for a few seconds and quickly agreed:
"No problem. We are old acquaintances of Oasis, so it's only natural for us to help."
Old Xie felt relieved and wiped the sweat off his head with his sleeves:
"We're saved! We're saved! That's great! Thank you, Mr. Yi!"
Yi Lingjia nodded slightly, turned around and instructed the boy standing in the cabin:
"Li Jing, go check where the tow rope on our ship is and see how to connect the Oasis ship to ours."
Ke Fan looked at Yi Lingjia's back. The high-quality black windbreaker outlined his tall and straight figure.
He was sophisticated and steady when talking to Lao Xie, and capable and calm when dealing with his subordinates.
From the inside out, he seemed completely different from before.
The crisis of being trapped was resolved, and Old Xie finally reacted half a beat late, and asked in surprise:
"Hey Xiao Ke, did I just hear you calling Mr. Yi an old classmate?"
Just at this moment, Yi Lingjia also turned around, and Ke Fan raised his eyes to meet his gaze.
Behind his gold-rimmed glasses, his eyes were deep, hiding emotions that she could not understand.
It was just that the unfamiliarity of not seeing each other for six years was as if it was tangible. She lowered her eyes and stopped looking at him, her voice faint:
"Well, we were college classmates."
The curve of Yi Lingjia's lips deepened, but his eyebrows and eyes became sharper:
"It's really not easy. Mr. Ke, who is the top student in the grade, still remembers a small person like me."
Old Xie was completely unaware of the undercurrent. He simply thought that Mr. Yi was doing this out of respect for his old classmate, so he cheered enthusiastically:
"Xiao Ke, you were so outstanding when you were in college. No wonder you are a doctorate student at Ocean University."
After he finished speaking, he chuckled and waited for Yi Lingjia to respond with a joke.
Unexpectedly, Yi Lingjia seemed to be struck by this sentence and his face darkened.
Fortunately, Li Jing came running over at this time and reported excitedly:
"Boss! I just checked the storage compartment, and the tow rope is right there! Then I asked Brother Qin, and he said the Oasis boat can be connected to our stern."
Yi Lingjia's expression eased slightly, and he brushed off the dust on Li Jing's shoulder: "Okay, got it."
With the cooperation of personnel from both sides, the two ships were quickly connected and headed towards the shore.
The boat behind was being towed, and the boat was inevitably bumpy. Everyone from Oasis boarded the yacht. The driver and another operations colleague went to the second-floor platform, leaving Ke Fan, Lao Xie, Yi Lingjia, and Li Jing in the yacht's cabin.
Li Jing has always been a thoughtful person. He felt that his boss was quieter than usual after everyone sat down in the cabin.
He turned his head to look at Yi Lingjia's expression, and happened to meet the eyes of Old Xie who was sitting opposite him.
Old Xie nodded and smiled friendly.
Li Jing thought to himself that someone might need to start the conversation first. After learning that several people were from the Oasis Wind Power Plant, he asked:
"Then that big white windmill we often see, is it built by you?"
"Big windmills..." Old Xie chuckled, "They were built by our wind power company. Those are offshore wind turbines used for wind power generation."
"Why build it in the sea? Isn't it more convenient to build it on land?"
"If you consider that the oceans cover 70% of the Earth's surface, large-scale development would be very promising. However, operation and maintenance are indeed challenging. Just look at this: today, our ship broke down mid-journey."
Old Xie looked out the window at the gradually darkening sky and said with some relief:
"Luckily you guys are nearby, otherwise we don't know how long we would have to wait today. Thanks to you, Mr. Yi."
Yi Lingjia accepted his thanks again with a smile, but his eyes fell on Ke Fan intentionally or unintentionally.
The cabin was narrow, and although she was separated from Lao Xie, she was within his arm's reach.
The sunset dyed her fair and pure profile with a light pink, softening the cold and distant look between her eyebrows.
The sea breeze blew gently, and the strands of hair on her cheeks were slightly lifted up, floating gently in the wind, carrying a subtle and gentle breath.
The strands of hair swayed in the wind, and his eyes followed them unconsciously. He was slightly startled, as if his heart was gently touched, but it was difficult to capture.
Suddenly, the phone rang, breaking the moment of silence.
When Ke Fan saw the name on the caller ID, a faint smile immediately appeared on his lips and he picked up the phone.
She could faintly hear a voice on the other end of the line, seemingly asking about her current situation. She nodded slightly and replied, "Yeah, yeah, it's okay. There was a little problem with the boat, yeah, it's okay now."
"Okay, we're on our way back to the center, don't worry."
She rarely speaks with a trailing tone.
Yi Lingjia's eyebrows twitched, and she keenly realized that this person had a good relationship with her.
I thought the call was over, but Ke Fan suddenly said to the person on the phone, "Do you want to say hello to Lao Xie?"
Old Xie asked Ke Fan with a puzzled look, but Ke Fan seemed not to see him. He smiled slightly and handed the phone to him, which happened to be the side closest to Yi Lingjia.
"It's Ji Hang. He'll arrive on the high-speed train tomorrow afternoon." She briefly summarized.
After Lao Xie took the phone, the voice in the receiver was almost right next to his ear.
Now Yi Lingjia heard clearly that it was a young boy.
The sunset outside the window had darkened at some point, and the sun had completely sunk into the sea.
Li Jing couldn't help but shudder as the sea darkened. Perhaps it wasn't just the gloomy environment, but also the fact that his usually affable boss had a somewhat oppressive and gloomy expression on his face.
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