translated_Chapter 66

66: The Feelings of That Time Are Forever Sealed in the Letter

Did it arrive here?

Qiu Ci opened the letter. Judging from the content, he guessed it was written by Jing Yueming.

He had argued with his sister, and even now, he still believed that Qiu Shi had gone to France because of the argument.

Qiu Shi should be with her girlfriend now.

The content was roughly an apology. Qiu Shi hadn’t told him about her job, her family situation, or even her name.

Poor thing, Qiu Ci thought.

The most precious sincerity of a young man was given to the person who least needed it.

After a long period of poverty and loneliness, Jing Yueming didn’t want to lose this “investor,” his sugar mommy lover.

The letter was filled with humble apologies, even though it wasn’t his fault.

Perhaps it was the shared experience of being hurt by Qiu Shi during the fashion competition that gave Qiu Ci a sense of camaraderie.

Qiu Ci wrote back, forgiving Jing Yueming in the name of Qiu Shi, no, Ai La.

He also told him about interesting things in France.

He bought an envelope and stamps at the supermarket.

The small road was covered in fallen leaves, and Qiu Ci picked one up.

He wiped it clean and placed it in the envelope with the letter.

The small stamp carried Qiu Ci’s first words to this boy, along with a red maple leaf from Paris that autumn, across the ocean.

It arrived in Jing Yueming’s hands.

He had sent the letter to Ai La as a test, hoping to apologize.

Unexpectedly, he received a reply.

Jing Yueming was so excited he wanted to throw his backpack away.

Ai La not only accepted his apology but also praised his work from the fashion competition.

The letter described her recent situation, word by word.

The asphalt roads after the leaves fell in France must be beautiful, otherwise, why would she use three lines to describe them?

A red maple leaf was clipped to the letter, perfectly shaped.

Ai La was better suited to writing; she couldn’t write so delicately and movingly in casual conversation.

Jing Yueming read the two and a half pages of letter paper back and forth five times.

It was already dark when Jing Yueming picked up his pen and began to write a reply.

Even though he hadn’t finished writing the reply, he already wanted the next letter from France.

From then on, he endured a long wait for letters.

Jing Yueming prepared many sheets of paper and wrote a paragraph every day, along with the date, about his feelings while waiting for a letter from Ai La.

Or what he ate that day, the red plums in the school were ripe, but very sour.

He was troubled by the midterm exam results after school started, and the steamed buns at a certain window in the cafeteria were especially delicious.

And occasional little drawings.

Almost a month passed before he finally received another reply.

The “Maple Leaf Gentleman” in the letter had made some bookmarks and included the signature of a famous designer.

The remaining four pages of letter paper were filled with dense writing.

It was very thick when he received it, but Jing Yueming didn’t mind at all.

It was clearly pitifully little, not enough to read.

There were some young couples at school who would hide from the teachers and hug and cuddle every day.

Jing Yueming couldn’t even make video calls like in an online relationship. They returned to the most ancient way of having a long-distance relationship, tormenting but also immersing themselves in it.

The love brought by letters was always slow and solid.

It took a month to receive a reply, and the feelings of that year, that month, that day, that time were forever sealed in the letter.

After complaining about the slow exchange of letters,

Jing Yueming went from receiving one letter a month to receiving one a week or every half a month.

Ai La calculated the time to send the letters. Each letter began with her acknowledging the date she received the other party’s letter, so that the order of the replies wouldn’t be confused, and she could also frequently share her recent mood and feelings with him.

Thanks to this Maple Leaf Gentleman, Jing Yueming even knew when it rained in Paris that year and when the convenience stores on the street started their New Year’s promotions.

A little over a month after the Gregorian New Year, the Lunar New Year, or Spring Festival, arrived.

Jing Yueming calculated the half-month interval and sent a letter filled with blessings, hoping that the Maple Leaf Gentleman would receive it on that day.

He hoped the timing would be just right.

Before the New Year arrived, Qiu Ci worried that Qiu Shi would make a comeback after the New Year.

On New Year’s Eve, he went to Japan and brought a New Year’s gift.

As expected, Qiu Ci couldn’t leave for the time being.

He could have gone to the airport and returned to France overnight.

Qiu Ci chose to stay in this unfamiliar town for one night, making time to write this New Year’s letter.

This sense of ritual had a special meaning.

Qiu Ci had no one else to send New Year’s blessings to.

One, two, or three letters a month became the most anticipated thing in a troublesome life.

The child wrote simply, even writing about drinking black rice porridge in the morning.

Qiu Ci was also very interested in learning about these trivial matters.

He carefully selected the gifts he included in each envelope.

Screening for things that Jing Yueming’s age would like.

To find inexpensive and meaningful gifts, he would rush to buy limited-edition TWG teas.

Analyzing what he needed.

Once, he simply sealed a delivery box and sent tea bags and the earphones that Jing Yueming happened to be missing at the time.

Drawing was too boring, so it was good to listen to nursery rhymes for a while.

He guided Jing Yueming in his current studies and drawing direction.

He began to envy Qiu Shi’s happiness in love, if only Jing Yueming could be by his side.

He would never hurt Jing Yueming like Qiu Shi treated Tsukimi Rin.

It was an unspeakable feeling, completely different from his feelings for Qiu Shi, Su Yuyang, and Qin Yishan.

A friend, yet like family, like another self at the end of the world.

Two people were carefully wrapped in the letters.

One was afraid of making the other unhappy, and the other worried about being discovered.

Spring passed and autumn came, and the role being impersonated was finally coming to an end.

Jing Yueming would participate in the national art college entrance examination this year, hoping he could get into his desired school.

News of Louis’s serious illness came, and Qiu Ci went over that night.

He had to be faster than Qiu Shi, faster.

Arriving in New York ahead of time, Qiu Ci also cut his hair and got a makeover.

After a year of cooperating with Qin Yishan, the company on the Chinese side was basically fine.

The shareholders were willing to go against Louis’s wishes to support Qiu Ci for the sake of profit.

If he could get Louis’s approval, it would be even smoother.

Qin Yishan also arrived, and Qiu Shi came the latest.

Everyone told Qiu Ci.

In this position, he could get what he wanted just by saying it.

He wanted the position of shareholder, but Qiu Shi went back on her word.

She was taking the future with Tsukimi Rin, and Qiu Ci should give way.

Just as Qiu Shi believed, he could live an unremarkable life.

The happy Qiu Shi had long forgotten the unhappy Qiu Ci.

Qiu Ci’s hobbies, Qiu Ci’s work, the person Qiu Ci thought of.

A useless person would not make Qiu Shi jealous.

According to plan, Qiu Ci bribed lawyers and colluded with the elders of the shareholders.

He tampered with the distribution of Louis’s inheritance.

He had no mood or time to be sad and grief-stricken; the incident was full of twists and turns.

The happy Qiu Shi and her lover finally set things right.

Qiu Ci not only lost his inheritance but also lost his sister’s trust.

There were always unexpected things in the plan, and Tsukimi Rin was the unexpected thing.

The letters during the Spring Festival had the opposite effect, and Tsukimi Rin no longer trusted Qiu Ci.

In the three months in Paris, Qiu Ci had not gained this friend.

Qin Yishan saw his troubles: “You have to succeed in one direction, right? Now we are on the same boat, help me, Qiu Ci.”

Qiu Ci gave him a cold look and thought for a long time: “Let Tsukimi Rin return to Japan.”