Huo Rou watched as Xia Qingxue, who had been playing games in the living room, suddenly burst in and hugged her tightly, refusing to let go.
Before she could even ask what was wrong, a message popped up on her phone.
She glanced at it; it was from Ren Zhen, sent in the group chat. Looking for someone?
Could it be that the person he was looking for was this silly girl currently clinging to her neck? Read novels.
"Who are you looking for?" [Chi You]
"A girl I like. She has a computer expert friend, and I can't get in." [Bi Fang]
"Master, he can't even get into a personal computer now. He's too weak, let's kick him out of the league." [Panda]
"Expert? Let me try. Send me the information." [Keyboard]
So it was indeed this silly girl he was looking for.
"What's wrong?" Huo Rou had a rough idea why Xia Qingxue's sudden sadness was related to this.
"You even told me to date properly if I wanted to date. He's just playing with me!" Xia Qingxue accused. "He has other women around him. While I wasn't there, he found someone else! Wuwuwu, A Rou, I met a scumbag."
Although Ren Zhen's entertainment clubs had various industries under his name, he had always kept his distance from women.
She had also looked at his information, and there was no mention of a girlfriend, which was why she had advised Xia Qingxue to consider him carefully.
"What happened? Tell me from the beginning," Huo Rou said calmly. Under her soothing words, Xia Qingxue began to recount her experience that day.
She had logged into the game with a heart full of joy to see him. But when she entered the room, he didn't respond when she called him.
Not only that, but there was another woman in the room. Her words implied a close relationship with the mage, someone he knew in real life.
He hadn't offered any explanation throughout.
Huo Rou thought about Ren Zhen, whom she had just been chatting with. Could this matter have anything to do with her?
"Could it be that he wasn't near his computer? Or perhaps he just didn't see the message," Huo Rou's eyes flickered with a trace of struggle.
"No, he always replies instantly. And now..."
"Why are you crying?" Huo Rou asked helplessly as she patted Xia Qingxue's back, unable to stop her tears.
Xia Qingxue couldn't explain why she was so sad. She had just said she didn't want to date and that she only liked his voice.
Xia Qingxue cried for a long time that night, monopolizing half of Huo Rou's pillow.
In the darkened room, the sound of continuous sobbing could be heard. The curtains blocked out all light from outside.
In the pitch-black night, all senses were infinitely amplified. Amidst the sobs, Huo Rou seemed to return to that night.
After Qin Ning left, she forced herself to go out and meet her companions, who had been worried all night.
No one noticed anything amiss with her; they only thought she had great resilience and had endured the effects of the drug on her own.
After dealing with the aftermath, she returned home that evening and, just like now, shut herself in a dark room.
She remembered the cold floor that night, and she remembered the indifferent gaze of the young man in her heart. Her tears were hot and bitter.
She had lost everything long ago, except for him, whom she kept in her heart. Unfortunately, she couldn't continue like this anymore.
Huo Rou turned her head in the darkness to look at Xia Qingxue. The pillow was soaked, and her hair was stuck to her cheeks. Huo Rou reached out and put her arm around her shoulders, patting her gently, like her mother had done when she was little.
"A Rou," Xia Qingxue softly called her name in the dark room.
"Mm?"
"You're so gentle."
Under the gentle aura emanating from Huo Rou, Xia Qingxue slowly fell asleep.
Huo Rou listened to the melody she hummed softly, and in the silent darkness, her eyes also quietly reddened.
The person who taught her gentleness was no longer there, along with that gentle Huo Rou, buried seventeen years ago.
When Xia Qingxue woke up, Huo Rou had already returned from sending An An to school.
"Awake? I brought you porridge and steamed buns. Come and eat," Huo Rou had returned to her usual gentle and calm demeanor.
Xia Qingxue responded with a hoarse voice. Her throat was swollen from crying all night, and speaking hurt.
Huo Rou took out her laptop and sat opposite her, typing while keeping her company during the meal.
"Since he made you so sad, focus on your career," Huo Rou suddenly said.
"Later, I'll paint with you. You've always been asking me to paint something for you. We'll go to your place later and paint together."
Xia Qingxue's eyes reddened. Hearing this unexpected surprise, she suddenly looked up at Huo Rou.
Her expression, a mix of joy and sorrow, made Huo Rou chuckle. "Silly girl, you look so silly like this."
"Are you serious?" Xia Qingxue ignored Huo Rou's teasing and only confirmed what she had just said.
Sadness was sadness, but why refuse a treat? She had been asking for this for a long time.
"Mm."
However, when she truly picked up the brush, Xia Qingxue unconsciously sketched the image of the purple-robed mage from the game.
Before, when they chatted every day, she didn't feel anything, but now that contact was broken, she started to miss him.
She began to regret not listening to him explain more.
"Put your heart into what you love. There are many things waiting for you to do," Huo Rou said faintly, maintaining her painting pose.
Xia Qingxue looked at the painting of the purple-robed mage in front of her and, with some regret, switched to a new sheet of paper.
"I'll try my best," Xia Qingxue picked up her brush again.
When An An came home and used her laptop to search for information, Huo Rou's promised painting for Xia Qingxue was completed.
Snow was falling, mountains stretched into the distance, and everything was covered in white. Dark green trees were faintly visible, with ice and snow hanging on their branches, appearing as if they were about to fall, making one wonder if the branches beneath the thick snow were already on the verge of snapping.
Ten thousand layers of snow-covered mountains filled the entire scroll, making one feel as if they were lost within it, unable to discern direction or find hope.
At the foot of the mountain was a small lake that had just frozen over. In some places, shimmering water could be faintly seen, while in others, it had turned grayish-white, reflecting the faint light seeping from the gloomy sky.
On the lake, there was a small wooden boat. An old man, wearing a bamboo hat and a straw cape, sat facing the mountain.
Thick snow had accumulated on him, as if he were friends with the mountain, tears in his eyes, unable to speak. He seemed to have seen through the world and blended into the landscape without a word.
However, in the midst of the falling snow, with endless mountains and no human presence, the old man's life or death was uncertain.
Trees in the foreground were broken at the waist and submerged in the thick snow, making it impossible to tell if it was due to strong winds or an unexpected avalanche.
Xia Qingxue became deeply engrossed in the painting, tears involuntarily welling up in her eyes. She couldn't pinpoint the reason. It was just a common scene of rolling mountains, a lake, and an old man in a wooden boat.
She had seen these elements in countless paintings, but only this one made her feel a desperate loneliness.
In this world, there were no living beings, no sunlight, and no vitality. And this old man might have died here long ago, unknown to anyone.
Everyone said that a person's handwriting reflected their character, and it was the same for paintings. Her paintings were cheerful and lively, and people loved the brightness in her paintings, which was her.
Then what about Huo Rou...