Sheng Kuang's tone was very light, especially when calling Xiao Jingjiang. He deliberately slowed down his speech, making it particularly gentle.
Lin Jing felt as if her ears had become pregnant on the spot, a wave of numbness washing over her.
Her mind was still stuck on "the way he called her Xiao Jingjiang was so gentle," and her mouth had already moved: "Okay."
She replied so quickly that she had finished speaking the moment his voice fell.
Realizing that she had once again sounded like a robot, Lin Jing, annoyed, closed her eyes, wishing she could bite off her tongue.
Sheng Kuang let out a soft laugh: "Thanks, Xiao Jingjiang."
Lin Jing pursed her lips, feeling the temperature around her tingling ears rising bit by bit.
She quietly shifted a little to the side, creating a slight distance between them.
In the autumn evening, the temperature had already dropped, but Lin Jing felt hotter than she had at noon.
It must be the heat from the roasted lamb fire not far away, she thought.
...
The next day, upon waking, Lin Jing meticulously cleaned the room she had stayed in, then opened the windows and doors to keep it ventilated.
Lan Bowen seemed to have installed a surveillance camera in her room; as soon as she finished tidying up, his WeChat message arrived, asking her to come downstairs for lunch.
As she dragged her suitcase out, she saw Sheng Kuang, who had also received Lan Bowen's WeChat and was coming down.
As usual, upon seeing her, Sheng Kuang nodded naturally.
According to the old script, the next second he would lazily say good morning, sometimes with a yawn if he hadn't fully woken up.
But today, before he could speak, his gaze fell on the suitcase she was dragging.
He froze for a moment, looking at her suitcase as if he had forgotten what to say, and fell silent.
The atmosphere somehow became a little sad.
Lin Jing pursed her lips slightly and took the initiative to speak: "Morning."
Sheng Kuang paused, then slowly raised his eyes: "...Morning."
After speaking, he reached out and took her suitcase.
Lin Jing followed him into the elevator. They didn't talk much as they went down.
The scene felt familiar, and it wasn't until the elevator was nearing the first floor that Lin Jing remembered that the day she arrived, the scene was similar: he had proactively carried her suitcase, taken her upstairs, and they hadn't spoken in the elevator either.
As the elevator door opened, from a distance, Lin Jing heard Chen Jing's boisterous voice.
She didn't know what they were talking about, but it was lively, and the auntie was still there, watching them and smiling happily.
Lan Bowen spotted Sheng Kuang and Lin Jing. "The two of them are here."
At his words, everyone looked over, and then they all saw the suitcase Sheng Kuang was dragging.
The spacious living room instantly fell silent.
It wasn't until the auntie had placed all the dishes on the table and saw that the teenagers, who were usually more eager to eat than anything else, were still standing around in the living room that she called out, "Hurry up and come eat."
Everyone snapped back to attention and silently entered the dining room.
Last night, when they had eaten roasted lamb together, the atmosphere had been relaxed, and the group had dispersed after much chatter late into the night. Now, seeing Lin Jing's suitcase, everyone had become taciturn.
The dining room was usually very noisy during meals. Seeing how unusually quiet it was today, the auntie seemed a little nervous and repeatedly asked if there was something wrong with her cooking.
Jiang Xin quickly reassured her that it had nothing to do with her cooking and then gestured for her to leave when she was done.
After the auntie left, the entire villa became even quieter. Even Xiao Kugua, who usually liked to make noise and try to get out of its cage when it saw people in the living room, was now lying listlessly in its cage, unmoving.
Lunch today was a very slow affair, taking nearly half an hour to get through only half the dishes.
Chen Jing, who was the worst at everything but the best at eating, suddenly couldn't stand it anymore and placed his chopsticks on his bowl with a snap. He looked up at Lin Jing: "Lin Meimei, when you have free time, remember to come home more often."
"Yeah, since you're in Beijing, it's not far. On weekends or something, just come over and play," Lan Bowen said.
"That's right. If you want to level up while playing games, you can find us too. As long as we're free, we'll take you," Qin Yu said.
...
Lin Jing, who had only felt a little sad, now felt the sadness turn into a great sadness as everyone spoke one after another.
She clutched her chopsticks, feeling a lump in her throat.
"Also, the Mid-Autumn Festival is coming up, and there will be a holiday, so you can come spend the Mid-Autumn Festival with us," Li Xiaozhou said.
"After the Mid-Autumn Festival is National Day. Come celebrate our motherland's birthday with us," He Wang said.
"After National Day is... is..." Jiang Zui couldn't remember for a moment and turned to Jiang Xin next to him: "What festival is it?"
Jiang Xin was also a bit confused: "Dragon Boat Festival? Lantern Festival?"
Chen Jing said exasperatedly: "Damn it, are you guys stupid? We haven't even had Spring Festival yet, and you're talking about the Lantern Festival and the Dragon Boat Festival? Why don't you mention the Qingming Festival."
Jiang Zui: "You know what, the Qingming Festival really is a holiday."
Lin Jing couldn't help but let out a snicker.
Everyone looked at her.
Lin Jing paused, then looked up, meeting everyone's gaze, and said sincerely: "Thank you."
She was truly grateful.
They had given her a holiday different from any other.
Unlike previous holidays when she was always alone at home.
It was they who made her realize for the first time that staying at home during a holiday could also be relaxed and happy.
"And," she paused, then smiled again, her eyes curving into beautiful crescent shapes, "Good luck with the autumn season."
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This concludes the first volume, hehe. Next is the content for the second volume!