“2018.01.01 Clear weather, brilliant fireworks”
A new year, and I still liked you.
— Excerpted from Tao Shuran’s Diary
The fireworks had finished exploding.
The last trace of color in the sky also dissipated, returning once more to that cold, solemn, and silent atmosphere.
The biting chill of winter made itself fully felt at that moment. Tao Shuran pulled her sleeves tighter and let out a soft “ah.”
She half-jokingly said, “What, don’t tell me you don’t have someone you like?”
It was also at that moment that the previous Sun Yanzi song ended. Perhaps caught up in the mood, Fang Qingyi, who had been monopolizing the speakers, selected another one.
Courage or fear, which one should I use
To face his smile of one hundred and one points
…
He never appeared without a trace in my life
I seem to understand who holds me in the palm of their hand
Happiness, still a long line of people
Wanting to tiptoe to find the existence of love, round and full
…
Tao Shuran secretly clenched her palm, her fingertips digging into her skin. Her nervous palm sweated, but fortunately, Liang Yuanjing’s answer was not the worst.
Yet it was not the best either.
He said with exceptional calm, “I don’t.”
“I’ll take it as a joke and keep your secret for you.”
Liang Yuanjing turned his head. The blocked light refracted uncertainly behind him. A lazy smile hung on his face as he looked at her half-jokingly—
“But Tao Shuran, don’t casually tell this kind of thing to others in the future.”
Tao Shuran had imagined many scenarios. He might be curious, or he might look down on her. But amid a thousand emotions surging forth, she had not expected him to caution her like an outsider.
The more considerate he was, the worse she felt inside.
The courage she had mustered was like fireworks in bloom—fleeting in an instant.
Tao Shuran lowered her eyelashes and softly said, “Sorry.”
“What?”
Her voice was too quiet, and the music was playing loudly. Liang Yuanjing heard nothing. Just as he was about to lean closer, Fu Changpei ran over and called out to them.
He said the internet was connected and asked what movie they wanted to watch.
Liang Yuanjing yawned, his tone a bit weary.
“You’re not sleeping yet? No class tomorrow?”
“Since when did you, Young Master Liang, become so obedient?” Fang Qingyi cursed him for not getting the mood. What a great day it had been. However, she still remembered she had the gaokao ahead. She could not be too indulgent, so she turned off the projector while saying that.
At that moment, Fu Changpei handed over his phone. “A Jing, your phone’s been ringing nonstop.”
“It was too noisy just now; none of us heard the ringtone.”
Tao Shuran also walked over at that time. After her courage leaked away, only cowardice filled her heart. She pursed her lips. Because she was following behind him, she naturally saw the caller on the screen too.
It was Fang Shiyue.
She called relentlessly, holding a portion of unwavering love right before their eyes.
Liang Yuanjing glanced at it and walked to a dark corner to answer.
The room was not big, so his voice during the call could be heard. Liang Yuanjing spoke flatly, with a hint of coldness upon closer listen.
He said something hurtful. “You called all evening just to tell me happy new year?”
There was silence on the other end for a moment, then the call ended. The expression on Liang Yuanjing’s face grew even colder, tinged with annoyance.
Tao Shuran knew he disliked persistent clinginess.
Especially in relationships.
He would cut off anyone he did not like immediately, leaving no room for delusions.
So she had to be careful, maintain proper distance, and not let him detect even a hint of her affection.
With that thought, Tao Shuran gently tugged at Fang Qingyi’s sleeve.
“It’s getting late. Let’s go back and rest first.”
The room was just next door, but with no sleepiness, Tao Shuran was pulled by Fang Qingyi into her room to chat.
On the way, Fang Qingyi muttered, “Why does it feel like Liang Yuanjing is a bit unhappy?”
“Men are so inexplicable.”
“Maybe because I said something untimely.”
Tao Shuran softly said, “Our relationship isn’t that close, yet I shared a secret.”
“What’s wrong with that?” Fang Qingyi held her hand with a grin. “Ranran, you can tell me any secret. Our friendship is the best in the world.”
“It’s just…” Tao Shuran furrowed her brows, hesitating and choosing her words carefully before speaking. “If you like someone, but they don’t like you, should you keep liking them?”
“Of course.”
Fang Qingyi answered without hesitation. She sat cross-legged on the bed, propping her chin with both hands, her eyes sparkling.
“Can you control not liking them just because they don’t like you?”
“Like just now, Fu Changpei told me he wouldn’t consider dating before university. It made me sad, but even so, I’m willing to like him. As long as he doesn’t like someone else, I have the right to keep liking him.”
Fang Qingyi let out a long sigh, somewhat emotional. “Isn’t Fang Shiyue the same? She’s so proud, usually passing by here with her nose in the air, but because she likes someone, she’s become relentless.”
Tao Shuran fell thoughtful.
“And also…” Fang Qingyi’s long monologue suddenly stopped. Her slow brain finally turned a corner. She shouted exaggeratedly, “Ranran, do you have someone you like?!”
“Who is it? From our class?”
“No, no.”
Dizzy from being shaken, Tao Shuran quickly explained, “I just saw this on an emotional blogger’s post while scrolling on my phone earlier and thought about it casually.”
“Oh, like that.” Fang Qingyi yawned. “Though I think liking someone is wonderful, at this point in time, it’s better to focus on studying. After all, the gaokao isn’t far off.”
“I’ve decided to start tomorrow—I’ll buckle down and study like crazy, swearing to catch up to Fu Changpei.”
Tao Shuran was amused by her appearance. Seeing her too sleepy to keep her eyes open, she stood up proactively, adjusted the room lights to sleep mode, and tucked her in.
“Ranran.”
Fang Qingyi murmured sleepily, squinting as she sat up to look at her. “Happy new year… In the new year, you have to be very happy, happy enough to forget all the unhappy things!”
Tao Shuran paused in her steps and turned back, a slight smile blooming at the corners of her lips.
She could not help but reach out and pull the small paper-folded rose from her pocket, pressing it to her heart, as if her entire chest was heating up.
Those words made her recall what Liang Yuanjing had said earlier. He had told her that as long as she loved herself enough, no rumors could defeat her.
Whether in the past or present, she was just herself.
So in the new year, she still wanted to like Liang Yuanjing.
Afraid their parents would discover the midnight escape, Fu Changpei knocked on the doors of their two rooms at six in the morning, backpack in tow.
Tao Shuran had gotten up early. She still had a couple of things to pack away and hastily called out “Okay” toward the door.
Fang Qingyi, on the other hand, dragged her body over to open the door, walked back to the bed, and calmly collapsed like a corpse again after one second.
Fu Changpei helplessly grabbed her arm and forcibly powered her on.
Fang Qingyi yelled, “Fu Changpei, if you dislocate my arm, are you going to take responsibility?”
“How would I take responsibility?” Fu Changpei joked. “By tutoring you into Qing University?”
Fang Qingyi fainted again. “Then just let me die.”
In the end, Tao Shuran went to the bathroom, soaked a towel in hot water, and placed the warm cloth over Fang Qingyi’s eyes with gentle, comfortable pressure.
She hummed for a bit and slowly sat up.
“Ranran still treats me the best. She knows it’s cold and didn’t use ice water.”
On the way back, Liang Yuanjing called a car and took them all the way to West Kang Road. The car stopped at the alley entrance, and Liang Yuanjing waved his hand, indicating he would not go with them.
Tao Shuran had just invited everyone to her house for breakfast. Hearing he would not come, her downcast gaze hid a bit of disappointment.
But if Liang Yuanjing really came, she would be even more at a loss.
With that thought, Tao Shuran felt a slight relief in her heart and sent a message to Tao Hongfeng ahead of time.
Fang Shiyue had already bounced energetically to her doorstep, pushing open the door with an enthusiastic greeting. Her outgoing personality and sweet speech had even Tao Hongfeng’s face wrinkling into smiles at the table.
During breakfast, Tao Hongfeng casually asked in concern, “What’s going on? Why didn’t you four go home properly?”
The topic stalled abruptly there. Tao Shuran was not one to lie, especially to her own father.
Fang Qingyi could not lie either. The three exchanged glances. Finally, Fu Changpei shouldered the heavy pressure and met Tao Hongfeng’s gaze directly.
“Uncle Tao, the four of us did a set of practice papers together yesterday. It got too late discussing the questions, and Fang Qingyi’s house is far, so we had the two girls stay over.”
Tao Hongfeng had no suspicions and placed another big steamed bun in Fu Changpei’s bowl.
“Uncle Tao, this steamed bun is so delicious. What’s the filling?” Seeing this, Fang Qingyi quickly changed the subject.
Tao Hongfeng’s attention was successfully diverted. He smiled and said, “This is called Ant Vegetable, a specialty from my hometown. Fuqing City doesn’t even have it.”
“If you like it, Uncle will pack some for you to take home later.”
Just then, a car horn sounded downstairs. Fang Qingyi looked down at her phone. “My family’s driver is downstairs. He’ll drop us at school together later.”
In the car, Tao Shuran was still a bit shaken.
She glanced at the driver and whispered in Fang Qingyi’s ear, “This is still my first time lying to my parents.”
Fang Qingyi burst out laughing and whispered back, “This is my first time staying out all night too.”
“I told my family I was staying at your place last night, so don’t give it away later.”
Tao Shuran softly asked, “Why?”
Fang Qingyi’s lips curved, her gaze gently falling on Fu Changpei in the front passenger seat. Even her voice softened.
In a volume only they two could hear, she said, “Because I wanted to see him.”
Seventeen years old, the observatory, with the person she liked, watching the midnight fireworks bloom.
Usually, we call this moment the eternity of youth.
Tao Shuran pursed her lips and said in a voice only she could hear, “Me too.”
She was the same.
To watch the same fireworks as the person she liked, she had mustered great courage, accumulated the rebellious spirit of her entire youth, and thrown caution to the wind just to stand by his side.
“Did you know our class is changing seats?”
Fang Qingyi suddenly remembered this and casually said, “Our class seating hasn’t changed since the start of school, right? Ranran, your scores on these monthly exams have been rising. You’ll definitely move forward.”
“I just hope I don’t get seated too far from Fu Changpei. Seeing him is what motivates me to study.”
Tao Shuran’s heart skipped a beat. She subconsciously asked, “Do you know where I’m moving to?”
“Rumor has it third or fourth row. Don’t you know third row is gold, fourth is silver? Teacher Zhou Wu seems to like you a lot. He’ll definitely put you in the middle with the good students.”
“What’s wrong, Ranran? You unhappy?”
Tao Shuran reluctantly shook her head and sat down at her seat. Her gaze inadvertently drifted toward the back door.
This distance, so very close to her, had been their proximity across many classes—Liang Yuanjing’s distance from her.
It was also the distance in her dreams between her and him.
Yet from today, that dream seemed about to shatter. In the vast campus, different classes—this was their only chance to meet.
Tao Shuran felt an indescribable sadness in her heart, yet she had no one to confide in.
Through the entire noisy morning reading class, her thoughts wandered. Finally, the moment the bell rang, she made a slow decision in her heart, set down her book, and walked to Zhou Wu’s office.
She politely knocked on the door. Facing Zhou Wu’s gaze, she felt an indescribable nervousness, her voice even trembling a bit.
“Teacher, for this seat change, could my seat stay the same?”
This was the first time Tao Shuran had proactively made a request to a teacher. She was a bit scared but grew brave thinking of Liang Yuanjing.
She closed her eyes, awaiting some verdict.
Zhou Wu chuckled softly, as if he had never expected it at all. The quiet, well-behaved girl in his eyes, without a single sharp edge, had suddenly burst into his office.
Interested, he asked, “Do you not want to move from that spot, or don’t want to change desk mates?”
Tao Shuran was stunned for a moment and softly said, “I’m used to sitting there.”
“And it feels like I study particularly well there.”
She began making up reasons, head lowered, face nearly buried in her hoodie.
Zhou Wu laughed. Whether he believed her words or not, he ultimately agreed to her request.
He turned to concern for her studies, noting that her Chinese and English scores had caught up, and the only shortfall now was in the sciences.
Zhou Wu said exaggeratedly, “Put more effort into your sciences, and I think you can aim for Qing University no problem.”
These words were like a matchstick—they ignited with a whoosh, and Tao Shuran lifted her head, her eyes lighting up.
Deeply encouraged, she said, “Teacher Zhou, I’ll work even harder.”
“Mm.” Zhou Wu teased her, “But you don’t need to be too nervous. The teacher found you a secret weapon.”
“Like this—you head back first, and you’ll know soon enough.”
On the way back, Tao Shuran kept pondering the meaning of those words. Before she could figure it out, she saw a group of girls gathered at the entrance to Arts Class 1.
Fu Changpei was there too, holding a stack of books in his arms. He didn’t look like he was there to ask questions; he looked more like he was moving house.
She returned to her seat. Her nearby classmate Zhao Zhengnian was nowhere to be seen, Fang Qingyi was absent too, but plenty of girls were crowded by the window, peering inside.
Somewhat at a loss, Tao Shuran asked, “Fu Changpei, why’d you suddenly come over?”
Fu Changpei said, “I’m here to help A Jing move books.”
Move books?
Why did Liang Yuanjing need to move books?
Just as the question popped into her head, the class bell rang, and the dense crowd outside the window scattered in an instant.
Tao Shuran followed the sound and looked out the window.
She saw Zhou Wu hurrying over with a stack of supplementary teaching materials. Trailing behind him was her missing desk mate Zhao Zhengnian, who was chattering nonstop.
“Teacher, why can’t I sit with Liang Yuanjing?”
“Don’t you know why in your heart?”
Zhou Wu gave him a glance. “You talk too much. I’m afraid if you two sat together, you’d argue so much the classroom roof would flip over.”
Zhao Zhengnian protested, “Then why not keep me sitting with Tao Shuran?”
Zhou Wu said, “I’m afraid you’d get beaten. With your annoying personality, even a good-tempered girl like Tao Shuran might not put up with you sometimes.”
Zhao Zhengnian: “……”
Still not giving up, he asked, “Then can you not move me to the first row?”
“No!”
Zhou Wu slammed his books on the podium, glanced back, picked up the blackboard eraser, and wiped clean the board writing left from the previous class.
Without any mercy, he said, “Zhao Zhengnian, your exam scores have already broken through the lower limit of our Arts Class 1.”
“The seating is arranged like this. With the Gaokao approaching, the students from Flight Class will merge into our class starting today for language, math, and English lessons.”
“Liang Yuanjing, you sit next to Tao Shuran.”
“Wow, Tao Shuran’s luck is so good. The teacher actually arranged for the top science student Liang Yuanjing to sit beside her.”
……
Not only were the people in the class stunned, but Tao Shuran herself—the person involved—was completely frozen in place. She had never imagined that the secret weapon Zhou Wu mentioned was actually… Liang Yuanjing?
She blinked her eyes, the whole person engulfed as if by a tsunami chased by a gale, even forgetting to stand up and make way.
At that moment, Liang Yuanjing chuckled softly.
He picked up his bag with one hand, propped it in front of her seat, and with lazy brows and eyes carrying a hint of teasing familiarity, he asked her—
“What’s wrong, don’t want me to come in?”