Damn it, I'm surrounded by childhood sweethearts

Five in the evening.

The driver finally took Xu Qingfan, Xia Xiaoxiao, and Wu Lingyu back to Donghui City.

The sky was clear, and there was still more than an hour until sunset; the bright sunlight didn't make anyone feel hurried.

The green trees alongside the road had been full of fruit just last week, fallen fruit on the ground attracting countless fruit flies.

Now, looking up, only the green leaves remained on the trees, and only the accidental scent of rotting fruit, as one passed by, proved their earlier presence.

"Shall we go straight home or browse the mall?" Xu Qingfan walked between the two, patting Xia Xiaoxiao's shoulder, but his gaze was directed at Wu Lingyu.

"Either is fine with me," Wu Lingyu said with a smile.

"What about you?" Seeing Xia Xiaoxiao not responding, Xu Qingfan patted her shoulder again.

"Whatever." Xia Xiaoxiao's attention was caught by an elder playing the erhu in the distance; after she spoke, she asked Xu Qingfan, "What is that tune?"

"Why does it sound like a joyful tune, but feels so sad?"

Xu Qingfan and Wu Lingyu looked in the direction she was pointing and listened carefully; indeed, they could hear a faint sound of music.

"Maybe it's because of the erhu?"

"The erhu is inherently sad," Wu Lingyu said after a thought.

Xu Qingfan continued to listen carefully, but didn't stop walking, leading the two closer to the elder playing the erhu.

The music became clearer as they approached, and just as they were about to reach the stall, Xu Qingfan finally remembered the name of the tune.

"It's not because of the erhu; the tune itself is meant to be this way. It's called 'Farewell Letter'; it uses music to convey sorrow, which magnifies the feeling of sadness." The trio stopped in front of the stall, and Xu Qingfan spoke.

The elder, who had been focused on playing the erhu, suddenly paused and glanced at Xu Qingfan through his sunglasses.

When he resumed playing, the music suddenly shifted from slow to fast, startling all three of them.

The music was mournful, and Du Fu's "Feeling the moment, flowers splash with tears, parting hurts the heart" became visualized at that moment. Xu Qingfan and the two women exchanged glances and continued to listen attentively.

When the piece ended, Xia Xiaoxiao took a ten-yuan note from her wallet and bent down to place it in the violin case.

After receiving a nod of thanks from the elder, the trio resumed their way.

Since Xia Xiaoxiao had said "whatever," they now headed toward the Donghui City mall.

"By the way," Xia Xiaoxiao suddenly turned towards Xu Qingfan.

"You say," Xu Qingfan looked confident.

He had already prepared what to say if Xia Xiaoxiao asked him about the tune he had just discussed; he was ready to put on an act.

"You.... can play the erhu, right? Why don't you set up a stall in the park?" Although Xia Xiaoxiao really wanted to ask that, she changed her mind as soon as she began to speak.

"You were about to ask about that tune.... No, what?!" Xu Qingfan's expression shifted from confident to baffled in a matter of seconds.

Xia Xiaoxiao turned her head away, pretending to look at the scenery.

"Why don't you play the erhu? There are so many people in the square in the evening," Xia Xiaoxiao said, barely holding back her laughter.

"Then I'd be afraid of being too good and stealing the elder's business!" Xu Qingfan rolled his eyes.

"Then you could just... cough, cough... just give him the money you make," Xia Xiaoxiao barely held back her laughter as she spoke with a tremor in her voice.

"You can dance too. Why don't you go to the square for dance sessions in the evening?"

"If you need a dance partner, I'll find you an old gentleman tonight."

"Pfft!" Wu Lingyu, having listened to their banter for so long, finally couldn't restrain herself; god damn it, finding an old gentleman.

Maybe because she had adjusted her mindset, observing Qingfan and Xiaoxiao's banter now didn't make her feel left out. Instead, she found it as enjoyable as a comedy duo's performance.

Wu Lingyu covered her mouth, laughing "cough, cough, cough."

Just when Xia Xiaoxiao was about to be extremely annoyed, she heard Yu's laughter and suddenly felt there was nothing worth getting angry over; remain calm, remain calm!

"Yu likes old gentlemen; you go find one for Yu," she glared at Xu stinker, puffing angrily as she strode off with long steps.

"Hahaha!" Wu Lingyu truly couldn't hold back anymore, she let go of her hands covering her mouth and burst into laughter.

Xu Qingfan watched Xia Xiaoxiao walking away and then looked at Wu Lingyu, who was giggling on the spot, shaking his head helplessly, "Mad, all mad."

He pulled the laughing Yu and caught up with Xia Xiaoxiao; the three of them quickly walked side by side again.

After Wu Lingyu stopped laughing, her eyes slightly squinted, occasionally looking at Qingfan and then at Xiaoxiao.

Xu Qingfan and Xia Xiaoxiao exchanged glances, thinking today's Yu seemed like someone else had taken over her body.

"Yu, are you worried about something?" Xu Qingfan asked caringly.

"Is there something you want to tell us?" Xia Xiaoxiao also looked at her with concern.

Wu Lingyu immediately shook her head, her head swinging like a rattle drum in denial: "Nope, I just thought of some happy things."

Xu Qingfan and Xia Xiaoxiao exchanged another glance; was "nope" not something Wanning always used to say?

"Alright then, let's go to a store and get three cups of milk tea," Since Wu Lingyu was reluctant to speak, Xu Qingfan could only find another time to ask her.

In his view, Yu was always obedient and never lied to him!

"Yeah!" Wu Lingyu nodded and then smiled.

The real reason was that Yu was just happy today; watching Qingfan and Xiaoxiao squabbling, she used to think: Qingfan and Xiaoxiao have such a good relationship, it's supposed to be a movie for three, yet I was never named.