When He Chao reached out his hand, Xie Yu instinctively held it back without any hesitation or avoidance.

The sky was gradually darkening.

Red was everywhere, and the ground was covered with scattered firecracker debris. Lanterns hung all over the street, flickering.

As they walked side by side, they passed by a vendor selling sugar figurines. He Chao glanced at it and tightened his grip on Xie Yu's hand, leading him over. "I'll buy you some?"

A group of female tourists crowded around the stall.

The translucent, golden syrup shone brightly against the streetlights behind it. The vendor's skillful hands quickly crafted a dragon with sharp teeth and claws.

Cheers erupted from the crowd.

"Aren't you childish?" Xie Yu didn't want to squeeze into the queue. "How old are you?"

He Chao pointed at one of them and raised his voice saying, "Master, this one."

He Chao used to bring candy along to quit smoking, but later on, he got used to it. Even if he didn't eat it often, he would still pick up a couple of sticks from the school canteen and put them in his uniform pocket.

After becoming familiar with each other, Xu Qingqing and her friends became bolder and occasionally came over to ask for candy. "Brother Chao, do you still have candy?"

At that time, He Chao was still maintaining his reputation of being "addicted to games" and couldn't extricate himself. He was still the last one in the class, no matter how poorly others did on their exams. He held his phone and didn't pay attention to them, saying, "Wait a minute, it's a critical moment."

Xie Yu happened to wake up and was lying on his side. He reached out and touched He Chao's pocket.

Xu Qingqing was stunned for a moment, then quickly raised her hand, "I want strawberry!"

Xie Yu impatiently responded with an "Mm."

He Chao had quickly died in his game, but he pretended like he hadn't finished playing yet.

......

With this in mind, Xie Yu looked down at the candy in his hand, thought for a moment, and then took a bite.

It was sickeningly sweet.

The two of them leaned in close, the sugar figurine only half a palm wide.

He Chao leaned over and took a bite from the other side.

In the distance, several ancient and profound bell chimes rang out.

Just as the bells began to ring, the streetlights on both sides lit up one by one.

Following the path they had taken, the lights extended all the way forward, illuminating the entire temple fair with the light of lanterns.

Once they left this area, and with the lantern lights keeping them company as they walked along the path, they would be in the commercial district.

Xie Yu wanted to bring something back for Madam Gu, so he picked a store, but after searching for a while, he still hadn't found anything. There were many styles of scarves on the wall, but very few were suitable for Madam Gu.

He Chao chose one item: "What about this one? Old He should be very happy to receive it...simple yet sophisticated, retro yet fashionable."

Xie Yu stood beside him, feeling a bit of a headache.

He Chao held a tea cup that was unremarkable in appearance, with a taste that was so tacky it would smack a person in the face. It was a classic design from the 1980s, with a blue-green-red retro color scheme and five large characters on the cup that read 'Old Dad, you've worked hard.'

Xie Yu asked, "Are you serious?"

He Chao replied, "Do I look like I'm not taking this seriously?"

"Brother, you're amazing."

Xie Yu glanced at the other items on the shelf and sincerely said, "Truly amazing. With so many things here, you can pick out the ugliest one at a glance."

He Chao: "..."

After finishing his sentence, Xie Yu thought about the similarities between He Chao and his father's personalities and wondered if their way of choosing gifts was also inherited. So he tentatively asked, "What does your dad usually give you?"

He Chao put the cup back and thought for a moment before hesitating to speak, "This, it's hard to explain in just a few words."

Xie Yu raised an eyebrow.

He Chao said, "Wait a minute, let me find it."

Xie Yu watched as he pulled out his phone and searched for a while before putting one side of the earpieces in his ear.

The earpiece wasn't in properly, so Xie Yu reached out and pressed it in place.

On the phone screen was a WeChat conversation between He Chao and his father, and from the chat records, it seemed to be from last year's birthday.

[Old He]: Son, birthday gift.

[Old He]: [Video].

On the video were a dozen or so brightly dressed African children. Several of them held up a blackboard with three lines of chalk writing: "He Chao, Happy Birthday! Wishing you good health, success in all your endeavors, and your dad will always love you!

Love you!

The leader shouted out the words, and the group of children followed suit, shouting them out in unison. Afterward, they even performed a little awkward dance.

It was a double dose of visual and auditory stimulation.

"..."

Xie Yu was completely caught off guard by the video and couldn't speak for a while.