During a brief moment of silence, Lin Qin spotted Ji Wenxi squeezing her way out of the main hall and immediately waved her over.
"The crowd is insane—I almost lost my shoes." Ji Wenxi walked up to them, complaining as she glanced up. She thought the lush green scenery looked lovely, then reached for her backpack and camera. "The light is beautiful. Let me take a couple of shots of you."
Ji Wenxi powered on the camera and metered the light. Meng Jingnian instinctively reached out his hand. Lin Qin froze for a second before realizing what he was doing, then handed him the small beaded bag she was carrying.
Meng Jingnian stepped aside to make room.
Ji Wenxi told Lin Qin to move a bit further left, then gave an OK sign. "Right here. Let me take two shots first to check the light."
Ji Wenxi pressed the shutter twice in quick succession, checked the results, and wasn't quite satisfied. She paused in thought, set down her backpack, pulled out a small foldable reflector, unfolded it, and handed it to Meng Jingnian. "Would you mind helping me bounce some light?"
Meng Jingnian nodded and took the reflector.
Ji Wenxi watched her screen and directed him: "Lower it a bit more, let the light hit her face… a little more to the left. Good, good—please hold that."
Lin Qin was dressed all in white today—a camisole top paired with an ankle-length skirt with an irregular hem, scattered with embroidered flower appliqués.
Thinking back on their previous meetings, her clothing was never quite conventional, nothing like the cookie-cutter ready-to-wear from shops. The most ordinary she'd looked was the day he returned to the country, in a T-shirt and jeans.
To make sure the light stayed on her face, he had to keep watching her. He saw her turn slightly to the side, her long hair spilling down, then lower her head before turning her face back toward the lens. Her skin was pale as fresh snow, with a faintly colored mole beneath her eye, almost like a freckle. She looked like a white crabapple blossom gazing at its own reflection in water.
Under the lens, she seemed to become someone else. There was no smile on her face, but something turbulent stirred in her eyes, as if she'd let some deeper, more primal part of her personality take over.
Just then, Lin Qin suddenly looked up.
Those surging emotions crashed directly into his gaze.
Only for an instant. Then Ji Wenxi said, "Good. That one's a keeper."
Perhaps they'd worked together so many times that they had an unspoken rhythm—Ji Wenxi didn't need to guide her through poses step by step, didn't even need to warn her before pressing the shutter.
Lin Qin had already averted her gaze and shifted into a side profile pose.
"We don't need the reflector for now—I want to capture these natural light spots," Ji Wenxi said.
Meng Jingnian nodded, held the reflector in one hand, and walked to the side. He leaned against the railing, turning his gaze toward the bustling crowd below.
The wind picked up, and the noise of voices seemed to swell with it.
He let out a slow, silent breath.
Mindful of the many tourists and not wanting to inconvenience others, Ji Wenxi packed up her equipment before long.
They continued up the path, visiting the Medicine Master Hall, the Heavenly Kings Hall, and the Sutra Library, then took the other side of the road down the mountain. At the entrance was a Buddhist merchandise counter, where Ji Wenxi purchased a string of black agate beads.
Having enjoyed themselves thoroughly, they moved on to the next attraction.
Meng Jingnian had already arranged the lunch spot—Wanliu Ju, a well-known Huaiyang cuisine restaurant in the southern part of the city.
Once they were in the second-floor private room, the two girls unloaded their belongings onto a chair. They didn't even look at the menu, leaving everything to Meng Jingnian, and immediately pulled up the photos from the camera, huddling together to start selecting shots.
Meng Jingnian opened the menu. "Miss Ji, any dietary restrictions?"
"No, none. Order whatever you like—I'll follow the host's lead."
Meng Jingnian ordered a few dishes from each category—cold, hot, meat, vegetable, desserts, and snacks—then handed the menu to the server. He picked up the teapot and poured tea for both of them. The tea here was brewed fresh and included in the room's minimum charge.
"Wow, this one is incredible," Ji Wenxi suddenly exclaimed.
As if instinctively seeking validation, she raised her phone, about to show it to Meng Jingnian, when Lin Qin quickly pressed down on her hand and said hurriedly, "It'd be embarrassing to show an elder."
"You'd post it on Moments anyway—he'd see it there."
"I rarely post on Moments."
Across from them, Meng Jingnian looked up at Lin Qin. Seeing her slightly flustered expression, he said nothing, simply lifting his teacup for a sip.
After the meal, Meng Jingnian went to pay the bill while the two girls made a trip to the restroom.
Lin Qin returned first, sat back down in her seat, and picked up her teacup. "Little Uncle, how much did this meal cost?"
Meng Jingnian smiled. "What, are you going to transfer me the money?"
"If it's too much, I will."
"It wasn't much."
"Really? I heard this place is pretty expensive."
"You two didn't eat much. And it's only right that I treat you."
"Then I owe you one."
"Wouldn't it be a bit distant between us to talk about owing favors?"
Lin Qin lightly tapped her teeth against the rim of her teacup, lowered her gaze, and took a sip.
The door to the private room slid open, and Ji Wenxi returned.
Lin Qin said, "If you're full, shall we get going?"
Ji Wenxi nodded.
They gathered their things and left the room together.
As she passed the table, Meng Jingnian's gaze caught sight of the teacup on Lin Qin's seat. She had touched up her makeup when she returned to the private room, and a faint lipstick mark was printed on the rim of the cup.
In the afternoon they climbed the mountain, in the evening they boated on the lake, ate dinner on the boat, then strolled along the riverside street, had some snacks, and bought some cheap souvenirs—that concluded the day's itinerary.
On the way back, Lin Qin and Ji Wenxi were too exhausted to speak, their heads leaning against each other's as they dozed off.
The car pulled up at the entrance of the residential complex.
The two of them gathered their things and prepared to get out. Ji Wenxi said, "Thank you so much for today. Next time you and Yiyi come to Beicheng, I'll treat you."
Meng Jingnian smiled and said, "Sure. Whenever Yiyi has time."
He turned his head to glance back and reminded them, "Make sure you have all your things. Don't leave anything behind."
The two got out of the car and slammed the door shut.
Lin Qin suddenly thought of something. She asked Ji Wenxi to wait a moment and walked around to the driver's side.
Before she could knock on the window, the glass had already rolled down.
Meng Jingnian looked at her. "What's wrong?"
Lin Qin handed him a small cloth pouch the size of a palm. "I bought this for you while we were shopping. Thanks for today."
Meng Jingnian reached out and took it, smiling. "You two get some good rest. If you need anything tomorrow, you can also come find me."
Lin Qin shook her head. "Tomorrow is mainly for shopping."
"Alright."
Lin Qin paused for a moment. "…Then I'll go rest now."
Meng Jingnian nodded.
Her gaze lingered on him for one last fleeting moment before she finally turned around.
Walking back to the other side, Lin Qin linked arms with Ji Wenxi and waved toward the car window before heading toward the entrance of the complex.
After stepping through the gate, she couldn't help but look back once more.
The car had already driven away.
Ji Wenxi found it amusing. "So reluctant to part—why not just go with him?"
Lin Qin immediately looked at her. "You…"
"The one you mentioned before—that you liked an elder with no blood relation—it's him, isn't it?" Ji Wenxi wore an expression of having seen through everything. "Pretty handsome. A face that radiates high intelligence."
"Is it that obvious?"
"I wouldn't have thought about it at first, but when you wouldn't let me show him the photo, I realized. Your acting isn't very good—you'll slip up sooner or later."
Lin Qin fell silent.
Ji Wenxi turned to look at her. "Yiyi, you were insomniac for a while back then. Was it related to him?"
After a moment, Lin Qin spoke in a low voice. "…It was his parents' birthday that time, and his advisor was also there. Listening to them talk, I learned that he would most likely marry his advisor's daughter in the future. Actually, it had nothing to do with me—whether he married her or anyone else, he and I could never be together. I hadn't figured that out back then, so it was very painful. Now I won't be."
The two of them walked through the lamplight filtering down between the fallen plane tree leaves.
Ji Wenxi said, "If you truly didn't feel pain, you wouldn't have that look in your eyes."
"So I didn't dare show him the photo. He's very smart, and you said it too—my acting isn't good. When I first realized I liked him, not long after, he went to Germany to study. For nearly two years, apart from holiday greetings, I didn't send him a single WeChat message. I thought I could quit him, like an addiction. Quitting alcohol wouldn't even take that long. But the moment he came back, I found that none of it had worked…"
"Although you haven't had much contact, he really does give people a good impression."
"That's exactly the problem. If he were a bit worse…"
"You wouldn't have liked him."
Lin Qin smiled slightly. "Right. An unsolvable loop."
"What's your plan now?"
"Just let it be. Next year, his advisor's daughter will be back, and the two of them will probably get engaged."
"And before that, what if you slip up?"
Lin Qin was silent for a beat. "…I don't know if he'd find it disgusting. If he hated me… that would actually be fine too."
Ji Wenxi sighed. "You're so infatuated, little sister. I can't bear to see you like this. Do you know how many handsome guys in my Moments have asked me for your WeChat?"
"I'm not interested in other humans."
"After he gets married, you're not going to stay single for the rest of your life, are you?"
"There's nothing wrong with that."
Ji Wenxi had nothing more to say.
/
The car reached an intersection and encountered an interminable red light of over seventy seconds.
Having accompanied them all day, Meng Jingnian was somewhat fatigued.
He truly didn't enjoy driving, and while waiting at this red light, he rarely let his impatience show plainly on his face.
At that moment, his gaze fell upon the small cloth pouch Lin Qin had handed him on the center console.
He picked it up, pulled open the drawstring, and took out what was inside.
It was a small seal, with a one-centimeter-square face. He held it up to the light to examine it—carved upon it were the characters "Mirror Year" (Jingnian).
She must have had it carved while he went to buy water when they were strolling through the riverside cultural and creative street—that street was full of this kind of small stone-carved trinkets and literary curios.
He couldn't remember exactly which year it was—seemed to be when Lin Qin was in middle school. At a dinner table one time, she asked Meng Yingnian and Meng Jingnian who had named the two of them, whether it was Meng Zhenqing.
Meng Yingnian said no.
"Yingnian" and "Jingnian" were names left by their biological parents.
"Ying" came from the line "When the waters of Canglang are clear, I can wash my tassel in them."
"Jing" came from the line "Using history as a mirror, one can understand the rise and fall of dynasties."
At that time, Lin Qin's eyes sparkled as she said, "No wonder it sounds so beautiful."
The red light turned green.
Meng Jingnian released the brake, lightly turned the steering wheel with one hand, and merged into the traffic.
It was only after a long while that he realized he was still clutching that small seal in his hand.