Living Paper

nostalgia/article

Axiu stood still in front of the door, looking at Xu Yanwen's smiling face, the light in her eyes dimmed.

Xu Yanwen didn't notice anything, he caught a "chicken", smiled and hugged the child in his arms, the child hugged Xu Yanwen, hugged him and smiled.

The Xu family donated money to the orphanage regularly, and Xu Yanwen would come every week to give the children a simple physical examination and eat with the children.

There are many families who donate money to the orphanage, such kind deeds are done by famous families in Shanghai, but Xu Yanwen is the only one who comes here every week.

Most people come when they donate money, bring reporters to take pictures, and get a good reputation in the newspapers.

Because Xu Yanwen came to inspect regularly, and also brought a group of celebrities and movie stars with money and leisure, more people came, and the orphanage dared not ignore the living environment and health problems of the orphans.

Although the meals they eat are ordinary, everyone can eat enough, and they can be sent to school to study when they are old.

Children are the most sensitive. All the children in the orphanage like Dr. Xu. As long as he comes, they can eat a whole piece of meat and drink milk.

Xu Yanwen was surrounded by seven or eight little radish heads. He checked that the time was about the same, and said to them, "Everyone line up and go back."

The children knew that he was leaving, so they held onto the hem of his clothes and looked up at him eagerly: "What will come next time?"

Xu Yanwen patted their heads one by one, and told these children with a smile: "I'll come as usual, see you next Thursday."

The older child led the younger ones and went into the house together, Xu Yanwen lifted his glasses, packed his things and prepared to leave.

The female student stopped him: "Doctor Xu."

She came here as a volunteer. Some of the activities organized by the school went to the factory to teach the workers how to read, and some went to study medicine and nursing. She chose an orphanage and met Xu Yanwen again here.

"Miss Cen," Xu Yanwen nodded, "What's the matter?"

"I..." Cen Dan blushed slightly, and she took out a box from her schoolbag, which was tied with a ribbon, and she handed the box to Xu Yanwen, "Doctor Xu, this is my Christmas present for you."

Xu Yanwen was a little surprised: "Is it for me?"

When he was studying abroad, some classmates did do as the Romans did, and they would exchange gifts with each other at Christmas, but it was exchanged by many people, and this was the first time he had received such a gift.

"I..." Xu Yanwen was thinking about how to politely refuse, he was not familiar with Miss Cen, so he shouldn't accept her gift.

"We met before." Cen Dan said boldly, "at the New Year's donation party."

Xu Yanwen had a dazed look on his face. After returning to China, he went to one or two banquets with his parents, most of which were donation parties. He didn't like that kind of occasion, and even if he attended, he just stayed on the sidelines. Miss Cen.

Cen Dan's eyes lit up, and she knew he didn't remember. The young boys were all dancing and socializing with the girls, and he was the only one sitting by the window, out of tune with the lights and neon lights.

When she went again later, she couldn't find Xu Yanwen again, so she turned a corner and asked a few words, and found out that he was a doctor.

Mrs. Xu also said that her son was so stupid in school and medicine that he was so absorbed in his work that he had no interest in meeting girls at all.

The ladies and wives sitting in a circle were all smiling. They all knew that Mrs. Xu's complaints were false, but her compliments were true.

An honest man who doesn't know style when he is working in the hospital is a hundred times better than a prodigal son who is on the racetrack and Miss Wu.

Xu Yanwen was good-looking, good-natured, and self-disciplined. Apart from making friends with the youngest son of the Huo family, there was nothing out of the ordinary.

He is very popular among wives.

Cen Dan did not expect to meet him in the orphanage, and he had no memory of them meeting, introducing each other, and almost dancing.

"Sorry, I don't remember." Xu Yanwen said while looking at the box, "I can't accept gifts, and I haven't prepared any gifts for you."

Cen Dan smiled, and she held the gift box in both hands and handed it over: "It's okay."

Xu Yanwen took half a step back, now he understood Miss Cen's meaning, his face flushed, he waved his hand and refused: "I'm sorry, I really won't accept it."

"Why?" Cen Dan mustered up her courage. Since she opened her mouth, she had to make it clear, and don't answer vaguely. She opened the gift box, and inside were the woolen gloves knitted by her own hands. The color matched Xu Yanwen's scarf.

She wanted him to know that she was serious.

Xu Yanwen frowned: "I'm going to meet the girl I like now."

Cen Dan was stunned, she thought of many reasons, for example, Xu Yanwen didn't like her personality, and even didn't like his appearance, but she never thought that he has a girlfriend!

She obviously asked, he doesn't have a girlfriend!Mrs. Xu is still looking for a blind date for him!

Cen Dan lowered her hand holding the box, clasped the lid of the box with both hands, stared straight at Xu Yanwen and asked, "Does the girl you like also like you?"

Now it's Xu Yanwen's turn to feel sad, does Axiu like him?Does she know what liking is?

Axiu turned around and left, she didn't see Xu Yanwen refuse, she crossed the road, ran all the way back to the bookstore, stood still in front of the store, her face was reflected in the glass.

She held her face, trying to pull the corner of her mouth, but she raised her hand and put it down again, she didn't dare, she was afraid that the paper face would be broken.

"Do you want to be human?" A voice floated into her ears, and Axiu turned around in panic, searching around.

Finally, her eyes fell on the woman in black across the road. The woman was wearing a long black coat that covered her neck to her ankles.

He wore a black veil hat on his head, and the veil hung down to cover half of his face.

Only the red lips under the veil were exposed, her lips did not move, but Axiu knew that she was the one who spoke.

"Who are you?" Axiu asked in her heart.

"I'm your kind." The woman answered Axiu in her heart without lifting her red lips.

The two looked at each other across the road, and it was the first time that Axiu met someone of the same kind who could talk to her.

There are many paper figurines in the master's house, and although those paper figurines also understand her mind, they are different after all, they are still paper, they are not like human beings.

"Who is your master?" Axiu asked her.

The woman in black smiled lazily. She stretched out her hand from her coat, holding a slender cigarette in her silk-gloved hand, and wiped open the silver box with the other hand.

The flames shot up quickly, across the road, Axiu shrank slightly, she could laugh, she was not afraid of fire.

The woman in black lit a cigarette, she took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled the smoke ring.

"My master is myself."

Axiu looked at her with eager eyes.

This look pleased the woman in black, she snuffed out the cigarette, and the fire spark burned a hole in the silk glove, but she was not afraid at all.

"Do you want to be a human too?"

------------------------

"I've seen you before." Axiu remembered that Xiaoyan was almost abducted by this woman.

The woman in black smiled, "If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have met him."

Axiu looked blankly at the woman in black, she didn't understand why she had to meet Xu Yanwen, although meeting him was indeed a very good thing.

"You should thank me. Only a person with a pure heart will give you such love." Even if she knew that she was a paper doll, she didn't regret it.

Enough sincere love can make paper come alive.

They didn't pick the wrong guy.

Axiu remained motionless, the woman in black seemed to know that she was hesitating, she chuckled lightly, and finally said, "If you want to be a human, come to me."

Xu Yanwen rejected Cen Dan's gift, he couldn't answer that question, but he only had Axiu in his heart.

It was already late when we left the orphanage. Xu Yanwen took the tram to the bookstore. As soon as the car stopped, he jumped out and saw Axiu standing in front of the bookstore, bowing his head and waiting for him.

A piece of paper was pasted on the door of the store, the owner has something to do and the store is closed today.

Xu Yanwen became anxious all of a sudden: "Axiu, have you been waiting for me for a long time? Is it cold?" After asking, he paused again. Of course it was cold, and the winter wind in Shanghai carried the moisture from the Huangpu River, piercing the bones.

But Axiu would not feel the cold, she would not be able to perceive the changes of the seasons, if he hadn't reminded her, she would still be wearing a long-sleeved single cheongsam in late autumn, attracting the attention of passers-by.

Axiu shook her head, indicating that she didn't wait long.

Xu Yanwen just played with the children in the orphanage, sweated a little, was blown by the cold wind, covered his mouth and nose with a handkerchief and sneezed.

Axiu pointed to the cafe across the street, Xu Yanwen nodded with a smile, they went into the cafe together and ordered two cups of hot coffee.

Xu Yanwen held the cup to keep warm, he smiled and asked Axiu: "There is a Christmas event in the orphanage, do you want to participate? It is to exchange gifts with the children."

Axiu nodded.

Xu Yanwen lowered his head and took a sip of his coffee: "Then let's go buy gifts after drinking."

Axiu nodded again, she stretched out her hand suddenly, covered Xu Yanwen's hand holding the cup with her slender fingers, and rubbed the back of his hand with her fingertips.

Xu Yanwen was stunned, he stared at Axiu, and even forgot to take his hand back.

"Axiu..."

What does it mean?

Axiu held his hand and asked him to turn the palm open. She took out a pair of woolen gloves from her bag and put them in Xu Yanwen's palm.

Xu Yanwen's face became even more flushed, his eyes shone brightly, and he stammered with joy: "Give it to me?"

Axiu nodded, she was unwilling to let that girl's gloves be worn on Xu Yanwen's hands.

Xu Yanwen immediately put it on, and he looked at the gloves with almost cherished eyes, and then he thought that he had no gift for Axiu.

"On Christmas, I will also give you a gift." Xu Yanwen hurriedly promised while wearing gloves.

He couldn't think of what to give to Axiu for a moment, and it seemed that nothing was worthy of her.Jewels are too tacky, clothes and shoes are too intimate, books are too ordinary.

Axiu looked at Xu Yanwen's muttering, and actually felt a kind of emotion in his chest that he had never felt before.

She stretched out her hand to hold her chest, and through the paper clothes, it was still the same body made of paper, nothing had changed.

The woman in black was standing at the corner of the street. She saw Axiu pressing her chest, her red lips raised, showing a satisfied smile. Her task was half done.

Xu Yanwen bought candies for the little ones, and notebooks and pens for the older ones. He kept observing Axiu to see what things her eyes would linger on.

Axiu likes beautiful clothes, and she read with great interest the movie star pictorials that Huo Zhenye brought back. When she arrived at the department store, she couldn't turn her eyes away when she saw so many fashionable clothes.

This is different from cutting cheongsams in a tailor shop. Department stores are all new products that have just arrived in Paris. Axiu's eyes linger on the clothes, but she doesn't reach out to touch them.

Xu Yanwen plucked up his courage: "Whatever you want, I...I can give it to you, just treat it as a gift in return for gloves."

He was afraid that Axiu would refuse, so Axiu really shook her head, Xu Yanwen smiled awkwardly, thinking that Axiu was unwilling to accept his gift, but Axiu took his hand.

"Not available" she wrote on the palm of his hand.

Xu Yanwen suddenly realized that Axiu was a paper figurine, and the paper figurines in Bai Zhun's place wore paper clothes and paper shoes. Even if they were wearing costumes, the small flags behind them were also made of paper.

Xu Yanwen didn't speak anymore, he followed Axiu all the time, watching her fumble around, but didn't buy anything, and occasionally got a few blank stares.

After sending Axiu home, Xu Yanwen went back to the department store, where he bought Axiu's favorite velvet cheongsam and high-heeled shoes just now.

I went to Sanguantang Road by car, and among all the shops with my bag, I found a paper-made shop with vivid utensils and clothes.

A woman in black was receiving him at the door. The woman raised her head and asked him, "What are you going to do?"

Xu Yanwen was sweating from running, and he carried the things in the bag: "Can these be made out of paper?"

A black velvet jacquard cheongsam and a pair of dark red high-heeled shoes, which he wanted to give to Axiu, so that Axiu could wear them to the Christmas party.

The woman in black nodded slowly, looked at Xu Yanwen and smiled: "Of course."