glass shards
In the end, Lin Luo couldn't hold back her tears. She turned her back, leaving Fu Xingchuan where he was, and walked towards the end of the alley.
Well done, Lin Luo. You did the right thing. Your choice was right. She kept stroking her chest, telling herself this, but her heartbeat was unusually fast, as if her subconscious was contradicting her.
After that day, she never saw Fu Xingchuan again. Without his family and Tong Yun, he wouldn't stay in Nan'an for long. Lin Luo knew that, but she didn't expect him to leave without even saying goodbye to them, her friends.
It was the next day, after Xu Yangyang sobered up, that Lin Luo called her and told her she had applied to Nanjing University. Xu Yangyang was careless and didn't think much about the hidden reasons behind it. She was busy pestering Qi Yao every day, and Zhu Changyu had already left for Guangdong without telling them in advance.
The seven people were scattered all over the place, and the group was like a pool of stagnant water. No one threw stones into it, and there was not even any wind to create ripples on the water.
Lin Luo filled her time with work every day. Tang Heng's chemotherapy showed some results. He was more adaptable and had a much better appetite. The doctor asked her to think more about money and make plans early.
During this time, Lin Dayong contacted her only twice. Once, he congratulated her on her admission to NTU and expressed his pride in her. The other time, Lin Xiao told him that his uncle was ill, which shocked him. He didn't say it explicitly, but Lin Xiao knew there was nothing he could do in his current situation.
The money Lin Luo earned from working was a drop in the bucket compared to the 500,000 yuan. Most of the family savings had been used up on the chemotherapy and blood transfusions, and some had to be left for Tang Muchen's tuition and food expenses.
Grandma has no savings. She spent all the money on building her own house in the countryside. Other relatives and Tang Heng’s colleagues all have their own families to take care of and cannot borrow much money.
Lin Luo did not hold a graduation party, but Teacher Wu still gave her a red envelope.
She looked at the red envelope on the table and remembered the one Tang Heng gave her during the Chinese New Year. Lin Luo took out her cell phone and looked through the address book.
She first entered Fu Xingchuan's number. She knew that as long as she asked, Fu Xingchuan would definitely lend it to her, but she just didn't press it.
She didn't want to owe Fu Xingchuan anything, whether it was money or favors, but if there was really no other way, he would be her last straw.
Lin Luo dug out the numbers of the people she knew in Shanghai, swallowed her pride, and called them one by one. Few answered; she had almost all of them blacklisted. If she didn't, it was probably because they were simply lazy or had forgotten. After they answered, they would hang up within minutes after hearing that she wanted to borrow money.
They probably thought that Lin Luo was borrowing money for Lin Dayong, so they avoided her like the plague.
Lin Luo sighed deeply. There was one last number, but she didn't make any notes. She didn't remember who it belonged to, but she called it anyway.
The call took a while to be connected, and the man spoke with a pure American accent, "Hello, it's Cody."
When mentioning this name, Lin Luo recalled that last year she wore Hanfu and accompanied Lin Dayong to an exhibition. A foreign guy praised her for her beauty. That was the first time in her life that someone had praised her looks. The guy asked if he could have her phone number, and Lin Luo generously gave it to him.
"Hello, my name is Cecilia. Do you remember me?" Lin Qiao didn't have much hope, but the other party replied: "Yeah, I noted that you are a beautiful girl."
Lin Luo and Cody had a very pleasant chat, and he readily agreed to lend Lin Luo money.
When school started in September, Lin Luo, Xu Yangyang, Tian Yajun and Tang Zhihua gathered in front of the plaque at the gate of Nanjing University.
"Xiaoxiao, why didn't you tell us earlier that your uncle was sick?" She heard it from Tang Zhihua, and Lin Xiao originally planned to confess to her.
"I haven't found a suitable opportunity." Lin Luo made up an excuse. Xu Yangyang asked with concern, "Are you having trouble paying for the medical expenses?"
Lin Luo shook her head. "No, I borrowed it from a friend. I'll pay it back later."
"Then let's go to the hospital to see uncle some other day." She nudged Tian Yajun's shoulder, and she nodded. Lin Qiao said to them, "Thank you."
"Okay, let's not worry about that for now. The long-awaited college life is finally about to begin," Xu Yangyang said excitedly with his arms open.
Lin Qiao curled her lips slightly. Xu Yangyang enthusiastically introduced the school to them and was familiar with the route like a tour guide.
They were admitted to different majors. Lin Luo studied biology, Xu Yangyang chose design, and Ruan Ye applied for physics.
After reporting, they ran into Ruan Ye on the way to the cafeteria. Xu Yangyang asked him cheerfully, "Ruan Ye, a lot of girls asked for your WeChat today, right?"
WeChat became popular in 2013, and many people gave up QQ Space and moved to Moments.
Ruan Ye glanced at her and said, "Compared to Brother Yao, not much."
Xu Yangyang really became alert, "Qi Yao is here, where is he now?"
"Beep-beep-" A horn sounded behind them. They turned around and saw Qi Yao driving a Porsche convertible, wearing a pair of sunglasses, and a beautiful and charming girl of their age sitting in the passenger seat.
Xu Yangyang glared at Qi Yao. He took off his sunglasses, avoided her gaze, and looked at Ruan Ye. "They've all left. Will you still come to the performance tonight?"
Only then did Lin Luo realize that there were only two of them left in Fu Xingchuan's Winter Time Band.
Ruan Ye said calmly: "No."
"Okay, I'll go first." Qi Yao glanced at Xu Yangyang, stepped on the accelerator and left.
"I want to beat up Zhu Changyu." Xu Yangyang said with a pout, hugging Lin Luo.
Zhu Changyu called her just in time. After Xu Yangyang answered the phone, she scolded him, "Auntie, who messed with you again? Am I your punching bag? You take your anger out on me all day long."
"I don't care, it's all your fault." Xu Yangyang was furious. Lin Luo asked Zhu Changyu, "Are you adapting well over there? Is the weather in Guangdong very hot?"
"Xu Yangyang, you should learn more from Lin Xiao." Zhu Changyu replied more gently, "I've adapted quite well. The weather is good, but I don't know anyone here yet. I don't have any friends at school."
"You deserve it..." Xu Yangyang interrupted, but Lin Xiao covered her mouth, so she stopped, "School has just started, you'll slowly make friends."
"Well, have you eaten?" Zhu Changyu asked.
"Not yet." Xu Yangyang's stomach growled. Tian Yajun and Tang Zhihua were still waiting for them to eat. Lin Qiao said to Zhu Changyu, "Everyone is hungry. Let's go eat first and talk later."
"good."
After the phone call ended, the four girls walked arm in arm and chattered on the campus, full of longing for college life.
But they didn't expect that college life would be different from what they imagined.
Freshman year passed by so quickly.
During this period, Lin Luo and Tong Yun had little contact. She wanted to know about Tong Yun's recent situation, so she asked Zhu Sui'an, but she learned from her that Fu Xingchuan and Tong Yun had broken up. Zhu Sui'an didn't know anything else.
Lin Luo did not ask Tong Yun about this on QQ. She thought that maybe Tong Yun had already started a new life abroad. In a new environment with a different social circle, it must be very busy to adapt, and he was also slowly changing in the process.
Maybe it was the same with Fu Xingchuan. He didn't return to Nan'an during the winter and summer vacations.
The group of seven only comes alive during festivals, and everyone sends holiday greetings as if they are completing a task.
The same goes for Lin Xiao.
Tang Heng has undergone several courses of treatment, but his physical condition is not very optimistic. The doctor recommends a bone marrow transplant as soon as possible.
If the matching of relatives fails, it is necessary to look for a suitable match in an external bone marrow bank and wait for a match.
In addition to studying and working every day, Lin Luo prays that she can find a bone marrow donor as soon as possible.
She lived under heavy pressure every day, and in front of Xu Yangyang and the others, she pretended to be fine. But in fact, she was not that strong, and she also wanted to find an opportunity to vent all her bad emotions.
She remembered that it was very cold that day. The temperature in Nan'an dropped below zero and everyone was looking forward to whether it would snow.
Lin Xiao felt a little cold, so she stayed in the dormitory for fear of catching a cold. Xu Yangyang pushed open the door and came in, shivering, sobbing, "Xiaoxiao."
She was with Qi Yao, who was a playboy. Xu Yangyang was always hurt in this relationship, and Lin Qi was used to it. "Did you have another fight with Qi Yao?"
"I want to break up with him, but I can't bear to. Am I useless?" Xu Yangyang frowned. Lin Luo had no expression on her face, but anyone with a discerning eye could see that she was unhappy.
"No." Lin Luo shook her head, feeling a splitting headache.
She was about to ask her roommate to bring back a box of cold medicine, but she first saw a notification in the WeChat group that the counselor had given the recommendation for the national scholarship to another girl in the class.
That girl's achievements in academic competitions were far inferior to Lin Luo's, but she was pretty, tactful, and very popular with the teachers.
Lin Luo chuckled softly. She had a terrible headache and walked slowly to the bed, wanting to go up and rest. Just as she climbed onto the bed, her phone vibrated, reminding her that someone had requested to add her as a friend.
Lin Luo clicked on the man's profile picture and found that it was a young man named Xiang Cheng whom she had known before but was not familiar with. She clicked "Agree" and wanted to see what he was going to do.
But after becoming friends, Xiang Cheng did not send her any messages.
She remembered that Xu Yangyang had mentioned that there was a function that could add WeChat friends through the address book. Lin Luo guessed that he might have done it for convenience and just happened to forget to delete her.
The phone screen turned off automatically, and Lin Luo closed her eyes and fell asleep.
It was three hours later when she woke up. It was dark. Perhaps Xu Yangyang didn't turn on the lights because he didn't want to disturb her rest.
Lin Luo opened her phone to check the time and noticed a message popping up on the screen. She unlocked it and found that it was a group of female classmates discussing that girl, praising her for being beautiful and excellent, and having an exquisite circle of friends.
Lin Luo had never posted on WeChat Moments, but out of curiosity, she clicked on it to see the girls’ updates. They were all photos of them eating, drinking, having fun, and showing off their beauty. Lin Luo’s eyes were sore. Why was she still so tired physically and mentally after sleeping for so long?
"Bang——" There was a loud noise in the dormitory, like the sound of a glass falling to the ground and breaking. At the same time, other friends' status was updated in the circle of friends, and it was posted by Xiang Cheng.
Lin Luo was about to get out of bed when she accidentally saw the photo. A familiar face made her stop. It was Fu Xingchuan.
A closer look revealed that the caption for Xiang Chengpei was "couple party". In the photo, Fu Xingchuan was wearing a black coat, his eyes deep beneath his long eyelashes, revealing an inviolable dignity. Next to him stood a fair-skinned and beautiful woman in a red V-neck long dress, looking very graceful.
They raised their glasses together, with Fu Xingchuan's glass deliberately lower than the woman's. The woman had a bright smile on her face.
Lin Luo's heart felt like it was cut by shards of glass.
Some people in the class group continued to discuss, [Who still wears no makeup these days?]
【Lin Xiao, she doesn't seem to wear makeup.】
She's such a busy person, how could she have the time? Oh my god! I've never seen anyone study so hard, but college is different from high school. It's not just about rote learning; now it's all about overall quality, and socializing is important too. Her fashion sense isn't great without makeup, either. No wonder the boys in our class are gossiping about her behind her back.
"Xiaoxiao, I'm sorry! I accidentally broke the cup. Did I wake you up?" Xu Yangyang's voice came from downstairs, and she turned on the light.
After a while, Xu Yangyang noticed something was wrong. "Are you crying? Stop crying! I'll clean this place up right away, and then I'll leave and stop bothering you."
"婋婋"
Lin Luo couldn't control herself and burst into tears. Her phone was still on, and the photo was on the screen.
Xu Yangyang continued to coax her downstairs. After a while, someone opened the door and came in. It was her roommate who came back. "What's wrong with her?"
"I don't know." Xu Yangyang said, "Maybe I woke him up."
"That shouldn't be the case! She has a good temper. I accidentally woke her up one night, but she wasn't angry." The roommate paused for a moment and said to Xu Yangyang, "I know. Lin Qiao must be crying because her scholarship was taken away by a girl in our class who's not as capable as her."
"What's the matter?" Xu Yangyang asked.
Her roommates told her everything, including what the girls in the group were saying. "Our sister is naturally beautiful and doesn't need makeup to be beautiful. Those nagging people are just bored. And your counselor is not fair at all. I'm going to complain to the principal..."
Lin Luo kept sobbing, and she felt even more sad when she thought of Tang Heng's illness.
After crying for a while, Xu Yangyang said softly, "Xiaoxiao, come down first and drink some water, or take your medicine first, so you don't catch a cold."
Lin Luo went downstairs, Xu Yangyang wiped her tears, and she drank the medicine obediently. Then Xu Yangyang helped her put on her clothes.
Lin Qi asked in a hoarse voice, "Where are we going?"
"I sold you." There were still tears on her face, and Xu Yangyang teased her.
Lin Luo didn't ask any more questions. Xu Yangyang would never sell her, so she let Xu Yangyang take her out.
Xu Yangyang brought her to the bar next to the clock before stopping. "At times like this, you should vent."
Lin Luo had never been here before. She followed Xu Yangyang closely, looking at the people dancing wildly and the bright lights and feasting inside in surprise.
"Waiter, give me a mojito and a Long Island iced tea." Xu Yangyang took Lin Luo to the bar and sat down. Lin Luo looked around, and Xu Yangyang told her, "I only found out a few days ago that this was opened specifically by Qi Yao to pick up women."
Lin Luo didn't expect her to say that. She looked at her with wide eyes. The wine was quickly mixed and served. Xu Yangyang clinked glasses with her and said, "We won't go home until we're drunk today."
"Okay." Lin Luo said this, but only dared to take a small sip.
Xu Yangyang drank heartily. She seemed a little hot, so she took off her coat, revealing a high-necked tight sweater underneath. Her face was red, and she let her hair down, making her look particularly bright and charming.
"Yangyang, drink less." Lin Luo reminded her, and Xu Yangyang clinked glasses with her again, "It's okay, I can drink quite well, you should drink less."
Xu Yangyang was attracted by the loud music nearby, "Xiaoxiao, let's go dance!"
Lin Luo shook her head and was forcibly pulled over by Xu Yangyang. A group of people were crowded together, twisting their bodies and jumping around. Lin Luo didn't like this atmosphere, but Xu Yangyang enjoyed it. She must be drunk.
"Yangyang, let's go drink over there." Lin Luo tugged at Xu Yangyang's clothes. A man who was also drunk walked over to them and took Xu Yangyang's hand. "Beautiful girl, don't go! Dance with me."
Lin Qiao slapped his hand away, and the man frowned, "The beautiful woman doesn't mind, why are you meddling in other people's business? Go away..."
He pushed Lin Luo, and she bit him directly. The man felt pain and pretended to hit her. Qi Yao came over at some point to block the slap for her.
He said unhappily, "Get lost."
"Who are you? Why should I get out?" The music stopped and the man's voice was particularly loud. Other guests also gathered around to watch the fun.
Qi Yao said calmly: "I am the boss here. If you don't leave, you will be kicked out."
Just then, two waiters noticed the commotion and ran over to carry the man away.
Qi Yao snatched the wine from Xu Yangyang's hand and raised his glass, "I'll pay for the drinks today, everyone have fun."
He drank it all in one gulp. The guests cheered. Lin Luo wiped his mouth and said, "I'm sorry to trouble you."
Qi Yao glanced at her and put his arm around Xu Yangyang's waist. She was so drunk that she couldn't even stand steadily. Qi Yao's face was obviously annoyed. "Xu Yangyang, you have become more capable."
"Qi Yao, you bastard, I don't want you." She started to act crazy while drunk.
Lin Luo covered her mouth and said, "Well, I'll take her back!"
"No need." Qi Yao looked at her, "Can you go back by yourself?"
"I could..." Lin Qi stared at him warily. He said nonchalantly, "Little girl, what are you looking at? I won't take advantage of anyone. Besides, I'm her boyfriend."
"I'm worried."
Xu Yangyang was making a fuss in his arms, so Qi Yao simply carried her on his shoulders. "Well, I'll use my friendship with Fu Xingchuan as a guarantee. You can trust him!"
"What does this have to do with him?" Lin Luo felt dizzy. She suddenly remembered that she had just taken medicine. Fortunately, she only took a small sip of wine.
"If you do anything bad, I won't forgive you tomorrow." Seeing Xu Yangyang holding Qi Yao's clothes tightly, Lin Luo waved his hand, signaling him to take Xu Yangyang away.
Before Qi Yao left, he pulled his lip and said, "Little girl."
Lin Luo staggered out of the bar. It was cold outside and the cold wind blew at her. She couldn't help but cry. She wrapped herself tightly and squatted on the ground crying.
The alcohol seemed to be taking effect, and Lin Luo became even more unconscious. She took out her cell phone and called Tang Zhihua to pick her up.
The call was connected, and the other party said softly, "Hello."
Lin Luo put the phone to her ear and said, "Zhihua, can you come pick me up?"
"Lin Qiao"
It was the voice she was most familiar with. Lin Luo focused all her attention on her ears. There was also a woman's laughter in the background.
"Sorry, I dialed the wrong number." She hung up quickly.
Zhong Live House was still pitch black from the outside. Lin Luo stood there in a daze, unable to come back to her senses for a long time.
What woke her up later was the sound of a beer bottle falling to the ground, shattering into pieces. Lin Luo slowly stood up. She remembered that Tang Zhihua had gone home today, and it was so late, so everyone else should be asleep.
No one will come to pick her up, so it’s better for her to go back by herself.
The winter of 2014 ultimately didn’t snow, but it was extremely cold, leaving a lasting impression on Lin.
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