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At this moment, Bo Ying finally realized what was happening.
She had fallen into a trap set by He Jingxiu.
But since she was the one who proposed the competition and the bet, she couldn’t really blame him.
For a moment, her gaze at He Jingxiu was filled with resentment.
Receiving her gaze, He Jingxiu’s eyebrows lifted, a suppressed smile in his pupils, “What’s wrong?”
“You tricked me.”
He Jingxiu didn’t admit it, asking, “How did I trick you?”
Bo Ying glanced at him, her face flushed, and said, “You know yourself.”
He Jingxiu settled the score with her, “Who proposed the competition?”
Bo Ying: “...Me.”
“Who proposed the bet?”
“...Me.” As she spoke, Bo Ying stepped on He Jingxiu’s foot and threatened, “I think you don’t want a girlfriend anymore.”
He Jingxiu smiled, pulling her into his arms, and asked softly, “Don’t want to be on top anymore?”
Bo Ying’s cheeks were flushed, whether from shyness or cold.
She looked up, glaring at him coquettishly, “How can you say that out in public?”
He Jingxiu knew she was shy and didn’t dare to tease her further.
He pinched her nose, coaxing, “What else do you want to play?”
Bo Ying blinked, “I want to compete with you again.”
He Jingxiu chuckled, agreeing without hesitation, “Alright. But don’t go too fast, safety first.”
Bo Ying’s lips curved, full of confidence, “Don’t worry.”
She loved skiing, and she felt she had quite a talent for it. Falling was something that wouldn’t happen to her.
After playing two more rounds, Bo Ying was exhausted and was pulled by He Jingxiu to other activities.
The two took a ski resort cable car for a while, comfortably watching the people playing below. Everyone in the snowy field had a different color.
They created their own colors on the vast white snow, leaving their own marks.
________________________________________
Leaving the ski resort, it was already dark.
Bo Ying and He Jingxiu didn’t plan to eat out; it would be too crowded, and they didn’t want to get stuck in traffic on the way home.
“So, cook at home tonight?”
He Jingxiu: “Yes, I’ll cook.”
Bo Ying wasn’t very confident in his cooking skills, but he had indeed practiced a lot recently, so she had to encourage him, “What are we eating then?”
“Steak.”
This was He Jingxiu’s specialty, besides beef noodles.
When they arrived home, there was a Christmas tree in the living room.
Bo Ying paused, looking back at the man behind her in surprise, “Did you ask Aunt Chen to set this up?”
“Assistant Qi.”
He Jingxiu rubbed her head, “Go change into a nice outfit and come open presents.”
“Okay.”
After changing into her loungewear, He Jingxiu went into the kitchen, while Bo Ying sat on the floor.
The Christmas tree wasn’t huge, but it wasn’t small either, enough to decorate the home. Small gifts hung on the tree, and large boxes were placed underneath.
Bo Ying, being a bit materialistic, first took a few photos before starting to unwrap.
He Jingxiu had prepared all sorts of things for her: jewelry, clothes, bags, and her favorite figurines and handmade dolls.
Bo Ying counted, there were nine gifts in total, but she could only unwrap eight. One was at the very top, completely out of her reach.
She stared at the high-hanging gift for a long time, then turned to He Jingxiu for help.
“I can’t reach it.”
He Jingxiu happened to come out with the steak. He looked up and said, “I’ll get that for you later.”
“Why not now?”
Bo Ying was curious.
He Jingxiu thought for a moment, “Eat first, aren’t you hungry?”
Bo Ying looked at him suspiciously, feeling that it must be a special gift. She reluctantly agreed, “Alright.”
Besides steak, He Jingxiu also had a strong sense of ceremony and opened a bottle of red wine.
Bo Ying took two sips, and the taste was surprisingly good.
During dinner, she chatted animatedly with He Jingxiu, asking him when he prepared the gifts, and if Assistant Qi didn’t threaten to quit after being made to do all this on Christmas Day.
He Jingxiu answered everything she asked, without any impatience.
He had been keeping track of her likes and collections on Weibo for the gifts, and also things she’d share with him when she saw them online.
Bo Ying wasn’t short on gifts and could afford them herself. She didn’t tell He Jingxiu about things because she wanted him to buy them for her; she purely shared.
Occasionally, if she couldn’t get ahold of a particular item, she would complain.
In her daily life, she was willing to share everything with those around her. And He Jingxiu paid attention; whatever she mentioned, he would remember.
After dinner, Bo Ying’s mind was on the gift at the top.
He Jingxiu had no choice but to get a chair to retrieve it for her. As he handed it to her, he paused, looking at her intently and whispering, “Can you open it after you shower?”
Bo Ying was startled, “What is it?”
She looked at the thin gift box and guessed, “Is this... a love letter you wrote for me?”
He Jingxiu smiled without speaking.
Bo Ying’s eyes widened in surprise, “It’s really a love letter?”
“Not quite,” He Jingxiu urged her, “Go shower. I’ll clean up the kitchen. Read it after you come out.”
Bo Ying stared at He Jingxiu for a long time, no longer in a rush, “Okay.”
She pointed at the box, “Then give me this first. I promise I’ll read it after I shower.”
He Jingxiu handed it to her.
________________________________________
Returning upstairs, Bo Ying kept her promise and didn’t open it before showering.
When she came out after showering, He Jingxiu had just finished cleaning up downstairs and dealt with two urgent documents.
Seeing her emerge, He Jingxiu said calmly, “You can look at it now. I’m going to shower.”
Bo Ying raised an eyebrow, her lips curving upward, “Okay.”
...
Bo Ying lay on the bed, beginning to unwrap the last gift He Jingxiu had prepared for her.
This last gift was wrapped very securely.
It took Bo Ying quite a while to remove all the wrapping paper.
Inside was a letter.
She touched the envelope, suddenly a little afraid to open it.
...
When He Jingxiu came out after washing up, Bo Ying was still in the same position as when he went in, lying on the bed, facing away from him.
He paused, looking at her, “Yingying.”
Bo Ying paused, then turned her head to look at him. The room was brightly lit with warm lighting, making her feel exceptionally soft and tender.
He Jingxiu immediately saw her reddened eyes. He was speechless and walked closer, saying, “I didn’t give you this gift to make you cry tonight.”
“...”
Bo Ying pouted, saying aggrievedly, “But I can’t help it.”
She reached out for He Jingxiu to hug her. When he held her in his arms, she burrowed into his pajamas, wiping her tears on them, then mumbled, “I didn’t want to cry either. It’s your fault.”
He Jingxiu wasn’t angry at being blamed. He gently stroked her head, “Okay, it’s my fault.”
He kissed her hair, his voice deep, “So moved?”
Bo Ying snuggled in his arms, then after a moment of silence, asked, “Weren’t you moved when you wrote it?”
He Jingxiu pondered for a moment, “Not really.”
Bo Ying: “...”
She hummed, pursing her lips, “I’m more emotional.”
He Jingxiu curved his lips, “I know.”
He rubbed her hair, cupped her face, and kissed her cheeks, gently comforting her emotions.
They hugged for a while. After Bo Ying’s emotions had stabilized a bit, she looked up at him, full of curiosity, “Why did you suddenly think of writing this to me?”
He Jingxiu raised an eyebrow, “Tit for tat.”
Bo Ying was startled, looking into his deep eyes, and something clicked.
His “tit for tat” was referring to the letters she had once written but couldn’t successfully send. He hadn’t seen them, yet he still wrote her a reply.
The last gift He Jingxiu gave her was a letter, not too long but not too short, spanning several years.
He wrote to seventeen-year-old Bo Ying, to eighteen-year-old Bo Ying, to nineteen-year-old, twenty-year-old... up to twenty-four-year-old Bo Ying.
Some were just a few words, others were long paragraphs.
Every word, every sentence, was what he had wanted to say to Bo Ying.
It was his gift to the little sun, Bo Ying, who walked through the years without his company.
He was using his own way to prove that even though he wasn’t there for those few years, he was still thinking of her. She still lived in his beating heart.
Rooted deep, impossible to pull out.
________________________________________
The two looked at each other for a long time. Bo Ying suddenly pulled out of his embrace.
“Wait for me for a moment.”
He Jingxiu was startled, then suddenly smiled, “No hurry.”
“No,” Bo Ying said, “I also want to return the favor, but my letters are still over there.”
He Jingxiu hummed, “I know, so it’s not too late to read them tomorrow.”
Hearing this, Bo Ying looked at him suspiciously, “You’re really not in a hurry to read them?”
He Jingxiu stared at her for a long time, then pinched her chin and kissed her, his voice low and husky, “Right now, I’m more in a hurry for you to be on top.”
“............”
The perfectly emotional atmosphere was just ruined by He Jingxiu.
Bo Ying was caught off guard and pushed onto the bed by him.
Her mind hadn’t even fully recovered from the previous emotional moment before she plunged into another kind of emotional surge, unable to extricate herself.
Bo Ying had high aspirations.
Unfortunately, her stamina wasn’t quite there.
After being on top for a while, she complained of being tired and told He Jingxiu to do the work himself.
He Jingxiu had absolutely no way to deal with her, so he could only “reluctantly” agree and tend to her.
Considering they had to work the next day, He Jingxiu didn’t overdo it.
But Bo Ying kept snuggling up to him, clingy and reluctant to separate.
He looked at her, clinging to him like an octopus, exasperated but amused, “Don’t you want to go to work anymore?”
Bo Ying hit him, “I just want to stick with you.”
He Jingxiu chuckled deeply, affectionately leaning into her ear, “So moved?”
“...Mm.”
Bo Ying closed her eyes, feeling his heartbeat. After a moment of silence, she asked, “Why did that letter only go up to seventeen to twenty-four-year-old Bo Ying?”
He Jingxiu explained, “I was with sixteen-year-old Bo Ying.”
Bo Ying opened her eyes and looked at him.
He Jingxiu pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly, “From twenty-four onwards, I’ll be there every year, so it’s not needed.”
“...”
Bo Ying thought for a moment, “But what if I want it?”
“Want what?”
“A letter,” Bo Ying made a request, “I want you to write me a letter every year, okay?”
He Jingxiu looked at her, “Are you sure?”
“Mm,” Bo Ying smiled, her eyes crinkling, “I’ll collect them, and maybe I can read them to our children someday.”
Hearing that, He Jingxiu teased her, “Already thinking about having my children?”
Bo Ying kicked him half-heartedly, threatening, “Will you write it or not?”
He Jingxiu winced in pain, then pinched her chubby face and conceded, “I’ll write it.”
Bo Ying pressed her advantage again, “Then can I receive it every Christmas?”
He Jingxiu nodded, “You can.”
As soon as he said that, Bo Ying suddenly felt a little excited for the next Christmas.
Seeing the smile on her face, He Jingxiu asked softly, “So happy?”
“Happy, yes.”
Bo Ying linked her pinky finger with his, smiling, “This is our promise.”
He Jingxiu looked at her like that, his eyes deepening, his Adam’s apple moving slightly, and he hoarsely agreed, “Okay.”
This was their promise.
The next day, Bo Ying indeed kept her promise. After work, she went back to her place, mysteriously took out the letters she had once written to He Jingxiu, slipped them into his hand, and then shyly told him to read them after she fell asleep.
He Jingxiu respected her suggestion and truly read them after she was asleep.
The day after he read them, Bo Ying, twenty-four and almost twenty-five, received his reply.
This was a true, corresponding reply to her letters.
He told her the answers to the questions she had asked at that time, and informed seventeen-year-old Bo Ying what nineteen-year-old He Jingxiu was doing at that moment.
...
On New Year’s Eve, Bo Ying and He Jingxiu had dinner with Bo Yan and his family.
This wasn’t the first time the four of them had gathered for a meal, but this time Bo Ying felt it was more formal and grander than usual.
After the four had dinner together, they went their separate ways for their dates, no one wanting to be disturbed.
Bo Ying and He Jingxiu went to the riverside. There were many people by the river. Every New Year’s Eve, there would be fireworks and various light shows there.
Although they weren’t spectacular, everyone liked to join the fun.
The two squeezed through the crowd, Bo Ying’s hand tightly held by He Jingxiu, never letting go for a moment.
With He Jingxiu by her side, she didn’t need to watch where she was going.
After watching the light show and fireworks, the two went home.
On the way home, Bo Ying gazed out the window at the bustling crowds, suddenly remembering the reply letter he had written to her two days ago.
The letters seventeen-year-old Bo Ying wrote to He Jingxiu were mostly about daily life.
In one of them, she mentioned New Year’s Eve.
When sixteen-year-old Bo Ying attended New Year’s Eve, He Jingxiu was beside her. That night, for the first time, she was justifiably held by his hand.
Because she said she was afraid of getting lost, and He Jingxiu had reluctantly agreed.
She hadn’t told him then that she really wanted to kiss him that day, but she never found the opportunity.
And He Jingxiu’s reply told her.
That night, he had the same thought as her. She didn’t act on it, but he did.
On the way home, taking Bo Ying back, the two sat in the back of the bus. The lights from outside slanted in through the window, flickering bright and dim, casting shifting shadows.
In the back seat of the bus, he secretly kissed her.
Thinking about it, Bo Ying suddenly burst out laughing.
“He Jingxiu.”
She turned her head, his figure rippling in her eyes.
He Jingxiu raised an eyebrow, “Mm?”
Bo Ying actively leaned closer to him, whispering, “Let’s take a bus later.”
He Jingxiu paused, then immediately understood.
Parking the car near the bus stop, the two waited for the late-night bus.
There were still hardly any people.
The two walked to the back as usual and sat down side by side.
Their hands were tightly intertwined, palm against palm, feeling each other’s warmth and pulse.
After one stop, Bo Ying suddenly withdrew her gaze from the window and turned to look at the man beside her. Coincidentally, He Jingxiu also looked down.
Their figures were reflected in the bus window, their gazes lingering and tender.
After an unknown duration of eye contact, Bo Ying slowly leaned forward. Just as her lips were about to meet his, the man leaned down and kissed her.
Just like when she was sixteen, he acted before she did again.
He kissed the person who haunted his dreams.
Sixteen-year-old Bo Ying had the courage to go all in.
Twenty-four-year-old Bo Ying was just as before.
He Jingxiu was also the same.
They seemed to have changed in some ways, yet in others, they hadn’t.
She still loved him.
And in his heart, from beginning to end, there was only her.
After many twists and turns, they returned to their original starting point, but the story hasn’t ended.
Twenty-four-year-old Bo Ying and twenty-six-year-old He Jingxiu will continue to accompany each other for a very long time…
(End of Main Text)
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