"If you don't have the time, then forget it," Qiao Zhiyi, aware of his changed status and that he couldn't just leave at will, said. "I'll just join a tour group and go out for a few days."
Shi Jingzhou both hoped she could be happy, but did not wish for her to go out alone.
"Could you wait a little longer?" Shi Jingzhou held her hand. "After the New Year, when spring begins, let's go out together."
Qiao Zhiyi looked at him seriously. "Will you have time by then?"
Shi Jingzhou nodded firmly. "I will."
"Okay," Qiao Zhiyi took a deep breath, "I'll wait for you."
Shi Jingzhou embraced her, feeling the anticipation inside him growing stronger.
In the following days, Shi Jingzhou came back home very late every day, and he left again before Qiao Zhiyi even woke up in the morning.
His busyness left him with no time to chat with Qiao Zhiyi. Sometimes, in the middle of the night, Qiao Zhiyi would wake up and see his sleeping face, his eyebrows still furrowed.