When The Snow Falls In Autumn Chapter 48

Chapter 48

It rained all night, and it didn’t stop until early morning. It just changed from a torrential downpour to an endless drizzle of rain.The sky was a uniform, heavy leaden gray, very low, as if it would fall at any time.The air is clammy and sticky, full of moisture, and every breath carries a cool and earthy smell.

Ye Qiulan was sitting at the desk in his dormitory. The notebook in front of him was open, with only a few words written on it. The tip of the pen was hovering, and the ink blurred into a small black dot on the paper.She stared at the black spot, but her eyes were empty.The sound of rain outside the window hits the glass monotonously, click, click, click, like a second hand that never ends.

The phone screen is dark, lying quietly next to the laptop.After returning from the library last night, Ling Xueqing didn’t send any message.The review meeting was over, the report was submitted, and the sudden theft incident seemed to have subsided for the time being.Between them, it seems that they have returned to that clear and distant state where they can only communicate with each other when it is “business”.The brief contact in the darkness of the stairwell and the cup of warm sugar water were like an unreal dream, washed away without a trace by the cold rain during the day.

That’s fine.Ye Qiulan thought.She needed to sort out the mess inside her.The sourness and frustration brought about by the afternoon review meeting, the complex and unspeakable sense of dependence and distance towards Ling Xueqing, and… the clear and palpitating coolness on the wrist in the dark.It all takes time, alone, to digest slowly.

She picked up her pen and tried to draw her attention back to her notes, which were ideas for a final thesis for an elective course.But just after writing two lines, the phone vibrated suddenly, making a dull buzzing sound on the wooden table.

It’s not a message, it’s a phone call.The home number danced on the screen.

Ye Qiulan’s heart suddenly sank, and his fingers instantly became cold.There are usually no calls from home at this time.She took a deep breath and connected.

“Hello, Mom?”

My mother’s voice came from the other end of the phone. It was faster and hoarse than usual, and there seemed to be suppressed coughs and rustling noises in the background.”Qiu Lan…” The mother’s voice paused, with a calmness she was trying to maintain, but she couldn’t hide the fatigue and anxiety underneath. “Your dad… wasn’t feeling well last night. He was breathing heavily. He was sent to the community hospital this morning. It was said to be an old problem, but there was also a slight infection… The doctor suggested that it is best to go to a large hospital in the city for another systematic checkup and stay in the hospital for observation for a few days. I… I can’t handle it by myself. Do you think it’s convenient for you to come back these two days? Can you please take a leave?”

Every word was like a small hammer, hitting Ye Qiulan’s tense nerves.My father’s long-term illness was like a silent mountain that could collapse at any time, weighing on the hearts of the whole family.The forced calmness in her mother’s voice made her feel more uncomfortable than crying.

“I…I know, Mom.” Ye Qiulan heard that his voice was still calm, but the knuckles holding the phone were turning white. “Don’t worry, I will ask the counselor for leave immediately and buy the nearest bus ticket back. The hospital…the procedures and other things will be done when I get back. You take care of dad first.”

After briefly comforting his mother and asking his father about his current situation and the address of the community hospital, Ye Qiulan hung up the phone.After putting down the phone, she realized that her palms were covered in cold sweat and her fingertips were still trembling slightly.

The sound of rain outside the window seemed to suddenly become louder, and it hit the window glass, making people panic.She stared at the notebook spread out on the table and the paper idea with only two lines written on it, her mind went blank.Asking for leave, buying tickets, packing things, contacting the hospital, comforting my mother…a lot of things came up, but they were all mixed together in a mess, and I couldn’t figure out what to do.

She needed to be calm and organized.She closed her eyes, took a few deep breaths, then opened them and started taking action.First, I turned on my computer to check my train tickets. The latest high-speed train back to my hometown was in two hours.Time is tight.She immediately logged into the academic administration system to submit a leave application, and sent emails and text messages explaining the situation to the counselor.Then she began to pack her belongings, a few changes of clothes, toiletries, chargers, and… She hesitated for a moment, then carefully stuffed the wooden box containing the old school badge, fallen leaf specimens, and the “Qing Ru” bookmark into the mezzanine of her backpack.It seemed that with these old things, she could draw a faint bit of power that belonged to her own little world in that medicinal and depressing home.

After packing up and putting on her backpack, she glanced at the time. There was still an hour and a half before the high-speed train departed. Including the time from school to the station, she had to leave immediately.The rain was still falling, and she didn’t have an umbrella—the dark blue umbrella had been leaning against the corner since the last time it rained, and she forgot to give it back to Ling Xuequing.She dug out a thin jacket with a hood and put it on, and grabbed a plastic bag to put around her backpack.

Opening the door, the dormitory corridor was empty, with only dim light and humid air.She walked down the stairs quickly, thinking about the route and time to the station.

As soon as she reached the door of the first floor, the cold rain mixed with the wind hit her face, making her shiver.She tightened her coat and hat and was about to rush into the rain, but her steps suddenly stopped.

Under the steps at the door of the dormitory building, there was a familiar figure standing.

Ling Xueqing.

She was holding a black long-handled umbrella with a large cover, and the rainwater collected along the edge of the umbrella to form a thin curtain of water.She was still wearing the light gray cotton long-sleeved shirt, with a dark thin jacket on top, with the zipper pulled up to her chin.The long dark hair was slightly wet from the rain and stuck to the side of her fair neck.Her face looked extremely pale under the leaden skylight, and her lips were almost bloodless. Only her eyes, dark and dark, were looking at Ye Qiulan quietly, with complex and difficult to distinguish eyes, filled with strong emotions that Ye Qiulan could not understand.

Why is she here?Shouldn’t she be in the library or graduate school at this time?Moreover, she looked… worse than when she was in the corridor last night.Although he stood upright, the fingers holding the handle of the umbrella were clearly knuckled and turned white from the exertion, and there was a strong and fragile tension in his whole body.

The two looked at each other quietly for a few seconds through the rain curtain.With the sound of rain, it seemed that all that was left in the world was this damp, white background, and the heart-stoppingly deep eyes under the umbrella.

“You…” Ye Qiulan spoke first, his voice a little dry, “How did you…”

“You want to go home.” Ling Xueqing interrupted her, not as a question, but as a statement.Her voice was lower than usual, with a hint of unnoticeable tension, “Is there something going on at home?”

Ye Qiulan was stunned for a moment, and then remembered that he had just submitted a leave application. The counselor might have seen it, or maybe… Ling Xueqing knew about it from other channels?She nodded and did not hide anything: “My dad is not feeling well and needs to go to the hospital. I will go back for a few days.”

Ling Xueqing’s eyes lingered on her face, as if he wanted to see more from her forced calm expression.Then, her eyes moved down to the bulging backpack that Ye Qiulan was carrying, and then she looked at the thin coat she was wearing, which was obviously useless.

“Have you bought the ticket?” she asked.

“Well, the train leaves at 2:10.” Ye Qiulan glanced at the time on his phone, “I have to go to the station quickly.”

Ling Xueqing was silent for a few seconds.The sound of rain hitting the umbrella surface was dense and rapid.She suddenly took two steps forward, stepped onto the steps, and raised the umbrella. Most of the umbrella surface was tilted toward Ye Qiulan, blocking the falling rain.

“I’ll take you to the station.” She said, her tone unmistakably calm.

“No!” Ye Qiulan almost blurted out, “It’s raining so hard, and you…” She looked at Ling Xueqing’s pale face, “You look uncomfortable too. Go back and rest. I can just take a taxi myself.”

“It’s raining at this time, so it’s hard to take a taxi.” Ling Xueqing’s voice was steady, but her fingers holding the umbrella handle tightened, “On the way. I… also have to go over there to do something.”

It’s “on the road” again.The chaotic emotions in Ye Qiulan’s heart were mixed with a familiar and slightly astringent helplessness.Ling Xueqing could always use such reasonable-sounding and irrefutable reasons to intervene in her life.

She wanted to say something else, but Ling Xueqing reached out and naturally took the backpack on her back.The movement was very fast, but Ye Qiulan still felt that the moment he took the backpack, Ling Xueqing’s arms seemed to sink imperceptibly, and his eyebrows frowned very quickly.

“Let’s go.” Ling Xueqing put the backpack on one shoulder and held the umbrella steadily with the other hand. The umbrella almost completely covered Ye Qiulan’s head.”The car is in the underground parking lot, walk over.”

Ye Qiulan no longer insisted.She was indeed pressed for time, and there was a rare and irresistible determination in Ling Xueqing’s attitude.She silently followed Ling Xueqing’s footsteps and got under the wide black umbrella.

The space under the umbrella instantly becomes private and narrow.The sound of rain hitting the umbrella was deafening, and the splashing water vapor brought a bone-chilling chill.Ye Qiulan stood next to Ling Xueqing, and could clearly feel the unusually hot temperature coming from her arms through the thin jacket, as well as the crisp cedar breath. At this moment, it seemed to be covered by a slight burning sensation like a low fever and a very faint medicinal smell.Her breathing was also slightly faster than usual.

“Are you… having a fever?” Ye Qiulan couldn’t help but ask in a low voice, turning his head to look at Ling Xueqing.From this angle, you can see her pale profile, tight lip lines, and faint shadows under her thick eyelashes.

“It’s okay.” Ling Xueqing replied briefly, looking forward and keeping pace.Her voice was a little muffled.

Ye Qiulan’s heart tightened.She had low blood sugar last night and had a fever today… Did she take good care of herself?However, at this moment, her own family problems were weighing on her heart like a huge boulder, leaving her with no energy to delve into them, so she could only suppress her worries temporarily.

The two walked to the underground parking lot near the graduate student apartment in silence.Ling Xueqing’s car was a very ordinary silver hatchback. It was well maintained, but it could be seen that it was old.She opened the passenger door and let Ye Qiulan get in first. Then she put her backpack in the back seat before walking around to the driver’s seat.

The space inside the car is small and well-sealed, instantly blocking out the noisy rain outside.There is a very light smell in the air that belongs to Ling Xuequing’s car fragrance, mixed with the smell of leather and old books, and… at this moment, the clearer smell of low fever and medicine is emanating from Ling Xuequing’s body.

Ling Xueqing fastened her seat belt and started the car.The engine hummed low, the heater was turned on, and a warm breeze blew out, dissipating some of the dampness and coldness in the car.She held the steering wheel with both hands, her knuckles slightly raised due to exertion, and looked intently at the blurry vision of the wiper swinging back and forth in front of her. The lines of her profile looked extremely cold and tight in the dim light inside the car.

The car drove smoothly out of the campus and merged into the slightly congested traffic at noon on weekends.The wipers scraped the front windshield regularly, making a monotonous sound.There was silence in the car, except for the subtle sound of airflow from the air conditioner outlet.

Ye Qiulan looked at the city street scene that was quickly passing by and blurred by the rain outside the window. His heart was heavy, filled with worries about his father’s condition and anxiety about the situation at home.Fingers twisted together unconsciously.

“Which hospital?” Ling Xueqing suddenly spoke, breaking the silence.Her voice sounded particularly clear in the closed carriage.

“City No. 1 Hospital.” Ye Qiulan replied.

Ling Xueqing said “hmm” and said nothing more.But Ye Qiulan noticed that her fingers holding the steering wheel seemed to have loosened slightly.

The car stopped at a red light.Ling Xueqing turned her head slightly, her eyes fell on Ye Qiulan’s tightly twisted fingers, and she paused for a second or two.”Don’t worry too much,” she said, her voice low, almost drowned out by the sound of the wipers. “The medical conditions are good now.”

A very ordinary sentence of comfort, spoken from Ling Xueqing’s mouth, carried a strange power that made people’s hearts tremble.Ye Qiulan’s nose felt sour, he hurriedly lowered his head and said vaguely “Hmm”.

The car restarts.The silence fell again, but it no longer seemed so suffocating.

As we approached the high-speed rail station, the rain stopped and turned into a drizzle.Ling Xueqing drove the car into the parking lot on the departure floor.After parking the car, she unbuckled her seat belt, moving slower than usual.

“We’re here,” she said, with a hint of unnoticeable fatigue in her voice.

Ye Qiulan also unbuckled his seat belt and wanted to go to the back seat to get his backpack.Ling Xueqing got out of the car first, took out her backpack from the back seat, opened the black umbrella, walked around to the passenger side, and opened the door for her.

“Thank you.” Ye Qiulan got out of the car, took the backpack and put it on his back.Cold raindrops drifted on my face.

The two stood under an umbrella, facing the brightly lit and bustling entrance of the high-speed rail station.Parting is imminent, and those complicated and unsorted emotions are all stuck in my chest at this moment.

“You…” Ye Qiulan looked at Ling Xueqing’s still pale face, “Remember to take medicine and have a good rest when you go back.”

Ling Xueqing nodded and looked at her deeply. There was a heaviness and hesitation in his eyes that Ye Qiulan couldn’t understand.”Be careful on the road.” She handed the umbrella to Ye Qiulan’s hand, “We’re here… say something.”

Ye Qiulan took the umbrella, and the umbrella handle was still slightly hot with the warmth of Ling Xueqing’s palm.”Yeah.” She responded.

Ling Xueqing said nothing more, nodded to her, turned and walked towards the driver’s seat.Her back stood upright in the mist and rain, but revealed an indescribable loneliness and vulnerability.

Ye Qiulan held an umbrella and stood there, watching the silver car slowly drive away and merge into the endless river of cars in front of the station until it could no longer be seen.The cold rain hit her face, and the heavy black umbrella in her hand exuded the fresh and slightly bitter scent of Ling Xueqing.

She turned around, took a deep breath, and walked towards the brightly lit entrance of the station.The backpack was very heavy, and my heart was also heavy, filled with worries about home and a heavy concern for the pale and silent figure that had just been forcibly suppressed and left.