In the black of night, fireworks burst forth in succession.
At this mont, Huo Feng squatted in front of Pu Sangzhi’s house like a stray, embracing himself tightly in the piercing cold wind, clutching the hot water bottle, stomping his feet while exhaling the cold air...
Although today was New Year’s, the alley by Pu Sangzhi’s house was not at all lively.
It wasn’t just that Lin Qianqian’s ho was empty; other households in the alley had also closed their doors early...
This New Year’s Eve, not even the convenience stores were open.
Huo Feng, having nowhere to take shelter from the cold, could only sit at her doorstep, waiting...
"So cold... Why isn’t she back yet..."
Huo Feng checked his phone, and it was nearly ten o’clock.
Ten o’clock and still not back—could it be that she wasn’t coming?
"We agreed to spend New Year’s together... Is this woman going to stand up?"
Huo Feng sorrowfully hugged his legs, his head swiveling left and right, looking this way and that, yet not a single person was in sight.
He opened his mouth wide, exhaling deeply, watching his breath form a white mist in the air that slowly dispersed.
"Ha..."
Huo Feng breathed out.
"Ha..."
Huo Feng breathed out again.
"Ha..."
Then, Huo Feng realized he had beco so bored he could only amuse himself with this.
Because his hands had frozen into stiff claws, he had no strength to play gas on his phone and only wanted to hug the hot water bottle.
"When will she be back? When will she be back?"
Huo Feng hugged his legs and shivered, now and then glancing at his phone, now and then staring into the pitch-black alley.
"Sangzhi, oh heartless Sangzhi... you couldn’t have worked out that I would co to find you and decided to run away on purpose, could you?"
"Sangzhi... when will you be back?"
Huo Feng was deeply entwined in the lengthy wait.
Such a tall man, he sat there on the steps of Pu Sangzhi’s house, his silhouette resembling a desolate child.
"Achoo!"
Suddenly, Huo Feng sneezed.
He quickly rubbed his nose, took a deep breath, hugged himself, and stamped his feet.
The fireworks in the sky kept bursting forth, glittering.
Seeing the relentless fireworks, Huo Feng rembered the fireworks he had left on his little electric scooter.
He had planned to take the mother and daughter to Jinhe Park to set off fireworks, to brighten their spirits.
Alas...
Fate was not on his side, not even granting him this opportunity.
"Achoo..."
Huo Feng sneezed again and shook his head to bring himself to alertness.
Looking at the ti once more, it was already half past ten...
Half past ten and the mother and daughter still hadn’t returned.
At this point, it was very likely they would not return today.
Huo Feng vaguely guessed this, and his physical reactions were telling him: It’s ti to go. If he waited any longer, he would freeze and get sick.
But the thoughts in his head all told him: Wait a bit longer! After waiting so long, might as well wait until after midnight. If she’s not back by then, leave; it would be a way to make peace with himself.
In the end, amidst the battle between body and mind, Huo Feng trusted his thoughts!
So, he continued to wait.
In the biting cold wind, amidst the bustling festivities yet solitary winter night, he waited quietly, silently waiting...
He waited, and as it turned out, he really waited until after eleven.
With less than ten minutes to midnight, Huo Feng had been waiting at Pu Sangzhi’s doorstep until he was completely numb all over.
Though he was accustod to waiting for her, accustod to the prolonged vigil at her doorstep, this day was truly cold.
Cold enough that he felt he was almost losing his mind!
Huo Feng took out his phone with stiff fingers and tapped the screen, seeing that the ti was 11:50...
"Such a heartless woman..."
He tugged at the corner of his mouth, producing a very sorrowful curve.
Waiting until this point, Huo Feng really felt like crying.
Then, during the last ten minutes of the year, Huo Feng stared at his phone, watching the countdown...
He counted down the ti alone, as it passed.
At 23:59, Huo Feng stopped waiting.
He tucked his phone into his pocket, stood up, and walked to his little electric scooter, preparing to drive ho.
At this mont, Huo Feng was feeling angry.
In that last minute, he chose not to wait, for his own dignity.
On the last day of the year, in the final minute, Huo Feng erged from the alley by her house.
He rode his little electric scooter around the corner at the end of the alley, and the cold wind did not dispel the rage in his mind.
However, just as his little electric scooter was turning the corner, Huo Feng suddenly saw a man in a military coat about to enter a small alleyway.
In his hand, he held a cigarette, busily puffing smoke clouds...
For so reason, Huo Feng’s mind suddenly flashed back to the man squatting at the entrance of the alley, described by the chubby lady at the grocery store long ago!
At that mont, because Huo Feng was lost in thought, he failed to watch the road ahead of him.
Suddenly, his little electric scooter slamd into a pole at the side of the road!
There was a loud "bang"!
Huo Feng was thrown off the little electric scooter...
The loud noise drew the man’s attention...
When the man turned around, all he could see was a little electric scooter lying next to the pole, its tires still spinning.
Then, the man’s gaze found a young man lying on the ground five ters away.
"Hey..."
The man imdiately tossed away his cigarette butt and ran over...
At this very mont, it was the turn of the year at midnight.
Huo Feng’s phone in his pocket began to ring...
The screen showed a string of unfamiliar numbers, but Huo Feng lying on the ground no longer had the strength to answer the call.
He just felt it was comfortable to lie there, not wanting to move a single finger in his body.
And the man in the military coat quickly reached his side, squatting beside him, frantically patting his face, "Young man, young man, wake up?"
...
At this mont, at The Bund in Rui’an City, Pu Sangzhi was on her phone trying to call Huo Feng.
It was exactly midnight, truly the mont to ring in the New Year...
Pu Sangzhi wanted to be the first to wish Huo Feng a Happy New Year.
So, the very second after midnight, she called Huo Feng.
She rembered Huo Feng’s number, but Huo Feng probably didn’t know this number of hers.
Pu Sangzhi had thought about how to surprise him, to give him a little scare...
But Huo Feng didn’t pick up her call.
After the first call went unanswered, Pu Sangzhi quickly made a second...
Because she felt that sobody like Huo Feng, who always had his phone at hand, would never miss a call during such a significant mont like the New Year.
Yet, Huo Feng didn’t answer the second call either.
Pu Sangzhi, undeterred, dialed a third ti...
Beside her, Ye Qingcao, holding her hand, said, "Alright! It’s New Year! Let’s go back!"
Pu Sangzhi was too preoccupied to care about Ye Qingcao, rely responding perfunctorily, "Mhm."
Afterward, Huo Feng still didn’t answer the third call.
Pu Sangzhi stubbornly dialed a fourth ti.
As their group slowly walked away from The Bund, Pu Sangzhi made nearly ten calls to Huo Feng along the way.
Not a single one went through!
Pu Sangzhi was starting to feel uneasy now.
After getting into Ye Xi’s car, Pu Sangzhi kept calling Huo Feng.
While calling, she asked Ye Qingcao, "Xiaocao, do you know what Huo Feng is doing right now?"
"Ah?"
Ye Qingcao was startled for a mont, "How would I know?"
Pu Sangzhi said, "Didn’t you say that today you were in touch with Dandan all day, knew that Huo Feng went to play basketball, had barbecue, and even went to the arcade in the afternoon?"
Actually, Pu Sangzhi knew all about Huo Feng’s activities throughout the day.
She was aware that Huo Feng had a fun day.
Therefore, she didn’t concern herself too much about him...
Ye Qingcao said, "That’s all I know... But I didn’t contact Dandan in the evening."
Pu Sangzhi felt very uneasy, "He’s not answering my calls..."
Ye Qingcao started to laugh, "Don’t worry, maybe his phone isn’t on him right now!"
Pu Sangzhi muttered softly, "That guy always has his phone on him. How could he not answer..."
So, Pu Sangzhi kept on calling Huo Feng.
She kept calling and calling, for over half an hour...
Ye Qingcao was quite impressed with Pu Sangzhi’s perseverance, never expecting her to keep calling for more than half an hour – and all unconnected calls at that!
Finally, on the Nth call, it finally went through.
By that ti, Pu Sangzhi was already in Ye Qingcao’s room.
Barely able to hear Huo Feng answer the phone, she beca so anxious that her eyes reddened, and she imdiately started reprimanding, "What are you doing? Why not answer the phone? Aren’t you always holding your phone?"
After she rushed through a string of questions...
On the other end of the phone, there wasn’t the sound of Huo Feng hurriedly explaining.
Instead, there ca another voice, a very familiar male voice, "Xiaosang, he had an accident."
Pu Sangzhi was stunned, "He..."
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