Chapter 35
Mu Zhengxi was certain that Mu Shaoqing must have said something to Zeng Yuan. Although their marriage was in name only, they were still the original couple who had loved each other when they were young, so a certain tacit understanding still existed. Otherwise, Zeng Yuan would not have suddenly returned to China after staying in London.
At the start of the new semester, Mu Zhengxi became a spinning top being whipped. He wouldn't win until he was completely exhausted. The English debate competition and the campus charity sale filled his entire weekend and holiday. He couldn't skip it because he had spent most of his time training with the football team last semester, leaving his extracurricular activities too limited and not worth seeing.
But the most important thing is that Zeng Yuan suddenly became a good mother, coming home on time every day, and even strangely eating every dinner at home.
This need for companionship was what seven-year-old Mu Zhengxi required, but Zeng Yuan didn't provide it. Now that he's seventeen, what should have been a heartwarming mother-son painting has turned into a terrifying act of confinement and surveillance.
He was carrying a live rabbit, and Zeng Yuan, who was allergic to animal fur, was worried that he would find out.
These days are really tough.
Fortunately, Zeng Yuan wasn't the kind of mother who would suddenly open the door for a surprise inspection. She rarely even went to Mu Zhengxi's door, which gave him a lot of freedom at home.
Jiang Jiawei crunched on an apple on the other end of the phone. Her evening self-study ended at nine o'clock, and she usually got home around nine-thirty. Jiang Weichao would prepare some late-night snacks for her, sometimes fruit and sometimes cooked food. Mu Zhengxi was already used to hearing her eat.
As Jiang Jiawei listened to him talk about the campus charity sale, Xu Zizhao accidentally slipped an adult magazine into a comic book. Fortunately, it was spotted by the coordinator of their charity sale, who not only didn't confiscate it but also kindly told Xu Zizhao to hide it well.
Mu Zhengxi commented, "That blond guy is quite understanding."
"Haha, why do you call everyone 'Yellow Hair'?"
"It just sounds right." Mu Zhengxi twirled his pen.
"Hey, what's your English name?"
"Me? Aaron. A, A, R, O, N."
Jiang Jiawei silently repeated, "Why this English name?"
Mu Zhengxi thought for a moment, "I don't know, but I've had this English name since I can remember."
Who took it?
“It’s probably my dad,” Mu Zhengxi said. “But I always tell them to call me by my Chinese name, Zhengxi.” He then added with self-affirmation, “It sounds so much better than this foreign name, don’t you think?”
Mu Zhengxi forked a piece of kiwi and stuffed it into his mouth. When he took a bite, his teeth almost ached from the sourness, and his cheeks went numb.
Zhengxi.
Jiang Jiawei silently repeated his name, her lips curving into a smile. That was indeed the case.
She bit off the last piece of fruit, threw the pit into the trash can, and sighed sadly, "My homeroom teacher wants me to go to the city next week to participate in an English proficiency competition. With such a short time to prepare for the final exams, I'm definitely doomed."
Flipping through a thick stack of memorization materials, Jiang Jiawei truly envied gifted students like Mu Zhengxi and Jiang Jiayi. For them, learning was as easy as eating and drinking; extracurricular competitions were merely supplementary exercises. They could juggle multiple tasks with ease, excelling at everything they did. Unlike her, who was already exhausted just from studying.
Upon hearing this, Mu Zhengxi swallowed the kiwi whole, his voice unconsciously rising, "What do you mean 'finished'? What a load of crap!"
Mu Zhengxi acted like a doting father, patiently guiding and encouraging him, "How could someone as smart as you be doomed? You mustn't have such negative thoughts."
Jiang Jiawei pondered the word "smart" for a moment, then felt something was off. "I feel like you're making fun of me."
"Tsk, Jiang Jiawei, people should be sincere and trusting of each other. Have you forgotten what you said yourself?" Mu Zhengxi used her words to educate her, and said earnestly, "Besides, who said that being good at studying is a sign of intelligence? Not to mention that you are not doing badly in your studies now."
"Just think like you did when you were representing your partner in the long-distance race that day: relax, and you might just win."
The person with lowered eyes twirled the telephone cord between their fingers and remained silent for a long time.
"Just think of it as a trip to the city. It doesn't matter whether you win an award or not. It's a free trip, so why not take it?"
"Haha, that's what my dad said too."
"See?" Mu Zhengxi instructed, "Hey, remember to bring your camera with you."
What are you going to do with the camera?
Mu Zhengxi spoke confidently, "Show me what an English proficiency competition looks like. I've never seen one before, and besides, I've never been to your city."
"You're taking a plane to the city, aren't you?"
"That was just going to the airport, not anywhere else."
"Alright then, show me some pictures of your debate match too."
"Sure! What's the problem?"
Jiang Jiawei glanced at the time. "My brother is coming back soon. I need to take a shower first."
"good."
"Bye-Bye."
"Bye-Bye."
The evening breeze rustled the leaves outside the window.
A teenage boy's biggest concern is how long it will take to become an adult who can fully control his own life.
Today, Mu Zhengxi is also working hard to learn this.
"Sis, Dad asked if you want some milk."
After taking a shower, Jiang Jiawei dried her hair and returned to her room, where she heard Jiang Jiayi calling her.
"No, I don't want it."
"What?"
"I'm not drinking anymore."
"good."
Jiang Jiawei pulled out a chair in front of her desk and sat down. There was still some geography homework left to do. She opened her exercise book, and the first question was the most annoying one: calculating the subsolar point.
Jiang Jiawei covered her face, not wanting to face it. After a few seconds of blankness, she reached out and opened the drawer. Her fingers touched the matte nylon fabric surface. She took out the camera bag, carefully took out the camera, and thought carefully about how Mu Zhengxi had taught her to use it last time.
I took a picture of my mother on the desk.
Suddenly remembering the two rolls of film she had finished shooting on New Year's Day, she took them out from the side of her camera bag, held them in her damp hands, and after thinking for a moment, Jiang Jiawei got up and put the film into the pocket of her school uniform shirt and zipped it up.
Back at her desk, her mother looked at her with a gentle smile. Jiang Jiawei pursed her lips and gently shifted the photo frame.
The steam rising from the shower flushed the girl's face, her drooping eyelashes were damp, and the soft wings of a newly emerged butterfly were outstretched, ready to take flight.
The debate training has ended.
As darkness descended over the entire area, Mu Zhengxi picked up a down jacket from the closet and started putting it on as he walked. Yan Yuheng, who was still packing his things, called out to him, "Reincarnate, wait for me."
Xu Zizhao was already waiting at the school gate.
"Why are you the only one here? Where is Yan Yuheng?"
Mu Zhengxi gestured to the people behind him who were panting as they ran, then walked to the side of the road and flagged down a car. "You two go eat first, I'll be right back."
Xu Zizhao blinked blankly and said "Oh".
What did he say?
He told us to go to the restaurant first, and he would come later.
"There's definitely something fishy going on. Let's go and see."
Yan Yuheng pulled Xu Zizhao over and flagged down a car as well.
"Hey, hey, there's a car."
Chen Jingyu reached out and grabbed Jiang Jiawei, who had just stepped out of the road, cursing at the speeding car, "Don't you know this is a school? Driving so fast, are you sick?" She glanced at Jiang Jiawei and said seriously, "What are you doing? You're not paying attention while crossing the road. You'll be hit and killed."
Still shaken, Jiang Jiawei snapped out of her daze, "It suddenly turned around, I wasn't paying attention..."
Indeed, Chen Jingyu cursed again at the now-out-of-see-the-car driver, "Idiot driver." She patted Jiang Jiawei on the shoulder and said, "Watch your step, I'm leaving."
Jiang Jiawei: "Okay."
Jiang Jiawei looked left and right cautiously before crossing the road, but not towards home. In the alley, a brightly lit billboard read "Photography, Printing, ID Snapshots" in large yellow characters.
"Only one roll of your film has photos; the other roll is still new."
"What?!"
The camera shop owner handed the developed photos to the wide-eyed, disbelieving man. Mu Zhengxi opened the paper bag, took out all the photos, and looked them over. There really was only one roll. The first roll he used was the wrong one. This was the roll he used when teaching Jiang Jiawei how to change film.
Alright... I'll steal that scroll next time I return to Changqing.
This volume is mostly filled with group photos from New Year's Eve. Since Jiang Jiawei was the photographer, they are all photos of other people. There are only a few photos that he took later, showing Jiang Jiawei surrounded by thick smoke from the barbecue grill, which is also evidence that she burned the saury. There are also photos of her mischievously sprinkling a lot of chili powder on the skewers he ordered, only to be caught choking and tearing up...
The two heads that appeared on his left and right shoulders startled Mu Zhengxi so much that his heart stopped for a second, and he cursed.
"Are you two fucking crazy?!"
“My mom is fine.” Yan Yuheng quickly snatched the photos from his hand when he wasn’t looking. “What’s there to be guilty about? It’s just a few photos.”
"Who the hell is feeling guilty?"
Xu Zizhao pushed past Mu Zhengxi in the middle, "I want to see too!"
Seeing this, the shopkeeper smiled and took out another item that Mu Zhengxi had asked for: a Canon QL17 GIII. "Take a look," he said.
A dispute was quelled silently.
Xu Zizhao chuckled with satisfaction, "Hey, who took this picture? Not bad, buddy, I'm still pretty handsome."
Yan Yuheng glanced up and gestured to Mu Zhengxi, "His wife took the picture."
"I want this one, Zhengxi."
"This one is beautiful too! Great angle, hey Mu Zhengxi, your wife has a real talent for photography."
Mu Zhengxi glanced over, heard the boss's low laughter, and kicked Xu Zizhao.
"Don't shout."
Yan Yuheng raised his hand and waved it: "I'll take these few."
Xu Zizhao leaned over and glanced at Mu Zhengxi, who hadn't spoken to them for a while. "You're buying a camera?"
"Um."
"Why?? Don't you have a camera?"
After admiring the photos, Yan Yuheng came over and said, "Give them to Jiang Jiawei."
Xu Zizhao was puzzled. "He has more than one camera. Didn't he receive several digital cameras for his birthday last year?"
Yan Yuheng rolled his eyes at him, "Couple's items? You don't know anything about them, even though you've had so many relationships."
The person who realized what was happening laughed and cursed, then put his arm around Mu Zhengxi's shoulder, "You're really good at this, Brother Xi, you've been hiding your talent all along."
Mu Zhengxi shrugged and shoved the person away. "Get lost."
Yan Yuheng was even more curious, "Where did you get the money?"
Mu Zhengxi's allowance has been suspended for some time now, ever since Mu Shaoqing discovered that he was frequently going to Changqing.
Speaking of this, Mu Zhengxi has to thank Lu Qirui. During their tennis lesson, they played tennis together and learned that Lu Qirui had an uncle who was a stamp collecting fanatic. Mu Zhengxi was able to sell the limited edition stamps he had won in a painting competition in junior high school.
Lu Qirui also helped him get a job teaching his younger cousin to play soccer twice a week, and the price was quite high.
Xu Zizhao: "No wonder you've been running so fast after school on Fridays lately."
Yan Yuheng patted Mu Zhengxi on the shoulder, "You've grown up, and Dad is very proud of you."
Mu Zhengxi ignored them and put the camera away.
Boss: "Is everything alright?"
"Um."
He took out his wallet from his down jacket pocket and paid the balance.
Xu Zizhao started shouting, "Hurry up, I'm starving!"
Mu Zhengxi snatched back the photos that the two had taken without his consent, put them in a paper bag, quickly stuffed them into the inner pocket of his down jacket, zipped it up, wrapped it tightly, and was as wary as a lioness protecting her cubs.
Xu Zizhao: "Hey! Wait, why are you collecting my photos?"
"Who wants to collect your photos? You're crazy." Mu Zhengxi gave Xu Zizhao a look that said, "Don't be so narcissistic," and declared righteously, "This photo was taken by Jiang Jiawei."
Yan Yuheng was speechless. "You have the negatives, why don't you just develop another copy? Or you can give them to me and I'll develop one myself."
The person who lifted the curtain turned around and uttered three words.
"I refuse."
Xu Zizhao: "..."
Yan Yuheng: "..."
Xu Zizhao: "Look at him, he has no humanity when it comes to women."
Yan Yuheng: "You have the nerve to say that? Who was it that left me stranded at the stadium all night last time?"
"But weren't you one of them! That time it rained, didn't you take my umbrella and give it to Nie Yuting?"
"Wouldn't it be the same if we shared an umbrella? Would you get wet?"
"The problem is, do you even have an umbrella? Your raincoat is torn in half!"
"So what! What's wrong with the raincoat! I shared half with you!"
...
They left the mall making a ruckus.
Standing at the shop entrance, Jiang Jiawei loosened the scarf around her neck; she had been a bit stuffy and sweaty in the photo studio. Under the streetlights, she took out the newly developed photo again.
I just gave it a quick, cursory look.
There was only one roll of photographs; the other roll was taken by Mu Zhengxi, leaving only the first roll.
It looks like this camera hasn't been used for a while. The first photo Mu Zhengxi took of her that night is from when he was in his first year of high school. Whenever his face is in the photo, he looks impatient, as if he's very unhappy about losing the game. In group photos, you don't need to recognize him; just look at whether he's wearing a baseball cap or not, and the one with the most arrogant posture is him.
Compared to now, fifteen-year-old Mu Zhengxi still had quite a bit of baby fat on his face, and his skin was as white and tender as a juicy peach in spring. In a close-up profile shot, you could even see fine downy hairs.
He'd stuff his cheeks like a hoarding squirrel while eating in the cafeteria, and when he realized he'd been photographed, he'd flip the other person the middle finger; during the choir competition, he stood one seat to the right of the center in the last row—not the tallest in the class, but probably in the top five; he'd wear a headband when playing soccer, and only when someone secretly took a picture would he smile; there were also photos of him sleeping soundly on his desk, drooling, and then waking up and getting angry when he realized he'd been photographed; when receiving an award, he'd obediently tie his tie, looking completely serious…
The summer school uniform was a white shirt as soft as a cloud; in spring and autumn, it was a navy blue sweater; sometimes, instead of a sweater, a burgundy suit jacket was worn; and in winter, it was a black overcoat. The school badge was printed in the upper left corner, near the heart.
Some of the photos were probably taken by the photographer himself: bicycle wheels, a messy paint palette, a studio piled with plaster, baseball caps of various colors, new soccer shoes... and a profile of an old lady with glasses, a full head of silver hair, sitting elegantly on a sofa.
Jiang Jiawei guessed that this must be Ms. Jiang Wenqing.
Weather forecasts can be inaccurate sometimes.
The first snow of the winter has arrived in Hanyang.
Mu Zhengxi reached out and caught a snowflake.
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