The road is long, take it slow.
I woke up early on Saturday morning, turned over and reached for my phone. The screen was lit, and it was a message from Zhao Yinfa. It was three in the morning: "I couldn't sleep, so I walked around your house twice."
I stared at the words for half a second, then called: "You're still awake in the middle of the night, do you think you're on patrol?"
"I'm worried I'll get up late this morning," he replied quickly, attaching a photo—the streetlights at the entrance of the community were still on, with a light snow falling outside. "It's snowing, remember to dress warmly."
I lifted the quilt and ran to the window, and sure enough, I saw a layer of white on the roof of the car downstairs, and fine snow was still falling.
When I turned around to look through the wardrobe, I heard my mother shouting in the living room: "Is Xiaoxi awake? Come down and help me pick some vegetables!"
When I went downstairs, my dad was sitting on the sofa setting up the chessboard. He saw me and waved, "Come on, play a couple of games with me. I'll show Xiao Zhao how good you are later."
"Dad, this is called Tian Ji's horse racing. You're setting a trap first?" I leaned over to look at the chessboard. Just as he placed his black piece, my mother poked her head out of the kitchen and said, "Don't teach the child to play tricks. Wash the strawberries quickly. The box that Xiao Zhao sent yesterday looks fresh."
I had just poured the strawberries into the basin when the doorbell rang. My dad ran faster than me, running to open the door in his slippers, muttering, "It must be Xiao Zhao."
When the door opened, Zhao Yin was standing at the door, wearing a dark gray cashmere coat and holding a paper bag in his hand.
Snow fell on his shoulders, his hair was stained with white, and he smiled when he saw my dad: "Hello, uncle and aunt."
"Come in, come in, it's cold outside." My mother pulled him into the house. "What else are you bringing? Didn't you say you don't need it?"
"I bought a new chess set for uncle. I heard he likes sandalwood ones." Zhao Yin handed the paper bag over. My dad's eyes lit up when he took it and opened it on the spot: "Hey, this pattern, it's real stuff! Xiao Zhao knows his stuff."
"I learned a little bit from a friend before." Zhao Yin took off his coat and handed it to me. "Why are you wearing such thin clothes?"
"It's not cold in the room." I hung his coat on the hanger and found that the sweater he was wearing underneath was off-white, a bit similar to the light gray one I was wearing.
My mom was watching from the side and suddenly laughed out loud: "It's like you two agreed on these clothes."
My face flushed and I turned to hide in the kitchen, but Zhao Yin grabbed my wrist and said, "Auntie asked you to wash the strawberries."
"Got it." I broke free from his hand and heard my dad shouting from the living room, "Come here, Xiao Zhao, try this new chess piece!"
When I went out with the strawberries, the two of them had already sat down in front of the chessboard.
My dad played black and Zhao Yin played white. The black pieces moved quickly and aggressively, while the white pieces moved slowly.
My mother came over to me and said, "Look at Xiao Zhao. His moves are more stable than others. You can tell he's reliable."
"Mom, I'm playing chess." I put the strawberry plate on the coffee table. Zhao Yin reached out and took one, putting it to my mouth: "Want to try it?"
I subconsciously opened my mouth to bite it, only to realize that my parents were looking at us.
Zhao Yin withdrew his hand as if nothing had happened, took one himself, and chewed it slowly: "Uncle is a great chess player, I need to think about it carefully."
"Don't flatter me, just play it as you want." My dad's black piece landed and took a corner. "It's no problem for you to play three pieces."
"That won't do. We have to fight fairly." Zhao Yin placed the white piece down, blocking the black piece's path. My dad exclaimed, "Huh?" and re-examined the chessboard.
I sat beside them and watched them play chess. Zhao Yin's fingers would tap the board lightly whenever he made a move. Suddenly, my mother touched my arm and said, "Go get the ribs out. It's almost time to stew them."
The aroma of braised pork ribs wafted through the kitchen. I had just brought the casserole to the stove when Zhao Yin came in.
"My uncle told me to take a break, saying he was worried I'd get too anxious after losing." He leaned against the door frame and smiled. "Where's my aunt?"
"I'm peeling garlic in the living room." I stirred the ribs in the casserole. "What did you say to my dad? He was laughing so loudly just now."
"They say you drank beer secretly as a kid, got drunk and hugged a telephone pole, shouting you wanted to be an astronaut."
Zhao Yin came over, put his arms around my waist from behind, and rested his chin on my shoulder. "Auntie said that you've loved bragging since you were a child."
"Who's bragging?" I struggled, but couldn't get free. "Let me go quickly, my parents will misunderstand if they see me."
"What misunderstanding? Misunderstanding that we are a couple?"
I was about to retort when I heard my mother calling "Xiao Zhao" from the living room. Zhao Yin quickly let go of my hand, turned around and leaned against the cupboard, pretending to look at the seasoning bottle.
My mom walked in and asked, "Xiao Zhao, can you cook? Want to show off your skills?"
"I know a little, but I'm afraid it won't suit Auntie's taste." Zhao Yin smiled. "Wenxi cooks pretty well. The noodles he cooked at the B&B last time were better than the ones in the restaurant, I think."
"He can only cook noodles." My mother smiled and took the spatula from my hand. "You guys can go out. You don't need to take care of this. Xiao Zhao, go continue playing chess with your uncle."
When we returned to the living room, the situation on the chessboard had changed.
My dad's black pieces were mostly surrounded by white pieces. He was scratching his head anxiously. When he saw Zhao Yin, he glared at him and asked, "Did you study secretly just now?"
"Uncle, thanks for letting me." Zhao Yin sat down and gently placed the white piece in the center of the chessboard. "Uncle, you didn't expect this move, did you?"
"Hey, you kid." My dad patted his thigh and laughed. "Okay, you're quite good. You should have a couple of extra drinks at noon."
"Dad, don't you say you don't drink?" I just finished speaking when my mother glared at me: "What's wrong with making your dad happy? Xiao Zhao, can you drink?"
"I can drink a little." Zhao Yin glanced at me, "But Wenxi won't let me drink too much."
"Who's not letting me go?" I almost jumped up. My dad laughed beside me, "Nothing's happened yet, and you're already interfering?"
At lunch, when the braised spareribs were served, my mother specially picked up a piece with the crispy bones for Zhao Yin and said, "Try Auntie's cooking. How is it compared to the ones in other restaurants?"
"It tastes better than the restaurant." Zhao Yin took a bite. "It tastes like home."
"Then eat more." My mother smiled from ear to ear and gave me another piece. "Xiaoxi, have some too. Isn't this your favorite?"
My dad and Zhao Yin were drinking and chatting about the past. My dad was talking about how, as a kid, I'd always take my toy cars apart and never put them back together. Zhao Yin was talking about how, when he was practicing piano, the teacher made him stand in the corner as punishment, but he stubbornly insisted he was doing nothing wrong. As I listened to their conversation, this scene suddenly felt very familiar, like something I'd seen in a dream long ago...
Zhao Yin's phone rang. He glanced at the screen and said to us, "Sister, answer the phone."
He went to the balcony to answer it, but I still heard a few words.
"...having dinner with Wenxi's family...well, uncle and aunt are very nice...what? You want to come? Don't come...I told you not to make trouble..."
When he hung up the phone and came in, my mom asked, "Is that your sister? I saw her on video last time. She looked like a pretty girl."
"She's just too cheerful and loves to join in the fun." Zhao Yin sat down and refilled my dad's glass. "She said she wanted to come visit, but I turned her down."
"Let her come, it will be more lively with more people." My mother refused, "Next time, let Xiao Zhao bring you home to play."
"Next time, this time it was too sudden." Zhao Yin smiled and picked up a piece of sweet and sour fish for me. "Eat more of what you like."
I thought he was just doing it casually, but now I know that some people's goodness is hidden in places you can't see.
After dinner, my dad pulled Zhao Yin to continue playing chess, and my mom asked me to go and see Zhao Yin off with his coat.
I walked to the balcony with my coat, and Zhao Yin followed me.
"Thank you for what I did." I handed him the coat. "My mom always worries about me."
"I like it when Auntie worries about you." He took the coat and put it on his arm. "Your house is very warm."
"Come more often when it's warmer." As soon as I said that, I regretted it and quickly turned around to leave, but he held me back.
He took out a small box from his pocket and opened it. Inside was a thin chain with a small moon hanging on it.
"Last time on the island, I saw you staring at the moon on the beach for a long time." He took out the necklace, "This is for you."
"I don't want it." I took a step back. "It's too expensive."
"It's not expensive, just a little thing." He walked up to me and put the necklace around my neck without saying a word.
"It's beautiful." He looked down at me, "even prettier than the moon."
The balcony door was pushed open, and my mother poked her head out: "What are you two talking about here? Xiao Zhao, it's time to go. Don't you have things to do this afternoon?"
"I understand, Auntie." Zhao Yin retracted her hand and helped me put the necklace into my sweater. "Hide it well, don't let others see it."
My dad walked Zhao Yin to the door, still talking about playing chess: "Next time we come, I will definitely beat you."
"I'll be with you anytime." Zhao Yin smiled and nodded, then turned to look at me. "I'm leaving now."
"Yeah." I stood at the door and watched him walk into the stairs. The moment the door closed, he was still waving at me.
Back in the house, my mother suddenly came over and stared at my neck: "What did Xiao Zhao put on you just now? I saw it, it's silver."
"Nothing much, just an ordinary necklace."
I quickly pulled up my collar, but my mother laughed: "Is it necessary to hide an ordinary necklace? Xiaoxi, tell me the truth, you and Xiaozhao..."
"Mom!" I interrupted her, "We really are friends."
"Okay, okay, friends." My mother smiled even more mysteriously. "Friends will remember that you like sweet and sour fish? Friends will send you strawberries from far away? Friends will..."
"Mom!" My face flushed, and I turned and ran upstairs. I heard my dad yelling from behind, "Let the child figure it out on his own. Don't push too hard!"
Back in the room, I took out the necklace from my neck and took out my phone. I found a WeChat message from Zhao Yin: "Do you like the necklace?"
"Average." I replied with a proud expression.
"Then I'll buy you a sun one next time." He replied quickly, "The moon and the sun are perfect."
I stared at the screen and laughed out loud. The snow outside the window had stopped at some point. I opened my second account and saw the latest comment was from a fan asking, "What's good to eat on Saturday? Are the strawberries sweet?"
I edited it to say: "The strawberries are sweet, the pork ribs are fragrant, and... the moon is beautiful."
Putting down my phone, I leaned against the window and thought of what Zhao Yin had just said on the balcony. He said that my house was very warm. In fact, I didn’t tell him that it was not because the house was warm, but because he was there that I felt even the air was warm.
I heard my father's voice downstairs. He was calling me to go downstairs to play chess again.
I touched the necklace around my neck and suddenly felt that some things didn't need to be explained in a hurry. It was fine as it is now.
After Zhao Yin left, my father arranged the chessboard more neatly, and the chess pieces made a crackling sound when they fell.
My mother was washing dishes in the kitchen, humming a tune.
"What are you standing there for?" My dad tapped the chessboard. "Wasn't Xiao Zhao quite enthusiastic about playing chess just now? Come, finish this game with me."
I sat down opposite him, holding the white piece and not moving for a long time.
The situation on the chessboard remained the same as before Zhao Yin left. The white pieces had surrounded the black pieces, almost crippled, as if intentionally leaving a way out for the opponent.
"Your chess style is far different from Xiao Zhao's." My dad placed a black piece. "He looks slow, but he's actually calculating every move. What about you? You're just rushing forward."
"This is called moving forward courageously." I slapped the white piece onto the chessboard, just blocking the gap between the black piece and the chess piece.
My dad said, "Yo!" and looked at me with raised eyebrows: "Who did you learn this stubbornness from?"
"With you." I didn't look up.
My phone vibrated in my pocket. It was a message from Sister Ling: "The evening gown has been delivered to the company. Are you free to try it on tomorrow?"
I replied "OK" and just as I put my phone down, it vibrated again. It was Zhao Yin: "What are you doing at home?"
"I played chess with my dad and lost miserably."
"Normal," he replied quickly, with a smirk on his face. "Uncle's chess moves are wild. I was just lucky."
"Just go ahead and brag." I smiled at the screen. My dad leaned over to look: "Xiao Zhao?"
"Um."
"Tell him to come earlier next time, and I'll fight him for three hundred rounds." My dad said excitedly. My mom poked her head out from the kitchen and said, "Still going? Be careful of a sore back tomorrow."
I sent this message to Zhao Yin, and he replied with a string of ellipses, adding: "Bring a waist brace next time."
The next day, when I went to the company to try on the dress, Sister Ling was already waiting for me in the office. She smiled when she saw me and said, "Auntie sent me a message last night saying that Xiao Zhao performed well and asked me to take good care of you two."
"My mom is just worrying about nothing." I took the dress bag. It was made of velvet and was heavy.
"I'm not worrying about nothing." Sister Ling followed me into the fitting room. "She specifically told me that Xiao Zhao has a bad stomach and asked me to remind you not to let him eat anything too spicy."
I paused and put the dress on.
Black velvet wrapped around her skin, the neckline cut lower than usual, and the person in the mirror looked a little strange.
Sister Ling was amazed. "Clothes really make the man. This dress is from the same collection as Zhao Yin's. The brand specially arranged it, saying it's themed around 'Night Sky and Stars.'"
"It's just a piece of clothing." I tugged at my collar, feeling uncomfortable.
"Don't be so stubborn." Sister Ling took out her phone. "Zhao Yin came to try it on yesterday. He was wearing that silver one, and standing next to you, he was absolutely stunning."
I didn't respond and just stared at the mirror.
"Oh, right," Sister Ling suddenly said, "The script for 'A Thousand Years of Letters' is almost finished, and the director wants you two to go read it next week."
"So soon?"
"The director is anxious to start filming, and he said your schedules just happen to overlap." Sister Ling flipped through the schedule. "Next Wednesday afternoon, at the crew base, it'll just be you two, the director, and the screenwriter."
After trying on the dress, I ran into Zhao Yin's assistant, Xiao Zhou. He was holding a box and smiled when he saw me: "Teacher Wenxi, Brother Yin asked me to give this to you."
The box was dark blue. When it was opened, there was a silver tie inside that matched the collar of the dress perfectly.
"Brother Yin said you might need this." Xiao Zhou scratched his head. "When he tried on the dress yesterday, he asked the brand to give him an extra one."
"Thank him for me." I put the tie in my bag. Xiao Zhou said, "Brother Yin also said that he would come to pick you up on the day of the script reading."
"No need, I can go there by myself."
"Brother Yin said he was on his way." Xiao Zhou smiled mysteriously, "He specifically looked up your address."
The pattern on this tie is very fine, like the faint star trails in the night sky. I suddenly remembered the necklace Zhao Yin gave me. Does the moon pendant also have such patterns?
When I got home, I hung my dress in the closet and placed my tie next to it.
I opened the second account and saw that the latest comment was a screenshot taken by a fan. It was the surveillance footage downstairs of my house on Saturday - Zhao Yin was standing in the snow, looking up at my window for a long time, with a thick layer of snow on his shoulders.
The comment section was in an uproar.
[Ahhh what kind of idol drama plot is this! What is Yin Ge waiting for? ]
[He must be waiting for Wenxi! Didn't you see he was looking at the third-floor window?]
[I knew something was up between them! Those eyes can't lie!]
I stared at the picture for a long time, and finally edited a line: "The roads are slippery in the snow, drive slowly." I didn't add any emoticons and clicked send.
As soon as I put down my phone, Zhao Yin called.
"Did you see what my assistant gave you?"
"Yeah, the tie looks nice."
"Tried?"
"Not yet." I walked to the closet, opened the door and looked at the tie. "The dress would also be suitable."
"That's good." He paused, "I'll pick you up at ten o'clock on the day of the reading."
"I told you not to..."
"I've already made an appointment with your agent to take you to eat wontons at that restaurant. You said you wanted to eat there again last time."
“You can’t eat the shrimp stuffed ones.”
"I can eat fresh meat." He smiled. "Besides, just watching you eat is enough."
After hanging up the phone, I looked at the suits and ties in my closet. Black and silver, the night sky and the stars, the name given by the brand is quite appropriate, and suddenly I remembered what Zhao Yin said, "The moon matches the sun."
I had just stuffed the script into my bag when Zhao Yin's car pulled up downstairs that morning. He was wearing a black windbreaker and smiled when he saw the script in my hand: "You're starting to read it so early?"
"Just flipping through it." I opened the car door.
"The director said a lot of things were changed this time." He started the car, "especially the scene where Youming and Xu Di first met."
"How did you change it?"
"It's a secret." He raised an eyebrow. "You'll know when you get there."
When the car arrived at the wonton shop, the owner greeted them warmly: "Xiao Zhao, Xiao Wen, is it the same as always?"
"Well, two bowls of wontons, one bowl with shrimp, and one bowl with fresh meat. Put more vinegar in the shrimp."
Zhao Yin listed the dishes with familiarity. I looked at him and suddenly remembered what Sister Ling said: he even remembered that I should put more vinegar in the wontons.
I scooped a spoonful of soup and saw Zhao Yin picking out all the coriander in his bowl.
"Don't you dislike coriander?" I teased him on purpose.
"I don't like it." He didn't even look up. "But the cilantro here is chopped so finely that it doesn't bother me."
I laughed out loud, and he looked up at me: "What are you laughing at?"
"Laughing at you being picky about food."
"It's better than some people who add three spoonfuls of vinegar to their wontons." He moved the vinegar bottle in my bowl to the side. "It'll make you sour to death."
When we arrived at the production base, the director was already waiting for us in the conference room. The screenwriter, a young woman wearing glasses, blushed when she saw us and said, "Brother Yin, Teacher Wenxi, we've changed the ending of the script. Do you like it?"
The script was spread out on the table, and Zhao Yin and I leaned over to take a look. The first meeting between Xu Di and You Ming was changed to a rainy day. Xu Di was hiding from the rain in a mountain stream, and his flute got wet. You Ming came down from the clouds and used his magical powers to dry the flute.
"This is a good change." Zhao Yin pointed at the script, "It feels better than the original Sunny Day."
"I think so too." I flipped to the back. "What's the ending? Did Youming give up his immortal status?"
The screenwriter nodded, his eyes twinkling. "He eventually became a mortal. He and Xu Di built a small wooden house by the mountain stream, and I listened to him play the flute every day."
"It's quite vulgar." Zhao Yin said this, but the corners of his mouth curled up.
"Only vulgarity is real." The director took a sip of tea. "How do you two think we should play this scene?"
We discussed the script for the whole morning.
At noon, I was eating in the crew cafeteria and ran into a few staff members. When they saw us, they smiled and said, "Brother Yin, Teacher Wenxi, are you two trying to build your relationship in advance?"
"Working." Zhao Yin picked up a piece of pork ribs expressionlessly, but quietly picked the green peppers in my bowl and put them on his own plate.
I looked at the pile of green peppers on his plate and remembered that he did the same thing at my house on Saturday, taking away all the ones I didn't like. My mother said at the time, "Xiao Zhao is really caring."
After dinner, Zhao Yin went to answer the phone, and I sat at my desk flipping through the script. The screenwriter girl came over and whispered, "Teacher Wenxi, are you and Brother Yin..."
"No." I quickly interrupted her, "We are just friends."
“But the way Brother Yin looks at you…” Before she could finish, Zhao Yin came back with two bottles of water in his hand and handed me one: “Let’s go, I have something to do this afternoon.”
On the way back, the car drove very slowly.
Zhao Yin suddenly asked, "What did the screenwriter say to you just now?"
"Nothing, just asking about the script."
"Did she ask if we were together?" He turned to look at me.
I didn't say anything, which was considered as tacit agreement. He smiled and didn't ask any more questions, but just turned up the music a little.
When he was almost downstairs of my house, he suddenly said, "I'll pick you up at 7 o'clock on the day of the dinner."
"Um."
"Wear those black leather shoes that go with your dress." He seemed to suddenly remember something, "The pair on the far left of your shoe cabinet."
I was stunned for a moment. How did he know I had those shoes? Last time he sent me home, he never even entered my house.
"How do you know..."
"I saw you wearing it last time when you were taking out the trash downstairs of your house." He said naturally, "It looks pretty good."
This person seems to have secretly remembered everything about me in his heart, silently, yet everywhere.
The car stopped downstairs. I unbuckled my seatbelt and he suddenly grabbed my wrist and said, "There's a kissing scene in the script."
"Yeah, I see."
"When the time comes..." He paused, "Don't laugh."
"Who would laugh?" I broke free from his hand and pushed open the car door. "Who forgot the lyrics last time?"
He laughed out loud in the car. I turned around and glared at him. He waved at me and said, "See you at the dinner."
Perhaps some letters can be received without being written out, just like the good things he hides in the details, which I can catch without having to say them out loud.
Picking up the phone and opening the second account, the latest comment was a fan asking: "Will Xi Youyin walk the red carpet with the dinner party?"
I edited one: "The road is long, walk slowly."
I leaned against the window and thought of what Zhao Yin said: "A thousand years is too long. When you wait for someone, you always have to miss him a little bit."
My thoughts seem to be standing not far away, waiting to walk this path with me slowly.
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