The most beautiful rainy day
"Qingmiao, it's going to rain! I'm going to get my blanket!" Wen Sheng called out hurriedly and turned to run towards the open space.
No sooner had the words left his mouth than a muffled clap of thunder boomed from the horizon, and a few raindrops pounded on the concrete ground, quickly splashing out in a circle of water.
Just as Li Qingmiao was about to yell at Li Changshui, raindrops hit her face. She was startled and looked up at the sky: "Oh no, it's going to rain heavily."
Upon catching the word "quilt," Xu Jianing immediately turned and ran towards the open space. With his long legs, he ran faster than others and crossed the muddy puddle in just a few steps.
"Wen Sheng, which one is your blanket!" He rushed to the open space only to find that he was not the only one in the "blanket rescue army".
Dozens of colorful quilts were hung together, some with red floral patterns, some with blue checks, and some with yellow backgrounds and green leaves. When the wind blew, they all swayed to one side, creating a dazzling sight.
"This is mine!"
"Bullshit! This was sewn by my mother herself. What are you trying to take it from me for?!" Another person grabbed the corner of the blanket tightly, almost tearing the blanket in two.
Some people were so anxious that they didn't even put on shoes and ran barefoot out of the dormitory to grab their blankets.
Xu Jianing stared at the colorful fabric, veins throbbing on his forehead, and shouted as he searched for the blanket, "Wen Sheng, which one is yours?"
"Red floral print!" Wen Sheng shouted desperately through the crowd, causing chaos.
Upon hearing this, Xu Jianing squinted and searched through the sea of colorful quilts. Finally, he spotted a light blue floral quilt in the corner, which was being blown around by the wind and was swaying precariously as if it were about to be blown over.
He rushed forward, grabbed the light blue floral quilt, and scrambled towards the dormitory eaves.
The rain was getting heavier and heavier, and everyone around was in chaos, grabbing any blanket they could find and rushing inside, not caring whether it was their own or not.
The area under the eaves was crowded with people. Wen Sheng tiptoed through the crowd to find Xu Jianing, but her view was completely blocked. She almost bumped into people rushing towards her several times.
She was extremely anxious and kept shouting in the crowd, "Xu Jianing, Xu Jianing!" Her voice became hoarse, but she still couldn't find that familiar face.
Suddenly, a tall man squeezed through the crowd, carrying a thick quilt in his arms. His hair and shoulders were soaked by the rain, and water dripped down his chin. He was protecting the quilt while searching for someone.
Wen Sheng immediately waved and shouted with all her might, "Xu Jianing!"
Xu Jianing turned around abruptly, his gaze sweeping over the chaotic crowd and locking onto her. He carried the heavy quilt, squeezed his way through the commotion, and walked towards her.
Wen Sheng instinctively opened her arms, waiting for the other person to come over and take the blanket.
When Xu Jianing saw this posture, her breath caught in her throat, her ears turned red, and she lowered her head, not daring to look at the other person.
Is he going to... hug him?
That's not good...they haven't even officially started dating yet...
But she had already stretched out her arms to hug him, so it wouldn't be good to refuse...
Seeing that he didn't move, Wen Sheng said anxiously, "What are you standing there for? Hurry up and give me the blanket."
Xu Jianing belatedly realized that she had misunderstood, and cursed herself inwardly. She quickly stuffed the blanket in her arms into Wen Sheng's arms, trying to pretend that nothing had happened.
Wen Sheng took it and was completely stunned.
It is indeed a red floral pattern, but the pattern is particularly festive, with a bright red background and large gold "囍" embroidered on the edges. You can tell at a glance that it is for newlyweds. It doesn't look like the quilt that Ye Caifeng sewed from old cloth at all.
Wen Sheng stood frozen in place, clutching the festive red "囍" quilt in her arms. Just then, a muffled clap of thunder sounded outside, and she felt as if she had been struck by lightning. Otherwise, why would her brain have crashed?
After a long while, she finally managed to make a sound, squeezing out, "Xu Jianing, this isn't my blanket."
"Wasn't it supposed to be red with floral patterns?"
Wen Sheng almost laughed in exasperation, pulling back the corner of the blanket to point it out to him: "It's a floral pattern, not a large, vibrant peony! Look closely, there are two mandarin ducks embroidered next to it!"
Xu Jianing: "......"
The heavy rain came and went quickly; the dark clouds were soon blown away by the wind, and the sun shone again, illuminating the earth.
The crowd in the corridor had long since dispersed, and everyone sheepishly walked back to their dormitories with their blankets in their arms, or took advantage of the sunny weather to hang their blankets out to dry again.
Only two people in the corner of the corridor, holding the festive red "囍" quilt, awkwardly waited for the original owner to claim it.
Just as they stood frozen in place, a tall, thin boy came running breathlessly from the direction of the playground, shouting as he ran, "Who took my red wedding quilt?! Who took my red wedding quilt?!"
He spotted the two people hugging the blankets in the corner and burst into tears: "Oh my god! This is my mother's dowry! If I lose it, my mother will break my legs when I get home!"
Wen Sheng felt that the "double happiness" quilt in her arms was a hot potato, so she quickly shoved it into the boy's arms and said in a flash, "Here, here you go!"
The boy, overwhelmed with gratitude, bowed repeatedly to them, saying, "Thank you so much! Thank you both! This is a family heirloom. My mom said that I was conceived because I was covered by this quilt!"
Wen Sheng: "......"
Xu Jianing: "......"
After the owner of the quilt ran away, overjoyed and in tears, Wen Sheng belatedly realized and slapped her forehead: Oh no! Her red floral quilt was still hanging outside!
She rushed to the open space and immediately saw the lonely quilt hanging on the bamboo pole. The pattern on the red cloth was darkened by the rain, and water was dripping down.
Wen Sheng was on the verge of tears. This was it. It would take at least two days of sunny weather to dry the clothes. What was she going to do tonight?
"If you don't mind, you can take mine tonight."
Wen Sheng turned around and saw that Xu Jianing had walked over at some point and was standing next to her.
The marks from carrying the quilt were still visible on his shoulders, and his heavy cotton coat was soaked through by the rain, with water dripping from his cuffs.
"Then what will you do?" Wen Sheng asked.
"I also have a thin blanket. I exercise every morning, so I'm strong and healthy and not afraid of the cold."
Wen Sheng reached out and tugged at the quilt, wanting to check its condition, but the originally soft cotton, once soaked by the rain, made the whole quilt feel like it was filled with lead, extremely heavy.
She tried to tug at it a couple of times, and her arm ached terribly. The blanket was soaking wet and still dripping water.
Worse still, the bamboo pole is now creaking and bent badly, as if it's about to snap at any moment.
"Oh no, this can't hold up..." Wen Sheng's expression changed, and she hurriedly reached out to support it.
Seeing this, Xu Jianing stepped forward, reached out and easily moved the heavy quilt onto another bamboo pole, with almost no effort.
"That looks so easy..." Wen Sheng said subconsciously.
Xu Jianing turned her head and smiled: "I told you, I'm strong and healthy."
Wen Sheng ignored him, frowned as she looked at the wet quilt, then turned around and ran to the side to look for spare bamboo poles. The bamboo poles were piled up in the corner, leaning to one side or the other. It took her a lot of effort to pull out a suitable one.
"The quilt is too wet. One quilt is definitely not enough to stretch it out. You need two quilts to stretch it out and make the surface area bigger so that it can dry properly."
Xu Jianing took it, placed the new bamboo pole on the other side, then lifted both ends of the heavy quilt to spread it out and let it air dry evenly.
With his manipulation, the thick, damp quilt was finally stretched out and stopped drooping.
Wen Sheng walked around the blanket, still feeling uneasy: "This won't do, I'll go find another one."
She quickly carried over another bamboo pole and dragged a bamboo pole stand from the corner as well. After some effort, she finally managed to get the bamboo pole stand standing steadily.
"Come on, lift the blanket a little to the middle." She wiped the sweat from her forehead and directed Xu Jianing to do the work.
Xu Jianing lifted the heavy quilt and, following her movements, placed it on the bamboo pole frame.
With three bamboo poles positioned in front and behind, and support in the middle, the soaked quilt was finally stretched into a bulging arc, no longer collapsing, and there was no need to worry about the bamboo poles breaking.
Wen Sheng breathed a sigh of relief, finally at ease.
Will it rain in the next few days?
Xu Jianing: "The weather is unpredictable, you never know."
Wen Sheng looked up at the sky. The dark clouds had dispersed, and the sunlight was so bright that she couldn't open her eyes. But the sudden downpour just now was still vivid in her mind.
She said with a worried look, "If there's another heavy rain, my quilt will be completely ruined."
Xu Jianing glanced at the floral quilt that was still dripping wet, pondered for a moment, and suggested, "How about this, let it dry for a while first, and then I'll borrow a car so it can be put in the car to dry tomorrow?"
"Can the sun really dry inside the car?" Wen Sheng asked, half believing and half doubting.
"In a sealed environment, the temperature is high during the day, so it gets sunburned faster than outside," Xu Jianing explained.
Wen Sheng thought about it and felt that the scene was a bit strange: a bright red floral quilt, curled up in the back seat of the car sunbathing, it just felt a bit eerie no matter how you looked at it.
She couldn't help but look up at the sky, and suddenly asked, "Xu Jianing, do you know how to observe the night sky?"
Xu Jianing was stumped by the question and paused for a moment before saying, "Not really... but I do look at the clouds occasionally."
"Can you guarantee it won't rain later?" Wen Sheng asked seriously.
Xu Jianing looked up at the sky, paused for a moment, and decided to try to predict the weather before speaking seriously: "I can only guarantee that if it rains again, I'll be the first to carry your blanket back, or I'll stay here and watch over you."
She couldn't help but laugh out loud, raising her hand to pat the damp blanket: "Alright, alright, don't stand here waiting like an idiot. Just come over this evening and help me move it in, and we can take it out to air it tomorrow."
Just then, Li Changshui and Li Qingmiao ran over, arguing noisily.
When Li Qingmiao saw the two of them, she finally took the initiative to stop arguing and fell silent.
She saw the dripping quilt hanging on the bamboo pole and exclaimed in shock, "Wen Sheng, your quilt... why is it wet?"
Li Changshui burst out laughing: "How did it get into such a mess? Didn't A-Ning come over to help you collect it?"
Seeing the two men's dark expressions, he awkwardly withdrew his smile and quickly tried to salvage the situation: "I was just saying it offhand... Um, how about we take it to the towel factory next door to dry it?"
"Are you stupid!" Li Qingmiao slapped him angrily. "The cotton will clump together when you dry it. Do you want to ruin her quilt completely?"
Xu Jianing said calmly, "The quilt can only be dried in the sun; it can't be rushed."
Wen Sheng felt there was no point in just standing there, so she suggested, "Shall we go back first? I haven't tidied up my dorm yet, I'll come back to get my bedding this evening."
——
As evening fell, the setting sun cast its rays, and the evening glow on the horizon was as magnificent as a tapestry. The layers of light blended and diffused, creating a breathtakingly beautiful scene. The surrounding trees and buildings were all edged with gold.
Morning glow means stay home; evening glow means travel far.
Wen Sheng stood downstairs at the girls' dormitory, arms crossed, looking up at the sky, feeling that tomorrow would be a good day, and her plan to air out her quilts would come true.
She stood by the entrance to the building, so bored that she began to observe everyone's expressions. Some dragged their feet with a look of utter despair; others were excited about going to the cafeteria, their eyes narrowing into slits with laughter.
As Wen Sheng looked at them, she suddenly felt that the expressions pieced together resembled a lively scene from a school campus. But when she came to her senses, she realized that the person she was waiting for had not yet appeared.
She glanced in the direction of the boys' dormitory, but seeing no one there, she sighed and turned her attention to the locust tree beside her. The trunk was rough and mottled, and a few withered leaves blown off by the wind were still hanging on the branches, swaying precariously.
After staring at it for a while, he even started counting the branches: "One, two, three... wait, how many branches are there that forked over here?"
Damn it!!! Wasn't this the agreed-upon time? Where is everyone?!
Just as she was about to count another tree, a familiar voice suddenly rang in her ears, tinged with amusement: "Don't count the tree trunks, count me instead."
Wen Sheng subconsciously turned her head and saw that Xu Jianing was already standing next to her at some point, which startled her.
"Xu Jianing, you are shining."
The afterglow of the sunset fell perfectly on him, bathing him in a soft golden halo. His shoulders were well-defined, and his features were handsome; he was truly dazzling.
Xu Jianing glanced down at her, then suddenly placed the bag containing the thick quilt at her feet and moved half a step away, letting the afterglow also shine on Wen Sheng.
The golden light suddenly enveloped her, casting a soft glow on her eyes and brows.
He smiled and looked at the radiant Wen Sheng, nodding in satisfaction: "Now, you're radiant too."
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