Qiu Yun had a dream.
She dreamed she pushed open the door to No. 89 Phoenix Street, entering Qiu Zhenghong’s main room, only to find it empty. Suddenly, the soul-soothing sound of a guitar drifted in from outside. She stepped out of the room and saw Liang He sitting in a chair in the sun-drenched courtyard, wearing a white shirt and playing the guitar. Seeing her come out, he gave a gentle smile. “You’re here.”
Qiu Yun walked toward him with graceful steps, her heart filled with a sweetness like Jianlibao soda. But after just one step, the world began to spin. The ground beneath her feet started to collapse, and a massive force sucked her downward. The sunlight vanished, Liang He disappeared, and Qiu Yun was surrounded by total darkness. She floated in a space that felt like a black hole.
Sima Feng’s face appeared above her. He said, “Qiu Yun, where did you go? Why don’t you come to see your father?” Terrified, Qiu Yun cried out, “Dad!” But the image vanished instantly, and Sima Feng turned into Chen Liping. Chen Liping was holding a wailing infant, standing beside a strange man. She wept to Qiu Yun, “Xiao Yun, don’t come back in this lifetime. I’ve failed you. I’ll work like an ox or a horse in the next life to repay you...” Before Qiu Yun could react, the image shifted again to Wu Liu. Her face was gaunt and shrewish, her eyes bloodshot, and she stood with hands on her hips, screaming, “Qiu Yun, you shameless bitch! You snatched my man in 2018, and you won’t let him go even after returning thirty years into the past? I want to kill you...” Before she could finish, countless kitchen knives and a rain of arrows flew toward her.
Qiu Yun sat up abruptly.
Her heart was still pounding wildly. Despite it being the dead of winter, a layer of sweat had broken out on her forehead.
*Just a nightmare,* she comforted herself.
But after lying back down, sleep eluded her until dawn.
The holiday days were somewhat dull.
Liang He was accustomed to waking up naturally at seven every morning. He ran two laps around the school track. The campus was sparsely populated—aside from a few young teachers staying behind, the rest were mostly retired faculty members doing their morning exercises. He adjusted his pace, slowing from a run to a brisk walk. He ran into Principal Zhang and his wife out for a stroll and greeted them. Principal Zhang remarked, “Oh, why hasn't young Liang gone home yet?” He replied that he was staying at school to do some reading. Principal Zhang gave him a thumbs-up, saying the younger generation was truly formidable, but urged him to go home and spend time with his mother. He also asked Liang He to pass on his regards to his family. Liang He accepted with a smile and a nod of thanks.
As he finished his lap, Liang He walked over to the horizontal and parallel bars. The morning mist had not yet dissipated.
It felt as though Liang He hadn't had such a large block of free time in a long while. He mocked himself inwardly—was he the President of the country? No, yet it seemed his days were always packed, a relentless bustle that never ceased. He maintained a strictly disciplined routine: going to sleep at midnight and waking naturally at seven. Even if he stayed up late, he still woke at seven without fail. He didn't need an alarm; his biological clock was uncannily accurate. He also had a rigorous planning system—a habit cultivated since childhood. Every morning upon waking, a to-do list would automatically generate in his mind. Today’s tasks were never deferred to tomorrow, and every night before sleep, he would close his eyes and summarize his day. Beyond his professional studies, he had cultivated many hobbies: calligraphy, seal carving, traditional Chinese painting, meticulous brushwork, piano, and guitar. If he had nothing else to do, he spent most of his time in the library, reading about astronomy, geography, philosophy, and novels. In this way, it seemed twenty-four hours a day were never enough, as if only by doing so could he slightly fill the bottomless chasm in his heart.
As the sun rose slowly, Liang He picked up his jacket hanging by the bars and headed to the cafeteria. After eating two steamed buns, he still hadn't seen a single acquaintance. He had promised He Chengyan he would go home for lunch today, and he likely wouldn't return to school before the new semester began. He went back to his dormitory to pack. Passing the girls' dormitory, he instinctively looked up.
Last night, he and Qiu Yun had said their goodbyes here. Except for a few rooms, the entire building had been dark. After Qiu Yun said goodbye, the light in the third room from the left on the third floor had turned on shortly after.
The third room from the left.
The balcony windows were tightly shut, and no clothes were hanging out to dry.
Perhaps she had already gone home.
As Liang He entered his apartment building, he happened to run into their housekeeper, Zhou Wen, carrying several large bags. He helped her carry the heavier ones. Zhou Wen was delighted and said, “Young Master Liang is back. Professor He told me yesterday that you were coming home for lunch today, so she had me buy the braised pork you like. I’ll cook it for you at noon.” Liang He smiled and thanked her. Pushing the door open, he saw He Chengyan’s assistant, Chen Qian, was also there. Seeing Liang He, she stood up to greet him. “Liang He, you’re back.”
He Chengyan was currently sitting by the window on a cotton sofa, wearing reading glasses and reading a monograph. The morning sun was pleasant; she liked sitting there, reading while basking in the sunlight. Several potted plants sat on the windowsill, green and full of life. Chen Qian usually sat on a stool nearby, helping her take notes.
Seeing Liang He enter, a pleasant smile appeared on He Chengyan’s face. “You’re back.”
“Mom,” Liang He said. He hadn't expected Chen Qian to be there and smiled at her as well. “Hello.”
“Is everything at school settled?” He Chengyan rose slightly. “You don't need to go back before the New Year, do you?”
“No.”
“Good. It’s already the twenty-seventh of the twelfth lunar month; there shouldn't be anything left to do.”
“How has your health been lately?” Liang He set down his bag and went to her side.
“Fairly well. Dr. Wang came by yesterday to give me a physical therapy session. Since the New Year is almost here, I had Xiao Zhou give him two links of sausage when he left. However,” He Chengyan thumped her right leg, “it’ll likely stay like this. If I want it to be perfectly healed, I’ll have to wait for the next life.” She smiled after saying it.
“You mustn't think like that.” Chen Qian helped massage her right leg. “Didn't Dr. Wang say you’re recovering quite well? It will get better eventually.”
“Maybe,” Liang He said with some hesitation, “we should move back... an apartment building is, after all, not very convenient.”
“No need,” He Chengyan said softly, smoothing the blanket over her knees. “There’s no need to mention this again. It’s only the third floor; I can walk it slowly. I’m not so old that I can’t even walk.”
Liang He fell silent.
He Chengyan asked a few more questions about his school affairs, and Liang He answered them one by one. Finally, He Chengyan pushed up her glasses, looked at the last line of text in her book, and said, “The little girl from the Lu family came by yesterday.”
The little girl from the Lu family was Lu Xialan. Liang He asked, “What did she come for?”
“To give her New Year’s greetings, I suppose. You weren't here.”
“I didn't know she was coming.”
“She brought quite a few New Year gifts. Look,” He Chengyan looked toward the kitchen, “there’s still a lot there. I gave the sausages to Dr. Wang yesterday. Xiao Qian,” she turned to Chen Qian, “after we eat, take that basket of eggs home with you.”
“No need,” Chen Qian’s hands paused. “Those were a gift from Teacher Lu to you...”
“It’s fine,” He Chengyan closed her book. “There are few people in my family; we can’t finish them all.”
***
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 健力宝 | Jianlibao | A famous Chinese orange-flavored soda popular in the 80s and 90s. |
| 邱正宏 | Qiu Zhenghong | A character mentioned in the dream, likely a relative of Qiu Yun. |
| 司马峰 | Sima Feng | Qiu Yun's father. |
| 陈丽萍 | Chen Liping | Qiu Yun's mother. |
| 吴柳 | Wu Liu | An antagonist from the year 2018. |
| 年二七 | 27th of the 12th lunar month | Three days before the Lunar New Year. |
| 何成燕 | He Chengyan | Liang He's mother, a professor. |
| 周文 | Zhou Wen | The housekeeper/maid for Liang He's family. |
| 陈倩 | Chen Qian | He Chengyan's assistant. |
| 陆家小姑娘 | Little girl from the Lu family | Referring to Lu Xialan. |
