When the Stars Tremble

The Thirty-Eighth Star

Jiang Chuyi’s mind went blank for a brief moment, finding it difficult to understand his words.

“I did something wrong, right?” Zong Ye quietly gazed at her, “I made you unhappy.”

She instinctively denied, “No…”

“Chuyi, what kind of person do you think I am?” he asked.

Jiang Chuyi was still in a state of panic and answered without understanding, “I think you’re gentle, good-tempered… very polite.”

“Is that so?” Zong Ye no longer looked at her, “I think I’m a very cowardly person.”

She widened her eyes, only able to mechanically repeat his words, “Cowardly?”

Zong Ye seemed tired, his voice lowering, “If I weren’t cowardly, I would have directly told you a long time ago that we’ve known each other for a long time, it’s just that you forgot about me.”

“You and I… have known each other for a long time, and I forgot about you?!” Jiang Chuyi was shocked.

“Did I scare you?”

“I…”

Suddenly recalling Chen Xiangliang’s words, Jiang Chuyi questioned, “Are you talking about high school? You and your uncle were street musicians near my school, and we met then?”

Zong Ye quietly asked, “Do you still remember Li Xiangyuan?”

*

Li Xiangyuan…

In that small courtyard, Jiang Chuyi didn’t immediately answer Zong Ye’s question.

Zong Ye said indifferently, “We were in the same junior high school.”

Jiang Chuyi continued to be bombarded with shocks, still unable to say anything.

Because she really didn’t remember, and even hearing this name felt very unfamiliar.

After returning to Xiamen to film, Jiang Chuyi asked her mother to find her junior high graduation photo and send it directly to the filming crew.

When she received the photo, she scanned the rows of immature faces, but Jiang Chuyi couldn’t find Zong Ye. In the end, she could only determine who “Li Xiangyuan” was based on the few lines of names printed on the back of the photo.

Staring at this photo, she struggled to recall her junior high memories. The few fragmentary pieces related to him were also very blurry. Jiang Chuyi found her memories completely blank.

At that time, she was taken by Qin Tong to film and was at the height of her popularity. Her parents protected her well, even using a car to pick her up and drop her off at school. Due to her busy schedule, she couldn’t often stay at school. Occasionally, she would go back to attend classes for a couple of days and take exams. Most of the time, she had a special tutor giving her supplementary lessons on set.

For Jiang Chuyi, Li Xiangyuan could only be recalled as a small gray shadow. He seemed to wear thick-rimmed glasses and always kept his head down, not daring to make eye contact with her.

Many years later, hearing this name again, Jiang Chuyi’s reaction was actually that his surname wasn’t originally Lin.

Jiang Chuyi suddenly understood everything that had happened in the past six months.

From the beginning, Zong Ye had treated her strangely well. When they weren’t familiar with each other, no matter how her management company pulled him to hype things up, he willingly cooperated with everything and had no complaints towards her.

Flipping through the chat records with Zong Ye that night, Jiang Chuyi didn’t know how she felt at the moment.

Zong Ye: [I went back and thought about it for a long time. I actually shouldn’t have brought these things up to you and caused you trouble.]

Jiang Chuyi: [It’s no trouble. I indeed had forgotten a bit when I didn’t say anything at the time. Because I rarely went to school in junior high, I didn’t know many classmates. I didn’t intentionally forget you. Sorry about that.]

Zong Ye: [You helped me back then. Over the years, I’ve always regretted not being able to say thank you to you in time.]

At that time, Jiang Chuyi hesitated for a long time when facing this message, unsure of what specific “help” he was referring to.

But she didn’t dare to bluntly ask him, as it seemed a bit hurtful.

After a long while, she replied with a standard response: [It shouldn’t be anything big. You don’t need to take it to heart. It’s been a long time.]

Zong Ye: [I just lost control of my emotions and said a lot of things I shouldn’t have. You don’t need to be so polite to me. If you want to continue being friends with me, we’ll stay the same as before.]

……

……

For many days after that, Zong Ye never contacted her again.

Jiang Chuyi really wanted to know what she had done to help Zong Ye during those three years in junior high when they were classmates. She tried to ask Qiqi indirectly on WeChat for a long time, but unfortunately, she also had very little impression of Li Xiangyuan.

His presence was really too low-key. The only thing Qiqi remembered was that he was often bullied and later became Jiang Chuyi’s deskmate.

At the end of June, “Shining Stars” announced its premiere date, and the official Weibo released a trailer.

That very night, the hashtags #ZongYeJiangChuyi#, #MeetingYouIsABlessing#, and #ZongYePubliclyConfessesLove# exploded on the hot search.

Public opinion was in an uproar.

What caused such a huge reaction were two scenes in the trailer.

The first was Zong Ye actively buying water and a fan for Jiang Chuyi on Pozi Street.

The second was when several guests were playing a game on the bus.

Jiang Chuyi clearly remembered that in order to promote “Catching Stars”, the director had her and Zong Ye act out a scene from the movie where Fang Qing’s confession was rejected.

Zong Ye: “Can we change to another one? I can’t quite remember the lines.”

Others joined in and urged, “Then just improvise! Isn’t it just saying whatever comes to mind?”

Xu Jiayu watched the excitement, not afraid of causing trouble, “Zong Ye, how about this? I’ll give you a tip. If you forget the lines for rejection, just agree.”

But the clip released in the trailer cut out everyone else’s words, leaving only the last ten seconds or so.

Jiang Chuyi turned her head and asked him, “I’ve liked you for a long time, from a very long time ago. I’ve always liked you. If you don’t dislike me, can we give it a try?”

Under the gaze of everyone in the car, Zong Ye laughed and said, “Sure.”

This clip, with its head and tail cut off, sparked a fierce fan war.

The official Weibo of “Shining Stars” gained several hundred thousand followers overnight, becoming the only variety show in recent years to generate such high discussion before its official broadcast.

……

……

When departing for Zhengzhou to participate in the third episode’s recording, Gao Ning sent the edited content of “Shining Stars” to Jiang Chuyi’s email.

“This is the sample video the production team gave to the company. Take a look first.”

Jiang Chuyi downloaded the half-hour video on her phone and watched it several times during the flight.

After arriving in Zhengzhou and connecting to the internet, she composed a message that she had thought about for a long time and sent it to Gao Ning.

“I don’t want to hype up a CP with Zong Ye anymore, nor do I want to gain attention and popularity through this. Please communicate with the production team. If I affect their normal arrangements, report it to the company and follow the normal procedures to suspend the recording.”

After a while, Gao Ning replied, “Has the recent public opinion affected you? Don’t worry, it will get better after a while. Apart from a small portion of Zong Ye’s fans, many other passersby are also shipping your CP. Variety shows are aimed at the general public.”

Jiang Chuyi: “In the sample video they provided, there are many misleading edits that will seriously affect Zong Ye’s and my reputation if broadcast. I am an actress, and he is a male idol. I can benefit from the CP’s popularity, but he can’t. If it goes too far, it may affect Zong Ye’s future idol career.”

Gao Ning called her, “Why are you worried about him?! Zong Ye has plenty of fans. A variety show won’t affect him much.”

Jiang Chuyi handed her luggage to Xiao Zhong and walked alone to a less crowded area, “I previously thought the route the production team set for us was like Wang Tan and Feng Miaotong’s, so I agreed to cooperate with the PD as much as possible. But now it’s different.”

“What’s different?”

“Gao Ning, I only recently found out about some things, but I can’t tell you. Zong Ye has suffered a lot to get to where he is today. I don’t want him to lose it.”

“What?” Gao Ning’s tone was full of confusion, “Lose what? Is it that serious?”

Jiang Chuyi raised her eyes and saw a few people walking towards her. She hurriedly said, “I’ll tell you in person later.”

She covered the camera lens with one hand while putting on her mask with the other, lowering her head as she walked forward.

Several reporters beside her pursued relentlessly, extending their microphones in front of her, “Is it true that Zong Ye publicly confessed his love for you on the show? What’s your opinion on the recent hot searches these past few days?”

Jiang Chuyi was surrounded by people and had no choice but to stop.

The reporter asked again, “Can you respond?”

Jiang Chuyi squinted her eyes from the constant flashing of the cameras, “This is just a game. The show hasn’t officially aired yet. The specific content needs to be kept secret. I can’t reveal anything.”

“There are reports saying that you and Zong Ye are very ambiguous. He personally bought you water and a fan. Is this true?”

Jiang Chuyi was silent for a moment, then said, “He’s a very good person, very caring towards everyone. A lot of it is for the show’s effect.”

A few minutes later, Feng Jia arrived with bodyguards. She shielded Jiang Chuyi and dispersed the group of paparazzi, “We will have a press conference at a later time. If you have questions, you can ask then. Please don’t privately harass the guests and affect the normal recording of the show. Thank you.”

……

……

The third and fourth episodes were recorded consecutively in Zhengzhou and Xi’an. The online buzz about Zong Ye never subsided.

During the more than a week of filming, Jiang Chuyi tried to avoid suspicion and deliberately avoided many opportunities to interact with Zong Ye on camera. She wanted to find a chance to talk to Zong Ye alone about her plans, but she could never find the right opportunity.

Until the afternoon when the recording of the show ended, Jiang Chuyi sorted out her thoughts and was ready to have a good talk with Zong Ye, but Feng Jia informed her that the BloodXGentle members had a tight schedule and had left Xi’an early.

After returning to Xiamen, the filming was nearing its end. Jiang Chuyi tried sending a few WeChat messages to Zong Ye, but they all sank like a stone.

“September Rain” wrapped up in early July. After having dinner with the crew, she returned to Shanghai and finally received two messages from Zong Ye.

[Show effect?]

[You don’t think I’m doing charity, do you?]

At that time, Jiang Chuyi was eating oatmeal at home. Staring at these two inexplicable messages, she stopped what she was doing, unsure if he had sent them to the wrong person.

She was still hesitating on how to reply when the other side directly called.

Jiang Chuyi took two deep breaths, slid the screen, and picked up, “Hello?”

“Jiang Chuyi?”

It was Wang Tan’s voice.

Jiang Chuyi was stunned, “Why is it you?”

Wang Tan didn’t answer her question and said, “Have you seen your hot search?”

“What hot search?”

“The one where you were cornered by paparazzi at the airport and publicly gave Zong Ye a nice person card.”

“That went on the hot search? I didn’t know.” Jiang Chuyi explained, “I wasn’t giving him a nice person card. I was responding to the misleading editing of the reality show.”

Wang Tan was quiet for a moment.

“Were the messages just now sent by you?”

Wang Tan: “I asked on behalf of Zong Ye. He didn’t dare to ask, so I did. Do you think he likes being a scapegoat, randomly creating buzz for this crappy variety show? If it weren’t for you—”

Before he could finish, a low shout came from the side.

It was chaotic for a while on that end. Soon, the person on the phone changed. Zong Ye coughed and spoke in a very hoarse voice, “Chuyi?”

“I’m here.”

“Sorry.” Zong Ye coughed again, still in that gentle tone, “I can’t see anything these past few days. I just had surgery. My assistant has my phone. Don’t take what Wang Tan said to you to heart.”

“Surgery?!” The cup in Jiang Chuyi’s hand fell to the ground. She panicked, “What happened to your eyes?”

“It’s nothing. Retinal detachment. I’ve already had the surgery. The doctor said the surgery was very successful.”

“Are you still in the hospital now?”

“Mm.”

“Which hospital are you in?” Jiang Chuyi quickly walked to the living room, searching for her car keys, “Can I come see you?”

“It’s late now. Come tomorrow.”

“I want to go now.” Jiang Chuyi choked up, adding, “I’ll just look at you from outside. I won’t disturb your rest. Is that okay?”

The other side was quiet for a moment. Zong Ye sighed lightly, “I’ll have my assistant send you the address.”

……

……

On the way to the hospital, Jiang Chuyi kept checking the navigation app. The journey of more than an hour felt extremely long, making her anxious to the point of almost running a red light.

The more anxious she was, the more likely she was to make mistakes. When she was almost there, Jiang Chuyi desperately realized that she had actually entered the wrong hospital entrance and had to drive back and return.

After going back and forth several times, when she finally arrived at the inpatient building, the nurse stopped her outside, saying that visiting hours were over and no more visits were allowed.

Jiang Chuyi was reluctant to leave and lingered at the entrance of the inpatient building for a while, looking up at the lit windows of the building, silently guessing which ward Zong Ye was in.

Driving continuously for several hours made her feel a bit tired.

Jiang Chuyi walked over to a bench and sat down disappointedly.

She had left in a hurry, not even changing out of her slippers and pajamas.

Jiang Chuyi searched online for the symptoms and posts about retinal detachment, reading attentively, not even noticing when someone sat down beside her.

Chen Xiangliang spoke with a smile, “Why are you still sitting here?”

The sudden voice startled Jiang Chuyi. She turned her head and exclaimed, “Uncle.”

“Yeah.” Chen Xiangliang nodded, “You still remember me.”

Jiang Chuyi: “Did you just come out of the ward? How is Zong Ye doing now?”

“Don’t worry. Except for temporarily not being able to see, there are no other problems.” Chen Xiangliang reassured her.

“How did Zong Ye suddenly have a retinal detachment? Did the doctor say the reason?”

“I don’t know the specific reason. Zong Ye delayed it for too long.” Chen Xiangliang frowned, “He said he started seeing spots when looking at things some time ago. He went to see a doctor then and was diagnosed with myodesopsia. Later, he got too busy with work and delayed treatment. A couple of days ago, both his eyes lost sight, so he came to the hospital.”

“When we were recording the show together before, he kept rubbing his eyes.” Jiang Chuyi guiltily muttered, “I was too careless. I should have reminded him to go to the hospital for a thorough check-up at that time.”

“No, no, no, it has nothing to do with you. It’s mainly because he was busy with work and didn’t take it seriously.”

Jiang Chuyi lowered her eyes and didn’t say anything.

Seeing the undisguised sadness on her face, Chen Xiangliang spoke up to comfort her, “Zong Ye has been too tired these past few years since his debut. It’s a good thing for him to take a break during this time.”

Jiang Chuyi forced a smile, “That’s true.”

The two were quiet for a long time. Jiang Chuyi suddenly asked, “Uncle, has Zong Ye mentioned me to you?”

Chen Xiangliang stared at her for a while before slowly saying, “He has.”

“We were junior high classmates, but I don’t remember much from junior high anymore. I was always out filming at that time and rarely stayed at school.” Jiang Chuyi lowered her head, clasped her hands together, and placed them on her knees, “He never took the initiative to mention it to me, so I never recognized that Zong Ye was my classmate.”

“Chuyi, I hope you don’t blame Zong Ye for hiding it from you.” Chen Xiangliang showed a smile, his voice calm, “We may be a bit different from you. Zong Ye and I have both been through a lot of hardships and have been looked down upon by many people. I haven’t asked him specifically, so I don’t know what mentality he had in not daring to mention the past to you. But I guess that Zong Ye may still feel very inferior when facing you.”

Jiang Chuyi’s heart ached upon hearing this. She quickly shook her head, “How could that be, how could that be.”

Chen Xiangliang said, “Do you want to hear me tell you about the things related to you that I know from Zong Ye?”

Jiang Chuyi answered him, “I want to hear it.”

……

……

In 2008, Jiang Chuyi was eleven years old. She was selected by Qin Tong and acted in her first movie, debuting in the entertainment industry and becoming the youngest and most dazzling “Tong Girl”.

The Olympic year arrived with the coming of the new year. The streets and alleys were filled with joy and family celebrations. Yet, Zong Xiuyun attempted suicide at home for the third time and was sent to the hospital for emergency treatment.

In the emergency room on New Year’s Eve, the doctor saw the little boy sitting in the corner and couldn’t help but frown, “Where are the patient’s other family members?”

Zong Hongyun spoke up, “I’m her younger sister.”

The doctor pointed at the boy, “Is this child from your family?”

“Yes, I’m his aunt.”

The doctor was about to ask a few more questions but was pulled away by the nurse beside him.

After closing the door, the nurse lowered her voice and said, “Don’t ask anymore. This patient named Zong Xiuyun has been sent in for emergency treatment three times in the past few months. I heard her husband abandoned his wife and child and married the daughter of a real estate tycoon. It’s really pitiful. The child has even taken a leave of absence from school.”

A few days later, Zong Xiuyun was discharged from the hospital, and the doctor quickly put the matter out of his mind.

In early 2009, Zong Xiuyun entrusted her son to her younger sister and chose to end her life by jumping from a building.

The building she chose to jump from was a property developed by that real estate tycoon. Zong Hongyun cried and shouted, bringing the young Zong Ye to make a scene a few times.

Seeing that the matter was getting bigger and bigger, the other party had no choice but to settle privately. They compensated them a large sum of money, changed Zong Ye’s name to Li Xiangyuan, and sent him to a private junior high school with good confidentiality.

In September, on the first day of school, Zong Ye arrived at this delicate school that was completely out of place for him, carrying a worn-out schoolbag.

When introducing himself on stage, facing a sea of classmates, Zong Ye kept his mouth tightly shut and remained silent for a long time, unable to say his name.

In the end, the young female homeroom teacher had no choice. She wrote his name on the blackboard and let him sit back in his seat.

The boy behind him called out “Li Xiangyuan” a few times, but Zong Ye didn’t react.

It wasn’t until his chair was kicked that Zong Ye turned his head.

The little boy asked, “Are you mute? Why don’t you speak?”

Zong Ye turned his head back.

When school was over and the teacher left the classroom, the little boy brought a few people to surround him, “Are you mute? Why don’t you speak?”

Zong Ye turned a deaf ear and put the newly distributed textbooks into his schoolbag.

The little boy was a bit annoyed after being ignored repeatedly. He reached out to take something from Zong Ye’s schoolbag, “What’s this black box you’re packing? Is it a toy?”

Zong Ye suddenly pushed him.

The little boy staggered a few steps and fell to the ground. He quickly reacted and pounced on Zong Ye, wrestling with him.

In the chaos, Zong Ye saw someone reaching for his schoolbag. He finally said his first sentence at school, “Don’t touch my mother’s urn.”

……

……

In this private school, there were two famous figures, both in the same class.

The first was the boy who fought with Zong Ye on the first day of school. His family had power and influence. It was said that even the school leaders had to smile and bow when they saw his parents.

The second was Jiang Chuyi, a famous child star who was very beautiful.

Zong Ye offended the first person and was naturally ostracized and bullied by all his classmates. But he didn’t care about that.

Zong Ye heard people mention the second person a lot but rarely saw her.

Every time Jiang Chuyi came to school, she would be surrounded by a group of girls asking about this and that.

Zong Ye had seen her from afar a few times.

She was indeed very good-looking, with snow-white skin and delicate features. She also looked very nice when she smiled. The way she walked and the sound of her voice were different from others. Most importantly, she was generous and amiable, often bringing cakes to share with her classmates.

Zong Ye really wanted to eat her cakes.

Because his aunt only gave him a little bit of living expenses every month, he lived alone in a rental house and always felt very hungry.

But Zong Ye didn’t dare to approach. For someone like him, let alone talking to Jiang Chuyi, he didn’t even have the opportunity to get close to her.

In the summer of the second year of junior high in 2010, Polaroid cameras had just become popular. That day, the school held an event.

Jiang Chuyi was sitting right in front of Zong Ye.

When the event ended, Zong Ye stood up and found that she had left a white plastic camera on her seat.

Zong Ye didn’t know what it was, only that it belonged to her.

He bent down, picked up the camera, and was about to take it back to her desk.

As soon as he walked into the classroom, several people’s gazes fell on his hand.

A girl shouted, “Chuyi, your Polaroid is with Li Xiangyuan.”

Jiang Chuyi let out an “oh” and turned her head. For the first time, her gaze fell on him. Zong Ye didn’t dare to meet her gaze and became flustered.

Other boys started teasing, “Li Xiangyuan stole Jiang Chuyi’s things! Let’s go tell the teacher!”

Jiang Chuyi reacted and immediately told the group of people, “I gave it to him. He didn’t steal it.”

Zong Ye opened his mouth, but facing her kind smile, he couldn’t make a sound.

That day, there were a few intermittent showers. After school, Zong Ye picked up the Polaroid camera and followed behind Jiang Chuyi.

He walked behind her the whole time. She held an umbrella and never looked back.

Zong Ye didn’t dare to approach her and silently followed Jiang Chuyi out of the school.

There was a tree-lined path outside the school. Jiang Chuyi stood by the side of the road and didn’t walk further.

She seemed to be waiting for someone.

A stray dog darted out from somewhere, circling around her.

Jiang Chuyi shifted her umbrella a bit to shelter the dog from the rain as well.

Zong Ye was not far away, watching her take out a small piece of bread from her schoolbag, crumble it, and feed it to the stray dog.

He suddenly realized that in Jiang Chuyi’s eyes, he probably wasn’t much different from this stray dog.

They were both quite dirty and pitiful.

After Jiang Chuyi finished feeding the dog, she turned her eyes and discovered the person peeking at her from under the tree. She recognized him as her classmate and called out to him with some confusion, “Do you need something?”

The rain was getting heavier. Zong Ye walked over and handed the Polaroid camera to her, “Your camera, I’m returning it to you.”

Jiang Chuyi realized, “Oh, didn’t I say I was giving it to you? I have many more at home.”

Zong Ye thought she was disgusted that he had dirtied it and hurriedly said, “I wiped it for you. It’s very clean.”

Feeling that it wasn’t enough, he pulled up the only dry corner of his clothes and repeatedly wiped it.

Jiang Chuyi stared at the skinny little boy in front of her.

She was young at that time and didn’t understand the meaning of the phrase “the misery of the world”, but seeing this scene, she felt very uncomfortable and spoke up to stop him, “Alright, don’t wipe it anymore.”

Zong Ye stopped, thinking he had done something wrong again. His little head was also hanging low. He didn’t dare to speak again or look at her.

Jiang Chuyi walked a bit closer, “I really want to give it to you. You were sitting behind me just now. When I was taking photos, you kept looking. I wanted to ask if you like Polaroid cameras?”

Zong Ye took a step back, showing a look of embarrassment, “I’ve never seen this thing before. I was a bit curious. I don’t know how to use it. You should keep it for yourself.”

Jiang Chuyi’s smile was innocent and affectionate, “It’s very easy to use. I’ll teach you.”

She took the white camera from his hand, held it up, and pressed a certain button.

Soon, the white camera beeped twice and spit out a photo.

Jiang Chuyi shook the photo paper and told him, “It’s similar to a regular camera. You press the protruding thing and there will be a photo. It’s very convenient. You only need to wait one minute. But the film is limited, so you need to buy new ones when you finish taking photos.”

Zong Ye repeated, “I can’t afford it. I should still return it to you.”

Hearing this, Jiang Chuyi found another roll of film from her schoolbag and gave it to him, “Here, there are still twenty sheets. Use them sparingly. By the way, what’s your name?”

Zong Ye timidly mumbled, “My name is… Li Xiangyuan.”

“What?” She didn’t hear clearly.

He said word by word, “Li, Xiang, Yuan.”

“It’s Li Xiangyuan, right?” Jiang Chuyi repeated it and confirmed, “When you grow up and earn your own money, you’ll definitely be able to afford it.”

“How are you getting home?” Jiang Chuyi asked again.

“Walking.”

“It’s raining. You’ll catch a cold if you walk back.” Jiang Chuyi pointed to the side, “My dad is here. I’ll have him give you a ride.”

Zong Ye glanced to the side and saw the black car parked by the road. He then looked at his sneakers covered in mud and felt embarrassed for the first time.

He stuttered, “No, no need. I can take the bus. Thank you.”

“No need to thank me.” Jiang Chuyi didn’t insist. She handed him the umbrella and instructed, “Then be careful on the way.”

She ran all the way to the side of the road. Before getting in the car, she waved at him again.

He stood there, dumbfounded, holding the things she gave him. He didn’t move for a long time. In the end, Zong Ye couldn’t bear to use the umbrella she gave him. He hugged it together with the camera, covered them with his schoolbag, and ran home in the rain.

……

……

That rainy day was the first time Zong Ye had the opportunity to talk to Jiang Chuyi alone.

After that, Zong Ye gradually became less resistant to going to school. He really looked forward to seeing her, even if they didn’t talk and he could only look at her from afar.

But Jiang Chuyi was always very busy. Every time she would only go to school for half a day of classes, then disappear for a long time.

Zong Ye didn’t know if she needed it or not, but he still took notes diligently every day, writing down the knowledge the teacher taught in class. He hoped that one day he could give them to her in person.

In the first semester of ninth grade, Jiang Chuyi heard from somewhere that he often got into fights and was always bullied and ostracized in class. No one was willing to be his deskmate.

That day, she found him and asked, “I talked to the homeroom teacher and said I wanted to be your deskmate. But I can’t come to school often. Will you feel lonely sitting alone?”

Zong Ye said, “No.”

Jiang Chuyi: “Okay, then I’m relieved.”

When they were talking, Zong Ye kept his head down.

He clenched his hands, not knowing where to put his hands and feet out of nervousness. He could only bite his lower lip hard, using the pain to restrain his body from trembling with excitement. It wasn’t until after she left that Zong Ye remembered he still hadn’t given her the notes he took.

In the summer of 2012, during ninth grade, on the day they took the graduation photo, Jiang Chuyi finally returned to school after half a year.

Zong Ye held the Polaroid camera and hesitated for a long time.

Watching waves of people come and go beside her, Zong Ye finally mustered up the courage to walk over and carefully asked, “Can I take a photo with you?”

Jiang Chuyi thought for a few seconds and agreed.

She didn’t have much of an impression of the person in front of her. They had only spoken a few times. But every time she saw him, she felt that he was pitiful, malnourished, and even shorter than her.

As he was fiddling with the Polaroid camera, Jiang Chuyi asked, “Can you take off your glasses? The sun is very bright today. There might be glare.”

Zong Ye: “Okay.”

He raised his hand and took off the thick glasses frame.

Jiang Chuyi seemed surprised for a moment. She leaned in, carefully looked at him, and praised, “Your eyes are so beautiful.”

Zong Ye’s heart was pounding. His heart was beating so hard that even his chest ached. All his blood rushed to his eardrums.

He mumbled a thank you.

They took the photo and waited for one minute for it to develop. Zong Ye put his glasses back on and looked at Jiang Chuyi, who was one step away. He suddenly realized that this might be the last time he saw her.

A huge sense of helplessness spread in his heart, as if it was about to drown Zong Ye.

That day, the weather was clear, with blue sky and white clouds. The sunlight was abundant, and the trees in the distance were lush. The ends of Jiang Chuyi’s hair were blown by the breeze, and she was enveloped in a layer of subtle radiance.

She smiled and tilted her head, not noticing the layer of tears emerging in his eyes. She said to him, “The weather is so nice today. Li Xiangyuan, I wish you smooth sailing in the future. I’m leaving now.”