Late at night in the suburbs, on a scenic lookout midway up the mountain.
A man and a woman sit on the guardrail, letting the breeze continuously sweep over their faces as cars occasionally flash their headlights while passing on the road behind them.
Gan Yanyu seems to really enjoy it.
She stretches out her arms, completely letting go.
A faint smile is on her face.
The world is right in front of her; it seems like nothing else could ever destroy what she has at this moment.
If she were to die here now, in this gentle place,
That would rather be a decent ending!
If there is anything else worth understanding...
"Lin Tian, what did you mean by 'half good' just now?"
Gan Yanyu turns her head to ask.
She still knows nothing about Lin Tian.
Living alone, working alone, life is hard enough, yet he still manages to lend a helping hand to others...
These things, which should be very abnormal for a high school student, seem to Lin Tian like his world is just meant to be this way.
"What 'half'?"
"The 'half good' you mentioned when I was talking about my childhood."
"Oh, that."
Lin Tian looks at the night sky, with an indifferent expression.
He tilts his head back and begins to recount:
"I was born into a family that wasn't supposed to exist—my mom got pregnant, and my dad had no choice but to marry her."
"When I was three, my mom took a bucket and ran away, leaving me and my old man to live together..."
"What do you mean by 'took a bucket and ran away'? Why did your mom run off with a bucket from your house?" Gan Yanyu asks.
"Just think of it as her taking all the luggage and running away."
Lin Tian doesn't know how to explain this term, which is fraught with historical and social context, to Gan Yanyu.
He continues:
"Then, when I was 15, my dad said something utterly nonsensical to me, and after that, I started living on my own..."
"What nonsensical thing?" Gan Yanyu can't help but interrupt.
"He told me, 'Your grandpa also has his own dreams to chase. He can't be forever bound by familial affections. To make something of oneself as a member of the Lin clan, one must first be without parents. Your grandpa is also helping you out...'"
"And then, he left, too."
"Huh?"
Gan Yanyu is dumbfounded.
She can understand each sentence Lin Tian says on its own.
But put together, why can't she make sense of it?
However...
How pitiful!
Gan Yanyu didn't expect Lin Tian to have such a lamentable childhood.
Yet, he is clearly so strong...
Thinking this, Gan Yanyu quickly becomes disheartened, and her eyes gradually droop.
Seeing Gan Yanyu's mood turn awry, Lin Tian quickly pats her shoulder and smiles.
"It's all in the past!"
"I should thank them. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't have figured out my life goals so soon... Living alone isn't so bad."
It was his own experience; how did it become him consoling Gan Yanyu?
"Have you ever had a moment when you thought about giving up your life?" Gan Yanyu lifts her head, gazing at Lin Tian.
Hearing this question, Lin Tian takes a deep breath.
Why Gan Yanyu is asking is all too clear to him.
"Jacqueline Du Pre."
"Hmm?"
"A cellist from the UK," Lin Tian says.
"How come I don't know there was a cellist from the UK..."
"With such a long history in the UK, it's normal to not have heard of some musicians," Lin Tian quickly covers up.
After all, the UK of his past life and the UK of this world are two completely different histories.
"That's true."
"Jacqueline Du Pre started learning the cello at the age of five, and by the age of 20, she became famous overnight for her performance of Elgar's Cello Concerto, becoming the most outstanding cellist of her era. She made the whole world remember this beautiful, genius cellist."
"20 years old, so impressive..."
Gan Yanyu murmured.
She, now 18, was still nothing.
Lin Tian continued his story:
"When Jacqueline was 26, she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. From then on, she retreated from the music stage and eventually died young at the age of 42...."
"How could this happen?!" Gan Yanyu couldn't help but exclaim, her heart trembling at the moment.
"What many people don't know is, everyone only remembers her falling ill at 23, but in fact, for over a decade afterwards, she still dragged her ailing body to perform at small-scale underground performances."
"As long as there was a chance to play, she would never miss it, even if close to death, she played the cello nearly until the last moment of her life..."
Lin Tian recounted the story calmly.
Then he looked at the young girl.
His purpose for telling this story was quite clear.
Jacqueline Du Pre, a great genius cellist, lost too soon.
In Gan Yanyu, Lin Tian saw shades of that lady...
Both were exceptionally talented and had achieved so much at such a young age.
And likewise, both were afflicted with terminal illness at a young age.
Perhaps, this is what they mean by the jealousy of the gods...
But Gan Yanyu's achievements now were still far from the ideals she strived for.
Lin Tian hoped that Gan Yanyu could pull herself together.
If you love it, then go for it!
If you wish to keep playing, then play until you die!
At least go without regrets.
What's this about bringing a photograph to heaven for grandpa to see? If I were your grandpa, I'd be slapping you first!
Lin Tian's emotions were gradually becoming more agitated.
After a day of trying, he realized he still couldn't change the young girl's mind.
This deep sense of powerlessness and guilt already enveloped him.
This was the last thing he could do for Gan Yanyu.
If this didn't work, Lin Tian truly didn't know what else he could do...
"You're right, Lin Tian..."
After a long silence, Gan Yanyu lifted her head.
Hearing the story just now, tears were swirling in her beautiful eyes.
"I can't just leave like this, I can't let grandpa down..."
"Exactly!"
Seeing the girl gaining a bit of spirit, Lin Tian said with emphasis.
"I believe, grandpa will wake up one day. Ten years, twenty years, thirty years, I'll wait!"
"That's right..." Lin Tian said passionately.
Wait a second?
"Wake up?"
"Three days ago, grandpa had a car accident and has been in a vegetative state... The doctor said, it's probably very hard for him to ever wake up again."
"Ah..."
Although it's unethical, I don't know why, although it's a sad piece of news.
Hearing this message, Lin Tian felt somewhat relieved.
So he's not dead.
Casually misunderstanding that someone is dead seems even more unethical...
Yet upon hearing the news of Sir Gan's accident, Lin Tian's mood still turned somber.
After all, it's a vegetative state. Reality doesn't have as many novel plots, the chance of waking up is almost zero...
No, wait, Gan Yanyu said she would wait...
Ten years, twenty years, thirty years?
No,
Your terminal illness seems quite trivial!
Gan Yanyu thought up to here, remembering her grandpa, her nose soured and tears quickly flowed out.
Trying not to lose her composure in front of Lin Tian, she hastily climbed down from the railing and turned her face away.
"Grandpa, that liar, he promised to wait for me to return from the UK after being treated for asthma..."