重逢（一）

再次见到他，是在七年之后，一家拥挤的超市，到处挤满了周末采购的人潮。

Seeing him again was after seven years, in a crowded supermarket packed with the weekend shopping crowd.

赵默笙独自推着购物车，艰难地在人群中走走停停。

Zhao Mosheng was pushing a shopping cart by herself, struggling to navigate through the throngs of people.

刚刚从国外回来的她，还不太适应这样的拥挤，然而这样热闹而亲切的场面，却使她不自觉地带着微笑，几乎是用感激的心情聆听这嘈杂的乡音。

Having just returned from abroad, she wasn’t quite used to such crowds, but the lively and warm scene made her smile unconsciously, as she listened with gratitude to the familiar sounds of home.

她不知道别人刚刚回国是不是也和她一样，心里的激动和喜悦几乎无法抑制。

She didn't know if others felt like her upon returning, their excitement and joy barely contained.

七年！久违了啊！

Seven years! So long it has been!

但是，怎么刚回国就遇见了他呢？不，确切地说，应该是他们。

But how was it that she ran into him right after coming back? No, to be precise, it should be them.

默笙默默地看着站在蔬菜架前的那一双俪影，再一次领略了命运的奇妙。

Mosheng silently gazed at the beautiful figures standing in front of the vegetable rack, once again appreciating the wonders of fate.

七年之前，也正是他们，使她最终做出了出国的决定。

Seven years ago, it was they who ultimately prompted her decision to go abroad.

现在他们一起来买东西呢，那么最终还是在一起了吧！还好她走得快啊，不然恐怕只会伤得更深。

Now they were shopping together; so, in the end, they were still together! Thankfully, she had left quickly; otherwise, the hurt would have been even deeper.

何以琛，何以玫，她真傻，怎么会以为有相似的名字就一定是兄妹呢？

He Yichen, He Yimei. How silly she was to think that similar names meant they must be siblings!

“我们根本不是兄妹，以前我们两家是很要好的邻居，都姓何，所以大人就取了相似的名字。后来以琛的爸爸妈妈出了意外，我们家就收养了以琛。”

"We're not siblings at all. Our families were good neighbors before, and we both have the surname He, so our parents gave us similar names. Later, after Yichen's parents had an accident, our family adopted him."

“你觉得你比得过我和以琛二十年青梅竹马的感情吗？”

"Do you think you can compete with my twenty years of childhood friendship with Yichen?"

“我今天是想告诉你，我爱以琛，我不想偷偷摸摸地爱他，我要和你光明正大地竞争。”

"Today, I want to tell you that I love Yichen. I don't want to secretly love him; I want to openly compete with you."

十九岁的那年，默笙生日的前一天，她一向文静内向的好朋友何以玫，突然勇气十足地对她这样宣言。

On the eve of her nineteenth birthday, Mosheng's usually quiet and introverted good friend He Yimei suddenly boldly declared this to her.

一向温柔不与人争的以玫会这样说，一定是爱到了极点。

It was definitely out of deep love that Yimei, always gentle and non-confrontational, would say something like this.

可是她拿什么跟以玫竞争呢？就在以玫宣战的当天，她就败了，然后逃去了美国七年。

But what did she have to compete against Yimei? On the very day of Yimei's declaration of war, she had already lost and then fled to the United States for seven years.

何以琛——突然想到那日他冰冷的眉眼，绝情的言语，默笙的心有一丝抽痛，浅浅的，几乎难以察觉，却是存在的。

He Yichen—thinking of his cold brow and merciless words from that day, Mosheng felt a slight ache in her heart, faint but present.

他们向她的方向走来，默笙抓住推车的手指关节开始泛白，几乎立刻想要掉头。

They were coming towards her, and Mosheng’s fingers on the cart's handle turned white; she almost immediately wanted to turn around.

但超市实在是太挤了，推着购物车的她根本无法转身。

But the supermarket was too crowded, and with a shopping cart, she couldn’t turn back at all.

而在下一刻她也想开了，为什么要逃避？她应该平静地对他们说：“嗨，好久不见。”

Then, in the next moment, she understood—why should she avoid them? She should calmly say to them: "Hi, long time no see."

然后潇洒地走开，留给他们一个美丽的背影。

And then gracefully walk away, leaving them with a beautiful silhouette.

更何况，他们也许根本认不出她来了。

What's more, perhaps they wouldn’t even recognize her anymore.

她变了好多，以前那头飘逸的长发已经变成了齐耳利落的短发，以前白皙的皮肤已经让加州的阳光晒黑。

She had changed so much—her once flowing long hair had turned into a neat bob, and her fair skin had been tanned by the California sun.

穿着宽大的TSHIRT、牛仔、球鞋的她，和以前的差距太大。

Dressed in a loose t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers, she was a far cry from her previous self.

他们慢慢地，一步一步地走近，然后……擦肩而过。

They slowly approached, step by step, and then… brushed past her.

不是不心痛的。

It wasn’t without heartbreak.

若有似无的语声传来。

A faint voice floated over.

“要不要买点牛奶？”以玫轻柔的声音。

"Do you want to buy some milk?" Yimei's gentle voice.

“……”

"…"

回答却听不真切了。好怀念，以琛低沉如大提琴的声音，这些年在异国他乡，仍然时时处处在她耳边吟诵。

The reply was lost amidst the din. How nostalgic—Yichen’s deep voice, like a cello, still resonated in her ears after all these years in a foreign land.

失落，但也松了一口气，默笙抬起一直低垂的头，迈开步子。

Dispirited yet somewhat relieved, Mosheng lifted her downcast face and began to walk away.

“砰”的一声，购物车撞上了地上堆成一座小山似的减价肥皂。

Suddenly, a loud crash rang out as the shopping cart collided with a small mountain of discounted soap on the floor.

罪魁祸首赵默笙傻傻地看着几百块肥皂坍塌下来，场面颇为壮观。呃，她可不可以当做不是她干的？

The culprit Zhao Mosheng stared dumbfounded at the hundreds of bars of soap collapsing, clearly a spectacular scene. Uh, could she pretend this wasn’t her doing?

“天哪！这已经是今天第三次了。”不知道哪里冒出来的超市理货员发出痛苦的呻吟。

“Oh my gosh! That’s the third time today!” A supermarket staff member, who appeared from nowhere, let out a pained groan.

所以，这也不应该怪她吧，哪有人把货物堆在路中间的。默笙悄悄地吐吐舌头，努力地摆出一副愧疚的表情。

So, it shouldn’t be her fault, right? Who piles products in the middle of the aisle? Mosheng quietly stuck out her tongue and tried to feign a guilty expression.

这里的动静引起了周围人的注意，包括何以玫。她只是不经意地看向那个特别嘈杂的地方，然后呆住——是她，居然是她！以玫几乎不敢相信自己的眼睛。她，回来了？

The commotion drew attention from those around, including He Yimei. She casually looked over at the particularly noisy area and froze—it's her, it's really her! Yimei could hardly believe her eyes. She’s back?

“以玫？”何以琛不解她的反应，出声询问，眼光顺着她看去。

“Yimei?” He Yichen asked, confused by her reaction, and followed her gaze.

高大挺拔的身躯瞬间僵硬。

The tall figure instantly stiffened.

赵默笙！

Zhao Mosheng!

那一脸无辜垂着头的小女子可不正是赵默笙！脸上是百分百的歉然，眼睛里却闪着毋庸置疑的顽皮笑意。

That innocent girl with her head bowed is indeed Zhao Mosheng! A face full of genuine regret, yet her eyes sparkled with unmistakable mischief.

远远的，其实看不大真切她的表情，但以琛就是知道。

From a distance, it was hard to see her expression clearly, but Yichen just knew.

他一直知道的，她是这样，习惯搅乱一池春水后不负责任地离开，任性自私又可恶。

He had always known; she was like that, accustomed to stirring up troubles and carelessly leaving, willful, selfish, and vexatious.

整整七年……她还晓得回来吗？

After seven full years… did she still know how to come back?

何以琛垂眸。“以玫，我们走吧！”

He Yichen averted his gaze. “Yimei, let’s go!”

何以玫惊讶地看着一脸平静的以琛：“你不想去打个招呼吗？也许……”

He Yimei looked at the calm Yichen in surprise. “Aren’t you going to say hi? Maybe…”

“她早已不是我生活中的人了。”波澜不兴的语调，仿佛真的没有什么。

“She is no longer a part of my life.” His tone was flat, as if it really didn’t matter.

以玫细细地打量他的神情，却找不出蛛丝马迹，最后只得低叹一声：“走吧！”

Yimei scrutinized his expression, unable to find any trace of emotion, and ultimately could only sigh softly. “Let’s go!”

最后一眼看向赵默笙，却发现她也正好偏过头来看到她，视线在空中相撞，默笙好像愣了一下，然后脸上浮现了浅浅的笑容，朝她点头致意。

Casting one last glance at Zhao Mosheng, she found that Mosheng had also turned her head to look at her. Their eyes collided for a moment, and Mosheng seemed to freeze, then a faint smile appeared on her face, and she nodded in greeting.

以玫慌忙回头叫：“以琛……”

Yimei hurriedly turned back and called out: “Yichen…”

“嗯？”

“Hmm?”

“她……”以玫愕然打住，再回首川流的人群中已经没有了她的身影。

“She…” Yimei stopped in shock, turning back to find that Mosheng had already disappeared into the crowd.

“怎么了？”

“What’s wrong?”

“没、没什么。”以玫低头。只是，她明明就看见他们了，为什么这么轻易地就走了？而以琛，也明明看见了她……

“Nothing, nothing.” Yimei lowered her head. She had clearly seen her, so why did she leave so easily? And Yichen had clearly seen her too…

没想到有朝一日会回到这里。

She never expected to return here one day.

主编面试的时候问她：“赵小姐，你为什么选择在A城工作？”

During the interview with the editor-in-chief, she was asked, “Miss Zhao, why did you choose to work in City A?”

默笙突然不知道怎么回答。为什么呢？因为曾在这里念过一年多的大学？因为曾在这里认识他？因为曾在这里经受过很多很多？

Mosheng suddenly found herself at a loss for words. Why? Because she had studied here for over a year? Because she had met him here? Because she had experienced so much here?

她开始也不知道，回国前第一个想到的就是这里，直到那天见到他才明白，她是想见他，虽然他已经不属于她，但是，她就是想看看他。

At first, she didn’t know, but before returning, the first place that came to mind was this city. It wasn’t until that day when she saw him that she realized she wanted to see him, even though he no longer belonged to her. She just wanted to take a look at him.

只看看而已。

Just a glance.

“可能是因为不能回家吧。”默笙说。

“Maybe because I can’t go home,” Mosheng answered.

主编奇怪地打量了她良久，留下了她，成了某女性杂志的摄影记者。

The editor-in-chief looked at her strangely for a long time, but still hired her as a photographer for a women's magazine.

然而主编过分地看重她在国外杂志工作的经历使她不安。

However, the editor-in-chief excessively valued her experience at a foreign magazine, which made her uneasy.

“那只是一个小杂志社。”默笙这样对主编说。

"That was just a small magazine." Mosheng said to the editor-in-chief.

“哎！阿笙。”四十多岁的女主编亲热地叫着她的名字，“你是在夸奖我的博识吗？我居然连美国一个不起眼的小杂志社都一清二楚。”

"Ah! Mosheng." The editor-in-chief, a woman in her forties, affectionately called her name. "Are you complimenting my knowledge? I unexpectedly know a little-known small magazine in America so well."

默笙笑了起来，不安也一扫而空。

Mosheng laughed, feeling her unease dissipate.

主编正色地说：“阿笙，我知道一个中国人在美国当一个摄影师多么的难，你必须比大多数白人优秀。他们总以为我们中国人是没有艺术细胞的。”

The editor-in-chief said seriously, "Mosheng, I know how difficult it is for a Chinese person to be a photographer in America; you must be better than most white people. They always think that we Chinese have no artistic sensibility."

就这样安定下来，她仍然去那家超市购物，却再也没有遇见过他们。直到有一次，超市的保安叫住了她。

Settling down like this, she still continued to shop at that supermarket, yet never encountered them again. Until one day, a security guard stopped her.

“小姐，请你到保安室来一趟。”

“Excuse me, miss, could you please come to the security room?”

默笙一愣，直觉没有好事，报纸上有太多的关于超市保安强行搜身甚至打人的报道。

Mosheng was taken aback, sensing something unsavory; there have been numerous reports about supermarket security forcibly searching people and even beating them.

默笙谨慎地盯着他，保安无奈地说：“小姐，我对你没有恶意，只是想问你一个月前有没有丢了东西。”

Mosheng cautiously eyed the guard, who said helplessly, “I mean you no harm; I just want to ask if you lost something a month ago.”

一个月前她刚回国，难道她丢了什么自己也不知道？好奇地随他走进保安室，保安递给她一个黑色的皮夹。

A month ago, right after her return, had she lost something without realizing? Curious, she followed him into the security room, where the guard handed her a black wallet.

默笙不用看里面就知道不是自己的，笑着摇摇头说：“你弄错了，这不是我的。”

Without looking inside, Mosheng already knew it wasn't hers, and shook her head, smiling. "You must be mistaken; this isn't mine."

保安出乎意料地固执：“你打开来看看。”

To her surprise, the guard was insistent: "Open it and take a look."

她接过打开，然后看到了自己的照片。

She took it, opened it, and saw her own photo.

保安得意地说：“小姐，这是你的照片吧，虽然和现在差别很大，可我还是一眼就认出来了。”

The guard said triumphantly, “Miss, this is your photo, right? Although it looks very different now, I recognized you at a glance.”

差别是很大的，因为那是刚上大学时拍的入学照。她还是长长的头发扎成马尾，傻乎乎地笑着。

The difference was indeed significant since it was a school photo taken when she first entered college. She had long hair tied in a ponytail, smiling foolishly.

怎么会出现在一个陌生的皮夹里？

How did it end up in a stranger's wallet?

默笙把皮夹还给保安：“这的确不是我的。”

Mosheng returned the wallet to the guard: “This definitely isn't mine.”

保安傻傻的：“照片上的人不是你吗？”

The guard looked foolishly at her: “Isn’t that you in the photo?”

“是我，可是皮夹不是我的。”

“It is me, but the wallet isn’t mine.”

“可一定是认识你的人的，小姐，说不定这个皮夹的主人暗恋你……”

“Well, it must belong to someone who knows you. Maybe the owner of this wallet has a crush on you…”

哎，谁说中国人没有联想力的？

Oh, who says Chinese people lack imagination?

“可是……”

“But…”

“你拿去吧拿去吧，一直没人来认领，放在这里我们也很难处理，交上去也是充公，还不如给你，你和皮夹的主人肯定有点关联。啊！说不定我还促成了一段美好姻缘呢……”保安沉浸在电视连续剧似的想像里。

“Take it, take it. No one has come to claim it, and it’s hard for us to handle here. If we hand it in, it’ll just get confiscated. It’s better to give it to you; you must have some connection with the wallet’s owner. Ah! Who knows, I might be facilitating a beautiful romance…” The guard was lost in a television drama-like imagination.

一个月前，大约也是她碰到何以琛何以玫的时候，会是他掉的吗？怀着这样可笑的猜测，默笙把皮夹拿回了家。

A month ago, was that also when she ran into He Yichen and He Yimei? Could it have belonged to him? Entertaining such a ridiculous thought, Mosheng took the wallet home.

晚上洗完澡在床上仔细地研究它，简单的式样，名贵的牌子，现金不多，完全不能确定失主的身份。

Later that night, after her shower, she meticulously examined it in bed. Simple in design, a high-end brand, and lacking cash, it was impossible to determine the identity of the owner.

而那张照片，默笙小心地取出来，上面还有钢印的痕迹，应该是从什么证件上撕下来的。

Carefully, she took out the photo, noticing it had the marks of being stamped, likely torn from some official document.

无意地翻过来，她突然怔住，背后有字！那潇洒凌厉得仿佛要破纸而出的字迹她一辈子都不会忘记。

As she unintentionally flipped it over, she suddenly froze—the back had writing! The elegant and striking handwriting, as if it would break through the paper, was something she would never forget.

那是以琛的笔迹，用黑色钢笔写着—— my sunshine！

It was Yichen's handwriting, written in black ink— my sunshine!