The Healing Sunshine (一厘米的阳光)

Chapter 16.3 - Life's Tender Dependence (3)

In Jì Chengyang's memory, many things happened in the spring of 2003.

In March, he returned from Russia to his home country; an atypical pneumonia was spreading rapidly in Beijing, as well as Guangzhou and Hong Kong; and in the face of this disaster that no one was prepared for, the relationship between him and Jǐ Yi, in that early spring that was still frigidly cold, quietly began.

On March 20, the coalition forces primarily led by American and British troops finally launched military operations against Iraq. If it could be said that there was still at least a fig leaf covering the intention of the war in Afghanistan, then this war on Iraq had become a true military retaliation. Due to the spread of SARS in China, problems were encountered with the paperwork and procedures for Jì Chengyang to go abroad, and so, even after war had broken out, he still temporarily remained within the country, becoming an idler.

During this period, Jì Chengyang's father also underwent a major surgery. At his hospital bed, in front of his several sons and daughters, he had requested, from his own mouth, Jì Chengyang to give up his current line of work. Jì Chengyang had not given him an answer.

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"Do you want Kung Pao chicken for dinner tonight?" Jì Chengyang asked on the phone.

He truly had nothing to do. While everyone was at home hiding away from the infectious disease, he was out alone, pushing a shopping cart in a supermarket that was practically empty of people, strolling around idly. As there were not many customers, the stock in the store was actually very low as well. There were barely a few boxes of things in a cooler unit that was several metres long.

"Sure." The sound of Jǐ Yi's breathing was a little heavy. She should have just run out from her lecture room and was hurrying to get to her next class. "Could you buy a bit more peanuts? I like eating the peanuts in Kung Pao chicken."

"No problem," he answered. "I'll come pick you up after I'm done buying the stuff."

"It'll be an hour later than normal tonight. I was given an extra class at the last minute."

"That's okay. I can sit in the car and read through some material."

The call was hung up, and he continued shopping.

However, for this type of supermarket that was seriously lacking in goods, the word "shopping" really could not be used.

Within only a few short minutes, he took another two phone calls. One was from his Second [Older] Brother, who was also Jì Nuannuan's father. In the phone, Second Brother's word choices were quite intense and heated. The general gist of them was that Nuannuan had skipped classes for many days in a row already, and every once in a while, they would not even be able to find or get ahold of her. Second Brother and Sister-In-Law had discussed things and seemed to want to send her abroad earlier than planned, but then SARS had happened to occur right at the same time, so this matter had been delayed. However, they still could not set their minds at ease and wanted Jì Chengyang to help persuade Nuannuan.

"She idolizes you more than she idolizes me, this father of hers who wears a military uniform," Second Brother had said. "Do you remember when she was small? She would always like to hold your hand and had said outright that she wanted to change dads."

He remembered, but as a man who had never been married or had children, he truly was unable to carry out a conversation with a girl who had already gone through adolescence, especially when that conversation was about love and relationships and the future.