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墨書 Inktalez
Liu Shuhan is fifty years old, and Cheng Qiuyi is fifty-one.
After retiring, Liu Shuhan found herself with nothing to do and became obsessed with knitting sweaters.
When they were younger, she had asked Cheng Qiuyi many times whether they would dance in the square or practice Tai Chi when they got old. Now that she is retired, she has become lazy and prefers to knit.
Her eyesight has deteriorated significantly; staring at the knitting needles for too long makes her dizzy. Being a beginner, her progress is extremely slow. It has taken her over two months to knit a wool vest for Cheng Qiuyi, and she still hasn't finished it.
Cheng Qiuyi left early this morning and hasn't returned by lunchtime, which makes Liu Shuhan a bit angry.
Today is their wedding anniversary, and Cheng Qiuyi must have forgotten.
“Bad Cheng Qiuyi, terrible Cheng Qiuyi, thinks I'm old and doesn't care about me at all!” Liu Shuhan poked the knitting needles vigorously, pouting like a child despite being fifty years old.
Just as she was complaining, Cheng Qiuyi walked in. “What’s wrong? Who has offended our Shu Han? I’ll teach them a lesson!”
Cheng Qiuyi has become even more charming after turning fifty. She stands tall, and although there are fine wrinkles at the corners of her eyes, her demeanor has matured like a fine wine aged for many years.
“Who else could it be? Far away yet close at hand,” Liu Shuhan replied without looking up, her words laced with sarcasm. Cheng Qiuyi just smiled and didn’t respond.
Then a bouquet of roses appeared in front of Liu Shuhan.
“Shu Han, marry me,” Cheng Qiuyi said as she knelt on one knee, a gentle smile on her lips.
Cheng Qiuyi hadn't given Liu Shuhan flowers in many years, so when the large bouquet of vibrant roses suddenly appeared, Liu Shuhan was momentarily stunned.
She paused for a moment and then burst into laughter.
She couldn't understand how Cheng Qiuyi, a man in his fifties, could shamelessly go to a flower shop and buy ninety-nine roses. Taking the flowers, she teased Cheng Qiuyi, "How cliché! Roses are one thing, but ninety-nine of them?"
"Greatly vulgar yet elegantly charming," Cheng Qiuyi said as he embraced both the flowers and Liu Shuhan, planting a kiss on her cheek. "Today, I was treated like a rare protected animal by the flower shop staff. Sigh, I really am getting old."
"At your age, young ladies and gentlemen would have to call you 'Auntie.' How can you not be old?"
"Liu Shuhan, how about we go out on a date today? Let's feel young again."
"Young? The twins from the Boming family are already in elementary school." Liu Shuhan held up a half-finished sweater against Cheng Qiuyi's body, nodding in satisfaction. "Looks good on you. Besides, I have to step out this afternoon."
"Where are you going?"
"I need to hand over some work; I'm officially retiring." Liu Shuhan set down the sweater, changed her clothes, and headed out the door. "The food is heating in the pot. You eat first; I'll be back soon."
"But today..." But it's our wedding anniversary...
Cheng Qiuyi's words were left unfinished as Liu Shuhan had already left.
At fifty years old, she was still so impulsive. Cheng Qiuyi sighed and wandered into the kitchen to see what delicious dishes Liu Shuhan had prepared for today.
Liu Shuhan was gone for two hours. Cheng Qiuyi asked once, and Liu Shuhan simply replied that she was still busy and would return later.
Cheng Qiuyi, feeling idle, leaned back in her recliner with her reading glasses on, flipping through an old photo album that was older than Liu Shuhan. This album was a gift from Liu Shuhan's father.
The album was much thicker than it had been over twenty years ago, capturing every moment of Liu Shuhan's growth and aging. For the first twenty-five years, Cheng Qiuyi was absent from the photos, but fortunately, in the latter twenty-five years, she had accompanied Liu Shuhan as they both grew older together.
After finishing the album, Cheng Qiuyi took a small watering can to water the plants on the balcony. Her sharp eyes caught sight of a figure riding an electric vehicle slowly approaching her building.
Liu Shuhan parked the electric vehicle and looked up at Cheng Qiuyi on the several floors above. From that distance, all she could see was a small black dot.
Liu Shuhan dialed Cheng Qiuyi's number, and it rang only once before being answered.
"Who is it?" Cheng Qiuyi put down the watering can and looked through the glass of the balcony at Liu Shuhan sitting on the electric vehicle several dozen meters away.
"Hey beautiful, you have a courier," Liu Shuhan's laughter came through the phone into Cheng Qiuyi's ears.
"Bring it up within two minutes, or I will file a complaint against you," Cheng Qiuyi replied with a smile in her eyes. She hung up before Liu Shuhan could respond and stood at the door waiting for her to come up.
Liu Shuhan appeared around the corner of the stairs, with crow's feet extending from the corners of her eyes to her graying temples.
She walked up to Cheng Qiuyi, draped her arms around her neck, and kissed her. "Beautiful, your courier. Please sign for it."
A fifty-year-old woman looked no different from a twenty-five-year-old.
"Qiu Yi, how many more years can we be together?"
"Many, many years."
(THE END)
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