Sang Nian blinked, a bit confused by the scene.
Shen Moran could not stand it anymore. She glared at her “fickle” sister and snapped, “Niannian, stop causing trouble.”
Su Nian looked over, puffing out her cheeks, and replied, “I am not.” She just wanted to know who Sang Nian liked more.
But Shen Moran watched her coldly. As her sister, how could she not know whether she was causing trouble? She knew her sister’s nature better than anyone. A few days ago, she was crying and begging to date Sun Heng, and now she had clearly set her sights on little Sang Nian.
What would this sister of hers be like when she grew up?
The thought gave Shen Moran a massive headache. She wanted to take Su Nian home immediately, leave, and never return, hoping the girl would lose interest. Sun Heng, however, clearly did not feel the same way. She smiled and said to Shen Moran, “It is normal for kids to get along well. Why are you jealous as an older sister?”
Shen Moran glanced at her without saying a word.
Jealous of your head.
Sun Heng touched the tip of her nose and turned to Sang Nian. “It is windy today, so do not stand at the entrance. Let us go inside. Can you two carry these things?”
The implication was that she did not want to help.
“We can!” Su Nian said happily. “I will carry them, I will carry them!”
Shen Moran could not bear to watch her sister acting so desperate. She rolled her eyes and started walking forward. Sun Heng glanced to ensure her car was parked safely and hurried to catch up.
“Hey, why are you walking so fast? Wait for your sister.” Sun Heng caught up, took Shen Moran’s hand naturally, and smiled. “And wait for me, too.”
Shen Moran looked back at her brazen smile, frowned slightly, and looked down at their joined hands. Just as she was about to say something, she saw little Sang Nian running over with a load of items, looking up at them. “Sisters, I am going to take Su Nian to the dormitory in a while. You can go to the cafeteria to eat first.”
“That sounds great.” Sun Heng smiled at her. “Moran and I will go to the cafeteria to save you two seats. Hurry over once you put your things away.”
Before Shen Moran could object, Sun Heng led her toward the cafeteria.
The meal featured both meat and vegetables and was excellent. Even Shen Moran, who was usually picky about her food, ate half a steamed bun more than usual, leaving her feeling quite full.
After the meal, Su Nian and Sang Nian went off to play with the other children, so Sun Heng took Shen Moran to see the geese in the flower sea.
Shen Moran could not understand what was so interesting about geese.
Several white, plump geese were huddled by the pond. The goslings were beginning to molt, huddled next to the adults like little toys. Combined with the yard full of flowers, it looked like a colorful oil painting.
Even Shen Moran found herself calming down, momentarily lost in the beautiful scenery.
“Is it beautiful?”
Hearing the voice, Shen Moran turned her head and bumped straight into Sun Heng’s gaze.
Sun Heng actually had a pair of very beautiful eyes. She did not wear makeup, and her eyelids were thin, but her long, slender eyes were bright, especially when she smiled, as if she were trying to capture everything in them. Shen Moran was stunned for a moment before she asked, “What did you say?”
“I asked if it is beautiful? This place.” Sun Heng stretched out her long legs, leaned back slightly, and supported herself with both hands while looking out at the distant sea of flowers and the canopy above. As the wind blew through the leaves, they rustled, as if singing an autumn song.
“It is quite beautiful.” Shen Moran nodded, looked at the sea of flowers, and asked a question she had been wanting to ask: “Why is there such a large empty space in the orphanage used to plant flowers? And why are they all the same type?”
Sun Heng shuffled closer to her. Shen Moran watched her vigilantly, just about to tell her to sit further away, when she heard Sun Heng say, “Because someone liked them.”
Shen Moran looked at her again.
Sun Heng continued, “There was a little girl at the orphanage who loved this flower. She would pester me every day to buy them for her, but I was too busy at the time and could only return a few times a year. Sometimes, I would even forget to buy her flowers. Later, I just had someone clear a plot of land and plant it full of these zinnias.”
Shen Moran listened intently. “What about the child? Did she like the flowers you planted for her?”
“I do not know,” Sun Heng replied helplessly. “She passed away before she could ever see this field. But I think she would have liked it. The children in the orphanage like them very much, too. Every year, when I visit her grave, I pick some zinnias from here for her. I am sure she likes them.”
Shen Moran had not expected the girl who loved this sea of flowers to have passed away. She looked out at the field, which was as brilliant as springtime, and after a long while, she said to Sun Heng, “I am sorry, I did not know.”
“It is fine.” Sun Heng was magnanimous. “It has been many years, and I have moved on. Is that not how life is? Every day could be the last, so you should spend it with the people you like.”
Shen Moran’s lowered eyelashes fluttered slightly. She looked at Sun Heng and realized Sun Heng was looking at her, too.
“Sun Heng, I actually…”
Just as Shen Moran was about to speak, she heard a commotion behind them. Both turned around to see Su Nian and Sang Nian running over, carrying a huge pile of things.
“Sister, sister, sister!”
As soon as Su Nian arrived, the atmosphere between them was broken. Shen Moran frowned and scolded, “Why are you running so fast?” She then asked, “What are you holding in your arms?”
“Books.” Su Nian smiled. “We are here to sun the books!”
Shen Moran: “?”
Why on earth would they be sunning books for no reason?
Sun Heng smiled and explained to Shen Moran, “Some of these books were donated a long time ago. We take advantage of the good weather to sun them and prevent mold and insects.” Most importantly, it gave the children in the orphanage an opportunity to get moving instead of staying in their rooms all the time.
Shen Moran had never done this before. Sun Heng kindly taught her, and the two of them each held a stack of books, sunning them in the square while a group of children gathered around, looking curiously at Shen Moran’s face.
Sang Nian noticed the noisy activity and nudged Su Nian. “Why do you not go help your sister? That kid with the runny nose over there has cerebral palsy and does not know her own strength, so do not make your sister angry.”
“It is fine, my sister is very capable; no one can mess with her. Besides, is Sister Sun Heng not here?” Su Nian moved a stack of books, looked around, and found that the square was nearly full. Seeing nowhere left to put her books, she set her sights on the two-story building nearby.
Most rural houses were self-built. Su Nian’s eyes were set on the place where the orphanage teachers worked and lived. It was a short two-story building, and there was a ladder leaning against the roof. It looked empty up there, which would surely be a great spot.
“Let us go over there!” Su Nian pointed at the roof. “There is definitely no one there to fight us for it.”