Chapter 122: United in Love and Affection

“What about your dreams?” Song Mingcheng said earnestly, his tone gentle but insistent. “Yanyan, everything is different now. Those who truly love life look forward, not backward. After all this time, haven’t you realized that? Fate isn’t something we can control. Whatever it gives or withholds, you can’t force it. In your past life, you were held back by the child. Do you want to repeat the same mistakes this time? You will have children someday, but that isn’t the whole of your life. It’s not time to think about that yet. Instead of dwelling on sorrow, cherish the people you have now.”

Dong Yanyan smiled sheepishly. “You’re right. I was just suddenly feeling sad, but I’m much better now.”

“That’s good to hear,” Song Mingcheng smiled. “It’s almost six o’clock. I’m heading downstairs.”

“Oh! I should go upstairs then.” Dong Yanyan hung up the phone, changed into her favorite white sweater, threw on a purple light jacket, quickly checked the mirror, tidied her hair, locked the door, and hurried upstairs. At the staircase landing, she saw Tiantian waving at her from above. “Sister, why are you just coming up? I was about to come down to find you.”

“I’m here now!” Dong Yanyan ran up, linking her arm with Tiantian’s and smiling.

Pushing open the classroom door, a festive atmosphere greeted her warmly. Desks and chairs were arranged in a circle by dormitory groups, with seeds and fruit placed on each desk—one serving per person. Above, colorful sparkling garlands hung, while the blackboard was adorned with bright red lanterns and Christmas trees, blending East and West. In the midst of the floral decorations was a line of colorful calligraphy: “Class 97 Broadcasting Christmas Party.”

The scene was exactly the same, and her heart instantly traveled back to those carefree days. Back then, her voice wasn’t loud but full of passion as she sang “Together in Love” on stage, met with generous applause from classmates.

Only classmates—no one else—would greet you with sincere, warm smiles even when you weren’t at your best.

Everyone was already seated; Teacher Chen had arrived and sat between Lin Feng and Yang Lili. Liu Siying stood at the podium testing the microphone. Upon seeing Dong Yanyan enter, she called out brightly, “Dong Yanyan, you’re late! We’re about to start. As a penalty, come to the center and sing a song for us, okay?”

“Okay!” The classroom erupted in applause.

Dong Yanyan ran to the stage, took another microphone, and smiled at the classmates below. “There have been so many blessings already. I’m truly happy to see our dear Teacher Chen here with us. On behalf of the entire broadcasting class, I sincerely say: since you’re here, don’t leave. As the saying goes, ‘It takes ten years of effort to share a boat—’”

“A hundred years to share a pillow!” the classmates chorused with laughter.

“You’re so bad!” Dong Yanyan laughed, eyes sparkling. “We all came here from different places, under one roof, and we are a loving family. Let’s sing ‘Together in Love’ with our teacher and class monitor, each taking a line, shall we?”

“I like coming home to warm lights waiting for me—” she sang, walking down to the audience and handing the microphone to Teacher Chen, who hesitated briefly. Yang Lili leaned in to help him sing the second line, “I like waking up to smiling faces—”

“I like stepping out the door to work hard for family and the world’s beauty—” Lin Feng took the microphone.

“I like a family looking in the same direction—” Jiang Fan followed.

“Because we are one family, loving and caring. We share blessings and hardships alike, exchanging understanding and loyalty for everlasting bonds—”

Amid their singing, the Christmas party officially began. As hosts, Dong Yanyan and Liu Siying returned to the stage.

Jiang Fan snapped photos from below, capturing moments of the event.

“I’ll sing an old song, softly and gently. Please enjoy ‘Shining Days’ performed by Du Xinmeng from Dorm 206,” Liu Siying announced cheerfully.

Du Xinmeng ran up on stage, while Liu Qiang grabbed a chair, sat behind her, and played guitar accompaniment.

Leaning by the windowsill, Dong Yanyan quietly harmonized, utterly loving the song. Xinmeng’s clear, bright voice reminded her of her own once-simple purity—a precious memory slowly fading along the path of growing up.

Applause burst forth as Du Xinmeng lifted her skirt slightly, bowed sweetly to the audience, and smiled as she returned to her seat.

“Who holds my hand and calms my half-life of madness; who kisses my eyes and shields my half-life of wandering; who strokes my face and soothes my half-life of sorrow; who carries my heart and melts my half-life of frost. Now, please welcome Lin Feng from Dorm 502 to perform Wang Jie’s ‘Hero’s Tears,’” Dong Yanyan turned to Lin Feng on stage with a gentle smile.

In her heart, she thought: During a festival, everyone else is smiling, and you’re crying—that’s such a beautifully poignant sadness, making me feel both bright and sorrowful. She glanced at Teacher Chen, whose lips curled into a faint smile but sat as still and expressionless as a carved statue, his timeless impassive face.

*

After all the dorm performances, it was time for Dong Yanyan’s favorite segment—the games. She loved games! Each dorm selected one person, and within a set time, whoever blew up the most balloons would win prizes.

Dorm 103 chose Yu Xia. Dong Yanyan grinned and whispered to Liu Siying, “Our Second Sister is definitely winning this! Look at the balloons on the board—she blew all of them up!”

“No way, I have to check if the drum skin got blown away by you! We still have ‘Pass the Drum’ next!” Liu Siying teased.

“Ready—go!” Leng Haoyang pressed his stopwatch, and cheers erupted.

“Second Sister, go!” Dong Yanyan jumped excitedly with the microphone.

“Xu Cheng, come on!” Liu Siying joined in.

Dong Yanyan glanced at Xu Cheng, cheeks puffed out like a frog.

The balloons on the table kept multiplying. Leng Haoyang approached Dong Yanyan. “Is that enough?”

She glanced at the balloons on the floor and nodded. “Almost. Let them blow for one more minute!”

One minute later, the competition ended. Leng Haoyang counted: 17, 20, 22, 16, 23! First place: Yu Xia! Come up to receive your prize!

Yu Xia cheered and happily ran to the front. The first prize was a diary with a lock. Back then, it cost about ten yuan, but nearly every girl had one. Some wrote diaries, others wrote microblogs, then locked their little secrets inside. Those bittersweet tales of young hearts were safely hidden away.

The second game was balloon transport—two people back to back holding a balloon between them, moving from start to finish. This time, pairs were mixed randomly. As Liu Siying finished explaining the rules, many volunteers rushed to the stage.

“Line up, two per team,” Liu Siying handed each pair a balloon and shouted “Go!” The room erupted into chaotic fun as everyone scrambled to the finish line.

The third game was three-legged balloon stomp. Two people tied their legs together, ran to the finish, and stomped on balloons. The team who popped the most balloons won.

The first two rounds were done; only one group remained for the third. Liu Siying eagerly suggested she and Dong Yanyan team up. Dong Yanyan was thrilled—the prize was a fountain pen, and hers had just broken. Leng Haoyang tied their legs together tightly with a rope. Dong Yanyan felt the sting and lifted her foot to kick him. Liu Siying stumbled but caught herself by grabbing Leng Haoyang’s back just in time.

“Sorry! Sorry!” Dong Yanyan apologized quickly.

The two helped each other stand and joined the other three teams at the starting line.

“Let’s not rush and risk falling. Walk steadily. The key part is stomping. We’ll herd the balloons to the edges and stomp them there,” Liu Siying whispered.

Dong Yanyan’s eyes lit up. “Good idea! But we still have to run fast to grab more balloons.”

At Leng Haoyang’s signal, they dashed forward, stumbling but determined. They fiercely snatched balloons from nearby teams, herding a pile into a corner and mercilessly stomping them. Watching the colorful balloons burst beneath their feet felt incredibly satisfying.

“Stop! Stop! Stop! You’ve won! That’s cheating!” Leng Haoyang ran up, pulling them apart. Dong Yanyan, still eager, stomped on the last two pitiful balloons.

Leng Haoyang laughed so hard he bent over double. “You two are so in sync! That’s it—you’ll stay tied like that!”

“Exactly! All my hard-blown balloons got stomped. Leave them tied! No one untie them!” Yu Xia laughed mischievously.

Lin Feng chuckled. “Then let’s move on to the next event.”

Dong Yanyan and Liu Siying helped each other to the stage edge and sat down, untying the rope.

“Zhang Lei, Liu Qiang, tie Leng Haoyang to the table leg!” Dong Yanyan tossed the rope to Zhang Lei with a grin. Leng Haoyang darted out the door, and the classroom burst into laughter.

Dong Yanyan checked the program: Pass the Drum. She faced the blackboard with her back to the crowd; Liu Siying stood before her, beating the drum. They had agreed on the rhythm, and when Dong Yanyan called “stop,” the streamer landed in Teacher Chen’s hands. He smiled shyly, looking innocent, and said slowly, “It’s Jiang Fan’s turn to catch.”

“It hasn’t reached me yet,” Jiang Fan replied with a smile.

“Teacher, sing! Teacher, sing!” the students shouted in unison.

Liu Siying hurried over and pulled him to the front.

The classroom door opened, and Qiu Dong knocked, smiling at Teacher Chen. “Teacher, our classmates have been waiting for you!”

Teacher Chen looked like he’d found a savior. “You all keep playing. I have to go upstairs now.”

“Lili, catch him! Nobody leaves until he finishes the song!” Dong Yanyan called out with a laugh.