Chapter 2249 - 722: Yan City, Yan City_4

This was the first time in her life, looking down from a God’s perspective at the place she had lived.

The clouds flowed like cotton wool beneath the wings, and the sun poured down without obstruction from ten thousand meters above, dazzling yet warm.

She closed her eyes, feeling the tranquility that came from being far away from the hustle and bustle.

A two and a half hour flight, neither long nor short.

She didn’t watch a movie, nor did she listen to music, but just quietly gazed out of the window, looking at the boundless sea of clouds.

Sometimes pondering, sometimes smiling.

When the plane began to descend slowly, breaking through the clouds, her heart tightened little by little.

Outside the window, that unique northern winter land gradually became clear.

Crisscrossed field paths, bare trees, roads winding like ribbons...

She had finally returned.

The plane landed smoothly.

Zhang Yan put on the down jacket she had prepared in advance and followed the crowd out of the boarding bridge.

As she set foot on the land of Yan City, a long-lost air instantly filled her nostrils.

Dry and cold.

Familiar yet strange.

Those sealed away by time.

Memories of Yan City, memories of university, memories of him.

They also seemed to be brushed by the wind, gradually becoming clear.

Her academic talent was not that great, even though she had tried her best for three years in high school, she just barely crossed the second-tier university line.

She could have gone to an ordinary local college and spent her four years peacefully.

But that summer, she heard two news.

One was that Liu Qingning had become the top student in science in the county and went to the unattainable Imperial University.

The other was that his grades were not ideal and he went to Yan City University of Science and Technology.

They were separated.

This news made her make a nearly crazy decision—retaking the exam.

She hopelessly thought, to try for another year and see if she could also get into Yan City University of Science and Technology, even if it was for the most unpopular, most fringe major.

That year, she really used all her strength.

The whole world faded, leaving only black and white test papers and the target named "Yan City".

During the winter break of grade twelve, due to studying too hard, she fell seriously ill.

She had a fever, became delirious, and was hospitalized.

Her mother therefore hurried back from Yang City to Jing County to see her, and brought her a brand-new red cotton jacket and a white sweater, looking quite trendy.

On the day she was discharged, it snowed.

She heard that the universities in Yan City had already gone on vacation.

By some inexplicable impulse, she boldly went to a barbershop and dyed her hair the then trending chestnut color.

Then she put on that brand-new red coat and arrived outside his home.

In that alley, the snow creaked underfoot.

She paced back and forth.

She just wanted to see him again, like before, chat a little, however meaningless, just to accumulate a bit more studying motivation for the harder years ahead.

As it turned out, she really did wait for him.

A year apart, he had changed a lot, shedding his youthful innocence and becoming silent and reserved, with eyes that held a depth she couldn’t comprehend.

But apparently, he didn’t immediately recognize this girl with dyed hair and new clothes.

She also didn’t dare to speak.

Just as he was about to enter his home, he turned back and looked at her deeply.

He recognized her.

But he only nodded lightly and then turned around, disappearing behind the vermilion gate. (Chapter 517)

That day, after returning to her aunt’s house, she buried herself under the covers and cried for a long, long time.

In the second semester of grade twelve, she kept quietly studying.

Ultimately, she was still a dozen points short, missing out on Yan City University of Science and Technology, and could only go to the nearby Yan City Agricultural University.

However, she wasn’t too disappointed.

Because finally, she could breathe in the same city as him.

There.

She had seen him eating in the cafeteria with his roommates, devouring hungrily; seen him sitting in the lecture hall, his focused side profile while listening carefully; seen him borrowing those professional books in the library that she couldn’t understand; seen him silently running on the playground at dusk; and even crossed paths with him multiple times at the night market outside the campus...

Yan City, Yan City.

For her, it was never just a city.

It was the place she barely reached with all her youthful determination and courage, where she could see him.

...

The sudden uproar at her ear surged in like a tide, pulling Zhang Yan back to reality from that long memory.

She followed the crowd around a long corner.

The view ahead opened up brightly.

Bright top lights, high vaulted ceilings, streams of people coming from all directions, continuous announcements and noise...

She stood there, looking at this vast yet unfamiliar space, momentarily a bit at a loss.

Instinctively, she stood on tiptoe, her gaze crossing the bustling crowd.

Struggling to spot his figure.

But her height was limited, her view obstructed.

And then.

A familiar voice called out from beside her: "Zhang Yan!"

She instinctively looked in the direction of the voice and saw the figure she had been longing for day and night.

He was walking towards her through the passing crowd.

A simple dark gray cashmere coat, a bright yet warm smile on his face, raising his arm high and waving vigorously in her direction.

Handsome and tall, gentle yet full of strength.

The hustle and bustle of the airport hall and the crowd became a blurry, flowing backdrop.

Looking at his figure.

Zhang Yan’s footsteps involuntarily came to a halt.

Her eyes unexpectedly moistening.