Summer Green Apples

Pingzhong's desk drawers are huge, and Chi Sui stuffs everything into them: snacks, tissues, folding umbrellas, extracurricular books, comic books, test papers, textbooks, Bluetooth headphones, Rubik's Cubes, water dispensers...

He searched for a long time before finally finding a cardboard box at the very back, a very pretty blue checkered box.

He didn't open it, but turned to look at Ji Xiwen. "Did you make it by hand?"

Yes.

Ji Xiwen nodded. "You can guess."

Chi Sui glanced down and estimated the size. "A jigsaw puzzle?"

"no."

Ji Xiwen shook her head. Just then, the geography teacher came in through the front door of the classroom, and she quickly said, "Why don't you open it and take a look?"

Chi Sui subconsciously held his breath; he rarely experienced such tension in his otherwise incredibly smooth life.

He pinched one corner of the box and opened it.

Inside was a neatly folded pure blue scarf, the color not too light, more like the deep blue of the ocean.

He paused for a moment, then subconsciously reached out and touched it.

It has a very soft feel, and the stitches aren't too dense, but you can tell how much care the person who knitted the scarf put into it.

"...Did you really knit this by hand?"

"yes."

Ji Xiwen said, "If you don't believe me, I'll have Qingyan send you a screenshot of the yarn purchase record. I bought it using her mobile phone."

"No, no, I'm just a little surprised."

Chi Sui carefully touched it. "Can I wear it now?"

"OK."

Ji Xiwen pulled the test paper that the teacher was going to go over from her desk and whispered, "I washed it beforehand."

Chi carefully took it out and wrapped it around his neck. He could clearly smell the faint scent of laundry detergent on the scarf.

Ji Xiwen glanced at him.

He was already fair-skinned, and wearing a thin black coat and a blue scarf made him look even fairer.

Her black hair fell across her forehead, and her lips were a darker color, with red lips and white teeth.

He's... pretty handsome.

Ji Xiwen scratched her neck uncomfortably, feeling like she couldn't breathe properly.

It's probably because I wore a turtleneck sweater this morning.

I'm not used to it yet.

Chi Sui attended one class and was in a good mood. After class, she approached Ji Xiwen and said, "You don't need to give Xu Jiyang a gift anymore. I'll give him two."

Ji Xiwen was taken aback. "Why?"

"Why? Why?"

Chi Sui argued vehemently, "You're my sister, and I'll help you repay the favors you owe."

Ji Xiwen pursed her lips, looking a little embarrassed. "But if I do that, I'll owe you another favor."

"I'm not going to make you pay it back."

The boy rolled up the test paper, tapped it lightly on her head, then tapped it on her bun. "Do you think I'd ask you for it?"

"Won't."

Ji Xiwen stepped back slightly. "But I feel something's off."

"What's strange about it?" Chi asked.

"Everything's strange," Ji Xiwen frowned. "I don't know how to put it."

"You're just not used to it."

He looked down and tugged at his scarf, adjusting its position as he muttered to himself, "I'll get used to it eventually."

Ji Xiwen was stunned.

She blinked slightly. "But that will wear down your patience with me."

The boy picked up the test paper again and tapped her bun. "If I bother you, I'll tell you myself, as is my personality. Before I do, you can wear down my patience as you please."

Ji Xiwen looked at him.

It was still raining outside, and during breaks, students could only play and frolic in the corridor.

The classroom was brightly lit, while the outside was gloomy.

The colors on his clothes were all very nice, giving him a youthful vibe, like the moment dawn breaks, when the boundless darkness fades away and a faint light appears on the horizon.

Ji Xiwen said softly, "Okay."

After the two finished talking, Chi picked up the test paper and tapped Li Junyu and Xu Jiyang on the shoulder once each.

"What brings you here?"

Li Junyu turned her head away while holding the cup.

Xu Jiyang was chewing bubble gum.

Chi Sui pointed proudly to the scarf around her neck, "Does it look good?"

Li Junyu remained silent.

Xu Jiyang said casually, "It's alright."

"……roll."

Chi Sui said, "I shouldn't have had any expectations of your taste. It's one thing to be ugly, but you don't even have any appreciation for beauty. This scarf is so beautiful..."

Xu Jiyang: "?"

Ji Xiwen: "...Seriously, stop messing around."

Li Junyu then slowly came out, pretending to be a good person, and said, "I think it looks good."

Chi Sui's expression finally softened.

Xu Jiyang: "Pah!"

-

Once Christmas is over, everyone starts looking forward to the New Year's Day holiday.

New Year's Day this year fell on a Monday, making it a three-day holiday including the weekend.

The last class on Friday afternoon is Chinese.

The classroom was noisy. Xu Jiyang would always take advantage of Li Li writing on the blackboard to turn around and talk to Chi Sui about where to go play.

Chi Sui ignored him and spent the whole time fiddling with the scarf around his neck.

He has worn it every day since Christmas Day, from morning till night.

Ji Xiwen initially told him to tone it down, but later found that he wouldn't listen at all and simply ignored him.

When school was over, Xu Jiyang couldn't take it anymore and said, "Stop fiddling with that old scarf of yours."

"roll."

Chi then kicked him under the table.

Ji Xiwen sighed wearily and lowered her head to pack her schoolbag.

After returning to Huayue Bay, Ji Xiwen played with the director for half an hour and fed him a few cat treats.

Ji Rong called.

I dialed the landline on the first floor.

"Xixi, where's your phone?"

"The phone is upstairs," Ji Xiwen said.

"Your mother called you twice, but you didn't answer. She called me again. Go call her back." Ji Rong was still working when she hung up the phone.

Ji Xiwen carried the bureau chief to the room.

She turned on the light, sat on the edge of the bed, and dialed Mingying's number.

The call was answered quickly, and Mingyu's tone carried a hint of displeasure, "Why didn't you answer my call earlier?"

"My phone is on silent."

After explaining, Ji Xiwen asked, "Is there something wrong?"

Actually, it's nothing serious.

This afternoon, when Mingying went to pick up Ji Feiran from school, a parent she knew greeted her while picking up his son. The parent was holding his two- or three-year-old daughter.

The little girl was wearing pretty children's clothes, had a round face, spoke in a sweet, childlike voice, and was very well-behaved and fair-skinned.

On the way back, Mingying was restless.

Because she always thought of Ji Xiwen when she was two or three years old.

She was too young then and was very resistant to having a daughter who wasn't part of the plan.

I was forced into marriage, and even though I took precautions after the wedding, I still got pregnant.

She wanted to have an abortion, but both sets of parents and her husband, Ji Zifeng, disagreed.

Finally, her mother-in-law, Luo Meixia, assured her that she could just give birth without worry, and that she would take care of the baby.

Mingying was in a difficult situation and had no choice but to give birth to Ji Xiwen.

After giving birth, she was eager to try her luck in other places. When she first started working, she couldn't take care of her young child at all and had to stay at home.

When Ji Feiran was born, she and her husband had already accumulated some savings; at least they had stable jobs and sufficient savings.

Moreover, she was in her thirties at the time and was already able to accept the arrival of a child.