Huayu: Starting from retirement, sweeping across the domestic entertainment industry

At this moment, the air in room number eight of "Peach Blossom Village" seemed to freeze.

Zhou Ye nestled in the corner of the sofa, clutching her phone, the screen's light flickering on her face.

The video has been played on a loop countless times under the trending search terms.

She watched the figure in the video, pulling the girl away as they ran...

She knew him so well that she could recognize him in a crowd with just one glance.

She suddenly felt something blocking her chest, a dull ache, making it hard to breathe.

It hurt even more than when Tian Xiwei punched him on the shoulder back in the "Minglong Boys" crew.

It hurt even more than when she found out that Hu Lianxin and Li Ran had been keeping it from her.

At that time, I felt anger, shock, and dizziness as if the whole world was collapsing before my eyes.

But things are different now.

It's a dull, slowly seeping pain, like cold water in winter, gradually seeping over my ankles, over my knees, and over my chest.

Li Ran said he arrived by plane last night.

But today, he went to Happy Valley with Little Green Tea.

She recognized him at a glance as Liu Haocun...

She knew all too well, just as she knew it was her birthday today, and she also knew it was Liu Haocun's birthday today.

She had considered that Li Ran would celebrate Liu Haocun's birthday with her. She was filming a variety show, so she didn't need Li Ran's company; Li Ran could go and spend time with Liu Haocun.

She had even mentally prepared reasons for him...

Look, I have the production crew and cameras here, so it's inconvenient for you to come. You should go keep that green tea girl company. I'm fine with it.

But why did he lie to her?

The most terrifying thing about lies isn't how destructive they are, but that they make you start to doubt everything you thought was true.

He said last year that he would celebrate her birthday every year from now on. Is that true? He said she's his favorite person. Is that true? Those late-night hugs, those morning kisses, those whispered "I love you" in her ear...

Is it all true?

Hu Lianxin sat on the single sofa next to him, looking at Zhou Ye's sullen profile, and understood everything in her heart.

Her phone vibrated, and when she looked down at it, she saw it was a message from Li Ran.

It's very short, just a few words...

A pang of sadness welled up inside her, slowly spreading.

Last year on her birthday, Li Ran was filming and she was filming too. The two of them said "Happy Birthday" through the screen, and the gift was delivered to the hotel by express courier.

There were no fireworks, no Ferris wheel, no one holding her hand and running through the crowd.

She wasn't unaware that Li Ran treated Zhou Ye differently; she just didn't usually think about it.

But today, that feeling of "grievance" still managed to slip out from some crack.

Meng Ziyi glanced at Zhou Ye, who was curled up on the sofa, and then at Hu Lianxin, who was silent with her head down. She couldn't help but lean closer and ask, "Xiao Ye, are you still unhappy?"

Nobody paid any attention to her!

She continued, seemingly oblivious to her own words, "Li Ran is really something. If he didn't want to, he didn't want to. Why did he have to lie to Xiao Ye? My happy little dog isn't happy anymore..."

Hu Lianxin looked up and glared at her: "What do you mean, 'your happy little dog'? What right do you have to comment on what happens between us and Li Ran?"

Meng Ziyi frowned: "Hu Lianxin, what do you mean? Wasn't I just concerned about Xiaoye?"

Hu Lianxin pouted: "So concerned you want to sleep with Li Ran?"

Meng Ziyi's face flushed red, and she glared at her: "Aren't you the same? I can't be bothered with you..."

After saying that, she turned her head, ran to sit down next to Zhou Ye, put her arm around her shoulder, and patted her gently.

Hu Lianxin sneered, "A crocodile cry for mercy."

He got up and walked out of the living room.

Although Li Ran didn't accompany Zhou Ye today, they still wanted to celebrate with him in Room 8. The cake was ordered in the afternoon, and the dishes should be prepared as well.

And it's not that Li Ran isn't coming...

He should still be on his way.

At eight o'clock in the evening, a warm yellow light was turned on in the living room of room number eight.

On the table was a two-tiered cake, covered in pink cream, with a thin candle stuck on top.

The dishes were arranged crookedly on the plates, not exactly visually appealing, but the result of Zhang Han and Lai Guanlin's two hours of tinkering in the kitchen that afternoon.

Meng Ziyi placed a few wildflowers picked from the yard into a vase; they were small purple blossoms, and a faint fragrance could be smelled when you got close.

The camera, with its red light on, quietly recorded everything from a corner, while the crew members stood at a distance, none of them approaching to disturb the recording.

Zhou Ye sat at the dining table, his hands supporting his chin, and tried to force a smile at the candle.

"Make a wish! Make a wish!" Meng Ziyi cheered from the side, her voice louder than usual, as if trying to drown out something unpleasant.

Zhou Ye closed his eyes.

The candlelight flickered on her face, her eyelashes casting small shadows under her eyelids. She kept her eyes closed for a long time, so long that Meng Ziyi couldn't help but want to ask her a question. Only then did she open her eyes and blow out the candle.

"What did you wish for?" Meng Ziyi asked.

Zhou Ye smiled and said, "It won't work if you say it out loud."

The smile on his face was like a flower blooming in winter; it looked like a flower, but it lacked the warmth of spring.

She laughed forcefully, but something seemed to sink into her eyes.

The camera captured it all, faithfully and cruelly.

No one knows that she didn't say anything when she closed her eyes just now.

Because her mind was filled with the image of him running away with someone else, she couldn't bring herself to make a wish in that scene.

Standing outside the crowd, Hu Lianxin looked at Zhou Ye's forced smile and suddenly felt a lump in her throat.

She remembered this day last year, when Li Ran set off fireworks for Zhou Ye on the Ferris wheel.

The golden shards scattered everywhere reflected in Zhou Ye's eyes, shining like stars.

She looked away, turned and went into the kitchen. The cake hadn't been cut yet; she needed to find a knife.

Outside the window, the moon rose, its light and cool illuminating the bustling night.

……

After cutting the cake...

Meng Ziyi was eating heartily, a small piece of pink cream stuck to the corner of her mouth. Zhang Han and Lai Guanlin sat to the side, chatting casually, glancing at Zhou Ye every now and then.

Zhou Ye sat in the corner of the sofa, eating cake in small bites. He picked up a strawberry with his fork, brought it to his mouth, and then put it down.

She kept her head down, her eyelashes drooping, and her expression was unreadable, but her absent-minded look made it clear to anyone with eyes that she was in low spirits.

We ate the cake for ages, and it didn't seem to have gotten much less.

Hu Lianxin sat next to her and caught a glimpse of her phone screen light up. She looked down and saw it was a message from Li Ran.

[Ready, you can come out now.]

She quickly typed a reply, sent a cute "OK" emoji, and then put her phone back in her pocket.

She turned to Zhou Ye, trying to keep her tone natural: "Coconut, let's go for a walk, and maybe take a stroll in Ta Xue."

Zhou Ye looked up at her, a hint of weary laziness in his eyes: "Didn't Sister Meng go for a walk this evening?"

Hu Lianxin pouted: "She can walk her own animals, but I haven't even walked mine yet."

She looked down at Taxue, who was lying at Zhou Ye's feet, and deliberately used a coaxing tone to say, "Son, how about we go for a walk?"

Ta Xue seemed to sense something; her ears twitched, she raised her head, and her beady black eyes swept between the two of them.

It suddenly stood up, nibbled at Zhou Ye's trouser leg, barked softly twice, and began to wag its tail slightly.

Zhou Ye looked down at its excited expression, sighed helplessly, and reached out to pat its head: "Alright then."

The two stood up and walked towards the door. Ta Xue ran happily ahead, the rope dragging on the ground, making a soft sound. (The text then abruptly shifts to a seemingly unrelated passage: "Cola novel, turn the next page, and it's another world.")

Meng Ziyi was enjoying her meal when she caught a glimpse of the two people walking out, and she quickly put down the plate in her hand.

She had a feeling that something was going to happen tonight... Hu Lianxin's nonchalant attitude was the most abnormal thing.

She bent down, picked up the chocolate at her feet, and hurried after him, saying, "Wait for me, I'm coming too!"

Hu Lianxin glanced back at her, her lips moved, but she didn't say anything.

The three people walked along the village road. The moon rose, hanging coldly overhead, illuminating the road surface.

The peach trees on both sides of the road have already finished blooming, and their leaves have grown densely, rustling in the night wind.

Hu Lianxin led Ta Xue ahead, her steps unhurried but her direction clear, heading straight for the peach grove at the village entrance.

Zhou Ye followed behind her, head down, watching his shadow stretch long and long in the moonlight.

She was still thinking about those things, about the video on her phone screen, about that running figure, about the earnest and determined tone in his voice when he said, "I'll celebrate your birthday with you every year from now on."

She didn't notice that Hu Lianxin was leading her further and further away, nor did she notice Meng Ziyi's hesitant expression behind her.

Meng Ziyi was now certain that Li Ran had arrived.

Because she saw... at the intersection ahead, Guo Qilin and Wang Sulong were standing side by side, both with mysterious and expectant smiles on their faces.

She slowed her pace and decided not to move any further.

Zhou Ye walked with his head down for a while before suddenly realizing that the person next to him had stopped.

She looked up and saw that Hu Lianxin had loosened the rope on the snow-walking rope at some point, and the little one was running happily forward and disappearing into the peach blossom forest.

She herself had somehow walked up to Guo Qilin and Wang Sulong.

Wang Sulong looked at her and said with a smile, "Little sister, it's your birthday today, why aren't you happy?"

Zhou Ye was stunned for a moment.

She opened her mouth, wanting to say "I'm not unhappy," but swallowed the words back.

She didn't want to lie; she had heard too many lies today.

Guo Qilin waved his hand: "Alright, stop teasing Xiao Ye."

He took half a step forward, glancing past her towards the peach blossom grove, a smile playing on his lips. "There's someone waiting for you on that lawn next to the peach blossom grove."

Zhou Ye's mind went blank for a moment. Sadly, Ta Xue ran away, and Xiao Hu wasn't in a hurry...

"Is that Li Ran?"

Hu Lianxin stood behind her, watching her frozen back, and smiled softly.

There was a hint of sourness, a hint of sweetness, and something else she couldn't quite put her finger on in that smile.

There was a hint of sourness, a hint of sweetness, and something else she couldn't quite put her finger on in that smile.

"Yes, go quickly."

Zhou Ye didn't move, but stared blankly in the direction where Ta Xue had run off, slightly lost in thought...

Ta Xue, who had already disappeared from sight, suddenly ran back and stood not far away, turning back to call to her as if urging her on.

Zhou Ye suddenly started walking, then jogging, and then running faster and faster...

She ran to the edge of the peach grove and saw the lawn.

A glowing path stretched across the lawn, not from lamps, but from tiny, scattered fireflies, as if someone had crushed stars and scattered them on the ground.

At the end of the path stood a person, with a sea of ​​flowers at his feet...

He was wearing that familiar black coat, and holding a bouquet of creamy white lisianthus flowers.

Symbolizing sincere and unchanging love...

Although, Li Ran's love is a bit too excessive.

When Zhou Ye ran over, Li Ran saw the tear stains on her face.

He tucked the lisianthus he was holding into her arms and slowly said, "Happy birthday, my Xia."

Then he took a small box out of his pocket.

Zhou Ye's tears welled up instantly.

She held the bouquet of flowers, the petals brushing against her face, soft and cool.

The floodgates in my heart were opened, releasing all the things that had been bottled up all day—resentment, doubt, sadness.

There was also a fear that she herself was unwilling to admit... all of which surged up at this moment.

Then she laughed again.

Tears still clung to her face, but the corners of her mouth curved upwards. She was both crying and laughing, looking somewhat disheveled, but she didn't care.

Li Ran hadn't forgotten; he remembered the promise he made last year.

He said he would celebrate her birthday with her every year from now on, and he wasn't lying to her.

"It's not feathers again, is it?" She sniffed, her voice still trembling with tears, but her tone had come back to life.

Last year on her birthday, he gave her a feather necklace from Luo, which is still hanging around her neck, close to her collarbone, and she has never taken it off when she takes a shower or goes to bed.

Li Ran shook his head and opened the box himself.

Under the moonlight, the small lock lay quietly in the velvet. It was made of gold, without any carvings or inscriptions, a warm and heavy piece.

Without a chain, it's just a lock, as plain and simple as a piece of uncarved jade.

"I'd rather send a feather." Zhou Ye said with a hint of disgust, but his eyes were bright and glistening with tears that hadn't dried yet. Reflecting the lock, they looked like two stars soaked in water.

Li Ran chuckled awkwardly: "This isn't made from ordinary gold."

"What, is it more expensive than gold?" Zhou Ye frowned at him, his tone slightly annoyed, but the corners of his mouth were turned up.

Li Ran smiled and softened her voice: "This is the longevity lock that my grandfather gave me. I melted it down and made a new one."

Zhou Ye's eyelashes trembled slightly.

"How could you melt the longevity lock that Grandpa gave you!" Her voice suddenly rose, and her eyes reddened again. This time it wasn't out of grievance, but out of anxiety.

Li Ran chuckled awkwardly, "I asked my grandfather, and he agreed. I said I wanted to give it to a girl."

He didn't say what his grandfather had said.

Zhou Ye lowered his head and looked at the small lock.

It was no longer Grandpa's longevity lock, but it carried the blessings of that old man for most of his life, and the warmth of a family. It was melted down, recast into another form, and carried by a boy in his pocket, across most of the city, under the moon, to her.

"Then put it on me," she said softly.

Li Ran took the lock out of the box; it was a lock without a chain.

He bent down, placed it in her palm, and then closed her fingers.

Keep it safe for yourself.

His hands were big, her hands were small.

Zhou Ye looked down at his hands and suddenly laughed again. This time it was a real laugh. His tears had completely dried, and his eyes shone as if they contained two stars.

Not far away, Hu Lianxin and a few others stood at the intersection, but none of them went forward.

The moonlight illuminated the two people on the lawn very clearly...

He handed her flowers, and she cried and laughed at the same time. He took out a box, and she looked down at what was in her hand, then suddenly laughed even more happily.

They were too far away to hear what was being said, but the scene itself was enough.

Meng Ziyi hugged the chocolate, craning her neck, and muttered, "If only it were me... Why won't Li Ran accept me..."

Hu Lianxin's eyelashes trembled slightly.

She looked at the two overlapping shadows in the moonlight, and something was churning inside her.

I'm genuinely happy for Zhou Ye, and I'm also genuinely disappointed in myself.

She was feeling annoyed, but when she heard Meng Ziyi's words, the emotions that had been bottled up all day suddenly found an outlet.

She turned her head, stared at Meng Ziyi, and said in a voice that was neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for the people around her to hear: "Meng Ziyi, don't force me to slap you when I'm happiest."

Meng Ziyi was startled by her gaze and subconsciously took half a step back, causing the chocolate in her arms to yelp as it was squeezed.

She opened her mouth as if to retort, but faced with Hu Lianxin's serious expression, she didn't dare.

Guo Qilin and Wang Sulong exchanged a glance and tacitly moved two steps to the side.