As the noodles finally cooled down a bit, Yun Li twirled some onto her spoon and brought it to her mouth, just about to eat.
Suddenly, Fu Zhengchu slammed his chopsticks on the table. The noise startled Yun Li, nearly causing her to choke on the noodles. She coughed lightly and patted her chest.
“Sister Yun Li, do you know how abnormal my uncle is?” he complained angrily. “When I didn’t want to go to school, he tricked me by saying we’d be at the same school, so I agreed. The day before, he even promised we’d always go to school together, but—”
He snatched the rice ball Fu Shize was about to eat and devoured it sulkily. Fu Zhengchu continued, “That bastard only lasted two days before he skipped grades!”
Yun Li: “…”
Fu Zhengchu: “He jumped straight to middle school!” After saying this, he looked at Yun Li, his round eyes expecting her to say something.
Fu Shize didn’t even lift his eyelids, his face impassive as if he hadn’t understood a word.
Under Fu Zhengchu’s gaze, Yun Li hesitated for a while before speaking: “Well, it seems he didn’t lie. You were at the same school, weren’t you?”
The three fell into silence.
Seeing Fu Zhengchu quiet down, seemingly taking in her words, Yun Li continued gently: “Besides, it’s not his fault. Being born smart isn’t something he could control.”
Now Fu Zhengchu’s expression was a mix of stunned and peculiar. Unsure if she had said something wrong, Yun Li asked for confirmation: “Don’t you think so?”
Despite the cafeteria’s noise, Yun Li felt that the moment her words fell, the three of them went completely silent.
Wanting to escape this strange atmosphere, she stirred her noodles and took a bite.
Seeing this, Fu Shize silently picked up another rice ball. Noticing Fu Zhengchu’s lack of reaction, he slowly moved it towards himself.
“But,” Fu Zhengchu suddenly snatched Fu Shize’s rice ball again, “Uncle, you’ve given me psychological trauma since childhood. Everyone always compared us.”
Yun Li nearly choked.
“I never thought that after so many years, I’d still be living in Uncle’s shadow,” Fu Zhengchu sighed, feigning heartbreak.
Fu Shize put down his chopsticks, staring coldly at Fu Zhengchu.
Unexpectedly, Fu Zhengchu wasn’t intimidated at all. He boldly exclaimed, “Uncle, you’re even glaring at me!!”
Fu Shize: “…”
For the latter half of the meal, Fu Shize remained in a state of deadpan silence. Probably realizing that resistance was futile, he silently endured no matter how Fu Zhengchu “provoked” him.
Having started, Fu Zhengchu couldn’t stop talking. He rattled on about many of Fu Shize’s childhood stories.
The main incident was the chain reaction caused by Fu Shize skipping grades, which led Fu Zhengchu’s mother to believe for over a decade that her son and daughter might also have genius genes and were potential prodigies.
As a result, Fu Zhengchu had to attend various tutoring classes, as his mother always felt his talent was being wasted.
The most ridiculous part was that when Fu Zhengchu entered middle school, Fu Shize was already in high school. Just when he thought he could catch a break, a girl named Sang Zhi joined his class.
She solved problems as easily as counting.
He chattered on for a long time, while the other two acted as an audience, occasionally responding with a nod or “mm-hmm.”
“Later, even my mom admitted that her son’s intelligence couldn’t compare to her cousin’s,” Fu Zhengchu said matter-of-factly. “They’re a generation apart, how could we be the same?”
Even with her good temper, Yun Li was starting to tire of Fu Zhengchu’s chatter. After finishing her last bite of noodles, she wiped her mouth clean with a napkin.
She said softly, “Don’t be upset.”
Fu Zhengchu’s eyes welled up with tears, feeling he had finally brought Yun Li to his side, waiting for her next words of comfort.
Yun Li pursed her lips: “We’re all ordinary people. We should know our place.”
For once, the long-silent Fu Shize agreed: “Accepting yourself isn’t scary.”
“…”
As they went downstairs, Yun Li noticed several dessert stalls in the center of the square, selling the cookies and pastries they had seen in the cafeteria earlier.
“Oh, they’re selling today,” Fu Zhengchu said, a bit surprised.
The new environment made him forget about what had just happened. He turned and pretended to ask Fu Shize, “Uncle, do you want some?”
Fu Shize didn’t humor him, directly exposing his intentions: “If you want to eat, just go buy some.”
He then glanced at Yun Li, “You too.”
Yun Li was about to refuse, but Fu Zhengchu didn’t give her a chance, pushing her into the queue.
The two of them took sealed bags and tongs. At each new cookie cabinet, Fu Zhengchu would analyze its pros and cons, and when he came across ones he liked, he’d pick a couple for Yun Li too.
Yun Li no longer had the energy to respond. Fu Zhengchu was incredibly talkative. Not only that, but he would ask her a question every so often, and wouldn’t let up until she gave a couple of answers.
Taking advantage of a lull in the conversation, Yun Li asked, “Fu Zhengchu, did you used to chat with your uncle like this often?”
“I guess so,” Fu Zhengchu looked up, thinking. “But Uncle used to talk more back then, not like now.”
Hearing this, Yun Li grew curious: “What did he usually say to you?”
“He’d ask if I had grown two mouths.”
Yun Li looked outside.
Fu Shize stood apart from the crowd. In the beautiful, flowing sunset, he appeared as distant and cold as a skyscraper, head lowered as he played with his phone.
It was different from what she had imagined. Although Fu Shize often ignored Fu Zhengchu, his attitude could almost be described as ‘doting.’ Like a sea anemone, swelling gradually with emotional fluctuations, yet never quite bursting.
If Yun Ye behaved like this, Yun Li would probably have lost her temper long ago.
After they finished packing their cookies and went to pay, they realized the queue had grown incredibly long.
“Let’s walk forward, Sister Yun Li. Uncle is at the front,” Noticing Yun Li’s surprised look, he added, “Whenever we went out before, Uncle would always queue for us. He’s a professional at queuing.”
Sure enough, they saw Fu Shize’s figure at the front of the line.
Yun Li slowed her pace. They had already troubled him with many things today. She hesitantly looked at their bags: “Should we have gotten some for him too?”
Initially, she hadn’t realized he was queuing in front. Now it felt like they were sacrificing Fu Shize, enjoying themselves while he couldn’t. After all, others could freely choose what they liked, while the person willing to queue had given up that right.
Fu Zhengchu didn’t care at all: “It’s fine, Sister Yun Li. Through our molding, Uncle has become a self-sacrificing talent.”
Without waiting for Yun Li’s reaction, he handed both bags to Fu Shize.
After taking them, Fu Shize switched his phone to the payment code. Seeing this, Yun Li quickly pulled out her campus card from her pocket.
Fu Zhengchu was his nephew, but she wasn’t. It didn’t feel right to let him pay for her.
Yun Li: “For mine… you can use my campus card to pay.”
Fu Shize didn’t take it, remaining silent.
She waited for a while, her hand starting to go numb, but didn’t get the expected response.
Yun Li looked up to find both Fu Shize and Fu Zhengchu staring at the photo on her campus card. Fu Zhengchu’s face was almost pressed against it.
Yun Li: “?”
Yun Li felt she might have overthought things. Her main concern was that Fu Shize shouldn’t pay for her, but she was not on the same wavelength as the other two.
Fu Zhengchu: “Sister Yun Li, this photo is quite pretty. Is it from your undergraduate days?”
Yun Li hesitated for a moment before saying, “It’s from high school.”
Fu Zhengchu wasn’t concerned about when the photo was taken, just expressing sincere admiration: “Sister Yun Li, I think your long hair looks much better than my sister’s.”
He looked towards his co-conspirator of sorts—Fu Shize—seeking agreement: “Don’t you think so, Uncle?”
Fu Shize didn’t respond, averting his gaze.
Yun Li suddenly felt a bit embarrassed and flipped her campus card over.
When it was time to take photos for her undergraduate graduation, she happened to be back home for something, so the information system directly used her high school graduation photo. At that time, Yun Li still had waist-length hair. Later, due to certain circumstances, she cut it to shoulder length.
Back then, Yun Ye, who was in middle school, even cried for a while because he couldn’t accept it.
“Then I’ll transfer the money to…” Yun Li struggled to say the next two words, “Uncle… later.”
Fu Zhengchu said matter-of-factly: “It’s okay, Sister Yun Li. We’re the younger generation. Uncle won’t let us pay.”
Yun Li felt undeserving. As someone the same age as Fu Shize, it was hard to adapt to this ‘younger generation’ status.
“I think your uncle is quite nice. You shouldn’t always bully him,” To make herself sound less deliberate, she added, “He’s even paying for us.”
Fu Zhengchu: “Sister Yun Li, this isn’t bullying. Besides, Uncle doesn’t have a girlfriend anyway, so it’s fine for him to spend money on the younger generation.”
“Eh, didn’t you say last time that many people wanted his number…”
“He gave it to a few at first,” He paused, “But Uncle never replied to anyone.”
Yun Li was silent for a moment, “He gives his number to others?” Realizing her tone was off, Yun Li quickly added, “I mean, he doesn’t seem like he would. Like when we had dinner last time.”
“What are you thinking?” Fu Zhengchu looked proud, “Of course, it was us who gave it out.”
“Why?”
“To find an aunt to keep him in check.”
…
Soon, Fu Shize returned with two bags of cookies. Yun Li put on the ‘hard-earned’ half-moon canvas bag, placing her original small bag and the cookies inside.
Perhaps too satisfied with it, she stood on her tiptoes and turned sideways to look down at the canvas bag.
Seeing Yun Li’s fondness for the EAW prize, Fu Zhengchu was curious if there was anything special about it: “Sister Yun Li, how does it feel wearing it?”
Yun Li looked down at the bag, smiling shyly, “It’s quite nice, just…” She pulled the canvas bag up a bit, “A bit big.”
Too embarrassed to ‘pose’ in front of them, Yun Li ran to an open space about two meters away to take photos.
Fu Zhengchu boredly opened the cookie package and ate a couple, watching Yun Li take photos from afar. Perhaps out of boredom, he examined the canvas bag she was wearing for a while, then suddenly let out a long “Hmm.”
“Uncle, isn’t this your profile picture?”
To prove his observation, Fu Zhengchu enlarged Fu Shize’s WeChat profile picture and held it up to Fu Shize’s face.
One sky blue, one pure black.
Fu Zhengchu: “Look, the moon on top is the same.”
Fu Shize looked at him as if he were an idiot.
Unsatisfied, Fu Zhengchu pushed further, teasing him in a childish, vulgar whisper that only the two of them could hear: “Uncle, Sister Yun Li just said you were big.”
With cookies still being chewed in his mouth, he looked particularly annoying.
Fu Shize: “…”
As the sky darkened, the campus greenway’s speakers were broadcasting the evening program. At the moment, a female host was interviewing a senior who had already graduated and started working.
“So, Senior Yin, as a former campus celebrity at South University of Science and Technology who won countless awards, your fans, including myself, are very curious. What do you think was your biggest regret during your university years?”
The man’s voice was as gentle as the wind, pleasant to the ear even through the speakers’ noise. He chuckled and paused for a moment: “I suppose it would be… not having dated?”
“In these few years, my classmates even have children now.”
Fu Zhengchu casually asked: “Sister Yun Li, did you have this regret during your undergraduate years?”
Caught off guard, Yun Li instantly thought of a thousand responses, all of which would be awkward self-revelations.
This Fu Zhengchu, was he doing this on purpose?
Yun Li didn’t like prying into others’ private affairs, mostly because she feared others would question her in return. Never having been in a relationship was often cited by others as evidence of her poor social skills.
The evening breeze suddenly turned cool. She rubbed her elbows with her palms and reluctantly admitted, “I… have never been in a relationship.”
Hastily changing the subject, she asked, “What about you two?”
“Ah…” Fu Zhengchu tilted his head, thinking for a moment before answering matter-of-factly, “I’ve dated four or five times, but never for long.”
“Then…” The focus shifted to Fu Shize.
Worried he might view inexperience as a flaw, Yun Li carefully considered her words before feigning confusion: “Also four or five times?”
Fu Shize leaned back slightly, his pale neck revealing delicate veins like fine branches. As they passed under a white light, it ignited a spark in his eyes.
He turned to look at her: “You think too highly of me.”
“Li-jie, Uncle means…” Fu Zhengchu interpreted, “Even being asked this question is overestimating him.”
He pretended to be serious: “After all, in our eyes, he’s practically asexual.”
Yun Li: “…”
Fu Shize: “…”
The female host continued questioning the man: “So, Senior Yin, do you have any advice for the new students?”
The man suppressed a laugh: “I hope everyone studies hard, but don’t forget to enjoy a beautiful campus romance in your spare time.”
The interview concluded with a popular foreign song, “Wonderland,” its intro gradually increasing in volume.
Fu Zhengchu couldn’t help but comment: “They shouldn’t have invited this guy as a guest.”
Yun Li: “?”
Fu Zhengchu: “I think there’s a high probability that by the time Uncle’s classmates’ kids are in elementary school, he still won’t have a girlfriend.”
He concluded: “Uncle has more authority to speak on this.”
…
The three strolled through the residential area.
They unknowingly reached the vicinity of West Street, a row of shops built along the outer edge of the residential area, mostly cafes for students to relax and study.
Several stray cats lounged lazily by the roadside, unafraid of passersby. They would only get up to eat if food was offered, too lazy for any unnecessary movement.
The streetlights stretched their shadows long and thin. From this angle, Yun Li and Fu Shize’s shadows perfectly overlapped.
West Street was practically outside the school. Fu Zhengchu checked the time and asked her, “Li-jie, we’re going to watch a soccer match tonight at the Nanwu Stadium. Want to come?”
Yun Li was momentarily confused. Soccer? She was someone who didn’t even know how many players were on a soccer field.
Yun Li: “I think I’ll pass.”
Fu Zhengchu: “Why?”
Yun Li: “Well, I don’t understand it. I’m afraid I’ll dampen your spirits.”
Fu Zhengchu said seriously: “Li-jie, we’re going to watch soccer, not play it.”
Seeing her hesitation, Fu Zhengchu made the decision, pointing at the convenience store across the street: “Let’s go buy some snacks to eat during the match.”
The chain convenience store offered a variety of snacks, drinks, and fast food. Yun Li was choosing milk at the open refrigerator when she overheard their conversation from across the aisle.
“But Uncle, aren’t you going back to school?”
He hasn’t graduated yet.
Usually slow on the uptake, Yun Li’s mind suddenly sharpened, instantly recalling that Fu Shize was still pursuing his doctorate.
She slowly examined the expiration date on the milk carton, but the dense black characters were now in low resolution. Her ears, however, were exceptionally clear and attuned to their conversation.
After a moment, Fu Shize replied flatly: “No.”
“Can you still graduate then?” Fu Zhengchu’s tone was surprised. “My boss says if I dare to take a week off, I’ll have to delay graduation.”
Fu Shize didn’t answer, heading straight to the checkout counter. Yun Li quickly averted her gaze, pretending to be engrossed in selecting milk.
“Hey, classmate—” A familiar male voice suddenly rang out. Yun Li looked up to see a curly-haired boy standing next to her. “Taking so long to choose a bottle of milk?”
Yun Li felt a bit embarrassed, worried that Fu Shize and Fu Zhengchu might overhear: “I haven’t been choosing for that long, just looking for a moment.”
The boy chuckled softly, leaning in slightly: “But I’ve been watching you for a while. You first picked up Guangming boxed milk, then switched to Yili, then to Mengniu. I know there’s a Yiming dairy shop nearby…”
Yun Li took a step back, frowning: “Do we know each other?”
“We don’t, but…”
“If we don’t know each other, why,” Yun Li paused, hugging the milk to her chest as she continued to back away, “were you watching me choose milk?”
Without waiting for his response, Yun Li turned and quickly walked to Fu Shize and Fu Zhengchu’s side. The boy was left speechless, swallowing whatever he was about to say.
Fu Zhengchu glanced at the person by the refrigerator: “Li-jie, is that your classmate?”
Yun Li shook her head: “I don’t know him.”
Fu Zhengchu: “Then were you two chatting just now?”
Yun Li arranged the barcodes of her purchases to face upward before handing them to Fu Shize. Hearing this, she hesitated for a moment before saying softly: “No, he kept staring at me. I felt a bit…”
Unsure if the description was appropriate, Yun Li’s voice grew even quieter: “Creepy.”
Hearing this, Fu Zhengchu glanced toward the refrigerator area again.
Fu Shize took the items Yun Li handed him, scanning the barcodes one by one and placing them in a bag. When he got to the fresh milk, his usual smooth movements paused, the red light of the self-checkout scanner reflecting off the milk carton’s packaging.
Thinking she might have bought too much milk, Yun Li explained: “I got three cartons, thought you guys might want some too.”
Fu Shize continued scanning the barcodes, asking: “Chocolate flavor?”
Yun Li: “Oh, I couldn’t find it at first. If you want that, I can go to the supermarket next door to look.”
“Li-jie, it’s right behind you!” Fu Zhengchu reminded her.
Indeed, Yun Li turned to find chocolate milk near the checkout counter, stored at room temperature instead of in the refrigerator. She picked up the milk cartons she had chosen earlier: “Then I’ll go to the counter to exchange them.”
Fu Shize took two cartons from her hands, putting them back in the bag: “Just change yours.”
…
After checking out, they walked toward the parking lot. Yun Ye made a video call, which Yun Li immediately hung up. He promptly sent a message: [Feeling better?]
Although the siblings usually teased each other, this brother was quite reliable in critical moments.
Yun Li, whose mood was already good, now felt like she was on cloud nine: [Not bad, been out all day, heading to the next spot now.]
Yun Ye: […]
Yun Ye: [Stop lying, it’s only been two months. How could you have made friends?]
Yun Li’s brows furrowed, her typing speed increasing: [Don’t be jealous, don’t worry, your big sister is doing great!!!!!]
Yun Ye: [Alright, alright.]
After a moment.
Yun Ye: [A guy?]
How did this kid come to ask this question?
Although nothing had happened, Yun Li felt a bit guilty, as if giving an honest answer would imply something had occurred.
She glanced furtively at Fu Shize before replying without much confidence: [A girl.]
Yun Ye, also guessing she couldn’t have found a boyfriend in such a short time: [Okay then. It’s so late, where are you going?]
Yun Li: [Watching soccer.]
Yun Ye: [Since when do you girls arrange to watch soccer??]
Yun Li, absorbed in texting, unconsciously walked faster.
Gradually, she fell about two meters behind the other two.
Fu Zhengchu vaguely saw Yun Li chatting with several exclamation marks, assuming she was complaining about the earlier incident to someone. Recalling how he had asked for her WeChat at the airport, he felt Yun Li was quite conservative in this aspect.
He leaned closer to Fu Shize and whispered: “Doesn’t Li-jie realize that guy was trying to hit on her? She seems to have mistaken him for a creep who was peeping.”
The canned potato chips and drinks in the bag clinked against each other.
Fu Shize asked: “What else could it be?”
Sensing Fu Shize’s disagreement but not thinking much of it, Fu Zhengchu defended, possibly from similar experiences: “It was just pure flirting!” He exclaimed: “Right? Li-Jie is so beautiful, I didn’t expect her to be so inexperienced in this area.”
“I’m inexperienced too,” Fu Shize said, turning his head. “Not like you, dating four or five times.”
“…”
Arriving at Nanwu Stadium, they realized they had bought the drinks in vain. The stadium was bustling with noise and excitement. At the entrance, several security guards were stopping people from bringing in their drinks. A large wooden sign at the front read “No Outside Food or Drinks Allowed.”
Seeing this, Fu Shize put the items back in the car. Yun Li and Fu Zhengchu entered and waited inside, noticing that most of the spectators were wearing either white or black clothes.
These were the colors of the two teams.
“Do you support any team?” Yun Li asked.
“Of course!” Fu Zhengchu tugged at his clothes. “Can’t you see I’m wearing black?”
“But…”
She and Fu Shize were both wearing white jackets.
Fu Zhengchu looked knowing and calmly said, “It’s fine, just follow me!”
In the stadium, the audience was separated by an aisle, with people in black clothes on one side and white on the other.
The three of them walked to the black section under the gaze of many. Almost every new arrival asked if the two in white had sat in the wrong place.
After a while, even Fu Zhengchu couldn’t take it anymore.
“Uncle, Li-jie, you should go to the other side.”
Yun Li awkwardly picked up her bag and found a seat in the white section, with Fu Shize sitting next to her.
The seats were narrow, and occasionally their knees would touch, causing Yun Li to withdraw as if shocked.
Yun Li broke the silence first: “Do you support this white team?”
Fu Shize: “No.”
“Do you usually watch matches?”
“No.”
“Then are you here today to accompany Fu Zhengchu?”
Fu Shize turned to look at her: “Aren’t you too?”
This awkward conversation made Yun Li want to find a hole to crawl into.
Fortunately, the match soon began, and the atmosphere in the stadium heated up, saving Yun Li from racking her brains to solve communication problems with Fu Shize.
This was Yun Li’s first time watching a match live.
She had previously watched many commentator videos online. Fei Shui, whom she had met during her last restaurant visit, was quite famous for his match commentary.
But the experience as a spectator versus being there in person was completely different.
At this moment, Yun Li felt this intense atmosphere.
To enhance the entertainment, Nanwu Stadium had live commentators. Their passionate tones and rhythms matched the crowd’s cheers and screams, pushing the atmosphere to new heights wave after wave.
Yun Li had been given two clappers at the entrance, and now caught up in the mood, she clapped along at appropriate times.
Unconsciously, Yun Li’s emotions were carried away by those around her. When the white team scored their first goal, she couldn’t help but clap wildly.
Fu Shize: “…”
He initially wanted to say something, but seeing Yun Li’s face full of smiles, he closed his mouth again.
He pretended not to hear the noise.
The constant low energy beside her was impossible for Yun Li to ignore.
After thinking for a moment, she held out one of the clappers to him: “I feel like you could participate more. It’s quite fun.”
Fu Shize didn’t take it.
A few seconds passed.
Yun Li tugged at her white clothes, pulling them up slightly: “Aren’t we supporting the white team?”
Originally, neither of them was interested in watching the match, but now Yun Li had completely switched sides.
Fu Shize could even see a hint of reproach in her slightly pursed lips.
“…”
The two looked at each other, silent amidst the heated background. Yun Li felt a bit nervous but stubbornly maintained her gaze.
After a while.
“Clap! Clap! Clap!”
Obediently, Fu Shize took the clapper and waved it without a word.