Yu Tian had originally planned to complete the ophthalmology medical science popularization project in one go, but unexpectedly, things came one after another.

Her mother and Old Dai’s relationship was progressing smoothly, quickly entering a passionate romance phase with great momentum toward marriage. They had both introduced each other to their respective circles of relatives and friends. For this reason, Yu Tian was also invited to accompany her mother to several wedding banquets and full-month celebrations hosted by Old Dai’s relatives, filling up all her spare leisure time with these social activities.

On the other hand, just today, her university counselor had also contacted Yu Tian, inviting her to participate in Rong Medical University’s newly organized fun charity auction activity this year—

“Simply put, it’s a school event. You know our Rong Medical University has always had very strong alumni resources and networks, with regular gathering activities. So we want to innovate the format of these regular gatherings and turn them into fun charity auctions. Besides graduates from previous years, all current students can also participate.”

“Our charity auction doesn’t auction expensive antiques, calligraphy, paintings, or family heirlooms, but has a fun nature to it. For example, it could be your class notes from a certain professional course during your studies, or a professor’s key review points before exams, or even your second-hand books…”

The counselor was very optimistic about this activity, speaking with passion: “All proceeds from the auction will be donated together to major hospitals in Rong City to pay for surgical expenses of some impoverished patients…”

Yu Tian quite wanted to participate, but…

“This sounds quite meaningful, but those notes and second-hand books I originally had were all given away for free to junior students when I graduated. I can’t come up with anything now that could be used for a charity auction.”

“Yu Tian, you need to think more broadly. Besides physical items that can be auctioned, intangible assets work too!”

Yu Tian was a bit confused, only hearing the counselor continue—

“Opportunities to dine with successful alumni, chances for alumni to provide career guidance to current students, once – these types can all be auctioned. Isn’t the time of you older graduates the most precious intangible asset? How can it not be auctioned? Our current new students are very interested in this.”

This counselor had always been a decisive person, immediately asking: “Just give me one answer – are you coming or not?”

With things said to this extent, Yu Tian naturally didn’t hesitate: “Coming, coming, coming!”

Whatever, being able to contribute is contributing. Even if it doesn’t fetch a good price, participation is what matters most.

The fun charity auction was scheduled for this Saturday evening, so she wouldn’t be able to do anything else that evening.

As for what specifically to auction, Yu Tian didn’t struggle with it. In any case, she was auctioning a small segment of her own time. She informed the counselor that she would be free for auction for one hour after the charity event, provided a personal photo as requested by the counselor, and then simply got lazy and left it entirely to the counselor to decide what she would auction.

Yu Tian was busy on her side, and Yan Ming was equally busy on his.

“I say, Yan Ming, what’s been wrong with you lately? Before, although you also added extra appointments for patients, you at least still took normal lunch breaks. At most, you’d just delay getting off work from the outpatient clinic to see the extra patients. How come now you’re directly using lunch break time to see extra patients?”

To Jiang Yuming’s question, Yan Ming directly lifted his eyelids: “Aren’t you busier than I?”

Having said this, Jiang Yuming immediately laughed cheerfully: “That’s because I’m coordinating with Ren Yali to help film science popularization videos!”

Yu Tian was right – coordinating the five-episode science popularization project could indeed spawn many other things, especially for Jiang Yuming. So much so that Yan Ming recently couldn’t even arrange to have meals with Jiang Yuming anymore. He always claimed he already had appointments with Ren Yali to coordinate orthopedic science popularization matters.

Yan Ming didn’t know what stage their program had reached, only knowing that recently they had already watched all the movies currently showing in cinemas, and almost all the notable restaurants in the commercial district near the hospital had their “check-in” presence.

Compared to these two people, Yu Tian was much less proactive.

Since their last meeting, she hadn’t actively asked Yan Ming out again.

She had said she wanted to film science popularization videos to benefit the public, with this kind of work attitude?

A person with three-minute enthusiasm. Yan Ming had a feeling of being deceived.

And Jiang Yuming had to add insult to injury from the side. He looked at Yan Ming with an annoying smile: “Have you been trying to ask someone to dinner every evening without success? Otherwise, why do you work overtime during your lunch break every day? It feels like you’re deliberately trying to keep your evenings free.”

Yan Ming calmly and indifferently denied Jiang Yuming’s baseless speculation: “There’s no such thing.”

“But since you’re quite free in the evenings now, are you going to the charity auction organized by the school?”

This time Yan Ming didn’t even lift his head: “Not going.”

Jiang Yuming didn’t waste time trying to persuade Yan Ming, because Ren Yali’s message asking him to explore restaurants that evening had arrived. He threw down the auction content details he had just received, saying: “Yali asked me out for something that evening of the auction, so I can’t go. If you’re interested, you can go in my place – spend some money, show some love.”

He pointed to the printed auction content details on the table: “This is insider information. I’ve been working like a horse in the alumni association to get first-hand news. I heard that this time the school invited quite a few single, beautiful female alumni to expand influence and scale. Many of our single senior schoolmates are getting restless.”

After Jiang Yuming finished speaking, he quickly left with a beaming smile.

Yan Ming ignored his words, but the “insider information” on the table caught his attention.

With just a glance, Yan Ming frowned and picked up the auction details sheet.

When he opened it, he found he hadn’t done wrong.

Yu Tian’s photo was indeed printed on it.

This material was printed in black and white, and the pixels weren’t very clear either, but it still couldn’t diminish Yu Tian’s vivid beauty. The photo selected was one of her casual life photos, where she was smiling like a flower. Even with such poor print quality, her eyes still looked bright and sparkling.

Below her photo were her name, enrollment year, and the content of this auction, written in first person:

“The successful bidder can take me for a drive after the charity event. Thank you in advance for your love, sending hearts.”

Yan Ming unconsciously tightened his grip, leaving wrinkled marks on this “insider information.”

No wonder she had no time to coordinate filming project videos with him – turns out she was busy.

Yan Ming felt he had indeed been too free in the evenings lately. He flipped through Jiang Yuming’s materials and decided to make himself busier, meaningfully busier. After all, showing love and donating all auction proceeds to impoverished patients was quite meaningful.

The charity auction was held in Rong Medical University’s auditorium. Yu Tian arrived early in the afternoon and helped the counselor and junior students with preparation work.

After finishing her work, she wanted to rest in the makeup room backstage at the auditorium.

The window of this auditorium’s makeup room faced the auditorium’s small balcony. If Yu Tian remembered correctly, that used to be a small café, always furnished with several tables. At this moment, there were probably several alumni having coffee and chatting there. The makeup room window was slightly ajar, so she could hear what they were discussing.

Several men gathered together, all working in the medical field, talking about nothing more than recent work and complaints about strange regulations in hospitals. Yu Tian originally paid no attention until a female voice interrupted—

“Senior Chen Ming, I… we haven’t contacted each other for a long time. I heard you’re at the research institute. I might be going there next year too. Would it be convenient to add WeChat for future communication?”

The girl speaking had a stammering voice, obviously very nervous.

Yu Tian had heard of this senior named Chen Ming. He was a prominent figure two years above her, good-looking and on the basketball team. There had always been quite a few girls pursuing him.

From this girl’s nervous and anxious tone, she had a crush on Chen Ming too. So when she encountered him at this charity auction, she seized the opportunity to ask for contact information.

She had mustered great courage.

After a brief silence came Chen Ming’s smiling voice: “Sure, scan my QR code.”

The two added each other on WeChat, chatted politely for a few sentences, and the girl, probably having something to do, quickly left.

Yu Tian leaned on the reclining chair in the makeup room, looking at the small patch of azure sky visible through the slightly open window, and suddenly feeling somewhat nostalgic for campus life. It seemed time always remained youthfully green in memory.

For some unknown reason, she suddenly thought of Yan Ming. She had been busy these past few days and hadn’t been able to contact him, yet he hadn’t contacted her at all either.

Previously, when she had actively sent him umbrellas and meals, treating him like a brother, once her mother and his father’s middle-aged blind date failed, he retreated so decisively, cleanly, and calmly.

Yu Tian felt a bit angry, though she didn’t know what she was angry about. She just suddenly thought that during school, Yan Ming probably attracted even more admirers than Chen Ming, which made her feel even more indignant.

Why should that be the case?

Wasn’t it just because of his face?

Humans were all too shallow.

But her random thoughts were quickly interrupted by the conversation of people on the small balcony below the window.

“Chen Ming, how do you attract people so much? You haven’t been at the research institute long, but already three women there have confessed to you, right? Coming to alumni activities still attracts people to confess – You’re something.”

After the girl who asked for contact information left, several men couldn’t help teasing and making a fuss: “I think this junior is quite well-behaved. Didn’t you say you just wanted to find someone well-behaved? Why not take this one?”

“She is quite well-behaved, but didn’t you see? Her left pinky finger is missing a section.”

Chen Ming’s voice lost its previous gentlemanly politeness, carrying a somewhat condescending pitying tone: “Quite pitiful.” He sighed as if truly empathetic, “But I definitely wouldn’t choose her. My family wouldn’t accept this kind of disability, and it’s a hand disability that not only affects daily life but can be seen at a glance. Taking her out would be embarrassing…”

Several people laughed and chattered, not taking the girl who had nervously asked for contact information to heart. They spoke of sympathy and pity, but their tone carried no corresponding emotion, and certainly no respect.

Yu Tian raised her injured hand, feeling stifled inside.

Only when her hand was injured did she experience the difficulties faced by disabled people. In this society, you didn’t need to have severe disabilities – just this kind of mild physical inconvenience could subject you to “special treatment” in many places.

Most people were good at pretending, like Chen Ming, who appeared polite on the surface but fundamentally looked down on people with mild disabilities or physical inconveniences.

If that girl knew she was being secretly evaluated this way by someone she liked or valued, how hurt she would feel.

Yu Tian knew she shouldn’t let her thoughts diverge, but she couldn’t help herself.

Her injured hand had once made her sensitive and self-conscious. She couldn’t control thinking whether Yan Ming also viewed her this way behind her back, thinking she was pitiful but not truly caring about her pitifulness.

But just when Yu Tian was feeling distressed, she heard a cold and serious male voice—

“Since you have no way to respect girls with mild disabilities from the bottom of your heart, I suggest you directly and clearly explain this to her, rather than still enjoying her secret admiration and adoration with peace of mind.”

Yu Tian was stunned.

This was Yan Ming’s voice.

Yu Tian didn’t know what was happening. Her heart began racing rapidly, becoming excited yet chaotic. She crawled to the window to look down.

It was Yan Ming.

He was sitting at a table not far from Chen Ming’s table, with coffee and a medical journal in front of him. Yu Tian couldn’t see his full face – from her angle, she could only see the back of his head with thick hair.

Chen Ming’s group’s conversation had nothing to do with him.

But Yan Ming’s tone was firm, his voice cold: “Speaking behind people’s backs is very tasteless.”

Yan Ming was usually low-key in his conduct. Although he wasn’t necessarily older than Chen Ming, he had graduated much earlier and didn’t like participating in alumni activities. Most people only knew his name without seeing him in person.

Chen Ming naturally didn’t recognize who he was, only taking him for a junior student below his year. His tone wasn’t particularly polite: “Everyone can talk about principles and stand on the moral high ground. But when it comes to yourself, could you find someone with a hand disability? Wouldn’t you also be disgusted like me? Stop pretending.”

Yu Tian’s heartbeat became very fast, and she felt conflicted and tangled.

For some unknown reason, she secretly anticipated Yan Ming’s answer deep inside, but also seemed afraid and reluctant to hear his response.

Then she heard Yan Ming’s voice—

“I wouldn’t reject it.” His voice was light, “If the person I liked happened to be not so perfect.”

Chen Ming let out a soft scoff: “But you fundamentally wouldn’t like a disabled person.” His probing gaze looked Yan Ming up and down, “You’re younger than me, right? Junior, frankly speaking, with your appearance, you won’t lack choices for a partner. You fundamentally wouldn’t need to choose a disabled person.”

“When you work a few more years, buy a house with a mortgage, get married and have children who need care, come home needing someone nimble to prepare meals, then you’ll know that if your partner has some disability, it is a burden. After all, because of disability, she’ll have difficulty finding decent, well-paying jobs, and may not be able to do household chores well either.”

“No.”

Facing Chen Ming’s teacher-like “advice,” Yan Ming was very calm. He slightly raised his head, so Yu Tian could see the expression on his face – determined and indifferent, but without the condescending contempt Chen Ming showed toward others.

Yan Ming was very peaceful, this peace coming from his inherent upbringing and confidence.

“Childcare and housework should originally be shared between men and women. If being your wife requires one person to shoulder all childcare, housework, and even earn money to help with mortgage payments, then what is your role in this marriage and family? Don’t you think you’re more like a disabled person who needs to depend on others’ lives and drain others’ labor to support yourself?”

Yan Ming said this with a smile, then corrected: “Perhaps using ‘disabled person’ to describe this is disrespectful to disabled people. ‘Cripple’ or ‘waste’ might be more appropriate.”