The Healing Sunshine (一厘米的阳光)

BOOK II - Chapter 10.1 - Life's Hidden Billows (1)

Before the winter break, Xiao Jun opened a music and video store in three locations, by the main gates of Fuzhong, in Wudaokou, and in the Xinjiekou Subdistrict. He himself ran the shop by Fuzhong. As the store was only two, three hundred metres from Fuzhong's main gates, a particularly large number of students would go there. Naturally, Nuannuan was especially happy about this. Her manner was completely like she was the lady-boss of the place, and if she had nothing to do once classes were done, she would amuse herself in the shop.

The store itself was not big, but business was very good.

The shop's main business came from cutout discs and authentic, original discs from Hong Kong. The most important piece was, Xiao Jun had been out and making his way with the likes of certain crowds very early and therefore had many contacts and resources.

"Classical, rock, jazz." Nuannuan, her hair tied up high on her head, was standing in the shop and looking quite like she knew what she was talking about as she gave recommendations. "This row here, all of it came directly from Hong Kong, and you need to add 60 kuai for shipping costs."

Someone picked up a disc and asked a question. Immediately, how much she truly knew was exposed. "Uh, this one..."

Nuannuan's eyes shot a plea for help at Xiao Jun, who was drinking tea.

Pursing his lips in a smile, Xiao Jun stood. "With this Neu! CD, once you leave this store, you'll absolutely be unable to find another shop in Beijing that has it. 170, non-negotiable."

That person laughed loudly. "All right, boss, you don't need to show off. I've long heard that you've got lots of top-notch stuff here. I deliberately came here."

As Jǐ Yi watched Nuannuan and Xiao Jun smile at one another, she suddenly felt that that previous incident from that night was not a big deal.

The more she grew up, the more she enjoyed watching comedies or films about people living happy lives. Now, someone close to her was giving her a live show of this, so of course that was the best possible scenario.

She had once worried for Nuannuan. With the type of family that Xiao Jun came from, how could Nuannuan's family accept him? However, when she thought about this, she merely felt that it would a little difficult to accomplish, and she did not try to concretely define and flesh out where the difficulties lay. The environment in which she had grown up when she was young had been too simple and innocent, and hence, it caused her to believe that money and the so-called financial background of one's family were things that could be triumphed over, just like what was acted out in television dramas.

At age fifteen or sixteen, the only things that truly bring anxiety are the examinations after examinations that come at you. The heavens may be big and important, the earth may be big and important, but your grades are the most important.

Those who are immersed in young love all believe that addressing one another as "hubby" and "wifey," that "I'll cook one time for you, and you wash the clothes once for me" means that they are already an old married couple who have shared life's ups and downs together. But when the true storms of life have battered down on them and they look back on all this, they will find that most of it was merely scene after scene of indulging in their own romantic notions as they "played house."

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"Big sister, I'd like to buy this disc for my boyfriend." A young girl wearing the school uniform of Fuzhong's middle school campus looked rather timidly at Jǐ Yi and asked in a quiet voice, "I don't really know this stuff. Would you be able to explain it to me?"