Ji Shuhe didn't answer and just shoved her phone back into her pocket.
Wen Shaoyu wasn't letting her off. "What bad thing were you so focused on?"
"It wasn't a bad thing." Ji Shuhe didn't want to say. She fished out the key and shook it in front of Wen Shaoyu. "And I entered legally. See the key? Who gave it to me?"
Wen Shaoyu let out a low, muffled laugh. His big hand wrapped around hers and took the key. "Confiscated."
Ji Shuhe didn't argue. Anyway, when Wen Shaoyu needed it, the key would come back to her.
She looked him up and down, confirming he hadn't sustained any new injuries, before speaking. "How... how did you get back?"
"By taxi." Wen Shaoyu paused, then added, "I thought you'd ask why I came back."
"...As long as you didn't get beaten."
Ji Shuhe let out a soft sigh. Her gaze swept over Wen Shaoyu's face before dropping. "Actually, I was a bit worried. I was afraid that what I said to you before wouldn't apply to you... that I was wrong."
"Our situations are different. I was afraid that because of my words, you would try to accommodate him, but deep down you couldn't accept it, and then you'd fight and get beaten again."
Wen Shaoyu replied, "No, what our Xiao Miaomiao says can't be wrong."
Ji Shuhe laughed in exasperation. "And what if I am wrong?"
"Then I'll pretend the wrong words weren't yours." Wen Shaoyu smiled, propped his hands on his knees, and bent down to look her in the eye. "And I'm not stupid. I'll let myself get burned once, but not every time."
Ji Shuhe wrinkled her nose. "I think you're pretty stupid."
"Who's stupid?" Wen Shaoyu reached out, pinched the soft flesh of her cheek, and gently tugged.
"You!" Ji Shuhe didn't back down.
Afraid of hurting her, Wen Shaoyu let go. "Fine, fine, it's me. I surrender."
Silence fell. Ji Shuhe knew he was humoring her.
Deep down, she was still uneasy. She was afraid of influencing Wen Shaoyu, and even more afraid that her influence would cause him trouble. After thinking it over, she couldn't help asking, "Then why did you suddenly come back at this hour?"
Wen Shaoyu took off his jacket and hung it in the wardrobe. He shrugged. "Eating a meal was already giving him face. If I'd stayed longer, we would have argued anyway. Better to come back early."
Ji Shuhe didn't believe him. She pressed, "Tell me the truth."
Seeing her insistence, as if she wouldn't leave without a satisfactory answer, Wen Shaoyu closed the wardrobe door and faced her.
"That is the truth."
"Because I didn't want to see him. In my heart, he's not someone I can share joy with. But I wanted to see you. I wanted to be the first to wish you a happy New Year. So I came back."
"Is that answer acceptable?"
As he spoke, Wen Shaoyu leaned in. Their eyes met, inches apart. Ji Shuhe's face flushed crimson, the heat spreading from her neck to her ears, her cheeks and earlobes burning.
She took a few deep breaths, trying to suppress the heat from her racing heart, but Wen Shaoyu's focused gaze was inescapable, heating up the air. Finally, she turned to flee.
"You... you just talk nonsense! I'm going back to sleep! Do whatever you want!"
She hurried, but couldn't outrun his long arms and legs. Only a few steps out of the room, he caught her at the corridor window.
Outside was a bleak night, no moon or stars.
Wen Shaoyu held her wrist. "I'm not talking nonsense. Everything I say to you is serious."
The light from his room spilled out onto the doorstep. Taking advantage of her distraction, Wen Shaoyu gently took her hand.
Warm. Dry.
The same as always, yet different.
"Ji Shuhe, may the new year bring you happiness and smooth sailing."
Unbeknownst to them, midnight had already passed. From somewhere nearby, a TV was playing loudly. In the brief silence, the song "Unforgettable Tonight" could be heard.
Xinhai had banned fireworks early on. The New Year without them was silent, but Ji Shuhe felt her heartbeat could rival the thunderous fireworks of old.
She opened her mouth but no sound came out. Wen Shaoyu lowered his voice and spoke. "New year, new beginnings. Last year's wish didn't come true. Want to make a new one this year?"
Ji Shuhe looked at him, confused.
Wen Shaoyu nodded at her, then closed his eyes. "I hope Xiao Miaomiao grows up strong and doesn't always have so much on her mind."
In such a serious moment, this idiot Wen Shaoyu made such a silly wish.
"Take care of yourself first," Ji Shuhe pouted, muttering under her breath. He was about to take the college entrance exam, and he was in a worse state with his father than she was.
As for herself... she didn't really expect anything.
Xia Chun and Ji Xiangjiang's separation was a relief, and she was already very, very content.
If only Yong'anli wouldn't be demolished.
Thinking this, Ji Shuhe closed her eyes.
Then... may everything go smoothly for Wen Shaoyu.
...
A breeze rose from somewhere, stirring pages that hadn't been turned in a long time. Before it flipped the thin sheet over, one could faintly make out the words written on it.
"...The ancient metaphor makes the moment sacred, and even wandering, every road will lead us home."*
Ji Shuhe snapped back to reality. She pressed down the page again but couldn't take in any more words. She closed the book, as if closing the two years that, since she was fourteen, had felt like a dream.
Eyes shut, before her was the focused, serious profile of that boy from New Year's Eve. It had been eight years.
Eight years since she had left without a word, and they had lost all contact.
"Xiao Shu!"
Lost in melancholy, she heard someone calling from afar. Ji Shuhe opened her eyes, saw who it was, and immediately stood up, gripping her suitcase handle. "Senior, I'm here!"
"Xiao Shu, welcome back to China."
Shen Xing walked quickly to her, gave her a familiar hug, then naturally took her luggage. "Sorry, traffic was bad. Have you been waiting long?"
Ji Shuhe shook her head. "Not long. I just got my luggage and found a place to sit."
Shen Xing knew she was just being polite, so he didn't dwell on it. "Let's go. My car is in the basement, not far."
"Okay."
Ji Shuhe knew Shen Xing well. She had met him eight years ago.
Shen Xing's father was an old friend of Xia Chun's, and they had been in the same university and the same major. With those connections, he had later recommended Ji Shuhe for an internship and helped her join this project that allowed her to return to China.
Ji Shuhe didn't stand on ceremony. She let Shen Xing take her luggage and walked beside him.
"I've already booked a hotel. You can rest and adjust to the jet lag for the first couple of days. If you want more convenience after you start work, I can arrange a short-term rental. We'll look at options together then."
Shen Xing had returned to China a week earlier than Ji Shuhe after the project was approved. He was always thoughtful and thorough, explaining everything in a few sentences.
"Are you tired? You can sleep in the car. With Xinhai traffic heading toward the city center, who knows how long it'll take."
Ji Shuhe knew that well. Back in the day, the road near Yong'anli was always jammed during rush hour. It could take several traffic light cycles to get through an intersection.
"It's rush hour, and we're going from the airport to the city. Traffic is always bad. I know."
Shen Xing caught something in her words. The look behind his silver-rimmed glasses dimmed, but he only asked casually, "Xiao Shu, aren't you from Yuanjing? How come you know Xinhai?"
"I lived in Yuanjing until I was fourteen."
As she spoke, Ji Shuhe's polite smile became strained, and her tone grew somber.
"But the two years before I went abroad, I lived in Xinhai."
Author's note: *From "Klingsor's Last Summer"
[Shy] Tomorrow is New Year's Eve! Here's an extra-long chapter!