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墨書 Inktalez
On September 10, 2000, Beijing was still basking in the scorching sun.
These days marked the registration period for new students at various universities in Beijing, and the Beijing Train Station was bustling with people.
Qinglan and Simple were squeezed among the crowd, their bags shifting from behind to the front as they were jostled by the throng.
Simple set down her bag, pulled out a tissue to wipe her sweat, and while fanning herself with her palm, complained loudly, "Where is Jian Ming? Does he even remember his old sister?"
Qinglan also put down her bag; it was indeed too heavy. She looked around the crowd, realizing, "So Beijing is this hot." Her fair face was flushed from the sun, beads of sweat dripping from her temples, and her hair was damp.
"Brother, brother." Suddenly, Simple seemed to dance as she stood on her tiptoes, leaning forward with one hand raised high holding a tissue, waving in a certain direction. "Over here, over here."
Before Qinglan could react, Simple had already dashed toward a group of people ahead, leaving her bag behind.
Qinglan had no choice but to pick up her own bag and Simple's before following in the direction she had gone.
At that moment, Jian Ming came running toward Qinglan with a smile on his face, closely followed by Reiko with her refreshing short hair.
When he reached Qinglan, Jian Ming quickly urged her to put down her bag. He took one of the bags in each hand until Reiko caught up and took one from him. He then handed another bag to Reiko without hesitation.
Jian Ming then asked, "Why didn't An Shaojie come with you?"
Qinglan and Simple exchanged glances. "I guess Brother Shaojie is coming with Sister Shaomin," they replied.
Qinglan had already informed Simple about this on the train, so Simple glanced at Jian Ming and then at Reiko beside him.
"Oh," Jian Ming said lightly but felt a sudden jolt in his heart.
Shaw Min! Shaw Min! The name that had been hidden in his heart, someone he had longed for but couldn't let go.
Jian Ming pressed his lips together and handed each of them a bottle of water before picking up his bag and saying, "Let's go."
Simple linked her arm with Jian Ming's and chattered all the way about how much hotter Beijing was compared to their hometown and then marveled at how vast and crowded Beijing truly was.
"I'll take you two to register at your respective schools now. After registering, we can meet up for lunch," Jian Ming said as he stopped under a tree.
Then Jian Ming asked, "Simple, which one is your bag?"
Simple pointed to the bag Jian Ming was holding and said, "Uh, the one you're holding is mine."
Jian Ming then put down the bag in his hand and took the bag from Reiko.
"What are you doing? What are you doing?" Simple immediately shouted.
"Reiko, you take Simple to her registration. I'll take Qinglan to register," Jian Ming replied without addressing Simple's question, turning directly to Reiko.
"Why?" Before Jian Ming's words could finish, Simple pouted unhappily and complained, "I'm your little sister, okay?" Her eyes darted towards Qinglan.
Qinglan smiled lightly but did not approach Jian Ming to be polite. She understood Jian Ming's intention, so when Simple looked at her, she smiled even more brightly because she could almost guess how Jian Ming would respond to Simple. She could also imagine that after hearing Jian Ming's answer, Simple's pout would become even more pronounced.
"Your vocational school is small; there won't be many students registering. With Reiko accompanying you, it will be fine. The number of students registering at Qinglan School will definitely be large, crowded and chaotic; Reiko and you wouldn't be able to handle it."
Sure enough, Jian Ming's words were similar to what Qinglan was thinking.
Qinglan and Reiko almost simultaneously shook their shoulders and burst into laughter. It seemed that Reiko had already anticipated what Jian Ming was going to say, as she shot a glance at Qinglan from the corner of her eye.
"Let's go! See you later," Reiko said as she picked up Simple's bag, waved her hand, and headed toward the subway station.
Although very reluctant and with her lips pouting even higher, Simple hurriedly chased after Reiko. "Hey! Hey! Hey! Sister Reiko, wait for me!"
If she didn't chase after Reiko now, she might be left behind at the train station. Jian Ming had already walked far in another direction with the bag. Qinglan looked back at Simple while closely following behind. In less than ten minutes on the subway, Jian Ming and Qinglan arrived at Qinglan's school. Just as Jian Ming had said, not only was it crowded inside the school; even just reaching the school gate was a sea of people with heads bobbing everywhere.
"Oh my!" Qinglan thought to herself as she patted her chest. "Thank goodness I didn't let Father and Mama bring me here. Even though Father has been educated and has seen the world at home, seeing this scene would probably leave him dizzy; he wouldn't be able to help me with registration—he might need me to take care of him instead."
Qinglan and Jian Ming squeezed through the crowd toward the school entrance.
Perhaps fearing that he would lose Qinglan in the crowd, as soon as they reached the school gate, Jian Ming grabbed Qinglan's hand tightly.
This was the first time Qinglan had her hand touched by a boy. She thought her heart would flutter lightly, or at least her face would blush with shyness, but to her surprise, everything felt normal; her heart didn't stir, and her face didn't redden. She only felt that his hand was somewhat cool and damp.
So this is what it feels like to hold hands with a boy! Thinking of this, a faint shy smile appeared on Qinglan's face.
Just then, Jian Ming turned his face to look at Qinglan. He had intended to ask her if she was feeling hot and whether they should take a break under the shade later, but he was taken aback when he saw her inexplicably wearing a sweet smile.
Qinglan happened to be looking at him as well.
"Jian Ming."
"Uh, you..."
In an effort to cover their mutual embarrassment, both spoke at the same time.
Instantly, they fell into awkwardness again. Qinglan quickly lowered her head, no longer daring to let her thoughts wander. She allowed Jian Ming to hold her hand tightly.
"It's hot, isn't it? After we walk to the tree-lined path at school, shall we take a break before going to register?" Jian Ming finally broke the silence. Having spent a year in college, he was less naive than Qinglan and took the initiative to speak.
Qinglan nodded and responded with a soft "mm."
As they walked further into the school, the crowd began to thin out. The school had divided the registration points by department, so different colleges were assigned to different areas for registration. As they moved away from the crowd, Qinglan immediately felt much cooler; she could even sense the sweat on her face shrinking. She moved her hand to wipe away the beads of sweat trickling down her temples, only to realize that Jian Ming was still holding her hand tightly. However, Jian Ming seemed unaware of this; he was looking up and around, probably trying to find a less crowded and shaded place to rest for a while.
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