Chapter 150: Soaring Hope (New Year’s Special Extra Chapter · Two) (4000 words)
Lin You Xi and Xia Yuan skipped along to follow Mei Fang to the southern area of the Cultural Square. Sure enough, they saw many people lighting Kongming lanterns here.
Everyone wrote their blessings for the coming year on paper lanterns, then opened them up and lit a small candle underneath. The lanterns would gradually rise and float upwards due to the heat.
Xia Yuan and Lin You Xi stood by watching others light their lanterns when Mei Fang appeared behind them, patting their shoulders.
“Do you want to light one together?”
Xia Yuan and Lin You Xi exchanged glances. Lin You Xi fidgeted nervously, “I’m not very brave. I’ll do it if Yuan Yuan says so.”
“It’s fine, let’s light one! I want to play,” Xia Yuan raised her hand.
“Alright, I have money.”
Lin You Xi waved her five yuan bill in her hand, “Let me buy the lantern!”
Lin You Xi had originally walked confidently to the stall, but when she saw the muscular man with a tough face, she trembled as she handed over the money, whispering softly.
“I… I want a Kongming lantern.”
Lin You Xi turned to look at Xia Yuan and Mei Fang waiting for her.
“Um, what color?” The man was not from Bai Mei County, and Lin You Xi couldn’t quite understand his dialect.
“A… Kongming lantern.”
“I know that. What color do you want?”
This time, the man raised his voice, and Lin You Xi, startled, ran away and threw herself into Xia Yuan’s arms.
The man scratched his head, confused. Xia Yuan gently comforted Lin You Xi while tugging on Mei Fang’s arm.
“It’s okay… let Mei Fang handle it!”
So troublesome, even buying a lantern takes forever…
Mei Fang used Lin You Xi’s money to buy a lantern from the man, and the two of them looked expectantly.
“Where should we release it? Let’s go by the riverbank too!”
“We need to write our wishes first. I borrowed this pen, and I need to return it soon.”
The three of them spread out the lantern on a stone table, preparing to write their wishes on it.
Xia Yuan wrote “Happy every day.” Mei Fang wrote “Prosperous next year.” When it was Lin You Xi’s turn, she hesitated for a long time, unsure of what to write.
Suddenly, Xia Yuan seemed anxious, rubbing her ponytail as if searching for something.
“Did you lose something?”
Xia Yuan nodded, “My hairpin is missing.”
Mei Fang joined her in searching on the ground. It was dark, making it difficult to find anything.
“Did someone bump into you just now?”
“I don’t know… but no one touched me, right?”
Lin You Xi suddenly exclaimed, “Could it be that I dropped it when I hugged Yuan Yuan?”
“Maybe… but maybe not…” Xia Yuan smiled faintly. “Forget it, let’s light the lantern first. Youxi, start writing your wish.”
“I’ll go check again!”
Ignoring Xia Yuan’s advice, Lin You Xi insisted on returning to where they bought the lantern to search for Xia Yuan’s hairpin.
Seeing her rush off, Mei Fang worried she might get lost. He asked Xia Yuan to wait, and he and You Xi would search together.
Mei Fang helped Lin You Xi search around the original lantern stall. Though there was some light from the vendors’ shops, the bustling crowd made it hard to spot anything on the ground.
“Let’s give up… it may not be you who lost it. Don’t blame yourself.”
Lin You Xi shook her head, ignoring Mei Fang’s reassurance.
“That hairpin is special. A friend brought it back from Japan. Yuan Yuan loved it so much… I must find it.”
As time passed, Lin You Xi found nothing. She almost knelt down to search among the crowded people, her desperate search touching everyone’s hearts.
Mei Fang tried to pull her up, but she refused to move, eventually kicking and biting him before standing still, crying.
“I lost Yuan Yuan’s favorite hairpin. She will definitely hate me… she won’t play with me anymore.”
She feared Xia Yuan’s disapproval, feeling guilty and regretful. Her voice was filled with sorrow.
Mei Fang knew that comforting her wouldn’t help, so he simply patted her shoulder.
“If you really feel responsible, we can buy a new hairpin for Yuan Yuan as an apology, okay?”
Lin You Xi vehemently shook her head, “No! That hairpin is from Japan. The ones here won’t be as good.”
“Even if it’s not as good, Yuan Yuan is reasonable. If we apologize sincerely, she won’t hold it against us… What do you think? I believe she won’t blame you.”
After much persuasion, Mei Fang finally convinced Lin You Xi to buy a small trinket.
Lin You Xi sniffled, holding onto Mei Fang’s sleeve as he carefully selected a hairpin. She nudged his shoulder, pointing at one.
“Do you think Yuan Yuan would like this?”
Lin You Xi wiped her tears and nodded.
It did resemble the peach blossom hairpin…
“Then let’s get this one. How much is this hairpin?”
“20 yuan.”
“So expensive? Can you make it cheaper?”
“Can’t go any lower, I can only take 2 yuan less.”
While Mei Fang bargained, Lin You Xi nudged him, blushing.
“Mei Fang… don’t buy it. I only have 1.5 yuan. Wait here, I’ll find my dad for money.”
“Buy it quickly, or someone else will.”
The vendor urged Mei Fang to decide. Mei Fang bit his lip, taking out 18 yuan from his pocket.
“Then let’s get this one!”
After buying the hairpin, Lin You Xi gave all her money to Mei Fang.
“Thank you, Mei Fang! I’ll ask my dad for money later and repay you.”
“No need to be so formal…”
Mei Fang patted her head, “Go give this hairpin to Xia Yuan and apologize properly.”
“Okay!”
Lin You Xi ran to Xia Yuan, explaining the situation.
“Oh, it doesn’t have to be you who lost it… I don’t need you to pay for it!”
“No, it must be me. I’m really sorry… Yuan Yuan.”
“It’s okay! I don’t mind! Just forget about it… consider this hairpin a gift from you to me, okay?”
Lin You Xi nodded vigorously, “But, Mei Fang paid for it.”
“Thank you! I like this hairpin too.”
Xia Yuan didn’t express any disdain towards the cheap trinket. She put the hairpin in her hair in front of Lin You Xi, asking if it looked good. Lin You Xi exclaimed that it looked great. Mei Fang hurried over.
“Mei Fang, let’s light the lantern together!”
“Wait for Lin You Xi to finish writing her wish.”
“Yeah, Lin You Xi, you haven’t written yours yet. What do you want to write?”
Encouraged by Xia Yuan and Mei Fang, Lin You Xi wrote a long string of text:
“Xia Yuan, Mei Fang, and Lin You Xi, we will always be best friends.”
“The last few characters almost don’t fit! Your ‘Yuan’ character is so big!”
“It’s readable.” Xia Yuan smiled. “The sentiment is what matters!”
The three of them worked together to open the lantern. Mei Fang positioned the candle correctly, lit it with a lighter, and the flame ignited in the center of the lantern. They each held a corner of the lantern, waiting for the air inside to heat up and expand.
“How long do we need to hold it?”
“Until the lantern inflates.”
Lin You Xi sniffled, trying to hold back a sneeze. Mei Fang encouraged her,
“Lin You Xi, Xia Yuan, we can prepare to let go…”
“Yes! Mei Fang, count down!”
“Three, two, one, let go!”
They all let go and pushed upward simultaneously.
The lantern didn’t immediately soar, but floated for a while.
Lin You Xi finally couldn’t hold back and opened her mouth to sneeze.
At the critical moment, Mei Fang stepped forward, holding Lin You Xi to sneeze into his chest.
“Phew… all snot and spit from You Xi…”
Mei Fang couldn’t reach for a tissue, so Lin You Xi rummaged through his inner pocket and finally found a pack of tissues.
“It’s floating! It’s floating!”
The lantern began to slowly ascend. Mei, Xia Yuan, and Lin You Xi chased it along the riverbank for about a hundred meters, finally seeing it float away over a pond.
Xia Yuan clasped her hands in prayer, and Lin You Xi mimicked her.
After praying, the two followed Mei Fang to watch the lantern fly away.
“By the way, Mei Fang, if the candle burns out, will the lantern fall back down?”
“Probably.”
Lin You Xi was surprised, “If we know it will fall, what’s the point of releasing it?”
“The lantern lets us send our wishes to heaven. As long as it flies high enough, it counts. It doesn’t necessarily have to reach heaven.”
“Is that so…”
“You know a lot, Mei Fang.”
As the three watched the lantern disappear, Xia Yuan was tapped on the shoulder from behind.
It was Teacher Yu and Xia Xun looking for their daughter.
“Yuan Yuan, it’s time to go back.”
“Mom and Dad, look! That’s the lantern we released. Did you see it?”
“Woah, Yuan Yuan, you’re amazing… Did you wish for more caution? Otherwise, you keep losing things.”
“Huh? Losing what…”
Xia Xun handed the peach blossom hairpin to Xia Yuan.
“You ran off to play with Mei Fang and dropped your hairpin. Luckily, Xiaomeiya was quick to notice and kept everyone looking.”
“So it was lost back then!”
Xia Yuan gasped, and Lin You Xi cheered.
“It’s good it wasn’t lost!”
“That hairpin… I should return it to you.”
Xia Yuan quickly took off the hairpin and returned it to Lin You Xi, “Take it…”
“This one is yours now. It’s a gift.”
“But, I didn’t…”
“Then, this one is for you.”
Xia Yuan gave Lin You Xi her original hairpin, “This is also a gift for you.”
Xia Xun felt embarrassed giving away such a precious gift, but Teacher Yu advised him,
“Let the child decide how to use her gifts. If she wants to, it’s fine.”
“Alright… as long as Yuan Yuan isn’t sad.”
“She won’t be sad.”
Teacher Yu smiled, “Our Yuan Yuan always shares her best things with her best friends. She never holds anything back.”
“Indeed…”
Mei Fang listened to Xia Yuan’s parents talk, watching Lin You Xi and Xia Yuan exchange hairpins.
“Mei Fang, You Xi, does this look good? She suits this hairpin better than me.”
“That’s not true… Yuan Yuan suits it best…”
“In my opinion, both of you suit it.”
Mei Fang smiled, “Both look good, both are beautiful!”
[The balloon is in my hand]
[I lead you around aimlessly]
[I have something to say to you]
[But your eyes are busy]
[I want to taste the egg cake and the jam on your lips]
[The fairground film is playing]
[The world has agreed to stroll together]
Compared to the well-known “Qili Xiang,” Allen’s song “Round Fair” might not have been as widely known, but it was one of the most memorable sweet songs of that era.
At the end of the road, the three of them parted ways. At that moment, fireworks burst across the sky.
The drifting lanterns, illuminated by the fireworks, carried the thoughts of those who released them, creating a poetic winter scene.
In 2004, young people of that generation always bravely pursued love, never letting go easily, even if they were hurt.
Mei Lijun was also looking forward to his future. Holding his daughter and listening to her excited words, he felt his excitement grow.
“Called called! Xiaoya just called me ‘Daddy,’ did you hear?”
“Clearly she was calling ‘Mommy,'” Mei Fang said dismissively.
“No way! Listen carefully, it was clearly ‘Baba, Baba!'”
“Mu-a, muamua!” Xiaoya waved her little fists, hitting Mei Lijun’s face.
“See! It’s definitely ‘Mommy’!”
“How could it be! I heard her call me ‘Daddy’…”
Mei Lijun’s New Year’s wish came true, but it seemed empty.
This chapter has 4000 words. Once again, I wish everyone a happy New Year and a happy New Year’s Day.
(End of Chapter)
