Shu Nian lived in an old-style residential complex with a good location—there was a bus stop right outside and a subway station just a short walk away. The security wasn’t particularly good, with guards who didn’t restrict people from entering, but fortunately, there was a police station nearby.

This place always had considerable foot traffic, with many people entering through the main gate and exiting through the side door as a shortcut, significantly reducing their travel distance.

At this moment, the two of them stood at the entrance of the complex, surrounded by people coming and going.

Afraid that others might bump into Shu Nian, Xie Ru He instinctively grabbed her wrist and pulled her slightly to the side.

Shu Nian was still thinking about what he had just said and obediently moved a few steps following his lead. She thought for several seconds, completely clueless, and could only carefully ask, “How to coax…”

Xie Ru He didn’t speak, still holding her wrist, as if it were a natural gesture. He didn’t continue to stand there but raised his foot to walk toward the subway station.

Shu Nian was pulled forward by him and looked back, asking, “Wasn’t Assistant Fang the one who drove you here?”

Xie Ru He said, “Mm.”

Shu Nian asked, “So we’re not waiting for him?”

Xie Ru He didn’t answer but instead asked, “Aren’t you going to the recording studio today?”

Shu Nian nodded, “Yes, near the South Tower Building.”

“The subway is faster,” Xie Ru He looked back at her. “Or would you prefer to go by car?”

Hearing this, Shu Nian lowered her eyes, staring at his hand holding hers. She licked her lips, and her palm instinctively curled a little, without any consideration: “No.”

The two continued walking forward in silence, neither initiating conversation.

The atmosphere was quiet, with a hint of awkwardness.

If not for one person holding the other’s hand, they would have looked like strangers.

Shu Nian secretly observed him, only able to see his profile.

Three-dimensional features, clean-cut curves, still with that cold, indifferent appearance—it was impossible to tell what his current mood was. She worried he might still be angry and didn’t know what to do.

Coaxing someone… she had no experience with this either.

Shu Nian felt a bit dejected.

How had she managed to upset him on their very first day of dating?

Because of the cold weather, Shu Nian wasn’t dressed lightly. Besides her base layer, she wore two wool sweaters and a pink and white fluffy hoodie on the outside, with a pleated skirt revealing a pair of slender legs.

Being small and thin, she didn’t look bulky.

Xie Ru He wasn’t directly touching her wrist but was holding onto her hoodie. His hand was handsome, with protruding palm bones extending to four fingers, long and clean, nails trimmed neatly with a slight shine.

Perhaps from the cold wind, his hands looked somewhat dry.

Shu Nian stared for a while and suddenly thought of an idea.

She freed the hand he was holding while extending her other hand, using both hands to envelop his. But her frame was small, her hands and feet were tiny, and even with both hands, she couldn’t completely wrap his hand.

Noticing her action, Xie Ru He looked over: “What’s wrong?”

She blinked and said softly, “I’m wearing gloves.”

Xie Ru He said, “Hm?”

As if trying to please him, Shu Nian explained mildly, “Holding like this, your hand shouldn’t feel cold.”

It was a very gentle way of appeasing him.

“…” Xie Ru He paused, the gloom between his brows dissipating somewhat. “Mm.”

Seeing this, Shu Nian breathed a sigh of relief.

The displeasure caused by He You earlier seemed to be dispelled by her small gesture. She thought for a moment but couldn’t help explaining: “That person I told you about, he’s my neighbor.”

“…”

“He lives upstairs from me, his name is He You, and he’s a police officer.”

Xie Ru He nodded: “I know.”

“It’s just, just—” Shu Nian emphasized, “My relationship with him isn’t that close normally, and we rarely have physical contact… not like what you saw.”

Hearing the nervousness in her voice, Xie Ru He turned his head: “Did I scare you?”

“…” Shu Nian thought about it and honestly said, “No, I just worry you might misunderstand.”

“I won’t misunderstand,” Xie Ru He answered quickly. “I’ll just be unhappy.”

Shu Nian made an “ah” sound: “Then…”

“But I won’t stay unhappy forever,” Xie Ru He lowered his eyes, staring at their clasped hands. “I just want to honestly tell you my thoughts.”

Shu Nian nodded in confusion: “Oh.”

He looked away and said softly, “So don’t be nervous.”

The two entered the subway station.

Xie Ru He almost always traveled by private car, so he didn’t even have a subway card. Shu Nian led him to one of the machines to buy a ticket, pushing the small coin into his hand.

“Just take Line 3, it’s direct.”

After going through the ticket check, the two rode the escalator down.

Shu Nian suddenly thought of something and asked, “Did you come to find me to accompany me to the recording studio?”

“Mm,” Xie Ru He said. “I’ll also come pick you up when you finish.”

Shu Nian asked, “Will you go home in the meantime?”

Xie Ru He thought for a moment, considering that her time in the studio wouldn’t be short, roughly about half a day. He nodded: “Yes, let me know when you’re about to finish.”

She inexplicably curved her lips, feeling a bit happy.

Shu Nian was quietly happy on her own. When she looked down, she suddenly noticed that their hands were now intertwined. Originally, she had been holding Xie Ru He’s hand with both of hers, but perhaps due to the series of operations when buying the subway ticket—

Unknowingly, they had started holding hands.

She paused, then silently became happy again.

Right then, a subway train arrived.

Following the flow of people, Shu Nian led Xie Ru He inside. There were quite a few people, all seats were taken, and the standing space was cramped due to the dense crowd.

Shu Nian couldn’t find a pole to hold onto, and because of her height, reaching for the overhead bars was difficult.

She raised her hand, barely managing to hold on.

The next moment, Xie Ru He, who was behind her, pulled her hand down and held it with one of his. He was a head and a half taller than Shu Nian and seemed able to cover her entirely.

Concerned that Shu Nian might get squeezed, Xie Ru He released her hand and protected her from behind. At this distance, close enough to feel like an embrace, both of their bodies momentarily stiffened.

Shu Nian’s hands were both empty, too nervous to know where to put them.

Xie Ru He lowered his eyes, looking at her, his Adam’s apple moving. His peach blossom eyes were dark and bright, clear and clean, holding Shu Nian’s reflection. He coughed lightly and calmly suggested: “You can hold onto me.”

As if enchanted by him, Shu Nian didn’t think at all and obediently said “Oh,” then reached out and hugged his waist.

Xie Ru He’s ears gradually turned red. He licked his lips and added as if to cover up his embarrassment:

“Otherwise you might not be able to stand steadily.”

Outside the recording studio, afraid he wouldn’t know how to get back, Shu Nian seriously told him which subway line to take, which station to transfer to, and finally said very softly: “I probably won’t finish until midnight, you don’t need to come, it’s too late.”

Xie Ru He calmly said: “It’s precisely because it’s late that I need to come.”

Shu Nian felt a bit embarrassed and softly responded with an “Mm.”

Shu Nian said goodbye to him and then entered the recording studio.

It was still early, not many people had arrived yet, and only two women sitting in the break room, while the director was talking with a senior colleague nearby. Shu Nian went over to greet them and found a place to sit.

She took out her script and took notes like she was doing homework.

The two women looked unfamiliar; Shu Nian hadn’t seen them much before and guessed they were probably newcomers who had just entered the industry. They were chatting quietly, discussing topics Shu Nian didn’t understand.

Soon, some names Shu Nian recognized emerged in their conversation, like “Xu Ze Yuan,” “Ke Yi Qing,” and so on, but these were topics she wasn’t particularly interested in.

Shu Nian walked to a nearby monitor, planning to practice her lip-syncing first.

Behind her, the conversation between the two women continued.

“Did you see today’s trending topics?”

“Which one?”

“The one about A’He, his real situation has been exposed. Seems like he’s a disabled person with a powerful background, who doesn’t earn money on his own. And he has a bad temper with a messy private life—in every photo that’s been taken, he’s with different women.”

“What? Is that true? I haven’t seen it.”

Shu Nian paused and instinctively looked back.

The two were continuing their topic, and Shu Nian felt a bit gloomy. She had no interest in seeing what others were saying about him on trending topics, just feeling these people were very boring, always making things up out of nothing.

Since recording hadn’t started yet, Shu Nian simply left the studio and found a random place to stay.

After about ten minutes, as Shu Nian was preparing to go back to the studio, three people suddenly walked over. Shu Nian recognized one of them—the producer she had met when she went to audition for the song “A Star Falls Down.”

Shu Nian hesitantly greeted him.

But the producer clearly didn’t remember her and just smiled politely.

The three entered the recording studio, and Shu Nian followed them in.

After an introduction from the recording director, she learned they were the producer and the director from the film’s production company. Then they began recording. Shu Nian had many scenes scheduled today, planning to complete five episodes’ worth of lines.

Shu Nian had done a lot of preparation, and with the director’s guidance, the recording went smoothly. Since she was playing a supporting role, her parts weren’t too many, and she finished in just a few hours.

She left the recording room and went to the break room for water.

A few seconds later, the producer also came in and walked toward her.

Shu Nian quickly stood up and politely greeted him: “Hello, Producer.”

“Hello.” The producer, about forty years old, smiled kindly and handed her a business card. “I just saw your performance, and it was quite good. Your appearance is also very nice. Are you interested in working in front of the camera?”

“…” Shu Nian was stunned. “In front of the camera?”

“I’m preparing to shoot a web drama soon,” the producer said. “Would you like to come for a screen test? I think there’s a role that would suit you quite well.”

Shu Nian was at a loss and quickly said, “I only know voice acting, I can’t do anything else…”

The producer didn’t seem to mind: “It’s fine, just give it a try. You can think about it.”

Then he left the recording studio.

Shu Nian held that business card, feeling a bit worried. She wasn’t very good at speaking and was thinking about how to refuse without offending him. She quietly put the card back in her bag and took out her phone to check it.

She noticed that Xie Ru He had sent her a WeChat message.

[Can you come out now?]

But that was from two hours ago.

Shu Nian immediately replied: [I can now, what’s wrong?]

Shu Nian: [Are you still there?]

Xie Ru He: [Yes.]

Xie Ru He: [Just outside.]

Shu Nian, puzzled, left the recording studio.

Xie Ru He was standing not far from the exit. Fortunately, there was heating indoors, so it wasn’t cold. He was looking down at his phone, his face tense, seeming to be in a bad mood.

She walked over: “Why did you come back?”

Xie Ru He looked up and asked: “Have you checked Weibo?”

Shu Nian shook her head: “No.”

Then, Xie Ru He handed her his phone.

Shu Nian took it, guessing it was probably about what those two women had mentioned, and softly comforted him: “It’s okay, don’t worry about what others say.”

She casually glanced at it.

Besides a large amount of text, there were several images—all photographs. They showed different women with a man in a wheelchair. But there were no intimate behaviors; they looked more like two strangers passing by.

Xie Ru He didn’t seem to want her to look at the photos. With a cold face, he pointed to a sentence in the text and seriously said: “This is false.”

Shu Nian lowered her eyes to look.

On the screen, it said:

—According to claims, A’He is bisexual and has an extremely chaotic private life. For convenience, he hired his male partner as his assistant; they have been living together for two years.

“…”