Lin Jiang didn’t see Jiang Weifeng’s missed call until the next day. For a moment, she was lost in a daze, rubbing her eyes only to realize she wasn't seeing things.
Her heart began to throb traitorously—
He had actually... proactively... called her...
Lin Jiang felt as if she had suddenly wandered into a maze.
Lost in thought, her fingertips traced the edge of her phone case. After a long while, she finally dialed him back.
It was around seven in the morning. The vibration of the phone shattered the silence of the room. Jiang Weifeng rolled over irritably, fumbling blindly under his pillow. He answered with his eyes still closed. "Hello?"
His voice was hoarse and lazy, clearly belonging to someone who hadn't woken up yet.
"Sorry, did I call too early?" Lin Jiang asked softly.
Jiang Weifeng held his breath and froze for two seconds. Then, he snapped his eyes open, his drowsiness vanishing instantly.
"My phone died yesterday. I only realized it this morning and just got it on the charger..."
She explained herself, her voice dropping even lower as if afraid of disturbing him. It brushed against his ear like a feather; every breath she took felt like she was blowing right into his ear, sending a shiver of heat through him.
"It’s nothing. Aunt Zheng wanted to invite you over for dinner," he said. His eyes were clear now, though his voice remained gravelly.
There was a long silence on her end. He wasn't in a hurry, waiting patiently for her answer.
After a few seconds of quiet, a single word came through the receiver—
"Okay."
Jiang Weifeng smiled. "When are you free?"
"I have classes this morning, but I'm free the rest of the time."
"I see..." his voice trailed off lazily. "Then I'll pick you up this evening."
Hearing him say he would pick her up gave Lin Jiang an inexplicable sense of security. The corners of her mouth curled upward.
"What are you laughing at?" he asked.
"I'm not," she stammered, feeling the embarrassment of a student caught misbehaving in class.
The denial only made her face flush deeper. It was a classic case of protesting too much.
On the other end of the line, Jiang Weifeng’s heart skipped a beat. Those two words sounded far too much like acting spoiled.
He was in an excellent mood. "Pick you up tonight?"
She said, "Okay."
After hanging up, her soft, sweet voice still echoed in his ear, leaving his entire right ear feeling numb and tingly. It was like a fuse had been lit, suddenly detonating.
A wildfire instantly swept across the plains.
Jiang Weifeng got up to go to the bathroom, mocking himself for acting like a green schoolboy.
The day dragged on incredibly slowly.
Around five in the afternoon, Jiang Weifeng drove from his company toward Xingfu Apartments.
FM 87.7 was playing a song by the TFBOYS. He unconsciously hummed along for a couple of lines, only realizing with a start when the song changed that he actually knew the lyrics.
He had just turned through a few intersections when he suddenly spotted an old man on the sidewalk wearing a yellow baseball cap. He looked familiar. As he drove past, Jiang Weifeng took another look, only to see the old man get clipped by a turning electric scooter. The man fell hard to the ground.
Jiang Weifeng slammed on the brakes.
Half an hour later, Jiang Weifeng was sitting in the emergency room, watching the old man receive an IV drip. The man looked miserable.
"I tried calling my daughter, but I couldn't get through. She might be busy," the old man said.
Jiang Weifeng didn't want to rush him. "It’s fine. Go get your check-up first. I’ll wait until your family arrives before I leave."
The old man was deeply moved. "When I saw you back in Hulunbuir, I knew you were a good person. I’ve troubled you too much today. I’ll call my granddaughter and have her come. If I keep you here and delay your business, I’ll feel even worse."
Jiang Weifeng said "Alright" and went to the stairwell to have a cigarette.
Once the cigarette burned out, he pulled out his phone to check the time. 5:47 PM. After a moment's thought, he sent a message to Lin Jiang: *I might be a bit late.*
The moment the message sent, Lin Jiang’s WeChat voice call came through.
"Jiang Weifeng."
She called his name, her voice sounding a bit unsteady.
"What’s wrong?"
"Something came up on my end. Can we reschedule for another day?"
Jiang Weifeng paused for a beat. "Okay."
She hung up in a hurry.
Jiang Weifeng stared at the glowing screen for a few seconds.
He turned back toward the emergency room. Just as he reached the door, a nurse was wheeling the old man toward the CT room. The old man handed him his phone and said, "My granddaughter will call when she arrives. Could you please go down and meet her? Once she’s here, you can head out. Don't let me hold you up; there's no need to wait for me to come out."
Jiang Weifeng rubbed the phone in his hand. "Don't worry, go ahead."
The last few streaks of sunset in the sky were as red as a freshly lit spark on a cigarette.
The phone screen stayed lit. He typed a few words into WeChat, then deleted them.
Amidst his hesitation, the other phone began to vibrate.
He pulled it out, and his gaze sharpened.
"Grandpa, I’m at the emergency room now, but there’s no one here. Where did you go?"
Hearing the voice, Jiang Weifeng pulled the receiver away from his ear to confirm once more—the contact name was indeed "Jiangjiang."
"Lin Jiang?"
The last sliver of sunset in the distance faded away.
The spark on the cigarette suddenly flared bright.
The wind began to blow.
Two hours later, Jiang Weifeng’s car pulled up outside Xiangjiang City.
Xu Mingjuan and Lin Wei had been waiting at the main gate for a long time. As soon as they saw Lin Jiang and Jiang Weifeng helping Grandpa out of the car, the two of them rushed over in a panic.
"Dad, are you okay?" Lin Wei stepped forward to support him.
Grandpa waved his hand. "I’m fine, I’m fine. Just scraped some skin. It’s all thanks to Xiao Jiang; he took me to the hospital and ran around taking care of everything."
Xu Mingjuan had noticed Jiang Weifeng from the start, and now she gave him another look. "Thank you."
Jiang Weifeng smiled. "Don't mention it."
Supporting Grandpa, Lin Wei asked Jiang Weifeng, "Thank you so much for today. Would you like to come up for a bit?"
"It’s late, and Grandpa needs his rest. I won't disturb you," Jiang Weifeng said with a polite nod.
Grandpa smiled. "Alright, it really is quite late today. I’ll treat you to dinner another day."
Jiang Weifeng agreed. After Lin Wei and Xu Mingjuan exchanged a few more pleasantries, they began to lead Grandpa upstairs.
Lin Jiang had remained silent the whole time. Xu Mingjuan asked her, "Are you staying here tonight or going back?"
"I have class tomorrow morning, so I have to go back," Lin Jiang replied.
"Then I'll drive you—" Xu Mingjuan and Jiang Weifeng spoke at the same time.
Lin Jiang caught her breath sharply.
Xu Mingjuan looked up at Jiang Weifeng again. He met her gaze without flinching.
Xu Mingjuan turned her eyes back to Lin Jiang.
Seeing the situation, Grandpa quickly tugged on Xu Mingjuan’s sleeve. "Let’s go, let’s go. I’ll tell you all about it upstairs."
Xu Mingjuan looked at Jiang Weifeng, then at Lin Jiang. Lin Wei signaled her with his eyes to head inside.
Finally, Xu Mingjuan smiled and said to Jiang Weifeng, "Then I’ll leave her in your hands." She then turned a sharp eye on Lin Jiang. "Let me know when you get home."
Lin Jiang nodded. "Okay."
Jiang Weifeng bowed slightly. "I promise to get her home safely."
Once they were in the car, neither of them spoke for a long time. Eventually, Lin Jiang broke the silence, saying with a smile, "Thank you for today."
Jiang Weifeng turned the steering wheel, seemingly in a good mood. "How are you going to thank me?"
Lin Jiang was taken aback.
She thought for a moment before replying, "How about I treat you to dinner another day?"
"Sure," Jiang Weifeng accepted without hesitation.
Lin Jiang was stunned again.
Jiang Weifeng glanced at her sideways, asking knowingly, "Why the long face?"
"It’s nothing," Lin Jiang said quickly. "Just let me know when you’re free. I’m available anytime."
"Fine."
With a faint smile, Jiang Weifeng kept one hand on the wheel as the car sped along the road.
Halfway there, Lin Jiang recalled their recent chance encounters. For some reason, a line of dialogue came to mind: *All encounters in this world are but reunions after a long parting.* The corners of her mouth curved up unconsciously.
He caught it. "What are you laughing at?"
Lin Jiang pursed her lips. "I feel like you’re becoming my personal chauffeur."
Jiang Weifeng let out a low chuckle and turned to look at her. Only then did Lin Jiang notice that when he smiled deeply, a single dimple appeared on his left cheek.
Upon discovering this, Lin Jiang sighed inwardly—
She was, after all, a mere mortal, unable to escape being moved by a handsome face.
For some reason, in that fleeting moment, Lin Jiang remembered a late summer dusk when she was seventeen.
At the end of summer, the sunset would spread across the sky in shades of pink—just like the way he, as a young boy back then, had looked after a young girl had lightly kissed his cheek.
That thick, deep tenderness was overwhelming, leaving not an inch of space to hide.
Suddenly, a ringtone burst forth with rude cheerfulness, shattering the peace.
Lin Jiang snapped back to reality and quickly turned her head away.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Jiang Weifeng’s relaxed expression as he leisurely put on a Bluetooth earpiece.
He didn't seem to hear what the person on the other end said at first, asking, "Lillian?"
Seemingly getting an affirmative answer, the corner of his mouth hooked up. He asked, "Why is your voice so hoarse?"
Lin Jiang held her breath, staring blankly at the bobblehead flower on his dashboard. The blue stud in his ear was gone.
She heard him ask the person on the line, "Can you move next week?"
After hanging up, his mood seemed even better.
Lin Jiang sat beside him, looking down and fidgeting with her fingers. Jiang Weifeng glanced at her, his eyes flickering, and suddenly explained, "My assistant."
Lin Jiang’s heart jumped. She kept her head down and murmured, "Oh."
Her tone betrayed no emotion.
Jiang Weifeng stared at the girl beside him for two or three seconds, then turned his face away, smiling silently.
They soon reached their destination.
Lin Jiang gripped her seatbelt and turned to look at the man.
"Drive carefully on your way back."
Jiang Weifeng nodded. "You owe me a meal."
Lin Jiang looked up. Seeing that he didn't seem to be joking, she replied, "I know."
Hearing this, Jiang Weifeng nodded with satisfaction.
Lin Jiang lowered her head, hitched her bag higher on her shoulder, and reached out to press the seatbelt release button.
Once, twice... it wouldn't pop open.
She let out a tiny "Huh?" and twisted her body to the right, pulling twice with more force, but there was still no reaction. Just as she was about to turn and ask him for help, she looked up, only for him to suddenly lean over her.
His lips practically brushed against her brow.
The warm contact felt like an electric shock, making Lin Jiang tremble all over. It was like the summer festival fireworks she had seen in Japan the year she finished the college entrance exams—*boom, boom, boom*—fireworks exploding everywhere.
Being so close, even the scent of tobacco on him drifted over. He, however, seemed unfazed. After a two-second pause, he pulled away.
The movement was nonchalant, like a deer taking a sip of water from a stream.
"This seatbelt is broken," Jiang Weifeng reminded her.
"I forgot," Lin Jiang gave a dry laugh. Her hands gripping the seatbelt were slightly damp with sweat. Her eyes darted around for a moment before finally landing on the hem of his shirt. "Um... can you help me unbuckle it?"
Jiang Weifeng didn't say a word.
This enclosed, inescapable silence made Lin Jiang’s brow throb. Just as she resolved to look him in the eye, he suddenly leaned in again. she held her breath, not daring to exhale, remaining motionless as he deftly released her from her shackles.
Then, losing the courage to stay for even a second longer, she blurted out a "Thank you" followed by a "Goodbye," and pushed the door open to flee as fast as she could.
Jiang Weifeng watched the girl’s retreating figure as she fled in a panic, his eyes shimmering.
He didn't drive away until the place where she had disappeared was long empty.
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 幸福公寓 | Xingfu Apartments | The apartment complex where Lin Jiang lives. |
| 呼伦贝尔 | Hulunbuir | A region in Inner Mongolia mentioned as a previous meeting place. |
| 绛绛 | Jiangjiang | An affectionate nickname for Lin Jiang. |
| 香江城 | Xiangjiang City | The residential area where Lin Jiang's parents live. |
| 林伟 | Lin Wei | Lin Jiang's father. |
| 徐名娟 | Xu Mingjuan | Lin Jiang's mother. |
| 莉莉安 | Lillian | Jiang Weifeng's assistant. |
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