Xie Ru He’s recollection was interrupted by Shu Nian’s voice.

She seemed rather unconcerned and didn’t ask what Xu Ze Yuan had said, just earnestly explained: “I don’t know why he called me, I’ve never had any private contact with him.”

After thinking for a moment, Shu Nian added: “I think he tried to add me on WeChat once, but I didn’t accept.”

Xie Ru He was quiet for a few seconds, then reminded her in a low voice: “Shu Nian, I answered your phone.”

The two seemed to be on completely different wavelengths, each speaking their thoughts.

Each emphasized what they wanted to tell the other.

“Huh?” Shu Nian was momentarily stunned, still worried that he might be upset about Xu Ze Yuan’s call, her reaction somewhat slow, “It’s fine, you can answer it.”

Xie Ru He’s eyes remained downcast: “You’re not angry?”

“Not angry at all.” Shu Nian looked at him, scratching her head, “I was sleeping, right? It’s fine for you to answer for me. In case the caller had something urgent, you could also tell me.”

Xie Ru He’s lips formed a straight line, and he added: “But I didn’t tell you.”

“You’re telling me now, aren’t you?” Shu Nian finally realized his attitude seemed to show guilt, or perhaps remorse, “Besides, forgetting isn’t a big deal, it wasn’t anything important anyway.”

Xie Ru He made a sound of acknowledgment: “I’ll remember in the future.”

“You can answer all my calls.” Shu Nian looked very honest, her voice soft and gentle, “Usually only directors, my teacher, and my mother call me.”

Xie Ru He’s expression relaxed, and he nodded.

After walking a few steps.

Shu Nian remembered something and said: “I told my mother that I’m dating you and that I’ve moved in with you.”

Just learning of this, Xie Ru He’s expression froze, and he didn’t make a sound.

“So if she calls, you can answer too.”

“…Mm.”

After saying this, Shu Nian didn’t speak further. She lowered her head, kicking small stones on the ground, thinking about what Ke Yi Qing had just said. Soon, she took out her phone from her pocket and opened the web browser.

She typed in the four characters “While He’s Still Here.”

Just as she clicked search, before she could see anything, Xie Ru He suddenly called her: “Nian Nian.”

Shu Nian immediately looked up: “Hmm?”

Xie Ru He’s expression was somewhat stiff, as if he was uncertain, carefully asking her: “Should I go visit your aunt?”

“…”

She hadn’t expected him to say this.

Shu Nian put her phone back in her pocket, puzzled: “Why are you suddenly saying this?”

“After all, you’re living with me now, and I’m afraid your aunt might worry.” Xie Ru He thought seriously, hesitantly saying, “If you think it’s too early, you can also give her my contact information.”

“…”

“When she can’t find you, she can call me.”

Shu Nian hadn’t thought about any of this at all, her expression confused: “That’s not what I meant…”

Xie Ru He touched the back of his neck: “I think we should consider these things.”

Hearing this, Shu Nian thought to herself and felt that what he said made sense. Then, she suggested: “How about we go during the Dragon Boat Festival?”

Xie Ru He looked a bit more relaxed and agreed with a “Good.”

Shu Nian said quietly: “We’ll be going to my stepfather’s home, my mother remarried.”

“I know.”

After a while.

Shu Nian called out: “Xie Ru He.”

Xie Ru He looked up: “What is it?”

Her face reddened, not quite knowing how to navigate social customs, and asked as if returning the gesture: “Should I go visit your grandfather?”

After returning home.

Xie Ru He helped Shu Nian drag the suitcase into the room, then brought the things they had just bought outside into the kitchen, and didn’t come out again, busy with something unknown.

Shu Nian turned on the air conditioner in the living room, then went back to the bedroom to change clothes.

Looking at the bulky suitcase on the floor, Shu Nian crouched down to unzip it. She gathered all the clothes in her arms, ran to the balcony, and stuffed them all into the washing machine.

Then, she returned to the living room.

When passing by the kitchen, Shu Nian glanced in Xie Ru He’s direction.

He was cutting watermelon.

Shu Nian wanted to help, but she didn’t feel like moving anymore. She forcibly withdrew her gaze, bounced over to the sofa, flopped down, and picked up her phone to play. When she lit up the screen, the page was still on what she had just searched.

The top result was a discussion thread from a forum.

——Is Miao Man too unprofessional? TV dramas are one thing, but for the recently released “While He’s Still Here,” she even used a voice actress on the big screen.

This was probably the post-Ke Yi Qing was talking about.

Shu Nian blinked and clicked to read it.

The comments below were varied.

【Laughing so hard, Miao Man’s dialogue skills…】

【Come on, she was criticized before for using her original voice, and now she’s criticized for using a voice actress. And the schedules clashed, okay? It’s not like Miao Man didn’t want to use her original voice, why is she getting hated no matter what? Why don’t you try it?】

【Who is Miao Man?】

【Huh? I thought it was her original voice, the voices sound quite similar.】

【Going off-topic, both the theme song and promotional song were written by our A He baby, they’re very nice to listen to, everyone should go to the cinema to hear them [heart]】

【Xu Ze Yuan’s girlfriend???】

【By the way, why is A He’s song this time sung by a singer I’ve never heard of, called Shu Nian?】

【Taking Xu Ze Yuan away, no announcement no appointment!】

【Of course she’s unprofessional. Wasn’t there a leak before that Miao Man doesn’t even memorize her lines, just counts one-two-three-four one-two-three-four? When I watched her crying scenes, I just wanted to laugh the whole time, but at least the voice actor added some points for her.】

【Kudos to the voice actress.】

It was the first time she saw her name in someone else’s discussion thread.

Shu Nian read with trepidation.

Just at that moment, Xie Ru He came out of the kitchen with a fruit plate. He sat down next to Shu Nian and placed a piece of watermelon to her lips: “Open your mouth.”

Shu Nian obediently took a bite, saying indistinctly: “I’m looking at this.”

In the next second, Shu Nian held up her phone to show him.

Xie Ru He glanced at it and made a casual sound of acknowledgment.

“I never used to look at these things. After hearing Ke Yi Qing mention it, I just searched to see.” Shu Nian said, “Then I saw my name, and thought it was kind of strange.”

Hearing this, Xie Ru He asked: “What did they say about you?”

Shu Nian said: “Just that I sang ‘Stars Falling’.”

Xie Ru He stuffed another piece of watermelon into her mouth: “Did they say you sang well?”

Shu Nian shook her head: “No one said that.”

Xie Ru He looked at her thoughtfully, saying softly: “Are you unhappy?”

“No.” Shu Nian shook her head, chewing on the watermelon, saying slowly, “But I saw someone say they thought it was the original voice because the voices sound quite similar. I was quite happy about that.”

“Oh?”

“I specifically went to listen to Miao Man’s voice at the time.” Shu Nian recalled, “Her voice is rather cutesy, a bit delicate, which doesn’t suit the character. So I imitated her voice and then modified it a bit.”

Xie Ru He listened quietly.

Bringing up this topic, Shu Nian had much more to say: “Voice acting isn’t about stealing the spotlight from the actor, I just thought I shouldn’t drag her down, just complete the character better, that’s all.”

Xie Ru He stroked her head: “You did very well.”

Shu Nian licked her lips, saying: “By the way, I’m planning to visit my teacher tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?”

“Yes, didn’t I tell you she called me?” Shu Nian’s voice was very soft, “I haven’t worked for so long, I don’t want to continue like this.”

Xie Ru He stared at her for a few seconds: “Alright.”

Shu Nian nodded, sat up straight, and moved closer to the fruit plate to eat watermelon.

The two didn’t speak further.

Shu Nian spat out watermelon seeds in small mouthfuls, secretly glancing in Xie Ru He’s direction. At this moment, he was looking at his phone, his fingers tapping on the screen, doing something unknown.

She withdrew her gaze.

She remembered how earlier she had asked if he wanted to visit his grandfather, but unexpectedly received the response “Let’s talk about it later.” Shu Nian’s mood inexplicably dampened, and she let out a muffled sigh.

After a few seconds, Shu Nian couldn’t help but ask: “Are you eating watermelon?”

Xie Ru He replied lazily: “If you can’t finish it, just leave it, I’ll eat it later.”

Shu Nian was silent for a few seconds, then asked: “Do you want to eat it?”

Xie Ru He looked up, glanced at the large plate of watermelon remaining, and hesitantly said: “I do.”

“Oh.” Shu Nian lowered her head, “But I can finish it.”

“…”

Shu Nian had arranged a time with Huang Li Zhi.

Originally, Shu Nian had planned to go out alone, thinking that Xie Ru He had his things to do and couldn’t possibly spend all day with her. But his attitude was exceptionally firm.

No matter what, he insisted on going out with her.

It seemed that the shadow cast by that incident didn’t only affect Shu Nian.

Shu Nian didn’t refuse anymore.

Fang Wen Cheng was already waiting downstairs.

The two got into the car, and Shu Nian gave Fang Wen Cheng the address Huang Li Zhi had provided. Then, she leaned against the seat back, clumsily playing a small game she had just downloaded.

Xie Ru He suddenly asked: “Shall I accompany you upstairs later?”

Afraid of making him wait, Shu Nian said softly: “It might not be so quick this time.”

Xie Ru He didn’t seem to mind: “That’s fine.”

Shu Nian did indeed want him to accompany her but felt she couldn’t always be like this. She stared at him quietly with her round eyes, her heart inexplicably softening, and then nodded slightly.

Noticing her gaze, Xie Ru He asked: “What is it?”

Shu Nian paused, silently saying something.

Xie Ru He thought he hadn’t heard clearly and leaned closer: “What?”

His scent enveloped her completely.

Shu Nian clenched her fists, and nervously glanced toward the rearview mirror as if doing something sneaky. Then she raised her head to kiss his cheek, just a light touch before withdrawing, pretending to be engrossed in her phone like nothing had happened.

Completely unprepared for such a gesture, Xie Ru He froze momentarily, then quickly sat back. He turned his head to look out the window, where sunlight was streaming in, burning his ears red.

Fang Wen Cheng, driving in front, was completely unaware of their actions.

The two maintained a tacit silence.

Just because of seeing him like that, Shu Nian suddenly wanted to kiss him.

It was a momentary impulse.

Now Shu Nian also felt very embarrassed, not knowing how to react, blankly swiping her screen.

The next moment, her phone vibrated.

A new message had arrived.

Shu Nian instinctively opened it to see; that it was from Ke Yi Qing.

A picture, along with a message: 【Showing off your love, that’s too much.】

Shu Nian didn’t understand what she meant, so she opened the picture to look.

It was Xie Ru He’s new Weibo post.

Posted yesterday at a little after 3 PM. This time, Shu Nian thought, was probably when they had just returned from outside and were chatting and eating watermelon on the sofa.

The Weibo was simple, just two characters, a period, and a picture.

The picture was the play page of a song——

Song: “Stars Falling”

Performed by: Shu Nian

Lyrics/Composition: A He

Shu Nian’s breath caught, her gaze lifted, taking in his entire Weibo post.

——@A He: Sounds good. [Picture]