At the end of her second year of high school, Shu Qingying was forced to transfer to Yuncheng No. 1 High School.
The person looking after her was her grandaunt's nineteen-year-old adopted son, Chen Huan.
The young man's features were sharp and deep-set. A long scar ran from his brow to his temple, giving him a precocious wildness that didn't belong to a boy his age.
For the next year, Chen Huan was forced to take on the role of her guardian.
He hauled bricks and built walls to save up for her tuition, kept her company while she studied and stood up for her. When she finished her bitter Chinese medicine and scrunched her face up, he even handed her a sea-salt candy.
So on the day the college entrance exams ended, the girl, experiencing love for the first time, summoned her courage, wrote a love letter, and slipped it into Chen Huan's coat pocket.
"I hate rainy days, but I like Chen Huan."
But the next day, Chen Huan left.
Beneath the unopened envelope lay a bank card with eighteen thousand yuan, enough for a year of college tuition and living expenses.
*
Seven years after graduating from university, Shu Qingying made her way to Shanghai.
By then, she was working at a major internet company. She worked through the night, was under tremendous pressure, and was thinking about quitting without another job lined up.
At the last dinner, Shu Qingying was urged to stand and raise a glass to the investors. Her eyes met a familiar pair of dark eyes.
Chen Huan took the glass from her hand and casually put out his cigarette.
With a languid, indifferent air, he said, "The kid at home has a temper. If I accept this drink, I'll have to coax her when I get back."
Shu Qingying had thought that looking after her in the past was just a responsibility he'd been forced to shoulder.
But later, the tipsy man wrapped one hand around her waist, set her on the bar, and asked her to make their relationship official.
"Shu Qingying, I taught you to take responsibility for what you do."
"You kiss me and then pretend it never happened? Who spoiled you?"
The torrential rain in Yuncheng hadn't soaked Shu Qingying alone.
"Through this endless rainy season, I've missed you so much."
First a campus romance, then an urban romance.
Theme: Live well
