Still struggling to process the bombshell that Mo Zixin had suddenly ended up with Qian Chuan, Qian Wei walked back to her dorm feeling rather light-headed, wondering how on earth she was going to break the news to Lu Xun, when she got a call from Mo Zixin.
“Qian Wei? Are you free right now? I’ve been practicing my solo routine for the dance competition, and I’m not sure how it’s coming along — could you come take a look if you have time? Let me know what needs improvement.”
Qian Wei had actually been looking for Mo Zixin herself, so this was more than welcome. “I’ll come, I’ll come, where are you?”
“I’m in practice room 304 at the gymnasium. How long will it take you to get here?”
“Give me ten minutes!”
Qian Wei hung up and took off running straight for the gymnasium without another word. Room 304 was on the third floor, and the activity rooms up there weren’t normally open to the public — they could only be reserved for organized school events. So by the time Qian Wei had bounded her way up to the third floor, it was quite quiet up there, without much foot traffic.
But the further Qian Wei walked down the hallway, the more a bad feeling started creeping over her…
The scene unfolding before her felt strangely, unsettlingly familiar…
Sure enough, as Qian Wei approached the door of room 304, she heard Mo Zixin’s voice coming from inside.
“I’m sorry.”
Qian Wei carefully peeked through the half-open door. At the far end of the practice room, past a large wall of floor-to-ceiling mirrors, was a small open-air balcony, its glass sliding door open, the wind billowing the sheer curtains inward. From her angle, Qian Wei could just make out Mo Zixin standing behind those gauzy curtains — the nineteen-year-old girl, dressed in her dance practice attire, her figure on full display, standing there with quiet grace. That “I’m sorry” had been her voice.
There was someone else on the balcony besides Mo Zixin, but from Qian Wei’s angle, the person facing Mo Zixin was hidden in another corner of the balcony, out of sight — and that person was clearly the one Mo Zixin’s “I’m sorry” had been directed at.
This turn of events… this direction things were heading… Qian Wei felt a sudden chill settle in her chest…
The soft sound of Qian Wei pushing open the door must have startled Mo Zixin, who turned toward the entrance with heightened sensitivity, and upon seeing Qian Wei, her face showed a flicker of discomfort and embarrassment. She managed a strained smile at Qian Wei before turning back around.
“Lu Xun, I really am sorry, but I’m already with Qian Chuan,” Mo Zixin’s voice was full of apology. “You’re a great person, truly outstanding — not just in our law school, but across the whole school, plenty of girls like you. You’ll definitely find someone better than me.” Perhaps worried about the awkwardness, she spoke rapidly, getting it all out in one breath before apologizing a few more times, head bowed. “I’ve got someone else I’m meeting, something I need to take care of, so I’ll head out first.”
With that, she didn’t look back at the person across from her, and instead, as if fleeing the moment itself, hurried out of the practice room as fast as she could.
As she passed by the doorway, her face flushed with embarrassment, not daring to look up, she grabbed Qian Wei’s hand.
Qian Wei let herself be pulled along, and by the time she came to her senses, the two of them were already in the small garden behind the gymnasium.
This little garden was a popular spot for couples to stroll through in the evenings, but during the day it saw almost no visitors. As Mo Zixin led her by the hand down the small garden path, only one thought occupied Qian Wei’s mind.
History really does have an eerie way of repeating itself…
In her previous life, though it hadn’t happened at exactly this time, the events that unfolded were almost identical — Qian Wei had witnessed this same scene of Mo Zixin turning down Lu Xun’s confession before. That time, it had happened after Lu Xun and Mo Zixin had already won first place in the campus dance competition, going on to represent the school in the citywide university dance competition. Perhaps feeling that after practicing together for so long, it was finally time to confess his feelings, Lu Xun had done so in the very same practice room where they’d been rehearsing together — only to suffer the exact same crushing defeat as just now. Probably to avoid awkwardness or for some other reason, in the end, the two of them stopped being dance partners for the school competition altogether, and the matter just quietly faded away along with the collapse of Lu Xun’s romance.
In any case, back then, Qian Wei had experienced this exact same scene, standing at that very doorway. At the time, she’d still been enthusiastically helping Qian Chuan pursue Mo Zixin — right around then, Qian Chuan had twisted his ankle playing basketball and couldn’t fuss over Mo Zixin in person, but worried Lu Xun might get there first, he’d specifically asked Qian Wei to take over the duty of tending to her. Ever since Mo Zixin started practicing her dance, Qian Wei had gone every day under the pretense of “caring for a fellow student,” bringing her drinks and snacks, while actually keeping watch and sabotaging any private time between Mo Zixin and Lu Xun. Back then, Qian Wei had a fixed routine of delivering water and snacks every day at ten-thirty in the morning, and that was how she’d witnessed Lu Xun’s painful past unfold firsthand…
Just like this time, though Qian Wei hadn’t actually witnessed the look on Lu Xun’s face after his rejection, simply imagining his proud personality was enough for her to picture the devastating scene playing out in his head…
“Does Lu Xun even need to chase girls?”
“There’s no way Lu Xun would ever let a girl he likes end up with someone else.”
Just recalling those confident, grandiose declarations Lu Xun used to make was enough for Qian Wei to practically see a pair of hands materializing out of nowhere, delivering resounding slaps left and right across his arrogantly handsome face.
Though she felt a bit of sympathy, Qian Wei couldn’t help but feel a little secret satisfaction bubbling up inside her too… Lu Xun, oh Lu Xun, your day has finally come!
And in her previous life, it was after this very incident that Mo Zixin had stopped interacting with Lu Xun altogether. Perhaps too humiliated by the rejection, Lu Xun had worn a cold expression whenever he saw her afterward, and not long after, Qian Chuan had successfully won her over, putting a final, definitive end to what had been Lu Xun’s unrequited first love.
“Qian Wei, this matter — could you… could you keep it a secret for me?” Walking along the garden path, Mo Zixin bit her lip. “I don’t know if Qian Chuan told you or not, but I’m… I’m already with him. I don’t really want him to know about this, worried about what he might think. And also, if word got out about this, it wouldn’t be great for Lu Xun either — it would embarrass him. Let’s just pretend this never happened.”
Qian Wei thought to herself, no wonder Lu Xun likes this girl — look how thoughtful and considerate she is!
“No problem! Don’t worry, I’ll absolutely never breathe a word of this!”
Look how professional I am, Qian Wei thought — didn’t I keep my mouth shut about this entirely in my previous life too? Even after working alongside Lu Xun for years afterward, she’d never once teased him about it to his face, acting as though she knew nothing at all, quietly watching him put on his act, denying with a straight face that he’d ever liked Mo Zixin. What’s the professional ethics of confidentiality? This is what it looks like!
Mo Zixin finally relaxed, visibly relieved. “Thank you so much, then. I really hope Lu Xun finds his own happiness soon.”
Unfortunately, while Mo Zixin’s mood lightened, Qian Wei’s own certainly couldn’t relax.
Living this life over again, the one thing she’d least wanted to see had happened anyway. It was as if, in some inexplicable way, fate had its own momentum, and no matter how hard you tried to intervene, some things simply couldn’t be stopped by the relentless wheels of time and destiny.
Was Lu Xun once again destined to stay single all the way until twenty-eight? And then enter his thirties alone?
That was too tragic! Before, Qian Wei had simply, naively thought of it as flattering her future boss, but now, she genuinely couldn’t bear to just let it happen. Even if the future changed and Lu Xun ended up not being her boss, Qian Wei felt she should still help him turn his life around and solve this longstanding problem of his — after all, he’d once saved her life too!
Since Mo Zixin was clearly off the table now, it seemed the priority was to first help Lu Xun heal from this heartbreak, and then find him someone new!
Now that Mo Zixin was no longer entering the competition as a duo, Qian Wei’s tango training sessions with Lu Xun had lost their purpose. But in the spirit of humanitarian concern, she still invited him out.
“I’ve got money, you’ve got me, tell me how you want to have fun.” Qian Wei made a point of not mentioning the breakup at all, instead putting on a bold, spirited front, determined to distract Lu Xun. “Barbecue? Want to go grab some skewers?”
With that, without waiting for Lu Xun’s response, Qian Wei grabbed him and dragged him straight to that famous barbecue place just off campus.
Once they’d settled in, Lu Xun finally got a moment to speak. He glanced at Qian Wei. “What’s going on with you today?”
Qian Wei responded with a complete non sequitur. “A lot of the time, if you’re feeling down or like life isn’t going your way, eating is the best remedy!”
Lu Xun frowned, predictably. “What are you even talking about.”
Qian Wei wasn’t bothered by his reaction at all, and just kept ordering dishes. “Come on, try this — this bacon-wrapped pork roll is delicious, and this garlic scallop, and this lamb skewer is great too.”
“Have you been in a bad mood lately?”
Qian Wei thought, if she said she was actually doing fine right now, wouldn’t that just make Lu Xun feel even more pathetic? Everyone else in the whole world doing great, while only he had suffered a heartbreak — that contrast would probably just deepen his misery…
So Qian Wei sighed. “Yeah! I have been.” She put on an expression of having learned hard lessons from pain. “But even in the middle of suffering, you can’t forget to enjoy good food — you have to let food heal you, and get back on your feet! Lu Xun, I wonder if you’ve ever heard this saying.” Qian Wei took a sip of water, testing the waters. “A lot of the time, when you’re going through a setback, it’s hard to imagine ever making it out of that pain. But once you push through and the clouds finally part, you realize you’re actually stronger than you thought!”
Yet despite this heartfelt speech, Lu Xun’s expression remained completely unmoved. He simply glanced at her. “So what happened to you?” He paused, lowering his head, feigning casualness. “Is something not going well in your love life?”
See, look at that, Qian Wei thought — I didn’t even mention the word “relationship,” and Lu Xun, because of his own heartbreak, immediately assumes anyone in a bad mood must be having relationship troubles. He must have taken this pretty hard.
When someone’s in pain, what comforts them most? Shared experience, of course! Comfort only carries real weight when it comes from someone who’s been through the same thing — otherwise, it’s just talk from someone who doesn’t feel the ache themselves, and no matter how much comfort they offer, it won’t really land.
“Yeah!” Qian Wei nodded. “There’s been a bit of a rough patch.”
Sure enough, this topic caught Lu Xun’s interest. Though he tried to act casual, Qian Wei could tell he was making an effort at it. He glanced at her, staring off into the distance, and asked, “So what happened?”
“Well…” Qian Wei made something up on the spot. “Maybe it’s because we don’t see each other much, not enough common ground to talk about…”
Lu Xun mulled this over for a moment before saying, “So, when it comes to finding someone, it’s better to be with someone in the same field of study.”
Qian Wei thought, oh no, don’t go there — if she brought up the same field of study, wouldn’t Lu Xun just start thinking about Mo Zixin again?
“Actually, no, I think it’s better to date someone in a different field.” Qian Wei said cautiously. “If you’re in the same field, your thinking gets limited in the same ways, and you know, what you understand, they understand too, and what you don’t understand, they don’t either — there’s no real complementing each other! So honestly, when it comes to dating, it’s better to find someone in a different field!”
Lu Xun blinked. “Didn’t you say before that you wanted to find another lawyer to build wealth and rise together with in the future?”
Qian Wei kept a straight face without flinching. “I was too young back then, that was a rather naive decision. I’ve grown up since.”
“…”
“Anyway, relationships are just relationships, no need to take them too seriously. Every time you think you’ll never love again if you lose this person, but then next time a new romance comes along, you realize you’re capable of loving again after all. Steady as the blacksmith, fleeting as the flowing river of lovers, you know how it goes.”
Lu Xun’s expression once again showed that look of complete disbelief. “Are you serious? You really believe that?”
Qian Wei nodded solemnly. “Yeah, I think that’s what a mature outlook on relationships looks like. That kind of obsessive ‘no one else but this person’ mindset, wanting to fall apart the moment you lose them — that’s obviously immature.”
Lu Xun fell completely silent after that.
Qian Wei thought to herself, that little speech of hers had probably given him some fresh perspective and food for thought. Young people, going through a breakup — in the end, they always grow through the setbacks.