STT – Chapter 15
by Little PandaJiang Huaixi Blushed to the Tips of Her Ears in an Instant
The table Jiang Huaixi had reserved was excellent, situated right by the window. The table across the aisle happened to be vacant at the moment, lending the spot a quiet, natural seclusion.
Lu Zizheng was happy to leave the ordering to Jiang Huaixi. Having dined out with her so many times, she knew Jiang Huaixi always had an uncanny knack for catering precisely to her tastes. This time, however, she noticed that Jiang Huaixi had not ordered any dessert.
“Did you forget something?” Lu Zizheng dropped a subtle hint. She had a sweet tooth and, whenever possible, she never missed out on dessert when dining out.
Without even looking up, Jiang Huaixi replied, “Didn’t I say earlier? I don’t plan on ordering cake.”
Lu Zizheng gritted her teeth and called out to the departing waitress herself. “I’d like a serving of—”
Before she could finish, Jiang Huaixi cut her off. “It’s fine, just these, this is enough…” The waitress looked at them both in embarrassment. Jiang Huaixi nodded to her and gestured again, “It’s fine now…” Only then did the waitress hesitantly take her leave.
Lu Zizheng hadn’t expected Jiang Huaixi to take what had been a mere joke so seriously.
With her appetite unsatisfied, Lu Zizheng turned her head toward the window before the food arrived, ignoring Jiang Huaixi and putting on an air of aloofness.
In the reflection of the window glass, she caught a faint glimpse of Jiang Huaixi smiling as she slid a red box in front of her.
“If you don’t turn around now, I’m throwing this into the trash. No one wants it anyway.” Jiang Huaixi’s habitually cool voice carried a hint of feigned grievance. It was rare to hear Jiang Huaixi speak in such a tone, and Lu Zizheng, unable to resist, turned back to look at her expression.
Unfortunately, Jiang Huaixi’s expression was as calm and indifferent as ever; Lu Zizheng had thought she might actually show a rare moment of cuteness.
Upon opening the red box, she found a fashionable, wide-strap wristwatch inside. It was not a big brand, but it was elegant, beautiful, and completely to Lu Zizheng’s liking.
Perhaps Jiang Huaixi was thoughtful; over the years, she had never given gifts that were too expensive for Lu Zizheng to accept. To some extent, Jiang Huaixi knew how to interact with her, maintaining an excellent sense of boundaries. Early on, even if Lu Zizheng wanted to resist, she found herself unable to refuse.
From the moment Lu Zizheng opened the box, Jiang Huaixi had been carefully observing her expression. Only when she saw the involuntary smile on Lu Zizheng’s lips did she feel at ease, a sense of joy rising within her.
She had given Lu Zizheng several watches over the years. Aside from the very first one, which Lu Zizheng had never worn, every single one had stayed on her wrist until Jiang Huaixi presented her with a new one to replace it.
The first time she gave her a watch, it was simply because she felt the watch on Lu Zizheng’s hand was a bit old. Unfortunately, for a long time afterward, she never saw Lu Zizheng wear it even once. Because of this, she couldn’t help but feel disappointed.
But when she accidentally caught sight of the long scar running along the inside of Lu Zizheng’s wrist, she understood in an instant why the watch had fallen out of favor. The strap of that watch had been of that extremely thin and delicate kind, unable to cover the past that Lu Zizheng did not want others to know.
She had never asked Lu Zizheng about the past behind that scar, but in the years that followed, she sent her one wide-strap watch after another, finally seeing them appear on Lu Zizheng’s wrist, one by one.
Today, however, seemed a little different.
For the first time, Lu Zizheng took off her old watch right in front of her and put on the new one. The scar on the inside of her wrist was clearly visible. Lu Zizheng had no intention of hiding it at all; instead, she calmly held out her hand for Jiang Huaixi to admire, asking with a smile, “Does it look good?”
Jiang Huaixi supported her chin with one hand and replied with a smile, “It looks good.” She paused, then added, “A watch I chose, even if worn on a hand as ugly as yours, can’t hide its beauty. The key is still my good taste.”
Lu Zizheng could not help but scoff. “Aren’t you afraid of biting your tongue when saying one thing and meaning another?”
Jiang Huaixi blinked. “I’m sorry, but I’ve always preferred speaking the truth. My mother taught me from a young age that children who tell lies are bad children.”
Lu Zizheng looked at Jiang Huaixi, feeling rather exasperated. It seemed she’d never managed to elicit a single compliment from Jiang Huaixi’s lips that did not carry a thorn. Was it really that hard to praise her just once?!
Yet, looking down at the wide strap on her hand that carefully covered and enclosed the scar, Lu Zizheng’s heart still softened completely. From the thin strap of the first watch to the wide straps of every watch that followed, she had slowly come to understand Jiang Huaixi’s silent tenderness and consideration.
In life, it is rare to have someone treat you with such tenderness.
She gazed at Jiang Huaixi, her eyes carrying an unspeakable earnestness and tenderness: “Huaixi, thank you. Truly.”
Then, she actually saw Jiang Huaixi blush to the tips of her ears in an instant. In her nervousness, as she lowered her left hand supporting her chin, she accidentally knocked over her glass, wetting her cuff.
Such a flustered Jiang Huaixi was a rare sight. Lu Zizheng simply watched with a smile, enjoying the view as Jiang Huaixi pulled out tissues to clumsily wipe her sleeve, her ears turning redder and redder.
Fortunately, the waitress arrived with their food just in time to rescue Jiang Huaixi from her embarrassment. In a flash, Jiang Huaixi reclaimed her composure and returned to her usual, unflappable self.
Lu Zizheng’s gentleness was too captivating, and Jiang Huaixi was instantly intoxicated. Fine wine is rare; to taste it occasionally is to be drunk from the very first sip.
Neither Jiang Huaixi nor Lu Zizheng was a person of many words, but they knew each other so well that even when silence dominated the table, there was no awkwardness. Both felt the atmosphere was good, relaxed and at ease.
This comfortable dining atmosphere, however, was ruthlessly shattered when the occupants of the empty table next to them arrived.
Lian Xuan entered the restaurant with a handsome, tall man in a sharp suit. As they walked past Lu Zizheng, the man considerately pulled out a chair for Lian Xuan, taking care of her with meticulous attention.
Lu Zizheng sat with her back to the restaurant’s entrance, so Lian Xuan hadn’t noticed her when they first walked in.
Hearing people arrive at the neighboring table, Lu Zizheng merely looked over out of habit. As the man pulled out the chair and walked to the opposite side of the table, Lian Xuan’s unfamiliar yet familiar profile appeared before her eyes.
Lian Xuan casually looked up, and in that single glance, she saw Lu Zizheng looking at her.
When their eyes met, both of them froze.
Noticing that Lu Zizheng had turned her head and suddenly stopped all movement, Jiang Huaixi looked in the direction of her gaze with some confusion. When she saw Lian Xuan at the neighboring table, the smile on her lips—already faint and barely discernible—vanished completely.
Lian Xuan’s daze lasted only for an instant. She naturally saw Jiang Huaixi sitting opposite Lu Zizheng as well. When Jiang Huaixi looked at her, she even offered a warm, polite smile and nodded slightly as a greeting.
Jiang Huaixi also nodded slightly, returning a polite smile, and then turned back as if nothing had happened to focus on the food in front of her.
Lu Zizheng lowered her head as well, resuming her meal.
Everything maintained its original state. Lian Xuan was merely a familiar stranger they happened to run into in the middle of their meal.
But Lian Xuan had no intention of letting them go just like that.
Not long after, during a gap when the man had left the table, she held her wine glass and stood by Lu Zizheng and Jiang Huaixi’s table with a graceful smile. Her voice was gentle and pleasant: “What a coincidence to meet Miss Jiang and Zizheng here. It must be fate.” She extended her hand, slightly tilting her glass in preparation for a toast: “Merry Christmas to you both.” Her eyes, however, stared unblinkingly at Lu Zizheng.
Jiang Huaixi calmly raised her glass to clink it with hers, saying indifferently, “I also wish President Lian and Young Master Zhou a Merry Christmas and a pleasant meal.”
Lu Zizheng followed Jiang Huaixi’s lead, raising her glass and lightly tapping it against Jiang Huaixi’s without uttering a word.
Lian Xuan’s deeply meaningful gaze remained fixed on Lu Zizheng. She raised her glass and took a small sip, looking as if she were about to say something more. Jiang Huaixi cut her off, speaking calmly: “I heard that President Lian and Young Master Zhou are getting engaged after the New Year. Let me congratulate you in advance; may you be happily united for a hundred years.” She raised her glass slightly, gave Lian Xuan a faint smile, and drank all the wine in her glass in one gulp.
A flash of panic crossed Lian Xuan’s eyes as she looked at Lu Zizheng, her smile fading slightly and her face turning somewhat pale. Still, she did not lose her manners, forcing a smile as she replied, “I’ll take those auspicious words, Miss Jiang.”
The “Young Master Zhou” Jiang Huaixi had mentioned returned. Lian Xuan excused herself and, without lingering any longer, walked back to her seat.
Lu Zizheng turned her head to look out the window, slightly lost in thought.
The atmosphere at the table dropped to freezing point. The silence at this moment lacked the tacit understanding of the past, suddenly giving rise to a subtle awkwardness.
In the lonely night sky, brilliant fireworks suddenly bloomed, rising one after another, dazzling to the eyes. Looking down from the window, the dark earth was brightened by the white snow, while the pitch-black night sky was dotted with flashing fireworks. This lively scene, however, only served as a contrast, making one feel even more lonely.
An aisle’s distance away, yet separated by a river named time that could never be waded through again, so wide, so wide, as if it had no end.
On Christmas Eve during her first year of high school, she and Lian Xuan were in the quiet classroom for evening self-study. Suddenly, fireworks burst outside the window, disturbing Lu Zizheng, who had been focusing on her homework.
She turned her head, gazing in a daze at the blooming fireworks. One opened, one faded, and another bloomed. Even if fleeting, each bloomed in its most brilliant form…
A slip of paper was passed from the other side of the aisle. Lian Xuan smiled and gestured toward her with her lips.
Unfolding the note, Lu Zizheng saw Lian Xuan teasing her: “Not paying attention to your homework, are you? On such a special day, are you daydreaming?”
Her face flushed slightly. She lowered her head and wrote back seriously, word by word: “I just think the fireworks are beautiful, that’s all. It’s a pity we can’t watch them properly.”
Lian Xuan received the note but didn’t reply for a long time, as if she had started focusing on her homework again and had no time to spare for her.
Just as evening self-study was drawing to a close, a large sheet of paper was suddenly passed across the narrow aisle.
On the paper was a drawing. Two long-haired girls lay side by side on the white snow. Snowflakes fluttered, landing on their intertwined black hair, as brilliant fireworks bloomed one after another in the misty night sky.
At that moment, the fireworks in the sky had long since faded, and all was silent, yet Lu Zizheng could hear nothing but the sound of her own heart blooming with joy.
Ji Yao stood by Lian Xuan’s desk, waiting with an impatient expression. Lian Xuan, however, unhurriedly slung her schoolbag over her shoulder, tilting her head slightly toward Lu Zizheng with a gentle and cute expression: “Fireworks are so fleeting; I didn’t really like them much. But if it’s you who wants to watch, next Christmas we’ll find a good place, and I’ll set off a show for you. Thinking about it, it seems pretty nice.”
When she smiled, her eyes curved, and a faint dimple appeared on her cheek—a sweetness that would make Lu Zizheng smile even when dreaming of it at night.
But Lian Xuan indeed had foresight, and what she said was not false. Fireworks are easily cooled, people easily parted1—the fireworks between them vanished without a trace before they even had a chance to bloom. Before the next Christmas arrived, they had already drifted to the ends of the earth.
That sweet, smiling face instantly turned into the bitterness that used to wet Lu Zizheng’s pillow with tears night after night.
Where in this world does peace not harbor crisis? The happiness of the previous second hides the pain of the next. The sweeter it once was, the more bitter it would be in the future; expectations would eventually fall through and become injuries. If the heart does not move, it will not hurt2—not placing expectations on others was the only way to avoid being hurt.
This was the valuable lesson Lian Xuan had taught Lu Zizheng, unforgettable for the rest of her life.
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