At the entrance of a courtyard alley on the North Second Ring Road, the early spring sunlight slanted across the bluestone pavement.
Huang Yuqi walked out from the alley carrying a small kraft paper bag.
From a distance, she saw the pagani parked by the roadside.
She had seen this pagani on her moments before.
At this moment, Jiang Cheng was leaning one hand on the car window while holding his phone in the other, seemingly typing.
Looking at Jiang Cheng's handsome profile...
Huang Yuqi couldn't help but pause her steps, and a trace of expectation, which she herself was unaware of, rose on her calm face.
Before meeting Jiang Cheng, she had never considered the issues of marriage or children.
After all, people from dysfunctional families are naturally resistant to intimate relationships and may not even have any longing for them.
Because her childhood was filled with bad memories, she lacked the influence of parents who supported each other through thick and thin, let alone a mother's love.
It was already quite a feat for her to grow into someone with such a correct outlook on life.
After walking up to Jiang Cheng, Huang Yuqi reached out and patted his shoulder. "Hey."
Jiang Cheng had originally been messaging Zhu Yan.
Last night, his two grandfathers had transferred the 20 billion yuan of New Year's money they gave him into his CMB card.
Previously, when Wang Congcong first took him to CMB to handle the purchase of the office building...
A transfer of ten billion had already shocked Xu Lei and the others.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, 20 billion yuan was deposited directly into their branch; Xu Lei was now so excited he couldn't even sleep.
Seeing it was Huang Yuqi, Jiang Cheng quickly locked his screen and put away his phone.
Seeing Jiang Cheng hurriedly put away his phone, Huang Yuqi couldn't help but smile.
"Are you busy? You can finish what you're doing first."
Jiang Cheng shook his head and smiled as he opened the car door to get out.
"I'm not busy, just some minor matters."
Not having seen Jiang Cheng for a while, Huang Yuqi's bright eyes couldn't help but linger on him for a few extra moments.
She then handed the bag she was holding to Jiang Cheng. "This is a gift for you from the children."
"For me?" Jiang Cheng took it with some surprise.
Inside the large kraft bag were sheets of drawing paper.
Huang Yuqi took them out and handed them to Jiang Cheng.
Jiang Cheng took the stack of drawings, and as his fingertips touched the rough surface of the paper, an indescribable warmth suddenly surged in his heart.
"This was... the theme of the art class I gave them after I returned," Huang Yuqi's voice came softly.
"The theme was 'My Favorite Campus.' These were drawn for you by the children."
The first page was a careful depiction of a half-new, half-old campus in colored pencil.
On the left was the completed three-story teaching building, while on the right stood the old single-story houses that had yet to be demolished, creating a sharp contrast.
"This is the best one, drawn by a girl named Xiao Lan who has a red birthmark on her face."
Huang Yuqi pointed to the newly built teaching building in the drawing. "To draw this, I saw her specifically climb the hill behind the school during her lunch break to get the view. She said she wanted you to see the progress."
Flipping through them one by one, Jiang Cheng's Adam's apple bobbed unconsciously.
These children clearly had very poor foundations in drawing.
But because of that, the simple, rough, and child-like drawings easily touched his heart.
The sunlight shone through the back of the paper, illuminating the children's naive brushstrokes.
Crooked teaching buildings, exaggeratedly deformed trees, and a national flag colored with an entire page of red.
Mottled earthen walls and a leaking roof—it was the Hope Primary School in Gansu.
The traces of peeling paint were carefully colored in by the child, and next to it, 'Our School' was written in wobbly characters.
"This was drawn by Ma Xiaohu," Huang Yuqi explained softly.
Her finger gestured over the drawing. "He said he's been at this school for five years, and the old teaching building will be demolished soon. He wanted to remember the original leaking roof."
Flipping to the third page, the center of the drawing showed the plastic running track that had already been put into use.
Several stick figures were running on it.
Beside it was written crookedly: 'Uncle Jiang, we finally don't have to eat dust on the dirt playground. Thank you.' It was signed 'Li Yao.'
Jiang Cheng still remembered her—the Tibetan girl who had timidly asked him the day before he left if the new school would have heating.
Looking at this, Jiang Cheng asked, "Has the installation of the school's heating started?"
Huang Yuqi nodded. "They're already pulling the power grid. I asked, and the grid is being pulled from a nearby village. However, because the voltage isn't enough, it needs to be upgraded. The cost of upgrading to low-voltage electricity is about 100,000 yuan."
Jiang Cheng nodded. "I know about that. I heard that extreme low temperatures in high-altitude areas of Gansu can reach -20°C in winter. Photovoltaic plus electric heating can reduce long-term electricity costs."
Huang Yuqi's voice carried an irrepressible joy. "I asked the electricians, and they said that if the floor heating is turned on in winter, the classrooms can reach twenty degrees. The children won't have to wrap themselves in cotton-padded jackets to write anymore."
Jiang Cheng noticed that Huang Yuqi's knuckles were somewhat red and swollen.
They must have been frostbitten while she was helping the construction team carry building materials.
This stubborn volunteer teaching teacher had insisted on supervising every detail on-site since the first day of work.
"Only the cafeteria and teacher dorms are left." Huang Yuqi pulled her phone from her bag to show him the latest construction photos. "The workers said everything will be finished by the eighteenth day of the first lunar month."
A draft swept through the alley entrance, and Jiang Cheng saw her subconsciously wrap her black coat tighter around herself.
"So when are you going back?"
"Before the Lantern Festival." Huang Yuqi looked into the distance, her eyes suddenly softening. "Originally, I wanted to stay a bit longer, but when I left, the children chased the minibus for two miles..."
Huang Yuqi then smiled. "They only stopped chasing after I promised to bring them Beijing Tanghulu..."
Sunlight slanted onto the drawing paper, and Jiang Cheng suddenly noticed "Teacher Huang, don't leave" written in the corner of one drawing.
The handwriting had been erased and corrected many times, but it remained there stubbornly in the end.
"I'll take you back when the time comes," Jiang Cheng said suddenly.
Huang Yuqi looked up in surprise. "That's too much trouble..."
"I have to go to Lanzhou on the seventh day," Jiang Cheng lied without changing his expression.
He smoothly tucked the stack of drawings into the car's moisture-proof compartment.
"I'll stop by to see the construction preparations while I'm at it."
Huang Yuqi looked up in astonishment, a strand of hair blown by the wind brushing against Jiang Cheng's cuff. "But it's over ten degrees below zero there now..."
"And..." Jiang Cheng paused, his voice dropping a bit. "I also want to see how the goji berries on the school's hill are growing."
Seeing Jiang Cheng say this, Huang Yuqi said nothing more.
The corners of her mouth couldn't help but curl up, and her eyes suddenly lit up like stars in the Longzhong night.
"Really? If you can go, the children will definitely be overjoyed! Ma Xiaohu still can't bear to use the backpack you gave him last time..."
The sound of children playing with small firecrackers came from deep within the alley, and the scent of the New Year permeated the air.
Jiang Cheng gazed at the tip of Huang Yuqi's nose, which was reddened by the cold wind, and suddenly realized the magic of fate.
He suddenly felt something about the mission the system had issued back then.
If it hadn't been for that system mission during the Mid-Autumn Festival...
He would never have met this girl, who was as resilient as the chee grass on the Longzhong Plateau.
In a corner forgotten by everyone, she was like a stubborn weed, silently guarding promises forgotten by the world.
If he hadn't gone back for the Mid-Autumn Festival with Xia Meng...
He wouldn't have met Huang Yuqi.
Huang Yuqi was like the stubborn chee grass on the Longzhong Plateau.
In a corner forgotten by everyone, she silently kept those disregarded promises.
Building the Hope Primary School and doing charity—to be honest, after the system issued the mission, he had approached it more with the mindset of completing a task.
It wasn't his most urgent original intention upon his rebirth.
But it took on a deeper meaning after meeting Huang Yuqi.
Jiang Cheng had to admit that when he first approached her, he indeed had some selfish motives.
But every time he saw her, those worldly distractions would melt away like spring snow.
There is always this kind of person in the world.
She might not be the most dazzling star, the most beautiful flower, or the most moving scenery.
But when she stands in the wind and sand of the Loess Plateau, holding a piece of chalk with fingers frozen red...
And teaches the children to write stroke by stroke, you can't help but want to protect this purity.
Just like now, looking at the starlight shimmering in her eyes.
Jiang Cheng suddenly understood: true redemption is never a condescending handout, but a vigil kept while walking side by side.
Seeing Jiang Cheng put the things away, Huang Yuqi spoke up, "It's time for lunch. Come on, what do you want to eat? My treat."
"How about the Beijing Zhajiangmian you recommended when we were at the Great Wall? Didn't you say there's a time-honored Zhajiangmian shop at the entrance of your hutong?"
"Really?"
Jiang Cheng nodded. "Of course. I haven't tasted authentic Zhajiangmian yet."
"That's great. I was worried you wouldn't like it. I've been thinking about this meal all morning. You know, my teacher's salary isn't high. I can't afford anything expensive, but something too cheap isn't quite right either."
Knowing Huang Yuqi had an open and honest nature, Jiang Cheng asked directly, "What is your current salary?"
"Well, the base salary is 2,850 yuan. With various subsidies—transportation and remote area allowances—it's 3,630 after deducting the five insurances and one fund."
Hearing this, Jiang Cheng was slightly taken aback.
In such a difficult place, the salary was this low?
No wonder it's been said since ancient times that a scholar has nothing but the wind in his sleeves.
"That low?"
Huang Yuqi nodded. "Yeah, now you know how poor I am. A plane ticket back costs several hundred. I'm very poor..."
Seeing Jiang Cheng press the car lock button, Huang Yuqi couldn't help but look back.
"Will your car get a parking ticket if you leave it here?"
Jiang Cheng casually put his hands in his pockets. "Don't worry, this is the Capital."
Huang Yuqi didn't quite understand Jiang Cheng's words. "This is the Capital? What do you mean?"
Jiang Cheng smiled and made up a random explanation. "It means this is the place that respects the law the most."
After turning two corners, an unremarkable little noodle shop appeared before them.
The words "Old Zhang's Zhajiangmian" on the faded sign were already peeling.
A few folding tables with chipped paint were set up at the entrance, where several old neighbors were slurping noodles.
"Uncle Zhang! Two bowls of Zhajiangmian, one with extra shredded cucumber!" Huang Yuqi called out familiarly, then turned to explain to Jiang Cheng, "The cucumbers here are grown in his own courtyard."
Jiang Cheng looked around the small shop, which was less than twenty square meters, with great interest.
By the stove, the gray-haired Old Zhang was pulling noodles. A small TV next to the chopping board was playing Peking Opera, the steam from the noodle water blurring the screen.
"Sit here." Huang Yuqi chose a table further inside, pulled two pairs of wooden chopsticks from the holder, and skillfully wiped them with a tissue. "Don't mind the environment, the taste is absolutely..."
Before she could finish, Jiang Cheng had naturally pulled out a plastic stool and sat down, taking the chopsticks from her. "It smells delicious."
The Zhajiangmian cooked quickly, and soon Old Zhang brought the noodle bowls over.
"Zhajiangmian is here~"
The steaming noodles were topped with dark brown fried bean sauce, flanked by emerald green shredded cucumber, pale yellow bean sprouts, and snow-white shredded radish.
Jiang Cheng took the bowl and said amiably, "Your noodles smell truly authentic."
Uncle Zhang said with a chuckle, "Judging by your accent, you're not a local, are you?"
Jiang Cheng nodded. "My grandfather and father are, but I didn't grow up around here."
Uncle Zhang said with a smile, "This noodle shop was left to me by my grandfather. We've been open for three generations. A true century-old brand with authentic Beijing flavor."
Hearing this, Jiang Cheng nodded in surprise. "Then I'm truly lucky. I must savor it properly."
Jiang Cheng followed the example of the old man at the next table, dumping all the toppings in at once and stirring vigorously.
Seeing that Jiang Cheng's entire aura carried an air of nobility, not at all like the people in this hutong...
Yet his manner was easygoing and dignified, Uncle Zhang watched Jiang Cheng with a bit of curiosity.
He then asked Huang Yuqi, "Is this your boyfriend?"
"Uncle Zhang!" The tips of Huang Yuqi's ears instantly turned red. "No, just... an ordinary friend."
Uncle Zhang smiled and said, "Not bad, not bad. It's about time you found a boyfriend. When your grandmother came by a few days ago, she was still nagging about this."
After glancing at Jiang Cheng, Huang Yuqi gave a casual, perfunctory reply: "Haha, okay, Uncle Zhang."
PS: I previously saw reader comments saying they felt Huang Yuqi was a'sanctimonious bitch' (Mary Sue/Saint Mother)? Actually, when I was creating this character, that wasn't how I perceived her. The world is diverse, and perceptions differ.
Perhaps many readers prefer characters who are more self-centered or have selfish qualities.
But from an author's writing perspective...
If a character is to be written with depth, it's impossible to always cater to the readers' ideas.
First, her choice to volunteer teach isn't selfless, but a hidden form of self-healing. In that leaking classroom, she can finally re-parent her childhood self.
In that place, she can find her inner peace.
A true'Saint Mother' has a performative personality, whereas Huang Yuqi's moving quality lies precisely in the fact that...
"She doesn't care at all whether others think she is noble. She is simply stubbornly using this method to rewrite the script of her own childhood, stroke by stroke, in the wind and sand of the Northwest."
The world is vast; some pursue the stars and the sea, while others are willing to be a streetlamp.
Just as we cannot judge because:
Someone is thirty and still collects anime figures, thinking it's childish;
Someone likes pink dolls and thinking they aren't mature enough;
Someone chooses a life of poverty in volunteer teaching and thinking it's 'not worth it.'
Everyone is interpreting the meaning of life in their own way.
Huang Yuqi's choice is just one of ten million ways to live.
In this world, existence itself is justification.