Chapter 41: Bookshelf, Rainstorm, Past Events

The sky had darkened, and snow-white curtains rose and fell in the wind. The setting sun hung low in the west, casting its afterglow onto the wooden floor and fading from an egg-white dusky yellow into a rich, vibrant crimson.

The moment he arrived home, the eldest brother, Ke Linye, sat on the sofa and pulled a copy of *Ulysses* from the shared bookshelf. The shared bookshelf in the living room held books that the family members had read or were currently reading.

The idea of a "shared bookshelf" was first proposed by the third sister, Xia Ningzhi, a few years ago. At the time, she had pestered Ke Mingwei, sweet-talking him with "handsome old man" this and "good daddy" that, successfully coaxing their old man into buying a folding bookshelf online. She had sat right there in the living room, quietly and earnestly tinkering with the parts, putting the bookshelf together piece by piece.