Cross the sea

The following time seemed to be back on track. Li Chengyun and Hezhen arrived home almost every day. They ate hot pot, watched car movies, and went to livehouses like any ordinary couple.

He Ping became more and more silent, and her cooking became more and more salty. At first, Li Xiangting was able to resist eating, but after reminding her many times that there was no improvement, she dropped her chopsticks for the first time at the dinner table.

During this period, An Qianqiu was about to be discharged from the hospital, and He Zhen went to pick her up with an empty suitcase, but when the door of the ward opened, she was startled.

He Zhen stood at the door in a daze for two seconds, then walked in, stared at An Qianqiu for a while, and then confirmed that An Qianqiu, who had long hair since she was a child, had really cut her hair.

"It's not an illusion, I just cut it."

An Qianqiu flicked her short black hair that had just hung over her ears at He Zhen, and with a complicated expression on Shang He Zhen, she turned sideways and continued to fold her pajamas, "This time I was hospitalized and suddenly found that long hair is too troublesome. Short blue hair is required, I just don’t need to wear a wig.”

He Zhen didn't speak, he went around to the bed and opened the suitcase, An Qianqiu was still struggling with the wrinkled sleeves of his pajamas.

After going back and forth several times, An Qianqiu finally lost his patience, casually crumpled up his pajamas and threw them into the suitcase, lying on his back on the hospital bed.

"Zhou An confessed to me."

An Qianqiu stared at the snow-white ceiling, "What's the point of confessing, even a blind person can tell that he likes me."

"He said you rejected him."

He Zhen squatted on the ground and refolded the pajamas in the suitcase.

An Qianqiu closed his eyes and smiled: "Why is he talking so fast."

The pajamas were rescued successfully, and He Zhen also put away the toiletry bag on the table. At the end of the clean table, there was only a handful of sunflowers that had withered.

Noticing He Zhen who was standing still, An Qianqiu turned sideways and accidentally pressed on the wound, she frowned and gasped.

"Throw it away."

An Qianqiu blinked, and looked at He Zhen: "Everything that has expired must be disposed of."

"I didn't tell you when I was pregnant. If I told you, you would definitely scold me. At that time, I should not be far from crazy. Although my relationship with my dad is like that, I really watched him shut up. I don’t feel relieved when I die.”

An Qianqiu hugged the pillow, paused and said, "I just feel abandoned."

It's been a long time since An Qianqiu said so many words at once. He Zhen sat on the empty bed opposite and listened carefully.

"Maybe I'll recite it a little bit. I still won the lottery after taking all the safety measures."

No one in the room spoke anymore, only the sound of the air conditioner gushing out continuously. An Qianqiu seemed to have a lot to say, but in the end he only chose a sentence that was a bit hypocritical as the end: "Love is based on liking each other. Respect is what matters, not sympathy or accommodation, or it would be unfair to two people."

The cost of trial and error is too high, and not everyone is willing to spend precious time hitting the wall.

"You can do whatever you want, but you have to be happy."

He Zhen said.

An Qianqiu sat up from the bed, put her hands on her knees, looked at Hezhen face to face, squinted her eyes and smiled: "You too, be happy."

Coming out of the inpatient department, the black car parked under the shade of the trees started, and Li Chengyun took the suitcase and walked to the back of the car.

Li Chengyun has been waiting downstairs, An Qianqiu knew that he wanted to leave enough room for a private conversation between himself and He Zhen.

Sitting in the car and looking at Li Chengyun's eyebrows in the rearview mirror, An Qianqiu shook his head while feeling old-fashioned: I really grew up.

Crossing the viaduct full of bougainvilleas, An Qianqiu rolled down the car window. Her short hair was covered in the strong wind. An Qianqiu squinted her eyes and uttered a few obscenities, but still lay on the window frame without moving.

After counting how many pancake stalls and sugar twist carts there were in the old city, An Qianqiu closed the window, leaned back in his chair and said calmly, "Go to Xiangcheng in a few days."

He Zhen turned his head and asked how long she had been there.

"Not necessarily. If I feel good, I might settle there."

An Qianqiu yawned, his eyes quickly filled with water, "I'm different from you, I don't need to drag my family with me, I'm light."

He Zhen couldn't answer, but Li Chengyun suddenly turned around and parked the car on the side of the road, turned on the double flashing lights, took a pack of cigarettes and tore them open, knocked out one and handed it to the back seat.

It stands to reason that people who have just had surgery shouldn't smoke, but no one spoiled the atmosphere. An Qianqiu smiled and bit one into her mouth, murmuring indistinctly: "Understand me."

The bluish-white smoke quickly filled the carriage, and the fire swallowed the cigarettes bit by bit. Perhaps to change the subject, He Zhen took the initiative to say that He Ping had found out about him and Li Chengyun.

An Qianqiu raised his hand to fan the smoke in front of his eyes, raised his eyebrows and asked, "Then when will you elope?"

Li Chengyun rushed to the front and said: "Wait until you have saved enough money."

An Qianqiu pursed her lips dismissively, and mocked, "Financial man, vulgar."

He Zhen was very interested in this romantic-sounding topic. He moved closer to Li Chengyun and asked seriously whether the elopement was true or not.

"It's not that we can go anywhere we want after you are officially discharged from the army."

"Can I use that kind of thing, just take a stone and throw it on the map, wherever you throw it..."

"You are childish."

An Qianqiu extinguished the cigarette, "Elopement is only when you don't have a couple in your pocket. What you're talking about is a vacation."

He Zhen argued for a few more words, the two chattered nonsense, and finally An Qianqiu raised the white flag first, turned his head and waved his hands: "I won't argue with you anymore, it hurts my wound."

When An Qianqiu was downstairs, He Zhen asked her if she wanted to eat. An Qianqiu stood in front of the glass door and shook her head. She was much thinner than before, and the pain and time-consuming surgery took too much energy from her.

When she said that she was about to leave Haishi, Hezhen almost said the words to persuade her to stay, but finally held back.

Just like when he left, An Qianqiu cursed and shed tears, then waved goodbye to him in the airport hall.

After swiping the access control card, An Qianqiu turned around again, and said from a short distance, "I invite you to come to Xiangcheng at that time, you should come."

The parting has been confirmed, and the only thing that can be done is to make an appointment for the next meeting in advance.

-It was almost eleven o'clock when Li Chengyun and Hezhen returned home, the light in the living room was on, the door was opened, Li Xiangting was sitting on the sofa, and on the other side was He Ping who bowed her head and said nothing.

This scene is very familiar, Li Chengyun remembered the first time he confronted Zhen Wei, it was almost like this, but this time the object was changed to his father.

"I have no idea."

He Ping raised her head, her eyes were red, "I can't watch you go the wrong way."

Li Xiangting stood up, glanced over He Zhen, and finally landed on Li Chengyun.

His son is very similar to when he was young, he is good at socializing and careful. Li Xiangting once hoped that his son could become the second him, or even surpass him.

"You follow me to the study."

Li Xiangting turned around and walked to the second floor.

The carpet in the corridor had just been changed, and before Li Chengyun had time to change his shoes, he took a step and left footprints on the milky white plush.

Opening the study door and closing it again, Li Xiangting stood in front of the bookshelf with his back facing him, the second hand of the clock passed by, Li Xiangting finally said: "Really or not."

"real."

"Can you change it?"

"No."

Li Xiangting turned around, the veins in his neck were obvious, he supported the table, and took a deep breath: "I'll ask you again, can you change it."

No son is willing to let his father down on him. Li Chengyun looked directly at Li Xiangting, smiled, and repeated, "I can't change it."

Li Xiangting nodded: "Okay, it's okay, I'll wait for you to change it."