Qing Yanshen lay on the bed and opened Jiang Qingmi’s social feed. She hadn’t posted anything today. He stared at her profile picture, her username, and their chat history for a while.
Then he opened his photo album. In the picture, the woman was lounging lazily on the sofa, one hand propping up her chin as she played with her phone. Her long hair flowed like a waterfall, smooth and glossy, making her already small face look even more delicate and refined.
He had taken that photo by accident today and couldn’t bring himself to delete it.
Qing Yanshen stared at it for a long time before finally putting down his phone and going to sleep.
His consciousness sank into a heavy darkness. Silence filled everything, so quiet it felt as if no one else existed in the world. He kept falling, as if into a bottomless abyss. Instinctively, he wanted to grab onto something, but there was nothing to hold.
Qing Yanshen already knew he was asleep. Ever since losing his memory, this happened from time to time when he slept. The first couple of times he experienced this falling sensation, he panicked and tried to grab something to save himself, but now, he had given up.
In the dream, his face was expressionless, his eyes closed, his heart calm as still water as he felt himself falling endlessly through the boundless darkness.
“Yanshen, Yanshen.”
“Qing Yanshen, how can you still be sleeping!”
Qing Yanshen froze. He actually heard Jiang Qingmi’s voice. He suddenly opened his eyes. The sunlight poured in, blinding, and he narrowed his eyes, raising a hand to shield them.
At the same time, the falling stopped.
He realized he was lying in the grass. Through the gap between his fingers, he saw Jiang Qingmi. Her long hair was fluffy, swaying in the wind. The sun was behind her, and from his angle, she looked as if she was glowing.
She looked slightly fuller than she did in reality, her face softer with youthful fullness, like she was seventeen or eighteen, delicate and adorably charming.
“I think you’ve really gone stupid. Your mom is too much. You clearly got into university, but she won’t let you go. She always says she has no money, but I don’t believe it. You were raised by your grandmother, how many times did she even come back in a year?”
Qing Yanshen’s perspective shifted. He became a third person observer and realized that the version of himself lying on the grass was much younger, clearly just an adult.
The boy replied calmly, “I’m already an adult. In a small place like ours, there aren’t many university students. Most people just finish middle or high school and go out to work.”
“Are you really willing to be the same as them? Do you really think that’s the life you want?”
The boy lying on the grass fell silent.
“I just feel it’s a pity for you. You studied so well and worked so hard. The path you want should go much farther, right?”
“My own mother doesn’t feel it’s a pity,” the boy pressed his lips together, then suddenly said, “Why do you feel sorry for me?”
The girl’s face turned red. She snapped, “None of your business! I just see that we were both raised by our grandmothers, so I pity you. I’ll just say it straight. I got into a university in Beicheng. It’s only a second tier school, and my grandmother can’t afford the tuition, but I still want to go. I’ve decided to go to Beicheng to work and earn tuition. There are still three months before school starts. If you want to go, come with me. If not, forget it.”
After saying that, she turned to leave.
The boy gently grabbed the corner of her clothes. “Don’t go. Stay with me a little longer.”
The girl snorted and crouched down. “Then will you listen to me?”
“Yes.”
Her hair drifted in the wind, a few strands falling onto the boy’s face. He caught those strands in his hand. “Haven’t I always listened to you?”
Qing Yanshen opened his eyes and stared silently at the ceiling.
Was that a dream?
No. He had a strong feeling that it was a memory from before he lost his memory.
He and Jiang Qingmi had known each other since they were young. Clearly, they had already liked each other back then.
Qing Yanshen got up early, energized like he had been injected with excitement. After finishing his morning run and washing up, he carried the wooden table downstairs.
The table wasn’t heavy, and the distance wasn’t far, so he didn’t take a taxi. He carried it all the way to Jiang Qingmi’s place. On the way, he even made a detour to buy steamed buns for breakfast. The woman liked them.
Jiang Qingmi had just finished washing up when someone knocked on the door.
Jiang Tuantuan held her milk bottle, drinking eagerly. When her mother was in the bathroom, she stood at the door. When her mother went to the living room, she followed quietly. When her mother went to open the door, she followed again.
Jiang Qingmi couldn’t help but laugh and rubbed her head. “Little tail, are you mommy’s little tail?”
“No!” Jiang Tuantuan blinked her big, dark eyes. Her long curled eyelashes fluttered like little fans, her childish voice clear and bright. “I’m mommy’s baby!”
“Okay, you’re mommy’s baby, the cutest and best baby!”
“Mommy is the best mommy!”
Jiang Qingmi opened the door with a smile, but when she saw the man at the door carrying a table in one hand and steamed buns in the other, she paused in surprise.
Qing Yanshen silently handed over the breakfast. “Good morning. I bought steamed buns for you, and I got breakfast for Tuantuan too.”
Jiang Qingmi narrowed her eyes. “This table…”
“It didn’t cost anything!” Qing Yanshen said quickly, as if afraid she would be angry. “There were some discarded wooden boards at the construction site. I made it myself.”
The wooden table was placed in the living room. Jiang Qingmi reached out and touched it. The texture was a bit rough and not as solid as regular tables. It really didn’t look like something bought from a store.
She glanced at him in surprise. “You can even make a table. That’s impressive.”
Qing Yanshen felt a little awkward after being praised and cleared his throat lightly. “It’s simple, not difficult.”
Jiang Qingmi took a bite of the steamed bun. It was so good that her eyes narrowed in satisfaction, but she still said, “You don’t need to buy me breakfast in the future. The cost of one breakfast can buy a lot of groceries.”
She really loved the buns from this place, but one portion cost fifteen yuan. They didn’t have much money right now, and he was still working on a construction site with bandages on his head. He needed money too. Spending it on her like this didn’t make sense. It was foolish.
“Breakfast isn’t expensive.”
Jiang Qingmi immediately glared at him. “I said don’t buy it.”
Her anger rose slightly. He was acting like a fool, as if he had endless money to spend. If he met someone with bad intentions, who knew how badly he would be tricked.
“Before the paternity test results come out, don’t spend extra money on us. If my words don’t matter to you, then you don’t need to come here anymore. I’ll pay back all the money I owe you.”
At that point, she put the steamed bun down on the table and didn’t want to eat anymore.
Qing Yanshen seemed to see the girl from his dream, the same puffed up expression. But he was not as calm as the boy in the dream. Now, there was only panic.
The woman sat on the sofa and stopped speaking. He crouched in front of her and carefully grabbed the corner of her clothes. “I’ll listen to you. I won’t buy it anymore.”
“Qingmi, don’t be angry, okay?”
He opened his mouth, not knowing what else to say. He felt annoyed and helpless. It was his fault for losing his memory and forgetting how he used to coax her.
Seeing him like this, Jiang Qingmi also felt a little conflicted. Ever since she entered this world, she remembered nothing. She suddenly became a mother without any process, came to Beicheng, and met this man. Everything was shocking and confusing.
He wasn’t having it easy either. She didn’t want to owe him too much.
He clearly saw himself as Jiang Tuantuan’s father and treated her as his wife. Jiang Qingmi could have continued accepting his kindness in confusion and left later without a word, but she couldn’t do that.