Bai Fumei in the 70’s

After finishing cooking a few dishes, He Songbai washed his hands and told them to go out for dinner.

There was a slight smile on the corner of his lips. The clear tap water was flowing down and pouring out of his fingertips, which was very beautiful. His body has a kind of unrelenting elegance from a man that has settled down over the years. The youthfulness of young people has faded, and he glowed with the maturity and stability of middle-aged people.

Even Sister He felt that her little brother was charming, considerate, and gentleman at the moment. But when she looked at Zhao Lanxiang in front of her, her eyes did not fall on him. She had not recovered from her surprise.

Sister He's eyes flashed, and she smiled at He Songbai narrowly.

Zhao Lanxiang was shocked by He Songbai's extraordinary skills. The dishes he made were so delicate that she couldn't bear to eat them. As a man, he has such a skill that can calm people.1

But she knows that Sister He's younger brother is actually of extraordinary origin. After all, the streets behind the "Lanxiang" shop are all "Xiangbai" industries.

"Start, let's eat." Sister He gestured excitedly.

Half of the six dishes on the dinner table were made by He Songbai, and the other half were from Zhao Lanxiang. Sister He tasted the delicacies on the table and narrowed her eyes with satisfaction, revealing an unabashed joyful light in her eyes.

Sister He spent most of her life under starvation and cold, and her biggest hobby was food. After tasting delicious food, her face would unconsciously reveal a happy light. Food made her happier than giving her a lot of money.

She filled the two people with drinks and made a conversation by making gestures. He Songbai interpreted it deliberately, "Cheers, I wish business prosperity."

He looked at his elder sister's gestures, paused, and continued gently, "Lanxiang, we hope you are happy and smooth."

He said softly, "Start a new life and let yourself go."

He secretly added this sentence in the name of his elder sister. After talking, He Songbai gazed gently at Zhao Lanxiang, and the disguised coldness of his pupils became warm.

His voice seemed to be warm, calming, and soothing. The warmth passed to Zhao Lanxiang's ears all the way from the air,

When she heard "let yourself go," her nose was sour, and her tears almost fell. She still smiled on the face, but she shed tears in her heart.

The three glasses touched lightly, pushing the atmosphere to the highest point. Zhao Lanxiang hasn't had such a lively meal for a long time. Although she hasn't met this brother and sister for a while, it seems that they have been friends for many years.

He Songbai sipped the liquor quietly and looked away.

Zhao Lanxiang was eating hot rice, and the mist from the rice almost enchanted her eyes.

How easy it sounds to let go, but Zhao Lanxiang can't do it. She has been living in the shadows. How many midnights that she will dream of Jiejie, and her pain would secretly fall off her eyes even though she held it by her teeth firmly during the day.

She missed him. She has blamed herself for losing him.

In the days after the divorce, she not only opened her own shop but also revitalized it. Her business was flourishing. It would not be a problem to support herself in the future. It was more than enough to provide for the elderly. But Zhao Lanxiang's heart was still gray.

She tried to make herself busy, making her body extremely exhausted, so she had no spare time to feel hurt and sorrow.

After she closed the shop, the clerk would leave early after getting off work. She would turn on the lamp to make clothes with her sewing machine. She came the earliest and went home the latest every day.

When she heard He Songbai's lightly said, "let yourself go," it stimulated the bitterness at the bottom of her heart. She laughed and said, "I will go to the bathroom. You continue to eat."

When He Songbai saw sad emotion in her eyes, there was an impulse in his heart. He wished to hug her and comfort her as before.

But he didn't go. He lit a cigarette by the window, smoked slowly, but he vaguely heard the quiet cry from the toilet. Because of this cry, his brow furrowed, and he wanted to smoke even more.

Sister He still had a hearty and delicious meal, but He Songbai finished a cigarette and walked towards the bathroom.

He pushed open the bathroom door and saw Zhao Lanxiang turned around in a panic to wipe her tears.

He Songbai generously handed his handkerchief and said warmly, "Everything will pass."

Her tears reminded him of that year. She came to his side warmly, watching him struggling to survive in his humble life. Was she also as distressed as he is at the moment?

In those days, when the burden of life was so overwhelming that he couldn't breathe or see a glimmer of hope, she comforted him so gently. Over and over again, patiently and meticulously, he was encouraged to walk from the bottom to the peak.

Zhao Lanxiang raised her head to see the white handkerchief in front of her, and tears came down when she saw the gentle and calming comfort on his face.

She shook her head constantly, embarrassed and sad. She asked He Songbai to go back for dinner.

He Songbai was not moving.

...

Sister He, who had a big heart, ate happily, but she found that her brother was gone, and Zhao Lanxiang was also gone.

Through the half-covered door, she only saw her brother half crouched on the ground. His waist was leaning forward slightly, and his hand was cupping as if he was supporting the woman's face. So much so that he only exposed his handsome jaw.

His voice was deep and hoarse, blending with a gentleness that she had never been before. Even if she couldn't see, she could guess that his eyes at the moment should be unbelievably soft.

He said softly, "If life deceives you, don't be sad, don't be anxious. You need to be calm in the hardest days... Then instantaneously, everything will pass..."

Sister He heard his low voice, Zhao Lanxiang's depressed cry, and his helpless sigh. She was very surprised. She had never seen him so gentle.

His tenderness was heart-warming, down-to-earth, and heartbreaking.

Sister He was both sad and happy. Complex emotions poured into her heart. She took it lightly and pretended not to see it. She turned around to continue eating.

She was really happy and worried when eating this meal. She was happy for her brother because he finally got the hang of it. Worry is for the two of them. For He Songbai and Zhao Lanxiang's life, they had more sadness than joy.

After the two siblings finished eating, they walked down from the flat and got into the car. Sister He sighed and said sadly with her brother, "She is not suitable for you."

He Songbai's face was sullen. He was not in a good mood at the moment because he saw Zhao Lanxiang's sad look. His heart was bitter and astringent, like it was soaked in bitter water.

Apart from his distress about his sister, all the rest was given to Zhao Lanxiang. He saw her painful tears, and he wanted to go back in time so that he could return to when she was seventeen years old.1

He must not make her feel so wronged.

He Songbai saw his elder sister's gesture, shook his head, and said firmly, "There is no one more suitable for me than her."

"I just want her."

Sister He's heart is somber. She shakes her head hard and gestures with concern, "But, your life is too hard."

She thought about it, remembering his bitterness for many years. She also had tears in her eyes. Her tears were about to fall.

She seemed to understand that she had done something wrong. She should not support him in pursuing Zhao Lanxiang. He should have a warmer woman to care for him. So it will not be so painful and sad to talk about feeling like now.

Sister He's heart was filled with endless sourness. She felt very sorry for her younger brother.

He had never enjoyed the blessings since he was a child. He suffered and hurt with them. Finally, he was a little bigger and could have a good time, but he went to jail, and the best time of his life was lost.

After coming out of prison, he had to assume the responsibilities of the whole family. Now that his conditions are better and their family is ample, he was planted in the pit of Zhao Lanxiang.

Sister He once felt that she must be the brother's disaster. Otherwise, how could he was suffering more and more, over and over again.

She didn't expect him to like Zhao Lanxiang so much, with deep affection. But Zhao Lanxiang is far from being as a sunny and strong woman as she showed on the outside.

She was so distressed that her tears fell, and she persuaded her brother, "She, is not so easy, to accept you."

He Songbai grabbed his elder sister's hand and said comfortably, "Don't worry, she will accept me."

"I have waited for so many years. I am not in a hurry."

"It's you, you should be in a hurry. When do you think about the big things in life?"

Sister He cried and laughed. She still talking about the girl without interruption, insisting, "Give up."

He Songbai shook his head, "If I give up, what's the point of my life?"1

"I came for her. We are destined to be husband and wife. This is something that can't be changed. She is very sad now, and it is difficult to accept me. One year, two years, and three years... It does not matter if it is eight or ten years. The people around me are my own people. It doesn't matter if I get married or not."

"In the future, you can help her when you are free. She is your sister-in-law, our family."

When Sister He heard this, tears flowing through her eyes. She felt terribly distressed.

She was so distressed that she gestured, "My poor brother." She buried her face in her knees. Her heart was hot, she was touched and sad.

"I'm so happy for her and sad for you."

He Songbai gave her elder sister a sense of security but he couldn't help but laugh. "What's wrong with me?"

Sister He said, "You make me hurt the most."

"Brother Bai, your life was so hard."

He Songbai didn't feel this way. He looked up at Zhao Lanxiang's window sill and saw her figure faintly, but his vision was blurred, so it might be the shadow of potted plants. His eyesight was ruined in prison. He was malnourished for a long time and fought hard to read, and his eyes were ruined.

He glanced at the darkening night and said easily, "Probably because my previous life was too smooth, so I came here to pay my debts."

"I don't feel bitter but rather satisfied. It's you. I don't know that the burden on your heart is so heavy. Let go of your burden."

"This will allow me to live a little faster."

I have had happiness and tasted the best taste. He Songbai has no regrets in his life. If there is, it is that life is too short. Many things he wanted to do, he had not had time to do. Fortunately, he had this life in addition to his previous life, and he felt very satisfied.

"There is nothing wrong with me? My life has stabilized and the economy is more affluent. Apart from working overtime occasionally, and I haven't caught up with my wife, I have no other troubles."

He started the car and left the flat with a smoke. He said to his elder sister with a smile, "I will work harder and marry her earlier so that our family will be more lively."