Yet for whatever reason, he had indeed done it—and succeeded.
She pushed open the heavy wooden door of Theater 9, where the part-time projectionist, also the duty manager, had just arrived.
Nowadays, cinemas all use the standard TSM system, which can be operated directly.
The manager was quite surprised to see her holding a ticket for Theater 9, but the cinema was too busy on weekends. After hastily completing the setup, he left.
The wooden door closed again, and the theater fell into complete silence.
It was still the dim and stuffy Theater 9, with light fading into near-darkness.
Lin Wanxing sat alone in front of the screen, surrounded by empty seats, as if riding in an empty train carriage, experiencing a solitary journey.
The screen lit up, like a faint glow at the end of a tunnel.
Light projected onto the gray-white screen, outlining the scene of a rooftop at dawn. The entire image was fresh and natural, like clear water infused with mint leaves, carrying an exceptionally bright and refreshing aura.
Someone was holding a camera, filming every plant and detail of the rooftop.
It was a scene of rooftop life she was all too familiar with.
For instance, which potted flowers were particularly difficult to care for, and which vegetables grew wildly with no attention at all. As the camera panned, memories naturally surfaced.
Gradually, she heard voices in the background.
At one moment: "Damn, do you even know how to film?"
At another: "Stop shaking the gimbal!"
Lin Wanxing first recognized the voices of Qin Ao and Yu Ming. When it came to such tasks, these two students clearly had the most opinions.
For some reason, perhaps because the scene was too bright, her eyes began to sting.
Then the scene shifted, and the screen was filled with three vegetables. The students used a close-up shot to focus on the freshly watered broccoli leaves, with dewdrops glistening and ready to fall.
"Teacher, let me introduce you—this is our Old One, Old Two, and Old Three," Feng Suo said proudly.
"This is the broccoli we recently introduced. It’s especially, especially hard to grow."
"It’s not that hard to grow. You just didn’t take good care of it when the temperature dropped last time!"
The students chattered noisily as they introduced her to every new plant on the rooftop. To them, it seemed as if there had been no separation of dozens of days—as if she would return after handling her "family matters."
But they all knew very well that this wasn’t the case.
Lin Wanxing’s hands, resting on her knees, trembled slightly.
She wanted to say something—"I’m sorry" or "Don’t do this."
But this was a one-way film. No matter what she said, they wouldn’t hear her.
"Show the teacher the coach!" Lin Lu shouted in the background.
Suddenly, the camera shifted.
Before Lin Wanxing could react, she saw Wang Fa standing in the sunlight, waving at her.
In the background was the vast soccer field she knew so well, with the wind carrying the gentle scent of green grass.
His hair had grown a little longer, and his face had thinned, making his jawline appear even more defined and handsome.
Then, Lin Wanxing met Wang Fa’s gaze.
Standing in the morning sun, his eyes were filled with too many emotions.
Lin Wanxing looked up at him, as if completely bathed in the sunlight of that day on the rooftop.
After a moment.
"Coach, do you have anything you want to say to our teacher?" A clothes hanger was thrust in front of Wang Fa like a microphone.
Lin Wanxing looked again at the person in the center of the screen.
"I miss you. When are you coming back?"
The wind lifted his soft bangs, revealing his gentle gaze.
Wang Fa asked her this.
Lin Wanxing covered her mouth, and in an instant, tears welled up in her eyes.
The scene faded out, and the screen went dark.The sound of chatter and running footsteps gradually rose in the background before slowly growing clearer.
Lin Wanxing saw many pairs of soccer cleats.
Students were running warm-up laps across the field.
It was Wuchuan Road Stadium—just from the camera angle, Lin Wanxing could completely reconstruct the entire field in her mind.
The footage documented the students' daily training, sped up in playback. White clouds raced across the sky, daylight shifting to dusk.
During breaks, Chen Jianghe sat cross-legged before the lens, lost in thought; utterly exhausted, Lin Lu collapsed dramatically in front of the camera "playing dead."
When passing by, students would occasionally say a few words, as if she were still standing on the sidelines.
Sometimes it was, "Teacher, look at our recent set-piece tactics."
Other times it was flexing muscles after scoring: "Aren't I awesome?"
Finally, Wang Fa's whistle blew, signaling the end of training. All players gathered before the camera again.
Their faces were flushed, uniforms filthy and drenched with sweat as the footage returned to normal speed.
Fu Xinshu's voice emerged: "Teacher, we're playing Hanling Victory tomorrow. If we win, we reach the finals."
"Can you come watch our game tomorrow?" Yu Ming blurted out straightforwardly.
Qin Ao smacked him: "We agreed not to mention that directly!"
"Then you didn't give me a script!"
"Anyway, she might not even see this."
Amid muted grumbling, the scene gradually faded, until someone finally shouted: "You have to cheer for us!"
Sitting before the screen, Lin Wanxing quietly nodded along.
Naturally, Lin Wanxing eagerly anticipated the subsequent footage.
But contrary to expectations, there were very few clips from the actual match against Hanling Victory.
The scoreboard showed 2-1, with only two goal sequences edited in.
Lin Wanxing clearly noticed the students' sluggish movements in the latter half. Their expressions were pained yet determined, jerseys completely soiled. She understood—this must have been an brutal match.
Perhaps too brutal, which was why the students didn't want her to suffer through it.
In the final moments, a sudden whistle blast erupted from the speakers, nearly stopping Lin Wanxing's heart.
The match referee awarded Hanling Victory a last-gasp penalty kick.
Suffocating tension surged forth, even the screening room air turning scorching hot.
Grass clippings flew.
The opponent began their run-up.
Lin Wanxing watched helplessly as Feng Suo stood guarding the goal. The young man flung himself sideways with eyes shut—and miraculously saved the decisive penalty!
The final whistle sounded. All the students lay collapsed on the pitch, eventually lifting exhausted gazes toward the stands. They were looking to see if she had come.
Joy and exhilaration, heartache and sorrow—a turbulent whirl of emotions she had never experienced before.
Dark yet burning, as if vibrant green shoots were about to break through barren soil.
Unconsciously, the screening room quieted once more.
The screen darkened again, even blacker than before.
And then, Wang Fa's face appeared centered on the screen.
He sat in a dim room, only a desk lamp illuminating the space.
The composition and atmosphere instantly reminded Lin Wanxing of the farewell message she had once recorded for Wang Fa.
Suddenly she realized—he must have seen everything in that email inbox.
Another conversation that might never see the light of day, like a secret perhaps only they two would ever know. To mirror her gesture, Wang Fa had recorded a video for her from the same angle.He wore a white T-shirt, his hand resting lightly on the table, the lamplight casting golden threads around him.
He showed none of the awkwardness she had when recording videos.
Sitting before the table, he leaned forward slightly and began speaking with her naturally.
"Lin Wanxing, the reason we're recording this video for you is that twenty days ago, we received strange packages and faxes. They prompted us to understand the real reason you left.
So we apologize for investigating your past through personal means.
When we first learned those stories, we were deeply saddened and racked our brains, thinking about how we could help you.
But the more we thought, the more we understood that not everything can be solved.
Though this might sound sentimental, my students and I have always respected your choices."
Lin Wanxing felt as if she were sitting across from him.
They were in the same room, so close she could almost reach out and touch him.
She could nearly feel his warm breath and that gaze that seemed to see right through her.
Wang Fa knew her entire story - before him, she stood completely exposed.
Yet his eyes were filled with deep affection and acceptance.
So much so that in this moment, knowing her secrets had been completely uncovered and laid bare, she forgot all shame and felt only peace and composure, calm and unburdened.
Wang Fa continued: "So now, the stories we're recording for you are simply because we miss you very much.
We want to share our lives with you, share our victories.
You might see this video, or you might not.
But that doesn't really matter."
OpenNovel