Chapter 4

She stood up and glanced down at her work uniform, which was somewhat wrinkled, with one corner of the hem turned up. She raised her hand to smooth it out, and just as she did, she heard a rather insincere knock at the door, which sounded twice in quick succession

He is a very young man, probably just realizing that he has bumped into her. He glanced at her with a somewhat flustered expression, checked his ticket for the seat number, smiled at her, revealing his white teeth, and said: "I apologize, beautiful. I wasn't paying attention. Could you please move a bit? My seat is right next to you."

Sui Anran put away the phone on the table, lightly patted her face, and weakly responded, "Yes, I accidentally fell asleep here."

Sui Anran looked at him seriously for a moment before saying, "Just in time, I also need to pick out a few gifts"

Do you have a boyfriend, where do you work, I feel like you look somewhat familiar

After the young man settled down for a while, when the plane was flying smoothly, he boldly struck up a conversation with her, "Beautiful lady, are you also going to City A? Where in City A? I have a car, I can give you a ride later."

Thereafter, there was no conversation

Wen Jingfan effortlessly opened the umbrella, and the light outside was brighter than the hotel lights. His previously somewhat cold features were now softened by the brightness, appearing even clearer under the umbrella.

Moments later, the young man turned to speak to her again. Anran, unable to withstand his advances, responded with a few indifferent remarks. She clearly wore an expression that said, "I don't want to engage with you, could you please be quiet?" Yet, the man seemed oblivious to her cues and continued to enthusiastically engage in a "one-sided" conversation with her.

His voice was somewhat hoarse and pressed extremely low, yet it was particularly magnetic

She lay on the table and slept the entire night, her waist and back ached, and her neck seemed to be twisted, with the side of her neck sore as if someone had struck it with a knife.

Wen Jingfan's voice was slightly hoarse, "Sui Anran?"

She pressed her lips together, lowered her hand slightly to partially cover her profile, and tilted her head to continue reading her book

Sui Anran saw him slightly nod his head, his lips moved slightly, yet he never uttered another word.

After selecting the gift, the sky had already darkened. Wen Jingfan originally intended to invite her to dinner, but just as he began to speak, he was interrupted by a phone call. After answering the call, he spoke briefly for a few moments, and when he hung up, his brow furrowed slightly. After a moment of silence, he said: "I apologize, I have something urgent to attend to. I will take you home first"

Originally, someone was supposed to come and pick her up, but that day she had an urgent matter and could not leave. After arriving in City A, she had to rely on herself to take the subway back. Although her luggage was not exactly light, its weight was within her acceptable range

When Anran woke up, it was already six o'clock in the morning

She brought a book up to pass the time, and just as she opened the front page, her elbow resting on the armrest was brushed lightly by someone.

Sui Anran knew that he had not finished speaking, so she merely raised her eyes to glance at him, indicating that she was listening.

Wen Jingfan and others walked over to Anran and then said to the man: "I have an appointment, I will take my leave now"

I am waiting for you in the lobby downstairs. He paused for a moment and then asked thoughtfully, Is it convenient for you? If it is not convenient, I can wait outside

Her fingers, holding something, stiffened slightly before she turned her head and smiled at him, "No... I haven't been there since that time I left."

Moments later, the flight attendant pushed the cart over and, noticing with keen attention that the page of her book was still on the first page, left the meal he requested. She gently reminded him not to disturb the other passengers

This amounts to exactly one suitcase, along with a laptop bag

Wen Jingfan and she have never had any intersection, so she certainly would not naively think that he genuinely wants to "invite her". After thinking it over, there seems to be only one explanation: he needs help

At 2:00 PM, her phone rang on time. She glanced at the display showing a phone number from City A and raised her hand to answer it

They remained silent all the way to the hotel entrance. As Anran bid him farewell and was about to turn and leave, she heard him speak: "In these years, have you ever returned to the Fanyin Temple?"

Wen Jingfan nodded expressionlessly, and his demeanor appeared distant, making his features seem a bit colder. When the person turned to leave, he finally glanced at her, and when he spoke again, his tone had softened considerably, "Then let's go."

As Anran glanced at the hotel not far away and was about to say that she could return by herself, he happened to interrupt her by saying: "I also have a flight back to City A tomorrow afternoon. If you don't mind, we can go together."

...

He smiled, cleared his throat, and then said: "I have no experience in giving a gift to someone, so I would like to ask for your help."

He stood perfectly in the shadows, enveloped entirely by the night. The light and shadow from the hotel entrance shone over from a distance, casting a thin layer of white light on his face. In that fleeting moment, his eyes were as deep as the night itself, dark and soft.

The sky outside remains overcast, yet the wind has significantly calmed down, no longer roaring as it did during last night's tempest. If this trend continues, even if it does not clear up by the afternoon, it will not further affect travel.

Only then did Su Anran awaken slightly, taking the room card to return to her room to tidy up

After having breakfast at Sister Wang's, she returned to pack her luggage. Knowing that her stay would not be long, she did not bring many belongings, and since she usually wore work clothes, she had only a few sets of her own clothes.

As they spoke, the two had already reached the street corner. He slightly raised the hand holding the umbrella handle, revealing his deep and bright eyes as he looked at her, and suddenly asked: "Do you usually speak in honorifics like this? For example, just now, when you responded to me, you used 'Please wait a moment'"

Only after Anran took a closer look at the Buddhist beads did she shift her gaze away

It was a form she had never been familiar with

"Beautiful lady, turn around and talk to me, otherwise it will be so boring for several hours." He chuckled a few times and began to talk to her about the local customs and culture of City A. Seeing that Su Anran was ignoring him, he finally felt disinterested. He raised his hand to call the flight attendant and thought that even ordering a meal could lead to a conversation about the ingredients.

...

As Anran was disturbed by his noise and unable to concentrate, she only managed to turn a page after reading for a while

Sui Anran then asked him: "Is there anything I can help you with?"

Wen Jingfan took her to the airport in advance. After waiting for a while, they passed through security and boarded the plane. It was only then that they realized their seats were separated by just one aisle.

As Anran stepped out of the elevator, she immediately spotted Wen Jingfan standing not far away. He was conversing with a man, his expression indifferent, seemingly somewhat distracted.

He lowered his head and glanced at Sui Anran, seemingly smiling for a moment. He took the small bag she was carrying and placed it in the overhead luggage compartment. As he set it down and let his hand fall, the sleeve of his clothing gently brushed against the side of her face. It was then that Sui Anran realized the subtly close distance between the two of them.

After a few seconds of her mind going blank, Anran quickly came to her senses and generously agreed, "Alright, I will contact you then"

As she finished speaking, she tidied up the items on the table and gently nudged the still-dazed Sui Anran, "What are you still dazed for? Hurry and wash your face. I will go to the dining hall to bring you a cup of soy milk, and it will be ready to eat when I return"

The man nodded with a smile, "We will meet again with General Wen another day"

With a "creak," she turned her head to look. Sister Wang stood at the door, looking somewhat flustered, holding two portions of breakfast in her hand. Upon seeing her, she smiled slightly and said, "Xiao Sui, did you manage to get by here for the night?"

Although Sui Anran did not like his attitude, she merely frowned slightly and subtly moved aside to let him sit down

Sui Anran ran her fingers through her hair, and only then did she muster the courage to walk over

Sui Anran glanced at the intermittent rain outside, pressed her lips together, and did not respond directly: "Please wait a moment, I will come down right away"

"A mere gesture." He took a step back to create some distance, casually tugged at his shirt, and slightly bent his body as he sat down in his seat

It is a gift for a girl with a lively personality

The young man turned his head to stare at her after sitting down, occasionally laughing softly, and the intensity of his gaze made Anran feel somewhat uneasy

Wen Jingfan continued to savor her spontaneous remark "Please hold on" even after hanging up the phone. Reflecting on her instinctive gesture of handing over her business card last night, she couldn't help but smile faintly.

The flight attendant was good-tempered and patient; she answered each of his questions until he had nothing left to say, at which point she turned and left.

She was hesitating whether to step forward and interrupt, when he had already heard the crisp notification sound of the elevator arriving nearby and looked up.

Wen Jingfan believes in Buddhism, and this string of small-leaf red sandalwood consists of approximately 108 prayer beads. Just by looking at its luster, one can tell that it is made from old material that he has carried for a long time. Coupled with the smoothness of the beads, although one cannot speculate on its exact value, it is likely that he has had it for many years, making the value of these prayer beads immeasurable to him

Wen Jingfan seemed to smile for a moment and no longer spoke.

Anran chose to pretend she did not hear and did not respond

For him, the name Sui Anran is merely a fleeting passerby, and it is a great surprise for Sui Anran to be remembered at all. However, he is an exceptionally memorable encounter in Sui Anran's life, one that can be felt and touched.

The man who had his back to her also followed Wen Jingfan's gaze, and his eyes surprisingly held a hint of curious inquiry

Sister Wang shook the breakfast in her hand and said, "I really appreciate you for allowing me to go back home yesterday to take care of things. The small room on the east side of my house is leaking, and the place is in a complete mess. My mother-in-law knows that you like the pancakes she makes, and she got up early to prepare some for me to bring to you."

I am," she replied

She silently took a small step back and politely expressed her gratitude: "Thank you"

Wen Jingfan seemed to have not slept well last night. After sitting down, he raised his right hand to cover his eyes, resting his hand on the armrest, slightly leaning forward to take a nap. The buttons on his cuffs were not fastened properly, revealing his bony wrist, and a string of smooth, round small leaf rosewood beads peeked out from that corner.

Sui Anran nodded slightly and walked outside with him. Just as they were about to pass through the automatic doors, he said "wait a moment" and turned to the side where the umbrellas were placed. When he returned, he was holding two umbrellas, one of which he handed to her

With Anran finally enjoying a moment of tranquility, the lead characters no longer floated on the pages; she lowered her gaze and began to turn the pages at an increasing speed.

He took a sip of water and was about to continue, but just as he began with the word "I," he was interrupted by a clear male voice saying, "She has a boyfriend now"

Ah? Su Anran was taken aback, unable to recall whether she had just uttered those three words. Seeing him still looking at her, she finally replied: "It’s probably a professional habit..."