Xu Xing rose in a daze, following Kang Chen to dinner.
In the evening, the little sprite behaved very well under the watchful eye of his uncle.
When the cook came to tidy up the kitchen, Kang Chen had someone watch over the little sprite, then drove her home.
Xu Xing, as a teacher, felt her confidence shattered by Kang Chen, remaining silent throughout the journey.
It wasn't until they reached the entrance of the neighborhood that Xu Xing finally spoke, "Just stop here; I need to pick up a package."
Kang Chen complied and brought the car to a halt.
As Xu Xing unbuckled her seatbelt, Kang Chen suddenly asked, "What was that joke you intended to tell?"
"The one about sunflowers?"
"Hmm."
"It's just… you know how sunflowers follow the sun as it rises in the east and sets in the west, right?" Xu Xing paused, considering that Kang Chen was unlikely to be as uninformed as the little sprite, and continued, "So how does the sunflower turn back to the east the next day?"
Kang Chen listened intently.
Xu Xing animatedly described, "It simply whips its head around! Imagine, in the nighttime sea of sunflowers, thousands of them suddenly turning their heads in unison! Isn't that a beautiful picture?"
"…" Kang Chen remained silent for a moment before replying, "You can go now."
"…Oh."
Seeing that Kang Chen was completely unmoved by her attempt at humor, Xu Xing reluctantly unfastened her seatbelt and stepped out of the car.
Kang Chen watched her figure gradually fade away at the entrance of the neighborhood, then suddenly clenched his fist to cover his mouth, clearing his throat softly.
Through his thin glasses, a flicker of amusement danced in his eyes.
***
As the lights illuminated the neighborhood at night, the chill of early spring lingered in the air, a gentle breeze rustling the leaves.
Xu Xing trudged toward the parcel locker, feeling somewhat dejected as she scanned the code to unlock it, wondering: who could have sent this package, given that she had been too broke to buy anything recently?
With a "pop," the locker door swung open, and she scrutinized its contents in the dim light.
The recipient's name, phone number, and address were all complete, yet the sender's information was merely a string of unfamiliar digits, devoid of any additional details.
She weighed the package in her hands; it seemed light.
Upon returning home, Xu Xing fetched a utility knife to open the parcel.
As the box came apart, Xu Xing was taken aback.
Inside was only a wooden frame, enclosing a group photo of men and women clad in graduate robes.
Xu Xing quickly spotted herself among the throng.
In the photograph, she appeared somewhat younger, with bright, clear eyes and a radiant smile.
After gazing for a while, it finally struck her that this must be her graduate school graduation photo.
But who could have sent it?
Filled with confusion, she held the frame in one hand and turned the box upside down.
—There was nothing else.
She turned back to examine the photo. The other faces looked familiar, yet she couldn't recall any names. Wait… there was one name she could remember, that of Fang Luo, who stood next to her, with whom she shared a close bond.
In the photo, Fang Luo looked a bit shy, her smile slightly timid, appearing clean and fresh.
Xu Xing had heard that Fang Luo was her roommate during graduate school, and they had been quite close.
Yes, she had heard about it.
Yet, she had no personal memory of Fang Luo.
She only remembered that face because, after her release, she had tried to recover her memories by revisiting the moments captured in her social media posts from her graduate days.
Li Yuanjun had also mentioned that during her studies, Xu Xing frequently spoke of the girl named Fang Luo who shared her dormitory.
Xu Xing stared at the photo for a long time without finding any clarity, so she attempted to dial the sender's number.
"Sorry, the number you have dialed is turned off. Sorry, the number…"
Xu Xing hung up and returned to the call log, noticing the number's location was marked as Yongcheng. A thought crossed her mind, prompting her to look up the tracking number online.
The tracking information revealed that the package had been sent from Yongcheng, originating from a small supermarket in the old town, which served as a collection point for that delivery service.
Xu Xing was utterly bewildered, looking down at the graduation photo in her hands.
It was during the semester of her graduation in her third year of graduate school that everything had happened. She had ended up in prison just before graduation, which meant she never received her master's diploma or certificate.
Was this graduation photo sent to mock her for not completing her degree?
The thought left Xu Xing feeling somewhat gloomy.
She screenshot the tracking information, discarding the frame aside.
Li Yuanjun had not yet replied, so Xu Xing reviewed her lesson plans for tomorrow, intending to write a bit. Yet, the sudden arrival of the graduation photo left her restless, unable to settle her mind.
When Li Yuanjun returned, Xu Xing was nestled on the sofa, having typed three hundred words and beginning to feel drowsy.
Li Yuanjun leaned in, casting a casual glance, and teased, "Oh, so you're planning to dig a new pit again?"
Xu Xing yawned and shifted aside, making room for Li Yuanjun while placing her laptop on her lap.
"Take a look at this beginning; what do you think?"
Li Yuanjun quickly backed away, saying, "No, no, no! I'm not reading any sweet stories right now. Don't show me, or you might lead me astray. Just focus on what those authors on the leaderboard are writing."
"But the authors on the leaderboard are all geniuses; whatever they write gets a response. What can a small fry like me possibly learn from that?"
Li Yuanjun scoffed, "Please, you have too high an opinion of yourself. Only those who earn a thousand are small fries, okay? Just look at your own earnings."
Xu Xing, with a clueless expression, asked, "What do you mean by earnings?"
"Author collections! Open your profile and take a look for yourself." Li Yuanjun pointed at her screen.
"I have thirty-four."
Li Yuanjun was left speechless, "Thirty-four? Then you're at best a small corpse, alright?"
A small corpse?
Xu Xing looked at Li Yuanjun with suspicion, noticing a hint of "come on, ask me what rank I am" on her face. She resolutely decided not to inquire, determined to keep her silence.
After waiting expectantly for a while with no response from Xu Xing, Li Yuanjun pouted, feeling somewhat disheartened.
Bored, she scanned the coffee table and noticed a picture frame resting there. Curiously, she picked it up and asked, "Is this your graduation photo? You look quite presentable, but why are all these guys so unattractive?"
"How would I know?" Xu Xing set her laptop aside. "I don't even know who sent this. I checked the tracking number, and it originated from Yongcheng."
In that moment, their thoughts aligned perfectly, and Li Yuanjun quipped, "Oh, so they know you didn't receive your diploma and sent you your graduation photo? This person must have a grudge against you, trying to humiliate you on purpose!"
"I think so too."
"Have you mentioned to anyone that you're living here with me?"
At this question, Xu Xing shook her head, "That's what I find strange. Didn't you pick me up? Aside from telling that aunt in prison, who cut her husband's mistress, that a friend would come for me, I haven't mentioned it to anyone else. And that aunt's sentence lasts until May this year."
Li Yuanjun, who primarily wrote science fiction and didn't understand mysteries well, stared at the photo for a while, utterly perplexed.
Suddenly, she pointed at Fang Luo, who was standing beside Xu Xing in the picture, and said, "Isn't this girl your roommate from graduate school? Have you not heard from her at all since you got out?"
Xu Xing honestly shook her head again.
"That's strange. After your incident, I went to your school to look for her, hoping to learn more about what happened. But she didn't know much, only that she was particularly shocked when she heard about your situation.
"When we spoke, she seemed quite upset and mentioned wanting to visit you, but the police wouldn't allow it.
"Oh, she also said she was about to work in the capital and asked me to take good care of you. She promised she would definitely come to see you once you got out."
At this point, Li Yuanjun furrowed her brow, clearly puzzled.
Xu Xing was admitted to the neighboring Yong University for her graduate studies, while Li Yuanjun went abroad for her master's degree after finishing college.
Originally, she could have graduated in two years, but since she enrolled in the spring semester and was quite the slacker, it wasn't until the summer of Xu Xing's graduation that she planned to return home.
Before heading back, she tried to contact Xu Xing, but by then, Xu Xing had already gotten into trouble.
When she returned to Yongcheng, Xu Xing's case had already gone through the necessary legal procedures, and she had been transferred to the women's prison there.
Li Yuanjun couldn't believe that Xu Xing, who had always been timid, could have done something atrocious, but without any way to gather detailed information about the case, she decided to visit the graduate school where Xu Xing was enrolled, hoping for some luck.
Fortunately, luck was on her side; she managed to find Fang Luo, a girl who frequently appeared in Xu Xing's social media posts.
Learning that she was Xu Xing's college friend, Fang Luo let her guard down and opened up.
Fang Luo was a clean-looking girl, a bit timid, and it seemed she had a good relationship with Xu Xing.
Yet, considering how long Xu Xing had been out, why hadn't she reached out?
If they could connect, it would surely aid Xu Xing in regaining her memory.
Pondering this, Li Yuanjun absentmindedly rubbed the back of her neck, then suddenly had a thought and tapped Xu Xing's arm, saying, "Oh right! Didn't you mention that you might have run into your childhood sweetheart during those three years? Why don't you ask him?"
Ask Kang Chen?
Xu Xing froze for a moment, then shook her head without hesitation.
If she asked him, wouldn't that mean she'd have to tell him she had amnesia and had been in prison?
Absolutely not! She wouldn't let that pompous jerk know how miserable she was!
"No way, no way! I definitely can't ask him!"
***
In the Green Island Villa District,
Kang Chen finished his shower and, while drying his hair, leisurely walked downstairs.
The moonlight was lovely tonight, and with Lu Xiaoke having gone to bed early, he thought it was the perfect time to write.
After all, Lu Xiaoke had been staying at his place for quite some time, yet he hadn't opened a single document.
He had to admit, children were incredibly distracting creatures.
Dressed in a dark blue bathrobe, loosely tied at the waist, he strolled down the stairs, the robe swaying slightly, revealing a glimpse of his muscular chest.
Seated by the floor-to-ceiling window, he opened his notebook, donning a pair of delicate gold-rimmed glasses, his thin lips pressed together in concentration.
When he wrote, he detested being interrupted. However, today he hadn't had a chance to turn off his phone, and Xu Xing's call came through.
Upon seeing the incoming call, his gaze flickered slightly, but after a moment, he pressed the answer button.
A tentative voice came from the other end of the line, "Hello, Kang Chen?"
He responded with a simple "Mm."
"Um, I need to tell you something… please don't be too shocked, I'm not crazy…"
"…"
"Um… I've lost my memory qaq."