When The Snow Falls In Autumn Chapter 12

Chapter 12

The next morning, when the light visited the fourth long oak table in the west window again, it had a different texture from yesterday.Perhaps it was a silent drizzle that fell at night, and the air was filled with moist vegetation. There were still wet raindrops hanging on the leaves of the camphor trees, which occasionally dripped and splashed small water marks on the windowsill.The sunlight passes through this layer of clear moisture and falls on the table. The edges of the light spots are hazy with hazy rough edges, which are no longer so angular.

The wooden box was still placed in the center of the table, open.Before closing last night, Teacher Zhao hurriedly took a look at the results of the initial separation, left more special repair materials, and repeatedly warned that the remaining adhesions need to be more careful.At this moment, the ancient book lay quietly in the box. The edges of the pages that were successfully separated yesterday were separated by extremely thin lining paper, leaving a clearly visible but more fragile “wound”, waiting for subsequent reinforcement and smoothing.The remaining unprocessed parts, especially those involving ink-brush annotations, are like silent reefs, dormant in the depths.

Ling Xueqing arrived earlier than Ye Qiulan.She sat in her usual position, and what was spread out in front of her was no longer yesterday’s geographical research, but a monograph on the compatibility of traditional repair glue and paper fibers.Her eyes fell on the page, but she unconsciously turned a pencil between her fingers. The tip of the pen left some messy, meaningless scratches on the paper.The morning light outlined the straight bridge of her nose and tight lip lines. Under the usual calmness, there was a faint hint of waiting that was different from the past.

When Ye Qiulan stepped into the reading area, his steps were slower than yesterday.She saw the figure almost at a glance.In the morning light, Ling Xueqing’s low-hanging profile was coated with a very faint soft light, like a still painting that contained countless unsaid words.Her heartbeat skipped a beat uncontrollably, and the palm of her right hand that had been held last night seemed faintly hot again.She took a deep breath of moist air and walked over.

When I pulled out the chair and sat down, the wooden chair rubbed against the ground and made a slight sound.

Ling Xueqing raised her eyes.The moment their eyes met, the moist elements in the air seemed to freeze for a moment.Her eyes stayed on Ye Qiulan’s face for a few tenths of a second longer than a normal greeting, and then moved to the canvas bag she brought, and then back to the ancient books.”Morning.” The voice was a bit clearer than the morning light, but it was less tense than yesterday and more steady like sinking into the water.

“…Morning.” Ye Qiulan’s voice was still a little hoarse in the morning.She put down the canvas bag and did not look at the wooden box immediately, but her eyes unconsciously fell on Ling Xueqing’s hand on the table.The fingers were long and slender, with well-defined joints. The warmth and strength when he held her yesterday were still fresh in his memory.She quickly looked away, her ears feeling slightly warm.

Ling Xueqing closed the book in front of her and pushed it aside.She gently turned the wooden box in Ye Qiulan’s direction, pointing at an inconspicuous detail on the edge of the area she had treated yesterday.”The fibers here,” she whispered in a purely professional tone, “the fracture state after separation is a bit special, not like simple aging or colloid damage. I checked and found that it may be the hidden damage left by uneven processing of raw materials when the paper was first made. After encountering colloid and moisture, it became the first point to collapse.”

Ye Qiulan was immediately attracted and took a closer look.Sure enough, under a magnifying glass, the tiny fiber fracture edges showed an irregular shape, similar to an “old wound”.She suddenly realized: “No wonder the strength here felt particularly uneven when it was processed yesterday. If it is a native defect, then the strength and solvent penetration speed of other areas that may have similar problems will need to be re-evaluated.”

“Yeah.” Ling Xueqing nodded and pushed an open notebook from the side. On it was a schematic diagram she drew after coming here early in the morning and based on yesterday’s observation and review of data. Several potential risk points and suggested processing priorities were marked.”Especially in these places close to Zhu Pi, the color of the paper is darker and the possibility of original defects is higher.”

Ye Qiulan took the note and carefully looked at the clear and calm analysis notes on it.Ling Xueqing’s handwriting is powerful and well-organized. Every arrow and every annotation points to the core issue.This more in-depth analysis, based on joint efforts, was like a more precise scalpel, clearing away the fog of the next stage of repair for her.The heavy sense of responsibility in my heart seemed to have been lifted by half of the weight.

“Thank you.” She said softly, her fingertips brushing over the wet ink on the note.

Ling Xueqing did not respond to this thank you, but just laid out the repair tools and materials one by one with skillful movements.Ye Qiulan also calmed down, put on special thin cotton gloves, picked up a magnifying glass, and started today’s attack – the hardened adhesion near the most important Zhu Pi area.

Once again the work unfolds in that highly collaborative silence.But something is different after all.When Ling Xueqing handed over the tools, the moment her fingers touched Ye Qiulan, there was no longer any deliberate avoidance, but a brief and natural stay. While passing the items, it also conveyed a kind of silent support.When Ye Qiulan held her breath for a long time due to a very delicate operation, Ling Xueqing would gently touch the crook of her elbow in a timely manner to signal her to relax her breathing.When fine sweat broke out on Ye Qiulan’s forehead again, Ling Xueqing’s movements of picking up the cotton handkerchief became more natural. Even when she was wiping, she would use her other hand to hold her shoulder to prevent her from losing her balance due to leaning forward too much.

These subtle touches, beyond the scope of ordinary assistants, are like silent languages, flowing quietly in this space wrapped in the moist morning light and the smell of old books.They no longer evoke the thrilling throbbing of yesterday, but penetrate deeper into the texture, becoming a comforting, almost addictive, warm habit.Ye Qiulan was fully focused on the world at his fingertips, but he could clearly feel every subtle movement and breath change of Ling Xueqing next to him, as well as her focused and calm gaze on the back of his hand.That gaze was no longer just supervision or assistance, but more like a quiet companionship, a container that solemnly collected all her efforts.

Time passes slowly between droppers, tissue paper, steam pens and magnifying glasses.That critical adhesion finally showed signs of loosening under extremely careful operation.However, just when Ye Qiulan was using the thinnest bone knife to perform the final separation, an accident happened.

An extremely slight, yet heart-stopping “chi” sound.

A piece of paper, only the size of a grain of rice but with cinnabar ink stains, peeled off from the adhesive body due to an unexpected and extremely fragile fiber break below and floated to the table!

Ye Qiulan’s pupils suddenly shrank and his breathing stopped.That small piece of paper carries the remnants of Zhu Pi that may be key information!

In the flash of lightning, a hand stretched out from the side like lightning, with its palm spread out, accurately blocking the path of the falling paper scraps.The light, dark brown dot fell silently on Ling Xueqing’s palm.

The movement was so fast that it even brought up a tiny stream of air, blowing the hair on Ye Qiulan’s forehead.

Ye Qiulan froze on the spot, looking at the dazzling piece of paper on Ling Xueqing’s palm, his face instantly turned pale.Failed?Caused irreversible damage?

Ling Xueqing’s expression did not change.She didn’t even look at the palm of her hand immediately. She had already picked up a pair of extremely fine tweezers with a little special soft glue on the tip in her other hand.She lowered her eyes and glanced calmly at the scraps of paper and the tiny, slightly lighter dents left on the ancient book where it had just peeled off.Then, she used the tip of the tweezers to pick up the piece of paper very lightly, pointed it at the depression, and slowly lowered it down without any trembling in her wrist.

The scraps of paper were precisely placed back into place, and the edges almost exactly matched the original break line.The amount of soft glue is controlled just right, providing the necessary adhesion without bleeding out and contaminating the surrounding area.The whole process only takes two or three seconds, calm and precise, like the most sophisticated machinery.

After doing all this, Ling Xueqing raised her eyes and looked at Ye Qiulan, whose face was still pale.”It’s not your fault.” Her voice was calm, but it carried a strange soothing power. “The fiber layer here is thinner than expected. It is the result of the original defects superimposed on the colloid erosion. The peeling stress calculation cannot fully cover this extreme situation.”

She put down the tweezers, palms up, and handed them to Ye Qiulan.The piece of paper has returned to its place, leaving only an almost invisible, very light brown mark on the palm.”Look, the ink is basically intact. Only the outermost fibers are peeling off, and the information is not lost.”

Ye Qiulan’s eyes moved from her calm face, to her open palms, and then to the restored tiny gap in the ancient book.Her racing heart slowly began to slow down, but what followed was an even more turbulent fear and… gratitude that almost overwhelmed her.If it weren’t for Ling Xueqing’s instantaneous reaction and terrifyingly precise operation…

She raised her head and looked at Ling Xueqing.His lips moved, but nothing came out.But there was an uncontrollable hot flush in his eyes.

Ling Xueqing retracted her hand, curled her fingertips slightly, and erased the insignificant traces on her palm.Her eyes fell on Ye Qiulan’s slightly red eyes, and she paused for a moment. Then, she made an extremely rare action – she stretched out her hand, not to pick up a tool or hand something over, but gently and quickly touched the back of Ye Qiulan’s slightly trembling hand near the edge of the table with the back of her finger.

Instantly separate.Lighter than feathers.But the cool touch and the unquestionable sense of stability that came over him instantly were like a solid dam, blocking all Ye Qiulan’s turbulent emotions.

“Continue.” Ling Xueqing said, her voice low but with unquestionable strength, “You can.”

Ye Qiulan sniffed sharply and blinked the moisture from his eyes.She looked at that area again, her eyes becoming sharper and more focused than before.Yes, go ahead.Mistakes can be corrected and surprises can be dealt with.The important thing is not to stop here.

She picked up the tool and leaned over again.Fingertips are as steady as a rock.

Ling Xueqing looked at her profile, at her straightened back and focused brows. Deep in her eyes, something slowly rippled in the deep, silent pool, like a stone that had finally sunk to the bottom. There were no more waves, but it left indelible traces of its existence.

The raindrops outside the window finally stopped dripping, and the sunlight penetrated the humid air and became clear and bright.The shadow of the camphor tree crawls slowly on the table, like a gentle and patient hand, measuring the repair, and also measuring something that is more fragile than paper fiber, but becomes stronger and tougher with repeated accidents and support.

The restoration of ancient books continues, millimeter after millimeter.And some repairs happen silently in the moment when palms touch each other, in the moment when eyes meet, in all the unspoken but indestructible tacit understanding.