Reborn in 1977, I will no longer be my brother's blood bag.

But with just a few words from Zhou Zhiyuan, she was pulled out of the snowy landscape of her past life.

Tell her that it wasn't her fault.

After a long silence, she finally spoke:

"So in this life, you went to the Red Flag Commune."

"Um."

"Go and confirm whether I've left the Lin family?"

"Um."

Why?

Zhou Zhiyuan looked at her.

"Because in your past life, you left too late."

Lin Xiuhe looked up.

She had heard that sentence once before in the library.

But here, on a snowy night, after he finished telling that winter story, listening to it again carries a completely different weight.

Zhou Zhiyuan said:

"I've heard about what happened to you later."

"When they talk about you, they all say it's a pity."

"They said you could have gone much further, but you got held back."

Lin Xiuhe smiled, but the smile was faint.

"That doesn't sound like a compliment."

"It certainly doesn't look like it."

"Then why did you remember it?"

Zhou Zhiyuan bent down and brushed the snow off his scarf.

"Because I remembered that day at the supply and marketing cooperative."

"I remember that little girl who, after crying, still had to get up and drag the sack."

He looked at her.

"I always thought later that if she had left earlier, she wouldn't have had to endure the snow alone for so long."

-

Lin Xiuhe's eyes welled up with tears. She tried to hold them back, but couldn't help laughing again.

"Zhou Zhiyuan".

"Um."

Do you think you're something special?

Zhou Zhiyuan looked at her and finally smiled.

"no."

"Then why did you make it sound so moving?"

"I'm telling the truth."

"Telling the truth is also annoying."

"Um."

He recognized her so quickly that Lin Xiuhe couldn't continue speaking.

Zhou Zhiyuan handed the scarf over again.

"So in this life, I went to the Red Flag Commune."

"I want to confirm whether you have left the Lin family."

Lin Xiuhe looked at him.

"What if I hadn't left?"

"I will show you another way."

"How can I give it to them?"

"I'm giving you information, I'm giving you opportunities, but I'm not choosing for you."

Lin Xiuhe looked at the scarf.

This time, she accepted.

The scarf was warm, carrying a trace of the warmth left by his palm.

She draped the scarf over her arm.

"College entrance exam materials?"

"Um."

"Training news?"

"Um."

"Supply and Marketing Cooperative Registration?"

"I went there early that day because I was afraid Wang Xiulan would delay your procedures."

Lin Xiuhe looked at him.

"You did so much, why didn't you tell me?"

"Because you don't like others making arrangements for you."

"Especially under the guise of 'it's for your own good'."

Lin Xiuhe raised an eyebrow.

"You really understand me."

Zhou Zhiyuan looked at her.

"I suffered a loss in my past life."

"What loss are you going to suffer?"

"You're the one who gets angry the most."

Lin Xiuhe stared at him.

Zhou Zhiyuan added:

"Especially when others say it's for your own good."

Lin Xiuhe's suppressed emotions were slightly dispelled by these words.

She wanted to yell at him, but couldn't bring herself to say it.

In conclusion:

"Serves you right."

Zhou Zhiyuan smiled.

"Yeah, serves him right."

The night wind blows across the lotus pond.

Those old stories that had sunk to the bottom of time were gradually blown away by the wind.

The pain is still there, but it's no longer suffocating.

Lin Xiuhe asked, "What about the Morning Star?"

Zhou Zhiyuan's smile faded.

"I can't touch the Morning Star."

He answered very quickly.

"I know it."

"Knowing that it failed before."

"I also know that it will be mentioned repeatedly many years later."

"But I can't go into your lab."

"I cannot view your information."

"I can't make the decision for you."

Lin Xiuhe looked at him.

She believed that statement.

Because from the very beginning, he was standing outside the door.

He knew the boundaries, and he guarded them.

"So that's why you kept letting me take the position of person in charge first?"

"Um."

Why?

Zhou Zhiyuan looked in the direction of the automation building.

There were still lights on upstairs.

"Because the morning star in the previous life lacked someone who could calculate data."

Lin Xiuhe held the documents tightly to her chest.

"What's missing?"

"We lack someone who dares to make decisions."

"We lack someone who can bring people together."

"We're missing someone who, when something goes wrong, dares to stand up and say 'I'll take responsibility'."

Lin Xiuhe recalled the preliminary trial simulation.

And then there was that line she said in the meeting room—"I'll take responsibility."

She looked at Zhou Zhiyuan.

"So you knew all along that I would win?"

Zhou Zhiyuan shook his head.

I hope you win.

"But I don't know the outcome."

"This life is different from the previous one."

"No one can guarantee that."

Lin Xiuhe looked at him.

"Are you scared?"

"Afraid."

"What are you afraid of?"

"I'm afraid I'll know too much."

"I'm also afraid that I don't know enough."

The wind passed between the two of them.

Holding the documents, Lin Xiuhe suddenly felt a sense of relief somewhere in her heart.

It turns out that Zhou Zhiyuan wasn't omniscient after all.

He also feels fear, and he stands between his past life and this life, unsure which step will lead him astray.

This makes him feel real.

It also gave those heavy secrets a human touch.

Lin Xiuhe held the scarf tightly.

"Zhou Zhiyuan".

"Um."

Did you see me in your past life?

Zhou Zhiyuan looked at her. This time, his gaze lingered for a long time.

She asked very clearly:

"It's not a supply and marketing cooperative."

"It's not a noodle shop."

"It will be a very long time later."

Have you seen me before?

The light in Zhou Zhiyuan's eyes gradually dimmed, and the wind blew up a corner of his scarf.

After a long while, he said:

"I've seen it."

Lin Xiuhe could hear her own heart pounding.

"When?"

Zhou Zhiyuan looked at her.

"The time when you least want others to see you."

The wind by the lotus pond suddenly turned cold.

Lin Xiuhe stood there, the scarf on her arm still warm. But that warmth suddenly couldn't suppress the soreness rising up inside her.

"Preliminary hearing tomorrow."

"Go win first."

Lin Xiuhe draped the scarf over herself.

"it is good."

"Preliminary hearing tomorrow."

Zhou Zhiyuan stood by the lotus pond, the streetlights falling behind him.

Lin Xiuhe walked forward, carrying the documents.

The wind blew from behind.

The scarf was warm against her wrist.

But all she could think about was Zhou Zhiyuan's words—

The time when you least want others to see you.

It turns out that he really did see her in his past life.

Moreover, I've seen her at her worst.

⸻