Chapter 25.3 - Mandarin Orange Peel 陈皮
The so-called “love the house and its crow” seems to be just like this—first falling in love with the person, and then gradually becoming attached to all her habits, little actions, and preferences, until unknowingly, he cannot escape, and even the act of breathing is filled with the taste of longing.
Seeing He Suye deep in thought, Zhang Yiling couldn’t help but chuckle, “He Suye, so now you feel sorry for me? No worries, I’ll give you a chance to make it up. When I get married, just give me an extra red envelope.”
He readily nodded, “Alright, if I bring my girlfriend, I’ll definitely give an extra one.”
Zhang Yiling’s eyes widened. “Wait, wait, you mean your girlfriend is already in the U.S.? Fang Kexin didn’t tell me. He Suye, don’t tell me you went abroad because of her!”
He felt a little embarrassed. “Well, sort of, but we’re not at the same school.”
Zhang Yiling looked utterly defeated. “He Suye, I’m so frustrated! If you had cared about me even half as much as you care about her, I would have died without any regrets.”
He Suye was puzzled. “I never treated you badly, did I?”
She smiled and took a gentle sip of her coffee. “That’s not what I mean. There are many definitions of being good to someone. You were definitely good to me, but you’re a very principled person. You wouldn’t change for me, or put in that kind of wholehearted effort.”
He thought to himself that women’s definitions of love are indeed complex, but he also felt that Zhang Yiling’s words made sense.
He had never considered putting in wholehearted, selfless effort before—he just acted on instinct. He had been afraid that his efforts wouldn’t be reciprocated, but once she confessed her feelings for him, all his concerns vanished.
Alright, maybe he was a bit slow in matters of the heart, a bit foolish, but perhaps that wasn’t a bad thing.
After Zhang Yiling left, he rushed to the lab, but he was already late. Strangely, his German mentor greeted him with a rare smile, said nothing, and just walked off.
His lab mates told him that only he and one of the Germans passed the report, and everyone else had to work overtime even during the Christmas holiday. He Suye just smiled politely and opened his computer to continue working.
In fact, he was in a good mood. The thought of seeing her at Christmas made him smile.
As he walked back to his dorm, every second was filled with the fluttering of French sycamore leaves, gently touching the ground—dark green, light brown, orange-red, dark yellow. At the end of their life, the leaves were distinct and orderly, scattered across the ground like a beautiful painting with the earth as its backdrop. The direction the leaves fell was like a mirror image of the bright blue sky above.
He Suye’s good friend from his time studying at Cornell must have heard about his study abroad and sent out invitations. So, He Suye shared his plans to travel during Christmas with his roommate, not expecting that his roommate would be very interested. “I have a car. Why don’t we go together?”
He immediately confirmed his plan and decided to ask Shen Xifan about her Christmas plans. Just as he opened QQ, Shen Xifan’s small profile picture kept flashing non-stop. When he clicked on it, a long string of messages popped up:
“He Suye, what should I do? Even though I’m sleep-deprived here, how can I still gain weight!”
“Is it possible to gain weight just by drinking water? It’s all the school’s fault for having such great food! I’ve gained weight, I’ve gained weight! I’m going crazy! I’m collapsing!”
“I need to lose weight! I need to lose weight!”
He couldn’t help but chuckle, thinking to himself that it might be better if she gained a little weight. When they held hands before, he always thought her wrists were so delicate that they might break with just a gentle pinch. If she gained a little weight, it might be better.
In fact, it’s best for girls to just go with the flow, as long as they keep their weight within a healthy range without obsessing over being thin. During his internship at the hospital, he had seen a few girls who were brought in for emergency treatment due to low blood sugar from dieting. At that time, a group of boys unanimously decided that, in the future, when looking for a girlfriend, the first thing they would teach her is not to blindly diet, but to adopt a healthy weight loss plan.
But it was strange, Shen Xifan had always had a good appetite when she was in China, and there were no signs of her dieting. How did she start gaining weight after going abroad? Could it really be true that a place’s environment influences a person?
With this thought, he quickly typed to comfort his girlfriend’s anxious mood, “Girl, actually, a little extra weight isn’t a bad thing. You were so thin before that sometimes I worry you’ll get blown away by the wind. So don’t rush into losing weight.”
A crying rabbit emoji popped up on the screen. “No, no! If I go back to China, I won’t have the face to meet you anymore, I’ll have fat on my face! By the way, how much is pork per pound in China? At least this way, I could contribute to the export economy!”
He Suye laughed helplessly and replied, “I’m a doctor, do you want to hear the professional advice?”
Sure enough, the messages calmed down, and Shen Xifan’s reply appeared with sparkling eyes, full of expectation. After thinking for a moment, he typed, “How about I prescribe you some weight loss tea? If you stick to drinking it and don’t try to skip meals or eat less, would that be okay?”
Shen Xifan quickly agreed. He wrote her a prescription with a few digestive herbs for her to brew into tea. He figured that this would help her feel more balanced mentally, even though the herbs might not have any significant effect.
Before Christmas, the temperature in Pennsylvania was surprisingly high. It was unusually warm and there was no snow. His experienced roommate told him that it might suddenly drop after Christmas, and there had even been blizzards in April before.
This was his first time leaving the Penn campus, stepping into another completely different atmosphere of a campus.
Ithaca was a quiet little town, and there were hardly any people around. His roommate spoke to him about the long poem Ithaca by the Greek poet Constantine Cavafy: “When you set out for Ithaca, pray that the road is long, full of adventure, full of knowledge.”
He smiled to himself. The Ithaca he was heading to had the person he loved, full of hope and happiness.
Last Christmas, they had spent it together with a group of friends. When he finally saw her home, she smiled and said, “Being with you makes me so happy, for no reason.” He remembered the surprise and uncertainty he felt at that moment.
It must have been then that he unknowingly fell for her. In that neon-lit city, where people crowded together, her white dress and white skirt stood out in the night, so graceful. Now, what kind of posture would she take when she appeared in front of him?
In this quiet little town, in this distant country, when everything around him felt unfamiliar and the long night seemed endless, the only way they could get through it was by relying on each other for warmth.
His roommate parked the car in front of the host family’s house and pointed to a building not far away. “That’s the Cornell Library. Just walk down this road and turn left, and you’ll be there.”
He glanced at his watch—it was almost five o’clock—so he quickly replied, “Thanks, I’ll come find you later.”
The roommate teased, “Remember to bring your girlfriend along when you come, we’re all Chinese students here, it’ll be nice to meet each other.”
Waving his hand, he smiled, “Alright, I’ll go now!”
Every day at five o’clock, she would return from the library on time—that was her fixed routine.
He originally planned to wait by the library entrance, but as he walked around the corner, he saw a familiar figure, holding a thick stack of reference books, walking quickly.
She was still dressed simply, the pale pink cotton jacket made her face look even fairer. Her hair was long and reached her waist, and the professional, imposing aura she once had was now replaced by the gentle, scholarly presence, which made her seem even more calm and composed.
But Shen Xifan didn’t notice him standing at the corner. She walked on, so he had no choice but to catch up and gently tap her shoulder, calling out softly, “Shen Xifan!”
She turned in surprise, staring at him, and after a moment, she finally asked, “You… He Suye, how are you here?”
He smiled, but found his heart racing a little. “I came to see you.”
Taking a step closer, he reached out to take the books from her hands. Shen Xifan gazed at him steadily, trying to control the excitement in her voice. “Why are you here?” She opened her mouth to say something else but found her words faltering, her heart trembling with joy, surprise, and excitement.
The man in front of her gently took her hand, smiling slightly. “I’ll tell you when we get back.”
