The man beside him was still explaining something.

Annoyingly noisy.

Xie Ru He closed his eyes, then opened them again, the sharpness in his gaze not diminishing in the slightest. He stared at the man beside him, his voice suddenly dropping low, speaking each word deliberately. Showing no courtesy whatsoever.

“Did I ask you to speak?”

Shu Nian returned to the recording studio.

Compared to earlier, there were a few more people in the recording room now, some veteran voice actors with extensive experience.

At this moment, there was still one young man waiting to audition. Perhaps due to his limited voice acting experience, he couldn’t even match the lip movements and seemed completely stiff, his voice dry and flat.

Li Qing didn’t listen further, impatiently telling him to get lost.

The young man, who had been smiling awkwardly, froze instantly, his expression becoming extremely embarrassed and ashamed. He didn’t say anything more and immediately left the recording studio.

With the young man’s departure, the auditions ended. The short break time also concluded.

Huang Li Zhi went back into the recording room. This was a modern online drama, and she was voicing the female lead. Since the voice actor for the male lead wasn’t present, they recorded their voices separately, including the interactive scenes.

Because the sessions weren’t concentrated, other voice actors could only stay in the back row, unable to constantly go in and out.

Shu Nian attentively watched them perform with their voices from the control room.

The microphone was very sensitive; actors couldn’t make the slightest noise, and even their breathing had to be subdued. Moving even slightly might produce the rustling sound of clothes, so they didn’t dare move at all.

Standing in one position all day.

Huang Li Zhi was highly experienced, controlling her emotions with ease, and voice acting at a rapid pace. Once she got into the zone, she wouldn’t want to stop even when the director called for a break. She would just take a sip of water to give her throat a brief rest, then continue.

Shu Nian watched from the side. Midway through, Li Qing asked her to try voicing a minor passerby character in the drama, and she passed immediately. It counted as landing another role, and although it was just a bit part, Shu Nian was still very happy.

Until six in the evening.

Shu Nian’s throat had started to itch earlier, but she had been suppressing her cough. Afraid she might not be able to hold back later and would affect the director’s concentration. She didn’t like causing trouble for others.

Shu Nian hesitated but finally went up to Li Qing to say goodbye and collected her script. Huang Li Zhi was still in the recording room, so Shu Nian thought for a moment and just sent her a message on WeChat.

Then she left the recording studio.

While waiting for the elevator, Shu Nian noticed someone making a phone call nearby.

She turned to look and realized it was the same man who had been talking to Xie Ru He earlier.

The man’s expression was ugly, seemingly furious: “Damn it, a complete psycho. Acting like such a big shot—I’ve never seen such an arrogant cripple in my life. His demo is fine, but the overall style doesn’t suit Li Sheng at all. I politely asked him to make a tiny change, and how did he respond?… Don’t fucking joke with me, just because he’s disabled I have to be more tolerant?”

Shu Nian pressed her lips together, immediately understanding who he was talking about. Her hand, holding the script, tightened.

The elevator arrived, empty inside.

Shu Nian walked in.

The man was still cursing into his phone, treating the other party like a dumping ground for his frustrations. After several seconds, he finally noticed the elevator had arrived and walked over with a cold face.

Shu Nian lowered her gaze and immediately pressed the door close button.

The man hadn’t fully entered the elevator yet, with half his body still outside. The elevator doors instantly closed inward, making a swooshing sound as they hit his body, then quickly pulled apart again.

Although it wasn’t particularly painful, it gave the man quite a fright.

He instinctively wanted to curse loudly but still restrained his temper. Because he wasn’t sure if the elevator doors had automatically closed due to the long wait or if Shu Nian had pressed the button.

The man took a deep breath and said into the phone: “I’m in the elevator, talk later.”

Shu Nian felt a bit nervous, her heart pounding wildly, and she took a step toward the side away from the man. Only when other people entered the elevator did she relax slightly. After a while, the corner of her mouth lifted almost imperceptibly.

It wasn’t particularly late yet, but the sky outside had already darkened considerably, with clouds drifting with the wind, resembling sesame-flavored cotton candy. The temperature had also dropped several degrees compared to earlier.

Shu Nian walked while flipping through the script, then quickly put it back in her bag.

Lately, she had been getting home quite early, which still felt a bit unfamiliar to her. She silently pondered how to handle dinner as she walked to the original bus stop.

It was the peak rush hour.

After waiting for more than ten minutes, all the buses that came were full. Shu Nian didn’t want to squeeze in with others, so she simply didn’t board. She also didn’t dare take a taxi, and instead just took out her script to read.

She waited for a few more minutes.

Due to looking down for a long time, Shu Nian’s neck felt sore. She turned her neck to relieve the muscle tension. Her eyes casually glanced around, then fixed on a spot three or four meters away after a few seconds.

It was him again.

Recently, it seemed like she was encountering him a bit too frequently.

Xie Ru He was positioned next to the bus stop sign, with two people between him and Shu Nian. There were quite a few people at the bus stop, but hardly anyone was standing around him, making the area seem empty and desolate.

At this moment, he was looking down at his phone, with tousled bangs hanging over his forehead. Dressed casually, with his almond eyes downcast, he still looked like his younger self.

Shu Nian looked away and put her script away.

She felt she hadn’t mistaken his identity. She was certain she hadn’t mistaken him.

Why Xie Ru He was treating her this way, Shu Nian wasn’t sure. She wasn’t particularly angry about it; perhaps a little sad, but she hadn’t taken it too much to heart.

If he wanted to act like he didn’t know her, she would respect his decision.

They hadn’t been in contact for a long time.

Meeting again, both had undergone significant changes.

Even without saying anything, they both knew.

During the time after they parted, neither of them had fared well.

Shu Nian lit up her phone screen and glanced at the time. She looked toward the road once, didn’t stay any longer, and turned to walk in another direction.

Although Shu Nian rarely came to this place, she knew there was a subway station nearby.

It wasn’t close, probably about a half-hour walk.

After walking about a dozen steps,

Shu Nian thought of Xie Ru He again. She wasn’t sure if he was waiting for someone to pick him up, or if he wanted to take a taxi or bus. The latter two options would be quite inconvenient for him.

Shu Nian felt a bit concerned and couldn’t help looking back.

She discovered that Xie Ru He was no longer in his original position. Now he was moving his wheelchair in her direction. His gaze wasn’t on her, as if they were just heading the same way.

Shu Nian was momentarily stunned, then looked away.

Was he also unable to catch a bus?

Shu Nian didn’t dwell on this further and continued walking according to her memory. She recalled there was a supermarket nearby and wanted to buy some frozen dumplings to cook, as well as restock some daily necessities.

Even though she didn’t want to pay attention to Xie Ru He anymore, Shu Nian was sensitive and aware that he was still following behind her.

But there weren’t many other roads in this area.

Shu Nian didn’t think too much about it.

The supermarket wasn’t far from here.

After walking for a few minutes, Shu Nian entered the supermarket.

She had thought this would be where she and Xie Ru He parted ways, but she found that he had also followed her in.

Shu Nian was familiar with this feeling and slightly furrowed her brow.

For the time that followed,

Shu Nian felt like she had acquired a tail.

When Shu Nian went to the fruit section to buy bananas, Xie Ru He was nearby selecting pears;

When Shu Nian went to the snack section to buy soft candy, Xie Ru He was nearby selecting jelly;

When Shu Nian went to the frozen section to buy frozen dumplings, Xie Ru He was nearby selecting ice cream.

By the end, Shu Nian’s shopping cart was filled with items of various sizes, while Xie Ru He’s hands remained empty. He was truly just browsing, not taking a single item.

Shu Nian found it strange and couldn’t help looking at him.

But Xie Ru He appeared nonchalant, without the slightest hint that he was following her.

Shu Nian lowered her eyes, standing in place, lost in thought. Then, she made a decision and walked toward the women’s products section of the supermarket.

This supermarket was very spacious, with a wide variety of brands, not just domestic ones. Two opposing large shelving units, one row full of sanitary pads, the other filled with diapers.

Shu Nian casually picked up a pack of sanitary pads and looked at it.

But her peripheral vision remained fixed on another spot, in the direction where Xie Ru He had been following her.

After a few seconds,

Xie Ru He appeared in her peripheral vision, emerging from behind the shelving unit that had been blocking him. Noticing where Shu Nian was standing and the product she intended to purchase, he was visibly stunned.

His wheelchair halted momentarily, then moved forward again, stopping about two meters away from Shu Nian.

Shu Nian looked at him puzzledly.

She noticed he was positioned near the children’s diapers, but his gaze wasn’t on them—he was staring at her. After meeting her eyes, he expressionlessly looked away.

Shu Nian let out a breath, put down the item in her hand, and pushed her shopping cart in his direction.

Shu Nian stood beside him, picked up a pack of diapers, and leisurely began reading the product description.

Because of this sudden proximity, the contours of Xie Ru He’s profile stiffened. He lowered his eyes, his lips drawing into a straight line. The force in his hands increased, veins protruding.

Noticing his wheelchair beginning to roll backward, Shu Nian looked at him. Her voice was soft, her emotions subdued as if she was just casually asking.

“Are you following me?”

Even upon hearing these words, Xie Ru He didn’t look at her, quiet and gloomy.

Originally, Shu Nian truly hadn’t been angry.

But his repeated attitude of playing deaf and dumb inexplicably irritated her. Shu Nian frowned, suddenly changing her approach, her tone turning cold: “Do you have children?”

This unexpected question caused a crack in Xie Ru He’s expression.

He looked incredulous and bewildered.

“Since you don’t,” Noticing his facial expression, Shu Nian kept a stern face and took a pack of soft pink sanitary pads from another shelf, “then you’re here to buy this?”

Xie Ru He’s gaze flicked over, instinctively looking at what she held in her hand.

Before he could react, Shu Nian suddenly tossed the sanitary pads into his arms, her voice both annoyed and vexed: “I understand now. You need these, right? I recommend these to you.”

Xie Ru He sluggishly caught them.

Accompanied by Shu Nian’s next sentence: “This brand is good.”

“…”