The lights in the corridor were not bright, and the old walls were faintly stained with some dirty marks.
Chen Ruoyu was standing at the door wearing a camel-colored oversized coat. Her slender waist was outlined by a leather belt.
She appeared in front of Shi Ran without warning, which was out of tune with the environment here.
âAre you ready?â Chen Ruoyu asked in a calm tone, looking at Shi Ran.
Shi Ran shook her head hurriedly and said to her, a little embarrassed, âI have to trouble you to wait a moment. I havenât cleaned up yet.â
âThen donât start packing, okay?â Song Yi said hurriedly.
Then she looked at Chen Ruoyu, who was standing beside Shi Ran, and said to her, as if asking for help: âAyu, you are here just in time. Please help me persuade Shi Ran. You know about the two of us from beginning to end. Yes. Can you help me persuade her? â
Song Yiâs voice was trembling. She didnât know how much she was wronged. Shi Ran couldnât help frowning.
The matter with Song Yi was a private matter, and Chen Ruoyu was just a helper called by her brother. She didnât want to involve her either.
âFeel sorry.â
Itâs just that Shi Ranâs worries didnât last long, and Chen Ruoyu rejected Song Yiâs plea without expression.
She took the pocket of her coat and said expressionlessly, âIâm the person Shi Yu invited to help Shi Ran.â
As soon as the voice fell, Shi Ran felt a shadow fall on her side.
Chen Ruoyu stood with her like this. The familiar fragrance fell on her shoulders again.
Indifferent but with a warm glow, it inexplicably makes people feel at ease.
âAyu⦠Isnât our two years of friendship not enough for me to beg you back today? â Song Yi said, her expression becoming more and more pitiful.
But Chen Ruoyu didnât seem to hear Song Yiâs words. She still looked at Shi Ran and said, âIs it difficult to clean up? Do you need to call a few more people?â
âNo, just the two of us.â Shi Ran replied.
Then she looked at the valuable Givenchy classic trench coat on Chen Ruoyuâs body and changed her words: âI can do it alone.â
Chen Ruoyu seemed to have not heard the last sentence of Shi Ranâs words, so she undid the belt around her waist, took off her coat and put it on her arm, and asked, âWhich room should I start from?â
Shi Ran felt a little surprised when she heard Chen Ruoyu say this, but she still walked towards the study with Chen Ruoyu. âHelp me put these tablets and the books on the shelf here into the box. Iâll clean up the balcony first. â
âOkay.â Chen Ruoyu nodded, put her coat on the chair beside her, and rolled up her sleeves to pack things for Shi Ran.
Song Yi watched Shi Ran come out of the study. Just as she was about to stop her, Liu Quâs voice rang: âSong Yi, Teacher Chen has a group meeting at 11:30. Itâs getting late. â
The noise in the house overwhelmed the sound of time passing, and the clock had gone from ten oâclock to eleven oâclock unconsciously.
Song Yi looked at Shi Ranâs back and spoke to Liu Qu with a pitiful vibrato: âXiao Qu, Iâm not going. Can you ask for a leave for me? â
âAsk for leave?â Liu Qu frowned when she heard this. âYou should tell Teacher Chen yourself. You know, Teacher Chen will be angry if you ask for leave and are absent from work. â
Song Yi saw the truth in her eyes, which showed real embarrassment.
Shi Ran was determined to break up, but Liu Qu refused to help her.
After weighing it for a long time, Song Yi looked at Shi Ranâs back and said, âIf youâre angry, just get angry. I wonât go. Anyway, I could hold on to graduate school because of Shi Ran. She is now. Since I donât want me anymore, I donât have the confidence to continue reading. I might as well⦠drop out of school⦠â
As it approached noon, besides Song Yiâs weak voice, there were also incense sticks from other peopleâs meals on the balcony.
Shi Ranâs fingers were stained with brown soil, and her hands that were cleaning up the flesh never stopped.
Shi Ran didnât want to say many things in front of other people, but that didnât mean she wasnât clear.
She knew that Song Yi would not drop out of school, and she didnât even dare miss Teacher Chenâs group meeting.
It took Song Yi a lot of hard work to get into Mr. Chenâs graduate school. How could she give up?
Not to mention someone she didnât like.
The toilet paper roll rolled in Shi Ranâs hands. She carefully and carefully wrapped a cactus, and the harmless thorns pierced her heart with dull pain.
It turned out that some things could only be seen clearly if they retreated.
The people in the living room were performing a tragic Qiong Yao drama, but Chen Ruoyu packed Shi Ranâs things as if nothing had happened.
In the cardboard box that had just been taken out, all the books on the bookshelf were neatly placed, and the black tablet data cable was folded a few times in Chen Ruoyuâs hand, and then it was neatly coiled together.
She slowly put the tablet back into the original box she just found, turned around unhurriedly, and looked at Song Yi, who was still sobbing: âSong Yi, you should know the consequences of dropping out of school.â
Chen Ruoyuâs voice was light and calm, like a pond of pale lake water in winter.
But the deterrent power of falling was unmatched by anyone in the house.
Shi Ran didnât know about the relationship between Chen Ruoyu and Song Yiâs family but only felt that Song Yiâs sobbing paused when she heard Chen Ruoyuâs words.
After that, Chen Ruoyu said to Shi Ran on the balcony without waiting for Song Yiâs answer, âWhat else do you want to take away?â
It was as if she was just informing Song Yi, not helping her analyze and make choices.
When Shi Ran heard this, she stood up under Song Yiâs gaze, and then she hugged the succulent that she had packed and walked straight toward Chen Ruoyu.
The room suddenly became quieter, and Song Yiâs hands that were hanging by her side were tightly clasped together, but to no avail.
In the end, she had to say to Liu Qu: âXiao Qu, you drive over first. Iâll get down in a while. â
Liu Qu nodded and simply picked up her drawing board and walked out.
The sound of the door closing sounded and disappeared. Song Yi stared at Shi Ranâs back as she packed up her things for a long time, watching her stuff the paintings on the desk into the box, then walked in and asked, âShi Ran, then can you leave me the pair of rabbits in the living room?â
Shi Ran heard the words, and the movement of packing up was obvious.
The rabbit that Song Yi mentioned was bought at the pottery exhibition after they moved into the house last year, and it was also one of the few important things for the two of them.
Shi Ran still remembered that Song Yi was in a good mood that day, walking around holding her hand all day and kissing her cheek on the way home.
She said that White Rabbit would always protect Pink Rabbit, and Pink Rabbit would always love White Rabbit.
It turned out that from the beginning, it was not love.
Shi Ranâs eyes flashed a bit of gloom as she thought of this.
She packed up her things expressionlessly and pretended to calmly put away her last album: âI only take what belongs to me.â
When the words fell, Shi Ran seemed to remember something again, and turned to look at Song Yi: âThatâs right.â
Song Yi thought Shi Ranâs heart softened, and her eyes lit up.
But she didnât want the next second, and she heard words that made her even more desperate.
Shi Ran: âThe house expires at the end of the year, and there is still more than a month left. If you want to continue living, you can renew the contract with the landlord, and then cancel it. I will send you the landlordâs contact information. If there is nothing in the future, donât contact me. â
When Song Yi heard the words, her hands hanging on the cardboard box were tightly clasped together, and the fragile cardboard box was scratched several times by her fingernails.
She just stared at Shi Ranâs back, turning around again. Her drooping eyes swept over the suitcase she had brought.
All kinds of things were stacked and hidden inside, all of which were important to Shi Ran, but none of them were related to her.
The bird skipped the window and drew a distinct shadow in the study.
After a while, Liu Quâs phone call came in. Song Yi knew she had no time, so she left the house with only one glance at Shi Ran.
When she came, Shi Ran thought that the things that would be packed in many boxes could be packed in only three boxes. The two workers hired by Chen Ruoyu carried most of Shi Ranâs things in one trip.
The door was slowly closed from the outside, and the key belonging to Shi Ran was removed from the keychain on which the little fox was hanging, and it was left in the cabinet at the entrance forever.
âLetâs go.â Shi Ran said and exhaled while holding a small box of books in her arms.
Shi Ran looked at Chen Ruoyu, who was walking side by side with her in the lightâs corner, as if remembering something, and asked, âI donât know yet, you and she have known each other since childhood.â
âThe relationship between the elderly in the family is not bad.â Chen Ruoyuâs tone was flat, and she could not hear the slightest emotion.
Shi Ran raised her eyebrows. âI didnât see it.â
I donât know if it was because she was too nervous in her third year of high school. In Shi Ranâs impression, Chen Ruoyu and Song Yi were just the same.
That day, Zhang Ran said that Song Yi had a poor attitude toward Chen Ruoyu for her reasons.
It was not the case at that time.
The sunlight fell on Shi Ranâs face through the window on the stairs, and the flat eyebrows were slightly wrinkled in thought.
Shi Ranâs thinking didnât last long when she was interrupted by an arm that suddenly entered her line of sight.
Chen Ruoyuâs slender fingers swayed in Shi Ranâs sight, and her trimmed and rounded nails were pale pink.
The familiar fragrance became clear as the two of them got closer. Shi Ran sniffed and unknowingly slowed down the speed.
A few floors down the steps, Chen Ruoyu picked out a book from the box in Shi Ranâs arms.
The bookâs cover was beige. She looked at the name on the cover and asked, âCan you lend me this book?â
Chen Ruoyuâs voice was light, like the cool winter wind passing through the stairwell, pulling back Shi Ranâs ethereal thoughts.
She was a little surprised that she was distracted just now, but she didnât dare to delay and turned to glance at the book in Chen Ruoyuâs hand.
A selection of Wildeâs poems.
Shi Ran bought it and read a few pages, then put it on the shelf and forgot about it. She packed it up today, and she plans to read it at night.
Itâs just that Chen Ruoyu wanted it, and Shi Ran didnât want to refuse her, so she nodded readily and agreed: âTake it, I just bought it at the time and picked up a few pages. There may be some notes I wrote on it. â
âIt doesnât matter.â Chen Ruoyu replied, her fingers stroking the three-dimensional book title sprinkled with gold on the cover.
After the episode of borrowing books, the two walked to the door of the unit building.
Shi Ran held the small box and looked around in the bleak winter wind, while Chen Ruoyu stood beside her and asked in confusion, âWhat are you looking for?â
Shi Ranâs line of sight went straight past the Maybach, who was parked at the door, and said, as a matter of course, âThe moving companyâs car.â
When Chen Ruoyu heard the words, she opened the trunk of the Maybach opposite the two under Shi Ranâs gaze and recalled in a flat tone, âThis one.â
Shi Ran couldnât help but open her mouth, âChen Ruoyu, youâre giving too much face to my disciple. Why donât you drive a Maybach to move me?â
âItâs not for your brotherâs face.â Chen Ruoyu said lightly. After speaking, she reached out and took Shi Ranâs hand and put it in the trunk.
The sunlight passed through the tree trunks with yellow leaves hanging on both sides of the road in the community and fell into the dark trunk of the Maybach under Shi Ranâs gaze.
Just when Chen Ruoyu was about to fall behind the trunk, Shi Ran suddenly waved at her: âWait for me.â
Chen Ruoyu stopped immediately, but saw Shi Ran take out an unsealed cardboard box from the trunk with difficulty and rushed towards the trash can beside it.
In the box were neatly placed paintings, from sketches to fine brushwork and ink, from realism to freehand brushwork. All these years, Shi Ran helped Song Yi draw.
Shi Ran guessed that the elder brother of the worker might think the thing was too good to be garbage, so she put it in the trunk along with the other boxes.
But it used to be extremely precious to Shi Ran, but now it is dispensable and worthless.
âBye-Bye.â
Shi Ran said and threw all these things into the trash can.
She seemed to say goodbye to her past self completely, but her eyes were still red uncontrollably.
Shi Ran clearly understood that Song Yi was not a good person and that breaking up was the best choice, but the memory was the most tormenting thing.
The seven years of love almost ran through the brightest time in Shi Ranâs life, and Song Yiâs name was almost written on both crying and laughing.
The sun at noon in the winter hurts peopleâs eyes. Shi Ran saw that all the paintings she had worked so hard to make were all stained. She took a light breath and took out a shriveled one from her pocket. small bread.
The wind blew the already withered leaves to sway, and the huge treeâs shadow shrouded Shi Ran below.
She stood like this. Her long hair, which she had casually rolled up when she was packing her things, hung loosely on her back, and her coat made her look bleak.
Chen Ruoyu watched Shi Ran get into the car with the bun in her mouth, and asked calmly, âHungry?â
Shi Ran bit the bread and said vaguely, âNo.â
Then she fastened her seat belt and said to Chen Ruoyu, âHavenât you heard of it? Eating will make you feel better. â
Chen Ruoyu heard the words and did not speak anymore.
The Maybach, who was pulled as a coolie, slowly drove towards the gate of the community under the masterâs control.
Shi Ranâs depressed mood slightly improved when a small piece of bread was swallowed into her stomach.
She looked at the street tree that was gradually speeding up and retreating outside the window, as if she had reacted to something, turned her head to one side, and asked Chen Ruoyu, âDid Shi Yu give you my address?â
âNo.â Chen Ruoyu replied simply.
Shi Ran was puzzled: âThen where are you going to take me?â
âA place that can make you feel better.â Chen Ruoyu stared at the road ahead and replied to Shi Ran.