My abstract plant was exposed by my sister.

After the purple tomatoes were harvested, Xiao Kui picked two and sent them to the fan who was learning to dance.

The renovation of the wall is still underway, and everything is proceeding according to schedule under Wu Tao's supervision.

In order to see the giant mushroom as soon as possible, countless people urged the Cultural and Tourism Bureau to make progress every day under its official account. As a last resort, the construction team had to work around the clock.

That morning, Wu Tao arrived at the construction site as usual to check on the progress of the construction.

The road construction project undertaken by the Culture and Tourism Bureau is nearing completion, and the final layer of asphalt is scheduled to be laid today.

But when he entered the construction site, he didn't see a single person.

The scene was completely silent. The excavator was parked in place, and the road roller was leaning to one side of the road. Not a single driver could be seen.

There was still some cement left in the mixer, which had begun to solidify.

Wu Tao: "?"

He took out his phone and called Mr. Qian, the boss of the construction team.

Boss Qian answered the phone with a bewildered expression: "Captain Wu? What's wrong?"

Wu Tao: "Where are the construction team members? Why is no one at the construction site?"

Mr. Qian was also surprised: "Nobody's here? How is that possible? I'll contact them right now."

Wu Tao hung up the phone, stood on the empty construction site, frowned, and carefully calculated the remaining construction period.

Liu Xudong also wandered over there. Seeing that no one was working, he asked curiously, "Foreman, where are the workers?"

Wu Tao: "I don't know."

Liu Xudong looked around, then his eyes lit up. He pointed to the open space next to the giant mushroom: "Captain, look, bamboo shoots are sprouting!"

Wu Tao looked over and, sure enough, several bamboo shoots had already sprouted from the ground where bamboo rhizomes had been planted before.

The tallest one has grown to over ten centimeters, its tender green husk covered with fine brown spots, shimmering faintly in the morning light.

Although it's not very noticeable during the day, you can still see it when you get close.

Liu Xudong quickly stepped forward, curiously squatted down, and examined it closely.

The spots on the bamboo shoot tips resembled tear stains, their fluorescent light flickering on and off.

He thought it looked nice, so he moved closer to see the pattern of the spots more clearly.

The moment he leaned in, a buried memory suddenly surged into his mind.

It was a sour and astringent taste, like that of a green apricot, and his thoughts were pulled back to ten years ago, to a memory he thought he had long forgotten.

He remembered her face: her ponytail and the two dimples she had when she smiled.

They went through the toughest three years of high school together, doing problems together, getting scolded together, and enjoying the breeze on the rooftop together.

She later got into university, but he didn't and joined the army.

So he never said those three words.

In the first year after we separated, we would occasionally send messages. In the second year, the messages became less and less frequent. In the third year, we lost contact completely.

He didn't know when he let go; maybe it was the fifth year, maybe the eighth.

But in that very instant, all the past memories surfaced, and all the regrets became vivid in my mind.

He also recalled his timidity, inferiority complex, and cowardice back then.

Later, he regretted it. Countless times he dreamt of returning to school, where she stood at the classroom door, smiling at him: "Hey, what are you staring at like that?"

He desperately wanted to muster the courage to say those words.

But when faced with her smiling eyes and warm smile, he couldn't say anything.

His eyes reddened, and tears streamed down his cheeks.

He squatted on the ground, hugging his knees, murmuring her name: "Xiaoya... Xiaoya..."

Xiao Kui arrived early today because, according to the plan, the finishing touches would begin today.

She was live-streaming, chatting with her fans while keeping track of the construction progress.

Before she even reached the mushroom, she saw Liu Xudong weeping bitterly.

The comments section was also filled with curiosity:

"What's wrong with Da Liu?"

"He looks like he's crying!"

"Crying over bamboo shoots?"

The others also came over, and the group stood far behind Liu Xudong, watching him squat on the ground, crying bitterly and repeatedly calling out "Xiaoya".

Everyone stopped in their tracks and turned to look at Lin Muyang.

Their eyes were unanimously focused: What strange thing have you come up with this time?

Lin Muyang was silent for a moment, then said expressionlessly, "If I said this has nothing to do with me, and it's simply that he has a girlfriend, would you believe me?"

Everyone shook their heads in unison, "I don't believe you for a second."

Lin Muyang: "..."

Da Zhuang whispered to Xiao Zhao, "Does Brother Liu have a girlfriend?"

Xiao Zhao: "I don't know. I've never heard him mention it."

Dazhuang: "Then who is he crying for?"

Xiao Zhao: "It might be her ex-girlfriend."

Wu Tao wanted to go forward to comfort Liu Xudong, but he immediately pulled his foot back after taking a step.

There was something clearly wrong with those bamboo shoots. What if I went up there and ended up dying like Liu Xudong?

He turned to Dazhuang and Xiao Zhao: "You two go and help him over here, don't let him stay there."

The two exchanged a glance, held their breath in unison, and quickly stepped forward to drag Liu Xudong over.

"Good heavens, Liu has fallen for it again."

"Why is it always him?"

"I feel so sorry for him, I feel sorry for him for three seconds."

After a while, Liu Xudong finally calmed down a bit. He looked up at Wu Tao with teary eyes and asked, "Captain... am I really that embarrassing?"

Wu Tao replied expressionlessly, "Yes."

Liu Xudong cried again.

When Mr. Qian, the boss of the construction team, called, Wu Tao immediately put the call on speakerphone.

"Captain Wu, I've found out. The workers said that early this morning, they saw several bamboo shoots glowing and wanted to get closer to take a look."

Then they started to miss home, and some even cried. They didn't want to work anymore, saying they wanted to go back to see their wives and children.

Mr. Qian's voice carried a hint of helplessness, "Look at this..."

Wu Tao glanced at Liu Xudong, then at Zhu Lin, and said into the phone, "Have them come back. I'll handle things with Zhu Lin."

Boss Qian: "What if they come back and cry again?"

Wu Tao: "As long as you don't get too close, you'll be fine."

After hanging up the phone, everyone looked at Liu Xudong again, and then turned to look at Lin Muyang.

Wu Tao asked curiously, "Teacher Lin, what's going on?"

"It must have triggered some kind of memory or emotion?" Lin Muyang said, looking at the others, "We need more samples for testing, you guys..."

Before he could finish speaking, Wu Tao spoke up first: "Ahem, I just remembered, I still have a few morning exercise programs to finish, Teacher Lin, you go ahead and do your work."

After saying that, he left without looking back.

Upon seeing this, Xiao Zhao and the others immediately understood.

"Oh right, I still have exams."

"I also have blind dates."

"I want to have more children."

As he spoke, he disappeared in a flash.

The live stream was filled with laughter:

"Haha, the reputation of the expressionless guy."

"Whoever goes to the society dies."

"Liu has already set an example; those who remain are all warriors."

Watching them leave, Lin Muyang looked at them with disdain. It was just a test, wasn't it? Was it really that scary?

After saying that, he looked at Xiaokui, who was still live streaming.

Xiao Kui: Ah, me?