After boarding and taking her seat, Qiu Yang glanced out the airplane window, but all she saw was the vast airport and the gray sky.
The biting cold still lingered, and the busy staff were dressed a bit warmly.
Several planes stood steadily on the ground, their departure times unknown.
People continued to board the cabin, making it a bit noisy for a while.
Qiu Yang withdrew her gaze, her lips pressed together. Her eyes fell on the safety information card tucked into the seatback in front of her, her expression unreadable.
She didn’t know how many times she had thought of Tao Sixian.
Today was March 14th, White Day. This time last year, they had celebrated the holiday at a Western restaurant.
That night, they drank an expensive bottle of red wine, and as their glasses clinked, their bright smiles shone through.
The phone in Qiu Yang’s hand vibrated twice; there was a new WeChat message.
It was as if her soul returned to her body. She couldn’t help but collect her thoughts and unlock her phone.
It was from Miao Yi, her university classmate and neighbor.
Miao Yi:【Have you boarded? Yangyang.】
Miao Yi:【Remember to message me when you land to let me know you’re safe.】
Miao Yi:【Go relax and clear your head. You don’t need to bring me back a gift.】
This flight was from Yuncheng to Xicheng. There were about ten minutes left until the scheduled departure time.
【Okay.】 Qiu Yang typed one word back and then pressed back.
She wasn’t wearing very warm clothes, and her fingertips were slightly purple from the cold, but she didn’t notice. After a few more seconds of distraction, she opened her Moments feed for the day.
Among the posts of people lamenting their single status or showing off photos with their partners, one post was particularly jarring.
Qiu Yang’s fingertip paused. Her lips pressed tighter, her brows furrowed, and her eyes lost focus.
She and Tao Sixian hadn’t deleted each other on WeChat, and the other person hadn’t avoided her, her ex-girlfriend, at all—they had posted photos from today’s wedding.
White Day, what a perfect anniversary.
Getting married on this day couldn’t be more fitting.
Tao Sixian had posted a picture.
The bride wore a white wedding dress, her eyes curved in a smile. She held a bouquet and looked at the man kneeling before her.
The groom was handsome and tall, dressed in a black suit with a bright rose pinned to his lapel. He knelt on one knee, looking deeply sincere.
The applause and excitement seemed to burst through the screen.
Qiu Yang immediately turned off her phone and put it in her bag.
This newlywed couple was a good match, the most visually appealing pair she had seen so far.
And the most jarring.
“Xiao Qiu,” Auntie Mingfen, whom she had met while waiting, called out to her, pulling her back to reality. “Have you been to Xicheng before?”
Zhao Mingfen was nearing fifty, with several fine lines around her eyes, but she had a youthful round face and a very friendly smile.
“No,” Qiu Yang answered truthfully.
“It’s my first time too,” Zhao Mingfen said, then asked her question. “Xiao Qiu, why did a young person like you decide to join our Sunset Glow Travel Group?”
Yes.
To alleviate the pain of her breakup, Qiu Yang had booked a tour group online. Coincidentally, this particular group only needed two more people to be full, and the person in charge asked if she minded that everyone else in the group was in their forties or fifties.
How could she mind?
Her mind wasn’t focused on that now; external matters couldn’t affect her.
“Any group is fine,” Qiu Yang tried to force a smile, but it was faint and carried a hint of distance.
Seeing her expression, Zhao Mingfen immediately understood. “Did you break up?”
Hearing this, Qiu Yang lowered her eyelashes.
She had put on makeup today, but there was no light in her eyes.
Two seconds later, she hummed in affirmation.
Zhao Mingfen sighed, then immediately spoke with the earnestness of someone who had been through it. “It’s okay, Xiao Qiu. Out with the old, in with the new. Don’t you young people always say the next one will be better?”
“Besides, you’re so pretty, anyone would like you, let alone those smelly men.”
The adjectives used by elders to praise people were so consistent. Qiu Yang had also been praised this way by the cleaning lady.
She forced a smile, her lips parting slightly before closing again quickly.
In the end, she didn’t say it out loud—that she liked women, not men.
After all, not every elder could accept and understand it. They might even see her as a monster.
She just wanted a relaxing trip and didn’t want any complications during it.
The plane took off quickly, and Qiu Yang put on her eye mask.
She wanted to nap for a bit, but the bright lights made her uncomfortable.
And ever since Tao Sixian broke up with her a week ago, she hadn’t had a single good night’s sleep.
If she hadn’t put on makeup today, the dark circles under her eyes would probably make people wonder if she was an escaped giant panda.
Unsurprisingly, she still couldn’t fall asleep.
Her eyes were merely closed, and scenes of her time with Tao Sixian flashed through her mind again and again.
This wasn’t her first time in Xicheng. It was actually the first city she and Tao Sixian had visited together after they started dating.
Back then, they came together, but now…
Qiu Yang unconsciously let out a sigh.
Her friends all told her to get over the breakup soon, but she didn’t know when “soon” would be.
They say it takes twice as long to forget someone after a breakup.
So, if she was with Tao Sixian for three years, doubling that number would mean six years.
By then, she would be in her early thirties.
Thinking about it gave Qiu Yang a headache, and she couldn’t help but raise her hand to press her temples.
The flight from Yuncheng to Xicheng only took an hour and a half, which was quite short. And this time, they even landed ten minutes early.
Qiu Yang took off her eye mask, adjusted to the light, and looked out the window again.
The weather in Xicheng was very different from Yuncheng. Here, the sun was shining brightly, the sky was clear and blue, and there wasn’t a cloud in sight.
Sunlight shone directly on the fuselage. Qiu Yang squinted her eyes and quickly looked away.
Undeniably, good weather could lift one’s mood a little. She took out her phone and messaged Miao Yi to let her know she was safe.
The cabin started to stir again. Those who felt hot began taking off clothes, and those on business trips made phone calls.
The tour guide for the group maintained order.
Ten minutes later, everyone exited the cabin one after another.
This Sunset Glow tour group, including the two guides, totaled twenty people. To make counting easier, the guides had given everyone identical red sun hats when they gathered at the airport.
The group was large and imposing, all wearing little red hats, drawing brief side glances from other passengers.
Qiu Yang followed at the back of the group, her steps neither heavy nor light, her face showing neither sadness nor joy.
Returning to Xicheng, she couldn’t describe her mood.
“Xiao Qiu,” Zhao Mingfen had also been young once. She knew that breakups were hard for young people, especially when traveling alone with a group, so she wanted to take extra care of Qiu Yang. “Hurry and keep up, don’t get lost.”
Her concern was evident in her words. Qiu Yang gave a smile and hummed in response again.
Just then, another auntie who was friendly with Zhao Mingfen leaned over a bit. She craned her neck, looking at Qiu Yang with bright eyes. “Xiao Qiu, hello.”
“Hello.”
“Just call me Auntie Xiaoqiong,” Wu Xiaoqiong said as they walked. “Mingfen told me everything. It’s just a breakup, isn’t it? It’s not a big deal, child.”
“Auntie knows several promising young men. They’re either PhD graduates or have returned from overseas.”
“People say that to get over a relationship quickly, it’s either time or a new love. Why don’t you consider the candidates Auntie has?”
Qiu Yang knew Wu Xiaoqiong meant well, because elders become very enthusiastic once they take a liking to you.
But…
“Auntie Xiaoqiong,” Qiu Yang didn’t refuse outright. Instead, she lowered her voice and asked hesitantly, “How old are they?”
“The oldest are thirty-two or thirty-three, the youngest are twenty-seven or twenty-eight.”
“Older is better, they’ll be caring and look after you.”
Xicheng Airport was large; it took about ten minutes to walk from the cabin exit to the baggage claim.
Zhao Mingfen patted Wu Xiaoqiong’s arm, looking a bit displeased. “Our Xiao Qiu looks like she’s only in her early twenties. Aren’t these ages much too old?”
“Well, do you have any young men in their early twenties who need blind dates?” Wu Xiaoqiong retorted.
Qiu Yang cleared her throat. When the two elders looked over, she showed a slightly awkward expression. “Aunties, this age…”
“Is too young.”
Zhao Mingfen: ?
Wu Xiaoqiong: ?
Qiu Yang took a deep breath, seemingly struggling. “I don’t like them that young.”
“My ex-boyfriend, he’s in his sixties, divorced with three children. The youngest one is older than me.”
She didn’t want to be surrounded by these enthusiastic aunties constantly trying to set her up during the rest of the trip, so she had to resort to this tactic.
“…” The two aunties fell silent, and their gazes towards Qiu Yang were somewhat complex.
After following the group around another corner, Zhao Mingfen couldn’t help but reach out and lightly pat Qiu Yang’s shoulder. “Xiao Qiu, good riddance!”
Wu Xiaoqiong’s expression was more dramatic, and she even looked towards the front of the group, seemingly searching for something.
Zhao Mingfen couldn’t help but ask, “Xiaoqiong, who are you looking for?”
“Nobody,” Wu Xiaoqiong looked back at Qiu Yang, looking very puzzled. “Xiao Qiu, is it a trend now for you young people to go for older partners? Girls used to clamor about liking ‘uncles,’ but now…”
Wu Xiaoqiong slightly lowered her voice. “I asked Xiao Shen today too. The old man she liked before was even older than your age, said he was seventy-five and now uses a wheelchair.”
“Who is Xiao Shen?” Qiu Yang didn’t respond, but Zhao Mingfen asked.
“The other young person in our group.”
Hearing this, Qiu Yang remembered. When she signed up, there were only two spots left in the group. She hadn’t expected the other person to also be young.
Even more unexpected was that their excuses for rejecting Auntie Xiaoqiong were identical.
However, seventy-five and in a wheelchair was much more exaggerated than what she had said.
Only after the two aunties returned to the front did Qiu Yang breathe a sigh of relief. She adjusted her little red hat and continued to follow the group.
But as she walked, a figure ahead stopped moving and turned to look at Qiu Yang.
Qiu Yang saw the little red hat she was wearing and understood.
This was the last young person who signed up.
The woman called Xiao Shen wore a denim jacket and black skinny jeans, with a pair of combat boots on her feet, making her legs look long and straight.
She carried a shoulder bag. The beautiful face under the little red hat was calm, her gaze following Qiu Yang.
Qiu Yang pursed her lips. She wanted to walk past but felt it would be impolite not to stop.
The distance between them grew shorter. Qiu Yang exchanged a glance with this Xiao Shen and then stood before her.
Shen Ningruo’s voice held a smile, her tone rising slightly at the end, and her eyebrow lifted slightly—
“I heard you like old men too?”
