Xin Di walked to the window and looked at the somewhat gloomy sky outside the window, the thick clouds with lead gray, pressed down low, standing in the air-conditioned room, you can also feel the dreary weather. She couldn't help but think of that summer many years ago, so to speak, the mutual liking between Xin Chen and Lu Fei was not limited to the simple young boys and girls she had always thought of as spring?

At this time, her mobile phone rang, and it was Lu Fei calling. He asked her in a flat tone, "Xiaodi, is there any arrangement for the evening?" If it's okay, come with me to a bar. ”

Xin Di agreed, and the two hung up the phone at a good time. Lu Fei is her friend, the two have known each other for more than 20 years, but she feels that Lu Fei who came back this time has become a little strange, he used to be calm and not easy to show emotions, but recently she can always feel that his calm is hiding melancholy and helplessness.

And Lu Fei was also standing alone in front of the office window at the moment, looking into the distance. After he came out of Xin Chen's house, he went straight back to the office, but he didn't care about business at all, and he was also immersed in the memories of that summer.

Lu Fei went to the United States seven years ago to study for a master's degree, and after graduation, he began working for a private equity venture capital firm in the United States, which kept a low profile and managed more than a dozen large private fund investments around the world, with a large scale and scope of investment in Chinese mainland. He spent a year in the United States before applying to return to China three years ago to work in the company's China office in Beijing. This time, he returned to the local area, although there were personal reasons, but also to cooperate with the company's investment to participate in the operation of the development project of Haotian Group.

His office is in the office building rented by Haotian Group in the center of the city, overlooking the city from the 29th floor, you can see it very far, and the residential area where Xin Chen lives is also within his sight, but the gray residential building is so dense that it is impossible to distinguish the outline.

He was involved in a project that was about to raze it to the ground and rebuild a bustling shopping mall, and the girl who had left traces of his youth didn't seem to mind erasing the memories of the past in this way.

Soon after meeting Xin Chen for the first time, Lu Fei began to live a new college life, and Xin Di and Xin Chen began to go to the third year of high school and junior high school that made them breathless, and the three of them did not have much contact.

Xin Chen doesn't like to study, but she knows that she can't get into the high school of this school, and she has to trouble her uncle, so she still honestly attends classes, reviews, and does mock test questions that she can't finish even if she is old.

Xin Kaiyu is still doing business without a partner, falling in love, living a rich and wonderful life, occasionally reminding his daughter not to sleep too late, exams are not so important. Xin Chen is funny, and only she has a good life, she has such a father who doesn't ask for it, but she has an uncle who has requirements, and she can't live up to it, and there is Lu Fei, she doesn't want him to disappoint her.

During the winter vacation, Lu Fei came to tutor Xin Di and Xin Chen as promised, and when he saw Xin Chen's exam results, he nodded with satisfaction, "Yes, keep working hard." ”

Xin Di's home is plugged in with an electric oil tin, and the old-fashioned house has thick walls, narrow doors and windows, which are relatively warm, and the local winter wind is all shut outside.

Lu Fei gave the two sisters the key points of mathematics, physics and chemistry respectively, assigned topics for them to do, urged them to memorize English words, and brought a pair of chess to teach the sisters to play chess as a spice. It's just that Xin Di is not interested in this at all, but Xin Chen learned it quickly, and he will play against him when he has time, of course, he will use tricks such as cheating, regretting chess and quietly moving his son.

It had been snowing for most of the day, Li Xin came back from work, and happened to see under the acacia tree in the yard, Xin Chen pinched a large ball of snow, and naughtily tried to throw it into Lu Fei's collar, Lu Fei just dodged, and at the same time smiled indulgently, holding her hand that was red from cold, "Stop playing, beware of catching a cold." ”

Li Xin's face suddenly sank, and Xin Chen only looked up at her expression, and then restrained his laughter. Lu Fei was also a little embarrassed, let go of Xin Chen's hand, and left first after greeting her. Xin Chen and Li Xin entered the house together, and Xin Di was engrossed in painting as usual, completely unresponsive to what was going on outside.

Li Xin couldn't help but sigh secretly for her daughter's innocence. To be fair, she doesn't have a strong sense of utilitarianism, so she doesn't want her and Lu Fei to develop when her daughter is less than 18 years old. But Lu Fei's excellence is very obvious, he has a serious personality since he was a child, his grades are outstanding, he has no children from a superior family, and Xin Di has always gotten along well, and he can't help but have a little hope to be a mother.

If Xin Kaiyu is like other losers, indulging while knowing that he is at a loss, if Xin Chen is like other motherless children, with a little "little cabbage, yellow in the ground" melancholy and pitiful or cringe, then Li Xin may forgive the handsome little uncle who is in constant trouble, and will also hurt Xin Chen a little more.

It's a pity that Xin Kaiyu is very unreasonable, and Xin Chen has inherited this very well, he has always dressed up fashionably and beautifully, behaved in a laissez-faire manner, and both father and daughter live calmly, which really can't make people have anything to do with the need for sympathy.

In Li Xin's opinion, Xin Chen, a girl, lacks discipline, is too wild, too willful, and has too much content in her eyes, in contrast, her daughter Xin Di is too simple, and it can be said that she has no scheming at all.

Her vague dislike came even stronger after discovering that Lu Fei suddenly had a close relationship with Xin Chen.

Although Xin Chen is lively, she is also sensitive, and later, she found all kinds of excuses to go to her aunt's house less.

Xin Di participated in the joint art examination held early and got an excellent score. Next, the sisters' college entrance examination and high school entrance examination results were good, which made Xin Kaiming overjoyed, and even said "double happiness".

In the summer of this year, Li Xin took the vacation and took her daughter back to her hometown to visit relatives. And Xin Kaiyu runs everywhere in the north and south of the world, when he is not at home, Lu Fei will come over to accompany Xin Chen from time to time, urge her to do her homework, take her to the movies, drink soda, buy her the chocolate cones she likes, and accompany her to play chess and chat.

It was in this summer that Xin Chen kissed Lu Fei for the first time.

The two came back from watching the movie, on a summer night, the temperature was very high, and the streets were full of people walking in the cool air, walking idly, and Xin Chen's gait was always lazy.

had already walked downstairs to Xin Chen, and she suddenly asked Lu Fei: "I heard that many people in college fall in love, do you have a girlfriend?" ”

Lu Fei shook his head, this question made him a little embarrassed.

"Have you ever kissed a girl?"

Lu Fei was even more uncomfortable, there was a kissing scene in the movie just now, and in the dark, he couldn't help but look sideways, Xin Chen looked attentively, and seemed to have no shyness at all. Now facing Xin Chen's inquiring gaze, he can only confess: "I don't have a girlfriend, I can't kiss any girl, right?" ”

Xin Chen looked thoughtful, "A boy in the second year of high school chased me and asked me to be his girlfriend." ”

Lu Fei was taken aback, but when he thought about it, there was nothing to be surprised about. He has only just come from high school, and he clearly knows that even if it is a key middle school class with heavy academics and strict teacher management, it can't stop the spring heart of young boys and girls, and talking about some ambiguous little love can be regarded as a small relief from a stressful life.

"Do you like him?" He could only swallow back the big reason that students should focus on learning, and asked.

"I don't hate others, I don't have pimples, I look very clean, and I am still the champion of the school's 100-meter run."

Lu Fei sighed secretly, sure enough, he was still a child, and this was what he asked for his boyfriend, he couldn't help but ask while despising himself: "Are you going to be his girlfriend?" ”

The little kid in his eyes suddenly stopped and turned to look at him, "Unless you don't admit that I'm your girlfriend." ”

Xin Chen tilted his head and looked at Lu Fei like that, his eyes were as bright as stars, with a mischievous smile of course. However, admitting that a 15-year-old girl is a girlfriend is a bit out of Lu Fei's senses, and he opens his mouth in front of her for the first time.

But before he could say anything, she suddenly stretched out her arms to hug him, stood on tiptoe and touched his lips quickly, and then let go of him, "It's okay if you don't admit it, anyway, your first kiss is mine." ”

Xin Chen didn't wait for him to say anything, and ran up to the fifth floor to go home in one go. Xin Kaiyu returned early rarely, and handed the iced watermelon to his daughter, "Chenzi, who is chasing you?" Running sweaty. ”

She didn't answer, took the watermelon, and took a big bite, but what remained on her lips was the touch of that lip, warm, soft, intimate...... In short, not the taste of watermelon.

This was also Xin Chen's first kiss.

When Lu Fei, sitting alone in his office on the 29th floor of the city center, thought of the kiss, Xin Chen put away the chess pieces and let his memory stop in the same place.

It was the warmest day in the memories of the two, Xin Chen clearly knew that those days were not only meaningful to her, even if she went to the United States to study and saw the broader world of Lu Fei, she also cherished that time together, otherwise she would not still look at her with gentle eyes until now.

It was precisely because of such a pure and happy time that Xin Chen forgave and allowed himself to occasionally immerse himself in the past.

As the sky grew darker, Xin Chen put the chess pieces in the corner of his closet. She doesn't intend to indulge in memories, but when she was a girl, she seemed to be full of strength and courage in life, and she also had love. She only agreed that when she didn't have the strength to continue, she would find a little warmth from her memories and borrow a little strength from the past.

Xin Chen returned to his studio, turned on the computer, opened the original pictures of the album he got back from David Weifan, and began to repair the outline and skin one by one.

Since she started as a freelancer, she has been processing photos for several small wedding photography companies all year round, and the remuneration is not very good, but the source is stable, and she has already done it very well, and it is not effortless at all.

However, the advertising album is more demanding than the general photographic portrait processing, she adds layers little by little, adjusts the transparency, grinds away acne, moles and small spots, and repairs the delicate skin texture close to the real one. When she did this, she didn't have to use her brain at all, so she could completely understand the joke that the kid in the photo studio had to rise up and photoshop off people's navel eyes.

While I was concentrating on my work, another laptop sounded a QQ message. She pretended to be QQ just for the convenience of work, usually always hanging, but rarely chatting with people, click on it, it is her netizen Bruce, who is now studying at the University of California, Berkeley. Three years ago, the two walked together on the Qinling hike that almost killed her, and later became friends, exchanging each other's hiking experiences in different places on QQ from time to time.

"Hehuan, are you there?"

Hehuan is her screen name, she uses this name on QQ and hiking forums, of course, some people say that this name is easy to reminisce, she only shrugged her shoulders and ignored it. What she likes is the tall trees that grow in the courtyard of Xindi, the pinnate leaves quietly close at night, and the red and white flowers full of wisps of the trees bloom like a dream every June and July, and the fragrance that seems to be absent has always floated in her associations and memories of local summer.

And Bruce, who moved to Canada with his family at the age of 15 and went to college in the United States at the age of 18, also explained his name: "My surname is Lin, and foreigners hear that Bruce Lin is similar to Bruce Lee. ”

"I'm here, are you going to bed too late or waking up too early, why are you online at this time?"

"Long nights, no sleep." Bruce, who is 3 years younger than her, likes to tell overused dialogues in order to prove that he has not lost his Chinese.

"I'm working, we'll talk later."

"Hey, wait, it's not good to take time to give overseas travelers a little compatriot hobbies, ask me what I'm doing now."

"Don't worry, you're panicking."

"I'm in the same city with you now, I just arrived in the afternoon, Hehuan, I want to see you."

Xin Chen was stunned, the two used to sit on the Taibai Mountain in the Qinling Mountains and chat, Bruce did tell her that he lived in Hanjiang City before he was 15 years old, and listed the streets where he once lived, the middle school he attended, the shopping mall where he often played video games, and the small restaurant where he ate beef noodles, proving that he was right. Later, he also mentioned that he planned to come back to visit his relatives at the right time, and visit her, a "friend who had lived and died together".

"I've already gone out once today, and it's too much for an otaku to go out twice a day." She jokingly typed, "Let's make an early reservation tomorrow, first tell me what you want to eat, and I'll treat you." ”

"you, just today, I was fed by my relatives and hung up, I didn't eat anything, and we went to drink in the evening. We said a long time ago, we want to find a place to have a drink, and you are not allowed to rely on it. ”

Xin Chen thought that it would not be a bad idea to go out for a drink and relax today, otherwise in the dead of night, memories would probably turn into nightmares uncontrollably, so she agreed and made an appointment with Bruce.

On a weekday night, Bruce was stunned by the crowds at this famous local slow-shake bar, and with the hot and powerful music, his eardrums vibrated and they finally found a place to sit on the barstool by the bar and ordered a beer.

Xin Chen inadvertently turned her head and saw her ex-boyfriend Feng Yi'an, who was sitting at a table not far from a girl drinking, and although the girl was wearing heavy makeup, she could see that it was not the same person Feng Yi'an specially introduced to her last time. She immediately looked away, not planning to greet him, but when he saw her, he got up and walked over to her, and said with a cold expression: "Xiao Chen, don't you want to introduce me?" ”

She could only make the simplest introduction: "Feng Yi'an, Bruce." ”

Bruce got up and stretched out his hand in a friendly manner, Feng Yi'an didn't look at him, shook it perfunctorily, turned around and seemed to walk away, suddenly stopped, approached Xin Chen's ear, and said with a slight mockery: "So, find a new person to accompany you to pass the loneliness?" ”

The last time they met, he introduced his new girlfriend to her, and she was very polite, she didn't understand his current unfriendly behavior, so she could only conclude that he had drunk too much, avoided his body, and ignored the provocation. Bruce reached out to protect Xin Chen and asked, "Is there something wrong?" ”

Fortunately, Feng Yi'an didn't act out of line, glanced at her fiercely, and walked away. Seeing Xin Chen's uncertain expression, Bruce said, "This commotion, I'm in distress, and my heart is a little unbearable, let's go out." She immediately nodded in agreement.

Standing outside, Bruce took a breath of fresh air, "I'm really a native from overseas, and I can't stand this noise." ”

Xin Chen sneered, "No, I'm fine with this old man." ”

"Pity me for this nerd, I used to stay in Vancouver, the family was strict, I only saw middle school students in the Homeparty while adults are not so crazy, after adults can buy alcohol, everyone can be crazy but not crazy, I like to be quiet."

He is 22 years old, wearing a white V-neck T-shirt and processed pants, with stylishly messy hair, a tall figure, a handsome face with a mischievous smile, and a hint of nerdyness.

Xin Chen doesn't often go clubbing, but every time he comes out, he doesn't mind the noise, but feels that such a noise is just right for a group of people with their own hearts to drink and have fun, and they don't have to use their brains to answer people. It's still early to see the time, and I thought about it, "Why don't you go to another one, Blue Sky, it is said to be opened by foreigners, the atmosphere is good, there are a lot of foreigners in the local area, it seems to be a little quieter than here." ”

"Don't treat me as a foreigner, and I see if foreigners are good every day, and I'm not interested in coming back to see them."

"Hey, it's hard for you to serve, young master. Well, go to my cousin's friend's bar, called Forever, which is a place for drinking and chatting, but it's rare for a young person like you to go. ”

"Don't discriminate against my age, Hehuan, I'm just a little more than two years younger than you." Bruce grabbed her hand and stared at her, and said with a clear eye, "Ever since you rejected me, I've grown haggard and haggard. Those vanished years seem to be seen but not grasped through a piece of dusty glass. ”

"Please, don't watch Wong Kar-wai movies anymore." Xin Chen withdrew his hand and vomited unceremoniously.

Bruce laughed, "Why?" Banana people with yellow skin and white heart do not know Chinese There is no way, and the little sister who generally understands Chinese eats this set very much. ”

"Because I've not been a little sister for many years."

Bruce couldn't help laughing, "I just arrived in Vancouver a few years ago, I really wanted everything in China, and my mother would take my sister and me to see it whenever a Chinese movie was released. ”

Xin Chen knew what he was talking about, and couldn't help laughing, Bruce looked at her appreciatively, "I told you more than once, no, I have to say it again today, you are so beautiful." ”

Xin Chen was wearing a ginger silk sleeveless top, black pencil pants and gold sandals, and a big colorful triangular scarf tied around her waist, like a short skirt, because she went to the bar, she put on slightly bright makeup, glitter eye shadow, pink lip gloss, and the whole person looked dazzling. When others complimented her on her appearance, she was always calm, smiling and saying, "Thank you." ”

The two bars were not too far apart and they decided to walk over them. There are a lot of old houses in this area, Bruce studied architectural design, and he looked very carefully, "I often go to the photography version of the hiking forum, and the feeling of seeing it on the spot is really different from other people's shooting, I used to be too young to feel it when I was here, and I want to find a day to take a good look at it another day." ”

Standing in front of the Forever Bar, a two-story old house with a neon sign hanging at the door, Bruce sighed again: "This idea is so clever, the old house is used in this way, and it really fits the surrounding atmosphere." ”

I entered the small bar, where jazz music was playing, and sure enough, it was all older people drinking and chatting quietly in front of the small table with candlesticks. The two of them walked up the old wooden staircase, which was a bit steep, and the upstairs was relatively large and there were not many people. They sat down on a table by the corner window, ordered wine, and chatted around all over the world.

"The boss here also loves outdoor sports." Bruce looked at the large photos of dirt bikes, rock climbing, and scenery posted on the walls.

"Yes, the boss Ah Feng also mixed up with our forum, but he likes extreme sports such as mountaineering and rock climbing, and he doesn't like gentle hiking. It's a pity that he's not here today, he sometimes sings, it's very good, you learn a little, it's much more effective than those overused lines. ”

Bruce laughed, "You're always hitting me. Hehuan, I really envy your trip to Tibet this time, those photos posted by your companion are amazing. But there are no photos of you, and you never post the main post. Every time you travel, I find the end from the beginning, and I only see a group photo of a few of you, you put up a big sunglasses, showing a little face, which can't solve my lovesickness at all. ”

"It's to see the scenery, not the people." Xin Chen has known him for three years, and knows that he is used to talking nonsense, so he doesn't care at all, "I only take a card machine when I go out, and I really don't have the strength to be like them, and I am fully armed with SLR, lens and tripod, and I can't take out the things I shoot, of course I don't need to send them." ”

"Last summer, my classmates and I went to Germany, and I did a half-month hike along the Rhine, which felt very good, and if I have another chance, I would like to go to Austria as well, are you interested in going together?"

At the mention of Austria, Xin Chen was distracted for a moment. Eleven years ago, in the summer, a strange woman stood in front of her, claiming to be her mother, saying that she was leaving that day, and that she would go to Austria to settle down and never return.

Of course, she didn't intend to fulfill the woman's wish to recognize her and leave without regrets, and later Lu Fei told her that the woman had left an envelope with an address written on it, and that Xin Chen could get in touch with her at any time if she wanted.

Xin Chen didn't have that will, but every time he heard the name of Austria, he felt a little strange.

They were complete strangers, unimpressed with each other, yet she had little doubt about the woman's words, even if she hadn't said anything about her birthday or physical features. The connection was wonderful, and as soon as she saw her, she knew that she had been in that womb for ten months, and after that encounter, she had examined herself in the mirror and looked for a resemblance to that woman.

But this does not make her give birth to a natural sense of closeness, she has no yearning for her mother, she can't talk about love or hate, the mother she has the most contact with in life is Xin Di's mother Li Xin, and it's a pity that they have never been close.

Perhaps the woman had only looked at her carefully on the day she was born, remembered the mole on her heart, and with a feeling of not knowing what it was, regretted the absurdity of her youth or feared the future, and then let the little baby who had just been born from her body be taken away. When she was about to go to the country and leave her hometown, she had an inexplicable longing.

Xin Chen couldn't imagine sitting and talking to her, she thought it was ridiculous. Not to mention, it was from the night she met the woman that she began to have nightmares of being trapped in a dark corridor and unable to find a home, or walking exhaustively on a road with no end in sight.

"Hey, you're distracted." Bruce shook his finger in front of her eyes, "It's cruel to wander like this to a man, what are you thinking?" ”

Xin Chen smiled apologetically, and was about to speak, but saw two people walking up the stairs one after the other, she thought that it was probably not appropriate to go out today, and she could meet familiar faces everywhere, and suddenly regretted coming to this bar on a whim. She knew both of them, Xin Di in the front, and Lu Fei in the back.