In the clinic, the doctor carefully observed the still bleeding wound and nodded, “You handled it very timely. However, the wound is too deep and has been torn back and forth, so it’s quite large, and a few stitches are needed.”
Then, she praised, “Did you bandage it yourself?”
Gu Jianian shook her head and pointed to Chi Yan beside her, “He helped me bandage it. I couldn’t do it myself.”
“Not bad technique,” the female doctor looked up at Chi Yan and then lowered her head, teasing softly, “Boyfriend? Handsome guy.”
Gu Jianian knew the doctor was trying to divert her attention with good intentions, but she still blushed uncomfortably and quickly looked at Chi Yan, denying in a low voice, “He’s not…”
“Oh, then the other one?”
The doctor dragged her tone, her gaze shifting between Chi Yan and He Ji Tong for a moment before suddenly raising her voice and asking, “Which one is the boyfriend? Help me stabilize her leg, and don’t move around, we’re about to start stitching.”
Her words made He Ji Tong hesitate to reach out.
After a moment, Chi Yan reached out and firmly held Gu Jianian’s knee.
The pain came instantly, and Gu Jianian gritted her teeth without making a sound, her hand uncontrollably grabbing wildly and clutching onto some fabric.
The remaining time seemed to stretch infinitely.
A total of three stitches were sewn.
Fortunately, the doctor’s technique was skilled, and Gu Jianian didn’t suffer too much. After the stitches were done, the doctor re-bandaged the wound, and after everything was handled properly, the piercing pain finally subsided.
Gu Jianian was sweating profusely, leaning back against the chair as if drained of strength.
Because she had bitten her teeth too hard just now, she now felt a throbbing pain in her temples and eye sockets, accompanied by a slight ringing in her ears.
She faintly heard the little boy next door, who had broken his head, crying loudly, as well as Chi Yan saying he was going to get the medicine.
She weakly nodded, but found that Chi Yan had been standing still. After a while, he handed the prescription in his hand to He Ji Tong, instructing him, “You go get it.”
Gu Jianian raised her head, puzzled.
Under the bright incandescent light in the clinic, Chi Yan’s face carried a rare look of helplessness. She followed his gaze down and realized that she had tightly grasped the hem of his shirt in her palm.
She had held it so tightly that he had to bend down slightly to accommodate her.
Gu Jianian blushed immediately and quickly let go of her hand.
Chi Yan tugged at the wrinkled hem of his shirt, looked at the crying little boy next door through the transparent partition glass, then turned back and looked at Gu Jianian’s sweaty forehead, and lightly clicked his tongue.
“You’re not much older than him, but you’re quite resilient.”
“Why is that?”
Gu Jianian didn’t look at him, thought for a moment, and repeated, “I’ll be an adult next month, at least a few years older than him.”
“You’re only… six years older than me, aren’t you?”
His voice gradually lowered.
Chi Yan chuckled, “Still not convinced? Your wound was torn back and forth… if you weren’t trying to be tough, maybe you wouldn’t have suffered so much.”
Gu Jianian was suddenly exposed, and she guiltily took her foot off the chair, letting out a groan of pain.
She heard him say emotionlessly again, “At your age, you can cry if you want to cry, and if it hurts, you don’t have to endure it. No one will make fun of you.”
“Then what about your age?” She raised her head, casually asking, “Do you have to endure it if you’re not happy?”
The incandescent light in the clinic was dazzling, and Chi Yan lowered his head, slowly and leisurely giving her a sideways glance, sneering, “Talk to me when you reach my age.”
***
The car stopped in the yard of her grandmother’s house.
Gu Jianian thought about the medical expenses being paid by He Ji Tong when he went to get the medicine, so she took the initiative to ask him for WeChat and planned to transfer the money to him later.
He Ji Tong casually said, “Let Chi Yan give it to you.”
Gu Jianian was stunned for a moment, looked up at the back of the passenger seat, and explained honestly, “I don’t have his WeChat.”
She had the key to his house but not his contact information.
They met every day, but they didn’t need to contact each other.
“You didn’t ask him for his WeChat?”
He Ji Tong repeated in a strange tone for some reason.
Gu Jianian nodded.
He Ji Tong suddenly laughed, quickly pulled out his phone and scanned the QR code to give it to Gu Jianian, then turned his head and looked at the person in the passenger seat with an inexplicable expression.
Chi Yan sneered without expression and ignored him.
After Gu Jianian sent the verification message, she suddenly felt that now was a good opportunity.
She gathered her courage and casually asked, “By the way, Chi Yan, shall we exchange WeChat as well? It would be convenient to occasionally keep in touch.”
“…”
The person in the passenger seat remained silent for a moment before asking, “…by the way? Just like that?”
He Ji Tong had buried his head in the steering wheel, his shoulders shaking.
Gu Jia Nian didn’t understand what he found so funny, thinking Chi Yan didn’t want to add her, her face suddenly turning hot.
Feeling somewhat embarrassed, she quickly pretended to be generous, waving her hand reluctantly, her voice strained, “It’s okay… I just said it casually.”
“…”
He Ji Tong couldn’t hold back his laughter again, laughing out loud, then turning his head away from the glance she shot him, laughing at the window.
Gu Jia Nian was puzzled as to what he found so amusing. Suddenly, the person in the passenger seat handed her a phone with a QR code on it.
She thanked them with surprise and nervously added Chi Yan’s WeChat.
*
Due to Gu Jia Nian’s unexpected injury, the evening family banquet was forced to be cancelled.
Auntie sent over prepared dishes, and Gu Jia Nian ate several steamed crabs angrily.
After dinner, Auntie and Grandma helped her upstairs to rest.
Outside the wooden lattice window, the weather turned from sunny to overcast, the fiery clouds that once dyed half the sky gradually being covered by dark clouds, with occasional low thunder rumbling in the sky.
Before long, the thunderstorm arrived.
Cold air swept in.
Gu Jia Nian lay on the bed, opening WeChat.
Both Chi Yan and He Ji Tong had already been verified.
She opened Chi Yan’s WeChat.
The nickname was Y.C. Gu Jia Nian pondered for a moment, guessing that this was probably the initials of his name reversed.
The profile picture was a forest shrouded in mist.
Lush towering trees were hidden behind layers of mist, blurry yet wild.
Gu Jia Nian looked at it for a while, then saved the picture to her phone.
Then she opened his Moments, which was a blank page.
She felt a little disappointed, thought for a moment, and changed the remark to “Chi Yan.”
She also changed He Ji Tong’s remark to “Brother Ji Tong.”
Referring to today’s medical bill, she sent He Ji Tong a red envelope.
“[Brother Ji Tong, thank you today. This is for the medical expenses. Remember to accept it.]”
He Ji Tong didn’t accept the red envelope but sent several voice messages in a row.
Gu Jia Nian opened them one by one to listen.
[“I’m stuck in traffic here. You keep the money yourself; I’m not short of money, bro.”]
[“Besides, I want to send you a red envelope too, thanking you for helping me win one over. Do you think Brother is handsomer than Chi Yan?”]
Gu Jia Nian had no idea what he was talking about and slowly typed a question mark.
[“?”]
She had been unsociable since childhood, preferring to read books alone, which made her sensitive to her own thoughts but dull in social interactions.
She often got teased in school because she couldn’t understand others’ jokes and implications.
He Ji Tong sent two more voice messages in a row.
[“Chi Yan and I went to the same school from elementary to high school. Damn, every year I’m the second school grass recognized by all the girls in the school. Isn’t it frustrating? Especially considering the first one is your cousin.”]
[“He! Also! Has! Today!”]
Gu Jia Nian was still puzzled. She was about to type another question mark when she carefully recalled what happened in the car and combined it with He Ji Tong’s previous exaggerated laughter, her expression gradually freezing.
From their perspective, she had known Chi Yan for so many days but had never asked for his contact information, yet she actively asked for He Ji Tong’s WeChat.
And then she very “casually” asked for Chi Yan’s WeChat.
“…”
Gu Jia Nian felt a bit embarrassed, wanting to explain a few words but not knowing how to say them.
She couldn’t just send a message saying, [“Actually, I think Chi Yan is just a tiny bit more handsome.”] could she?
Gu Jia Nian didn’t dwell on it further and simply replied tepidly: [“I didn’t mean anything else, just wanted to transfer money to you.”]
He Ji Tong laughed brightly: [“It’s okay, as long as Chi Yan doesn’t know.”]
“…”
Gu Jia Nian silently changed the subject: [“Brother Ji Tong, are you driving? Heading to Zhushan?”]
[“Yes, going back to the studio. I haven’t told you yet, but Chi Yan and I have partnered to open a writer’s studio. He writes, and I handle the copyrights, as well as some scriptwriting for film and television.”]
Gu Jia Nian originally wanted to ask him about Chi Yan’s pen name, but after some thought, she felt it might be too abrupt.
It’s better to ask later when they’re more familiar.
Thinking about what He Ji Tong said earlier, that they had been in the same school with Chi Yan since childhood, she asked: [“Did you both always attend school in Zhushan? My cousin is starting school at Zhushan No.1 High School. He’s studying science. Do you know how the science department is at No.1 High School?”]
He Ji Tong didn’t send another voice message but typed: [“Overall, the teaching quality at No.1 High School is pretty good, but I’m not very familiar with the specifics.”]
After a few seconds, he added another message.
[“Chi Yan and I went to Xihu, not No.1 High School. I studied science, while Chi Yan studied humanities.”]
Gu Jia Nian was about to reply when he sent another message: [“Little Sister Jia Nian, I have to go now, I’m starting to drive.”]
She had to delete her reply and sent: [“Goodbye, drive safely.”]
Xihu High School in Zhushan City…
What would his high school days have been like?
Gu Jia Nian was curious. She searched for Xihu High School’s campus website.
In the search bar, she tentatively typed “Chi Yan.”
A few seconds later, she was delighted to find that the website indeed provided a search result.
It was a link to the Xihu Literary Society Archives website, and Chi Yan’s name prominently appeared in the list of past presidents.
So, he was the president of the literary society in high school.
Gu Jia Nian quickly clicked on the link.
Inside were brief introductions and photos of past presidents, all with uniform red-background ID photos.
Gu Jia Nian scrolled through them one by one until she suddenly held her breath on a certain page.
The 29th president of the Xihu Literary Society, Class 1 of Grade 3 in Senior High, Chi Yan.
In the centre of the photo, a sixteen or seventeen-year-old boy wore a clean white shirt and smiled at the camera, lifting one corner of his mouth.
There was a smile in his eyes.
It was relaxed, sunny, and joyful, filled with confidence and ease.
It was a completely different demeanour from now.
Gu Jia Nian looked at the photo with surprise, slowly curling her lips upwards.
With two fingers, she swiped outward on the screen, enlarging the photo and carefully observing.
His appearance was consistent with now, but there was a bit more youthfulness, a bit more playful arrogance, and pride.
Gu Jia Nian held her breath as she looked at it for a long time, feeling like she had discovered a treasure as she saved the photo to her phone.
Excitedly sitting up straight, she went through the Xihu Literary Society website again, then moved on to search the school’s forum, trying to find any traces of him.
This process wasn’t difficult because during his years in school, there were constantly posts discussing him.
The comments under those posts piled up layer by layer.
“Chi Yan topped the humanities class again this time. With such good grades, he should be going to Beilin University, right?”
“Why did I hear he wants to go to Zhushan University?”
“He seems to have high standards. I’ve never heard of him having a girlfriend.”
“Good-looking, good grades, good family background, it’s normal for him to have high standards.”
“I miss Senior Chi Yan. When he was the president of the Xihu Literary Society, the reading atmosphere in the club was really good.”
“Yeah, after he left, the Literary Society gradually declined year by year.”
…
Gu Jia Nian scrolled through these posts, her lips still curled upwards, feeling surprised and elated by everything about him.
Some posts even had pictures of him.
Gu Jia Nian lay on the bed, propped up on her elbows, clicking on those photos, carefully examining each one.
One of them was taken on the basketball court.
In the blurry background, the figure of the teenager was perfectly in focus, holding the ball, breaking through the defence of others, with a bold and unrestrained smile on his face.
One was taken on the podium.
He was speaking as a student representative on some occasion, not even holding any notes, calmly addressing the entire school’s faculty and students.
Another was in the corridor.
He leaned against the railing, surrounded by five or six people. He was chatting with them, relaxed in expression, talking and laughing.
…
Gu Jia Nian felt like she had stumbled upon a treasure trove, greedily downloading every photo and saving them to her phone.
She was like a diligent archaeologist, repeatedly browsing through every post related to him.
Her understanding of him was no longer limited to the small world of the villa, but as if she had boarded a time machine, traveling back to his past.
In Gu Jia Nian’s mind, a picture of Chi Yan during his high school years gradually formed.
—A prominent figure like the stars surrounding the moon, an outstanding student with excellent grades, the universally recognized school heartthrob.
He was the centre of attention wherever he went.
She felt proud and joyful, her lips uncontrollably curling upwards.
After repeatedly browsing through all the posts, it was already late at night.
The thunder gradually ceased, but the rain didn’t stop.
Large raindrops pelted the window sill, pouring in through the aging glass window, wetting the corner of the desk where her backpack was placed.
Gu Jia Nian blinked, limping over to open her backpack and carefully inspect its contents.
Fortunately, the few notebooks were not wet, and there were no signs of ink leakage from her pens.
Gu Jia Nian breathed a sigh of relief, then subconsciously found her student ID card in the side pocket of the backpack.
She took it out to check.
Her lips, which had been curled upwards, froze for a moment.
On the student ID card was a colourless, expressionless face.
The eyes looked numbly at the camera, weary but unfocused.
Gu Jia Nian vaguely remembered.
This photo was taken after she lost her student ID card in the first semester of her sophomore year.
Before taking this photo, she had just come out of the homeroom teacher’s office.
The homeroom teacher said that her midterm exam scores were too poor this time and required parental involvement.
She was filled with panic and anxiety, with no one to confide in.
Gu Jia Nian recalled those days at Lin High School.
Because of poor grades and being a transfer student, she was advised by the teachers not to participate in any extracurricular activities and to focus on studying.
She sat at the back of the classroom, solitary and silent every day.
Like a lone goose.
She ate alone, fetched water alone, hurried past the bustling basketball court without ever stopping to watch a game, never cheered for anyone, never handed out water.
She had never even leaned on the railing in the hallway and chatted with someone.
The surging, passionate, and thrilling aspects of youth seemed to have nothing to do with her.
She almost exhausted all her spare time trying hard to catch up.
But she still couldn’t shake off the label of “underachiever.”
…
Suddenly, the wound on her foot started to ache intensely, with a tingling and numbing sensation mixed in.
Gu Jia Nian slowly flipped the student ID card over, placing the photo face down on the table.
The summer rain continued unabated, heedless.
She lay back on the bed, feeling numb, and after a long while, pulled the blanket over her face.
Then, belatedly, she realized.
Even if there really were a time machine that made her the same age as him.
There would still be no connection between them.
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