“Speak,” said Sister Han.
Zhang Zhenhao trembled all over. Under the shocked gazes of Wang Wei and Jiang Chenxing, he walked up to them and blurted loudly, “I’m sorry! I was wrong! I won’t dare again!”
Jiang Han said, “Heard you wanted to be the new boss of No. 1 High?”
“No no no, I’m not worthy!”
“Then who is?”
“Of course it’s you!”
“Hm?” Jiang Han’s tone shifted.
Zhang Zhenhao realized and immediately corrected himself, “Sister Yue is the most worthy!”
“That’s more like it. Be smart. Don’t mess with the wrong people.”
“Yes…”
“And also,” Jiang Han gave him a once-over, her tone easing a bit, “Read more, cause less trouble. That’s how you make fewer mistakes and have a better future.”
Zhang Zhenhao: “?” …Was he supposed to freestyle a response too?
“You heard me?”
“Heard! I heard!” he nodded frantically.
“And you two—” Jiang Han’s gaze swept over his two buddies.
They stiffened immediately. “We heard too!”
“Sister Yue?” Jiang Han looked toward Jiang Fuyue.
Seeing her nod slightly, Jiang Han cleared her throat and waved her hand grandly, “Then get lost already!”
The three boys fled like they’d been pardoned from death row.
Jiang Chenxing: “Sis, let’s go home too?”
“Okay.”
Just as they stepped out of the school gate, two red roses suddenly appeared in front of Jiang Fuyue.
She looked up and met the smiling eyes of a young shop girl. “You’re lucky—these are the last two. They’re for you.”
Jiang Fuyue looked puzzled.
Jiang Chenxing went, “Ah?” and asked, “Why are you giving roses to my sister?”
“Not just your sister. We brought 320 roses total. Already gave out 318. These are the last two.”
Jiang Fuyue raised her eyebrows. Free roses outside the school?
And judging by the stem and bloom, they were clearly high-quality varieties. In a flower shop, each could easily sell for dozens, maybe hundreds of yuan.
Just giving them away? And over 300 already given?
You’ve got to be kidding.
Clearly, Jiang Chenxing was thinking the same thing. He asked directly, “Aren’t these expensive?”
“Of course, but they’re all free.”
“Why are you giving them away?”
“Uh… I’m not really sure either. The boss lady told us to deliver them here and give them out, so here we are.”
“Huh… but that’s weird. These could make money.”
The shop girl just shrugged, equally baffled.
Jiang Chenxing thought for a second. “Then can I have one?”
“Nope. Boss said only girls get them. But you can ask your sister to take both, then give you one.”
“I’ll take them,” Jiang Fuyue suddenly said.
The shop girl’s eyes lit up. “Here you go! That’s the last of them—now we can clock out!”
Jiang Fuyue took the roses and looked them over. The petals were fresh, still dewy. The color was a rich, sultry red, alluring and elegant—like a beauty mark on a lover’s heart.
The stems had thorns, but someone had thoughtfully wrapped them in silver paper.
Suddenly, her eyes paused at something inside the wrapping.
She reached in and pulled out… a small folded note?
Jiang Fuyue handed the flowers to Jiang Chenxing, then unfolded the note—
“A rose for you, that its fragrance may linger.”
Eight characters, written in bold pen strokes, the pressure of the ink punching through the page.
A name popped into her mind—
Xie. Ding. Yuan.
She asked the shop girl, “Excuse me, where’s your flower shop?”
The shop girl, just about to leave, was caught off guard. “Five hundred meters straight ahead, third shop on the right. It’s called Xin Yue Flower House.”
“Thank you.”
“No problem!”
Jiang Fuyue started walking toward the shop, Jiang Chenxing trailing behind.
“Are we going to the flower shop?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“What for?”
“To ask something. Maybe buy a few flowers.”
…
The door opened with a chime. The shop owner, holding an unfinished bouquet of lilies, turned around and smiled. “Welcome. Looking for anything in particular?”
Jiang Fuyue set the two roses on the counter. “Who sent these?”
The shop owner raised an eyebrow, then smiled. “I did. Why?”
Jiang Fuyue shook her head. “Not you. I mean the one who bought these roses.”
“You already guessed, didn’t you? Why ask me?”
“You knew I’d come?”
The shop owner shook her head. “Not me. He knew.”
“What else did he say?”
“He said: Of all the people who get these 300-some roses, only one would come back to ask. If she comes, then giving them away was worth it.”
Jiang Fuyue paused. Then chuckled. “He really puts in the effort…”
Meanwhile, Jiang Chenxing was totally lost. His big eyes were full of confusion.
Why did his sister pause and then smile?
Who was putting in the effort?
In the end, not only did Jiang Fuyue take the two roses, she also bought lilies, pompom chrysanthemums, and baby’s breath—enough to fill a vase at home.
But at checkout, the shop owner said, “He figured you wouldn’t want to go home empty-handed, so he prepaid. Said you can choose whatever you like.”
Jiang Fuyue couldn’t help but click her tongue.
She didn’t decline. Took the flowers and left.
On the way—
“Sis, we didn’t pay?”
“Nope.”
“Why?”
“Because… a fool gave them.”
Back home, even after putting on slippers, Jiang Chenxing was still puzzling over who that “fool” was.
His gut said it was a guy.
But his sister didn’t even like any guys—so why take the flowers?
Perplexed little brother scratched his head. Still couldn’t figure it out.
Harder than an Olympiad math problem!
…
That night, Han Yunru and Jiang Da returned to find a vase of fragrant lilies in the living room.
“Who bought them?”
Jiang Da shook his head. “Not me.”
Han Yunru rolled her eyes. “Of course not! If you ever arranged such a pretty bouquet, the sun might rise from the west.”
Jiang Da just chuckled sheepishly.
Jiang Chenxing: “Sis bought them. We went to the flower shop together.”
Han Yunru nodded—just as she suspected. She asked about his studies a bit, then told him to wash up and sleep early.
“Going upstairs now.”
“Go ahead.”
After he left, Han Yunru looked at the lilies again and suddenly frowned.
Scanning the room, she said, “Hey, honey, doesn’t it feel like… this vase got bigger?”
Jiang Da glanced. “One size bigger than the old one. Yueyue probably switched it.”
“I thought so. The pattern’s the same, but something felt different… This larger one really looks better. Elegant and balanced in the living room.”
“Heh… my wife’s taste is top notch.”
“Oh, stop. But seriously, where’s the small one? Let’s use it in the bedroom.”
Upstairs, in Jiang Fuyue’s room—
That small vase was sitting right on her windowsill.
In it, the two roses leaned against each other like lovers entwined.
Under the moonlight, the petals looked even more vivid, their red hue cool and mysterious.
Jiang Fuyue finished the last problem on her Olympiad test, closed the paper, and got up.
Walking to the window, she reached out to touch a petal. It was soft and slightly damp, like the tender rain of early spring.
Just then, her phone chimed.
At this hour, it was probably Liu Jinzhong, messaging about something work-related.
She picked up the phone and unlocked it.
Xie Dingyuan’s profile icon had a red badge: 1 unread.
Then—ding dong. Another two messages.
Now 3 unread.
[I visited the No. 1 High auditorium today. It was amazing.]
[If you can, put the roses in water. They’ll last longer.]
[Goodnight.]
Three messages. Clean, to the point. Nothing more.
He never expected a reply. Just said his piece and left.
Jiang Fuyue guessed he was already off doing something else.
“Pfft…” She had wanted to type something, but stopped.
Shrugged, turned off the screen, tossed the phone on her bed, and grabbed her pajamas to wash up.
Soaking in the bath, Jiang Fuyue thought of the words he wrote—
“A rose for you, that its fragrance may linger.”
He didn’t just want to leave the scent, did he?
What he really wanted… was to leave himself behind.
Slowly planting his place in her heart, making himself harder and harder to ignore.
That man, honestly…
Jiang Fuyue shook her head with a sigh. But her brows had smoothed out, and at the corners of her lips… a faint smile had bloomed.
