Zhou Mi followed the coach and learned snowboarding all afternoon, starting on the small slopes to get used to the speed, and later moving to the magic carpet to learn forward and backward slope pushing.

The coach was a super nice female, demonstrating patience and detail. With Zhou Mi’s strong comprehension and good coordination, it didn’t take long for her to learn how to push with the back edge.

However, during practice, she carelessly took a tumble because her front edge kept catching the snow while pushing with the back edge, and she accidentally fell forward onto her knees.

Fortunately, her knee only hurt briefly. She dusted the snow off her legs and quickly returned to the interactive adjustment between the snowboard and the slope.

While sitting down to catch her breath and laughing, Zhou Mi got into a snowball fight with several female colleagues. Unfortunately, the snow that day was as loose as white sand, making it impossible to form solid snowballs, so they played as if they were tossing sand on a beach.

Some male colleagues joined in, and the group laughed loudly, chasing and frolicking around like a herd of sheep battling on a hillside.

Zhang Lian also seized the opportunity to join in. He took off his knit hat, shook his head to reveal his black, fluffy hair, making his eyes appear even more clear and bright.

Originally intending to fish in troubled waters with ulterior motives, he immediately became the focus and was under concentrated fire as soon as he joined. As snow and smoke spread, someone roared, “I never want to work overtime again!!” Zhang Lian couldn’t fight four hands with one, and before long, he surrendered, smiling as he brushed off the sparkling snow from his head, and ran back to the side to continue being a spectator.

While watching, he took off his gloves and began touching his phone screen.

Zhou Mi kept an eye on his movements from the corner of her eye. She touched the back of her neck and asked a colleague what time it was. After receiving a shrug and an “I don’t know” in response, she stepped back two paces and pretended to look at her phone.

Sure enough, Zhang Lian sent her a WeChat message asking about her fall earlier.

Zhou Mi’s lips curved high: Not painful at all.

After replying, she looked up toward Zhang Lian’s position. As expected, the man was also looking at her. He was always so distinctive, even with moving, playful figures between them.

He gave her a faint smile, and Zhou Mi wrinkled her nose, made a face at him, and returned to the crowd with a bright smile.

That evening, after returning all the equipment and gear, everyone went their separate ways. Some who were crying out about being tired went back to the hotel first, while others went to a nearby beer bar to continue having fun.

Several craft beer bars near the Wanlong ski resort were quite famous and often held events to attract customers.

Rarely getting to travel after starting work, Zhou Mi, upholding the principle of “play to the fullest,” naturally chose to stay with the “continue having fun” small group.

After sitting down in the booth, Yuan Zhen ordered several pitchers of beer and some snacks. When the waiter brought them, a male AM from the same department poured for everyone. He deliberately poured an excessive amount for Yuan Zhen, who could only shriek amid the overflowing white foam.

A circle of amber glass mugs came together in the air, and with the crisp sound of clinking, everyone shouted “Cheers—”, followed by laughter as they drank together.

Zhang Lian was also in the same bar, but he was sitting with the administrative staff at a table diagonally across from Zhou Mi, separated by a not-so-wide aisle.

Occasionally, when no one blocked the view, they could catch glimpses of each other. The ambiguous bar lighting made them seem like a ship after sunset and a lighthouse, always able to find each other’s direction.

With everyone talking and eating for over an hour, most people at Zhou Mi’s table were full. Yuan Zhen went to the bathroom, settled the bill, announced they were leaving, and said she wanted to go back to the hotel to rest while patting her stomach.

Tao Ziyi was packing her purse and called out to Zhou Mi: “Let’s go together.”

Zhou Mi nodded.

Just as she stood up, Zhou Mi’s left knee suddenly surged with intense, stabbing pain, unbearable like a bone awl. She let out a faint groan and uncontrollably collapsed to the ground.

The whole table was in an uproar.

Yuan Zhen stood frozen in shock.

Tao Ziyi cried out: “Mimi, what’s wrong?”

Zhou Mi hissed, her brows tightly knitted: “It’s nothing, just my knee suddenly hurts so much.”

Customers at nearby tables stood up to look, and some servers rushed over.

A colleague bent down to help Zhou Mi.

“Don’t touch her!” A loud shout came from behind. Zhang Lian had already parted the crowd and strode over. His expression was solemn, like dark clouds on a high mountain.

Someone reacted and agreed: “That’s right, don’t move her carelessly. If it’s a knee injury, moving her randomly could cause secondary damage.”

Tao Ziyi nodded: “Yes, Mimi fell while learning snowboarding this afternoon.”

Zhang Lian crouched down beside Zhou Mi, like an anxious doctor: “Which side hurts?”

Zhou Mi looked at his tightly knitted thick eyebrows, then glanced at the colleagues surrounding them in a circle, and said in a tiny voice: “Um… the left one.”

Zhang Lian exhaled, without hesitation, and carefully lifted her in his arms.

Wow.

A male colleague quietly gasped.

Zhang Lian seemed not to hear, completely ignoring the horrified look from the girl in his arms. He strode directly out of the bar, and the others immediately followed closely behind.

Outside, the snow on the ground was illuminated orange-gold by the lights, reflecting tiny, broken fragments of light.

“Where’s the nearest clinic?” Zhang Lian turned his head to ask Yuan Zhen.

Yuan Zhen hurriedly searched on her phone’s map: “Not far, about 200 meters.”

Yuan Zhen, being shrewd and perceptive, basically saw the clues between them, so she made excuses to send away the others who had followed, and only she went along.

After the examination confirmed it was just a knee bruise and a false alarm, Zhang Lian finally breathed a sigh of relief. The doctor prescribed an ice pack and ointment, instructing to apply cold compresses for the first 24 hours, then hot compresses afterward, and to rest without any strenuous activity for the next few days.

Zhang Lian got the medicine and walked back to the white clinic bed, looking down: “Couldn’t you tell you’d hurt yourself this afternoon? And you were still so active?”

His tone wasn’t gentle; he sounded like a reprimanding elder, like the cold night wind outside.

Zhou Mi sat with her leg suspended, lifting her eyes pitifully: “It only hurt for a moment… How was I supposed to know it would swell up like this…”

Yuan Zhen watched from the side, trying hard to control her twitching lips, and was 100% certain that the relationship between her superior and her subordinate was unusual.

After waiting for a while, she tactfully went over and greeted them: “Fabian, Minnie, is there anything else I can help with here?”

Zhang Lian looked at her: “Nothing else, I’ll take her back later. Thank you.”

Yuan Zhen said goodbye to them and left the clinic as if afraid of being slow.

Zhou Mi was carried back to the hotel, to Zhang Lian’s spacious single room.

When placed on the soft, thick, white bedding, Zhou Mi felt a bit feverish and struggled to get down, insisting, “It’s just cold compresses and applying medicine, I can do it myself when I go back.”

But the next second, she was pushed back to the headboard by Zhang Lian’s hands, who coldly commanded: “Sit still.”

Zhou Mi froze, leaned back against the headboard, and indeed sat still, though she cursed under her breath.

Soon after, Zhang Lian came out with an ice pack wrapped in a gray towel.

He sat on the edge of the bed and began to slowly roll up her pant leg.

The man’s warm fingers and palms occasionally pressed against her leg. He looked very focused, his long, dense eyelashes half-covering his eyes, free from distraction.

Zhou Mi’s heart felt like hundreds of insects were crawling, creating a fine, dense itchiness.

She looked at her leg one moment and at Zhang Lian’s face the next, her neck and head uncontrollably warming up.

Finally, when he touched the painful area, she couldn’t help but whimper and tremblingly withdrew her left leg.

Zhang Lian looked up at her, grabbed her leg, and pulled it back, his movements gentle and slow.

Perhaps from being covered all winter, the girl’s calf skin appeared pearly pink-white, with only the bruised knee area strikingly obvious.

Zhang Lian placed the ice pack on it.

After the pain came extreme cold. Zhou Mi gasped and mumbled: “It’s so cold.”

Zhang Lian said, “Bear with it for a while.”

Zhou Mi: “Oh.”

The two remained silent for a while. Suddenly, Zhou Mi burst into laughter, then covered her mouth, pretending to be serious.

Zhang Lian looked back, his eyes much warmer: “Injured like this and still laughing?”

Zhou Mi pursed her lips, staring at him: “Look at how anxious you were today.”

Zhang Lian said, “When a perfectly fine person suddenly collapses, who wouldn’t be anxious?”

Zhou Mi argued: “It’s not like I fainted.”

Zhou Mi thought for a moment, worry creasing her brow: “People in the company will think there’s something between us now, especially Zhenzhen jie, who loves to gossip.”

Zhang Lian said, “So what?”

Zhou Mi pouted: “It’s not good for your reputation. They’ll think you’re taking advantage of your beautiful female subordinate.”

Zhang Lian let out a dismissive snort: “Haven’t our company hired plenty of beautiful girls in these years? Why would I specifically target you, this Minnie?”

Zhou Mi’s smile blossomed, gathering at her cheekbones: “I don’t know, maybe you prefer this type of appearance.”

Zhang Lian replied without hesitation: “No, I prefer you.”

“Not true,” Zhou Mi suddenly remembered something: “That time after Yan’s farewell dinner, at the end of the meal, by the roadside, I saw you especially…”

She emphasized the adjective: “Doting! While talking to someone on the phone.”

“Which time?” Zhang Lian was momentarily confused, seemingly unable to remember. After a moment, he realized: “Oh, it was your mentor. She had just watched a play and was being coquettish with me. Who could resist that?”

He looked at her: “You were in a relationship with someone else then, and you were still jealous of me?”

“Not at all—I just suddenly remembered it now,” Zhou Mi’s lips curved into a shallow arc, her tone becoming gentle: “Actually—that time at the computer mall looking for a keyboard, when you said it was still the same as before, I understood. I knew you hadn’t been with anyone else for so long…”

Zhou Mi cradled her cheek and, with a red face, directly asked: “Have you… Been thinking about me all this time?”

Zhang Lian quietly gazed at her for a few seconds: “I already answered you last time.”

Zhou Mi’s heart surged with desolation and tenderness, as if after drifting for a long time, she had finally touched the familiar soil of a shore: “Let me tell you a secret, that night I was also watching you from upstairs. I saw you come back, but then you left again. Were you going to say something to me?”

“That night, I couldn’t sleep for a long time, wondering what you wanted to say to me,” whenever she recalled that scene, her eyes would redden slightly due to his restraint and struggle: “Every time you’ve sent me back recently, the first thing I do when I go upstairs is to open the bathroom window to watch you, just wanting to see you more. I want to tell you, I miss you too.”

After speaking, she immediately clenched her jaw, afraid of being vulnerable again.

Zhang Lian’s eyes were deep; one look would give the feeling of being submerged at the bottom of the sea: “I wanted to say I’m sorry.”

Zhou Mi sniffled, her eyes flickering: “What?”

“Zhou Mi, I’m sorry,” he said: “Before the day you bought the ring, I hadn’t really thought it through myself, and even had expectations for you, hoping you would agree to continue our romantic relationship. So when you took out that ring, I thought what you needed was marriage. I was a bit panicked then because I knew I couldn’t fulfill your wish.”

Zhou Mi’s mouth drooped: “What about now?”

Zhang Lian removed the ice pack, fixed her pant leg, covered her with the blanket, then got up and sat closer, using his thumb to wipe away a thin tear streak that had slid down without her knowing.

His hand had just been on the ice pack, unusually cold. Zhou Mi shrank her neck from the cold, and Zhang Lian realized, then deliberately pinched her eye corner again.

Zhou Mi unhappily swatted his arm away.

The two looked at each other and burst into laughter, instantly breaking the frozen atmosphere.

Zhang Lian put away his smile and became serious: “Do you remember before we moved in together, you once asked me at the hospital why I didn’t want to get married?”

Zhou Mi nodded.

Zhang Lian said, “That night when I was hesitating under your building, I wanted to tell you about this.”

Zhou Mi muttered: “Why?”

Zhang Lian spoke unhurriedly: “Actually, I only formed this idea and made this decision just over two years ago, right after breaking up with my ex-girlfriend…”

Like the beginning of all beautiful stories, Zhang Lian had once had his love movie.

At that time, he was studying for his master’s degree at NYU in the media and advertising direction. At a Chinese student autumn gathering, Zhang Lian met Lin Sui. They sat at the same table, not very close, and didn’t speak a word during the event, but this pampered, doted-upon rich young lady fell in love with him at first sight and got his contact information that same day.

About two months later, Zhang Lian surrendered to her persistent pursuit, and they developed into a real couple.

Because Lin Sui was still an undergraduate, after graduation, Zhang Lian didn’t immediately return to China but stayed in New York, joining Aoxing’s global headquarters, working while accompanying and caring for his girlfriend.

Those years had both sweet moments and disagreements, but Zhang Lian always believed they were unbreakable, destined to be together.

Later, when Lin Sui graduated and returned to China, he also resigned from his job in America, switched to a client-side position, and planned to settle in Yi City from then on.

It was during his second visit to Lin Sui’s father that afternoon when a crack appeared in what he believed to be a rock-solid relationship.

Lin’s father called him to the study for a private conversation and asked if he had considered marrying his daughter.

Zhang Lian said: I’ve been considering it.

Then Lin’s father imperatively listed two either-or options:

One: Marry into the Lin family and consider changing careers;

Two: Or don’t marry into the family, but since the Lin family had no male heirs, they would need to have a test-tube baby boy after marriage, who would take the mother’s surname and be raised by the Lin family.

At that moment, Zhang Lian was speechless with shock, but he still tried hard to suppress his emotions and calmly asked why their marriage had to be treated and handled this way.

Lin’s father was firm: I’ve given my daughter to you, shouldn’t you give a grandson back to me?

After pondering for several days, Zhang Lian discussed this issue with his girlfriend. That day, they had the most serious argument they had ever had.

He repeatedly emphasized that he could not accept such a marital relationship.

While Lin Sui’s viewpoint remained at a different angle, she tearfully accused: “Isn’t it just that you feel your male dignity is damaged? Otherwise, why not agree? We don’t have to raise the child ourselves, isn’t that a good thing? We can have our marriage, live together, be happy, and just consider this child optional, like he’s my brother. Do you think I’m willing? But my sister’s health is poor, and my father only has us two daughters. He worked hard to raise us and give us the best life. Can’t you compromise a little for me?”

Zhang Lian retorted: “Who gets hurt during the test-tube process? Isn’t it you? What is marriage in your eyes? Isn’t it a lifetime of mutual love and acceptance, independent yet living together? We are people, not tools for continuing the family line. I hope you understand that marriage is just between you and me. Your father is interfering too much.”

Lin Sui looked at him: “You’re so naive, Zhang Lian. Is marriage just between two people? Let’s assume, if your father didn’t interfere and we got married normally, and had children in the future, whose surname would you let the child take? Tell me directly, wouldn’t you have him take the Zhang surname?”

Zhang Lian’s answer was: “He can take your surname, but he’s just a child of you and me, or he’s just himself. He has his own story, not a sequel to either of us.”

Lin Sui coldly curved her lips: “You might as well ask your parents if they agree.”

Zhang Lian replied: “Why should I ask them? This is our business. And unlike you, I won’t let my parents control and dominate my thoughts and life.”

Lin Sui said, “Right, I’m not as capable as you. I still rely on my father to be my precious daughter. Is that what you mean? Since the child could take my surname, what’s the difference between that and what my father is asking of you from the beginning?”

Zhang Lian said, “You completely misunderstood what I was saying.”

Lin Sui raised her voice: “Aren’t you the one being pedantic? In the end, isn’t it just not loving enough? If you truly loved me, couldn’t you accept this? Do you need so many high-sounding excuses?”

Zhang Lian’s face was cold: “Does love mean losing one’s personhood?”

Lin Sui was almost hysterical: “Once you get married, you’ll always encounter these things, because marriage is not just between two people. You have to face all kinds of unknown family structures. My family is already very good. To be honest, from an outsider’s perspective, you, Zhang Lian, are marrying up. Everyone will only envy you. Who cares about your personhood or not? If you want a worry-free, uncomplicated relationship, fine, then find a woman and family who completely obey you and depend on you. But would she still be the independent, mutually loving, and accommodating partner you want? Would such a woman, without any personality, still be the person you truly want to spend your life with? You might as well never get married! Always be yourself!”

At that moment, Zhang Lian completely calmed down, his eyes like dead water: “That’s not impossible.”

Lin Sui froze in disbelief: “What do you mean? You don’t want to marry me anymore? You want to break up with me? Because of this?”

Zhang Lian took a deep breath: “Yes, we’re breaking up.”

Lin Sui stared at him in disbelief for a long time. Before slamming the door as she left, she hurled words at him that were almost a curse: “You’d better stay unmarried and childless for life. Don’t let me catch you, or else you’ll be exactly the type of person who loses their personhood that you so despise!”