A foreign city, dear you

At 8:40, Fox stopped downstairs in Xiya Garden.

Cao Xueqian was carrying two bags. One bag contained the dirty clothes he had changed, and the other bag contained the toys Cao Xueqian bought for Lan Shan and the clothes he bought for Ye Lian.

He looked at the lights upstairs, imagining the warm lights in his own home, and happily walked into Xiya Garden and entered the elevator.

*

open the door.

The lights were on in the living room, and it was quiet and empty.

"Dad is back?" Lan Shan greeted Cao Xueqian from a distance in his room.

"What are you doing, baby? Where is mom?"

"I'm doing my homework, mom is here."

Cao Xueqian didn't expect Ye Lian to greet him specially, but begged her not to be angry again.

Cao Xueqian came to the door of Lanshan's room.

Lan Shan was doing homework when he saw the bag Cao Xueqian was carrying and asked, "Dad, what did you buy?"

"Guess." Cao Xueqian looked at Ye Lian while talking to Lan Shan.

After not seeing each other for a few days, Ye Lian lost a lot of weight.

Ye Lian didn't look at him coldly, as if he was the air that could make sounds.

"Did you buy me a toy?" Lanshan asked curiously.

Cao Xueqian took out the toy and showed it.

"Kong Mingsuo?" Lanshan asked happily.

Cao Xueqian nodded: "Do you like it? You can take it apart and play when you have time."

Lan Shan likes to play with some difficult toys. Cao Xueqian saw this Kong Mingsuo and bought it for him.

Ye Lian never spoke.

There seemed to be a layer of frost on his face.

It seemed as if Lanshan was chatting up a big enemy who owed her a debt in her previous life.

Cao Xueqian took a deep breath, feeling sorry for the excitement on the way home.

Cao Xueqian put the toys on Lanshan's bed and returned to the bedroom angrily.

Bedroom, dressing table,

There is a piece of white paper,

There seems to be something written on the white paper.

Cao Xueqian approached with a little anticipation.

When he saw it clearly, the little expectation in his heart fell like yellow leaves in winter.

divorce! divorce! divorce!

That piece of white paper,

Three big words, six big words, coupled with three black exclamation points, sent an ultimatum to him with an irrefutable momentum!

So heartbreaking, so sad.

Every word was Ye Lian's roar, and there was no room for discussion or argument.

what is this?

Why can't you forgive me after so many days?

Cao Xueqian opened the closet gloomily and wanted to put the clothes he bought for Ye Lian into the closet.

But found that

There were only his clothes in the closet, and Ye Lian's clothes were no longer visible.

Obviously, Ye Lian had emptied her clothes and moved to the study.

Is this the rhythm to carry the separation to the end?

Divorce again, separation again,

Am I that heinous?

Facing the half-empty closet, Cao Xueqian was a little dazed.

a long time,

He sighed.

He put Ye Lian's clothes in the closet, then turned to the dressing table and stared at the six powerful characters.

then,

Open the drawer and take out a pen.

His brows were furrowed, a habit he had when making difficult decisions.

at last,

His hand holding the pen fell on the white paper, under the words "divorce" lined up in a row.

swish, swish, swish,

The sound of pen scraping across paper.

after a little while,

A line of vigorous new words appeared on the white paper:

agree! Leave tomorrow! Go to the Civil Affairs Bureau early!

There were also three exclamation points, like "An eye for an eye" and "What comes, comes".

Cao Xueqian stared at the line of words he wrote in a daze, and then put the pen back into the drawer.

Cao Xueqian's eyes fell on the harmonica placed in the drawer again.

He took the harmonica in his hand.

Although it was getting late, Cao Xueqian didn't want to sleep yet.

The three big "divorces" on the paper made him very uncomfortable, sad and upset.

He wanted to go out and relax.

He took the harmonica, left the bedroom and came to the living room.

Ye Lian should still be in Lanshan's room.

It doesn't matter, wherever she is.

Cao Xueqian said nothing, opened the door, walked out, and closed the door behind him with a bang.

Cao Xueqian came to the street.

It was already nine o'clock in the evening.

Cao Xueqian looked at the traffic on the street and felt a little confused, not knowing which direction he should go.

In the past, except for work, every time he went out, he would listen to Ye Lian's arrangements.

The scale cannot be separated from the weight, and the husband cannot be separated from the mother-in-law.

Wherever Ye Lian goes, he follows.

……

Cao Xueqian thought for a while, then walked uphill, towards Xiangzui Lake...

Xiangzui Lake has cool wind and quiet embankments.

Some people who were relaxing by the lake have begun to leave.

Cao Xueqian walked deeper into the embankment while watching the night lake.

Cao Xueqian has never been to Xiangzui Lake alone.

When was the last time you visited Xiangzui Lake?

It was last Wednesday. He followed the sad and crying Ye Lian to the Elephant Mouth Lake;

What about going forward in time?

That was the night after Ye Lian learned to drive and returned from long training. He picked up Ye Lian at the "Duowang" supermarket and walked with Ye Lian by the lake.

That time, Ye Lian held his hand.

After only being separated for one day, Ye Lian became particularly attached to him. She chatted with him along the way and told him interesting things on the road to Changxun.

……

As they walked, Cao Xueqian came to the place where he and Ye Lian counted the stars side by side. It was also the place where Ye Lian cried until she couldn't hold her breath and fainted from weakness last Wednesday night.

Cao Xueqian looked at the sky. There was a moon in the sky, but there were no stars beside the moon. Just like Cao Xueqian, alone, without Ye Lian next to him...

Cao Xueqian found a place to sit down and looked at the lake reflecting the lights of thousands of families.

The reeds beside me are swaying in the evening breeze.

Cao Xueqian's thoughts are like the reed, swaying...

Eight years ago, Ye Lian gave up everything and came to Yancheng to pursue Cao Xueqian.

Still remember,

At dusk when night fell, Ye Lian arrived for the first time, and at the platform of He'ao Village, she eagerly awaited his figure...

At that time, she didn't want anything and ran towards him regardless.

But now, she is catching on to his mistakes and wants to separate from him...

……

Cao Xueqian took out his harmonica.

It's been a long time since he played the song "Alian".

Now, let him play "Alian".

Although, the person who listened to him playing "Alian" was not by his side.

Cao Xueqian put the harmonica to his lips.

However, he found that he couldn't blow anymore. As soon as his lips touched the cool mouthpiece of the harmonica, his eyes filled with tears and his throat became choked with sobs.

Cao Xueqian then put away his harmonica again and sat there, staring blankly at the tiny specks of golden light on the lake...