The Green Trees Are Still

Four-year age gap | Pen pal romance | Sign-language lawyer x wealthy benefactor from the capital's elite circle

Tian Qing was fifteen when she met He Ming.

He wore a white shirt and had delicate features. He was a university student who'd come to teach in the countryside.

She wore a blue dress and had a cheerful smile. She was a spirited high school student.

They'd never met before, yet recognized each other at once in the middle of the crowd.

"He Ming, so this is what you look like!"

"Tian Qing, so this is the scenery from your letters."

They'd been pen pals for years. He Ming came to the southern town through their correspondence and also sponsored local children.

He Ming was a gifted painter and calligrapher, and the children all loved writing to him. He was patient and replied to every letter.

Everyone loved receiving his letters. His handwriting was bold and vigorous, like a tree growing toward the sky.

"Teacher He encouraged me to learn to dance!"

"Teacher He told me there are lots of treasures in the Forbidden City!"

And she wrote:

"I want to become a lawyer."

He Ming replied:

"Follow your dream, and don't give up."

After starting university, she began a new life, visiting the Forbidden City and drinking fermented mung bean juice...

She stopped writing to He Ming.

Until one day, Tian Qing finally wrote to him: "He Ming, I've got a boyfriend! You're practically family, my big brother-in-law! Come out and meet him."

He Ming picked up his pen again and again, but his writing was heavy and his words light:

"All right."

·

After the celebration banquet for the college entrance exams that year, He Ming saw Tian Qing crouching on the ground, comforting a child. The child was crying, but making no sound.

She was incredibly patient, and even knew sign language. The child was deaf and mute, separated from their family, and she helped them find their way back.

But Tian Qing stopped writing to him.

There was one letter he never sent:

"Tian Qing, your world is as vast as the sky. I sincerely hope your dreams come true. But why have you stopped writing?"

The trees never stand still, for the wind blows through them. The letter was silent, yet deafening.

*Both are virgins; the male lead has a secret crush. An ethnic minority girl x a gifted painter and calligrapher

Theme: A tribute to every sign-language lawyer who provides legal assistance to people with hearing impairments.