Can following the rules be called rebirth?

Chapter 209, Section 207: Birthday Fireworks
"This handsome young man can sit in the middle; you're quite tall."

The waiter gestured to the instant camera in his hand, looked at the viewfinder, and offered a very considerate suggestion.

"Hurry up! Quickly bring a chair over!"

Gu Caiwei waved to Zhou Mingyuan, her watery eyes full of smiles.

"Hmm, sitting like that looks like a posed photo, too stiff."

Zhou Mingyuan, of course, did not follow anyone's orders.

He thought for a moment and made the most reasonable response almost instantly.

Should I move a stool and sit between the two sisters?
That would probably be like the wooden chairs in the private room, naturally maintaining a distance.

It doesn't taste right.

He took two steps back and stood behind Gu Caiwei and Li Zhi's chairs, his knees slightly bent, instinctively squatting in the best position.

"Very good! This location is also good!"

The waiter gave a thumbs-up, adjusted the camera angle, and pretended to take a picture.

"We can be a little more intimate."

"Get ready, smile!"

As Zhou Mingyuan, acting as the guest photographer, counted down, he generously stretched out his arms, one on each side, and put his arms around Gu Caiwei and Li Zhi's shoulders respectively, bringing his head close.

The chin meets the two sisters' sideburns, forming a shape that looks like a wonderful triangle.

"3, 2, 1, heart gesture~"

"eggplant!"

click!
A Polaroid camera captures a moment.

Exquisite local cuisine, romantic night view of the river city.

Like a victorious general, Zhou Mingyuan spread his arms and embraced the two women tightly, his smile radiant.

Next is mealtime.

"Okay. I think I understand."

Listening to Zhou Mingyuan and her best friend's explanations, it took Li Zhi a good ten minutes to roughly understand the significance of 10 BTC as a birthday gift.

"What's with all this talk about money? It's basically like buying a promising stock for Weiwei!"

The short-haired girl raised her glass, took a small sip, and continued, "The price increase exceeded expectations, so it can also be used to cash out."

With the two gifts combined, Li Zhi's evaluation immediately rose from unremarkable to a higher level.

Um.
It looks like they put some thought into it.

"I'm not selling!"

Gu Caiwei giggled, her two dimples were adorable and incredibly charming.

"Whether the price goes up or down, I'm going to hold onto these 10 BTC as a birthday memento~"

"."

Zhou Mingyuan pursed his lips, smiling without saying a word.

"Shall we eat cake?"

Seeing that most of the food on the table had been devoured, Gu Caiwei brought out the birthday cake from the corner and said with a smile.

"Okay!"

Li Zhi immediately stood up, unwrapped the cake, inserted small candles, flicked her wrist, and nodded at Zhou Mingyuan.

Click.

The orange-yellow lights in the private room were turned off, replaced by the flashlights of two mobile phones and the faint glow of candlelight.

"3, 2, 1~"

The short-haired girl and Zhou Mingyuan leaned against Gu Caiwei, holding up their phones to play background music, creating a very ceremonial atmosphere.

"start!"

Although there were only three people at the birthday celebration, with two beams of light waving in the air, the scene still looked quite impressive.

"Happy birthday to you~Happy birthday to you~"

“Happy birthday Happy birthday~”

Happy birthday to you~

The rhythm is brisk and the sound is clear.

Zhou Mingyuan and Li Zhi clapped along to wish him a happy birthday, and the song played softly.

"I'm going to make a wish!"

Even though the room was only lit by candlelight, Gu Caiwei's bright eyes were still clearly visible.

When the song ended, the little princess took off the paper crown from her head, stood up straight, leaned slightly forward, took a deep breath, puffed out her chest, and clasped her hands together.

Her cherry lips trembled slightly for a few seconds, then she puffed out her cheeks and closed her starry eyes tightly.

huh~~~
The candle was blown out, and the wish vanished in the wind.

"OK!"

"Let's eat cake! Let's eat cake!"

The lights came back on, and Gu Caiwei, sitting in the private room, smiled.

"Weiwei, what did you wish for this year?"

Li Zhi leaned closer and handed over the knife, asking with a curious expression.

"You're asking again? If you tell me your wish, it won't come true. I'm not telling you!"

Gu Caiwei waved her hand, lowered her eyes, and began to cut the cake.

This is her nineteenth birthday, and also her first birthday after her coming-of-age ceremony.

Friends and besties were there, and everyone sang the birthday song together in a lively atmosphere.

This atmosphere was more joyful than any birthday celebration I've ever had since I was a child.

She was destined never to forget this day.

Stepping out of the restaurant, a gentle evening breeze caressed my face.

"How about we..."

Gu Caiwei was interrupted by Zhou Mingyuan halfway through her sentence.

"Shall we go to the riverbank?"

Zhou Mingyuan waved his hand, his voice sounding exceptionally clear.

"How about we go see some scenery together?"

"Enjoying the scenery?"

Gu Caiwei linked arms with Li Zhi and asked curiously.

"Going to the riverbank is pointless; all you do is feel the wind and count heads."

The short-haired girl was clearly not interested.

"It's so close, let's just walk one lap, just one lap!"

Zhou Mingyuan grinned, his white teeth gleaming, which, under the streetlights, exuded an irresistible allure.

The man, with a determined expression and a touch of childish smugness, led the way towards a certain direction along the riverbank without further ado.

"Alright, alright."

Gu Caiwei carried her bag in one hand and was held by Li Zhi's other arm as they walked along the riverbank promenade, which was becoming increasingly deserted, towards the north, away from the core scenic area.

I walked on the cold stone pavement, and in the distance, I heard the deep whistle of a riverboat.

After walking for about ten minutes, Zhou Mingyuan finally stopped at the edge of the riverbank where there were almost no tourists.

Far from the hustle and bustle of the city, only a few dim lights barely illuminate a small patch of wet, cold mudflats and murky river water.

Strangely, a seven-seater minivan with an illegible license plate was parked not far away.

The wind grew stronger, carrying the dampness of the Yangtze River.

"Alright, alright, this is it."

"Wait for me!"

Zhou Mingyuan ran forward for quite a distance, and when he came back, a backpack appeared out of nowhere. He unzipped it and started taking things out of it.

Gu Caiwei and Li Zhi looked in the dim light of the street lamp and saw that what Zhou Mingyuan took out was not romantic candlelight champagne, but bundles of cylindrical objects wrapped in transparent plastic bags.

Red, orange, blue, green
It also has some fancy patterns and words printed on it.

"Hey, what's that in your hand?"

"fireworks?"

"Are you going to set off fireworks on the riverbank?"

Gu Caiwei reacted very quickly, her expression froze for a moment, and then her eyes widened.

She looked at the large items on the ground that could only be seen around the Lunar New Year, and then at Zhou Mingyuan's serious profile as he squatted on the beach, unsure of how to react.

this.
Where did these come from?
Was this also a birthday surprise for him?
"Birthdays should definitely be celebrated with a sense of ceremony!"

Zhou Mingyuan didn't even look up, his tone relaxed and casual: "I'll set off a fireworks display for one person." That last sentence, like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, created ripples in Gu Caiwei's heart.

A lone firework.
How long has it been since I last saw fireworks?

When she was a child, her family used to set off fireworks, but later large areas of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai banned them, so she only saw that pure brilliance on TV.

She never expected that Zhou Mingyuan could bring her this level of joy.

A warm feeling mixed with a sense of unreality welled up in my heart.

Watching Zhou Mingyuan squatting on the cold, damp sand, like a scientist preparing for an important experiment, carefully arranging and combining those colorful cylinders, his movements were incredibly focused.

The river breeze lifted the hood of his hoodie and ruffled the stray hairs on his forehead, but the man was completely unaware.

"you"

Gu Caiwei opened her mouth as if to say something, but in the end, she turned into a coquettish resentment.

"Zhou Mingyuan, you really are something else."

"Is it really okay to set off fireworks here?"

Li Zhi stood to the side with her arms crossed, watching coldly, her red lips tightly pursed.

As a law student who followed the rules, she was clearly suspicious of Zhou Mingyuan's behavior.

“I asked a friend at the branch office.”

Zhou Mingyuan didn't even look up, and his movements became even faster.

He was clearly prepared, as he pulled a windproof lighter from the side pocket of his backpack.

Then he began to insert the firework tubes into the soft mud and sand at intervals, according to a sequence that only he understood.

"Why did it take so long?"

"."

Gu Caiwei stamped her foot and stood next to Li Zhi, the passage of time amplifying her anticipation.

The neon lights of the buildings in Hankou in the distance are still dazzling, as if they are in two different worlds.

"Alright, alright, this firework is a bit troublesome."

Finally, Zhou Mingyuan straightened up, patted the mud off his hands, let out a long sigh of relief, and looked excited about his accomplishment.

Holding a windproof lighter, he walked up to the fireworks and waved to the two women.

"Ready? You two, step back a bit!"

Gu Caiwei and Li Zhi did as instructed and took a few steps back, standing on a relatively dry cement platform.

The river wind was deafening, and for a moment it was so strong that people could hardly open their eyes.

Zhou Mingyuan bent down and aimed the tip of the lighter at the fuse of the gold tube at the front.

"chi"

A bang, carrying the smell of gunpowder, rang out.

A leaping spark suddenly ignited in the dim light, spreading rapidly along the fuse at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The lead wire was so long, time seemed to stand still at that moment.

Gu Caiwei hugged herself tightly, held her breath, and stared intently at the rapidly moving spark.

A few seconds of suffocating silence.

"Chirp!!!"

Immediately afterwards, a sharp sound that seemed to tear the night sky apart suddenly erupted.

A beam of light, trailing a long golden tail, shot out from the nozzle and flew straight into the dark blue sky.

The light was so intense that it instantly illuminated Zhou Mingyuan's face, Gu Caiwei and Li Zhi's wide-open eyes, and everything beneath their feet.

"Bang Bang Bang!!!"

A dull thud resounded high in the sky, and bursts of colorful fireworks shot straight into the heavens.

For an instant.

The sky is filled with a dazzling array of stars, and the river view is as beautiful as a painting.

"Wow"

Gu Caiwei instinctively covered her mouth, dumbfounded.

All emotions seemed to be completely shattered by the pure brilliance before my eyes.

A childlike surprise and awe instantly filled her heart.

But this is just the beginning.

As if the prelude had been ignited by the first golden flame, the fireworks array set up by Zhou Mingyuan, like a dormant volcano awakened, began to erupt in a dazzling display.

The entire night sky transformed into a kaleidoscope of ever-changing shapes.

Colors explode, flow, and blend.

Golden rain curtain, crimson waterfall, silver river, purple shooting star
Lights take turns appearing, vying for attention and using the inky black sky as a paintbrush, their imaginations soaring freely.

The enormous sound waves echoed repeatedly on the river, washing over our eardrums.

Gu Caiwei almost forgot where she was.

She tilted her chin up, her fair profile illuminated by stunningly beautiful lines.

Her peach blossom eyes were wide open, filled with light.

Li Zhi was also speechless, her cherry lips slightly parted, her eyes and brows filled with the fiery light of the sky, experiencing the pure visual shock.

Oh My God.
At this moment, her evaluation of Zhou Mingyuan's birthday gift rose another level.

Why is he so dedicated?

He actually created the purest romance in the most clumsy and challenging way.

"Watch out! The big one is coming!"

Zhou Mingyuan's voice sounded somewhat muffled amidst the explosion.

He stretched out his hand in the darkness, pointing excitedly to the sky.

A particularly thick silver firework tube was seen, its beam of light exceptionally bright, piercing straight into the sky.

When it reached its highest point, it did not explode immediately, but seemed to pause for a moment.

Followed by.

“Bang bang bang bang bang!!!”

It wasn't a single sound, but a series of rapid, drum-like explosions.

The beam of light exploded continuously high in the sky, each explosion precisely forming a clear English letter.

One by one, they lit up in the night sky:

"Happy Birthday Vivian!"

The blessings stretched across the dark sky, each letter burning with fiery silver light, the sound dazzling.

"No way! Holy crap!"

Gu Caiwei could no longer contain herself and jumped up excitedly, screaming out.

Overwhelmed by surprise and emotion, she was momentarily speechless, instinctively gripping her best friend's arm, her fingertips trembling with excitement.

“This is too…”

Li Zhi was also so shocked by this extremely impactful scene that she was speechless, her mouth agape.

Custom-made subtitle fireworks—something she and Gu Caiwei had only ever seen in the news or on television.

Where did Zhou Mingyuan get it from?
The silver name lingered in the air for only a brief but brilliant few seconds.

The light gradually dimmed and dissipated, turning into countless tiny silver specks, like a meteor shower, carrying the last warmth as they slowly fell onto the river surface.

Gu Caiwei was completely smitten.

She stood at the center of the frenzy of light and sound, tilted her head back, took a deep breath, and her eyes involuntarily reddened.

An ultimate visual impact, pure sentiment, and a wildly growing romance.

After being deeply affected by the series of events, she was almost unable to control her emotions.

She even forgot about taking photos and videos out of instinct.

The final roar gradually subsided.

The countless flames, like stardust that had burned out, reluctantly merged into the boundless night with their glittering afterglow.

The strong smell of gunpowder permeated the cold air, carrying the lingering warmth of a fire.

The world was once again shrouded in darkness and silence.

Only the lingering buzzing in my ears and the persistent colorful spots on my retina proved that the breathtaking spectacle I had just witnessed was not an illusion.

"."

The river breeze tousled the bangs of the sponsor, and under the night sky, Gu Caiwei rubbed her eyes.

The final fireworks display that lit up the entire riverbank night sky, regardless of value or rationality, etched her name onto the birthday night sky in the most primal way.

This was destined to be the most splendid and unforgettable birthday of her life.

(End of this chapter)