Chapter 226 : Give Me a Bouquet When We Meet Again
Chapter 226: Give Me a Bouquet When We Meet Again
Jiang Xia might have especially favored her deskmate, because she had left him the most things—each one capable of stirring up memories from their high school days.
He flipped through the thick stack of photos Jiang Xia had left behind for him. On the back of every photo, she had written the date, the place, the scenery, and her mood at that time.
The timeline ran from their high school graduation up until early April of this year. She had gone to all kinds of places, but one thing remained the same: no matter where she went, there was always at least one photo of her wearing that oversized school uniform.
Desert grasslands, towering mountains, sunsets over the sea, skyscrapers, the drum tower of Jiangnan, rolling rivers, mountain streams—Jiang Xia had a pair of eyes that could always discover beauty. No matter where she was, she could always find a particularly lovely angle and capture it.
Lin Mo looked through them one by one, as if he had retraced the three years of her journey.
The last photo showed her standing at the gate of a small rural courtyard, wearing her school uniform, making a peace sign. Her smile was still as bright as ever, though she looked much thinner than she had three years ago. The only thing that hadn’t changed were her eyes and that gentle smile—the two dimples that always adorned her cheeks were still there.
On the back of the photo, a short message was written: 【I think that’s about it. Let’s stop here. I’m a little tired. Officially entering my old-age life now—time to retire!】
There were definitely photos taken after early April, but for some reason, Jiang Xia hadn’t sent them to him. Maybe in the past six months, her health had declined, her face had grown tired, and she hadn’t wanted him to see her like that.
Or maybe she had given those photos to someone else—after all, everyone in their class had received a gift.
Jiang Xia was a meticulous person. Every gift she gave must have been chosen after much thought. Since she hadn’t given him one, there had to be a reason.
He didn’t know how long he had been looking at them, nor when exactly he had drifted into sleep.
The next morning, at eight-thirty, Lin Mo unusually slept in. He didn’t wake up early, nor did he go to the square for his morning exercise.
Old Comrade Lin, who had just gotten off the midnight shift, was eating the breakfast his wife had made. Watching his son wash up in the bathroom, he asked in confusion, “Why does it feel like our son’s in a bad mood today? He didn’t even go exercise!”
“Who knows? And really, you believe he’s that disciplined? How many times has he said he’d start working out? Every time it’s the same—three days of fishing, two days of drying the net. He’s bought three gym memberships and gone a total of four times. I can’t even be bothered to nag him anymore.
At least this time it’s just morning exercise—no membership card needed. If he doesn’t go, then he doesn’t go. At least he’s not wasting money,” his mother Zhou Min said, curling her lips helplessly.
As she said, Lin Mo had indeed tried to get into fitness before—especially after seeing all those guys with eight-pack abs online. He wasn’t attracted to men, but he knew that those abs definitely attracted girls.
These days, all those fitness influencers—if they were even slightly handsome—had entire comment sections full of women calling them “husband.” Some even creepily called them “daddy.”
Miss Yuan herself loved watching those muscular guys with abs. Scrolling through short videos on her phone was no different from visiting a brothel.
“You’re right,” Old Comrade Lin nodded, then continued eating. After breakfast, he planned to get some sleep—his holiday life had officially begun.
At that moment, Lin Mo came out of the bathroom, neatly dressed, looking quite put together.
“Mom, I’ve got something to do. I’m heading out for a bit. I’ll take the car,” Lin Mo said, grabbing the car keys from the entryway.
Upon hearing that, Zhou Min quickly called out, “Heading out this early? Eat breakfast first!”
“Not hungry,” Lin Mo replied with a smile, trying to make himself look as normal as possible.
“It’s raining out there. What’s so urgent that you have to go out in the rain?” Old Comrade Lin said, handing him a black folding umbrella.
Lin Mo took it and smiled. “Just meeting a friend. Don’t worry, I’ll drive carefully.”
With that, he waved goodbye to his parents and walked out the door.
“You tell me, that boy—heading out early without breakfast. Who knows what he’s up to? Always making me worry,” Zhou Min muttered as usual, though her tone was full of concern.
Old Comrade Lin, on the other hand, had a trace of worry on his face. Though he usually acted rough and careless, he was actually the most sensitive one in the family.
The moment Lin Mo had stepped out, he’d noticed his son’s mood wasn’t right. But now that the boy was grown, with his own thoughts and troubles, they as parents couldn’t interfere—only hand him an umbrella as he went out.
“Don’t worry. He’ll be fine. Young people—of course they’ve got friends to meet. He’s finally on break; let him go out and have some fun!
By the way, honey, is our wok broken? Let’s throw it out.”
“Huh? The wok isn’t broken! I just used it this morning. Why throw it away?” Zhou Min asked, puzzled.
Old Comrade Lin said, “The dishes taste salty lately. Must be the wok—it’s gone bad!”
Zhou Min burst out laughing. “Ha! You! You’re saying I cook too salty, huh? Fine then, don’t eat! And if you dare touch my wok, I’ll throw you out!”
Old Comrade Lin waved his hands. “No, no, how could my wife’s cooking ever be bad? Must be the wok’s fault! How about I do the cooking these next few days?”
“No way,” Zhou Min said firmly. “I’ll cook! My cooking’s delicious. Eat up—all three dishes! Don’t leave a single bite, got it?”
It had to be said—in this family, Zhou Min seemed like the boss, but in truth, she was completely under her husband’s thumb.
Downstairs in the car, Lin Mo fastened his seatbelt and looked at the four items on his phone’s shopping page. He couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Not bad. You’ll probably like these.”
Then, the car rolled out of the community in the fine drizzle, disappearing into the misty rain.
Yesterday, Jiang Xia’s mother had sent Lin Mo three messages: one obituary and two videos.
One of the videos was the farewell clip Jiang Xia had recorded for the entire class on their last day of senior year. The other, taken that same day, featured only two people.
In the video, it first showed their homeroom teacher, Teacher Qin, receiving flowers from the students. Then the camera flipped, revealing Jiang Xia and Lin Mo lying on their desks.
【Wow, the flowers are so pretty! Hey, Lin Mo, give me a bouquet when we meet again, okay?】 Jiang Xia turned and asked her deskmate.
Lin Mo rolled his eyes. 【Give you what, a bouquet? How about a slap instead? Don’t get all sentimental. I’ve never even received flowers myself!】
After saying that, Lin Mo was called away by Wan Chunlong to the restroom.
Once he was gone, Jiang Xia looked at the camera, covering her mouth as she giggled softly: 【He definitely will.】
As the phone slowly lowered, Lin Mo—dressed in black, holding a bouquet of white chrysanthemums—stood silently in the cemetery before a fresh grave.
He gently placed the flowers in front of the tombstone, took a deep breath, and murmured with a faint smile:
“You win.”