“…”
Wen Yifan stared at the screen for a good while, her scalp tingling at the words “desire” and “possession.” Her expression stiffened slightly as her fingertip hovered over the screen, slowly typing out a question mark.
Before she could send it, Su Tian, who had just returned from the computer room, interrupted her focus.
Su Tian’s rolling chair slid over as she whispered to Wen Yifan, “Damn, I just came in and saw that intern. I thought I’d walked into the wrong room. It scared me for a second.”
Instinctively turning off her phone screen, Wen Yifan looked up, “Hm?”
“That new male intern,” Su Tian said, casting a casual glance as if she had fallen in love. “My goodness, I’m in love. He’s a puppy-like handsome guy, tall, good-looking, and cute.”
Wen Yifan chuckled, “How come I never hear you calling Da Zhuang a puppy?”
As if on cue, Fu Zhuang passed by.
Su Tian rolled her eyes and bluntly said, “He’s more like a little mutt at best.”
“…” Fu Zhuang immediately stopped. Although he hadn’t heard the earlier conversation, he immediately took offense, exclaiming, “Sister Tian, why are you attacking me? How am I a mutt?”
Su Tian dismissed him with a few words: “Wasn’t talking about you.”
After Fu Zhuang left, Su Tian continued gossiping with Wen Yifan, “I feel like this puppy keeps looking in our direction. Is he interested in you or me?”
As she spoke, she caught a glimpse of Wen Yifan’s profile and immediately retracted her words, “Alright, I’m just embarrassing myself.”
“…”
Wen Yifan also looked in that direction.
At that moment, Mu Chengyun was sitting at his desk, coldly staring at his computer screen. After a few seconds, perhaps noticing their gaze, he suddenly looked up. Upon meeting their eyes, he immediately smiled sheepishly.
He did indeed look quite cute.
Wen Yifan also smiled politely and looked away. She didn’t feel anything unusual and said gently, “Don’t read too much into it. He’s probably just trying to familiarize himself with his colleagues on his first day.”
“I’m just gossiping casually. How come you’re not interested in handsome guys at all?” Su Tian said, growing curious. “Hey, is this the type you like?”
“Huh?”
“I feel like you’re completely uninterested in this. Do you have a type you like? What’s your ideal type?” Su Tian started listing options, “Gentle? Domineering? Cheerful?…”
Wen Yifan was stunned, and Sang Yan’s arrogant face inexplicably flashed through her mind.
Realizing this thought, Wen Yifan’s breath caught, just as she met Su Tian’s expectant face. After a few moments of silence, she dismissed the idea and smiled without answering.
The brief chat ended.
Wen Yifan continued writing her draft for a while. Soon after, she remembered that she hadn’t replied to Sang Yan’s message earlier. She lit up her phone screen and looked at that string of messages again, still feeling as if she had received some spam message.
But after having a buffer period, looking at it now didn’t feel as difficult to accept.
Instead, she felt a sense of numbness.
Wen Yifan deleted the question mark in the input box and hesitantly typed again.
[Are you]
[okay?]
Three seconds later.
Sang Yan: [?]
Not knowing exactly what she had done while sleepwalking, Wen Yifan couldn’t explain. After checking on the status of the “victim,” she asked directly: [How do you want to resolve this?]
Sang Yan: [We’ll see.]
Wen Yifan couldn’t help but say: [You seem to have been thinking about it for a while.]
As if truly too lazy to type, Sang Yan sent another voice message.
Just two words, arrogant and matter-of-fact: “Indeed.”
“…”
There was nothing more.
As if to say, even if I think about it for another ten years, you’ll have to wait.
Wen Yifan held back and replied good-naturedly: [Alright, take your time thinking about it.]
…
Although she said this, while Wen Yifan didn’t bring it up actively, Sang Yan’s side also seemed to have completely forgotten about it.
His attitude was as if he could choose not to mention this matter, but if Wen Yifan showed any sign of forgetting about it, he would remind her with extremely blunt, accusatory language, without changing his expression.
Making it impossible for her to forget her “evil deed.”
Impossible to forget that he was the weak, humble, abused party.
And she was a heartless demon who had her fun and forgot about it.
As time passed, Wen Yifan began to feel that when she was sleepwalking, she must have been possessed by something, turning into a client seeking services. And the only one in the house who could provide such services to her was, unfortunately, the top-ranked Sang from the infamous Fallen Street.
His value was so high it was unaffordable.
She was drowning in debt.
She also felt anxious about this calm before the storm.
There was always a sense that beyond this tranquility, in a place she couldn’t see, Sang Yan was preparing some big move to deal with her.
–
After the May Day holiday, the department hired two new reporters through social recruitment.
A few days later, the director specifically chose a time when everyone was present and relatively free to organize a small party to welcome the newcomers. The notice for this gathering came out at noon, but the location was yet to be determined.
After receiving this notice, Fu Zhuang came to Wen Yifan’s desk to complain pitifully: “Sister, the director said this party would also count as my welcome party.”
Wen Yifan didn’t quite understand: “What’s wrong with that?”
“I’ve been interning here for four months!” Fu Zhuang looked aggrieved, “He said he never shows favoritism and told me not to feel neglected!”
“That’s good,” Wen Yifan consoled him. “If they didn’t include you this time and only welcomed Fang Li and the others, how would you be any different from air in the team?”
“…” Fu Zhuang was silent for three seconds, “There’s some truth to that.”
Mu Chengyun, overhearing their conversation, joined in: “Sister Yifan, are you coming tonight?”
The gathering wasn’t mandatory, as most people had to work the next day, and the director had said it was voluntary. But out of courtesy and respect, most people would participate.
Wen Yifan had arranged a phone interview with an expert for the evening and wasn’t sure.
“I’m not certain, I’ll see how it goes.”
Fu Zhuang let out an “Ah” sound, somewhat disappointed: “Sister, do you have something on tonight?”
Mu Chengyun also asked: “Will you be busy until late?”
“Mm,” Wen Yifan said casually. “I’ll try my best to make it.”
…
By the time Wen Yifan finished her phone interview and wrote the initial draft based on it, it was already past nine in the evening. As she was packing up her things and preparing to leave, the director also happened to come out of his office.
Wen Yifan paused: “Director, you didn’t go to the dinner?”
The director, named Gan Hongyuan, was nearly fifty, slightly plump, and his eyes narrowed into slits when he smiled, looking as benevolent as a Maitreya Buddha. He was carrying a briefcase and said with a smile, “Just finished a meeting.”
Wen Yifan nodded.
“You’ve just finished too, right? Let’s go to the gathering together, and relax a bit.” Gan Hongyuan said, “They’ve finished dinner, and now they’re moving to the next venue. It’s near the company, let’s go together.”
Wen Yifan hadn’t originally planned to go, but now she had no choice but to agree.
On the way, Gan Hongyuan chatted with her about various past events, his voice steady and monotonous, sounding like a lullaby. Toward the end, he would add a few motivational and philosophical words, hoping to strike a chord with Wen Yifan.
Wen Yifan felt nothing internally, but outwardly she had to pretend to be moved.
Their interaction was harmonious enough.
While Gan Hongyuan was immersed in his reminiscence, Wen Yifan took the opportunity to glance at her phone. Seeing the messages in the group chat, she learned that the second half of the gathering was set at the Overtime Bar. The group had already arrived there, reserved a booth, and told those who hadn’t arrived yet to come directly.
This location reminded Wen Yifan of Sang Yan.
Recently, Wen Yifan hadn’t seen Sang Yan much at home. He seemed to have gotten busy, unlike before when he would spend all day at home, either lying in bed playing with his phone as if paralyzed, or sleeping aimlessly in his room.
She hadn’t asked Sang Yan what he was busy with.
She guessed he had probably found a new job and started living the life of a working professional.
At the Overtime Bar, Wen Yifan was led by a waiter to the booth where the others were.
Before she even reached them, Wen Yifan could hear their boisterous and excited voices from afar. But as soon as they saw Gan Hongyuan, everyone quieted down.
It was as if something had restrained their natural exuberance, making them less outgoing than before.
However, Gan Hongyuan only made a symbolic appearance and left shortly after.
Wen Yifan, having arrived late, didn’t know what game they were playing and could only watch quietly. She sat at the edge, with Su Tian next to her. During this time, people kept getting up to use the restroom or do other things.
With people coming and going, the seating arrangement kept changing.
Before she knew it, the person next to Wen Yifan had become Mu Chengyun.
Mu Chengyun seemed to have drunk quite a bit, his cheeks slightly flushed, looking not quite sober. Seeing Wen Yifan, he curved his lips into a smile and very politely called out to her: “Sister Yifan.”
Wen Yifan nodded, reminding him: “Don’t drink too much, we still have work tomorrow.”
“I haven’t drunk much,” Mu Chengyun looked very obedient, “just this one can.”
Just as he said this, Fu Zhuang returned from the restroom and sat down next to Wen Yifan. He had the look of someone about to share gossip, saying excitedly: “Sister Yifan, I just saw that classmate of yours!”
Wen Yifan turned her head: “Who?”
Fu Zhuang: “You know, that—”
He stopped.
Clearly, he couldn’t remember the name.
Wen Yifan: “Hm?”
Fu Zhuang scratched his head, thought for a while, and could only come up with a nickname: “That one! The super cool and handsome guy!”
“…” Wen Yifan glanced around.
The bar was too dark, and Wen Yifan’s position didn’t offer a good view, so she couldn’t see Sang Yan. She casually looked away, not responding verbally, just smiling slightly.
Mu Chengyun beside her asked: “What super cool and handsome guy?”
“Haven’t I told you before?” Fu Zhuang took out his phone, quickly finding that video. “Here, let’s appreciate my idol together! My life’s dream is to be like him! Rich, handsome, and awesome!”
Mu Chengyun took the phone, looked at it for a while, and suddenly said: “This looks like Senior Sang Yan.”
Fu Zhuang was stunned: “You know him too?”
“Haven’t you seen that post on the school forum?” Mu Chengyun looked at it for a bit longer before returning the phone. “The one about voting for the campus heartthrob, it’s still pinned on the forum homepage, people bump it every day.”
“Why would I care about who’s the campus heartthrob? I’m not gay,” Fu Zhuang said. “So you’re saying this super cool guy is also from Nanda?”
“Probably,” The video was blurred, so Mu Chengyun wasn’t sure. “If I’m not mistaken.”
“He got into Nanda too.” Fu Zhuang felt even more unbalanced. “So he’s good at studies as well?”
“Yes, I’ve seen him once,” Mu Chengyun said. “My former department head was in the same class as him. After their graduation ceremony, I went along to their class dinner.”
Fu Zhuang: “And then? Did anything exciting happen?”
“Not really, but it left quite an impression,” Mu Chengyun smiled. “Since it was graduation, everyone symbolically had a drink, but no one drank much because we had work the next day.”
Mu Chengyun continued: “But those two famous figures from the Computer Science department, Senior Duan and Senior Sang, one didn’t touch a drop of alcohol, while the other downed over a dozen bottles without changing expression.”
Fu Zhuang asked curiously: “Who drank over a dozen bottles?”
Mu Chengyun: “Senior Sang.”
Hearing this, Wen Yifan paused her drinking and looked over.
Fu Zhuang reasoned: “Is that why he opened a bar now? Because he likes to drink?”
“Not necessarily,” Mu Chengyun recalled. “He seemed to be in a bad mood that day, didn’t talk at all, just kept drinking. People tried to stop him, but he acted like he didn’t hear.”
“Oh,” Fu Zhuang wasn’t very interested in these details and said casually, “Maybe something happened. It was graduation season after all. He might have been dumped or confessed and got rejected, or maybe the person he liked was going to a different city, and they were going to be long-distance.”
“Maybe,” Mu Chengyun said. “That whole evening, I only heard him say one thing.”
Fu Zhuang’s interest was piqued again: “What did he say?”
Mu Chengyun thought for a moment, looking a bit dizzy: “It’s been too long, I can’t remember.”
Fu Zhuang felt frustrated at being left hanging: “Then why mention it!”
“…”
The topic was dropped.
Hearing about Sang Yan’s past from others, although Wen Yifan felt no sense of involvement, her mood was somewhat strange. She lowered her head, staring at the bubbling drink in her glass, taking a while to come back to her senses.
…
With work the next day and having been busy all day, Wen Yifan was feeling quite drowsy. She didn’t stay long, finishing her drink before finding an excuse to leave.
Mu Chengyun also got up: “I should head back too.”
The others were still in high spirits and didn’t insist on them staying, just telling them to be careful on their way.
The two walked towards the exit.
As Wen Yifan passed the bar counter, she unconsciously glanced over, quickly looking away.
Outside the bar.
Wen Yifan was about to head towards the subway station when she remembered Mu Chengyun beside her and asked: “Are you going back to Nanda?”
Mu Chengyun’s alcohol tolerance seemed poor, his eyes looking a bit unfocused, as if drunk.
“Mm, yes.”
Wen Yifan: “Then let’s go to the subway station together.”
Mu Chengyun: “Okay.”
After walking a few steps, Mu Chengyun looked like he was about to fall over. Wen Yifan instinctively grabbed his arm to steady him: “Are you alright?”
Mu Chengyun mumbled: “A bit unsteady.”
Wen Yifan hesitated, thinking about how to handle the situation, when suddenly someone came up from behind. The man grabbed the hood of Mu Chengyun’s sweatshirt, saying expressionlessly: “Unsteady, huh?”
Hearing this voice, Wen Yifan looked over.
She met Sang Yan’s profile.
Unusually, Sang Yan was wearing a black suit today. His tie was loosely knotted, his jacket open, revealing the white shirt underneath. This formal attire didn’t make him look any more proper, nor did it suppress his arrogance; if anything, it enhanced it.
After speaking, Sang Yan lifted his eyelids, his gaze fixed on Wen Yifan’s hand on Mu Chengyun’s arm.
Then, he looked up, meeting her eyes.
Wen Yifan was about to speak.
Sang Yan spoke first: “Let go.”
“…” She immediately released her hand.
At the same time, Sang Yan unceremoniously dragged Mu Chengyun forward, as if doing a good deed. Both men were tall and walked quickly, gradually widening the distance between them and Wen Yifan who was behind.
After a while, Mu Chengyun shook off his hand, his expression no longer dazed: “Senior Sang?”
Sang Yan also withdrew his hand, looking him up and down: “Who are you?”
“I’m also a student at Nanda,” Mu Chengyun smiled. “I’ve seen you before.”
“Oh,” Sang Yan tugged at his lip. “Sobered up?”
Mu Chengyun’s expression showed no guilt. He rubbed his head again, still looking a bit out of it: “What?”
Sang Yan looked at him and suddenly smiled: “Hey, stop pretending.”
Mu Chengyun froze.
“Got no other tricks? These pathetic little ploys,” Sang Yan’s expression was casual as if he didn’t take Mu Chengyun’s actions seriously at all, “I used them 800 years ago.”
“…”
Sang Yan smiled: “If they worked, would it be your turn to use them?”