Dazzling

After transferring from the plane to a bus, it was already afternoon by the time Qing Ye arrived at Anzi County. Perhaps when she first came here, she never imagined that one day after leaving, she would voluntarily return to this place.

Choosing to return today was entirely unexpected. In the morning, she attended her final class meeting at school, bid farewell to classmates whose names she could hardly remember, and watched them cling to each other, weeping. Suddenly, she missed the people from Anzhong High intensely—especially him.

Then, as if possessed, she booked a plane ticket after leaving school. Only when the plane landed over two hours later did she dazedly realize she had traveled alone from Beijing to another province, without even finding time to inform Xing Wu in advance.

By the afternoon, she was standing at his doorstep, gazing at the nearly completed two-story white house, suddenly unsure how to face him.

It wasn’t until Li Lanfang came out carrying a vegetable basket and saw her, utterly astonished, that Qing Ye spoke up. She didn’t enter, instead urgently asking, “Where’s Xing Wu?”

Li Lanfang told her he was at the factory, so Qing Ye turned and walked directly toward the target range, greeted by the summer breeze.

That day, she wore a purple A-line dress with small floral patterns, its gentle hue evoking the essence of summer—pure and captivating. Huang Mao and Pang Hu spotted her figure from afar, hardly believing the girl in the distance was Qing Ye. They followed her for five minutes before daring to call out to her.

The moment Qing Ye turned around, Huang Mao’s eyes lit up, while Pang Hu grinned goofily at her.

On the way to the factory, Qing Ye learned that Xing Wu’s grandmother had passed away before the college entrance exams, that he had shut himself in a hotel for days unwilling to see anyone, that he hadn’t allowed them to disturb her, and many, many other things that had happened after she left.

When they reached the factory entrance, Huang Mao shouted inside, “Brother Wu, Brother Wu, look who’s back!”

As Qing Ye stepped into the courtyard, she saw Xing Wu lying on the small recliner that once belonged exclusively to her. His deep-set eyes were tightly closed, a thick book resting on his chest. Dappled light from the mottled branches danced across his face, and his eyelashes seemed to quiver slightly.

Huang Mao eagerly called out again, “Brother Wu, wake up!”

Xing Wu slowly opened his eyes and turned his head unhurriedly. The summer breeze lifted the hem of Qing Ye’s dress, the soft purple flowers seeming to flutter in the wind. She stood before him, smiling at him from behind Pang Hu and Huang Mao, her faint dimples quietly blooming at the corners of her lips.

Meanwhile, Xing Wu’s dark pupils gradually widened. He slowly sat up from the recliner, his gaze filled with unfamiliarity and shock, as if unable to discern whether the person suddenly before him existed in his dreams or in reality.

Huang Mao asked, puzzled, “Brother Wu, don’t you recognize Qing Ye?”

Only then did his eyes gradually clear. As he stood up from the recliner, the book on him fell to the ground. Qing Ye stepped toward him, bent down to pick up the book, and glanced at it.

Then, she handed it back to him, tilting her head to conceal the smile at her lips: “Management Practices of Excellent Enterprises?”

Xing Wu snatched the book somewhat awkwardly, hiding both hands behind his back, his gaze shifting restlessly as he said, “When did you get back?”

“Just now.”

Then the air fell silent. Neither of them spoke another word. Pang Hu glanced at Xing Wu, then at Qing Ye.Just then, Du Qiyan rushed out from the factory and shouted, "Qing Ye, it's really you! I've missed you so much."

Following her cries, Liu Nian, Quan Ya, and many others gradually emerged. The feeling was like returning to her maternal home, and Qing Ye was quickly pulled into the factory by them. Everyone gathered around her, chattering and telling her about recent developments, while Xing Wu stood outside the crowd, watching her from afar. He then said to Huang Mao, "Book a private room for tonight."

Huang Mao excitedly replied, "Yes, yes, I'll go book it right away."

Qing Ye noticed an extra row of filing cabinets in the office, making it look more and more like a proper workspace. Glancing around, she saw many books placed on the top of the filing cabinets—all about management, business, sales, and so on.

She pointed at the row of books and teased Liu Nian and the others, "Not bad, really striving for improvement!"

Liu Nian said sheepishly, "Those were all bought by Brother Wu."

Hearing this, Qing Ye looked outside the office, her gaze briefly meeting Xing Wu's through the glass as he stood by the door. He quickly averted his eyes and lowered his gaze, while Qing Ye's heartbeat skipped a beat. That long-lost flutter seemed to inexplicably resurface only when she saw him.

After chatting with Du Qiyan and the others for a while, she stepped out of the office and stopped in front of Xing Wu, asking him, "Is the house ready? I went by earlier, and it seemed almost done."

Xing Wu lifted his dark eyes. "You didn't go in?"

"No, I was in a hurry..."

Qing Ye didn't finish her sentence, mainly because continuing would have been a bit embarrassing. She turned her head away and laughed, and a faint smile tugged at the corner of Xing Wu's lips.

Just then, Quan Ya came in and glanced at her, asking, "You came back just like this? Didn't bring anything?"

Qing Ye said somewhat awkwardly, "No, I didn't. My dad doesn't even know I left Beijing, so I have to go back tomorrow."

After saying this, she quickly glanced at Xing Wu, who lowered his eyelashes, concealing the light in his eyes, and simply said to her, "Let me take you back to have a look."

Qing Ye nodded. As they were about to leave the factory, Pang Hu said to them, "Wu, Wu-ge, the, the private room is booked at the usual place. You, you should bring Qing Ye over early later. We, we need to have a good, good gathering."

Xing Wu acknowledged him, but Qing Ye suddenly remembered something and said to Pang Hu, "Remember to invite Fang Lei."

Pang Hu laughed, "I'll go call her right now."

Xing Wu's little motorcycle was clearly parked in the yard, but he didn't ride it to take her back. Qing Ye looked back curiously and asked, "Is the bike broken?"

Xing Wu glanced at her. "No."

That left only one possibility: he didn't want to ride it. So, they walked back slowly, both taking their time on the road.

Qing Ye silently observed Xing Wu. He was wearing clothes she had never seen before—she didn't know if he had bought them after going to Shanghai or after returning. A black T-shirt with lettering and dropped shoulders, paired with khaki cargo pants tapered at the ankles. Perhaps because of the sun, he also wore a black baseball cap. Qing Ye gradually fell a step behind, watching his long legs from behind. Even though she had returned to her old life, surrounded no longer by non-mainstream enthusiasts and often seeing many handsome young men, she had to admit that her man was still the most pleasing to the eye.Xing Wu stopped abruptly when he realized she wasn't following, turning back just as Qing Ye collided unexpectedly with his shoulder. The accidental contact sent an electric jolt through both of them. Qing Ye sidestepped away while Xing Wu remained motionless, hands tucked in his pockets. Though he maintained his usual casual demeanor, the faintly amused glint in his eyes made Qing Ye's face flush instantly. She averted her gaze.

Perhaps to diffuse the subtle atmosphere, Xing Wu asked, "How were your exams?""

Qing Ye turned back to face him. "For me, there's only performing normally and performing exceptionally. Which do you think it was?"

Beneath his cap, the corner of Xing Wu's mouth lifted slightly. Whichever it was, she'd likely have no trouble choosing a university.

So Qing Ye asked him, "What about you? How were your exams?"

Xing Wu replied with mock seriousness, "Pretty good."

Qing Ye suddenly laughed. "Pretty good? How good?"

"Probably about three hundred points lower than yours."

Qing Ye covered her mouth as she chuckled, giving him a thumbs-up.

They continued chatting intermittently, neither asking about each other's recent lives nor future plans, simply choosing light topics like old friends reunited after a long separation.

Before they knew it, they had reached home. Xing Wu opened the door to reveal a completely transformed first floor, vastly different from when Qing Ye first arrived at Dazzle Island.

Since the barbershop was no longer operating, the entrance now opened into a bright living room with one room on each side. Originally, Xing Wu had planned to put his grandmother and Li Lanfang's rooms on the first floor, but with his grandmother gone, one room stood empty.

The interior still lacked some finishing touches, so no furniture filled the space yet. Xing Wu pointed to the left room. "The second floor isn't ready yet, and I've checked out of the hotel. I'm temporarily sleeping there."Qing Ye followed his direction into the room, finding it completely bare except for a narrow wooden plank bed—extremely simple." They'd probably wait until everything was finished before buying furniture. But Qing Ye quickly thought of a pressing question: where would she sleep tonight? On this wooden bed that looked barely a meter wide? That would probably mean sleeping directly on top of Xing Wu.

All these chaotic thoughts vanished when Xing Wu turned to look at her. Guiltily, she hurried out of the room, her face red to the tips of her ears. Xing Wu followed her out, perplexed. "What's wrong?"

Qing Ye pretended nonchalance. "Nothing. I'll go check the second floor."

The staircase had been relocated, but she habitually headed toward where it used to be. Xing Wu laughed behind her. "Over here."

But Qing Ye had already foolishly run to the corner and pushed open the door.

Xing Wu leaned against the wall with crossed arms, watching her. "You didn't think I hid the staircase behind the door, did you?"

Qing Ye discovered instead a spacious, comfortable bathroom behind the door. She turned back in surprise. "You installed a bathroom at home?"

Evening sunlight slipped through the door crack, casting a soft glow in Xing Wu's eyes. "Didn't you say the public bathroom was inconvenient?"

As Qing Ye turned to close the door, a faint smile touched her lips.

She followed Xing Wu upstairs to find the second floor's layout completely changed too, now featuring two rooms with balconies and one relatively smaller room.Qing Ye asked him: "Three rooms, how are you planning to arrange them?"

Xing Wu pointed at the small room and said: "Study."

Then he pointed at the room on the right: "Bedroom."

Qing Ye then looked toward the room on the left: "What about that one?"

Xing Wu shrugged: "Not sure."

Qing Ye said with a laugh: "Nursery?"

As soon as she said it, Xing Wu lifted his eyelids and turned to look at her. Qing Ye immediately bit her lip and turned to enter the bedroom on the right. Watching her shy demeanor, Xing Wu suppressed a smile at the corner of his mouth and followed her.

The second floor wasn't finished yet; the wall putty had just dried. Qing Ye entered the room and headed straight for the large balcony she had always dreamed of. In truth, after returning to Beijing, her life had gradually returned to how it was before—her room also had a large bay window—but the view from here was ultimately different.

As she ran onto the balcony, the setting sun hung clearly on the horizon, dyeing the sky red. Spreading her arms, she felt as if she were embracing the earth.

Xing Wu stood in the room watching her stretch her arms, her slender figure wrapped in a dress, utterly captivating. His gaze lingered for a moment before he suddenly straightened up and walked toward her.

Qing Ye comfortably stretched her back and was just about to lower her arms when a pair of large hands suddenly wrapped around her waist. In that instant, she felt her heart tremble violently. He moved in front of her, backlit, and leaned down to kiss her.