Chapter 38 Song Zhenshu (hehe)
Ji Tong's eyelashes touched.
Did Gu Lin mean "to be together forever"?
Or did he see it wrong?
A second wave of fireworks followed.
The entire square was enveloped by an even louder roar.
Ji Tong couldn't hear Gu Lin's voice, so he took a step forward, turned his face, and whispered in Gu Lin's ear.
"What you just said was..." Ji Tong pulled off the balloon and pointed to the words on it, "Is this what you meant?"
Gu Lin didn't expect him to hear it.
He spoke so softly, so softly that he could be swallowed up by the crowd.
A low, rumbling sound rose in Gu Lin's chest. Instead of feeling any urgency, he felt a secret shiver run through him.
I heard that, and then what?
Gu Lin's breathing rate began to slow down, and he turned his face away.
Ji Tong was already speaking close to his ear, and when Gu Lin moved, the two were almost neck to neck.
"Did you hear that?" Gu Lin asked, as if stating a fact, yet also asking a question.
Ji Tong: "Is it really this?"
Gu Lin: "Mm."
Gu Lin slowed his breathing, waiting for his answer.
The next second, Ji Tong's lips slowly left Gu Lin's ear, she straightened up, and her brows furrowed little by little—
"This is your first wish for the New Year?"
"That doesn't count."
"Make a new promise."
Ji Tong was very active, and the crowd was so dense that his scarf came undone several times throughout the night, and Gu Lin tied it back for him each time.
This time was no different. Gu Lin reached out to help him wrap the scarf around his neck and patiently asked, "Why doesn't it count?"
"What kind of wish is that? Didn't we say back in high school that we'd be best buddies for life? How could that be a lie?"
"..."
Gu Lin paused, adjusting his scarf.
Only Ji Tong was puzzled: Why did it stop moving?
He lowered his head, his fair chin buried in the scarf, and reminded Gu Lin, "The scarf is a bit tight, it's a little constricting."
Gu Lin's long fingers then began to move again, his voice and expression as calm as a still pond.
"Just strangle him."
Ji Tong: "???"
He asked him to make a wish, and then he wanted to strangle him?
Is there no justice left?
Ji Tong didn't even look, lifted his foot and stomped on it, leaving half a black footprint on his white shoe: "Anyway, this doesn't count. Your first New Year's wish, you better take it seriously—"
"Quick, quick, this fireworks view is so beautiful, I want to take a picture and post it on WeChat Moments... Lower your head, what are you waiting for! Kiss me here, quick, quick, the fireworks will be over soon."
Ji Tong's voice was suddenly interrupted by a female voice.
He turned his head and saw a couple taking a selfie with their phones held high. The girl was taking the picture, and the boy was kissing her forehead.
Because they wanted to use the fireworks over Hetouba in the north as a backdrop, the two turned around and faced Ji Tong instead of having their backs to him.
Ji Tong was stunned for a moment.
Clearly, he wasn't the only one who heard this sound.
"Wow, this fireworks view is so beautiful! Quick, let's take a picture too!"
"Don't stand so straight, it looks silly! Fine, just kiss my forehead too, like they do."
The second couple, the third couple...
When the fourth couple turned around to face Ji Tong, kissed each other on the forehead, and took a firework photo, Ji Tong felt a little numb.
Did he stumble into some couples' apartment?
Seeing their perfectly synchronized poses for the photo, Ji Tong suddenly raised her hand, touched her forehead, and then quickly lowered it again.
Why is he touching his forehead?
Ji Tong was a little dazed, and her mouth was dry. She pulled Gu Lin and prepared to walk away, but before she could even lift her foot, another voice came.
"Are you trying to kill me? Why are there couples everywhere? God, I take back my wish to become rich. Just give me a girlfriend instead."
Ji Tong was about to nod when he heard the first half of the sentence, but stopped when he heard the second half.
Couples, girlfriends...
On New Year's Eve, so many boys wished for a girlfriend.
Would Gu Lin think the same way?
Ji Tong was lost in thought and didn't notice that his gaze was fixed on a couple.
Gu Lin followed his gaze to the left, but before he could see clearly, his eyes were suddenly covered.
Before the obstructed view came the scent of sandalwood and lilies from the person's hand, which became even sweeter due to the warmth of their body.
"Stop looking, A-Yuan is asking us questions, let's go, let's go."
Ji Tong didn't know why she was blocking Gu Lin's eyes. By the time Gu Lin came to his senses, she had already started covering them.
She didn't want Gu Lin to see it, didn't want him to hear it, didn't want him to have the idea of finding a girlfriend, and didn't even want to ask Gu Lin what his New Year's wish was, because she was afraid of hearing the same thing as that boy: "Give me a girlfriend."
If he dares to say he wants a girlfriend... I'll strangle him!
Ji Tong pulled Gu Lin along, keeping their heads down, and they walked out of the encirclement until they stopped in front of a stall selling small goldfish.
Li Yuan called just then.
Ji Tong answered.
Li Yuan: "Tongtong, where are you? I heard from Atian that you just grabbed Lin Ge and left in a hurry. He called after you, but you didn't hear him."
Ji Tong blurted out, "There will be too many people leaving later, so let's come out early."
Li Yuan continued, "So where are you now?"
Ji Tong looked up at the landmark: "Cute Little World".
Li Yuan: "Cute little...isn't that the children's area?"
Ji Tong stood in front of the goldfish stall, with plaster doll painting on the left and children's handmade lanterns for sale on the right.
Ji Tong was very satisfied.
Although it was noisy, they were all children.
There were no young couples who suddenly turned around to kiss each other on the forehead for a photo, nor were there any boys who wished for a girlfriend like a Bodhisattva.
Li Yuan wondered if his head had been ringing from the fireworks: "What are you and Brother Lin doing in the children's area?"
Isn't it too early?
No, I said I don't want children.
That's not right either... It's all nonsense.
Li Yuan was having a mental battle when he heard Ji Tong's voice: "He wants to buy lanterns."
Li Yuan: "Who? Brother Lin?"
Ji Tong, without blushing or skipping a beat, replied, "Mm."
When Li Yuan and his friends went to pick up the balloons, they passed by the Fun World and saw the lantern stall.
They make tiny bamboo lanterns, about the size of a palm, with a light bulb inside, and a plush cat, dog, rabbit, or panda glued on top. They also cut out a piece of red paper, write one or two auspicious words on it, and stick it on the inside of the lantern.
"Brother Lin likes this too?" He rushed over in a hurry.
Ji Tong continued without blushing or skipping a beat: "Yes, he insisted on buying it."
Li Yuan: "Well... okay then, you guys go ahead and buy it, we'll head over there."
Ji Tong hung up the phone.
Gu Lin's voice remained unchanged: "Who insists?"
Ji Tong didn't look at him: "You."
Without saying a word, Ji Tong pulled him straight to the lantern stall and glanced at it.
As expected of a family-friendly area, the lanterns are decorated with auspicious phrases such as "Little Star of Wisdom," "Happy Growth," and "Pillars of the Nation," and some even simply say "Ankyung University."
It's very uplifting, inspiring, and detached from worldly desires, making it suitable for elementary school students as well as college students.
Upon seeing the customers, the stall owner immediately stood up from his chair, glanced at Ji Tong and Gu Lin, and then looked behind them to confirm that these were just the two handsome, model-like men and that there were no children behind them. He then introduced the lanterns, saying, "The lanterns are all handmade; you can take them home for your children."
Ji Tong hummed in agreement and lowered his head to carefully select a lantern.
So when Li Yuan and the others arrived, what they saw was Lin Ge, who wore a long black cotton coat like a black trench coat on the runway, and could attract 100% attention no matter where he stood on the street, holding a lantern that was no bigger than his palm, leaning against the panda statue.
The lanterns also had red paper with the words "Study hard and make progress" pasted on them.
Everyone: "..."
"Brother Lin, when did you start liking these handmade little things?" Cui Mingying asked.
Gu Lin glanced indifferently at the person beside him: "Today."
Everyone: "..."
Even after midnight, the streets of Central were still packed with people. A group of people struggled to get out and then turned to Uncle Chan's BBQ restaurant.
By the time the second round was over, it was almost dawn.
Ji Tong returned to the apartment and almost fell asleep while taking a shower. She was too tired to even blow-dry her hair. As soon as she came out of the bathroom, she lay down on the foot of the bed, only to be lifted up by Gu Lin.
"Dry yourself before sleeping."
Ji Tong was so sleepy that he seemed to have left his body. He kept saying things like "It's already dry" and "I haven't washed my hair," and he kept humming and moaning in a sleepwalking voice.
"What are you humming about?" Gu Lin reached out and grabbed the ends of his hair, getting his hand all wet.
The hairdryer cord wasn't long enough to dry the person while lying in bed, so Gu Lin had no choice but to lift the person up by the waist, just like the sloth hug he did in high school.
Gu Lin carried the person to the bathroom, took a bath towel and placed it on the sink, put the person on it, turned on the hairdryer and set it to medium-low to dry his hair.
Ji Tong was really sleepy and couldn't stay awake for even a little while. Or perhaps Gu Lin's movements while drying her hair were too gentle, which made all her nerves relax.
Ji Tong lowered her head, resting her chin on Gu Lin's shoulder. After a while, she felt the wind was too hot and turned her head to avoid it, burying her face in Gu Lin's neck.
The breath of the person in my arms was hotter than the hot air from a hairdryer.
The moment his lips brushed against Gu Lin's neck, Gu Lin swallowed hard.
"Ji Tong." His voice was a little hoarse.
The person in her arms did not respond.
Five minutes later, it was dry.
Despite the cold winter weather and a light breeze, Gu Lin broke out in a sweat.
In that position, he carried the person back to bed from the bathroom, adjusted the pillow, tucked in the blankets, watched him quietly by the bed for a while, then got up and went into the bathroom to take his second shower of the night.
-
After staying up all night, the "effect" was remarkable; for the rest of the holiday, Ji Tong didn't even leave her apartment.
On the fourth day, the balloons brought back from Central had deflated completely. They should have been thrown into the trash cans according to their classification, but Ji Tong didn't.
The thought that this was a wishing balloon, and Gu Lin's wishing balloon at that, made him reluctant to part with it.
Finally, Ji Tong thought about it and decided that since it was biodegradable, she cut it into pieces with scissors, buried it in the small earthenware pot where she grew mint, and then sent a WeChat message to Gu Lin.
[JT: You used your "wish" to grow mint.]
On the first Friday of the new year, as Ji Tong was contemplating whether to have dinner at his apartment or go out, he was unaware that a plane flying directly from Amsterdam had landed safely after a 16-hour flight.
As Song Zhenshu walked out of the VIP passage, the moment he saw Song Jiahe, he immediately let go of his suitcase and ran towards her.
Song Zhenshu opened his arms and hugged her tightly: "Sister."
Song Jiahe was hugged tightly, and with difficulty, she raised her right hand and patted his shoulder: "Did you eat anything on the plane?"
Song Zhenshu: "I ate some confit duck and salmon."
Ji Yuanfeng naturally stepped forward and took the suitcase that Song Zhenshu had left halfway there: "You've lost some weight."
Song Zhenshu released Song Jiahe and hugged Ji Yuanfeng as well: "Brother-in-law."
Ji Yuanfeng nodded: "You didn't sleep well on the plane, did you? Let's go back to Haiyuan for lunch first. It's all your favorite food. After you eat, take a good nap. This afternoon, I'll have someone pick up Tongtong from Anhui University and have him come back to stay with you for a couple of days."
Song Zhenshu, carrying a backpack, stood between Song Jiahe and Ji Yuanfeng, holding their arms on either side. Upon hearing Ji Yuanfeng's words, she immediately asked, "Does Tongtong know I'm back?"
"You said you were going to give him a surprise, how could we dare to say that?" Ji Yuanfeng teased, pushing his brother-in-law's luggage.
Song Zhenshu: "You didn't mention picking him up this afternoon?"
Song Jiahe: "No, we can talk about it when we get there."
Song Zhenshu put his arm around Song Jiahe's shoulder: "Then we don't need the driver. I'll go after we finish eating."
Song Jiahe glanced at him: "Fifteen hours on a plane isn't enough for you to go through? Just stay put at Haiyuan."
"I slept the whole plane and I'm in great spirits," Song Zhenshu said, having gotten Ji Tong's class schedule from Song Jiahe early in the morning. She then coaxed Song Jiahe, "Tongtong only has one class this afternoon, right? I can drive there after I finish eating and visit Anhui University while I'm at it."
"Go, go, pick a car you like, and drive slowly on the road." It was Ji Yuanfeng who spoke.
Song Zhenshu chuckled and said, "Thank you, brother-in-law."
Song Jiahe couldn't bear to watch: "Just keep spoiling them."
Ji Yuanfeng really couldn't resist Song Zhenshu's face, which, apart from its outline, looked very much like Song Jiahe.
The son looks like his wife, and the brother-in-law also looks like his wife, so the brother-in-law and son are also very similar in some facial features. Song Zhenshu is such a person, so over the years, Ji Yuanfeng has practically raised Song Zhenshu as his eldest son.
“He’s finally come back, so just let him be,” Ji Yuanfeng said.
“How did he have to go through all this trouble? I made him go through all this trouble? He insisted on carrying a bag and running all over the world,” Song Jiahe said, then softened. “He’s running all over the world, and he doesn’t even know how to eat properly. He’s just fattened up the sea turtle like a ball.”
Today, Ji Yuanfeng personally drove Song Zhenshu to pick him up.
After the three of them left the airport, they chatted for a while in the car, talking about the gift Song Zhenshu brought for Ji Tong.
"Let's put Haiyuan here for now."
“Oh right, sis,” Song Zhenshu suddenly remembered, “which building and floor is Tongtong’s dormitory in Zone 5?”
Song Jiahe: "What's wrong?"
Song Zhenshu: "If he arrives late, I'll go directly to his dorm to pick him up."
Ji Yuanfeng replied, "Building 8, Room 411."
"Okay, I've got it."
Song Zhenshu chuckled.
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