The Joy of Love (2)

“This song is bad,” he suddenly said. “What joy of love and pain of parting? Listening to it makes people uncomfortable.”

Ruan Qingmu smiled. “I was singing it for the big fool. Not about you and me.”

“That TV drama’s song, can I download it online?”

“No. It’s not from anywhere. I learned it when I was little.” Ruan Qingmu pondered.

The activity room was dark when they went up to the third floor. Qin Yuan turned on the lights and the heater in the room. “Do you still want to work on homework tonight?”

Ruan Qingmu sighed. “Yes, ah. There’s a knowledge point which I couldn’t figure out in today’s physics exam. I want to make up for it quickly now.”

Qin Yuan thought for a moment. “How about resting for a while? We just finished the final exam.”

Ruan Qingmu casually stroked his head. “My boyfriend’s grades are too high. I have to rush to climb the mountain.”

The college entrance exams were four or five months away. Qin Yuan would definitely go to a prestigious university in the capital. So, if he didn’t work hard, what if he didn’t manage to get into a school in the same city?

This was indeed a sin. In his previous life, he never imagined that he would one day take the imperial examination in a disciplined manner and even study assiduously and tirelessly. The only thing missing was to learn with pocket fireflies and the reflection of the snow*…

*T/N: A metaphor for someone from a poor family that studies hard.

The activity room gradually warmed up. The two people were quiet and peaceful, studying again as usual for a while, and the time unknowingly had reached over ten o’clock.

Ruan Qingmu finished reviewing two sets of papers, put down the reference book, and took out his cell phone to look at it for a while.

Fang Li’s Moments had a new post and it was really snowing down hard where he was. He was dressed like a round ball and stood at the entrance of an art college out of town, surrounded by a large pine tree, his hands clasped around the tree, and was rushing toward the camera, a smile all over his clean face.

“Hugging ‘pine’* tree. Hehe,” said the caption.

*T/N: The pine () character is the same character as the song () in Fu Songhua’s name.

Qin Yuan came over to look at it and smiled. “Mm. He looks very happy.”

As he was talking, there was some extremely faint rustling outside in the silence of the night and something hit the window.

It was late at night and the snow was falling silently. Both had extremely good ears and immediately looked at each other simultaneously.

Qin Yuan leaped up and reached out to turn off the light. The couple held hands, quietly opened a slit in the curtain, and looked outside, their eyes widening.

The big acacia tree was deciduous and had long since shed all its leaves. The paper strips were now covered in snow. It was a cold night, though not freezing, but it was cold enough. Why would someone climb the tree?!

The two men squinted and waited until the figure had gradually climbed higher before both recognized who it was.

“Is the big fool in your class a monkey? Why does he like to climb trees so much? Climbing it in summer and winter?” Ruan Qingmu asked quietly, leaning next to Qin Yuan’s ear.

Qin Yuan also turned his face sideways and replied softly with his lips next to his ear. “Must be a pig. So stupid.”

The two laughed, but they were both slightly worried in their hearts. When the branches were thick and leafy in summer, it was safe to climb the tree with flourishing branches and leaves surrounding it. But now, the entire canopy was just bare branches with snow on top, so one could fall without being careful.

The tall youth as agile as ever, climbed from below to high ground within a short time, stood on a large thick branch, and looked around, seemingly at a loss.

Then, he began to search the branches around.

The two people watched quietly from behind the window. Suddenly, both their hearts were moved.

Ruan Qingmu softly whispered in his ear. “Is he looking for the confession letter hung in summer?”

“Mm. I think so.”

After the college entrance exams every June, these confession letters were hung everywhere under the trees, and the school usually took the time to clean them up during the summer. The ones below the tree from last year’s batch had all been destroyed, but the ones they hung were tied from the upstairs window, hidden in the high canopy, and no one had noticed them.

Every time they pushed open the window, the small nameplate Qin Yuan had hung up was still there as was the one Fu Songhua tied up next.

But now that the snow pressed down on the branches, the tops of the trees were all covered up. It was so white. Would he still even be able to see it?

After searching around for a while, Fu Songhua suddenly got agitated when he couldn’t find it. Suddenly, he lifted his foot and kicked at the branch beside him.

The snow poured off the branches and they were clearer, but he still couldn’t find the nameplate he had hung. He became increasingly impatient, kicking at the branches as he raked them around.

The two people in the room saw how anxious he looked. At first, they found it amusing, but slowly, they both felt sorry for him.

Qin Yuan grasped Ruan Qingmu’s hand. “Let’s go down. Don’t disturb him.”

Without saying much, Ruan Qingmu understood what he meant. The two quietly went out together and went downstairs.