Lovely Allergen - Chap 16

It had been two months since the results were announced. Le Zhishi was overjoyed when he saw the list of winners on the bulletin board. That day, his mind was filled with the words, “My brother won the award,” and “Of course my brother will win the award.”

Autumn here was just like spring, lasting no more than two weeks. Sometimes, it would change from summer to winter in just one day. The only thing that proved that autumn had existed was the fragrance of osmanthus flowers in the city, which lingered in the cold autumn wind.

Yang and Qi Zhe had two large osmanthus trees in their small courtyard. One was a glistening yellow osmanthus tree, while the other was a redder osmanthus tree. During the month-long break, Le Zhishi and Song Yu were called by Lin Rong to pick osmanthus trees.

They were woken up early in the morning. Coincidentally, they were wearing the same sweater that Lin Rong bought last year. Song Yu’s was black, while Le Zhishi’s was milky white.

Lin Rong spread a large clean tablecloth around the osmanthus trees in the courtyard. The two boys used thin bamboo poles to knock on the branches. Golden fragments scattered in the fragrance. Le Zhishi had liked doing this since he was a child. Although other flowers were also fragrant, osmanthus was different. Its fragrance was sweet and seemed to be connected to the taste buds.

“It’s enough.” Lin Rong smiled and put away a cloth full of osmanthus flowers. “There’s not much left. Leave some for me to smell.”

The two boys stopped. Song Yu put away the bamboo pole. He turned his head and saw Le Zhishi’s fluffy hair covered in osmanthus flowers. It was yellow like a layer of maple syrup on a Souffle. He quietly reached out his hand. The end of the bamboo pole swayed from behind and finally knocked on the back of Le Zhishi’s head.

Le Zhishi suddenly covered his head and turned around. The osmanthus flowers on his head fluttered, but he still saw Song Yu put away the bamboo pole. “You hit me.”

Song Yu did not have the slightest intention to admit it. The bamboo pole was already back on his back. His hands were clasped behind his back, and he did not say anything.

“Aunt Rong, my brother knocked on my head.” Le Zhishi chased after her, the bamboo pole in his hand fell to the ground, sending osmanthus flowers flying.

Lin Rong helplessly smiled. “Hey, watch out for the flowers!”

Instead of stepping on the flowers, Le Zhishi ran over and stepped on a corner of the tablecloth. Le Zhishi slipped and fell forward. Fortunately, Song Yu caught him.

The sweet fragrance smashed into his chest, and the fine petals hidden in the fibers of Song Yu’s sweater were also knocked out by Le Zhishi’s fall. They were like little thoughts that spilled out, unnoticed.

“Stop fooling around.” Song Yu held his elbow and helped him up.

“You’re the one who started it.” Le Zhishi didn’t let her off.

Song Yu glanced at him. “I wanted to remind you that there are a lot of flowers on your head.”

“Aren’t you the same?”

In the end, the two of them lowered their heads and patted the osmanthus flowers off their heads.

There were two large pots of flowers, and there were many withered flowers and flower stems mixed in. The mother and son sat at the table in the empty dining room and began to pick the flowers, chatting while they were at it. The petals were only the size of rice grains, and the flower stems and stems were even finer. Le Zhishi picked until his eyes were about to go dizzy, but it seemed like there was no end to it.

“I know why this is delicious.” Le Zhishi turned his neck. “It’s not the flowers that are delicious, it’s the time.”

“That’s a very good saying.” Lin Rong was a little surprised, but also a little emotional. “The time spent makes the food more delicious. Actually, it’s not just about making food. It’s the same for everything. ”

Song Yu thought of the “The Little Prince” that he read to Le Zhishi when he was a child. He probably couldn’t remember it himself, but the words of these bedtime reading still remained in his mind.

[You’ve spent so much time on your roses. That’s why your roses are so important.]

Sometimes, he wondered if this was also their relationship. The time and companionship that he had spent on her had become sunk costs that he couldn’t give up now.

The golden osmanthus flowers were picked in a large pot. After washing and drying, they were beautiful and clean. Lin Rong sprinkled a little salt and mixed the osmanthus flowers to get rid of the astringent taste. Song Yu and Le Zhishi disinfected the glass jar with boiling water. The processed flowers were divided into two. One half was used to make sweet osmanthus flowers, and the other half was used to make sweet osmanthus flowers syrup.

The method of making sweet osmanthus flowers was very simple. A thick layer of osmanthus flowers was placed in the glass jar, followed by a thick layer of white sugar. In this way, a little white wine was poured on top of the white sugar to cap it, and then a lid was placed on it. All that was left was to be brought home and refrigerated in the refrigerator.

“So much sugar.” Le Zhishi stared at the glass jar, and the glass tube reflected his face.

“You’ve worked so hard in school. It’s only right to eat more sugar.”

Le Zhishi couldn’t help but think of Senior Xu Qichen, who he had eaten with last time.

He looked like he needed to eat more sugar.

The method of making sweet osmanthus flowers syrup was more Japanese. White wine of the same weight and fine sugar were mixed with three times the water until it was slightly sticky. Lin Rong scooped up a spoonful for Le Zhishi to taste. The sweetness was just right, so she poured the osmanthus flowers into it.

“I want to give Senior Xu Qichen a bottle.”

Hearing Le Zhishi suddenly say this, Song Yu glanced at him, as if asking why.

Before Le Zhishi could answer, Lin Rong, who was stirring the syrup, also remembered the speech and asked Song Yu, “Those two kids also won awards, right?”

“Yeah.” Song Yu squeezed half a lemon and washed his hands.

“When I heard you mention it last time, I felt that Little Xu was quite pitiful.” Lin Rong couldn’t help but sigh. “Of all times, something like this happened right before high school. If it were any other child, they definitely wouldn’t be able to go to school.”

Song Yu didn’t reply. His first reaction was to give Lin Rong a look. Lin Rong realized something and changed the topic. “But this child is smart. He’ll definitely be good at Peking University and Tsinghua University in the future.”

However, this didn’t manage to divert Le Zhishi’s attention. As Song Yu expected, he asked very directly, “What happened?”

“Nothing.” Song Yu helped his mother ladle out the osmanthus syrup and said calmly, “He got into a car accident after his middle school exams and was seriously injured.”

His parents had also passed away.

“I see …” Le Zhishi recalled how quiet Xu Qichen had been during dinner that day. He was only about the same age as him when he got into the car accident. However, he couldn’t say the words “pitiful” because he didn’t like to say such words. He felt that Xu Qichen wouldn’t like to hear them either.

Lin Rong changed the topic and pushed the lemon juice and wine glass in front of him. “Alright, Le, I’ll leave the finishing work to you. The last thing before accompanying your uncle on his business trip is also done. ”

Le Zhishi followed her instructions and poured three spoonfuls of lemon juice and two spoonfuls of orange liqueur into the syrup. He divided them into jars of jam and considered it a great success.

When the sun came out in the afternoon, Le Zhishi and Song Yu sat at the stone table in the small courtyard. One was silently memorizing classical Chinese while the other was doing practice questions. Lin Rong brought out a pot of hot black tea with lemon slices and osmanthus syrup. Le Zhishi drank two large cups of tea and ate a small plate of fried fresh milk drizzled with syrup. He was very satisfied.

The next morning, the first thing Le Zhishi did when he woke up was to see if his osmanthus syrup had melted. When he opened the refrigerator door, the layers of white sugar had indeed melted.

“Amazing.” He whispered to himself and then unscrewed the jars one by one according to Lin Rong’s instructions and stirred the osmanthus syrup inside.

They spent an entire morning working hard to make six small pots of the flowers that a big tree produced after a year of hard work.

The night before the couple went on their business trip, Le Zhishi excitedly distributed his gifts. “I have two jars of osmanthus syrup syrup. One jar is for my senior and the other jar is for my friend.”

“What about your syrup?” Lin Rong asked.

“I’ll give the syrup to Song Yu gege!” Le Zhishi already had a plan. Song Yu’s room also had a refrigerator. He would put the syrup there and then find an excuse to go to Song Yu’s room to drink tea.

He was a man of action. He carried the syrup upstairs and prepared to stuff it all into Song Yu’s refrigerator when he was not there.

When he opened the door, he suddenly found that Song Yu’s refrigerator, which was usually empty, was actually filled with yogurt.

It was cheesy.

On Monday, Le Zhishi brought the osmanthus syrup syrup syrup and was careful to not break the glass bottle. He was going to give it to his best friend, Jiang Yufan.

After the monthly exam, their class changed their seats. Now Le Zhishi sat in group four by the window and Jiang Yufan sat in group one by the window. He arrived early for the morning self-study session. He saw that Jiang Yufan’s window was open and that he had not arrived yet. He stood in the corridor and opened his bag to take out the jar.

The incandescent light in the classroom shone on the syrup syrup syrup syrup, making it look especially attractive.

Jiang Yufan’s deskmate’s eyes lit up when he saw it. “Wow, what’s this? It looks delicious. ”

Le Zhishi was about to speak when his back was suddenly hit and he almost dropped the glass bottle in his hand. His back hurt. Le Zhishi put down the bottle and turned around with a frown. He saw four boys surrounding a short boy and pushing him toward the bathroom.

“Ignore them,” Jiang Yufan’s deskmate said to Le Zhishi. “Wang Jie from the next class is a hooligan. The short one is a kid who skipped a grade. I think his name is Cheng Mingming. He’s always being bullied. ”

“Why?” Le Zhishi asked, still frowning.

“I heard that his family is rich and that his grandparents are taking care of him. I don’t know how he got into trouble, but the hooligans in his class are always blackmailing him.”

Jiang Yufan’s deskmate was very disdainful. “If you have the ability, go challenge the bigger one. What’s the point of bullying a kid without parents? Isn’t that right? ”

“You’re right.” Le Zhishi took his bag and put it on Jiang Yufan’s desk. He turned around and went to the bathroom. Jiang Yufan’s deskmate saw that something was wrong. He leaned on the window and wanted to call out to him. “Hey, no, Le Zhishi!”

He did not turn around. Jiang Yufan’s deskmate was puzzled. This student was famous for his good temper. Why was he so brave today? However, he did not dare to follow him. If something really happened, he would not be able to get away with it.

The bathroom was crowded with people. There was even a lookout at the door. When Le Zhishi went over, he was immediately stopped. “What are you doing?”

“Washing my hands,” Le Zhishi said.

“I’ll wash it later.” The lookout also recognized him. After all, he was also a famous person in the junior high department. It was not good to say something unpleasant. “Can’t you see that there’s something going on inside?”

Le Zhishi looked innocent. “What’s going on?”

The lookout was obviously choked by his words. He glanced back awkwardly. Le Zhishi took the opportunity to push his arm and enter. The lookout hurriedly pulled, but Le Zhishi shook him off. After all, Le Zhishi always compared his height to Song Yu. That was why he always felt that he grew slowly. However, compared to the boys in the same grade, his height was still superior.

“What are you doing?”

Le Zhishi calculated in his heart. The fierce-looking guy with the buzz cut standing in the middle was most likely the Wang Jie that Jiang Yufan’s deskmate had mentioned. After all, he didn’t want to fight, and he didn’t want to cause trouble even more.

“Wang Jie classmate.”

As expected, the guy with the buzz cut turned his head and sized him up. “What’s the matter?”

Le Zhishi nodded like a human alarm clock. “There’s still fifteen minutes before morning self-study.”

“Do I need you to remind me? Are you the only good student? “Wang Jie said harshly, but he turned around.” It’s not your business. Don’t meddle in it. ”

Seeing that his reminder did not have the desired effect, Le Zhishi sighed and said bluntly, “Don’t bully your classmates.”

“Do you think you’re acting in a school drama?” Wang Jie sneered with dissatisfaction. “Don’t think you’re a big deal just because some little girls are supporting you. Who do you think you are?” He kicked the student in the corner. “Are you close to him? He’s helping you because he wants to use you to show off, right? ”

The few people who followed Le Zhishi also came over and seemed to be ready to block him, but they were still pushed aside by Le Zhishi. He went forward and helped the student up. He found that the kid’s pants pockets were flipped open, so he looked up at Wang Jie. “Give him back his money.”

Wang Jie was annoyed and pushed Le Zhishi fiercely. “Who do you think you are? How dare you meddle in my business!”

Le Zhishi’s shoulder blade hit the wall, and he frowned in pain, but he did not want to get entangled with such people. Besides, there were so many of them, and he would definitely be at a disadvantage if they really fought.

Le Zhishi had never been in the limelight since he was young, so this was very unfamiliar to him. When he encountered something he did not know how to deal with, his habit was to imitate and imagine how he would deal with it if it was Song Yu.

The kid who was beaten was very scared, and he stuck to Le Zhishi’s back and trembled. Le Zhishi tried to make himself look calmer, like Song Yu always did. “If you just hit someone, it’s not a big deal. In front of the teacher, you can say it’s a small conflict between classmates. But if you don’t pay the money back, it’s robbery, and you can go to the police. ”

After saying this seriously, Le Zhishi pointed outside. “Look, there are many people in the corridor who saw it, and there are also cameras around the corner. If they really did call the police, there would be a lot of evidence. “After saying this, he winked and asked Wang Jie,” Have you been to the police station? ”

Wang Jie’s face suddenly changed. Although he was called a gangster by everyone, he was still a third-year middle school student and had not really mixed in with the underworld, and had never been to the police station. Being scared like this, although he did not say it out loud, he was still a little nervous. “F * ck, I want to see if you dare to call the police!”

Cheng Mingming, who was bullied, was so scared that he hid behind Le Zhishi. Le Zhishi held his arm tightly. “Even if he doesn’t dare, I can take him to the police station. After all, we only need to take a statement.”

In fact, he had never been to the police station, so he did not understand the process. Statements and whatnot were all seen in TV dramas, but he saw that this Wang Jie was just a paper tiger, so he decided to scare him first.

“You!” Wang Jie choked and cursed. He turned around and ordered his “little brother”, “Give it to him. It’s just a small amount of money, why the f * ck do you think it’s a big deal.”

The little brother threw the two 100 yuan and one 50 yuan on the ground. Le Zhishi bent down to pick them up, one by one, “See if there’s anything missing?”

“Missing my ass!”

Hearing Wang Jie’s scolding, Le Zhishi only frowned and did not respond. Seeing Cheng Mingming shook his head and whispered that there was nothing missing, he felt that the matter was almost settled. So, he helped the scared kid out of his wits and walked out. Wang Jie felt that he had lost face. Even though it was over, his mouth was still not clean. “So f * cking unlucky ….”

Le Zhishi was too lazy to respond. His footsteps did not stop. When he reached the door, he heard another sentence.

“Your mother is dead, so you’re rushing to meddle in other people’s business. F * ck.”