After dropping off the luggage at the dormitory entrance, Yun Li and Fu Zhengchu prepared to accompany Fu Shize to the school gate.
The campus had excellent landscaping, with lush trees lining both sides of the path. It was nearly noon, and the sunlight fell almost vertically, creating a dappled pattern on the ground. The three walked side by side on the brick path, enjoying the gentle breeze and comfortable atmosphere.
The path was filled with students starting the new semester. Some were also reporting alone, carrying large and small bags, dripping with sweat.
Yun Li couldn’t help feeling grateful.
She hesitated for a moment, wanting to ask if they’d like to have a meal together.
After much deliberation, she still didn’t bring it up.
Along the way, Fu Zhengchu chattered, introducing the school environment to Yun Li. They soon reached the school gate.
Before leaving, Fu Shize briefly advised Fu Zhengchu: “Take good care of yourself.”
He then looked up at Yun Li.
“You too.”
Yun Li began to regret not inviting them for a meal, even if she would have been rejected.
If only she’d had the courage to ask.
—
Graduate student life turned out to be unexpectedly less busy than imagined. Once the class schedule was set, there were usually several free days each week. Yun Li wasn’t particularly hardworking, so on days without classes, she had little to do.
During her free time, Yun Li often found herself thinking about Fu Shize.
This was the first time in Yun Li’s life that she had thought about another person so frequently and for no apparent reason.
It was as if she was under a spell.
Even though Fu Shize always seemed unapproachable, bluntly rejected whatever Yun Li said.
After all, given how handsome he was, he must have had many people asking for his contact information over the years, and he was probably tired of it.
The Mid-Autumn Festival arrived before they knew it.
Deng Chuqi called her, saying that both she and Xia Congsheng’s companies had given out mooncakes. Since the two of them couldn’t eat that many, they had brought a box for Yun Li as well.
Yun Li didn’t particularly like mooncakes, but she didn’t want to waste their goodwill.
The two agreed to meet for dinner at a Hunan restaurant near the school.
Due to the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday, college students who hadn’t gone home generally went out to eat together. This restaurant was considered one of the better ones in the area, and popular among Nanjing Tech students. The place was bustling with activity and noise.
Deng Chuqi quickly ordered a few dishes, then passed the menu to Yun Li, asking, “Are you planning to go home for the National Day holiday?”
“No, it’s still too early.” Remembering what she had told Yun Yongchang last time, Yun Li shook her head. “I still want to keep my life.”
“Then what do you plan to do with this life of yours?” Deng Chuqi seemed used to this. “If you have nothing to do, why don’t you come stay with me? Xiaxia always goes back to her parents during holidays, leaving me all alone.”
Yun Li thought she didn’t have anything else to do, so she agreed.
As they talked, Deng Chuqi suddenly sighed deeply: “My high school deskmate sent me a wedding invitation a few days ago.”
“When I told my mom about this, she asked if I had a boyfriend.”
“I hope she could learn from other people’s mothers and arrange more blind dates for me.”
“Why doesn’t she know to put in more effort?”
Yun Li almost spat out the water she hadn’t yet swallowed.
“By the way, how are things going with Xiaxia’s uncle?” Deng Chuqi knew Yun Li had never been in a relationship before, so she couldn’t predict what Yun Li would do when she liked someone.
“Pretty good,” Yun Li said casually.
Deng Chuqi was shocked and quickly asked, “How did things develop between you two?”
“The old master said, ‘Having is not having, not having is having.’ My ‘not having’ has reached a certain level, so isn’t that pretty good?”
“…”
Due to their previous arrangement, on the morning of October 1st, Yun Li packed some clothes in her dormitory and went directly to Deng Chuqi’s place.
When she arrived, Xia Congsheng had already gone to her grandfather’s house. The two didn’t have any plans to go out, so they each lay on a sofa, spending most of their time in a daze.
Xia Congsheng returned the day before the National Day holiday ended, followed by Fu Zhengchu carrying several bags full of things.
After greeting them, Fu Zhengchu said, “I’ll go down first, I’m afraid Uncle might leave.”
“Oh, right.” Xia Congsheng looked at Yun Li, “Lili, my uncle is about to take my brother back to school. Do you want to go with them? Then you won’t have to take transportation by yourself later.”
According to the plan, Yun Li was going to order takeout with Deng Chuqi and leave after eating. She was about to follow through with the plan, but before she could even utter a word of refusal, Deng Chuqi agreed to her.
“Sure!”
Meeting Yun Li’s puzzled gaze, she blinked and said unconvincingly, “I’d be worried about you going back alone so late. Now that you have a ride, of course, you should take it!”
Yun Li couldn’t ignore the matchmaking intent in her eyes.
After a moment, Yun Li said tactfully, “But I need to pack my things, it’ll take a while.”
This time, Fu Zhengchu didn’t mind and sat down, taking out his phone: “Then I’ll tell my uncle to wait a bit.”
“…”
Deng Chuqi exposed her: “What do you have to pack? And some things can be left here, you’ll come back again anyway.”
Yun Li had no choice but to go to the room and pack her things.
Before leaving, Xia Congsheng remembered something and said, “Oh, Lili, I forgot while I was at home. I just sent you a few job opportunities, take a look and see which one interests you.”
Yun Li was surprised, thinking Xia Congsheng had just mentioned it casually and hadn’t intended to trouble her.
Xia Congsheng added, “There’s also one that Xu Qingsong mentioned verbally. EAW is looking for a human resources and administrative specialist, and probably some other positions. I’ll send you their HR’s WeChat later.”
…
A few days later, she was back in this car.
After the car started, to make Yun Li less uncomfortable, Fu Zhengchu initiated a conversation: “Sister Lili, are you looking for an internship recently?”
“Yes.”
“Are you planning to go to EAW?” Mentioning this, Fu Zhengchu’s tone turned wistful, “I wanted to intern this summer too, but my mom kept calling me to watch the store.”
“…”
Yun Li glanced at Fu Shize, not knowing how to respond.
“I think EAW is not bad, at least the benefits are good. My brother is very generous to employees,” Fu Zhengchu brought up the wrong topic, “And my uncle is there too, you two could look out for each other.”
After saying this, he sought confirmation from the person involved: “Right, Uncle?”
Fu Shize glanced at him.
Perhaps intimidated by this look, Fu Zhengchu didn’t dare to cause trouble for Fu Shize under the guise of politeness. He quickly changed to a more sensible reason: “Sister Lili and your home is near Haitian City, so it’s convenient to go there.”
Although Yun Li didn’t say anything, she couldn’t help feeling guilty.
“Mm, I’ll think about it when I get back.”
Driving along this road, they would pass Nanwu University of Science and Technology first, then reach Qilixiang.
Fu Zhengchu got off first, leaving two people in the car.
Silence resumed.
Yun Li even felt like she was back to the night when they first met, except this time she was sitting in the back.
She had no time to feel uncomfortable, pondering the current situation.
From his perspective, a stranger had recently made several weird gestures towards him and was now suddenly wanting to work at his company.
Any normal person would think there were ulterior motives.
Yun Li was conflicted about whether to explain. Before she could speak, Fu Shize suddenly said, “Yun Lili?”
Yun Li was stunned. The repeated syllable softened Fu Shize’s voice.
It even sounded… quite cute.
Before she could figure out the source of this nickname, she heard him ask, “Where did you buy the cake that day?”
“Cake?” Quickly realizing he meant the towel roll, Yun Li answered, “I made it myself.”
Fu Shize paused, then simply said, “Mm.”
Yun Li asked cautiously, “What’s wrong?”
Fu Shize: “The elders at home like it.”
“Oh, I always make quite a lot, more than I can eat alone. It’s a waste to keep them in the fridge,” Yun Li said. “If your family likes them, I can bring you some next time I make them.”
Just as they reached the community entrance, Fu Shize stopped the car: “Thank you, but there’s no need to trouble yourself.”
Even though Yun Li was the one being rejected.
She couldn’t help but marvel at how this person was like an impenetrable fortress.
After being rejected so many times, Yun Li felt somewhat numb inside. Her thoughts were still on his nickname for her and what had just happened. She nodded absent-mindedly, “Then I’ll head back first.”
As she gripped the car door handle, she paused again.
Yun Li couldn’t help saying, “I’m looking for an internship recently, and I asked Sister Xiaxia to introduce me to a few. I haven’t decided which company to send my resume to yet.” After saying this, she paused and added tactfully, “Do you have any thoughts?”
She couldn’t directly say, “I might interview at EAW, but if you don’t like it, I won’t go.”
If he had any objections, she could simply rule out EAW.
Fu Shize turned back.
Silence.
Seeing his expression, it might have been her over-interpreting, but at that moment, Yun Li could read “What does it have to do with me?” on his face.
Thinking carefully, she realized she was indeed being presumptuous. Where she worked had nothing to do with him. This statement made it seem as if he cared whether she would appear in front of him or not.
Before she could figure out how to salvage the situation.
Fu Shize suddenly asked, “What internships did Xia Congsheng recommend to you?”
“Huh?” Yun Li instinctively took out her phone and handed it to him, “These few.”
Fu Shize took it and looked.
The information Xia Congsheng sent her included company introductions and job requirements. Fu Shize quickly scanned through them, occasionally asking a few questions about her major and her expectations for the job.
The evening light fell on his profile, revealing a layer of fine fuzz. His light-colored clothes were also dotted with patterns.
It was as if clusters of fireworks were bursting into the sky with her heartbeat, exploding layer upon layer, making the world colorful. At that moment, the person before her seemed to have drawn closer.
After a few minutes, Fu Shize, as if explaining a topic, compared the pros and cons of several companies. Finally, he gave her an objective answer.
“EAW is more suitable for you.”