When the six of them came off the roller coaster—

Zhang Ruowei, Shen Xinyi and Jiang Yu all had wide, exhilarated grins on their faces, still savoring that weightless rush.

Chen Qingqing hadn’t dared open her eyes the entire way. At the worst of it she’d gripped Xu Ye’s hand so hard that the marks her nails had left were clearly visible on the back of it. Xu Ye didn’t say anything about it. He simply got the bottled water out of his bag first thing, unscrewed the cap, handed it to her, and rubbed her back gently to settle her.

As for Qin Zhiwei.

His face had gone white. Coming off the ride, his legs had turned to jelly and he’d nearly landed flat on his face.

Qin Zhiwei knew it was embarrassing, too. He drank a few mouthfuls of water, and once he’d steadied himself he retreated off to one side and didn’t dare say anything — but Xu Ye kept staring at him, so eventually he asked, “What are you looking at?”

Xu Ye rolled his eyes. “Checking whether you’ve wet yourself.”

Qin Zhiwei shot him a glare and told him to quit running his damn mouth; this was humiliating enough already.

After a short breather the six of them carried on. But the further in they went, the thicker the crowds got, and every ride worth going on had a queue snaking away from it. None of them fancied lining up again.

When they reached the “Shanghai Bund” area, they found a lot of people standing on the old-fashioned streets taking photos, so Xu Ye got his phone out and suggested taking a few of Chen Qingqing. She wasn’t keen at first — but the moment Zhang Ruowei and the others heard the word photos, they were falling over each other with enthusiasm, so Chen Qingqing ended up taking several group shots with them first.

“All right, that’s plenty. Move aside, all of you — I’m taking a few of Qingqing on her own.”

Zhang Ruowei, Shen Xinyi and the rest came over to stand beside Xu Ye. Having already seen what he could do with a camera, they were curious about how he found so many good angles.

“That’s it, turn slightly and look at me — three, two, one, okay!”

Xu Ye half-crouched in front of her and fired off several shots, then handed the phone to Zhang Ruowei. “Zhang Ruowei. Take a couple of the two of us.”

Then he walked over to stand beside Chen Qingqing.

Looking into the lens with strangers streaming past on either side, Chen Qingqing was still a little self-conscious.

Zhang Ruowei held up the phone and started directing. “Qingqing, look at the camera. Tilt your head toward Xu Ye a bit — yes, yes, yes, exactly like that. Okay!”

Chen Qingqing was about to step away when Xu Ye caught hold of her. “One more. What’s the hurry.”

“Last one.”

“Fine, last one.” Xu Ye laughed. “Stand still.”

He had her stay exactly where she was, walked around behind her, and wrapped both arms over her shoulders. Chen Qingqing’s hands came up instinctively to rest on his forearms, and their heads tipped together.

Zhang Ruowei was quick-fingered enough to catch the moment.

And so a photo of the two of them mid-bear-hug ended up saved on Xu Ye’s phone: Xu Ye grinning, Chen Qingqing with her lips pushed out — the kind of pout that’s angling to be indulged.

“This one came out really well. Qingqing, come and look.”

Chen Qingqing quickly wriggled out of his arms and went over, huddling with her roommates around the phone.

“That’s a good one.”

“Mm.”

“The angle, the light — all of it’s just right.”

Zhang Ruowei held out a hand to Xu Ye. He didn’t follow. “What?”

Zhang Ruowei grinned. “I take one that good and I don’t get a photographer’s fee?”

Xu Ye laughed out loud. “I’ll buy you dinner tomorrow.”

“Then take a few of just me now as well. I want to put up a Moments post.”

“Sure.”

Jiang Yu and Shen Xinyi jumped in straight away. “Me too.”

“No problem. It’s early anyway — we’ve got to last until twelve.”

So Xu Ye became the photographer, taking several shots of each of the three of them, then bundling them all up and sending them to the group. The girls found somewhere to sit down and started retouching.

While they were busy editing, Qin Zhiwei sidled over to Xu Ye. He’d barely opened his mouth when Xu Ye, reading his mind, got there first. “I’m sending you Shen Xinyi’s photos right now.”

Qin Zhiwei threw his arms around him and said, laughing under his breath, “Bro. You are my actual brother.”

Xu Ye shook his shoulders loose and pushed him off in disgust. “Don’t get gross with your old man.”

He forwarded Shen Xinyi’s photos to Qin Zhiwei — and then quietly set that bear-hug shot as his phone wallpaper.

Zhang Ruowei finished editing first. “Done,” she said happily. “Hah. Go and like my post, all of you.”

Xu Ye opened Moments, and sure enough, the first thing on it was the post Zhang Ruowei had just put up.

The caption was simple. One line:

“And — cut! That’s a wrap on 2014.”

Underneath were nine photos, the one in the middle a heart.

“Mine’s done too.”

Xu Ye refreshed, and Jiang Yu’s post appeared.

Also one line:

“Here’s hoping 2015 is full sugar, no ice, with good luck all the way.” [TL: “Full sugar, no ice” is how you customize a bubble tea order — she’s wishing for a year that’s all sweetness and nothing cold.]

Only three photos underneath.

Shen Xinyi’s was simpler still — eight characters: Peace and joy; may all things go your way.

Seeing that they’d all posted, Xu Ye decided to put one up as well. He tapped the top right corner, uploaded the photo of Chen Qingqing standing beside him with her head tilted his way, and added a caption:

“Seeing in the new year. With you. A thousand times over.”

He hit post. Uploaded.

Twenty seconds later.

Jiang Meilin appeared in the likes.

Ten seconds after that.

Wang Yuxin appeared in the likes.

One minute later.

Xu Ye received a transfer of a thousand yuan from Zhang Hong, with a voice message underneath it. He tapped it and held the phone to his ear.

“Son. Mom’s transferred you a thousand yuan. Take that girl out for something nice to eat.”

Xu Ye wrote back: “I’ve got money.”

Zhang Hong: “A boy can’t be stingy when he’s got a girlfriend. A girl that fresh-faced — you’d better treat her well.”

Xu Ye: “I know, I know. I’m going now — we’re off to enjoy ourselves.”

Zhang Hong: “Go on then, go on.”

Zhang Hong finished replying and sat there at the head of the bed beaming, already picturing grandsons and granddaughters romping around her…

“Come on. Let’s keep going and see what’s up ahead.”

“Go, go, go.”

The six of them set off again. Forty-odd minutes later, Shen Xinyi was the first to say she was too tired to walk any further, and Chen Qingqing chimed in: “My legs ache.”

Xu Ye led Chen Qingqing over to a stone under a banana tree and sat her down. Seeing her lightly thumping her knee with a small closed fist, he suddenly reached over, lifted her legs onto his lap, and set about giving them a proper massage with both hands.

“That tickles—”

“I’m not even tickling you. What have you got to be ticklish about?”

Chen Qingqing glanced around at the people nearby, then dropped her head, embarrassed.

Her legs really had stopped aching, though.

Several minutes went by before she pushed her lips out. “Are you done? You’ve been at it for ages.”

Only then did Xu Ye let go. He patted his own shoulder and smiled. “Tired? You can borrow my shoulder for a bit.”

Chen Qingqing turned and saw her roommates sitting under another banana tree — and only then did she slowly lower her head onto Xu Ye’s shoulder.

There were a lot of stars out tonight, bright and glittering, like so many crystals.

Chen Qingqing thought of the night she first met Xu Ye.

That night, the sky had been just as full of stars.

And she found herself suddenly glad — glad that she’d gone down to the lake that evening to clear her head, and that Xu Ye had turned up in front of her, drunk, at exactly that moment.

She smiled faintly and nuzzled her head against his shoulder, and in her ear she seemed to hear the last line at the end of that song:

“You are all I’ve ever wanted to know.”

(End of Chapter 171)