Yun Li mumbled, her voice growing softer, “But if I message him, he might not reply. He didn’t give me his contact information when I asked before…”
“That was in the past. It doesn’t dictate the future,” Deng Chuqi encouraged her. “And I’m not mistaken, am I, Lili? You’ve liked him since you first asked for his contact information, right?”
Yun Li remained silent, lowering her head and fidgeting with the small soccer ball in her hands.
“Have you expressed your feelings to him since then?”
Yun Li shook her head.
“Do you think he knows?”
Again, Yun Li shook her head. “He seems to view me as a junior, like Fu Zhengchu. He treats me normally.” Remembering the more than 100 unanswered text messages, Yun Li said dejectedly, “If he knew, he might never speak to me again.”
Knowing Yun Li’s personality, Deng Chuqi felt sympathetic. “Have you tried being more proactive?”
Yun Li quickly replied, “I have!”
“How so? Tell me.”
“I… talked to him…”
“And then?”
“That’s it. I just… talked.”
“…”
Suspecting Yun Li’s personality left little hope, Deng Chuqi began to discourage her. “Maybe we should give up early. Honestly, Xiaxia’s uncle isn’t that great. He’s just decent-looking with a good family background.”
“Besides, his temperament isn’t great, right? Always with that cold face. You’re afraid to speak around him. It’s like you two are in a silent film.”
As soon as she finished speaking, she noticed Yun Li staring at her unhappily. “He’s just not talkative. You shouldn’t speak about him like that. He’s a very good person.”
Deng Chuqi was stunned, wondering how Fu Shize’s aloof and icy demeanor could correspond with that description.
“Lili, is it possible,” Deng Chuqi chose her words carefully, fearing to hurt Yun Li’s feelings, “that you’re just attracted to his face? Looks can get boring. Personality is most important in a relationship.”
Yun Li shook her head and said, “If it’s Fu Shize’s face, I could look at it for a lifetime.”
Deng Chuqi asked, “If in the future, only other women could look at that face, could you accept it?”
Yun Li recalled the night Fu Shize sat silently watching her play with fireworks. Imagining similar scenes between him and other women made Yun Li feel as if her breath had been cut off.
She looked at Deng Chuqi, pondered for a moment, and asked, “Do you think I should pursue him?”
Deng Chuqi nodded firmly.
“What do you think are my chances of success?”
Deng Chuqi nodded again, “Probably about 0.1 percent.”
“…”
Yun Li only had experience being pursued. During her undergraduate years, some boys had expressed interest, buying her small gifts and asking her out, but she had refused them all.
Yun Li had no intention of developing relationships and disliked being around unfamiliar people. These experiences of being pursued had left her with unpleasant memories.
Deng Chuqi was quite experienced in relationships. She dated men who loved her and moved on from those who didn’t, but she couldn’t offer much advice to Yun Li.
The two searched online for advice, most of which suggested a tease-and-retreat strategy—not being too direct, creating opportunities, and waiting for the other person to develop feelings before revealing one’s own.
Yun Li could imagine that if she confessed to Fu Shize now, his reaction would likely be an outright rejection, followed by reduced contact in the future.
As it approached 9 PM, Deng Chuqi prepared to leave. Before going, she asked Yun Li if she wanted to call Xia Congsheng, as they might still be at Fu Shize’s place.
Yun Li’s initial reaction was to refuse, but under Deng Chuqi’s gaze, she reluctantly nodded.
Before making the call, Yun Li adjusted her hairstyle. This attempt was different from before, marking her first step in pursuing Fu Shize. As the phone rang, Yun Li’s chest heaved, her mind racing through countless potential failures.
Just as she was about to hang up, Fu Zhengchu answered.
The background visible behind Fu Zhengchu appeared similar to the style in the photos, suggesting they hadn’t left yet.
“Sister Qiqi, my sister’s phone is with me. I don’t know where she went,” Fu Zhengchu said, looking around before returning to the camera.
“Are you all still having dinner? It looks lively over there,” Deng Chuqi said casually.
Fu Zhengchu began to tell them about the day’s gathering, but after a couple of minutes, Deng Chuqi interrupted him, asking, “Who’s there?”
“Uncle and Brother Qingsong are here. Oh, do you want to say hello to them?” Fu Zhengchu stood up, not looking at the camera, appearing to head upstairs.
Deng Chuqi pushed the phone, leaving most of the screen for Yun Li.
Fu Zhengchu went up to the second floor, walked down a corridor, and then turned the camera toward the room.
Through the video, they could see Fu Shize sitting at the head of the bed, his tie undone and buttons partially unfastened.
Xu Qingsong stood nearby, both looking towards the camera. Fu Shize took a drag from his cigarette, a wisp of grey smoke briefly obscuring the image.
He frowned slightly and told Fu Zhengchu, “Turn off the video.”
“I’m on a video call with Sister Lili and the others. Uncle, say hello.”
Since entering the room, Fu Zhengchu had been pointing the screen at himself, so Fu Shize only saw him come in holding his phone, assuming he was recording video.
He immediately put out his cigarette, looking slightly uncomfortable.
As the camera zoomed in, that expressionless face suddenly filled the screen.
His silence made Fu Zhengchu uncomfortable. Fu Zhengchu turned the camera back to himself, “Sister Lili, Sister Qiqi, don’t mind him. Uncle is just not very polite…”
Fu Shize calmly said, “How can I greet someone I can’t see?”
“I forgot,” Fu Zhengchu said, and Yun Li watched as the screen rotated 180 degrees, bringing Fu Shize’s face back into view.
Yun Li noticed that the previously loosened buttons were now fastened.
Yun Li waited a moment, and seeing he didn’t speak, she took the initiative, “Long time no see.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, Yun Li regretted them.
After all… they had seen each other just a few days ago.
Fu Shize didn’t linger, merely grunting in response before handing the phone back to Fu Zhengchu.
Yun Li was nearly broken by this cold indifference.
A few seconds later, Yun Li heard Xu Qingsong say, “I heard Sang Yan open a bar called ‘Overtime’. Want to check it out?”
Fu Zhengchu replied, “It’s a bit late. I have class tomorrow.”
Xu Qingsong laughed, “I didn’t say I was taking you.”
“No way, I want to go too,” Fu Zhengchu looked back at the screen and said to Yun Li, “Sister Lili, we’re going out to have some fun. I’ll have my sister call you back later.”
Seeing the call about to end, Yun Li blurted out, “Are you going to ‘Overtime’?”
She paused for a moment, then said, “We’re heading there later. I heard it’s very popular. Should we help you reserve a table? It’s Sunday, so it’ll probably be crowded.”
Fu Zhengchu had initially thought about inviting them but felt it was too late. Hearing Yun Li’s words, he agreed to meet at ‘Overtime’ at 10 PM.
Yun Li didn’t know about this ‘Overtime’ bar. After hanging up, she looked it up online. It was across from Shang’an Plaza, about a 30-minute drive away.
The bar was located on Nanwu City’s famous bar street. Its decor was more reminiscent of a barbershop, with a black signboard illuminated by the pure white store name.
The two reserved a large booth. The others arrived about 15 minutes later, with Fu Zhengchu naturally sitting next to Yun Li.
They hadn’t changed their clothes, only removing their ties. Fu Zhengchu loosened his collar and passed the drink menu to Yun Li and Deng Chuqi to look at first.
Yun Li rarely went to bars and had no idea about the fancy names on the menu, so she just ordered a random drink.
Looking towards Fu Shize, she saw him sitting diagonally across from her, leaning back in his chair, appearing quite relaxed.
Deng Chuqi asked, “Was it a family gathering today? Was it your uncle’s mother’s birthday?”
Xia Congsheng laughed, “Yes, my great-aunt likes to host these family gatherings. Many of the close relatives are classmates from the same generation, so they’ve always been close.”
The term “great-aunt” often gives the impression of someone quite old.
Seemingly noticing this, Xia Congsheng explained a bit, “My great-aunt and great-uncle are professors at Xi’an Jiaotong University. They were very career-focused and had children late, so my little uncle is even younger than me.”
Just then, the drinks arrived. Everyone raised their glasses for a toast. Yun Li followed suit but was overwhelmed by the burning sensation. Tears instantly welled up in her eyes.
This drink was so strong.
No wonder her glass only had about 3 cm of liquid at the bottom. Was it pure alcohol?
After composing herself and holding back her tears, Yun Li inwardly sighed with relief, grateful that no one had noticed her embarrassing reaction.
More drinks were served, all ordered by Fu Zhengchu.
Remembering his alcohol tolerance, Yun Li couldn’t help but say, “Fu Zhengchu, you should drink less.”
“Sister Lili, since we’re out to have fun, we should enjoy ourselves fully,” Fu Zhengchu pushed several glasses toward Yun Li. “Want to try?”
Yun Li shook her head helplessly.
After finishing the first round of drinks, Xu Qingsong stood up, saying he wanted to greet the bar’s owner. Fu Shize didn’t join him, instead sitting alone at the bar.
Deng Chuqi nudged Yun Li’s waist.
Understanding her hint, Yun Li made an excuse, saying her drink didn’t taste good and she wanted to go to the bar to get a new one.
When Yun Li approached, she found Fu Shize playing with dice at the bar. His method was strange: he would roll three dice, look at them, then roll four, five, and so on, starting over after reaching a certain number.
Just as she was about to approach him, a curvaceous woman suddenly appeared, leaning on the bar and staring intently at Fu Shize.
“Handsome, can I buy you a drink?” she asked coyly.
Having finally mustered the courage to approach, only to be preempted by someone else, Yun Li froze in place.
Fu Shize continued rolling the dice, not saying a word.
The woman repeated, “Is that okay?” Seeing his cold response, she reached out to touch Fu Shize’s collar.
Yun Li thought she was going to touch Fu Shize’s face and instinctively blurted out, “Auntie, wait a moment.”
“…”
Interrupted mid-action, the woman frowned at Yun Li, her tone unfriendly, “Little girl, there’s an order to these things, understand?”
“And who are you calling ‘auntie’?”
The woman turned around, her anger about to peak when Yun Li pursed her lips and said, “He’s my friend.”
Yun Li pointed to their booth and said, “We have a lot of people over there, and we’re all students. Auntie, please don’t pressure my friend to buy you a drink. I’ll have to call our counselor.”
“…”
The woman seemed a bit speechless, picked up her drink, and walked away.
This interruption disrupted Yun Li’s original plan. As she was debating whether to return to the booth, Fu Shize lowered his eyes to the empty seat beside him and said quietly, “Sit here.”