Desk mate, your persona has crumbled.

The next morning, at 5:40 a.m.

The sky outside the window was still bright, and the city was in the process of waking up.

Only the occasional horn of an early morning bus could be heard in the distance.

Inside Song Shuyan's room, the preset alarm clock hummed beside her pillow.

The girl opened her eyes, her gaze still hazy from just waking up.

Song Shuyan reached for her phone on the bedside table and then turned it off.

After finishing this task, Song Shuyan slowly sat up.

The girl tiptoed out of bed and walked to the wardrobe, her movements even lighter than usual.

My fingertips brushed over a few of my usual plain-colored clothes, and I finally chose a light beige cotton T-shirt and a simple pair of sweatpants.

After changing her clothes, she slipped into the bathroom.

The mirror reflected the girl's still aloof face.

Song Shuyan quickly and quietly finished washing up. The cool water splashed on her face, dispelling the last bit of sleepiness.

As she dried her face with a towel, she looked at herself in the mirror and pursed her lips slightly, as if to encourage herself.

After tidying up, Song Shuyan gently opened the door.

Only one warm yellow wall lamp was on in the living room.

Song Jianghuai was already dressed and holding a glass in his hand, as if he had just filled it with water.

Upon seeing Song Shuyan, Song Jianghuai was not surprised.

My daughter usually wakes up at this time, very punctually.

After putting down his water glass, Song Jianghuai picked up his car keys.

"Let's go."

Song Shuyan responded softly, then picked up her schoolbag and followed her father out of the house.

As the elevator slowly descended, Song Jianghuai couldn't help but turn to look at his daughter.

"Yan Yan, you seem to be expecting something?"

Song Shuyan turned to look at her father and nodded gently.

"Okay. Xu Mo said he'd bring me rice balls."

It's rice balls again.

Song Jianghuai immediately thought of the boy who was with his daughter.

I wonder what that kid looks like.

The lighting at the school gate wasn't very good at night.

Especially when viewed from the direction of the school, the light will also affect the view.

So although Song Jianghuai had met Xu Mo twice, he had never seen Xu Mo's face clearly.

Moreover, Xu Mo ran fast, giving Song Jianghuai no chance at all.

Once inside the car, Song Jianghuai steadily drove it out of the underground parking garage and headed towards the school.

Shortly after, the car came to a smooth stop not far from the gate of Yuedu Middle School.

Inside the car, Song Shuyan sat quietly in the back seat.

She tilted her head slightly, her gaze fixed on the direction of the school gate through the car window.

The school gate was closed, and a number of students had gathered outside, most of them senior high school students who looked a little tired.

They chatted quietly in twos and threes, waiting for the school gates to open.

Song Shuyan's gaze swept across the crowd, and she subconsciously shrank back into her seat.

She liked this moment of waiting in the car; it was a safe buffer zone.

Finally, at the appointed time, the school gates slowly opened.

The students waiting outside immediately sprang into action, forming a massive flow of people that surged toward the school gate.

The background noise could be faintly heard through the car window.

Song Shuyan looked at the crowded scene but did not move.

She needs to wait, wait for the first, most surging wave of people to pass.

Time passed second by second.

The number of people at the school gate has noticeably decreased.

The teachers from the Academic Affairs Office who were in charge of checking at the entrance also relaxed their posture and no longer needed to maintain order.

Right now.

Song Shuyan reached out and unbuckled his seatbelt.

"Dad, I'm leaving."

She whispered something; this was her daily ritual before getting off the bus.

"Okay, go ahead."

Song Jianghuai watched as his daughter opened the car door and walked towards the school gate.

Only after Song Shuyan's figure had completely disappeared into the school gate did Song Jianghuai turn his gaze away and restart the vehicle.

As the streets gradually awakened in the early morning, he drove home along a familiar route.

The scenery outside the car window rushed past at a steady pace: convenience stores, stationery stores...

Everything was bathed in the morning light, carrying a sense of calm busyness typical of a weekday.

While waiting for the traffic light to turn red at an intersection, his gaze inadvertently swept across the street corner.

A small breakfast shop is open for business with steaming hot food.

What attracted Song Jianghuai's attention the most was the small stall set up at the entrance of the shop.

A large wooden tub wrapped in a thick cotton quilt, with several plastic boxes containing ingredients placed next to it.

It's just an ordinary rice ball stall.

Song Jianghuai's gaze froze.

My daughter's words from last night still echo clearly in my ears.

"Xu Mo said he'll bring me rice balls tomorrow."

The light turned green, and the car behind gently honked its horn.

Song Jianghuai subconsciously stepped on the gas, and the car slid across the intersection.

But just as he reached the opposite intersection, his foot inexplicably landed on the brake.

With the turn signal on, the car slowly came to a stop in a temporary parking space on the side of the road.

Song Jianghuai turned off the engine and unconsciously tapped his fingers on the steering wheel a few times.

My gaze drifted through the side window back to the steaming stall.

The stall owner, a middle-aged woman, was deftly rolling rice balls for a tall young man.

Seaweed, white rice, fried dough sticks, dried vegetables, pork tenderloin... her movements were practiced skillfully.

Looking at it, Song Jianghuai suddenly pushed open the car door and walked straight towards the rice ball stall.

As soon as I got closer, I saw the stall owner handing a round rice ball to the boy.

The boy asked, "Auntie, how much?"

"The first one is 15 yuan, the second one is 22 yuan! I'll just charge you 35!" the stall owner said crisply.

"Okay, thank you, Auntie!"

The boy took out his phone to scan the QR code, and when he looked up, he happened to catch a glimpse of Song Jianghuai next to him.

The boy suddenly realized what was happening, quickly paid the money, and then turned and ran away.

"Auntie, I've paid!"

Song Jianghuai didn't care about this little incident, assuming the boy was just in a hurry to get to school.

His gaze fell on the rice ball stall in front of him, scanning each of the plastic boxes:

Dried plum vegetables, pickled mustard tuber shreds, fried dough stick crumbs, pork floss, pork tenderloin, sausage, cucumber shreds... a wide variety.

"Boss, two rice balls, please."

"Alright! What do you want?" the stall owner asked enthusiastically.

Looking at the condiment box in front of him, Song Jianghuai instinctively picked out a few things he thought his daughter might like.

The stall owner quickly prepared the rice balls that Song Jianghuai had ordered.

Song Jianghuai paid the money and took the plastic bag.

The rice balls were very substantial, quite heavy, and you could feel the softness and warmth of the rice even through the bag.

……

Song Jianghuai pushed open the door to his home.

Yang Muyun turned her head when she heard the door open, and her gaze fell on the white plastic bag in her husband's hand.

"What are you holding in your hand?"

With curiosity on her face, Yang Muyun took a few steps closer. When she saw what her husband was holding, a look of surprise appeared on her face.

"Rice balls?"

"Um."

Song Jianghuai responded and placed the bag containing two rice balls on the dining table.

"On my way back after dropping Yan Yan off, I happened to see a stall selling this."

Yang Muyun looked at the rice balls on the table, whose steam still seemed to have not completely dissipated, and then looked up at her husband:

"Why did you suddenly decide to buy this?"

Song Jianghuai picked up one of the rice balls.

"I just happened to see it."

He paused for a moment, then said, "I was thinking that Yan Yan was going to eat this today, so why don't we buy two to try and see what they taste like?"

Upon hearing this, Yang Muyun's smile softened even more.