Chapter 586: Chapter 586: Retracing Memories

Unable to hold her at night, Xie Qingci changed his strategy. Early in the morning, he used the key to open the door to the next room, walked in openly, and greeted Yu Xia with a morning kiss assault.

Then, feeling refreshed, he pulled her out of the blanket.

"Didn’t you say you wanted to eat the street pancakes? I’ll take you to buy some."

Yu Xia was annoyed at him and slapped him on the back.

"Can’t sleep well so you’re here to torture me, right?"

Xie Qingci did not deny it: "I have no choice, rationally I have to respect you, but essentially I can’t be away from you, it’s too hard, so I can only act crazy in the morning."

"... I think you’re a bit crazy."

She splashed cold water on her face in the bathroom, instantly waking her up, then tidied up and followed him downstairs.

Xie Qingci went to the kitchen to talk to Xu Yan about today’s plans.

"I’m taking her out, we won’t be back for lunch, we’ll return in the afternoon."

He didn’t have the habit of notifying people when going out before, and even now he didn’t consider whether they would approve.

Xu Yan seemed like he wanted to say something but stopped. However, his son had grown into a mature man taller than his dad, so sometimes it’s hard to argue against his decisions.

Ultimately, it was Xie Yin who agreed, but he gave a prior reminder.

"Treat her with respect."

Men understand men best, and from yesterday’s interaction, it was clear how much his son was attached to the girl. Once he’s outside, can he restrain himself?

Xie Qingci nodded solemnly, taking Yu Xia out the door.

Today is New Year’s Eve, the last day of the old year. Office workers are also on holiday, staying at home. There were few people on the streets besides some energetic children braving the cold air.

Yu Xia and Xie Qingci still shared a scarf, walking hand in hand leisurely.

The morning mist hadn’t cleared yet, moistening their faces with a chill, suddenly causing a shiver.

Plus, their breath turned into condensation, and before long, Yu Xia’s eyelashes glistened with droplets.

She closed her eyes, expecting him to help wipe them off, but Xie Qingci, like a weirdo, pinched her face and stared for a while, then carefully kissed away the droplets.

Luckily, there was no one else on this road.

Yu Xia pushed him away annoyedly, and wiped her face with the scarf roughly.

"This is a public street, can you be mindful of your actions?"

What if kids see and start following us around?

"Sure—I’ll do whatever you say."

Xie Qingci pulled her hand inside his clothes, warming her slightly cold hands quickly with his body heat.

After crossing the traffic lights and walking a bit further, they found the breakfast shop selling street pancakes on an old street.

There were even people queuing up.

"Their shop is here, so they don’t close during the Spring Festival. Many students are used to having their breakfast, so they come during holidays too." He explained, bringing her to queue up with the crowd.

A small shop without seating space, with steamers piled in layers, the rising steam from opening them obscured the food inside and the owner’s face.

On a nearby iron griddle, eggs were being fried. The owner swiftly rolled out dough over the egg wash, added various toppings skillfully, spread fragrant homemade sauce, folded it, and handed it to the person in front.

Then she asked the queue behind, "Next! What would you like?"

It was a lively scene, with many students yawning in line and elders with kids.

She could almost imagine, back then, Xie Qingci perhaps queued lazily on such mornings with his friends to buy breakfast.

If he biked to school, he would probably hang the pancake on the handlebar, biking a long way out, with a group of boys laughing and joking, talking about how they can’t wait to eat the pancake, and only he might not respond, maybe idly watching the sun rise at the end of the road while waiting at a red light.

Overall, a very ordinary yet warm high school period.

"What are you thinking about?" Xie Qingci wrapped her shoulders to pull her close, dodging passers-by, then asked, "Want to add extra eggs to the pancake? Or try something else?"

Yu Xia looked at him: "What do you recommend? Haven’t you eaten here for years?" 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

"Tea eggs perhaps, their tea eggs are really popular."

When it was their turn, he ordered two street pancakes, two soy milks, and a tea egg. With familiarity, he tore a small plastic bag and scooped a tea egg from a large rice cooker.

The landlady noticed his skilled movements, unlike the students around, so she took a closer look and recognized him.

"Is that you, Xie?"

He frequented this shop during his six years in junior and senior high school, so it was no surprise the landlady remembered him, especially since he was such an outstanding student, impossible not to notice.

Xie Qingci nodded and smiled at the landlady: "Your business is still as good as ever."

"Haven’t seen you since you graduated. It’s been three years, hasn’t it?" The landlady said happily, adding lots of toppings to their pancakes.

When handing over the food, she glanced at Yu Xia and said to Xie Qingci with satisfaction: "Is she your girlfriend? She’s really pretty."

Yu Xia just smiled.

After a brief chat, they took their breakfast and moved aside, the queue automatically filled in behind them. A child in line curiously watched them, with a clear gaze, but when noticed, shyly hid behind an adult.

But they raised the scarf, so they weren’t easily recognized.

Walking a short distance out, Xie Qingci peeled a tea egg through the plastic bag and fed it to her.

"Have a taste."

With a savory tea egg, a sip of hot soy milk, and a bite of the crispy, chewy, spicy street pancakes, their entire body felt invigorated and less afraid of the winter morning’s chill.

"Delicious. From this, it seems your high school life was quite enjoyable too."

"Not bad. If you were there, maybe it would have been more enjoyable." Xie Qingci said with a smile.

Watching her nibble away the egg white bit by bit, leaving only the yolk, he naturally popped it into his mouth.

Then he asked her: "What about you? Did you buy breakfast outside in high school?"

"Of course. But most of the time, I had my classmates bring it since my brother usually dropped me off at school, without stops on the way."

"Your brother really kept a close eye on you. Did he ever stop you from eating outside food?"

She took another bite of the pancake and mumbled: "What are you thinking? I’m not some delicate princess. Even if he forbade me, I could eat it if I begged a couple of times. Hey, where are we going?"

Xie Qingci held up the soy milk for her to sip, took a sip himself, and looked down the familiar street, saying:

"To the school’s area. Want to see that room? I bought it."

Yu Xia thought for a moment and teased him: "Why, are you taking me to retrace those memories?"

"You’re right, taking you back to relive those deep impressions."