Vivid Emotions

The door wasn’t locked, yet it was still knocked on.

Knock knock da, knock knock da.

Two heavy knocks and one light one—this had become a secret code between aunt and niece.

“Come in.”

The door opened, and Jiang Chengyue, dressed in her fuzzy pajamas, slipped inside. She went straight to the bedside, expertly lifting a corner of Jiang Yunlu’s blanket before sliding in beside her and snatching a pillow to rest behind her head.

“Perfect.” Jiang Chengyue sighed with satisfaction, then turned her head to look at her niece.

“Spill it. What happened today?”

Jiang Yunlu held a tablet, its screen filled with dense mathematical formulas. Her fingers swiped across the screen, but her mind was clearly elsewhere.

“There’s nothing much to say. You can ask Dad yourself.”

Jiang Chengyue picked up another tablet, tapping the familiar Plants vs. Zombies icon. While fiddling with the sunflowers, she said,

“I already asked, but Dad’s account isn’t very reliable. I think your version is more believable.”

Jiang Yunlu turned to face Jiang Chengyue, a puzzled look in her eyes.

“Can I trust you?”

“Of course. I haven’t told your dad anything about you and your little boyfriend. I only let slip that I already knew about it. And what does your dad do? He gets mad at me for not reporting it. Ridiculous.”

Jiang Chengyue wrinkled her nose. “He’s always been like that—doing things first and telling later, just like with your aunt.”

At this, Jiang Yunlu’s cheeks flushed red. She quickly said, “Lin Mo and I haven’t done anything. It’s different.”

“So you two are already together?”

Jiang Chengyue blinked her bright eyes, her face full of a fangirl’s delight.

Shy, Jiang Yunlu shook her head vigorously.

“No. He said he won’t date.” Her voice grew softer and softer, carrying a hint of unspoken hurt.

“Ha.”

Jiang Chengyue dragged out the syllable, leaning back and shrugging.

“That’s classic dangling-you-along behavior, isn’t it? Saying no with his mouth but honestly enjoying your attention.”

She paused, then shifted gears.

“Speaking of which, I heard your dad mention it—today was that call from Xia Yusheng.

I still remember clearly back when we moved, you clung to Yusheng-gege’s leg, crying your eyes out. No matter how much we tried to comfort you, you wouldn’t let go—you said you just couldn’t bear to part.”

At the mention of Xia Yusheng, the blush and embarrassment on Jiang Yunlu’s face—brought on by Lin Mo—vanished in an instant, as if doused with cold water.

“He’s not the Yusheng-gege I remember.”

Jiang Chengyue could guess why Jiang Yunlu said that.

Jiang Chengshan had mentioned Xia Yusheng a few times, with a tone full of disdain, always saying he found that guy fake.

But Jiang Chengyue said,

“Come to think of it, it’s been just over three years since you last saw him. Back then, you were still in elementary school, always trailing behind him. When he left, you cried and begged him to remember you.”

At this, Jiang Chengyue paused, her eyes growing meaningful. Then, without warning, she shifted her tone sharply, aiming straight for the heart of the matter:

"Yunlu, be honest with yourself—do you truly believe that the feelings you have for Lin Mo right now are real and can withstand the test of time?

What if—just what if—you and that guy Lin Mo were separated for three years, no contact, no meetings, would you still be thinking about him the way you do now?"

Those words hit Jiang Yunlu like a hammer striking her heart. She wanted to immediately retort, to shout that of course she would.

But when the words reached her lips, not a single one came out. Her throat felt as if something was blocking it.

As for Xia Yusheng, she had depended on him before.

Back in middle school, whenever she thought of that neighborly older boy, her heart would swell with a kind of innocent admiration, like a little sister’s fondness for an older brother.

She remembered him teaching her how to climb trees and pluck bird nests, remembered the cotton candy he bought for her.

But that kind of feeling was pure and clean, completely unrelated to romance.

This reunion, however, for some reason, had destroyed even that lingering affection without a trace.

In its place was a faint sense of aversion.

But what about Lin Mo?

Jiang Yunlu’s heart suddenly sank.

Her feelings for Lin Mo were certain, vivid.

So intense that every heartbeat quickened, every blush was genuine and unmistakable.

Yet Aunt Jiang’s words were like a tiny needle, piercing the fragile bubble of emotions she had built for herself.

If time really stretched to three years, how much of this fluttering would remain? She dared not think about it, nor did she want to.

It was clear Jiang Yunlu was seriously pondering this question.

That was enough.

Jiang Chengyue stood up and left the room. Just as she had said, sometimes it’s better to ease the pressure than to block it.

At the very least, she couldn’t let Jiang Yunlu throw herself completely into something on a whim.

But after closing the door, Jiang Chengyue couldn’t help but curse under her breath.

“Damn scumbag.”

—System: What are you all mumbling about? Let’s get hyped!—

At this moment, the scumbag Lin Mo was at a late-night food street.

There were quite a few people gathered here: Fang Jun, Fang Mingcong (Fang Jun’s father), the long-unseen An Yuexin, Fang Jun’s cousin from a different generation, Fang Zuodong, along with several elders from the Fang family.

But Lin Mo didn’t feel the slightest bit awkward; if it was time to enjoy some skewers, then he was all in.

“Still, I have to thank you, Lin Mo. If it weren’t for you, that brat Fang Jun might have lost a hand or a foot by now.”

Fang Jun grumbled in dissatisfaction: “Dad, what are you talking about? It’s not that easy to lose a hand or foot.”

Fang Zuodong’s uncle shook his head.

“You just didn’t see what it was like over ten years ago. Back then, Goat City was a mess—motorcycle gangs, all sorts of criminals, ruthless and quick to slash with knives.”

That was true; the reason for the motorcycle ban was precisely because of these rampant gangs.

At the time, surveillance and investigation tools weren’t advanced enough, so the authorities had to take a blanket approach.

And it never got lifted afterward.

Lin Mo took a sip of his orange juice.

“Uncle Fang, no need to be so polite. Fang Jun is my classmate and my friend—I definitely wouldn’t stand by and do nothing.”

Fang Mingcong couldn’t help but pat Lin Mo on the shoulder.

“I wish my son was as sensible as you.”

Fang Jun muttered under his breath.

"I stood by Lin Mo through thick and thin. Remember last time when we were surrounded by those thugs? I didn’t run then, did I?"

Fang Mingcong was momentarily taken aback.

Lin Mo could tell Fang Mingcong had forgotten what happened before, so he gently reminded him.

"Fang Jun ended up in the police station last time because of me."

Hearing this, Fang Mingcong finally recalled the incident.

He hadn’t been in Goat City at the time, and when he found out, he even gave Fang Jun a serious talking-to.

Looking back now, it seemed their brotherhood had truly begun from that moment.

After all, most male friendships are forged through shared hardships.