Chapter 282 Happiness in the Present Moment
Although Tu Chaoxi and Nan Ke were both wearing masks, the whole family was dressed in clothes that weren't particularly attractive.
Their postures were all stiff, and their expressions were all dazed.
It is definitely a group photo.
After receiving the photos, Tu Chaoxi would take a few steps and then look at them, and then couldn't help but look at them a second time.
Nan Ke and Lin Yue also gripped their phones tightly, following closely behind.
Everyone has forgotten what they originally intended to do.
The only one in a natural state is Tu Yao.
While she logged onto the campus forum and found a post about a collection of photo spots on campus, she led the three people, who were practically in a daze, to the location.
Come here!
She waved: "This is the library."
Facing three pairs of clearly still-uncomfortable gazes, Tu Yao slowly said, "I don't come to the library very often."
"I don't really enjoy reading, but I like growing herbs."
She pointed in a direction: "That's the herb garden over there. I planted some plantain, and it's ready to be harvested."
Just as Nan Ke had naturally shared information about the past four years with her, Tu Yao was also learning to share these experiences.
After she finished speaking, she put the phone into Tu Chaoxi's hand and then stood between Nan Ke and Lin Yue.
"Take the picture!"
Tu Chaoxi's movements were slightly stiff as she took the second picture.
Then came the herb garden. Tu Yao skillfully went in, picked two herbs, and handed them, along with her phone, to Nan Ke.
Then, they took a third photo with Tu Chaoxi and Lin Yue.
As they were taking pictures, Tu Chaoxi had unknowingly taken off her sunglasses, lowered her hat brim a little, and pulled up the collar of her coat.
Nan Ke also took off her mask.
Lin Yue's pursed lips gradually transformed into a stiff curve.
Then, the stiff curve gradually becomes natural.
In each photo, the changes in each person are clearly visible.
"That's the school's largest cafeteria."
Tu Yao has already led the people to a new place.
Standing in front of the tall building, she lowered her voice and shook her head seriously: "But the taste isn't very good, not as good as what the aunties at our orphanage make."
"But if you'd like to try it, I'll take you there to eat in a bit."
After he finished speaking, there was no response from behind him for a long time.
Tu Yao was taken aback and quickly turned her head away.
She saw Tu Chaoxi staring at her from across the way, under the low brim of his hat, but he still didn't react.
After a moment of silence, he suddenly laughed.
In just one morning, they listened to things that Tu Yao had never told them before.
They were doing things that they had never had the time or opportunity to do four years ago, even after they recognized each other.
...It's always like this; perfection and imperfection always go hand in hand.
He didn't know whether to be sad or happy.
Tu Chaoxi smiled and pulled the person over, "Are you tired?"
After walking around like this, Tu Yao was covered in sweat.
She has very low sensitivity to sunlight; when sweat drips onto her sunburned cheeks, she simply wipes it off out of habit.
No wonder her face and neck are the same skin tone, not at all fair.
Tu Chaoxi casually wiped the sweat from her nose, "Hurry up and take off your coat."
Tu Yao blinked, said "Oh," and took off her clothes.
Nan Ke took it casually and glanced around.
On the open day, many students set up small stalls at both ends of the road, selling bottled water and sunshades.
"Wait here for a while."
Tu Yao said "Oh" again and nodded.
Lin Yue chose a shady spot and led her along, and she followed quietly.
They're incredibly well-behaved.
Tu Chaoxi watched from behind and couldn't help but laugh again.
"Wait a minute."
He suddenly spoke.
Tu Yao turned her head back.
Tu Chaoxi handed over her phone. "Tu Xiaomao, take a few pictures for me."
Throughout the journey, either he or Nan Ke took the photos. His younger siblings, adhering to the principle of avoiding physical contact as much as possible, served as human accessories the entire time.
Tu Yao was taken aback. "Me?"
She hesitated, "...I don't know how to take pictures."
"I can't take good photos."
But Tu Chaoxi got excited and waved his hand, saying, "It's alright, take a picture!"
Seeing his obsessive desire to have his picture taken, Tu Yao hesitated for a few seconds, "...Okay."
Tu Chaoxi picked a few spots and dragged Lin Yue there as well.
"You stay under the tree and don't come out."
A few meters away, Tu Chaoxi watched her sister fiddling with the screen.
Over the years, he has often looked through the things left behind by Tu Yao.
She left behind not many things. Apart from the dress she wore and a few boxes of candy that she sent to Crane Village, the remaining items were exercise books, a medicine box for Lin Yue, a massage device for him, and CDs burned for Nan Ke, which he had watched countless times.
I dare not use the medicine box and massager at all, for fear of breaking them after I've used them all.
Nan Ke copied a dozen CDs, which he could watch without restraint.
Whenever he saw a CD, he would always envy Nan Ke. He had participated in so many programs and stages, so why didn't he think of asking Tu Yao to make one for him too?
But one day, four years from now, he will also have photos taken by his sister.
After a while, Tu Chaoxi asked, "Is it done yet?"
Tu Yao frowned and nodded hesitantly: "Is it done?"
Tu Chaoxi quickly returned, took a deep breath, took the phone, and flipped through the photos one by one.
But as she flipped through the pages, the smile on her lips and the moisture in her eyes gradually disappeared.
As he flipped through the pages, his gaze gradually darkened.
He flipped through the pages faster and faster, until finally, unable to bear it any longer, he looked up with a whoosh!
"Tu Xiaomao, what kind of film is this?!"
A dozen or so photos, either backlit or out of focus.
Tu Yao was startled, glanced at the screen, and immediately retorted, "I told you I won't take pictures!"
"If you can't take pictures, at least you should be able to take a picture of people!"
"Where am I?! Where did I go?!"
With a dark expression, he pushed the phone over. On the screen, in front of the backlit lake, there was only Lin Yue and a person wearing sunglasses on the far side.
Tu Yao retorted confidently, "This is a triangular composition! See, I captured his face clearly!"
"Composition? Good heavens, you actually know what composition is?"
Tu Chaoxi laughed in exasperation: "And this one, it's not the golden ratio, is it? It cuts half of me off?"
"It wasn't all removed, your face is still there!"
Seeing that the two were about to start arguing, Lin Yue panicked and quickly interrupted, "Big brother, I'll help you take the picture!"
Tu Chaoxi: ?
Tu Chaoxi turned her head and glanced at him suspiciously: "You took the picture?"
Lin Yue quickly nodded: "I'll take the picture."
He grabbed the phone with a flourish, looking quite confident and a bit more reliable than Tu Yao.
Tu Chaoxi reluctantly believed her, "...Alright then."
He looked up at Lin Yue and was slightly taken aback. Over the years, he and the third brother hadn't met often.
...The last time we were alone together was half a year ago.
Tu Chaoxi sighed, took two steps forward, but then, still angry, stepped back and vigorously rubbed Tu Yao's head!
"Why!"
Tu Yao quickly covered her head and glared at him unhappily.
Her glare calmed Tu Chaoxi down, and she chuckled, "Stay here and don't move!"
Oh well, if the photo doesn't turn out well, it doesn't turn out well. The person is already here; he'll accept it even if the photo makes him look like an idiot.
When Nan Ke returned, he saw Tu Yao with messy hair, squatting on the ground, fuming.
Across from them, Lin Yue was carefully taking photos of Tu Chaoxi with his phone.
Nan Ke raised an eyebrow knowingly, walked over, reached out and smoothed down a few strands of her hair that were sticking up, then gently placed a hat he had bought on her head.
Tu Yao's head stiffened for a moment. She immediately looked up, saw who it was, and then obediently lowered her head to make room for them.
"Did you have a fight with your older brother?"
Nan Ke then squatted down beside her.
Tu Yao didn't deny it, but muttered under her breath, "Is he always this easily angered?"
Nan Ke chuckled, "Yes, Big Brother has always been so easily angered."
Tu Yao snorted: "I knew it."
"He exudes an unreasonable aura; he'd explode at the slightest provocation!"
She stared ahead, while Lin Yue seemed even less skilled at tapping the screen than she was.
Tu Chaoxi's figure seemed to have returned to its initial stiffness.
One is stiffly taking photos, the other is stiffly posing.
After watching for a while, Tu Yao suddenly asked casually, "Then you must rarely get scolded by him, right?"
Before Nan Ke could reply, she said, "Because you just said that you've rarely had the chance to meet these past few years."
They rarely even see faces, so of course they won't get scolded.
She turned her head: "Are you all very busy? Why can't we see each other more often?"
Nan Ke was slightly taken aback.
The next second, his gentle eyes and brows were instantly filled with a smile.
Their sister is still so soft-hearted; once you break through her defenses, she'll shower them with affection.
Tu Yao's ears turned red, but she stubbornly said, "...What are you laughing at? I was just asking casually."
Nan Ke's heart softened completely, and he couldn't help but reach out and gently rub her head through her hat.
He said gently, "Yes, we don't see each other often."
"Over the years, we haven't had many opportunities to meet."
Tu Yao shook her head: "It's not that we don't see each other often, it's that we see each other very rarely."
She pointed to Tu Chaoxi and Lin Yue in front of her and said bluntly, "That's why you're so clumsy at even taking a picture."
Nanke was speechless for a moment.
"And after that night, I looked you up online."
Tu Chaoxi and Nan Ke's itinerary was almost entirely transparent.
In the past four years, they haven't had a single complete vacation. The constant activities and schedules have almost completely compressed their time.
Nan Ke paused slightly, then finally nodded: "Yes, we rarely see each other."
"Four years ago, after you disappeared, I was busy graduating, my eldest brother was busy with his first concert after terminating his contract, and my third brother was also busy developing a transportation line."
As Nan Ke spoke, he inadvertently observed Tu Yao, and his eyes flickered when he saw her calm and composed expression.
She seemed completely unsurprised that he had used the word "disappeared".
That same night, she seemed to readily accept all the strange messages they were conveying to her.
She adapted to the strangeness of this world very quickly.
Nan Ke remained silent for a while before continuing to release messages.
"You did a lot of things in the six months before you disappeared."
Everything we have now comes from you.
Because they knew that the progress bar, which was still 10% short, was deeply tied to their family's fortune and lives, and that Tu Yao had obtained it at the cost of her life.
After Tu Yao left, they were afraid that their luck would decline even slightly, thus failing to live up to her hard work.
They also speculated whether their sister would be able to come back if the progress bar reached 100% one day.
So, without time to process their suffocating sadness, they tacitly got busy, trying to keep the progress bar stable for a long time.
They dared not stop.
They were like that, and so were Cheng Sangsang and Xu Bai.
Family and friends have been on the road forward for the past four years, never stopping.
Tu Yao tilted her head slightly and looked at him quietly.
The next second, she asked softly, "But wouldn't it be a pity if we couldn't see each other often?"
"Shouldn't we hold on to the happiness of the present moment, rather than the unknown fulfillment?"
"I used to work hard for this too."
Nan Ke's upright posture suddenly slumped slightly after hearing these words.
The gentle gaze of the previous second slowly turned into one of bewilderment.
Tu Yao withdrew her gaze and turned to look at the two people still taking pictures opposite her, giving Nan Ke ample time to think.
Thinking of something, she quickly took out her phone and skillfully turned on the screen.
Are you still there? I take back what I just said.
You're right, no matter what happens, it's okay as long as we're together.
Even if we lose our shared memories, even if we miss a lot of time, it doesn't matter as long as we're together. She can share the memories of these years with them.
They could also tell her that even in the days without her, there were wonderful and precious moments.
As long as they are together, they can create new memories.
Just like now, even if it's just taking some random photos, walking the same unfamiliar yet familiar road.
There is nothing more precious than being able to see each other often or being able to stay together.
In the port city, Xu Chi stared at the screen, a slight smile playing on his lips.
It's always been like this. Even when she's confused or conflicted, with just a little effort, Tu Yao can quickly sort out the current situation and figure out what she wants.
Then, before anyone can react, quickly take the lead and become a leader.
So even if Wolf Fang loses its memory, it will still try its best to remember you if you come to pick it up.
Upon seeing this sentence, Xu Chi's smile faltered slightly.
After a long pause, he tapped his fingertips lightly and asked:
—What if I can't come to pick it up for the time being? Will it still remember me?
—Does she still remember me?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
