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By ten o’clock in the evening, when Yin Mengxi finally retreated to her room and lay down on the bed, her mind was still preoccupied with what her father had said earlier that day.
“Unequal social standing…”
How simple those words were—she used to hear them often in strange TV dramas as a child. Only as an adult did she realize their heavy reality. She wasn’t even at the stage of discussing marriage with Xiao Zhi yet—they were just dating in college, more than two years away from graduation—but the weight of reality was already pressing down on her. Perhaps it was because she liked him so much and cared for him deeply that every potential issue loomed large in her mind.
—What would their future look like?
Would they stay together after graduation?
Would they get married?
Would his parents like her?
Could they accept her ordinary family background?
Even if they did get married… would he continue to love her?
Would they fight?
What would they fight about?
Would they fight so much that they’d divorce?
…
Countless questions swirled in her head.
She had only lain there for five minutes, but staring at the ceiling felt like living an entire lifetime. Birth, aging, illness, death, daily necessities—all aspects of life seemed fraught with problems. When she came back to her senses, she realized they had only been dating for five months.
…How could this be?
Cocooned in her blankets, lost in thought, her phone vibrated again. Glancing over, she saw it was him calling.
“Xiao Zhi.”
…Even just his name made her heart flutter.
Silently sighing in her mind, she waited a few seconds before answering, adjusting her breathing and speaking softly: “Hello?”
There was some background noise on his end—it sounded like he was outside—but his voice was still clear as he asked, “Are you already resting?”
Perhaps he thought her voice was too faint.
“No, my parents are asleep,” she explained. “What about you? Are you outside?”
“Yes,” he replied. “I’m fishing.”
“Fishing?” She was surprised. “Now?”
It was winter… and already past ten o’clock.
“Mainly chatting,” his voice carried a hint of resignation. “The elders are in high spirits—we’ve been sitting here since eight o’clock.”
She smiled on her end, knowing that someone as gentle and polite as him wouldn’t dampen the elders’ enthusiasm. An image of his usual resigned expression popped into her mind, and suddenly, she missed him terribly.
“Can you send me a picture?” she quietly asked. “Just one.”
He chuckled and quickly agreed. “Let me hang up first.”
“Mm,” she murmured, hanging up. Less than half a minute later, her QQ lit up—he had sent a photo. It didn’t include him, just the surroundings. The lighting was dim, making it hard to see clearly, but she could tell it was by a lake. She zoomed in repeatedly, spotting a few scattered villas in the distance.
In the middle of her deep investigation, he called back. She quickly answered, hearing him ask, “Did you receive it?”
“Yes,” she carefully chose her words. “Where is this? A scenic area?”
“No,” he casually replied. “Near home.”
…Sigh.
Of course.
The invisible pressure grew heavier. At that moment, she didn’t know how to respond naturally—should she casually talk about his hobby of fishing? Or should she nonchalantly ask about his family?
“Are you sleepy?” He probably noticed her lack of conversation tonight and sounded apologetic. “Am I disturbing your rest?”
Why hadn’t she realized it then?
He missed her.
“No, no,” she offered a pale explanation. “I don’t sleep this early…”
He assumed she was tired, and his tone became even more apologetic. After a pause, he said, “You should rest early. I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“Ah…” she stammered.
“Good night.” His voice remained soft, enough to lull her into dreams.
But at that moment, she snapped awake, calling out to him just as the call was about to end: “Xiao Zhi—”
Not “Senior.”
But “Xiao Zhi.”
—Was her subconscious desperately trying to keep him?
The response through the receiver was delayed, likely because he was startled too. After a few seconds, he replied, “Hmm?”
His low, husky voice was incredibly attractive. She was forever enamored with everything about him, including the way he spoke softly, with a slight breathiness.
“I’ll work very hard,” she earnestly told him. “I’ll strive to be the best.”
—Such a childish statement.
It was like a primary school student telling their parents, “I’ll study hard to get a perfect score” or “I’ll practice piano and painting diligently.” But her determination was adult-like, her goals ambitious. To achieve them, she was willing to face any difficulty and persevere endlessly.
However, he didn’t understand what she was referring to and assumed she was still worried about the project. So he gently encouraged her to rest during the holiday and not let work-related matters bother her.
“Okay…” she softly replied, her longing for him growing stronger. “…You rest early too.”
Rest early, and tomorrow will come.
After a dozen more “tomorrows”… I’ll see you again.
On New Year’s Eve, Yin Mengxi returned to her grandparents’ house with her parents and met another swarm of relatives.
Yin Mom was in full show-off mode—the more people present, the more she boasted about her child’s achievements. This time, she combined all the things she had bragged about separately to different people over the past few days and even mentioned that Yin Mengxi had won a first-class scholarship.
“Oh, it’s such a pity—she almost won the national scholarship, which is worth 8,000 yuan!” Yin Mom proudly raised her head, seated in the center of a group of relatives. “It’s because our Xixi was lazy and didn’t run for a position in the university’s Youth League Committee. If she had, her score would have gone up, and the 8,000 yuan would have been hers!”
“The first-class scholarship is only 3,000 yuan. What a shame, such an excellent child…”
On and on she went.
Other relatives flattered her, making Yin Mom beam with joy. Yin Mengxi felt uncomfortable, especially seeing her aunt and cousin looking both upset and envious. She wished her mom would stop boasting, but once adults got going, they were harder to stop than children. Unable to intervene, she escaped to the kitchen to help her aunt make dumplings.
Her grandparents’ house was older than hers, with a narrow, dark kitchen. Touching the stove, she felt oil everywhere. By the time she finished wrapping the dumplings, she was already a bit tired. At six in the evening, the whole family gathered around the table for dinner, raising glasses to wish each other a happy and prosperous new year. She sat squeezed among the younger generation at a small table, feeling out of sorts the entire evening.
After dinner, they watched the Spring Festival Gala together. The uninspired skits made her drowsy, and there wasn’t much to talk about with the relatives around her. She discreetly pulled out her phone to text Xiao Zhi, but her mother scolded her softly for being impolite. Reluctantly, she put her phone away and was dragged by the elders to share study tips with younger cousins.
Finally, at eleven forty-five, it was time for their family tradition of setting off fireworks. The previously sleepy children woke up with excitement, clamoring to go outside. Yin Mengxi followed them out. The biting cold wind cleared her mind. Neighboring families had even more children, and joyous laughter filled the air. As the fireworks crackled and popped, the festive atmosphere reached its peak.
Pop, pop, pop.
Pop, pop, pop.
Pop, pop, pop.
The sky and ground were ablaze with dazzling fireworks—some from their home, some from neighbors; near and far, on the ground and in the sky. The world suddenly felt vibrant, everyone brimming with joy. And just then, she missed him terribly. Glancing at her phone, she saw the time was 23:59. Perfect—just one minute left. She wanted to be the first person to message him in the new year.
Stepping slightly aside to avoid the relatives’ gaze, she opened their QQ chat window and typed—
Dong dong qiang qiang, Happy Snake Year (o^^o)! In the new year, I wish…
She hadn’t finished typing when 23:59 turned into 0:00, and a new message popped up in the chat window—
Him: Happy New Year.
She was startled. Those four simple words carried more impact than the loudest fireworks. Her heart raced wildly. Even though he wasn’t by her side, he still effortlessly swept her into a tsunami-like whirlwind of love.
Her: I was just about to message you… just a few seconds late!
Her: [Picture]
Her: Look at the screenshot!
Her: T^T
Him: I know.
Him: Next year, I’ll wait an extra minute for you.
“Next year…”
Another heart-stopping phrase.
Her: (#／。＼#)
Her: Then it’s a deal, okay?
Her: Oh right, I want to say it again—Happy New Year! p(^_^)q
She typed furiously, happiness filling every corner of her body. If her mom had looked back at her at that moment, she would have seen her daughter’s mouth stretched ear to ear, practically wearing a neon sign that read “In Love.”
Him: There’s something else I want to tell you.
Her: ?
Him: I’ve decided to return to school on the sixth day of the new year. Senior Gao and the others are coming back on the eighth.
Her: !
Him: What about you? Do you have any plans to return to school?
What is serious first love?
It’s when even expressing longing requires restraint. Though you miss the other person so much, your words must still be tempered. Even someone as mature as him brought up “Senior Gao and the others” as a buffer.
She didn’t think that deeply. She simply felt a surge of hope. The sound of fireworks continued to explode around her, but the world had grown eerily quiet.
Her: Then I’ll also return on the sixth.
Her: I’ll buy tickets now.
She was so eager that she didn’t even consult her parents first.
So eager that she forgot to add punctuation.
Him: Okay.
Him: I’ll come pick you up.
The next steps were clear.
Yin Mengxi quietly snatched up train tickets back to A City, then acted completely normal as she accompanied her parents visiting relatives and going out to play. On the fifth day of the new year, she casually mentioned returning to A City the next day, explaining that there had been issues with the project group she joined last semester and that she needed to rush back to catch up on progress.
Her parents were shocked but eventually heard her out when she mentioned that if the project succeeded, they might receive shares and money. They thought their child had truly grown up, doing things they barely understood. In the end, they reluctantly sent her off on the train, reminding her to call home on the fifteenth day of the lunar month so they could eat glutinous rice balls together over the phone.
The journey back was smooth sailing.
The fields outside the train window weren’t as radiant as they had been in the height of summer in August, but her mood was no longer tinged with the anxiety and sadness she had felt six months ago. A joyful excitement accompanied her throughout the ride, prompting her to check the train’s location every ten minutes, wondering how much longer it would take to bring her to him.
And so, anxiously waiting until four in the afternoon, she pushed her suitcase and sprinted to the exit checkpoint. Amidst her pounding heartbeat, she casually glanced around and immediately spotted his handsome figure at the front of the crowd, as if he had been waiting for her for a long time.
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