Zhao Binlin was woken by a call at four or five in the morning and rushed hurriedly to Pason.

The bar was cold and deserted, with hardly any customers left. After searching around, he finally spotted Jiang Wen’s slumped back in one of the booths.

He walked over. The table was a mess of liquor bottles. Zhao Binlin reached out and patted Jiang Wen’s shoulder.

In the pitch darkness, Jiang Wen sat with his back to him.

Up close, he could smell a strong reek of alcohol. Zhao Binlin nudged his forehead again. “Bro?”

Jiang Wen opened his eyes in a daze, turning his head half a beat too slow.

The figure before him swam and blurred. Jiang Wen studied it for a good while before mumbling, “Who are you?”

Zhao Binlin: “I’m your father.”

“…”

After a moment of confusion, Jiang Wen let his head droop again.

Zhao Binlin couldn’t stand it. “What are you doing here drinking alone and sulking?”

Jiang Wen said a few words.

His speech was broken and disjointed. Zhao Binlin bent down, leaning in to listen, catching only scattered fragments. “What? What’s hurting? Speak up.”

Jiang Wen picked up the bottle, pouring it right against the rim of his glass. “…In here.” He touched his chest.

Zhao Binlin found it funny. “Your heart hurts?”

They chatted idly for a bit, and the irritation of being woken up in the middle of the night faded somewhat. Zhao Binlin plopped down beside Jiang Wen, grinning, and bumped him with his elbow. “Bro, in a few years we’ll both be pushing thirty, and you’re still pulling this drown-your-sorrows routine? So childish.”

Jiang Wen propped his forehead with one hand, his voice hoarse. “Make a call for me.”

“Call who?” Zhao Binlin was baffled. “Call who.”

After a long pause, Jiang Wen said a name.

Zhao Binlin burst out laughing, genuinely disbelieving. “Feng Ning?! Call her?”

“Mn.”

“Now?!”

Jiang Wen’s voice dropped lower. “Mn.”

Zhao Binlin pulled out his phone and held it in front of this idiot’s face. “Do you know what time it is? Look.”

Jiang Wen swatted his hand away. “Get her to come.”

“…”

Zhao Binlin pleaded with him. “Are you serious right now, don’t do this, bro. You and Feng Ning — is it over between you two or not?”

Jiang Wen stared at him for ten seconds, then said clearly, “Between me and her — it’s not over.”

“Not over? Still not over?”

Having gone to university in Beijing for a few years, Zhao Binlin’s speech carried a bit of that Northern Mandarin lilt, a bit cocky. “How many years has it been? Seven, eight years? Now you realize it’s not over — where were you all this time?”

Without waiting for Jiang Wen to interject, Zhao Binlin answered his own question. “Oh, right, you were a coward all those years back — such a coward you only dared to have me keep an eye on her for you. What happened, huh? Got hit with some stimulus? Gonna start chasing love at your age?”

Jiang Wen went still again, his gaze empty.

“Are you calling or not?” When he spoke again, it was the same line.

Zhao Binlin’s mouth twitched. Looking at his stubborn expression, he pulled out his phone and muttered bitterly, “You little punk, your grandfather must have owed you something in a past life.”

It took two tries to get through.

Calling at this hour made Zhao Binlin feel a bit guilty. When he introduced himself, there was a hint of flattery in his tone. “Feng Ning? It’s me, Zhao Binlin.”

Silence on the other end for a moment. “Zhao Binlin?”

“It’s me.” Zhao Binlin asked a pointless question. “Were you — were you asleep?”

Feng Ning: “What do you think?”

Zhao Binlin hurried to say, “Sorry, sorry, I didn’t want to bother you this late either.” He glanced at Jiang Wen, hesitating before continuing. “But something happened with Jiang Wen.”

Feng Ning sounded a bit confused. “What happened?”

“Nothing major.”

Zhao Binlin glanced at Jiang Wen.

The guy hadn’t moved an inch, listening intently to their conversation.

Zhao Binlin thought to himself, I really should record this and show it to Jiang Wen tomorrow. Seeing what he looks like now, he’d probably want to crawl into a hole.

Turning his attention back, Zhao Binlin laughed outright, his tone mocking. “He’s had too much to drink, been going on and on about wanting to see you. No matter how I try to talk him down, he won’t budge — says if you don’t come, he’s going to jump into the river at the Bund.”

Feng Ning: “…Jump into the river?”

“Really, I’m not lying to you.”

They talked a bit more, then Zhao Binlin sighed. “Alright, I’ll put Jiang Wen on.”

Feng Ning, still fairly gentle, called his name twice. “Jiang Wen?”

Hearing her voice, Jiang Wen gripped the phone tight, his mind going blank, all white.

Feng Ning was quiet for a moment, her voice heavy with drowsiness. “You want to see me?”

“Feng Ning.” Jiang Wen’s eyes were unfocused as he spoke. “I…”

Maybe it was the phone connection, but his voice sounded a bit distorted. The room was pitch dark, silent all around. Feng Ning’s mind was still foggy, and she reached over to switch on the desk lamp.

The sudden burst of light made her eyes uncomfortable; she squinted slightly, then sat up a bit against the headboard. “What’s wrong with you?”

“Drinking.”

“I know that, had too much?” Feng Ning said. “It’s this late — you need something?”

Jiang Wen grabbed his glass and took another swig. He frowned, pressed his lips together. “Not too much. Go to sleep. Zhao Binlin’s messing with me on purpose.”

His tone was calm, his speech coherent and logical — nothing like someone who’d just been drunk moments ago.

Beside him, Zhao Binlin’s eyes went wider bit by bit, cursing under his breath. “Jiang Wen you little bastard, you coward, screw your grandmother’s chicken leg — whatever happens, it’s your buddy who takes the blame.”

…

In total, he’d only said three sentences to her.

The call ended. Jiang Wen still held the same posture as before. He stared quietly at the call log on his phone, making no further movement.

His whole body seemed frozen in place.

Zhao Binlin watched him for a long while, and something suddenly seemed off. “What’s with you today?”

“Nothing.” Jiang Wen said listlessly, bracing himself against the table edge to stand. “Let’s go.”

After settling the bill, they left Pason. Zhao Binlin went to the garage to bring the car around.

Jiang Wen stood by the roadside, smoking, his arm hanging at his side with a cigarette between his fingers.

He honked the horn once.

Zhao Binlin: “So, taking you home?”

Jiang Wen was mostly sober by now. He got in the car, tossed the cigarette pack aside, and buckled his seatbelt. “Is someone at your place today?”

“If someone were there, would I have come to get you?”

Jiang Wen made an “oh” sound. “I’ll go to your place today.”

“My place?” Zhao Binlin turned the wheel, glancing at him oddly. “Why?”

Jiang Wen: “Don’t want to be alone.”

The city at night wasn’t particularly noisy. Jiang Wen closed his eyes, leaning back against the seat, then suddenly asked a question out of nowhere: “Do you think there’s still a chance for me and her?”

As if not quite understanding, Zhao Binlin honked the horn twice. “What?”

“Is there still a chance for me and Feng Ning.” No response.

Jiang Wen turned his head. “Is there or not?”

Zhao Binlin thought about it. “Man’s unmarried, woman’s unwed, what’s impossible about it? If you hadn’t chickened out back then and gone abroad, who knows, you and Feng Ning might have kids running around by now. Bottom line, it’s still you being a coward.”

Jiang Wen, surprisingly, didn’t argue.

Zhao Binlin mused, honestly voicing what he thought. “But — and I’m not cursing you — the two of you, I think maybe you just don’t have the fate for it. Otherwise, after all these years, if you were meant to be together, you’d have been together long ago. Since it didn’t work out, this lifetime is probably just how it is. This hurdle, you should get over it too. You’ve wasted enough time already…”

“Zhao Binlin.” The person beside him called his name.

Zhao Binlin made a couple of acknowledging sounds. “What.”

“If you don’t know how to talk properly.”

Jiang Wen glanced at him, his expression turning unpleasant. “You could say less.”

Zhao Binlin: “…?”

…

Jiang Wen propped his head with one hand, staring straight ahead on his own.

His elbow rested against the car’s edge. His watch knocked against the glass, making a faint sound.

His whole body went still, and unconsciously, his thoughts drifted back to those sheets of paper.

But what was written on those pages… Jiang Wen didn’t dare recall it in detail.

Just running those words through his mind once made his whole body ache.

Since waking up that morning, Feng Ning’s right eyelid had been twitching non-stop. On her way to work, she suddenly received a WeChat message from Shuang Yao.

Shuang Yao A’Yao: [Ningning]

She was waiting at a red light and used the moment to send back a voice message: “What’s up?”

Shuang Yao A’Yao: [Nothing, I’m just checking in on progress for my mom. How’s it going with that PhD guy from Jiaotong University?]

Feng Ning thought for a moment. “Oh, he asked me to dinner after work today.”

The light ahead turned from red to green, and Feng Ning put her phone down.

She drove all the way to the office, and by the time she checked her messages again, Shuang Yao had already fired off three or four in a row.

Shuang Yao A’Yao: [Huh? Today?!!! So fast! That doesn’t seem quite right…]

Shuang Yao A’Yao: [Do you want to think it over a bit more?]

Shuang Yao A’Yao: [hello????]

Entering the building, Feng Ning put on her work badge and pointed at the white roses on her desk. “Who sent these?”

Xiaozhu: “Don’t know, courier just dropped them off.”

Feng Ning didn’t think much of it, picked one out, and held it under her nose to smell it, replying to Shuang Yao at the same time.

Ning: [Weren’t you the one nagging me like crazy about this before?]

Shuang Yao A’Yao: [Ah, was I… but I suddenly regret it a bit… how about this, let me get rid of him for you. I’ll introduce another girl to him instead, because I suddenly feel like you two aren’t quite compatible, honestly, an intellectual type like that.]

Ning: [I already agreed to it with him. At least let me get through this meal.]

Shuang Yao A’Yao: [You’re better suited to being with true love. I’m never going to nag you about finding a boyfriend again.]

Ning: [Are you okay today?]

After a while, Shuang Yao shared a song, “Won’t Settle,” from NetEase Cloud Music.

Feng Ning laughed out loud and replied with a string of ellipses.

The dinner with her blind date was at a French restaurant. This highly educated man was named Wu Tong — in person he looked much better than his photos, and he spoke with cultivation.

Feng Ning chatted back and forth with him for a while.

Wu Tong said, “You’re a bit different from what I imagined.”

“Hm?”

“I don’t know how to put it.” Wu Tong smiled. “I’ve met some people before, but talking with you, I feel like we have the most in common.”

Feng Ning nodded.

The two chatted a while longer, lightly, before Wu Tong said, “My family’s been pushing me hard about marriage these past couple years, especially my mom — she talks about wanting grandkids every single day.”

Feng Ning: “That’s nice.”

“Doesn’t your family push you?”

“Me?” Feng Ning said calmly. “My parents have both already passed away.”

Wu Tong looked a bit surprised. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know.”

“It’s fine.”

Seeing he’d mostly finished eating, Feng Ning checked her watch. “It’s getting late, I still have some work to finish up — shall we call it a night?”

“Sure, I’ll drive you home.”

Feng Ning thanked him.

Outside, a light rain had begun to fall at some point. The wipers swept back and forth as Wu Tong drove, picking up the philosophical conversation they hadn’t finished earlier.

Feng Ning listened patiently.

Her phone buzzed. She glanced at the caller ID and didn’t answer.

The call had just ended when another one came right after, relentless.

Feng Ning made an apologetic gesture to Wu Tong, who was mid-sentence. “Sorry, I’ve got a call.”

She answered, turning her head slightly. “What do you want?”

Jiang Wen said flatly, “Need to talk to you.”

“About what? I don’t have time.”

He asked, “What are you doing?”

Feng Ning lowered her voice without thinking. “Just finished dinner with a friend.”

Wu Tong, driving, glanced over. “It’s fine, no need to be formal.”

Silence on the other end for a moment, then Jiang Wen said, “A guy?”

Feng Ning didn’t answer him. “If there’s something, say it. If not, I’m hanging up.”

He suddenly said, “When are you going home.”

Feng Ning’s right eyelid twitched again.

What day was it today? Why was everyone acting so strange?

She felt a bit bewildered, not understanding what had gotten into Jiang Wen. “Why does it matter to you when I go home.”

“Didn’t I just say? I need to talk to you.”

“About what?”

“In person. I’ll wait for you.”

She sensed something was off but couldn’t quite place it. “You’ll wait for me? Where?”

“Downstairs from your place.”

Feng Ning thought she’d misheard. “Where??!”

Jiang Wen’s voice betrayed no obvious emotion. “Downstairs from your place.”

…

…

The car stopped near Yunan City.

Feng Ning said goodbye to Wu Tong and got out. She watched the car disappear down the road before lifting her feet and heading into the residential complex.

Jiang Wen leaned against a stone pillar, waiting for her. It was a windy spot; he wore his usual outfit, a blue cold-weather jacket and black trousers. He gazed off into the distance, looking as though he were lost in thought.

The winter night carried a certain desolation. Jiang Wen looked much the same as always — still handsome and refined — only his face was pale, with a hint of exhaustion.

Feng Ning walked over.

It had gotten dark, and by the light she immediately noticed a large patch of dampness across his shoulder. She frowned. “How long have you been waiting.”

“Eight years.”

She hadn’t caught it clearly and asked, “What?” Jiang Wen stood with his back to the light, his face blurred. He looked at her silently for a moment, then turned to look elsewhere.

Seeing him like that, Feng Ning hesitated. “What did you come to find me for?”

Jiang Wen put on an air of indifference. “Look down.”

Feng Ning heard a familiar whimpering sound.

She startled, then reacted, her eyes lighting up as she said excitedly, “Xiao Huang?”

Woof woof.

The thin little dog lying on the ground responded to her.

Feng Ning was overjoyed. “Where did you find it?” She bent down, ready to scoop the dog up.

But it wriggled in mid-air and jumped back down, running to curl up at Jiang Wen’s feet instead.

Feng Ning: “…”

She crouched down to check the little dog’s injuries.

Jiang Wen watched her in the dark as well.

Some emotion was being held back with difficulty.

Just then, the phone rang.

It was Wu Tong. He said, “Feng Ning, it seems you left something in my car.”

“What is it?”

“A blue folder, is it yours?”

Feng Ning recalled it and said quickly, “That’s right, it’s mine.”

“Okay, come out for a second, same spot as before, I’ll bring it back to you.”

Feng Ning agreed. “Thanks, sorry for the trouble.”

The call ended, and Jiang Wen said, “That guy who dropped you off just now?”

Feng Ning made an affirmative sound.

She told Jiang Wen, “Watch the dog for me here, I’ll go grab something and come right back.”

Guan Tongfu sent her a work-related WeChat message. Feng Ning opened it to look, no longer paying attention to Jiang Wen, and headed out of the complex while replying to the message.

She stood under a tree waiting for a bit, and then Wu Tong’s voice suddenly sounded nearby.

Feng Ning took the item and thanked him again.

“No need to thank me, it’s the least I could do.”

Out of the corner of her eye, Jiang Wen approached as well.

The limping little yellow dog wobbled along beside him.

One person, one dog, stopped a few meters away. Jiang Wen tucked one hand in his pocket, carrying his natural air of arrogance, saying nothing, just fixing his stare on Wu Tong.

For some reason, Wu Tong felt a strange unease. Out of politeness, he still asked, “This is your friend?”

Feng Ning glanced at Jiang Wen. “My high school classmate.”

Young Master Jiang turned his face away.

Somehow, the air suddenly seemed to carry a whiff of gunpowder. Wu Tong spoke up first. “Hello, I’m Feng Ning’s friend.”

“Friend?”

Wu Tong exchanged a glance with Feng Ning, smiling faintly, saying suggestively, “For now, we’re still just friends.”

Jiang Wen made an “oh” sound.

It had to be said, whenever he put on that condescending, drawling tone, it made anyone watching furious.

Not sure what was going on, Feng Ning said her goodbyes to Wu Tong and turned to leave.

“Feng Ning.” Jiang Wen called her name with a lazy drawl.

Feng Ning turned back.

Jiang Wen, with that habitual air of arrogant pride, said lightly: “So what, just chased me down, and already planning to keep two boats afloat?”