After buying the porridge that Shen Nian liked, Xiao Mubai looked up at the sky. The snowflakes were getting bigger.
Although the porridge was in an insulated bag, he still tucked it inside his coat, using his own body heat to keep Shen Nian's preserved egg and lean pork porridge warm.
He walked briskly, eager to return and see Shen Nian.
If he walked too slowly, the porridge would get cold.
...
Shen Nian had evaded the nurse's supervision and gone alone to the hospital's rooftop.
As she pushed open the door to the roof, she was greeted by a blanket of white snow.
Wearing slippers, she walked step by step, leaving her footprints in the snow.
A long trail, marking her path on the seemingly endless snowy expanse.
...
On his way back, Xiao Mubai passed by a flower shop. The shopkeeper was standing at the door, enthusiastically greeting customers.
Seeing Xiao Mubai, the shopkeeper immediately said with a smile, "Sir, it's the last day of the year. Why not buy a bouquet for your loved one? Let her carry that smile into the new year."
Hearing this, Xiao Mubai paused. After a moment's hesitation, he walked in. The interior was very warm.
He stamped his feet to shake off the snow as the shopkeeper brought over a selection of their best-selling flowers.
"Our red roses always sell exceptionally well. Look at the quality, it's absolutely top-notch."
"No, thank you," Xiao Mubai reflexively declined, then asked, "Do you have any sunflowers?"
For years, whenever he bought flowers for Shen Nian, Xiao Mubai always chose sunflowers.
"..." The shopkeeper's smile froze for a moment, then turned awkward. "Sir, it's December. It's not the season for sunflowers. Not just our shop, you won't find them anywhere else either."
Hearing this, Xiao Mubai looked disappointed and was about to leave with his things.
"Wait, sir!" With the snowfall, there weren't many customers out today, and the shopkeeper was reluctant to let a potential sale slip away.
"Sir, our red roses are truly exceptional. You look young and handsome; I assume you're choosing flowers for your sweetheart?"
"Red roses might seem common, but many young ladies nowadays prefer more unique flowers. Even so, every girl should receive red roses at least once in her life. That way, she won't have any regrets."
Red roses express passionate love. It proves that someone once loved you passionately, their existence showing everyone that you are worthy of such love.
These words touched Xiao Mubai. He thought of something and reached into his pocket, where he kept the sunflower necklace.
She had said she no longer liked sunflowers.
After a few seconds of contemplation, Xiao Mubai nodded, "Please wrap a bouquet for me, thank you."
Hearing this, the shopkeeper's face lit up with a big smile. "Certainly!"
She immediately started selecting flowers, all the while praising him, "Sir, your girlfriend is truly lucky to have a boyfriend like you."
Xiao Mubai smiled gently, "You've misunderstood."
"Oh?"
"They're for my sister," he said.
The shopkeeper was taken aback for a moment, then continued smiling, "To have such a wonderful brother, your sister is very fortunate. I envy her."
Xiao Mubai's smile deepened.
Leaving the flower shop, Xiao Mubai held the red roses in his arms. His pace quickened, and the smile on his face was hard to hide.
...
Snowflakes fell on her shoulders. She was still wearing her hospital gown.
Standing at the edge of the rooftop, she looked from left to right, taking in the view.
Then she looked up at the sky, seeing only the falling snowflakes.
She smiled, a hint of regret in her expression.
She had hoped to see the sun one last time. What a pity.
Her hand pressed against the railing. She climbed over, standing on the narrow ledge on the other side.
At this moment, Shen Nian seemed to overlap with Lu Lingrui, who had committed suicide five years ago.
Standing here, looking down.
In this moment, she felt no fear, only a sense of release.
Shen Nian took out her phone. Like Lu Lingrui years ago, she opened the contact of the person she cared about most.
Lu Lingrui had chosen her; she chose Lu Lingchuan.
...
The snow wasn't heavy, but it was bitterly cold. The ground had already iced over. Xiao Mubai, aware of how treacherous snowy roads could be, had chosen to walk rather than drive.
His foot slipped, and he nearly fell.
But he managed to steady himself just in time.
He checked the red roses in his arms, then the lean pork porridge, sighing in relief when he confirmed nothing had spilled.
Thinking about how he would soon see Shen Nian, his smile deepened, and he quickened his pace.
...
Shen Nian stared at the text message screen on her phone, her fingertip hovering above it. She wanted to type something but didn't know what to say.
She and Lu Lingchuan had nothing left to say to each other.
Just like the two words she had written on the note paper.
No regrets.
Looking at the three characters that spelled "Lu Lingchuan," Shen Nian suddenly smiled with acceptance. Her hand loosened, and the phone fell vertically from the rooftop.
She closed her eyes, a smile on her face, and took that final step.
...
Xiao Mubai quickened his pace, getting closer to the hospital ward.
Thinking about how he would soon see Shen Nian, his steps became lighter, a smile curling his lips.
Suddenly, a violent "thud" made him freeze. A figure fell rapidly before his eyes, hitting the ground with a heavy impact. Immediately after, he heard screams from passersby.
"Ah! Someone jumped from the building!"
People nearby who heard the sound rushed over to look, and many windows in the hospital ward opened as heads poked out.
The smile froze on Xiao Mubai's face. It was as if he had been drenched with a bucket of ice water, chilling him to the bone.
In that moment, his heart stopped beating.
He stiffly looked at the crowd in front of him, moving like a centenarian, stumbling with each step.
Staggering forward, he suddenly broke down as he pushed through the onlookers.
"Move aside! Everyone, move!"
Clearing a path, he froze completely when he saw the person lying in a pool of blood. He tried to rush forward but his legs gave way, and he fell onto the snowy ground.
The clothes he had bought for her were scattered on the ground. The still-warm preserved egg and lean pork porridge had spilled everywhere.
The roses had come apart, their petals strewn all around.
The sunflower necklace had fallen out of his pocket when he stumbled, a rose petal covering it.
Xiao Mubai lay sprawled on the ground, that splash of blood redder than the vibrant red roses, staining his eyes.
Like a mute unable to speak, he opened his mouth, trying desperately to make a sound, but his throat only produced a silent scream.
Amidst the pointing and murmuring of passersby and the hurried instructions of the arriving doctors, Xiao Mubai seemed deaf to it all. He knelt on the ground, inching his way towards her.
Nian Nian, it's cold. Let brother warm your hands...
The sun must inevitably set, and the moon is destined to sink in the west.
Even though today's snow is so cold, and the night so long.
After the snowy day passes, the sun will still rise, and a new day will begin as always.
Shen Nian died on the last day of the year, in this first snow.
She was destined never to see her second zodiac year. She was 23 years old this year, and her life would forever be frozen at 23.
