Only After I Was Reborn Did I Realize That I Had Childhood Sweethearts
Chapter 128: The Best Graduation GiftAlthough Baimei County was a small and poor county town, it was not unknown in the field of culture. It was more accurate to say that it was a jack-of-all-trades.
It had its own intangible cultural heritage, such as Baimei embroidery and Yue Family Boxing[1]. One is a traditional handicraft, and the other is a unique martial art.
According to the legend, descendants of Yue Fei[2] settled in Baimei County, and it was the reason why there were many people surnamed Yue around. For example, Yue Xinyi and the homeroom teacher of Class 10, were also surnamed Yue.
However, the most famous cultural aspect of Baimei County actually falls into two categories.
One was Baimei Opera[3]. It was based on the folk Tea-Picking Song[4] of Baimei County and had been greatly developed in the Anqing City of the Anhui Province. It was one of the three major opera genres in China.
Although it sounded very impressive, the specific manifestation in Baimei County was that the hometown people had the custom of singing operas on the streets.
Whether it was the stage in the cultural square or a corner of the roadside park, one could always hear the voices of the middle-aged and elderly people of Baimei County singing their hearts out.
However, the younger generation mostly did not like this unfashionable opera, so Mei Fang felt that Baimei opera would be very difficult to truly inherit in Baimei County, and would slowly die out over time.
The other category was Zen culture. The Fourth and Fifth Ancestors of China’s Zen Buddhism sect had established their own temples near Baimei County.
As time went by, the original sites of these two temples gradually developed into relatively famous tourist attractions.Since the local people held a high regard for Buddhist culture, the incense here was still flourishing. The temple of the Fifth Ancestor was closer to the city center and slightly larger in scale compared to the temple of the Fourth Ancestor.
Mei Fang and his friends just graduated from middle school, and most of the children in the county had not seen much of the world. They didn’t have much money and were afraid to go to faraway places, so the temple of the Fifth Ancestor was a good choice.
Xia Yuan was the main initiator of this trip to the temple. She really didn’t want to part with the friends she made in middle school, especially Peng Xue, who had stood up for her in the past.
So Xia Yuan thought that if they could create unforgettable memories together, it would be a delightful thing.
Although Zhang Ming really wanted to fully experience his Black Knight Z7, everyone was waiting for him here after all. Mei Fang had been so generous to him too, so it would be impolite not to go. In the end, Zhang Ming decided to join them.
The group arrived at the bus station. After confirming the ticket price with the station attendant, then they boarded the bus.
Yue Xinyi sat together with Lin Youxi, Peng Xue with Xia Yuan, Mei Fang with Zhang Ming, and Guo Yun sat alone.
She was initially very surprised when she received Xia Yuan’s invitation and was reluctant to come. However, she couldn’t resist Xia Yuan’s sincere invitation and ended up coming along.
During the bus ride, Mei Fang also made an effort to strike up a conversation with Guo Yun to prevent her deskmate from being too embarrassed.
“By the way, Guo Yun… I’ve noticed that you’ve lost quite a bit of weight this year. Have you been trying to lose fat?”
Guo Yun nodded, “Mainly due to the academic pressure this year. On the other hand, I’ve been preparing artwork to convince my parents to let me study art at Jiangcheng Art School…”
Xia Yuan also felt very happy upon hearing this. She never saw Guo Yun as any sort of threat. She was only thinking that her Ah Fang wanted to make games, and Guo Yun would be a great art assistant in the future.
“That’s great! If you can get into a school in Jiangcheng in the future, you can come and visit us!”
“Well… because my uncle actually lives in Jiangcheng, I’ll stay at his place if I get accepted.”
Mei Fang chimed in, “Speaking of which, you could have kept that drawing tablet you borrowed from me. There’s no need to return it to me.”
“Oh, I can’t do that…”
Guo Yun said apologetically, “You’ll be moving to Baizhou City in the future, and then living in Jiangcheng as a student. I’m not sure if I’ll even get into a school in Jiangcheng, so I have to return your things before that.”
“Just consider it a graduation gift, no big deal.”
Guo Yun shook her head vigorously, “If it’s a gift, it’s too precious! It must be worth hundreds of yuan… I’m already grateful that you’re willing to let me borrow it.”
“Well, you’ve helped me with so many drawings. I’m truly thankful to you.”
Seeing Xia Yuan’s complicated expression as she listened to their conversation, Peng Xue quickly stepped in and patted Mei Fang’s shoulder.
“Boss Mei, how come you’re only so nice to your deskmate? Why I didn’t receive any graduation gift you mentioned? Yue Xinyi, did you receive anything?”
Yue Xinyi glared at Mei Fang with annoyance, “No! Mei Fang, this jerk, even filled my graduation album with nonsense. How can I expect him to give me a gift…”
“You see, you’re only giving a gift to Guo Yun. Aren’t you being biased?”
Zhang Ming, too scared to speak, thought to himself about why Mei Fang suddenly became so generous. It turns out this was the graduation gift Mei Fang gave him.
“Hey… why are you asking me for a gift? We aren’t very close.”
“Ahhh! Look at you, saying we’re not close. Huh? Yuan Yuan, look at your little sweetheart, always bullying people.”
Peng Xue made a pitiful face, covering her face with her hands. Xia Yuan, feeling annoyed, said, “Ah Fang, when did you become unfamiliar with Xiaoxue? We used to play together all the time. If we won’t see each other often in the future, shouldn’t you give her a graduation gift too?”
Upon hearing Xia Yuan’s words, Peng Xue immediately revealed a mischievous smile, as if a football player in the penalty area had succeeded in cheating by diving.
Mei Fang complained in his heart: Ah, how can you push me away like that? Fortunately, your Ah Fang is not a flirty person, otherwise, Peng Xue wouldn’t be so pleasant in your eyes, right?
Mei Fang scratched his head and said, “So, what kind of graduation gift do you want?”
“Well… next time, treat me to a karaoke session! Just the two of us.”
“Ahh, shouldn’t you take me too?” Xia Yuan suddenly became anxious. “Xiaoxue, you can’t ask for a graduation gift like this! Ah Fang is my childhood sweetheart, and you can’t spend time with him alone.”
“Hahaha, just kidding.”
Peng Xue pinched Xia Yuan’s cheek and then leaned back on her chair, earnestly looking at Mei Fang in the back row. “Yuan Yuan is my best and almost the only friend I had during middle school. I cherish our friendship very much.”
Since that incident, Peng Xue had become very alienated from the people around her. It was difficult for her to easily get close to her old friends, and she had invested all her trust and emotions in Xia Yuan alone.
Xia Yuan felt touched and smiled at Peng Xue while holding her hand.
Peng Xue continued, “As long as you can promise to always treat Yuan Yuan well, that will be the best graduation gift for me.”
“Then, me too!”
Yue Xinyi, unwilling to be left behind, immediately raised her hand. “You can’t disappoint Youxi either. She may not say it herself, but you must remember to give her something.”
“Okay, I will take care of both of your graduation gifts.”
Mei Fang thought to himself that it wasn’t that simple. He had already decided to make it as balanced as possible and not to let either side suffer any unfair treatment. The gifts from both sides were practically given to him for free.
The group of friends chatted and laughed in the bus, except for Lin Youxi, who remained quiet, claiming that she felt a bit of motion sickness.
The last road led to a temple up the mountain was indeed a bumpy ride, making some of them uncomfortable.
So Mei Fang asked the driver for a plastic bag. When they arrived at Wuzu Temple, Mei Fang, and Yue Xinyi supported Lin Youxi as they got off the bus, and then Mei Fang handed the plastic bag to Xia Yuan, asking her to hold it as Lin Youxi leaned over the roadside and relieved herself for a while to feel better.
“Mhm… this road is indeed quite bumpy…” Peng Xue stretched and yawned. “When we have money in the future, let’s come up here and play together.”
“Why would we come here to play when we have money?”
Yue Xinyi put her hands on her hips. “If I have money, I’ll stay in my mansion for the rest of my life and never go out.”
“Your dream is a bit… quite funny…”
Yue Xinyi pouted at Peng Xue. “Then, if you have money, will you just drive around recklessly?”
“Probably. If I have money, I’ll take my guitar, drive my jeep, and wander around deserted places.”
“I didn’t expect you to have such an aspiration!”
“Why not?”
Yue Xinyi and Peng Xue were bantering with each other when Peng Xue noticed something on the side and suddenly exclaimed.
“What’s wrong?”
Peng Xue signaled Mei Fang and Xia Yuan to look in the direction she was pointing. “Quick, look over there!”
“That’s him, right? It’s him! We’ve run into him again today!”
Translator's Notes:
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