Chapter 17 of Sunset

There is no sea in Linlan. This small northern town has only one cinder track, which has been paved by Old Sun for twenty years. It makes a rustling sound when you step on it, as if talking to the runners. There is also a sycamore tree, which grows crookedly. It loses its leaves every year and sprouts every year. It has been pruned countless times, but it still refuses to be straight. Song Wanting grew up here. She ran the third leg of the relay - the bend. Tilt your body inward, swing your left arm slightly, and swing your right arm back forcefully. After the curve, it becomes a straight road. At the end of the straight, someone is waiting. Lu Shihan shoots a basketball on the basketball court. Flick your wrist and spread your fingers, like letting a bird go. In his pocket were two cinders, one large and one small, both embedded with quartz. Picked it up from the track. His mother said that when a person lives, his feet must be on the ground. Step on it firmly and move forward. Later they all left. The cinder track was shoveled away and covered with red plastic. The plane trees were pruned to make them rounder. People scattered in all directions - the provincial capital, Jiangcheng, Delingha, and further away. But the cinders are still in the pocket. The sycamore leaves are still stuck in the book. Song Wanting watched the sunset sixteen times on the bank of the Yangtze River. For the seventeenth time, she returned to Linlan. Under the sycamore tree, everyone is back. Those things you thought were gone have actually become a part of you. After seventeen sunsets, there is sunrise. (Some excerpts in this article are appropriately quoted from Haizi's "Haizi's Poems". Please note that)