Zhou Tuoxing had sent her a message, presumably after some consideration.
Uncertain about what was going through his mind, He Chuan Zhou saw that when she returned to the station,
the message box still displayed "The other party is typing," without any new message.
Yuan Lingyun had already gone home. Xu Yu said she seemed to be in a much better state after adjusting, and
had found a positive outlook.
"She said she wants to focus on her career, so when Liu Guangyu gets out, she can take care of him. They
plan to open a shop together. Even if they don't make much money, at least they can support each other and
live a normal life."
He Chuan Zhou said, "That's good."
"Right?" Xu Yu said, feeling a mix of emotions. "Knowing someone would be willing to die for you really
makes you braver. At least she has someone to rely on emotionally."
He Chuan Zhou organized her documents and asked a colleague to submit them, then left for home, wearing her
coat.
She intended to drive herself but felt too tired, worrying about the risk of driving while fatigued, so she
called a taxi instead.
While waiting for the taxi, Zhou Tuoxing finally sent his long-awaited response.
His message was brief.
Zhou Tuoxing: "I hope you can cut my hair again."
Zhou Tuoxing: "I have the tools at home."
He then sent his home address.
He Chuan Zhou read those lines twice, caught off guard. She began to recall how long it had been since she
last cut someone's hair.
It had indeed been several years.
He Chuan Zhou lowered her hands, her gaze falling on a sparsely leafy plant across the road, and she
couldn't help but remember the first time she cut Zhou Tuoxing's hair. His face was full of reluctance and
disdain.
Zhou Tuoxing's hair was always long and oddly styled. Unwilling to go to a barbershop, his teachers, annoyed
by his long hair, would occasionally trim it with whatever scissors they had at hand.
As a result, his hair became a mess of different lengths, worse than a bird's nest.
When He Xu first met him, he couldn't stand Zhou Tuoxing's excessively long bangs. A week later, he found
the mess unbearable and took Zhou home on a Saturday afternoon, handing him over to He Chuan Zhou to deal
with.
Although Zhou's hair couldn't get any worse, he was strangely worried, squirming in the chair and
questioning He Chuan Zhou, "Are you sure you can do this? Maybe we should just let the teacher cut it."
"Don't move," He Chuan Zhou said, pressing his shoulder. "I spent 50 yuan on these professional scissors
from a second-hand store. They originally cost 5,100. If you keep moving, you'll shorten their lifespan."
Her exaggerated claim left Zhou Tuoxing speechless. Before he could decide how to respond, He Chuan Zhou
made a decisive cut, slicing off half his bangs and dashing his hopes of escape.
Zhou Tuoxing, stunned, resigned himself to his fate, a look of despair on his face.
He Xu, sitting nearby, watched the spectacle and occasionally handed tools to He Chuan Zhou. He also held up
a mirror to show Zhou the progress, trying to soothe his nerves.
The whole process took less than fifteen minutes.
He Chuan Zhou packed up the towel and cleaned the scissors. Zhou Tuoxing examined his new haircut with a
mirror, turning his head to inspect her work.
He tried to remain composed, but the smile creeping onto his face betrayed his thoughts.
The new style was neat and tidy, revealing his eyes and ears and giving him a refreshed appearance. The
well-trimmed bangs softened his face, removing the rebellious look in his eyes and adding a touch of
scholarly air.
The important thing was that it matched He Xu's hairstyle.
He Xu, pleased, put an arm around Zhou's shoulders and, grinning, said, "What do you think? Looks good,
right?"
Zhou Tuoxing glanced at He Chuan Zhou. She smirked, indifferent to his earlier doubts.
From then on, she became his regular barber.
In fact, He Chuan Zhou also cut the hair of other kids He Xu helped, like Wang Yifei and Jiang Zhaolin.
Even Tao Siyue's hair was cut by her once.
Tao Siyue had been close to them for a while. She attended the same school as Jiang Zhaolin, and they became
friends for some reason.
Whenever Jiang Zhaolin visited He Chuan Zhou, he would bring Tao Siyue along.
However, due to her shyness and He Chuan Zhou’s reserved nature, they didn't talk much. Also, since He Xu
was a single father, he kept his interactions with teenage girls to a minimum. So, their contact was
limited.
At that time, Tao Siyue had long hair she had grown for five years, which He Chuan Zhou helped cut short.
None of them knew the value of hair, so they rode bicycles around town, asking who would buy it. They
eventually sold it to a barber for 200 yuan.
That money became Jiang Zhaolin's living expenses for two months.
Remembering this, He Chuan Zhou felt as if a cold bucket of water had been poured over her, pulling her
abruptly from her memories.
She closed her eyes, trying to suppress the sadness rising in her heart. Yet, images flashed in her mind
like persistent pop-up windows on a malfunctioning computer, impossible to close. Just then, the taxi
arrived.
He Chuan Zhou got in, gave the driver an address, and leaned back, quickly falling into a semi-sleeping
state.
In her half-dreaming state, scenes of Liu Guangyu and Yuan Lingyun played in her mind—some real, some
imagined from their stories.
Her mind wavered between logic and fantasy, creating a series of vivid scenes. Eventually, only one
remained: a sunlit room filled with warmth.
The scene was bathed in golden light, with the scent of spring and summer flowers in the air.
Zhou Tuoxing stood on the balcony, wearing a shirt similar to He Xu's, a fresh scar on his face. He spoke
with youthful arrogance, "I've decided. I'm going to become a respected police officer!"
He Xu applauded encouragingly.
He Chuan Zhou chuckled.
"What are you laughing at?" Zhou Tuoxing asked, displeased. "What's so funny?"
He Chuan Zhou wrote furiously, then slapped the paper on the table.
The two came over to see what she had written in bold letters:
"Studying medicine won't save the Chinese people."
"Being a cop won't support a family."
She even added a caption: "Change careers while you can."
This enraged both He Xu and Zhou Tuoxing. They scolded her in unison:
"Why are you like this?"
"Yeah! Dad never stopped you from pursuing your dream of being a CEO!"
"How can you say being a cop won't support a family?"
"Government jobs pay well and are stable! This is serious, Chuan Zhou!"
He Chuan Zhou remained unfazed, saying coldly, "I just want you to be realistic."
The scene made He Chuan Zhou smile, but the joy was short-lived as the driver, with a rough voice, woke her
up, saying, "We're here."
He Chuan Zhou sat up, taking a few seconds to shake off her lingering feelings. She paid the fare, noticing
it was more expensive than usual but too tired to argue.
She stepped out, then realized she didn't recognize the area. Knocking on the car window, her voice turned
cold, "Where is this? Why did you bring me here? Do you remember where you picked me up?"
She reached into her pocket, already feeling the hard edge of her ID, when the driver suddenly turned
around, his expression innocent as he exclaimed, "Miss! You can't accuse me like that! Didn't you say to
come here? The Linjiang Chun Di Garden in the East District of A City, that's what you said!"
"Hmm?" He Chuan Zhou’s mind was muddled, unable to remember which address she had given.
Zhou Tuoxing's last message had mentioned Linjiang Chun Di Garden. She might have absentmindedly said that.
With a helpless chuckle, she apologized, "Sorry about that," and quickly got out of the car.
Standing at the entrance to Zhou Tuoxing's residential area, He Chuan Zhou finally came to her senses and
laughed at herself.
Why bother getting out of the car? She could have just turned around and gone back.
Rubbing her forehead, she stepped back to the curb, hesitating between contacting Zhou Tuoxing and going
home, before taking out her phone to order another ride.
It was the rush hour, so after waiting for a few minutes, no ride was assigned to her.
Exhausted and slow to react, she patted her pockets but couldn't find her pack of cigarettes. Frustrated,
she sighed and looked around for a shop to buy a cup of coffee. Just as she turned, she saw Zhou Tuoxing
walking out of the complex, wearing a gray sweater.
Seeing him, she paused.
Zhou Tuoxing also stopped in his tracks, quickly glanced at his phone screen to confirm she hadn’t replied
yet. His expression mixed with surprise and joy, he finally asked calmly, "Why are you here so soon?
Couldn't wait?"
He Chuan Zhou, both amused and exasperated, waved her hand and asked, "Are you going out?"
"...No, I was just coming out for breakfast." Zhou Tuoxing observed her face, frowning, "Did you not sleep
last night?"
He Chuan Zhou nodded, not mentioning that she had come to the wrong place. She ran her fingers through her
hair, exhausted, and said, "I'm waiting for a car."
Just then, her phone rang unexpectedly. It turned out her ride request had finally been accepted, and the
driver was calling to confirm.
He Chuan Zhou answered and was about to walk away when Zhou Tuoxing grabbed her arm.
"Come to my place," he said.
The driver on the other end of the line kept calling, "Hello?"
Zhou Tuoxing's gentle eyes held her gaze as his grip tightened slightly. He repeated, "Come to my place."