Eating melons

With an indescribable feeling of emptiness, the two left here and went to Orange Island.

At this time, Changsha Orange Island was far from being as well-maintained and park-like as it was in later generations.

It was more like a huge, wild sandbar in the middle of the river. They took the simple ferry at that time to cross it, and the river breeze was blowing.

Standing on the island head, you can see the Xiangjiang River flowing northward, with rolling waves, the outline of Yuelu Mountain in the distance, and lush vegetation nearby.

"Standing alone in the cold autumn, the Xiang River flows north..."

Wei Wei subconsciously murmured this line of poetry. The poem is still there, the river is still there, and the mountain is still there.

This is one of the few commonalities that transcend time and space.

But apart from this, she has no deeper emotional connection with this "hometown".

This is just a parallel world city with similar name and geographical features.

Even though she was mentally prepared, Wei Wei was still a little depressed.

Seeing Wei Wei like this, Jiang Qi suggested using delicious food to heal her, and they came to the Fire Palace.

The place was bustling with people and filled with fragrance.

The stinky tofu sizzles in the oil pan, fried into an attractive inky black color, and topped with red chili sauce and minced garlic; the sugar-coated rice cakes are golden, sweet and glutinous; and the shrimp flavor is spicy and stimulating.

Wei Wei picked up a piece of stinky tofu and took a careful bite. It was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and the spicy juice burst in her mouth. The unique "stinky" fragrance mixed with the strong spicy taste instantly stimulated her taste buds.

The taste was very authentic and very "Changsha", but it was not the taste of the vendor downstairs from her home in her memory.

"How is it? Is it the same taste?" Jiang Qi asked expectantly.

Wei Wei savored it carefully and found it tasted very authentic, but she finally shook her head.

"It's delicious, but it doesn't taste like 'my' taste."

Even the most stubborn taste memories cannot find a home here.

Wei Wei was completely certain that this was not the world she had been dreaming of, but just a "place" that was accidentally similar and where she had to continue living.

Wei Wei gave up the so-called search for her hometown and just treated it as an ordinary trip.

The next day, the two went to Yuelu Academy, walked into the thousand-year-old institution, and felt the quietness and tranquility under the towering ancient trees.

Touching the inscriptions, walking in the corridors, listening to the tour guide telling the history of "Only in Chu are there talents, and here they flourish".

Her parents had brought her to every attraction here countless times with her family and friends. She remembered every place here. Wei Wei suddenly felt that things had changed a lot.

But here, Wei Wei's mood gradually calmed down.

Compared with these courtyards, inscriptions, and ancient trees that have withstood hundreds and thousands of years of wind and rain, her personal memories of several decades and even the tiny differences between the two parallel worlds seem so insignificant.

The long river of history flows unceasingly, and she is just a special wave that splashes up accidentally.

I just don't know whether her arrival and her intervention can turn an insignificant little wave into a big wave in the history of the world, and whether she can leave a mark in history.

Wei Wei stood deep in the academy, closed her eyes, and felt the cool breeze passing through the hall, as if she could hear the sound of ancient students reading aloud.

At this moment, she no longer obsessed with finding traces of the "past", but began to think about how to better live in the "present".

Although I had never said before that I would come to look for traces, there was still a glimmer of hope in my heart. Now that hope is completely gone.

The day before leaving, Jiang Qi suddenly remembered that Wei Wei was also from Hunan Province. Although her relationship with her family was not very good, she had always kept in touch with her sister and brother-in-law.

"By the way, Weiwei, do you want to go back and take a look? Didn't you say that you have a pretty good relationship with your sister and brother-in-law?"

Wei Wei shook her head. "No, they're not here. They went to Guangzhou and aren't coming back. If that family finds out, they'll definitely cling to us like leeches. It's annoying just to look at them."

During the reform and opening up period, Wei Wei and his colleagues called her to ask whether this was reliable. Wei Wei naturally supported them in doing it and invested a considerable amount of money.

Wei Wei and Zhang Guodong, one opened a restaurant and the other sold small accessories, and they made a lot of money.

But when they saw how prosperous they were, the Wei and Luo families immediately became attached to them.

Although we can refuse to let them take advantage, it will always be bad for our reputation.

It's okay if it happens once or twice, but if it happens too often, people will say that they have become so rich that they don't even recognize their parents.

But not only will it make you feel uncomfortable, it will also create hidden dangers that you won't be able to get rid of.

After consulting Wei Wei, Wei Wei and Zhang Guodong decided to go to Guangzhou.

Over there, the emperor is far away and the Wei and Luo families cannot do anything about it.

Even if they become rich, it is just what Wei Wei and Zhang Guodong say, and no one can prove that they are rich.

On the train leaving Changsha, Wei Wei looked at the city skyline gradually disappearing outside the window with a calm expression.

"Have you completely given up?"

Jiang Qi handed her an orange that he had just bought at the platform.

Wei Wei peeled the orange, and the sweet aroma spread. She nodded, put a slice of orange into her mouth, and swallowed it slowly.

"Well, it's better to give up. I'll stop thinking about it and live my life here peacefully from now on."

She paused, looked at Jiang Qi, and her eyes lit up again.

"But where are we going for our next vacation? I heard Guilin's scenery is the best in the world."

Jiang Qi thought for a moment, "In winter, let's go south! Go to the southernmost part. Haven't we endured enough the magical attacks here in winter?

But this train is still a bit slow, so I'd better take a plane when the time comes!"

Wei Wei nodded, "Okay, but if the two of us run around like this, those two people at home might go crazy."

Jiang Qi shrugged. "That can't be helped. They chose not to come on their own. We didn't stop them from coming, nor did we charge them any money."

Wei Wei smiled. She felt that Xiao Xuemu might have already made plans and would most likely have time during the winter vacation.

The train moved forward, carrying them to new scenery, and also carrying Wei Wei to bid farewell to the illusory "hometown" completely, and move more firmly towards their future full of infinite possibilities in this parallel time and space.

The train finally came to a steady stop at the familiar platform, panting heavily.

The voices outside the carriage and the familiar smell of the air instantly brought Wei Wei and Jiang Qi back to reality from their two-month dream.

They looked at each other and took a deep breath.

"Alas, the north is still much drier and the temperature is lower. I'm not used to it after being there all of a sudden. I've even broken out in a few pimples."

Wei Wei nodded. "A little bit, indeed. As a native southerner, I'm not used to the temperature there."

The two got off the train with their luggage. As soon as they got off the train, they were discovered by sharp-eyed children.

"mom!"

Two cries filled with tears and infinite grievances were heard, and two figures like small cannonballs rushed over and hugged their legs tightly.

The little girl buried her face in Wei Wei's waist and cried loudly. Wei Wei felt a little distressed when she heard the voice, but it was more of a headache. However, she still put down the suitcase and picked up the child.

Xiao Yuanzi grabbed the corner of Jiang Qi's clothes, pouted, and her big eyes were filled with tears that were about to fall out, which made Jiang Qi very heartbroken.

Xiao Xuemu walked forward, took Wei Wei's luggage with one hand, and grabbed the little girl's cheek with the other.

"What did Daddy say? You can't run around outside. What if you get bumped into by so many people here? What if you knock Mom down?"

The little girl pouted and realized that she was wrong, so she didn't say anything about Xiao Xuemu's behavior of pulling her cheeks.

Xiao Xuemu picked up the little dumpling with one hand and said, "Why are you, a solid dumpling, clinging to your mother? If I carry you all the way back today, your mother won't be able to move her hands tomorrow."

The little dumpling wanted to refute, but he didn't know what solid dumpling meant, so he didn't know where to start.

Seeing the father and son like this, Wei Wei smiled and kissed the little boy on the face.

"Be good, Daddy will carry you back, and Mommy will carry you when we get home."

She didn't want to hold the little boy either. He was too heavy. It was okay to hold him for a while, but if she held him all the time, she would be very tired. Besides, she was carrying a bag on her back and she really didn't have the ability to carry such a heavy weight.

Looking at the bag on Wei Wei's back, Xiao Xuemu asked, "Is the bag heavy? Let me carry it."

Wei Wei shook her head. "No, it's not heavy. It's just some film and a camera. I can carry it."

Li Zhibin was holding the heaviest luggage in his hand, his brows slightly furrowed, his tone full of sourness.

"Finally back. Did you have a good journey? Did you encounter any danger?

You two really had so much fun that you lost your way. I thought you'd be back in a month, but you didn't expect it to be two whole months. School starts the day after tomorrow."

My wife finally had a vacation, and I thought we could spend more time together. But Jiang Qi went to the south to play for so long, and I didn't see her and she didn't even call me back.

It had been fifteen days since the last call. God knew how worried he was at home.

If Xiao Xuemu hadn't still looked so grave and didn't look worried, he would have run to the south to find someone, for fear that something might have happened to them outside.

Xiao Xuemu was not worried at all about the safety of Wei Wei and Jiang Qi, but that didn't mean he didn't miss Wei Wei.

That's why he always had a gloomy face, which was why Li Zhibin often teased him, making him look like a dead fish.

Jiang Qi smiled and said, "Fortunately, there were no accidents. The whole process was very fun. If school hadn't started, we wouldn't have wanted to come back so early.

Next time I will continue to go out and play, and go to Hainan during the winter vacation."

Hearing this, Li Zhibin felt like the sky was falling. "Still going out to play? And why not take us with you?"

When Xiao Xuemu heard this, he made a plan in his mind. The experiment had just begun and there was still half a year left. By the time Wei Wei and the others had their winter vacation, it should be almost finished.

You can pause your previous plans and intentions and postpone them.

As the saying goes, you need to balance work and rest. You can't stay in the laboratory every day of the year, 365 days a year. You also need to relax appropriately and go out for some fun. Start by going out for a month.

Jiang Qi raised an eyebrow and said, "If you want to go, you can go with me. I'm not asking you not to go."

Hearing this, Li Zhibin gritted his teeth and suddenly felt that his work was not so good anymore.

Or I can go to the university with Jiang Qi to teach, so that I can also have winter and summer vacations.

But this thought only flashed through his mind. Teaching was really not suitable for him.

It’s okay to teach Jiang Qi, after all, she is his wife, but he really doesn’t have the patience to teach others.

Seeing that there was no way to dampen Jiang Qi's interest, Li Zhibin looked at Wei Wei again.

"You two are still out there in the winter? Don't you feel the sun is burning you now? Look at your faces and arms, they've got sun marks."

Even though Wei Wei and Jiang Qi have been using very strict sunscreen recently, they still got quite tanned, and there are marks on their sleeves.

Wei Wei didn't care at all. "It's okay. Just take care of it. It's not that hot in winter, and it's not like you're out in the sun every day. Just come back from a trip and rest for a while and it'll be fine."

Li Zhibin gave up completely. There was no way to communicate with these two people. He could only wait and see if he had any vacation time.

Li Zhibin dragged the box, holding Xiao Yuanzi, and sighed.

"Alas, they say that when you work you are free, but freedom is bullshit. When you work you are the least free. No matter what you do, you are bound by work.

I might as well have started my own company, been my own boss, and taken vacations whenever I wanted."

Why did you go crazy and want to be an official?!

Jiang Qi smiled and said, "Do you think it's so easy to start a company? It's even busier.

At least you have two days off a week, holidays, a stable job and plenty of room for advancement.

If you're your own boss, you might not even have holidays off, and sometimes you might have to go out to discuss business during the Chinese New Year."

Li Zhibin sighed to the sky, "Oh! Why is life so difficult? I discovered that the times when I was freest were actually when I was studying and those years I spent in the countryside."

Jiang Qi and Wei Wei smiled but didn't say anything. That was how it was.

When you are reading, you seem to be restricted everywhere and not free at all, but in fact, you are the freest only when you are reading.

On the way home, the atmosphere was very lively. The child held the new gift, snuggled up to his mother, and chattered about the outside world.

As for Xiao Xuemu and Li Zhibin, they drove silently.

As soon as she got home, Wei Wei took out various gifts. This was only a part of it. Most of the things were sent by mail.

Seeing Wei Wei like this, Xiao Xuemu took out two packages and said, "These were sent from Hangzhou and Anhui. You bought them, right?"

Wei Wei's eyes lit up when she saw the things, "Yes, yes, I didn't expect it to be here already."

After saying that, Wei Wei immediately started to dismantle it. Seeing Wei Wei like this, Xiao Xuemu walked behind Wei Wei, put his arms around her waist, hugged her in his arms, and was about to say something.

Wei Wei noticed Xiao Xuemu and suddenly thought of something. She started talking first and then said:

"By the way, I took a lot of photos. Can you help me develop them when the time comes?"

There was a complete set of tools for developing photos at home, and Xiao Xuemu also knew how to develop them. Wei Wei directly gave all the films to Xiao Xuemu.