SYLM Chapter 72

Chapter 72: Goodbye.

The midsummer sun was scorching hot, making it hard to breathe, as if the impressive summer five years ago had returned.

The days of waiting for the reunion were particularly unbearable; Gu Wan Jun couldn’t muster any energy to do anything.

Her daughter, Duo Duo, kept talking about “Sister Chen Lu” all day long, causing Gu Wan Jun to dream about Chen Lu constantly.

She had to admit, she desperately wanted to see Chen Lu.

After finally getting through the long weekend, Monday, the day of the agreed-upon reunion, finally arrived.

The phone screen stayed on, with three hours left until the reunion.

The clothes in the closet were a mess, Gu Wan Jun had tried on almost every piece, but none of them were satisfactory.

They say a beautiful woman looks good even in rags, and while Gu Wan Jun never claimed to be particularly beautiful, she had never put too much thought into her outfits either.

But this time was different; this time, she was going to see Chen Lu.

Five years had passed, and with the passage of time, her little girl had become even more beautiful. What about her? Had she aged a lot?

The mirror reflected a woman’s face that was beautiful enough but slightly pale due to nervousness. This was the first time Gu Wan Jun had been so anxious about her age.

“Mom, you look good in this one!” Duo Duo had somehow sneaked into the room, holding a cream-colored fitted dress.

Gu Wan Jun forced a smile and ruffled her daughter’s hair.

This dress was a gift from Tang Ying when they went shopping together before. That person was a dress enthusiast, and before Gu Wan Jun could turn her head, Tang Ying had already swiped her card to pay.

Gu Wan Jun rarely wore dresses; she didn’t have much confidence in herself in dresses.

In fact, no matter what she wore, she found it hard to have the same confidence she had in the past when she was in front of Chen Lu.

Time ticked by, and as Gu Wan Jun was hesitating and unable to make a decision, as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, her gaze was suddenly drawn to a paper bag in the corner of the closet.

It was a gold-brown jacquard suit that Gu Wan Jun had spotted while passing by a new Chinese-style clothing store when she went out to buy clothes for Duo Duo last week. The shop assistant had strongly recommended it at the time, saying that the style was both classic and fashionable. She had bought it on a whim but hadn’t had a chance to wear it yet.

Gu Wan Jun took out the suit, her fingers gently caressing the delicate jacquard pattern. The gold threads gleamed with a soft luster in the sunlight, like a flowing galaxy. The top was a modified cheongsam collar, the knot buttons were chic and elegant, and the bottoms were wide-leg pants with excellent drape.

“Mom looks so pretty in this!” Duo Duo’s eyes lit up, her little head bobbing excitedly. She was more than satisfied with her angelic mother: “Mom, wear this one, Sister Chen Lu will definitely like it!”

“…”

Children speak the truth. Gu Wan Jun’s heart jumped, she took a deep breath and began to put on the outfit.

The silk felt cool and smooth against her skin, and the woman in the mirror instantly became elegant and dignified, yet with a hint of unspeakable charm.

Gu Wan Jun carefully pinned up her long hair, revealing her slender neck, and wore a pair of pearl earrings on her earlobes. Then she applied a light layer of lip gloss to give her slightly pale face some color.

She shouldn’t look too bad like this, right?

The sun set, and the sky was dyed a soft orange-red. The afterglow sprinkled on the earth, plating everything with a layer of golden light.

The part-time auntie arrived on time. Before leaving, Gu Wan Jun didn’t forget to tell Duo Duo to eat well tonight.

“I will eat well, Mom. Remember to find a chance to bring Sister Chen Lu home!”

“…”

Her rosy little face was full of excitement. Seeing her daughter talking about “Sister Chen Lu” all the time, Gu Wan Jun’s mood was quite complicated.

They hadn’t even met yet, and she was already so infatuated with Chen Lu. Could it be that it wasn’t enough for her, the mother, to fall for her, and even her daughter couldn’t escape such a fate?

But what could she do? Hadn’t she completely lost Chen Lu five years ago?

Half an hour later, Gu Wan Jun arrived at the restaurant where the reunion was being held, which class monitor Li Wen Qi had sent her.

With less than ten minutes left until the agreed-upon time, Gu Wan Jun stood at the door of the private room, took out a mirror to check her makeup, then took a deep breath, and resignedly pushed open the heavy wooden door.

The private room was already full of people, and the sound of laughter filled the air. Gu Wan Jun’s gaze subconsciously swept through the crowd, eventually settling on a familiar yet unfamiliar figure sitting next to Fu Yi Wen in the corner.

Chen Lu.

“Teacher Gu! Teacher Gu is here!” A classmate spotted her and enthusiastically greeted her to take a seat.

In the corner, Chen Lu, hearing the voice, also looked over with the classmates’ gazes. Their eyes met, Gu Wan Jun’s pupils trembled, and her heart skipped a beat.

Those eyes were still as bright as stars, clear and pure, but no longer filled with the gentleness and love they once held. Instead, they revealed a sense of indifference and detachment that couldn’t be melted.

Chen Lu just glanced at her lightly and then shifted her gaze, continuing to listen to Fu Yi Wen beside her.

This one glance filled Gu Wan Jun’s heart with mixed feelings. She hesitated for a long time, but eventually sat down in the seat directly opposite Chen Lu.

Five years apart, the little girl had fully blossomed and become even more beautiful.

The shoulder-length short hair she had at the last book signing event had grown quite a bit now. The slightly curled ends of her hair draped casually over her shoulders. The girl’s eyebrows and eyes were like a painting, her lips were bright red, and even a simple white shirt looked so good on her. The lace-trimmed cuffs were casually rolled up to her elbows, revealing her slender wrists, and the light blue double earrings on her left earlobe shimmered with a soft luster under the light.

At this moment, Chen Lu was tilting her head slightly, listening to Fu Yi Wen speak. The beautiful and cool aura between her eyebrows and eyes was exactly the same as when she was a student.

The chattering sounds of the classmates around her floated into her ears, but Gu Wan Jun didn’t have the mind to listen. She answered haphazardly, her eyes unable to stop glancing at the person sitting opposite her.

She saw Chen Lu gently sip her drink, leaving a faint mark of her pale pink lips on the rim of the glass; saw the earrings on Chen Lu’s earlobes sparkle under the light as she tilted her head slightly; saw Chen Lu’s slender white neck tremble slightly with laughter as she spoke…

“Today, we are fortunate to have everyone gathered here…”

Class monitor Li Wen Qi’s sudden speech interrupted Gu Wan Jun’s thoughts. The “little adult” who helped the teacher manage the class during her student days was still handling such occasions with ease after growing up.

Almost all the students on the list had arrived, except for Jiang Zhen Zhen, who couldn’t make it back due to a flight delay caused by the weather. Fu Yi Wen and Chen Lu had already explained this to the others when they entered.

After Li Wen Qi’s opening remarks and greetings, the classmates began to chat casually, mostly about how everyone had changed over the years.

“Hey, if you ask me, the classmates’ impressions of me haven’t changed much. The most changed seems to be Fu Yi Wen. Hey, classmate Xiao Fu, I remember you weighed over 180 pounds in high school, how come you look like you weigh just over 100 pounds now? At first glance, you even look a bit like the goddess Li Bingbing!”

The one who said this was Liu Zi Xuan, the well-known “Little Smart Aleck” in the class back then. As soon as she finished speaking, someone shot her a glare:

“Get out of here with your 180, I only weighed 160 at most back then, okay!”

It wasn’t until Fu Yi Wen opened her mouth that Gu Wan Jun, who had been paying attention to Chen Lu’s movements, was surprised to find that the girl who had always been called “Little Fatty” had now become tall and thin. After her originally chubby little face had thinned down, she had completely lost her childishness. Beneath her thick eyebrows and big eyes, she had a sharp and heroic aura. Who could resist exclaiming, “A woman changes so much in eighteen years!” after seeing her?

You have to say, she really does look a bit like Li Bingbing.

For such a visible, transformative change, the classmates’ gossip flames burned brightly, and they all exclaimed that “this must be the power of love!” “Classmate Xiao Fu, you’re taken!” “Which lucky guy is so fortunate!”…

Faced with the crowd’s teasing, not knowing which words had touched Fu Yi Wen’s heart, the girl with heroic eyebrows raised her eyebrows and smiled happily, without denying anything.

The “mouth cannon” who refused to suffer losses during her student days seemed to tacitly admit it, which made the others even more enthusiastic:

“Hey, I heard that our little boss Xiao Fu opened a restaurant in our city after graduation. The catering industry is a business that takes root, and once you start, you can’t leave it for five or ten years. What’s up? Were you not planning to develop elsewhere, or is the person you love in our city, planning to stay in your hometown for the rest of your life?”

“Tsk, mind your own business. Why are you talking so much? If you say any more, I won’t give you a discount next time you go to eat.”

Fu Yi Wen rolled her eyes and diverted the topic in a joking way, making the classmates laugh.

For some reason, Gu Wan Jun seemed to see a shadow of Tang Ying from that eye roll just now.

After transferring to Yunjiang City to teach, although she and Tang Ying weren’t in the same office, Gu Wan Jun often ran into Fu Yi Wen bringing lunch to Tang Ying.

As for what the situation between these two had been like over the past five years, Gu Wan Jun had no idea.

Her own emotional state was already a mess, how could she have the energy and qualifications to care about others?

Fu Yi Wen’s topic was over, and soon the classmates’ attention shifted to another person.

“Teacher Gu, do you still remember Chen Lu? She’s a famous writer now!” A classmate introduced excitedly.

“What are you saying? How could the teacher not remember Chen Lu? Chen Lu was the class’s Literature Representative back then, and she had the best relationship with the teacher. The teacher can forget anyone, but she can’t forget her, right, Teacher?”

“…”

Suddenly being cued, Gu Wan Jun forced a smile. She secretly sized up Chen Lu’s expression across the table, afraid that one of her actions would displease the little girl, making her unsure whether to nod or not.

“Times have changed, Chen Lu is a famous writer now!”

A boy continued the topic just now and exclaimed, “Her first book was a huge hit, a peak debut. This is heaven chasing after her to feed her. Hey, Chen Lu, can you sign an autograph for me after dinner? I’ve read your book ‘Caged’ so many times, I even brought the book.”

Suddenly pushed into the center of the topic, Chen Lu pursed her lips and said in a gentle tone, “Of course, thank you for your support.”

“Hey, don’t thank me. Hao Yang helped me buy that book, and it was one of the first editions of your new book. During the domestic epidemic, your book was so popular. If Hao Yang hadn’t specially flown to Canada that year, I don’t know when I would have been able to see it. And I’m telling you, Hao Yang bought your book and read it over and over again, he treasures it so much, he’s almost able to recite it!”

Another name was naturally introduced. When Qin Hao Yang was mentioned, everyone’s gossiping gazes surrounded Chen Lu and the refined boy diagonally opposite her.

Including Gu Wan Jun, who unconsciously tightened her grip on her wine glass.

What’s so great about it? She had also read “Caged” many times, and it wouldn’t be impossible for her to recite it backwards.

The long-lost jealousy made Gu Wan Jun’s throat feel sour, and she had to drink alcohol to suppress the surging sourness in her heart.

At the same time, everyone else’s gazes and attention remained on the “male and female protagonists” at the center of the topic.

Like before, Qin Hao Yang didn’t seem to have changed much. He was still the fair-skinned boy who would blush whenever he made eye contact with Chen Lu.

“Chen Lu, long time no see.”

“Long time no see.”

Chen Lu nodded in response. Her lukewarm reaction made people anxious. The boy who had brought up the topic earlier continued to “matchmake” for his good buddy:

“Hey, but speaking of which, who in our class didn’t know that Hao Yang had a crush on you back then? It’s just that this kid was too timid and never dared to confess to you. Chen Lu, he’s been thinking about you all these years.”

“Tsk, no, when did you switch careers to become a matchmaker?”

Fu Yi Wen, who was sitting next to him, couldn’t stand it anymore and couldn’t help but complain. The boy “busy matchmaking” didn’t take it seriously, and even happily said:

“What’s wrong with being a matchmaker? I even hope that someone will come and be a matchmaker for me. Hey, I’m saying, Fu Yi Wen, when you break up with your current boyfriend one day, maybe we can—”

“Get the hell out of here, who’s ‘we’ with you!”

“Okay, this firecracker temper hasn’t changed after all these years, I’m just joking with you. We’re getting off topic. We’re talking about your good friend and my good buddy’s business here, everyone agree, right!”

In this society, people are too eager to see a love story between childhood sweethearts and talented individuals. As soon as they talk about emotional gossip, the private room immediately erupted in a chorus of catcalls, almost yelling “Get together!”

Seeing that the momentum was building up, the boy who was helping his good buddy with the matchmaking suddenly gained confidence and continued with a smile:

“If you ask me, taking advantage of this great opportunity today, Chen Lu, aren’t you single? It just so happens that Hao Yang is also single, why don’t you two—”

“Deng Peng, could you please pass me that bottle of wine?”

A gentle female voice suddenly cut in. The boy called “Deng Peng” hadn’t finished “matchmaking” for his good buddy yet when the homeroom teacher called him out.

The previously noisy and catcalling private room suddenly quieted down. Seeing Deng Peng awkwardly hand the bottle of wine next to him to Gu Wan Jun, who had a formal smile, the others in the room looked at each other, including Deng Peng. Everyone was unsure what Gu Wan Jun meant. They began to reflect on whether the topic just now had gone too far and made their teacher Gu angry.

Of course, except for Chen Lu.

Just like in high school, she was too familiar with this kind of situation.

The only difference from the past was that, facing the same person, those beautiful crescent-shaped eyes were like a frozen pool, no longer able to stir up the waves of the past.

After all, it was the pressure from the high school homeroom teacher. Even after graduating for many years, the homeroom teacher’s words could still make people feel nervous and jumpy. Everyone tacitly agreed that the topic just now was over.

Seeing that a certain damned topic had finally ended, Gu Wan Jun’s slightly furrowed brows slowly relaxed. The next moment, she heard a classmate strike up a conversation with her:

“It’s been so many years since we last met, how have you been, Teacher Gu?”

When asked about her recent situation, Gu Wan Jun subconsciously glanced at Chen Lu directly across from her. She was just about to start forming her words to answer when she saw Chen Lu stand up:

“Excuse me, I’m going to the restroom.”

Her tall and slender back was upright and aloof, like an invisible wall, isolating Gu Wan Jun.

The cold alcohol she had drunk was churning and burning in her stomach, and an unspeakable bitterness spread in the depths of those emotional peach blossom eyes, turning into a silent despair and desolation.

Did the little girl hate her so much that she didn’t even want to hear about her recent situation?