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Psst! We're moving!
Lin Zhan submitted the draft before the deadline. The results would be out in about three or four days, just in time for university applications.
While waiting for the results to be announced, Lin Zhan, feeling superstitious, said she wanted to go to a temple to pray.
On the way up the mountain, she asked Shen Xi, “Do you think I’m very superstitious?”
“No,” Shen Xi smiled, “My grandmother also likes to do these things. Every time before the high school and college entrance exams, she would go pray for me to do well.”
“Does your grandmother only make such wishes?” Lin Zhan asked.
Shen Xi: “Otherwise?”
Lin Zhan laughed: “For example, wishing her grandson would quickly find a cute, clever, well-behaved, sensible, beautiful wife who can paint, is 165cm tall, and wears a grapefruit-colored short-sleeved top.”
Shen Xi was about to ask if she was talking about herself, but by the end, he realized his prediction was correct.
Before he could speak, Lin Zhan continued: “She must have wished for it already. Heaven saw her sincerity and sent me down to earth.”
Shen Xi looked at her: “So, should I thank you for fulfilling my grandmother’s wish?”
Lin Zhan waved her hand, then blinked and said, “I’m so envious of your grandmother, having such a lovely granddaughter-in-law.”
He rarely remained silent, letting out a laugh, which counted as an affirmative.
The two walked towards the temple, along a street, where there stood a sturdy tree.
The tree was covered with red threads and small wooden tags.
Lin Zhan asked a nearby master, “How much are these?”
The master: “Six yuan a pair.”
Naturally, she wanted to write on one.
Shen Xi handed her the tag, noticing that she didn’t think at all, writing quickly as if she were drawing.
After he finished writing his own, he found that Lin Zhan had just put down her pen.
Shen Xi asked her, “What did you write, taking so long?”
Lin Zhan delightfully showed him the tag—
Shen Xi’s wife = Female Lin Zhan = Female Lin Zhan = Shen Xi’s wife
Shen Xi: “...”
Lin Zhan continued to be pleased, looking up and saying, “I’m pretty good at mathematical equivalent substitution, aren’t I?”
He let out a speechless chuckle, accompanied her to the tree, and hung the item.
Her entire face was radiant with triumph, her eyes sparkling, full of flowing brilliance.
Shen Xi finished hanging his first and turned towards a deeper, smaller path.
Lin Zhan quickly followed, her hand reaching around and slipping into the gaps between his fingers.
With her fingertips, she slowly tickled his palm.
Shen Xi shifted uncomfortably and whispered to her, “No need for equivalent substitution.”
“Huh?”
Lin Zhan didn’t react at first to what he was saying. After a while, she realized he was referring to the words on the tag.
He spoke slowly, word by word: “No need for substitution, you can just be it directly.”
A young bird chirped above them, weaving and turning, a delicate yet somewhat timid milky voice, filled with curiosity and longing for the world.
Yet, it seemed afraid its voice might be too loud and awaken the people passing below.
Lin Zhan’s steps gradually slowed.
Her hand was held, every inch of skin and line thoroughly immersed in his warmth.
She asked him again, “Then what did you write on your tag?”
He smiled, but didn’t say.
“A secret.”
The wooden tag bearing the words “Shen Xi” spun in the wind. On the tag, his handwriting was strong and powerful, yet contained only a short, affectionate line—
“May her dreams come true.”
He had no other desires in this life, only hoping that her wishes would be granted.
It was merely that.
________________________________________
As the two descended the mountain, bathed in the beautiful sunset, Lin Zhan asked him, “You said your grandmother loves to come here, what about your grandfather?”
Shen Xi pursed his lips, lowered his head, and said, “My grandfather passed away.”
Lin Zhan paused, then quickly apologized: “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s alright,” Shen Xi said, “You didn’t know.”
Lin Zhan, harboring a curious little thought, made a mental note of this.
After returning home, she sought out Zhang Ze and asked.
[Do you know Shen Xi had a grandfather?]
...
What kind of question is this.
[Do you know anything about Shen Xi’s grandfather?]
Zhang Ze: [Know a little bit, what’s up?]
Lin Zhan: [Then tell me?]
Lin Zhan: [Shen Xi’s birthday is coming soon, want to give him a surprise.]
Zhang Ze: [Oh, is that so, hehe.]
Zhang Ze: [But I don’t know much. I just know that when he was little, his grandfather often took him out to play and often took him out to do pottery, like making those mugs, you know?]
Zhang Ze: [And then, it seems before his grandfather passed away, he promised to go home once to make a mug with the old man, but then...]
Zhang Ze: [Anyway, I wasn’t involved in that past, but when I heard him talk about it, it was still a little sad.]
Lin Zhan held her phone, watched it for a long while, then stood up, deciding to do something else.
After pacing around the house for a while, she suppressed the bitterness in her heart and began searching for nearby places where she could DIY mugs.
________________________________________
She was always a person of action. Once she found a place, she picked a time and set off.
The pottery studio wasn’t too far from her house, but it still took half an hour by car.
She carried a small bag and went in first to understand the situation.
It would take about a week to get her finished product.
The owner asked, “What kind of design do you have in mind?”
Lin Zhan: “Just a mug will do. Can I engrave words myself?”
The owner: “Yes, you can.”
Someone led her into a private small room.
After washing her hands, the instructor quickly showed her how to start.
“Now we’ll do the wheel throwing.”
Place the clay on the pottery wheel, turn on the wheel’s power, and it starts spinning.
The instructor demonstrated: “Like this, press down with both hands to make it smooth...”
Lin Zhan had seen it many times on TV before, so she naturally picked it up quite quickly.
She started trying it herself, making it over and over again.
She failed many times at first, but the instructor told her not to rush and to take her time. So she sat in the chair, calming herself, slowly pushing out the shape she wanted.
She kept at it until sunset.
The item still needed glazing, and the owner told Lin Zhan to pick it up in a week.
Finally, after waiting a week, Lin Zhan saw that the weather was good, grabbed a small bag, and went to pick up her item.
She was thinking about how she should give it to Shen Xi later.
It was strange, though. The weather had been beautiful when she left home, but by the time the bus arrived at the station, it had started to drizzle.
Lin Zhan raised a hand to shield herself from the rain, clutching her bag as she ran into the shop.
She was quite lucky; apart from her bangs getting wet, there was no major issue.
By the time she had collected her item and walked out for a bit, she noticed the rain suddenly picked up.
Although the weather in W City was unpredictable, this was her first time encountering such a sudden downpour.
Even more tragically, she was now in the middle of the road. Going back to the shop for shelter wasn’t worth it, so she could only look for somewhere nearby to hide from the rain.
On this vast, empty road, there was nowhere to take shelter.
Lin Zhan gritted her teeth, hugged the mug tightly, and started running towards the bus stop.
Her hair was soaked, sticking to her face in strands, and rainwater streamed down her eyelids.
She reached up and wiped her face, hugged the item tightly, and was about to speed up when she heard a voice from ahead.
“Lin Zhan!”
The voice was incredibly familiar. Even amidst the chaotic rain, she immediately recognized it.
She forced herself to look up. Shen Xi ran over in a few steps, holding the large black umbrella over her head.
The rain was blocked by the umbrella’s surface, and large curtains of rain descended along its ribs.
In such a rush, Lin Zhan didn’t have time to ask Shen Xi questions.
She grabbed his arm, making her way with difficulty through the torrential rain.
After walking through this desolate stretch of road, a car finally passed by. Shen Xi hailed a car, opened the door, and let Lin Zhan get in first.
He followed her inside.
The driver asked, “Where to?”
Shen Xi gave Lin Zhan’s home address.
Lin Zhan awkwardly coughed: “How did you know I was here?”
Shen Xi pulled out a bag from the side. The paper bag was already wet, but fortunately, there was another plastic bag inside.
He handed her the towel from the bag.
“Your mom asked Zheng Yimian where you were, saying you went out without an umbrella. Zheng Yimian asked Sun Hong, Sun Hong asked Zhang Ze, and Zhang Ze told me.”
...This meant Zhang Ze also told him about her doing pottery here?
Lin Zhan wiped her face and smelled the familiar warm scent of the towel, feeling the chill around her gradually lessen.
She then slowly dried her hair.
Shen Xi told the driver, “Could you turn off the air conditioning? She got caught in the rain.”
Sitting in air conditioning after getting wet can easily lead to a cold.
The driver nodded and turned off the air conditioning.
By the time the car arrived at her building, Shen Xi still hadn’t spoken.
Lin Zhan was drenched, and wrapped in a jacket Shen Xi had brought. As she got out of the car, she opened her mouth to say something, but Shen Xi cut her off: “You go up and take a shower first.”
Lin Zhan: “What about you?”
Shen Xi said, “I’ll wait for you downstairs.”
She quickly agreed, trotting into the building.
This crazy weather! It rained erratically when Shen Xi wasn’t around, but stopped when he was.
Now the sky was gloomy, but not a drop of rain fell.
Lin Zhan went home, took a shower, changed her clothes, and was about to go downstairs.
Jiang Wan asked her, “What are you going down for again?”
Lin Zhan had already thought of an excuse while showering. She said, “I didn’t bring any money just now. I’m going down to give the driver his money.”
“Alright,” Jiang Wan said, “Come back early.”
She rushed downstairs, feeling a bit exasperated as she looked at the item in her hand.
The kraft paper bag was well-protected, with only slight dampness on the edges from the rain.
She had gotten soaked like a dog for this thing.
Nervously opening the main door, Shen Xi stood outside. There were still droplets of rain on his black umbrella, occasionally forming streams and falling.
Lin Zhan hadn’t even had time to blow-dry her hair; it was still a bit damp.
Shen Xi heard the sound and turned to look at her: “Why didn’t you blow-dry your hair?”
She bit her lip: “I was afraid you’d wait too long.”
Shen Xi reached out, motioning her to come closer, and took out the towel from the bag to dry her hair again.
He rubbed her head with both hands, and Lin Zhan let him manipulate her, her small head swaying with his movements.
She lifted her face to look at him.
After drying, Lin Zhan handed him the item she was holding: “Here, this is for you.”
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