Wen Zhen & Ke Jinchen
1.
Ke Jinchen first met Wen Zhen in the school auditorium. He was seated up front as an invited guest, but halfway through the lecture, his mind began to wander.
It would have been rude to leave early when the event was hosted by one of his mother's oldest friends, so he cleared his throat and sat up straight. Then he leaned toward the volunteer beside him and started making small talk. His first question was, "What grade are you in?"
The other person was distracted too. Noticing his gaze, she hurriedly turned her head and took off her headphones, then asked softly, a little embarrassed, "Sorry, what did you say?"
2.
That night, he ran into her again in the quirky district outside the school. She sat behind the counter of a not-yet-finished cafe, resting her face in her hands as she stared into space.
A group of teenagers in the prime of their youth were pooling family money and making plans to open the shop. Her legs swung rhythmically beneath her, but she had no interest in this "grand endeavor."
Ke Jinchen couldn't help feeling soft toward her. He went in and drank the most ordinary cup of coffee, then bought a stack of cheap coffee vouchers before leaving.
3.
On the night Wen Zhen resolved to go far away to a research institute in the Northwest, Ke Jinchen calmly reminded her that it was dry there, and that she should drink plenty of water.
They had prepared for it so thoroughly that nobody cried when Wen Zhen left. She gave Ke Jinchen a hug, then turned and climbed into a taxi at the airport. Before anyone could turn back, she was gone.
Later, Wen Luo thought that the Northwest really did get little rain. And without rain, love could not take root; only memories could keep you company through the days.
Ke Jinchen, too, quietly filled his letters with kisses, but never managed to get the postal code right.
I have always been careful in life, pursuing only what I knew I could obtain.
You are the exception.
*The female lead's career may change over the course of the story, for reasons unrelated to the male lead.
Theme: Truth above all, even unto death.
