22 We have not yet discovered the meaning of life (2)
The scenery passing by the train window gradually became familiar, and every vibration of the rails and tires felt like a hammering in my chest. The wanderer, staring at the gradually denser lights, unconsciously clenched her hands in her lap—a small nervous movement she often made, even unconsciously.
The faces reflected in the window unexpectedly overlapped with the faces of her parents in her memory. She imagined hearing the creaking of an old wooden door as the wheels of her suitcase rolled across the floor. A few children ran by playfully, and the wind they stirred seemed to carry the sweet aroma of steamed cakes from the stove last year.
The phone screen lit up and went off, and it seemed like a long time had passed. But when the screen lit up again, the numbers didn't change.
No one knew she was back, but someone would be waiting for her—homesickness turned out to be tangible, like a snag in a sweater, delicately pricking her skin with the rhythm of her heartbeat. When the station announcement came on, Li Yaya suddenly found herself silently counting down in the tune of her hometown. Those pronunciations, which had seemed rustic in her childhood, now evoked the sweet aftertaste of aged candied fruit on her tongue.
After leaving the train station and taking another bus, Li Yaya arrived home in about an hour.
The moment her feet touched the ground, the autumn wind blew across Li Yaya's cheeks, bringing with it a unique scent of her hometown.
Apart from some new shops, nothing much has changed at a glance.
Li Yaya pulled the suitcase in one hand and carried bags of things in the other hand as she walked towards the hotel that had been booked in advance.
After putting her things away and taking a short rest, Li Yaya took the things she had prepared for her grandmother and went to the nursing home. However, she was told that her grandmother had been taken home by her daughter to celebrate the holiday.
Maybe she was unfortunate, having lost her husband when she was young and her son when she was old, and ended up in a nursing home. But she was also lucky, as her daughter would take her home during every holiday and visit her whenever she had free time.
Yes, sending grandma to a nursing home was a helpless move, but how could my aunt not miss her mother?
Li Yaya returned to the hotel again, took the things for her aunt, changed direction and started again.
Standing outside the door, Li Yaya felt a tinge of nervousness. She could faintly hear the bustling sounds of people inside. It seemed like her aunt's cousin was also home, bustling with the preparations for dinner.
She knocked on the door now - wouldn't that be a bit abrupt?
As he was hesitating, the door opened. The moment he saw Li Yaya, his cousin showed a surprised expression and shouted towards the door: "Mom, grandma, mom, Yaya is back. Mom——"
When he came over after hearing the sound, he saw Li Yaya standing at the door. He was surprised, happy, happy, and sad. For a moment, a mixture of emotions surged in his heart.
"Why are you standing there? Come on in." It was my aunt who reacted first, ending the awkward situation of a group of people standing at the door. "You kid, you didn't even tell me you were coming back. I asked your cousin to pick you up. You must be tired from the journey. Take a break. It's almost time for dinner."
Grandma's legs and feet were not as agile as before. She kept sitting on the sofa and calling Yaya's name.
Putting down what she was holding, Li Yaya went to her grandmother, who had become older.
She sat on the sofa, like a wind-dried reed, her whole body hunched over, leaning against the cushions. The light outlined her thin figure, and her silver hair floated in the light.
She narrowed her eyes and her lips trembled slightly, as if to confirm whether the figure in front of her was real or just an illusion created by her longing.
"Is it...Yaya?" Her voice was very soft, as if it came from far away, with uncertain temptation and cautious joy.
The moment she touched her body, she smiled. Her wrinkles rippled like water, and tears glistened in the light. She opened her arms and gently pulled Yaya into her embrace—her embrace was much smaller than she remembered, but still warm, with a faint scent of camphor and old-fashioned vanishing cream.
"It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back..." She murmured, her voice so low that it was almost inaudible, as if she was talking to Li Yaya, but also as if she was talking to herself.
My aunt and uncle were busy in the kitchen. My aunt wanted to add a few more dishes and asked her son to go out and buy some food.
After grandma calmed down, Li Yaya showed her the gifts she brought back.
Grandma complained about her spending money recklessly, but the joyful expression on her face betrayed her.
A long-awaited reunion, everyone is having a great time at the dinner table.
There were some people and things that everyone tacitly avoided talking about. My uncle was a quiet man, not very good at saying those polite things, and he just quietly told Li Yaya to eat more.
My aunt poured a glass of wine for everyone, even grandma.
Li Yaya has the shadow of Lee Kin-yan in her. On the one hand, she is still brooding over Lee Kin-yan's death. On the other hand, she is afraid that her grandmother will be hurt by the sight of her.
But blood ties are the most wonderful thing in this world. There will always be someone who cares about you, misses you, worries about you, and looks forward to your return home.
After dinner, Li Yaya chatted with her grandmother for a while. It was getting late, so she wanted to go back to the hotel.
Auntie really wanted Li Yaya to stay, but there were only two rooms at home. Grandma wasn't going back to the nursing home tonight, and my cousin wasn't leaving for the next few days. Originally, Auntie and Grandma slept in one room, and my cousin and uncle slept in another.
Although, my cousin said he could sleep on the sofa, so why not let Yaya sleep with grandma?
Li Yaya smiled and refused. "I've already spent the money and can't get it back. I'll come early tomorrow morning. I still have to stay at home for several days."
That's when I gave up.
Aunt asked her cousin to take Yaya back to the hotel and would not let Li Yaya refuse.
The two of them strolled slowly towards the hotel.
Li Yaya was not very familiar with her cousin. They just lived together at her grandmother's house for a period of time when they were young, and they could still play together at that time. Later, her cousin failed to get into university, so he just went to a junior college and now has a pretty good job in another place.
He hadn't been home for a long time. Perhaps it was because he was busy with work, or perhaps it was because his aunt started to urge him to get married, but it had been a long time since he had been home. The last time they met was at Li Jianren's funeral.
"Yaya, these past two years must have been very hard."
It seems that people of the same age can understand each other more easily.
Li Yaya smiled knowingly, "It's not that bad. It was a bit hard at the beginning, but now I'm used to it, it's fine."
Habit - habit is really a scary word.
She was used to it, used to the daily fatigue, used to working two jobs, used to the irregular life with reversed day and night, used to having no home...but she was not used to Li Jianren's absence.
It wasn't too late, but there were few people on the streets.
Li Yaya and Biao Biao strolled along the dim street lights, gradually becoming familiar with each other, chatting and laughing, and talking about their experiences.
But this world is really small, and we will meet again if we meet once.
Li Yaya still didn't care.
Lin Jing, who was in the distance, took one look at Li Yaya. He also took one look at the man beside her—another unfamiliar face. Li Yaya really was—did she always have a man with her wherever she went?
Then why can anyone do it but him?
The interests between people are inextricably linked.
Lin Jing's research project is about the implementation and subsequent development of poverty alleviation work in Huanshan County. When Lin Jing received this project, he knew that Shao Lan's hand would be indispensable.
For this kind of subject, he will get the most comprehensive information and won't even have to do anything himself, as everything will be prepared by someone else.
Shao Lan still felt as always that Lin Jing was a "waste" who could do nothing on his own.
Lin Jing had been in Huanshan for almost a week. He had chosen this time deliberately to avoid the Mid-Autumn Festival. He didn't want to go home. Lin Yuanshen wouldn't go home either. Lin Jing had seen him only a few times in the past few years. He didn't want to see either Lin Yuanshen or Shao Lan.
At night, he always went out for a stroll, walking along the road he and Li Yaya had walked together, pretending to have gone back in time.
The two of them had WeChat, but they never contacted each other since that phone call.
Li Yaya simply didn't want to do it, and Lin Jing was constrained by his ridiculous self-esteem and couldn't find a suitable excuse.
But I didn't expect to see her in Huanshan.
When did she come back? What did she do? Is she leaving again? And who was that man?
Lin Jing followed them uncontrollably. He wanted to see where these two people were going.
But he didn't expect that two people would stop at the door of the hotel. He clenched his fists and wanted to go forward.
Fortunately, Li Yaya was standing at the door saying goodbye to the other party. After seeing the other party turn around and leave, she went into the hotel alone.
Lin Jing's heart, which was about to explode, gradually calmed down.
He wanted to call Li Yaya and ask her to come out so that he could see her.
However, before Lin Jing could dial the number, he saw Li Yaya stealthily sticking her head out of the hotel door and looking around. When she saw that there was no one around, she came out again.
Lin Jing quickly put away his phone and hid in the dark. After Li Yaya walked a short distance, he followed her.
It’s almost 11 o’clock. Where is Li Yaya going?
Perhaps because she'd had a few drinks, Li Yaya wasn't sleepy. She wanted to go out for a stroll and see the place where she grew up. She'd told her cousin she'd be worried about him following her, so she had to be a little cunning and let him go before she left.
The road leading out of the hotel was downhill. Li Yaya walked along the road, stopping occasionally. She stopped at a familiar spot and took out her phone to take a few photos. Lin Jing followed Li Yaya like this.
After walking for about 20 minutes, Li Yaya arrived at the vicinity of the school.
That alley was where she and Lin Jing first met, though not for the first time. She stood there quietly, motionless, not knowing what she was thinking.
The autumn wind blew and Li Yaya shivered.
Finally there was action.
He turned around suddenly and bumped into Lin Jing, who was behind him and had no time to hide.
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