Jiang Weifeng decided to propose in the spring of 2019.
It was the first anniversary of the founding of 38.6℃. He had originally planned to do it during the celebration, but midway through, Gu Xiang pulled out a ring and dropped to one knee, stammering through a long, heartfelt confession to Wang Jiaqian. In the end, Jiang Weifeng felt it wouldn't be right to steal their thunder.
On the way home, Jiang Weifeng’s mind was preoccupied with how to give her the ring. Meanwhile, Lin Jiang was smiling the whole way, chatting about this and that, remarking on how hard-won Wang Jiaqian and Gu Xiang’s happy ending had been.
After rambling about various things, she finally asked the question on her mind: "When I saw Gu Xiang confessing to Qianqian just now, I suddenly remembered back in school when Cheng Yunchuan confessed to you."
Jiang Weifeng was still entirely focused on whether he should still give her the ring and how. He gave a perfunctory smile. "I don't really remember."
Lin Jiang pursed her lips, clearly not believing him. "You have no idea. Actually, Cheng Yunchuan knew I liked you way back then."
Jiang Weifeng nodded without much expression, turning the steering wheel as they made a left into another block.
Lin Jiang reached out and tugged at his sleeve. "I thought she was the only person in the world besides me who knew how I felt about you. But that day, you said you’d known all along? Then why didn't you tell me sooner?"
Hearing this, Jiang Weifeng’s mind momentarily drifted. "I’m taking you somewhere first."
A few minutes later, the car pulled up beside the sports field of No. 3 Middle School’s West Campus.
Looking at the familiar field, Lin Jiang was stunned for a moment before asking, "It’s all fenced off. How do we get in from here?"
Jiang Weifeng parked the car and reached out to take her hand. Lin Jiang followed him obediently. After walking about six or seven meters, he pushed aside some bushes to reveal a small gate.
"The athletes' entrance. We used to use this whenever we skipped class. I even had a key made for it."
Lin Jiang was delighted, her face lighting up with the surprised curiosity of Alice arriving in Wonderland for the first time.
It was mid-March, and the biting spring wind blew away the lingering warmth of the wine they'd shared earlier.
Jiang Weifeng led her through the small gate onto the field. Under the dim lights, they could vaguely see two or three people walking slowly on the red track—likely students who had snuck out for a breath of air during evening self-study. Jiang Weifeng and Lin Jiang quietly followed behind them, walking at a leisurely pace.
At first, Jiang Weifeng asked her, "Are you cold?"
Lin Jiang tightened her small corduroy jacket and said, "No."
Jiang Weifeng smiled and started to take off his coat to give to her, but Lin Jiang looked at his thin shirt and stopped him. She pulled his arm close to her and said, "I'm warm like this."
Jiang Weifeng felt her hand; it was warmer than his, so he didn't insist. He pulled out his phone and handed her one earbud. Connected by a single wire, they listened to one song after another together.
Neither of them spoke again. At this moment, silence was more eloquent than words.
They didn't know how many laps they had walked or which way they had turned, but eventually, they stopped side-by-side in front of the graffiti wall.
Lin Jiang couldn't help but smile when she saw the wall. She ran closer and pointed to a drawing of Chibi Maruko-chan near the bottom center. "Look at this! It’s actually still here."
Seeing Lin Jiang smile made Jiang Weifeng want to smile too. "This... the drawing style is definitely at a middle school level."
Lin Jiang pursed her lips and grumbled playfully, "I think it’s drawn quite well. You don't know, but this was a self-portrait Li Kai drew for Li Na back then. For a sports student, it’s not bad at all. It’s cute."
Jiang Weifeng’s right hand tightened around the ring box in his pocket. He then reached out with his left hand to pull her along, leading her toward the right side of the wall. He kept searching for something on the surface. The light was dim, and after a moment of not finding it, he frowned and turned on his phone's flashlight. He searched carefully once more, then his gaze fixed on a spot, and he smiled. "Look at this. This is still here too."
Lin Jiang pulled her hand from his grip and moved closer to see. The light from his phone was piercing, so she had to blink a few times before she could make out the words: *Lin Jiang, good luck on the Gaokao.*
Her breath hitched, and her eyes turned a deep, stinging red. With tears shimmering in her eyes, she gave him a soft smile. "You wrote this?"
"What do you think?" Jiang Weifeng said nonchalantly, arching an eyebrow with a grin. "The handwriting is a bit ugly; I wasn't performing at my usual level."
But who could blame him? He had been in such a rush that day.
During that final PE class, many girls in the class had gathered there to write their wishes for the Gaokao. Shi Tou and his group were off to the side, laughing and teasing them, until the class monitor led a charge to chase them away. In that brief gap, for some reason, the thought had occurred to him. He picked up a brick-red stone from the ground and carved those words onto the wall, stroke by stroke.
Lin Jiang’s heart melted completely. She took two steps closer, looked down, and took his hand. "You still haven't answered my question from before."
Jiang Weifeng looked at her, emotions swirling in the depths of his eyes. "I was too much of a mess back then."
"Hmm?"
"I was afraid I couldn't give you a good ending."
Suddenly, the clamor of the world fell silent. The moonlight spilled down, softening their features. It was another intoxicating spring night.
There were many things that only the moon knew.
For instance: "Actually, I went to look for you."
During the first semester of his sophomore year, winter break started early. Before going home, Lin Jiang had taken her suitcase and rushed to the city where Jiang Weifeng’s university was located. Like someone carrying a heart full of romance, she braved the frost to reach him. Yet, after all that travel, she had done nothing more than walk around his campus. There was nothing else, but she had been satisfied.
Jiang Weifeng’s eyes were filled with an emotion she couldn't quite decipher. He smiled faintly and tenderly brushed away a strand of hair the wind had blown across her face. "I looked for you, too."
More than once.
He knew that the braised chicken and rice on the second floor of the Z-Chuan cafeteria was better than the one on the first floor; he knew a row of lilacs grew beneath the girls' dormitory; he knew the teaching buildings were quite far from the sports field... He had been to all those places.
But not once did he run into the person he wanted to see.
But what did that matter? Jiang Weifeng looked down at the woman before him. Time had aged them both a little, but she hadn't changed.
On the branches of the human world, everyone follows their own current; fortunately, those who love each other eventually meet at the same destination.
Jiang Weifeng gripped the square box in his pocket again, just about to take it out—
"Which class are you two from?"
Suddenly, the beam of a flashlight cut through the air, abruptly breaking his train of thought.
Jiang Weifeng and Lin Jiang turned their heads at the same time, shielding their eyes from the blinding light. As the figure approached, they realized it was a familiar face.
Time had been relentless; the school worker had grown older, his hair was white, and his eyes seemed a bit blurry as he squinted toward them.
When he got closer, he asked again, "What are you two wandering around here for?" His speech wasn't very clear either.
Lin Jiang hurriedly said, "We’re leaving right now."
The worker didn't seem to hear her. He leaned forward a few steps, sizing them up. "Who are you? What are you doing coming into a school for no reason? If you don't leave, I’m calling security." After saying that, he turned to Lin Jiang. "Young lady, which class are you in?"
Lin Jiang almost couldn't hold back her laughter. Sure enough, when she looked at Jiang Weifeng, he looked utterly speechless and indignant.
The worker continued to grumble, "The other kids are all inside studying. It sets such a bad example for you two to be like this..."
Fortunately, the bell for the end of class rang just then.
In the end, it was Lin Jiang who grabbed the hem of Jiang Weifeng’s shirt and dragged him toward the north gate to escape.
As they ran, the wind whipped at their clothes. Neither of them noticed a small square box slipping out of Jiang Weifeng’s jacket pocket.
School had just let out, and only a few students with bulging backpacks were trickling out of the gate. Jiang Weifeng holding her hand made them look particularly conspicuous, like a rebellious male student from their school days, boldly parading his girlfriend around for all to see.
When they reached the entrance, Jiang Weifeng suddenly stopped. He nervously patted his jacket pocket, and his expression shifted. He let go of Lin Jiang’s hand, looking panicked. "I have to go back."
He had made up his mind. No time was more perfect than "now." Even the most auspicious day on the calendar couldn't compare.
"What’s wrong? I’ll go with you," Lin Jiang said instinctively.
Jiang Weifeng leaned down and kissed her brow. "I’ll be right back."
Lin Jiang stayed where she was and waited for him obediently.
Just then, Xu Mingjuan called, saying that her grandfather had gone to Nanshan and caught a lot of fish. She wanted Lin Jiang to bring Jiang Weifeng home for dinner the next day.
Before she could say much more, Lin Wei snatched the phone. "Daughter, I’m going on a business trip the day after tomorrow, so you must come back tomorrow. The fish your grandpa caught is really something. When you get here, I’ll make you fish soup in chicken broth."
Lin Wei grew excited as he spoke. "You have no idea. You pour the stock into the pot, bring it to a boil, then add the marinated fish slices, julienned ham, and mushroom slices. Once it’s cooked and served, you brew a cup of Longjing tea and pour it into the soup before eating. The fragrance is incredible." At this point, Lin Wei lowered his voice. "Tsk tsk, you’ll really be missing out if you don't come. Your mother craved this exact dish back then, which is why she..."
A shout from Xu Mingjuan suddenly came through the receiver, and Lin Wei hurriedly started explaining himself, sounding cowed.
Lin Jiang couldn't help but laugh.
Lin Jiang had heard bits and pieces about Xu Mingjuan and Lin Wei’s past from her mother, but she had never known the whole story. It seemed like the kind of tale one could listen to quietly while warming a pot of wine.
The thought brought a wave of warmth to Lin Jiang’s heart. And in the span of that one phone call, she already missed Jiang Weifeng.
She looked toward the gate, but he hadn't returned yet.
Nearby, a young girl in a school uniform with a bare, fresh face was standing not far away, waiting for someone. After a while, the parents of the other girls arrived to pick them up, leaving only this one girl behind. The girl gave Lin Jiang a shy smile and asked, "Sister, are you waiting for someone too?"
Lin Jiang looked up. Past the young girl’s profile, she saw him behind her—hands behind his back, walking toward her step by step with effortless grace.
For some reason, an old song suddenly came to Lin Jiang’s mind:
*Flowing water carries away the stories of time,*
*Changing a person,*
*In that sentimental youth,*
*Of waiting for the very first time.*
Look, time flows like water.
At this very moment in the world:
A child is being born, a young girl is experiencing her first period, an old man is closing his eyes for the last time.
People are growing, dying, experiencing, and feeling.
In some places, there are wild celebrations; in others, the flames of war. Some gather around a hearth to talk through the night, while others wander displaced. Someone receives a kiss; someone receives a tear.
The world has a hundred faces, and everyone has their own way of living.
Lin Jiang felt fortunate that the boy she liked when she was seventeen also had her in his heart. Love had been kind to her.
And so, Lin Jiang met the eyes behind the young girl and answered with a smile:
"I'm waiting for the wind."
***
