Yunzhou

Rich young man / small-town girl, sponsor / sponsored

At sixteen, after finishing his middle school entrance exams, Shang Xizhou was sent by his mother to stay with his uncle, who worked in southern Yunnan. It was a small border town with modest living conditions.

One day, he ducked into an alley to eat, and a girl offered to pay half the price for the food he had left over.

It was the first time anyone had dared to insult Shang Xizhou like that. He glanced at the girl and walked away.

Yun Yi remembered Shang Xizhou's look for a long time. She had never seen a boy like him.

His sneakers were blue and white, his trousers neatly hemmed, his clothes crisp and well-fitted. Even his face was so handsome and striking it seemed almost unreal, and he carried himself in a way she couldn't describe.

Later, he sponsored her through high school, but the two barely crossed paths over those three years.

*

The year Yun Yi went to Beijing for university, she cut off contact with Shang Xizhou entirely, apart from the living expenses he sent on time each month. She studied in the vast city of Beijing.

In her second year, she went with an upperclassman to work a part-time job at a venue. As she was leaving, she accidentally bumped into someone.

She had only taken three steps when someone suddenly grabbed her wrist. The man asked coolly, "What's your name?"

She said nothing, and the man continued, "Yun Yi."

*

The day she left Beijing was bright and sunny. Yun Yi carried her suitcase, without the slightest reluctance.

She didn't know that someone sat in a car, watching her back until she disappeared from sight.

Yun Yi thought that she and Shang Xizhou belonged to different worlds.

A short story

Theme: Waiting for love