Chapter 61
The sound faded away amidst the distant explosions of fireworks, leaving an even deeper sense of desolation in the small rented room.
The candy in my mouth now tastes bitter on my tongue.
Xu Qingzhou lowered his head and remained silent.
Despite being watched by Chi Jun, his expression remained calm.
—It was a kind of numb calm that Chi Jun often saw on her face, revealing an indifference that isolated her from everyone and everything.
Chi Jun knew that, often, silence was a more powerful response.
The silence was shattered once again by the loud explosion of fireworks.
Chi Jun turned back to look at the fireworks lights that had reappeared in the distance, and a slight smile appeared on his lips. He wanted to say, "I can earn my own money now, Xu Qingzhou. I won't let you work hard."
But as the words were about to come out, she remembered that Xu Qingzhou was never willing to use his money. Even though he no longer needed to look at the price when buying things, she still braved wind and rain to find part-time jobs.
Perhaps, after learning his true identity, his very existence became a source of pressure for her?
The pressure had been building up until now, and the young girl finally showed signs of being unable to cope.
This was something he had always longed for but could never achieve, something he had tried to do through all sorts of trouble and exhausting all means to get to. But now, seeing the little girl's reaction, why did he feel so uncomfortable?
When Chi Jun learned of Zhang Pengfei's death, he thought: since the two sides of the scale cannot be balanced, let fate guide him to make a choice.
Now, when Rolly wanted to sign him, Xu Qingzhou finally relented and let him leave.
Could this be fate bringing him here?
Chi Jun didn't know.
But he knew very well that after the girl had tried her best, she finally realized she couldn't hold on any longer. If he stayed, it would only be like a mountain pressing down on her thin shoulders.
She was so young, yet she had already endured far more hardships than her peers should have because of her obsession.
Now that he has finally let go of his obsession, he should not let her continue to suffer, no matter what.
Chi Jun gazed at the colorful stars scattered across the night sky for a long time before clearing his throat.
Without turning around, he took a preserved plum lollipop from the fruit plate, unwrapped it, and popped it into his mouth.
My favorite plum flavor used to be tasteless now, like wax.
He touched his cheek with the tip of his tongue, then lowered his eyes and chuckled.
"OK."
As he finished speaking, he turned to look at Xu Qingzhou, a relaxed and casual smile on his face: "I was wondering how to explain this to you."
After saying that, Chi Jun winked playfully.
"Zhouzhou, it seems it's fate that you'll see me on TV from now on."
Xu Qingzhou looked at him with a faint smile in her eyes.
“You might not believe it, but there’s a famous agent named Rolly who wants to sign me. She’s the kind of person who can make anyone she promotes famous,” Chi Jun raised an eyebrow as he said this, “Maybe after I’m signed, I’ll become a top star in less than three years.”
He spoke casually, his eyes shining brightly in the reflection of the fireworks.
It seems she really longs to become a top star.
Xu Qingzhou looked at him, and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly.
I believe you can.
Chi Jun, you will definitely have a bright future.
"Then you can proudly tell your classmates that the celebrity named Xu Jun is a very good friend of mine."
Xu Qingzhou stared at him intently.
They'll definitely envy me.
"That's for sure."
As Chi Jun spoke, he looked away and lowered his voice.
After a few seconds of silence, he once again tugged at the corner of his mouth, looked at Xu Qingzhou, and said:
"On the second day of the Lunar New Year, the agent is going back to Haicheng. He can take me to the company then."
Second year of junior high...
That's the day after tomorrow.
Xu Qingzhou nodded: [Okay]
It was quiet for a while.
Chi Jun suddenly laughed and said, "Zhouzhou, even if we don't live together anymore, we should still be friends, right?"
Xu Qingzhou tightened his grip on the pen.
【certainly】
But once you enter a wider world, you'll likely have many, many glamorous friends.
By then, I'll probably be forgotten.
"You need to message me often, so that when I'm too busy to contact you, you don't think to yourself that I'm being arrogant."
Xu Qingzhou seemed amused.
She smiled and shook her head.
【Won't】
"If you become a celebrity, you'll definitely be busy day and night, flying around everywhere. But whenever I have a vacation, I'll come back to see you, or I can pick you up and take you to my place."
Knowing full well that this was a futile attempt at comfort before parting, I tried in vain.
Knowing full well that this parting would likely mean never seeing each other again, and that even WeChat contact would become less frequent until eventually losing all contact completely.
Xu Qingzhou nodded anyway.
【good】
Chi Jun seemed to want to say something more.
He opened his mouth, but ultimately didn't know what to say.
So the two of them remained silent, quietly watching the dazzling fireworks rise one after another in the distance.
After an unknown amount of time, the fireworks ended once again.
The sky was dark and gloomy, and the entire small rented room, inside and out, was eerily quiet.
Chi Jun crunched the lollipop in his mouth and stood up from his chair.
"I'm going to take a shower."
Xu Qingzhou nodded again.
【good】
That night, the two did not speak to each other again.
It was supposed to be New Year's Eve, but the two of them went to bed early.
At midnight, the sounds of fireworks and firecrackers rose and fell outside, creating a noisy and bustling atmosphere.
The two people, separated by a curtain, lay quietly, gazing out the window at the flickering sky.
Neither of them spoke.
*
The next day, the male ghost was shocked to learn that Xu Qingzhou had suddenly let Chi Jun leave.
"This...you're not kidding, are you? You can really walk?"
Chi Jun packed his clothes, his voice sounding very calm.
"Um."
Although the male ghost initially hoped that Chi Jun would leave, he gradually felt that it was not bad for Chi Jun to stay, since he could play with Chi Jun and Xiao Zhouzhou would feed him.
But things took an unexpected turn, and suddenly Chi Jun was able to leave—and it was Xiao Zhouzhou who took the initiative to let him leave!
The male ghost had very complicated feelings.
After processing what had happened for a while, he finally remembered to ask Chi Jun:
"So...you really want to become a star?"
Chi Jun suddenly stopped moving.
He didn't speak, but just lowered his eyes and stared blankly at the pile of clothes and supplies in front of him.
It can be said that in Chi Jun's choices, there have always only been two options: "Xu Qingzhou" and "Fox Clan". Although these options have changed over time, Chi Jun has never considered "becoming a star" as an alternative.
Now, whether forced by circumstances or of his own free will, since Xu Qingzhou has already taken the initiative to let him leave, Chi Jun has no reason to shamelessly continue to linger.
Logically speaking, at this point, "returning to the fox clan" should obviously be his first choice.
But last night, he lay in bed thinking for a long time before realizing that when the time came, he didn't even want to go back to the Fox Clan. The side of the scale that held the "Fox Clan" had somehow tilted high.
Chi Jun knew perfectly well that once he went back, he would never see Xu Qingzhou again.
As the sky gradually turned light, he, who hadn't slept all night, looked at the gray sky outside and suddenly felt from the bottom of his heart that being a star was not a bad choice.
*
On the second day of the Lunar New Year, Chi Jun and Rolly agreed to set off at 8:30 a.m. Rolly would pick him up by car after having breakfast at the hotel.
Chi Jun slept very poorly that night, staying awake almost until dawn.
Xu Qingzhou, separated by a curtain, seemed to have slept quite well, remaining quiet until she woke up at roughly the same time as usual and made breakfast at roughly the same time.
The sky outside was overcast and the air was cold.
The morning seemed to pass faster than any other morning.
After Chi Jun finished dressing and washing up, he squatted in front of the cage and absentmindedly played with the rabbit for a while before Xu Qingzhou came in with a bowl.
"Time to eat," she said.
Chi Jun hummed in agreement, staring blankly at the lettuce leaves in his hand for a moment.
Until the rabbit in front of him suddenly spoke:
"Hey, ugly fox, are you ever coming back?"
Chi Jun chuckled, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.
"What, you can't bear to part with me?"
"Pah, I was just afraid you'd be too sad to part with the little beauty and would secretly cry for half a day."
Chi Jun lowered his eyes, raised the corners of his mouth slightly, and said nothing.
For breakfast, Xu Qingzhou made red bean paste, along with two boiled eggs and a small dish of homemade pickled vegetables.
A very typical breakfast in a small rented room.
Chi Jun was eating, but it tasted rather bland.
Xu Qingzhou, sitting opposite, ate quietly as usual.
Just as Chi Jun was blankly eating with a spoon, without any taste, a WeChat notification sound suddenly rang.
Chi Jun took out his phone and glanced at it.
Rolly: [I'm on the road behind your house. Come down when you're done.]
Chi Jun gripped his phone tightly and replied with an "OK".
Ten minutes later, Chi Jun came downstairs carrying a suitcase.
Xu Qingzhou followed quietly behind.
A red sports car was parked on the side of the cement road in the afternoon.
When Rolly saw Xu Qingzhou, she greeted her first, then got out of the car and opened the trunk.
Chi Jun put the suitcase inside.
Rolly glanced at his watch: "Shall we go now? If we leave now, we should arrive around one o'clock in the afternoon."
"good."
Rolly nodded, his gaze shifting between Chi Jun and Xu Qingzhou, and said:
"Then I'll get in the car first."
The implication is: you two siblings should say goodbye.
The car door slammed shut, and Chi Jun turned to look at Xu Qingzhou.
The little girl stood quietly to the side the whole time.
Chi Jun walked up to her, and she looked up at him with a slight smile on her lips.
After a while.
Chi Jun took a breath and smiled, "Give me a hug?"
Xu Qingzhou nodded.
She took a step forward and gently wrapped her arm around Chi Jun's waist.
Chi Jun held her, placed his right hand on the back of her head, and unconsciously pressed it against his chest.
A moment later, he released her.
"Then I'm leaving."
Chi Jun forced a smile, waved his hand, turned around, walked to the car door, opened it, and got in.
Through the car window, he saw the little girl waving gently at him.
Rolly started the car, and the scenery receded steadily behind her. Through the rearview mirror, Chi Jun watched the little girl standing still, her gaze fixed on the car.
The view in the rearview mirror suddenly blurred as the car turned at the intersection.
Xu Qingzhou's figure disappeared.
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