Kawakami Mizuki

In the evening, Yi Chuwen came back in the twilight, and saw Lin Chuyi still sitting on the mahogany sofa, looking at the purple sand teapot on the table in a daze, with an expression of obvious astonishment on his face.

Lin Chuyi smiled wryly: "I didn't expect to have such patience. But since I'm here, naturally I can't make a trip in vain."

The old lady happened to be coming down the stairs, and when she saw the two people looking at each other, she smiled and said, "The newly opened coffee shop on West Street is good, Ah Wen, take her out for a walk. Don't let people wait so long for nothing."

Yi Chuwen looked at Lin Chuyi as if he were looking at a sticky and annoying brown candy that couldn't be shaken off, but his long-term upbringing didn't let him show any bad emotions. He just turned sideways and said to Lin Chuyi lightly: " Now that grandma has said so, Miss Lin, let's go."

"Grandma, I want to go too." Yi Linchuan, who had been sitting in the corner of the living room without any sense of presence, suddenly said this, with a curious and innocent expression.

The old lady Yi looked at Yi Linchuan in surprise, apparently not understanding why he was here, thinking of his mother who died early, she felt disgusted in her heart.Just as he was about to tell him what to do next, his thoughts suddenly changed, so he softened his tone and said, "You haven't been out for a long time, so you can go and have a look. But remember not to cause trouble to others, follow your brother Don't get lost."

"Yes."

Yi Chuwen was slightly startled, and glanced at Yi Linchuan with a strange expression, but soon turned back to normal.

This brother of his...

Although the two were not born from the same mother, Yi Chuwen cherishes this younger brother very much, and the two were once extremely close.However, that was only in the past.I don't know when, Yi Linchuan deliberately alienated him. He went to find Yi Linchuan, but all he got was a cold rejection, and the resentful eyes made him fall into an ice cellar.

He was puzzled and ran to ask his mother.The mother just sneered: "I told you not to get too close to that kid. You are different from him. There are some things he can't fight for. If you want to blame, blame his mother for giving birth to him."

What are you fighting for?Family property, heir status, parents' favor, others' admiration... There are too many, these things he was born with.

He was silent after all.

The purest childhood friendship easily created a gap in front of the desire for profit, and they were not the same way.

Since then, Yi Linchuan appeared less and less in front of everyone, and no one noticed that there was one person missing in some family banquets that had to be attended.

It was as if there had never been such a person in this family.

"Young master, you've been in a daze all the way, now that you've arrived at your destination, should you come back to your senses?" Lin Chuyi's joking words brought back his wandering thoughts.

At this time they were sitting in the coffee shop hand-picked by Mrs. Yi, Lin Chuyi flipped through the menu, and said to the waiter standing by: "This, this, and this..."

"Except for these few, get a copy of each of the others."

Yi Chuwen was slightly stunned, "I've already eaten, so I don't need to order so much."

Lin Chuyi smiled at him, "So these are not for you." Then she turned her head and asked Yi Linchuan who was sitting next to her, "Don't drink coffee, kids, do you want milk or juice."

"milk."

"Have a glass of lemon juice and milk." After Lin Chuyi said this to the waiter, she handed the menu to Yi Chuwen: "You can order what you want, you are welcome."

Yi Chuwen: "..."

For the next hour, Yi Chuwen sat aside and watched such a harmonious scene:

"Come on, try this. I wanted to bring you this last time, but I didn't bring it because I was afraid it would get deformed." Lin Chuyi waited for Yi Linchuan to finish eating one and then pushed another one in front of him. Chuan didn't refuse either, but just ate in silence, and occasionally pushed some pastries to Lin Chuyi.

"This, I've eaten it before and thought it was quite good, try it."

"This looks good."

……

At this time, the meal time is too early, and the Yi family will not treat Lin Chuyi badly.That's why he didn't feel the need to order so many desserts.But he forgot that Yi Linchuan hadn't shown his face at the dinner table for a long time.

Yi Chuwen looked at Lin Chuyi with a complicated expression, and suddenly felt like "I don't know when my younger brother was kidnapped"...

Lin Chuyi waited until Yi Linchuan had finished eating, and then said to Yi Chuwen, "Okay, let's talk about business."

"Miss Lin, we actually have nothing to talk about." Yi Chuwen was very impatient because of the rumors and rumors caused by Lin Chuyi's running to Yi's house for so many days in a row. It was annoyed, "I already have someone I like."

"I know." Lin Chuyi smiled unabated, "And I also know that the person you like is called Xia Tian, ​​who is studying at the same university as you, two years younger than you, majoring in economics at the business school, and is a cute boy. "

"Are you investigating me?" Yi Chuwen's face suddenly turned cold.

Lin Chuyi didn't answer his words, but continued: "Your parents and grandma both know about it and oppose it, but they haven't torn their skins on the surface, pretending that they don't know anything, and sent someone to follow you, Watching you. As soon as you meet Xia Tian, ​​those people will suddenly appear, and they will bring you home for various reasons. They also frequently introduce you to partners and arrange blind dates." Lin Chuyi smiled, her eyes casually Sweeping towards the direction of four o'clock in the southeast, he pointed out: "The servants of the Yi family are really unqualified."

"So? You want to blackmail me with this matter?" Yi Chuwen's face became colder.

"Hey, how dare I?" Lin Chuyi smiled, not frightened at all, "I just want to show you the way as a good friend of Xia Tian."

"You know Xia Tian?" Yi Chuwen's face softened a little, but he still looked vigilant and distrustful.

"Do you know Xia Tian? Go back and ask yourself." Lin Chuyi waved his hand, obviously not wanting to waste time on this topic, "You know that the old lady sent someone to follow you, but the old lady may not know that you know that she sent someone Follow you. If you don’t make it clear, she can understand your impatience. Instead of waiting for you to turn against her, it’s better to find a new, more obedient and more covert eyeliner.”

"Like—him."

Yi Chuwen's eyes followed the direction indicated by Lin Chuyi, and fell on Yi Linchuan, but Yi Linchuan's expression did not change, he just continued to eat the cake on the plate, he must have known it a long time ago.

Yi Chuwen looked at Lin Chuyi unkindly, "Don't get my brother involved."

"It's too late," Lin Chuyi looked at Yi Chuwen without guilt, and his smile became more joyful, "From the moment he was allowed to come out with us, he has been the old lady's new eyeliner."

"If Linchuan can gain the trust of the old lady, then we can try to ask Xia Tian out. Under the banner of our two dates, let you and Xia get together more. After all, the Yi family is so strict, how many times have you already had?" I haven't seen Xia Tian for a month, although I can make phone calls, but it's a pity that I can't see Xia Tian's cute appearance."

Lin Chuyi's eyes were shining brightly, and the dangerous voice seemed to lure the blind man on the edge of the cliff to take another step forward.

In the lobby of Yi's house, the old lady sat on a big mahogany chair and put down the tea cup in her hand unhurriedly.

She looked at her grandson sitting beside her kindly, and asked, "Linchuan, did you have a good time yesterday?"

"Happy!" Xiao Linchuan immediately burst into joy, talking endlessly about sister Chuyi and brother taking him to eat delicious cakes yesterday, sister Chuyi smiled so happily and was so gentle to him, etc. The childish words are so funny that people can't help laughing.

"Then what did they talk about?" The old lady smiled more kindly.

"Sister Chuyi asked if I could go shopping with her to buy clothes. My brother seemed a little upset, so he said he didn't want to go. Sister Chuyi didn't seem to care too much, just laughed and said that brother didn't understand fun...Grandma, what does fun mean? ?”

The old lady responded perfunctorily to Yi Linchuan, and secretly checked the information she got yesterday, and found that it was almost the same. What's even better was that Yi Linchuan could tell those words that he didn't dare to get too close to. she.

The old lady smiled with satisfaction, and said to Yi Linchuan, "The things I ask you are considered a secret between you and grandma, and no one is allowed to tell them, not even your brother."

"Okay!" Xiao Linchuan cheered, thought for a while and then said seriously, "Grandma is not allowed to tell others the secret between me and grandma."

The old lady agreed with a smile, rewarded Yi Linchuan with some sweet-scented osmanthus cakes, and said, "Okay, let's go and play."

Xiao Linchuan joyfully picked up the plate, and ran away in a hurry as if afraid that grandma would repent.

"Either way, the decision is yours."

Yi Chuwen once again recalled Lin Chuyi's words when he was parting that day.

What happened afterwards was as Lin Chuyi expected.At first, other people would follow, but gradually, Yi Linchuan's honest and innocent Tongyan Tongyu obviously gained trust.As long as Yi Linchuan was around, no one else would follow.The old lady also came to look for him, and babbled a lot about the need for a harmonious relationship between brothers, and asked him to take Yi Linchuan with him more.

Of course he had no reason to refuse.

Maybe grandma knew about his unspoken dissatisfaction, so she made a change before he could bear it no longer.His grandmother who has dominated the Yi family for more than 30 years is indeed extremely shrewd.But even such a shrewd grandma was included by Lin Chuyi.

What exactly does Lin Chuyi want to do?Is she believable?

During the daily conversation with Xia Tian, ​​Yi Chuwen asked directly: "Xia Xia, do you know Lin Chuyi?"

Xia Tian's voice suddenly became excited, and the tone of surprise came from the other end of the phone: "Of course I know you! Hey? Do you know me too? Is it such a coincidence? We have known each other since we were young, and she is super super nice to me... "

Yi Chuwen asked sourly: "Is she treating you better than me?"

"Sister Chuyi won't bully me..."

"I saw her yesterday. She said you were cute."

"Really?" There was a small smile on the other end of the phone. Just by hearing the laughter, one could imagine Xia Tian foolishly touching the back of his head and showing an embarrassed smile.Yi Chuwen's mood suddenly brightened.

"Did you tell her about us?"

"She only knows that the person I like is a man." Xia Tian was silent for a moment, with a slightly low tone, "When we were not together, I thought I must be crazy to fall in love with a man. See, sister Chuyi Seeing that I was not in the right mood, I asked me what was wrong. I asked her, if I fell in love with a man, would she hate me and find me disgusting. At that time, she smiled so softly, she said, liking someone correct."

"Fool." Yi Chuwen's soft eyes fell on the boundless sky, and the urge to embrace him was hard to restrain all of a sudden.

He still remembered that day, the little fool whom he had a crush on for a long time suddenly ran over and said he liked him.

Xia Tian was so nervous that he grabbed the hem of his clothes desperately, his red face was lowered, his eyes were fixed on the shoes, and he squeezed out a few words like a mosquito.

While being hit by a huge surprise, he suddenly felt bad and deliberately asked, "What? I didn't hear clearly."

As if all the courage he had worked up was exhausted, Xia Tian stammered and said, "No, nothing. I'll go first." Like a frightened little rabbit, he turned around and wanted to escape.

Yi Chuwen quickly grabbed his arm, forcing him to turn around.Yi Chuwen took a step forward and pressed against his forehead, making the two of them look at each other, and Xia Tian's moist pupils were reflected on his own face.

He suddenly smiled: "I like you too."

At that time, he thought it was just Xia Tian who suddenly became enlightened, but unexpectedly, there was a red thread led by Lin Chuyi behind it.

Not long after hanging up the phone, he heard a knock on the door, and he said from afar, "Come in, the door is unlocked." Unexpectedly, it was Yi Linchuan who pushed the door open.

He looked at him with calm eyes, and said calmly: "Grandma asked me to ask you to go down for dinner."

Only then did Yi Chuwen notice that it was getting late.

He responded, and wanted to lead Yi Linchuan downstairs together, but Yi Linchuan avoided him casually.

Sometimes, Yi Linchuan would suddenly disappear for a while, presumably to report.If Lin Chuyi hadn't said it in advance, he would not have noticed the whereabouts of this younger brother at all.

Yi Linchuan returned to everyone's sight, and he appeared again at the daily dinner table, but no one seemed to think there was anything wrong, as if no one had noticed his absence before.

He always sits silently in the corner, and when people occasionally mention him, he will raise his innocent face, his pure black eyes like glass beads seem to contain no impurities, they are just blindly clean bright.Yi Chuwen sometimes thinks that if he is a grandma, with such eyes, he will believe no matter what he says.

When he appeared in front of everyone, he was always well-behaved, even a little timid.But whenever the two of them were alone, Yi Linchuan was always expressionless, his eyes were alienated and indifferent, and he would only respond in a few words or say nothing at all when talking to him.

He found that he could no longer understand this younger brother.

Lin Chuyi came here two more times after that, and when there were people, he would always smile at him, and when there were only three of them left, they would not give him anything more than a word.Only then did he understand that Lin Chuyi's visit to the Yi family was not for him at all, but for his younger brother.

"There is a teahouse that sells good Chinese pastries, but the location is a bit out of the way. Would you like to go and have a look together?" Lin Chuyi asked him when he was holding Yi Linchuan in his arms, and he knew it was for Yi Linchuan. It was just brought up.

It's okay anyway, so Yi Chuwen agreed.

Finally, they stopped in front of a tea house with an antique design.There are two small attics on the upper and lower floors. The sentence "Flowers fall and people are independent, and swifts fly together" is engraved on the red wood of the left and right doors. A section of withered willow protrudes from the courtyard.

Yi Chuwen had heard of this teahouse with the signboard of "Drinking Water Pavilion".The owner of this teahouse is just an ordinary and honest man who is well-fed in his middle age, and he runs the teahouse conscientiously.But those with discerning eyes will know that in this quaint attic, any uncommon object is unusual.

Lin Chuyi handed over a long strip of hollowed-out bamboo paper to the counter, and said, "On the second floor, I want a small room. I want a portion of all the pastries that are launched in autumn, and I want a pot of weak tea."

The man took it over and looked at it carefully, then respectfully returned it to Lin Chuyi, and handed over a small transparent door card.Lin Chuyi took it and led them up to the second floor.When Yi Chuwen went up the stairs, he noticed that none of the guests behind them had bamboo slips, and they were all sitting in the lobby on the first floor.

The second floor is quiet, forming a strong contrast with the bustling first floor.Lin Chuyi went straight to the passage on the left side, pushed open one of the wooden doors, and signaled them to go in.

"Ah, that's right. I also made an appointment with a friend. You don't mind, young master, do you?" When he was seated, Lin Chuyi seemed to think of it suddenly and said something.

"do not mind."

Yi Chuwen watched the interaction between Lin Chuyi and Yi Linchuan, feeling powerless that he couldn't get involved.Obviously he is Yi Linchuan's elder brother, so why is Yi Linchuan not as close to him as an outsider.

There was a knock on the door, followed by a "squeak", and someone pushed the door open.

Yi Chuwen turned his head to look, but unexpectedly saw a familiar figure.

"Ah Wen? Why are you here?" Xia Tian slightly opened his eyes wide in surprise, but he didn't think too much about it because of his simple mind, he just threw himself into Yi Chuwen's arms happily.

"Tsk tsk, Xia Xia, have you forgotten who invited you out? Only Yi Chuwen was seen in the whole room?" Lin Chuyi joked while taking a sip of tea.

Xia Tian was thin-skinned, and his face turned red all of a sudden. He got off Yi Chuwen embarrassedly, and sat aside, only to notice the child beside Lin Chuyi.Lin Chuyi saw that Xia Tian's eyes fell on Yi Linchuan, and then introduced: "This child is called Yi Linchuan, and he is Yi Chuwen's younger brother."

"Wow, so cute." Xia Tian saw Yi Linchuan's small face carved with jade, hiding a pair of jade-like black eyes. He loved this child very much in his heart, so he smiled and said to him: "Linchuan Hello Chuan, my name is Xia Tian."

Yi Chuwen was a little worried that Yi Linchuan would ignore others and save Xia Tian's face, but Yi Linchuan not only did not, but smiled obediently at Xia Tian and said, "Hi, big brother."

"..." Yi Chuwen looked at the three people who chatted together with complicated emotions, and said in his heart: Should I be happy that my brother and his future wife get along harmoniously, or should I be happy for my brother who ignores everyone except himself? sad situation...

After Xia Tian and Yi Linchuan got to know each other and chatted together, Lin Chu faded out of the topic without a trace, and finally retreated quietly to Yi Chuwen's side, whispering: "From now on, every Saturday when Xia Tian is free, we will You can make an appointment to play. You bring Yi Linchuan, and I take Xia Tian, ​​and the place of appointment must be out of the way, and the old lady should not be found."

After Yi Chuwen agreed, Lin Chuyi sighed slightly, and said, "But this is just a stopgap measure, you and Xia Tian will have to find another way out in the future."

After saying goodbye to them, Lin Chuyi walked along the deserted street for a while, and stopped in front of a very ordinary small house.She walked into the outer wall, opened Chen Hong's mailbox, and was not surprised to see a letter lying quietly inside.She picked up the letter and continued walking in, taking out the key as she walked, and just in time to take out the key to open the door when she walked to the door.

Even though she is still a college student in name, she hasn’t been to school for a long time. The teachers of this free-style teaching university basically don’t call names in class. As long as she passes the final exam, everything will go well, so she bought a house outside the school and simply settled down. Lived off campus.Since Ye Ling went abroad, he will send her a letter every month.Because communication at home and abroad is not yet popular so far, Ye Ling had to choose the way of writing letters to send love.

Lin Chuyi sat down on the rattan chair and opened the letter.The style of writing is as usual succinct, without mentioning the troubles they encountered abroad, and only trivially recalling the past between them. At the end, the sentence "I miss you." reveals the deep affection.

Lin Chuyi couldn't help showing a smile on her lips, but when she realized it, the smile gradually faded away.She brought a plate of clear water, and hung the hand holding the letter paper above the water basin. After a pause, she slowly let go.The letter paper floated down on the water surface, and the neat and beautiful blue font was blurred all of a sudden.

Ye Ling sent a letter every month, but she never replied.

In the early morning of the next day, Lin Chuyi walked to the water basin, and saw that the ink on the letter paper inside had completely faded away, leaving only a faint trace of light blue on the paper.She sighed, carefully picked up the paper, spread it out on the window sill to dry.

The warm sunlight shone on the wet letter paper, reflecting the glistening water.