In 2007, in the middle of summer, it was August, and the weather in the south was as hot and humid as ever.

At that time, Shen Siliang had just graduated from the People's Liberation Army/Army Institute of International Relations, and at the moment when he was choosing to stay in school for graduate school or return to Beijing to work, he had a disagreement with his father Lao Shen, so Lao Shen urgently summoned people from Nanjing to Suzhou, where he was inspecting at the time.

That day, it rained lightly in Suzhou, and the air was very humid, so Shen Zhongqi's secretary took Shen Siliang in with an umbrella.

The two walked all the way along the side door of the sanatorium, and Luo Hongmin said to him familiarly: "Don't be angry, he is really in a hurry, I'm afraid that you will hand over the application form on your own initiative, or you won't be picked up from Nanjing directly." ”

Shen Siliang pulled out a hangy smile, anxious, isn't he in a hurry, he took the train from Nanjing for more than two hours, and it was still a hard seat!

Luo Hongmin smiled even deeper, with a calm demeanor: "He has his own plans, you don't know in school, Nanjing has not been in good form in recent years, and the dragon is in a tiger's position, and the fight is miserable." ”

Shen Siliang said lightly: "Isn't it just that Xiao Pusong has risen by half a level, and he can still climb to the sky?" ”

His most proud, most precious youngest son, the living ancestor in Nanjing City, didn't let himself and Lao show the rules and regulations they cleaned up?

Listen, that's crazy.

"More than that." Luo Hongmin was cautious, and his voice was much lower: "The Xiao family is ambitious, don't look at the fast rise now, sooner or later it will fall, the Peng family of the Lao family is not pleasing to the eye, and you must also take a hand, you are different from them, don't wade into this troubled water, if you really want to study in the future, it will be the same if you are studying on a temporary job." ”

Shen Siliang didn't speak again, Luo Hongmin was the old man next to Shen Zhongqi, and a large part of his meaning could represent him.

The two walked along the cobblestone path to a white, all-glass building, where Luo Hongmin led him to the corridor and collected his umbrella.

"You wait first, someone inside reports to Wen Jiàn, wait for them to come out and then go in."

Shen Siliang stood alone at the bottom of the corridor, looking at the scenery in front of him with interest.

Shen Zhongqi lives in this place, in the famous scenic spot Jinji Lake, the place where domestic and foreign dignitaries stay, similar to Beijing's fishing / Taiwan, very Suzhou garden characteristics, Shen Siliang this time is the first time to come to the south of the Yangtze River, although in Nanjing before, but that place is at the junction of the north and south, the climate and people are not very different, look closely, but it is still more atmospheric here, more scenery.

There is no one in this courtyard for a few miles, the mountains and rivers are scattered, the sound is murmuring, a large piece of weeping willows is covered by the rain, and there are a few black swans in the middle of the pool.

Shen Siliang bent down on the railing of the corridor, stared at the black swans for a while, and as soon as he turned his head, he saw Huo Hui.

She was sitting in a pavilion by the lake, curled up, reading a book in her hand.

She was thin, wearing a white blouse and light-colored trousers, her hair was scattered, the book was on her knees, and most importantly, she was barefoot.

Since the ancients, the cloud view of women's color, first check the bone physiognomy, and then taste three points, one point neck, two points of foot, three points of waist.

Reading people, he Shen Siliang is a master.

That jade neck, delicate and slender, even and gentle.

Those bare feet, slender ankles, smooth and white.

Shen Siliang suddenly became interested.

The book she read was the English version of "One Hundred Years of Solitude".

Here, it is quite rare to see a girl, and this girl is not very old, only seventeen or eighteen, and her temperament is about to merge with the rain, faint, cold, and no one around. It's hard to guess who she is.

She had a plate of cherries in her hand, with green leaves on them, all of them were ruddy and full, and she would pick one up between readings, put it between her lips, and bite it down for a long time.

Probably aware of the gaze that had been falling here, Huo Hui finally raised his head and looked at Shen Siliang when he turned the page again.

His eyes were calm, without the slightest embarrassment of being discovered, even with a hidden smile, Huo Hui would never forget that moment.

Shen Siliang stood under the corridor, there was a silent drizzle outside, he was tall and straight, and his posture was like a tree.

Before coming from Nanjing in a hurry, he was still wearing a military uniform, a light green military shirt, two buttons down the neckline, the Adam's apple was distinct, the collarbone was sultry, the cuffs were rolled up twice, revealing half of the strong forearm, and down was dark green military pants, he put one hand in his trouser pocket, obviously a seductive atmosphere, but when he bumped into her eyes, he didn't know it, that face was unwavering, and his expression was not shocked.

It seems that he is the master of this place, and she is the one who broke in by mistake.

Huo Hui and he looked at each other quietly for a few seconds, and then lowered his head again to read, leaving him with only a black and soft hair top.

Shen Siliang laughed, his brain was hot, and he wanted to go to the pavilion to talk to her in the rain, but before he could take a step, someone behind him called him.

Luo Hongmin stood not far away and looked at him with a smile: "Si Liang, come in." ”

After thinking about it, he turned and went in, as if he had put the matter down immediately, and he didn't think about it on the fly.

No one knew what the father and son talked about in the house, but an hour later, when Luo Hongmin went in again, Shen Zhongqi looked calm and said to him:

"It's nothing to do in the afternoon, you let the driver follow him out for a walk."

Luo Hongmin went to see Shen Siliang, he sat on the sofa, there was no objection, obviously acquiescing, Luo Hongmin smiled: "Okay, I'll prepare." ”

Shen Siliang stood up and went out, Luo Hongmin gossiped and asked him, "How is it?" ”

Shen Siliang put his hand in his trouser pocket, and said two words leisurely: "Two places." ”

Luo Hongmin understood, sighed and comforted him: "You and Xiaohang must have one who follows his wishes, and if you go up, Xiaohang will suffer less." ”

Of course he knew, if it weren't for Xiaohang. Not to mention Shen Zhongqi, according to Shen Siliang's temperament, even the Heavenly King Laozi can't agree.

Everyone knows that he Shen Siliangzhi is not in Beijing, let alone the General Staff, he is tired of the people in the office building, tired of those countless phone calls, he is more willing to be a military attache than a Confucian general. I thought that after finishing my graduate school in Nanjing, I would directly apply to go to Lanzhou and Gansu, where the place was endless, vast and boundless, with infantry chariots, tanks, artillery, true comradeship, and gunsmoke in the sky.

But in the end, it was compromised.

As Luo Hongmin said, if he goes up, Xiaohang will be able to suffer less. His temperament is more unrestrained than his own.

Out of the small white building, Shen Siliang unintentionally glanced at the corridor behind him, there was no one for a long time. He asked Luo Hongmin: "Are there still people living in this courtyard?" ”

"Who do you ask?"

Shen Siliang lowered his chin: "Well, there was a girl sitting in that pavilion just now." ”

Luo Hongmin reacted quickly: "Oh, Xu Huaimeng's daughter." ”

Shen Siliang didn't expect it, and was also taken aback: "Outside? ”

Luo Hongmin is Shen Zhongqi's secretary, and he is most taboo to talk about other people's private affairs, so as not to let people catch the handle and cause trouble to Shen Zhongqi.

"My mother is gone, she has depression, and Xu arranged to come here every day for psychotherapy for a few days."

No wonder it looks so quiet, but it's a pity.

Shen Si nodded brightly, bowing his head and smiling sarcastically.

Xu Huaimeng and Shen Zhongqi have always had a good relationship, but his son and Shen Siliang's children don't deal with each other, they beat them from the time they wore open crotch pants, and later they all moved out when they grew up, and they didn't stumble on each other when they met outside.

As far as the son of the Xu family is concerned, this little girl wants to recognize her ancestors and return to her ancestors? And so.

In the afternoon, Luo Hongmin took Shen Siliang to the Lingering Garden, arranged it and went back in a hurry, only bringing the driver to wait for him outside.

Jiangnan Jiangnan, a place where the mountains and rivers are soft, the scenery is almost the same, Shen Siliang is in this lingering garden, the road is just over Keting, and the west building is a flower room, and he gets tired of it after a while, and he doesn't even bother to take a photo.

He walked out of the West Gate and asked the driver to find a distinctive place for the two to eat, and came from Nanjing early in the morning, really hungry.

The driver was thinking about where to go, Shen Siliang's eyes lit up, and he turned around and entered the noodle restaurant across the street.

He saw her again.

It is also a coincidence that after Huo Hui was stopped from studying by Xu Huaimeng on his own initiative, he went to the back of Jinji Lake every day for psychotherapy, Xu Huaimeng felt sorry for her, and allowed her to go to the hospital to see her elderly grandfather in the afternoon. Anyway, I'm leaving, so I'll accompany you more if you can.

When she came out of the hospital, she wandered around the street alone, strolling around, hungry, and just walked around here, so she found a noodle restaurant to eat.

This southern noodle is not quite the same as the north, what is it cold and hot, whether to add duck legs or fried eggs, Shen Siliang couldn't understand the fast and short dialect spoken by the proprietress, and just about to run out of patience, the girl standing in front of him turned around lightly and said clearly to him.

"She asked you whether you want hot or cold noodles, whether you put chopped green onions, and whether there are any taboos."

That crisp and fluent Mandarin is not muddy! He thought that she should be a girl with a strong local atmosphere.

After she finished speaking, she didn't wait for him to answer, carried a small backpack, and sat alone in a corner, as if she had never seen him before.

Shen Siliang looked at her back and said to the proprietress what she wanted.

This noodle restaurant is quite popular, the square table is full of people, Shen Siliang sat opposite the girl and discussed: "Share a table?" ”

The girl looked at him and didn't speak, Shen Siliang looked at him with that look, not because she was on guard, but because she didn't take him seriously at all, and she didn't listen to what he said.

A bowl of clear soup with little water, thin, Shen Siliang picked it up and looked at it, and didn't move a single chopstick, on the contrary, he watched her finish the small bowl of noodles.

During this period, he had nothing to say to her: "What's your name?" ”

She ignored him.

"How old are you?"

She still didn't speak.

Shen Siliang felt that he had touched a nail, which was a little boring, and finally started to eat.

After not taking two bites, the girl put down her chopsticks and stared at him fixedly, her eyes rolling.

Shen Siliang raised his head from the bowl: "What do you see me doing?" ”

She was holding a backpack in her arms, the bag was open, and her face turned red.

Shen Siliang was happy: "Didn't bring any money?" ”

The girl was even more cramped, her face burning as if it were burning.

She has no concept of money, before her grandfather stuffed pocket flowers, after her mother left, she has been on Xu Huaimeng's side, and someone is responsible for eating and drinking, but now her grandfather is hospitalized, and she has no time to take care of it.

At that time, it was not popular for students to use mobile phones, and she didn't even have a chance to make a call.

Shen Siliang originally wanted to wait for her to beg herself, but this girl was a stuffy gourd, her face was getting redder and redder, she just couldn't open her mouth to talk to him, and he was uncomfortable looking at sitting there alone. Finally, Shen Siliang shook his head: "You go." ”

She hesitated, pursed her lips, and cautiously: "How can I pay you back?" ”

He munched on the noodles and stopped looking at her: "Count me on you." ”

She stood up with her bag on her back, and was stopped by him when she was leaving: "Hey, what is your name?" ”

"Huo Hui." With that, she turned back and bowed to him. "Thank you."

Shen Siliang glanced at the empty bowl she had eaten opposite, beckoned to the proprietress and shouted happily: "Check out!" ”

……

I went back to the sanatorium at night and lay in my room, but somehow, Shen Siliang just couldn't calm down.

The glance during the day is not stunning, but it is profound. It was so deep that when I closed my eyes, it was all that figure.

Shen Siliang couldn't sleep, so he got up and went to Shen Zhongqi's room. He knocked on the door and entered: "Dad, have you slept?" ”

Shen Zhongqi was reading the newspaper at the table, and was a little surprised to see Shen Siliang come in: "Something?" ”

Shen Siliang went to the pantry and poured him a glass of warm water, and put it in Shen Zhongqi's hand: "It's okay, come and chat with you." ”

That's a rarity.

Shen Siliang has always been silent, this son lost his mother at a young age, his mind is very heavy, although he grew up by his side, but in the past 20 years, the father and son have rarely had a heart-to-heart relationship, and Shen Zhongqi treats him half stern and half lenient, and he doesn't dare to ask more about many things.

Seeing that he was willing to take the initiative to come over, Shen Zhongqi put down the newspaper in his hand and smiled generously: "Okay, there is little time for the two of us to chat, it's rare that you are in the mood." ”

Shen Siliang sat in a chair next to the bed, with his two hands propped on the armrests, as if he were talking like a common thing: "At noon, I saw a girl in the pavilion, who was not very old, only seventeen or eighteen years old. ”

"I heard Luo Hongmin say, is it a child of the Xu family?"

Shen Zhongqi sighed and sighed: "It's when Lao Xu was young." ”

He took off his glasses: "The child has been raised in the south, the child's mother was an accompanying translator by his side in the early years, and then he was transferred away and there was no movement, or the news came from the recent period that the person died, and Lao Xu knew that he still had such a daughter." ”

Shen Siliang asked: "Biological?" ”

"Lao Xu is such a cautious person, how can he take such a big risk to come and pick you up if he is not his own."

In a family like theirs, this identity suddenly appeared with a daughter, and naturally someone verified it in advance.

Shen Siliang said: "In the afternoon, I went to the Lingering Garden, eating outside, and the little girl was also there, and it was quite pitiful to be alone." ”

Shen Zhongqi said regretfully: "My mother is gone, I heard that she also has depression, I have seen it twice in this garden, she is a very good girl, but she doesn't like to talk much." ”

Shen Siliang groaned slightly: "Then you plan to take it to Beijing?" ”

"I don't know."

Shen Si nodded and stopped talking.

Shen Zhongqi drank water and took daily health care medicine, and then he reacted: "I didn't sleep at night, just came to ask me this?" ”

He looked at the son with a meaningful look in his eyes.

Shen Siliang sighed, not too concerned: "Isn't this chatting with you, I'll ask casually." ”

Shen Zhongqi stopped answering and looked at his son's clothes. Shen Siliang's graduates caught up with the army's big change of clothes in 07, and the army's regular uniform was uniformly changed to pine branch green, and the shirt was also very beautiful. Wear it on him, quite spirited.

Shen Zhongqi smiled kindly: "Xiaohang will also come back in a few days, you two are by my side this time, I am very happy." ”

He said this with a kind smile, and he could tell that he was in a good mood.

Xiaohang's big name is Shen Sihang, Shen Siliang's younger brother, six years younger than Siliang, because his mother was an advanced maternal age when he gave birth to him, and he died after leaving this child, they all say that the eldest brother is like a father, Shen Zhongqi has never remarried for so many years, it can be said that Shen Siliang treats this younger brother more than anyone else, and the relationship between the two brothers has always been good.

Xiaohang is smart, he went to school a year earlier than children of the same age, he went to a British boarding school in high school, and this time the semester was over, and he said that he was homesick, so Shen Zhongqi made the decision to let people take this little son back.

"When you come back, don't take him to mess around with Xiaocheng's children, let him be admitted to a good school with peace of mind."

Shen Siliang responded. Shen Zhongqi said again: "You are attentive to what I told you during the day today, and you are also seriously preparing for it, and you will go to take the exam when you return to Beijing, this position is very rare, and there are also a lot of work contacts with the third department, and the intelligence is not easy to do, so you must be cautious." ”

"Done." Shen Siliang casually folded the inside pages of the bedside into an airplane, threw it at his father, and grinned. "Rest, I'll go back."