Perhaps it was because of the events of the day. That night, Duan Jiaxu had a dream.
In the dream, he received an acceptance letter from Nanwu University. He dreamt of the week before the announcement, when his mother, Xu Ruoshu, prepared money for him to go to college, only to have it taken away by those so-called “creditors.”
He dreamt of that evening.
Their house had already been sold. They rented a one-bedroom apartment, with Xu Ruoshu having the bedroom and him sleeping in the living room.
During the summer break, Duan Jiaxu took on several tutoring and part-time jobs, often coming home very late.
That day, when he returned home, he heard Xu Ruoshu on the phone.
She was speaking to her elder brother. A relative who had once helped her when she was raising her child alone, someone who had given her a lot of assistance.
The phone was in the living room.
Duan Jiaxu saw Xu Ruoshu dialing the number, greeting the person on the other end, and then she smiled, slowly saying, “Big Brother, our Axu got accepted to Nanwu University.”
But all the words she wanted to say seemed to pour out from that sentence. They couldn’t be held back, couldn’t be hidden.After saying this, she fell silent, as if finding it hard to speak further, not uttering another word.
But all the words she wanted to say seemed to have poured out from that sentence. They couldn’t be held back, couldn’t be hidden.
Nanwu University, what a great university.
My son got into such a good university.
But I don’t have any money.
The money I earned from working hard to go to college, I didn’t manage to keep.
I wanted him to go to school.
Could you… lend me a few thousand yuan?
In the next moment, the phone echoed with the sound of his uncle’s angry voice. The quality of the receiver wasn’t great, and the noise was overwhelming. As soon as he spoke, his words filled the entire living room: “Do you have no shame at all? Is your situation the only difficult one? What obligation do I have to help you? I have children to raise too! I also have a life to live! Constantly asking for money! Damn it! Get lost!”
Duan Jiaxu immediately walked over, took the phone from her hand, and hung up.
The room fell silent.
Xu Ruoshu remained dazed for a while, then suddenly covered her eyes and burst into tears, murmuring repeatedly, “Mom is sorry… Mom is sorry…”
Before junior high, Duan Jiaxu had never lacked money.
So he never felt that money was that important.
But when the harsh reality set in, he realized that money could actually bring about significant changes in a person’s life within just a few short years.
Duan Jiaxu looked at his once bright and confident mother, gradually crushed by these circumstances, becoming timid and self-doubting. Under the weight of these issues, she fell seriously ill and aged rapidly.
And then, Duan Jiaxu saw.
At that time, just as he had come of age, he crouched in front of Xu Ruoshu, looking up at her. He curled his lips into a smile and said to her, “Mom, do you believe it? I’ll be able to earn back all this money in the future.”
“…”
“You don’t need to borrow money from others anymore. I’ll earn money on my own, and I’ll take care of you too,” the young man said gently, “I can bring you back to the good times we had before.”
“…”
So…
— Could you wait a little longer, please? –
Duan Jiaxu woke up from his dream.
It was still dark outside, and the room was pitch black. Unable to fall back asleep, he got out of bed, went to the living room, poured a glass of water, and then grabbed two ice cubes from the refrigerator and dropped them in.
It was just past 3 a.m. at this moment.
Duan Jiaxu stood by the dining table, picked up his phone, and glanced at it. Duan Jiaxu stood by the dining table, picked up his phone, and glanced at it.
Qian Fei: [Brothers!]
Qian Fei: [Hey, guys! Guess what! I’m getting married!!!]
Qian Fei: [Hahaha, hahahaha!
Qian Fei: [Hey, guys! I proposed!!! And she said yes!!!]
It was accompanied by a string of emojis.
Qian Fei: [I’m so excited, I can’t sleep! I had to come here and tell you guys, hahahaha!]
Qian Fei: [Are you all asleep??]
Duan Jiaxu replied with a single word: [No.]
The next moment, his phone rang, and it was Qian Fei calling him.
Duan Jiaxu raised an eyebrow, took his glass, walked back to the couch, and sat down before answering the call.
“Lao Xu, why aren’t you asleep at this hour?” Qian Fei’s voice came through boisterously, “And you’re not getting any action either.”
Duan Jiaxu chuckled softly and leisurely replied, “I’m hanging up.”
“…” Qian Fei said, “Wait a minute. I haven’t even told you anything yet! You know how I proposed, right? Today’s New Year’s Eve, right?….” ……”
Duan Jiaxu leaned back in his chair, listening silently.
After a while, Qian Fei finished sharing his story, still excited and not a bit subdued, “How about that? Pretty awesome, huh?”
“Yeah.”
“Why aren’t you saying anything interesting tonight?”
“Huh? Maybe it’s because you’re getting married,” Duan Jiaxu said casually, “I’m feeling a bit sad. Weren’t you saying before that you were going to settle for me?”
“…” Qian Fei said, “Could you not gross me out? I said that when I was drunk. How many years have you been holding onto that?”
Duan Jiaxu didn’t continue joking and laughed, “Alright, congratulations, Bro.”
“Oh, by the way.” The soon-to-be-married man instantly switched into matchmaker mode, grinning, “Remember when you mentioned blind dates last time? Did you go?”
“I just mentioned it casually to you,” Duan Jiaxu sounded lazy, “How many people have you told about this?”
“No, seriously, how come you still haven’t found anyone?” Qian Fei said, “Why don’t you come to Nanwu? So many girls like you here. I’ll arrange some blind dates for you. You can have as many options as you want.”
Duan Jiaxu chuckled softly. “Spare me.”
“If I were like you, I’d have a different girlfriend every day.”
“Aren’t you afraid your future wife will hear about it?”
“She’s not here, is she?” Qian Fei said, “Seriously, I’m telling you, if you don’t start considering the right options, you might end up with no one you even like.”
Duan Jiaxu nodded.
Qian Fei was surprised. “So not talking about love, but at least a crush, do you have a crush?”
At his words, Duan Jiaxu fell silent.
As if taking it as an admission, Qian Fei exclaimed, “Oh damn, there’s something going on.”
“…”
“Who is it?”
Duan Jiaxu fibbed, “You don’t know her, it’s just a minor thing.”
“How minor?” Qian Fei said, “It better not be someone who hasn’t even been born yet.”
Duan Jiaxu chuckled, “It’s not that minor.”
“If she’s underage, I won’t ask further, but if she’s of age and you still don’t dare to pursue her, then I’ll lose respect for you.”
“Are you done getting excited? It’s time to sleep.” Duan Jiaxu didn’t want to continue this topic, stating plainly, “You’re a married man.”
“But I haven’t finished yet!”
“I’m off to bed.”
Duan Jiaxu ended the call.
Then, he finished his water, walked to the TV cabinet, picked up the photo of him and Sang Zhi, and returned to his room, placing it on the bedside table.
Duan Jiaxu stared at it for a few seconds.
No matter how he looked at it, she still looked like a child.
What was he thinking?
Maybe he’s been single for too long.
Duan Jiaxu sighed and lightly tapped his fingertip, slowly uttering three words, as if reminding himself.
“Little One.”
Sang Zhi felt that Duan Jiaxu was acting a bit strange tonight. Upon later reflection, she worried if her reaction had been inappropriate. Yet, she also felt that even if he knew her thoughts, his response probably wouldn’t be the way she imagined.
After New Year’s Day, Sang Zhi asked Duan Jiaxu on WeChat if that woman had gone to see him again. She was relieved to hear his negative answer and stopped worrying about the matter, focusing on her studies instead.
The exams concluded on the 20th.
Sang Zhi had booked a flight for the noon of the 21st, planning to take a taxi that day and then catch an airport shuttle nearby.
She was the first one from the dormitory to go home.
The four of them had agreed to go out for a night of fun before everyone went home. So, after leaving the exam room, they didn’t return to the dormitory but went directly to a Japanese restaurant off-campus for dinner.
After the meal, Yu Xin suggested, “There’s a new bar nearby, how about we go there for a bit of fun?”
Ning Wei blinked: “Can I bring my boyfriend along?”
Yu Xin: “Sure.”
Wang Ruolan: “Then I’ll invite my crush too!”
Several bars had opened up in the vicinity, mostly frequented by students, and occasionally, they would run into familiar faces. One of the bars was even owned by a former graduate.
Sang Zhi had been to one of the bars with her department colleagues once and didn’t have any objections.
Yu Xin: “Hey, Ruolan, have you made any progress with your crush?”
“It’s getting there.” Wang Ruolan typed on her phone with a smile. “I feel like he’s also interested. He even mentioned that we could ride home together.”
Sang Zhi took a sip of her water.
“Ah, actually, I have my eyes on a guy from that bar, the one who plays the guitar. You’ll probably see him when we go there,” Yu Xin said, hesitating, “I think as long as he’s not ugly, girls can easily chase after guys.”
Hearing this, Sang Zhi paused in her drinking.
On that note, Yu Xin lifted her phone and took a selfie, narcissistically remarking, “If I were to chase after someone, I think I could succeed, right? I mean, I’m pretty good-looking, aren’t I?” The other two bantered around.
Sang Zhi picked up her chopsticks and finished the last piece of sushi on the table.
Peek-Aboo 
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