PDLP Chapter 87: The Olympics on the Streets, Youth in Full Swing
Chapter 87: The Olympics on the Streets, Youth in Full Swing
Lin Bei put down his phone, and two MMS messages appeared on the screen.
One of them was a multimedia message from Lao Gao, the pixels were all blurry.
A huge national flag and a dark-faced boy holding it could be vaguely seen.
The MMS message included the following sentence:
See that flag? I'm the one holding it!
Lin Bei smiled without saying a word.
The other MMS message was sent by Wu Xiaoxun, and it showed a scene in the courtyard of the garment factory.
On a folding table sat an old-fashioned, bulky CRT television, surrounded by a circle of plastic stools.
Several workers in overalls were placing peanuts and melon seeds on the table.
The caption reads: 【Ready!】
Lin Bei glanced at the MMS message and dialed a third number.
Su Qianqian answered quickly, the call went through after two rings.
It was very quiet on her end; there was no television, no human voices, and even the sound of traffic outside the window seemed distant.
It perfectly reflects the situation of someone usually being home alone.
Lin Bei asked, "At home?"
"Mmm," Su Qianqian replied softly, "I just finished reading a book and I'm making lemon water now."
Lin Bei cut to the chase: "Do you have plans for tonight?"
"No," Su Qianqian asked curiously, "What's wrong?"
Lin Bei: "Want to go to a street food stall?"
"Qingning and I are going to watch the opening ceremony together, but Lao Gao and Xiao Xun can't come."
Su Qianqian remained silent for a moment.
Eating barbecue skewers while watching a live stream?
This is definitely much more interesting than watching the opening ceremony alone at home.
"Okay," Su Qianqian readily agreed, "What time? Where is it located?"
"Seven o'clock, please," Lin Bei said after thinking for a moment. "Let's meet at the school gate and then go to the night market together."
Su Qianqian: "Okay."
Lin Bei hung up Su Qianqian's call, leaned back on the sofa, opened his QQ app, and clicked on the light gray profile picture.
The chat box still contains the good morning message my wife sent me yesterday.
However, Lin Bei has been too busy lately and hasn't had time to pay attention to her, so he hasn't replied.
As Lin Bei typed, the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up slightly.
Honey, don't forget to watch the Olympics opening ceremony tonight.
The message was sent, less than three seconds later.
The phone was in my hand when it suddenly vibrated.
It was obvious that the other person was constantly looking at the chat box and replied to messages instantly.
A Lonely Song: [Of course I'll watch it! I've been ready for ages!]
Sunflower seeds, drinks, and potato chips were all laid out on the computer desk—three whole bags of potato chips, two different flavors!
[Honey, you have to watch this too! I've done the math, this is the first time we'll watch the Olympic opening ceremony together!]
Even though we're not together, we're watching the same live stream. If you see something exciting, send me a message, and I'll send you one too. That way, it's like we're watching together!
Lin Bei stared at the screen, his fingers hovering over the keyboard for a moment as he looked at the long string of exclamation marks.
"Yes, no problem."
Lin Bei turned off his phone screen and put it in his pocket.
Then, I stood up, walked to the door to change my shoes, and prepared to go out.
……
It's 6:30 in the evening.
The sky began to darken.
Lin Bei, Su Qianqian, and Song Qingning sat on a night market street not far from Lin Bei's house.
This street is usually bustling, but tonight it's packed with people.
Moreover, there was a television set placed at the entrance of every store.
All screens were locked on CCTV-1, constantly watching the live broadcast.
The shop owner moved the largest color TV in the store to a street-side location and even hung a red banner above the screen.
The words "Go China's Olympic athletes!" were written on it in crooked calligraphy.
The plane trees lining the street were covered with colorful lights and national flags.
A night breeze blew, and the flag fluttered gently.
Lin Bei and his two companions sat down at the table closest to the television.
On the table were grilled skewers, peanuts, edamame, and a pitcher of ice-cold beer.
Song Qingning wore a red T-shirt today with the two big Chinese characters "Huaguo" printed on the front, which she had asked Lin Bei for a few days ago.
Su Qianqian maintained her usual style, wearing a light blue short-sleeved shirt and white trousers.
But she had a red string tied around her wrist.
That was the only red thing Su Qianqian found after searching through all the drawers that morning.
Lin Bei's outfit was special; it was a "Go China!" T-shirt printed by his own online store.
The text printed on the chest had been washed once and had faded slightly.
But it fits perfectly when worn.
It's 7:50, ten minutes before the opening ceremony.
Everyone on the night market street put down their chopsticks and turned their gazes to the television screen in front of them.
At the next table, a shirtless man had his wine glass hanging in mid-air and forgot to put it down.
The proprietress leaned against the door frame, holding a serving board in her hand.
The workers ran out of the kitchen and stood in the hallway.
Even passersby stopped and squeezed into the crowd, craning their necks to peek inside.
It's exactly eight o'clock.
On the television screen, the Bird's Nest Stadium was illuminated with dazzling lights in the night.
Fireworks shot up from the top of the stadium and exploded in the sky into giant golden peonies.
2008 drummers struck the ancient earthenware jar in the center of the venue.
The sounds of the drums striking the earthenware jars were uniform, each strike accompanied by a deep chant and a dazzling flash of light.
The drum array lit up and then went out in the darkness, as if three thousand years of time had been compressed into frames of light in that moment.
Next came the giant footprints...
Twenty-nine giant firework footprints, along the central axis of northern Beijing, stepped from Yongdingmen towards the Bird's Nest.
Every step I took felt like stepping on everyone's heartbeat.
The whole street was blown up.
The shirtless man suddenly stood up, took off his T-shirt, held it above his head, swung it around several times, and shouted indistinct cheers.
At the next table, a tall, thin guy wearing glasses stood up, hugged his friend, and started patting and jumping around.
At the next table, an elderly man with gray hair picked up a glass of beer and downed half of it in one gulp.
Beer dripped down his chin and onto his clothes, but he didn't bother to wipe it off.
Several children stood in front of the television, imitating the striking motions of a drum set.
Their little hands waved wildly in the air, shouting, "I want to knock too! I want to knock too!"
The proprietress's ordering board had fallen to the ground at some point, but she didn't pick it up. She just leaned against the door frame, covering her mouth, with something glistening in her eyes.
Lin Bei held a beer glass, leaned back in his chair, and looked at the screen with a smile playing on his lips.
Song Qingning slammed the skewers on the table, stood up, cupped her hands to her mouth, and shouted along with the sound of the drum on TV.
My voice is hoarse from shouting.
The sound wasn't at all out of place amidst the hustle and bustle of the street.
Su Qianqian sat opposite Lin Bei without standing up.
But her fingers, resting on the table, tapped gently on the surface in rhythm with the drumbeats.
A rare, faint blush appeared on her aloof and beautiful face.
Lin Bei raised his glass and waved it at them.
The three people raised their cups at the same time and gently clinked them together.
The beer foam overflowed from the rim of the glass and spilled onto the plate of grilled skewers.
This is youth!
Lin Bei poured himself another glass of wine, held it up to the television, and silently said something to himself.
Those things missed in the past life will definitely not be repeated in this life!