After the lunch break, Yun Li ran into He Jiameng in the hallway.
“Teacher Xianyun, are you joining the Halloween event tonight? Why don’t we go together?” He Jiameng asked.
Yun Li replied honestly, “I was planning to buy some coffee beans tonight. I noticed Fu Shize ran out in the break room, so I invited him to go with me.”
He Jiameng suppressed a smile. “Are you just going to buy beans?”
“Really,” Yun Li tried to sound more confident. “Why don’t you join us?”
“No, no. I can already see the big lightbulb over my head,” He Jiameng declined.
“…”
After taking a few steps, He Jiameng called out to her again. “Oh, Teacher Xianyun.”
“What is it?”
“The marketing department asked me to check if you could post a promotional update on E-station. The advertising fee would be the same as last time.”
“Any specific requirements?”
He Jiameng thought for a moment. “Just try to record some of the equipment in the experience hall. Make it look fun.”
Unsure if she could film, Yun Li didn’t agree immediately. “Let me think about it.”
That afternoon, Fang Yuning said the experience hall was short-staffed and asked Yun Li to help with decorations. Yun Li carried a large box of decorative materials to the hall.
Exiting the fire escape, Yun Li walked to the entrance of the experience hall and found quite a few people there already.
“Sister Lili!” Yun Li looked around.
Fu Zhengchu approached from the entrance. “I heard there’s an event tonight, so I came to check it out. I was hoping to get some afternoon tea, but ended up being dragged here as free labor.”
Yun Li responded, “Poor you.”
Fu Zhengchu grumbled, “Yeah, so I brought my uncle along, but he’s just sitting there watching me work.”
Yun Li looked in the direction he pointed. Fu Shize sat on a rest chair inside the hall, one hand on the armrest, resting his chin as he looked their way.
“Sister Lili?” Seeing Yun Li didn’t respond, Fu Zhengchu called out to her again.
Yun Li snapped back to attention. “You’ve grown up too. You should help your elders.”
Fu Zhengchu said, “I’m going back to work.”
“Hey, wait!” Yun Li quickly called out to him.
Fu Zhengchu stopped. “What is it?”
Yun Li covered half her face. “Fu Zhengchu, I’m sorry.”
Fu Zhengchu was even more confused. “What’s wrong?”
“Well—when we were drinking yesterday,” Yun Li felt like digging a hole to bury herself in, but forced herself to continue, “I told your uncle that you seemed to like me…”
Fu Zhengchu: “…”
Yun Li explained the whole situation to Fu Zhengchu, knowing she had acted inappropriately. After apologizing several times, Fu Zhengchu’s focus wasn’t on what Yun Li had initially said, but he gasped, “Sister Lili, do you like my uncle?”
Yun Li: “…”
“No wonder you were just speaking up for him.”
Yun Li: “…”
Yun Li: “Can you keep this a secret for me?”
Fu Zhengchu: “Mm-hmm.”
They both fell into silence simultaneously.
Fu Zhengchu suddenly turned serious. “Sister Lili, my uncle’s health isn’t great, and his digestive system isn’t very good.”
“But my uncle is great. I won’t say much more. Good luck, Sister Lili!”
Yun Li felt warmth in her heart. “Thank you.”
Decorating the experience hall was mainly physical work, involving sticking ribbons, light strips, and other holiday decorations on the higher parts of the walls. Yun Li observed her surroundings, brought over a ladder, and prepared to start.
Just as she climbed up the ladder, Fu Zhengchu brought Fu Shize over. “Sister Lili, come down quickly. I’ve called my uncle over.”
Yun Li: “…”
Yun Li climbed down the ladder and said softly, “Why did you call him over…”
Fu Zhengchu: “We can’t have a big man like my uncle sitting on the side while you, a young lady, climb up and down. I’ll go work somewhere else.”
Realizing Fu Zhengchu was trying to help her, even though Fu Shize’s presence was justified, Yun Li still felt a bit embarrassed. She pointed to a nearby chair and blurted out, “Why don’t you sit here?”
Fu Shize glanced at her. “To sit here and watch you?”
Yun Li imagined the scene and felt like she could hardly breathe. “That’s not what I meant.”
“Give it to me,” Fu Shize took the ribbons from her hand.
Yun Li: “Huh?”
Fu Shize paused, then said tersely, “I’ll help.”
Not wanting to be idle, Yun Li stood next to Fu Shize’s ladder with ribbons and decorations, handing them to him one by one as he hung them up.
Yun Li thought this was… quite nice.
Immersed in the small joy of handing things to Fu Shize, the box gradually emptied.
“Can you wait here for a moment?” Yun Li looked up at Fu Shize.
“Mm.”
Yun Li hugged the box and jogged away, going to another area to exchange it for a fuller box.
When she returned to the ladder, Fu Shize was looking at her expressionlessly.
Yun Li suddenly felt guilty and silently handed Fu Shize a decoration.
After work, Yun Li went home to reapply her makeup and changed into a white dress.
She met Fu Shize at the entrance of Science City. He wore a long black coat, hands in his pockets, head lowered as he leaned against the red brick wall at the edge of Science City. The distant square was filled with starlight.
Seeing Yun Li, he raised his eyes, lingering on her face for a moment before looking away.
That gaze made Yun Li’s breath catch for half a beat.
“I want to film some material tonight for a Halloween special. I haven’t updated in a while,” Yun Li said. Then, taking a deep breath and feeling slightly nervous, she asked, “Do you think I look nice?”
Seemingly caught off guard by her question, Fu Shize remained silent.
Yun Li, who had put all her effort into her makeup that day, asked in disbelief, “Don’t I look nice…?”
After a while.
Yun Li muttered to herself, “Shouldn’t I look a bit better than usual?”
Fu Shize: “…”
Similar to the previous children’s market, stalls of various sizes filled the entire square, with Halloween-themed decorations hanging from trees and walls.
Still, some distance from the coffee bean stall, Yun Li could already smell the rich aroma of beans. Quite a few people gathered nearby. Dozens of reddish-brown clay pots were neatly arranged on the table, with stacks of burlap sacks filled with coffee beans piled behind.
The vendor asked Fu Shize about his preferred flavor and scooped a few beans into his hand. He smelled them.
Yun Li: “How is it?”
Fu Shize: “Pretty good.”
Yun Li: “May I smell them?”
Fu Shize nodded.
Seeing he didn’t hand her the beans, Yun Li hesitated before leaning towards his hand. Beyond the roasted bean aroma, there was a hint of chocolate.
“It smells so good,” Yun Li marveled. Looking up, she noticed Fu Shize staring at her, his expression unreadable.
Thinking carefully, Yun Li’s face heated up again. “I meant the beans…”
“…”
Yun Li, inexperienced with coffee, asked the vendor for a recommendation. “I picked one I like. Why don’t you try it too?”
Fu Shize took some beans and smelled them. “It’s good.”
Yun Li: “Then let me buy you a pack.”
Fu Shize: “No need.”
Though rejection was expected, Yun Li thought for a moment and continued, “I want to give you a pack.”
“…”
Yun Li became more reserved. “You’ve paid for me many times before. I feel like I owe you money.”
“If that’s the reason,” Fu Shize stared at the vendor packing the beans, his gaze not on her, “then just keep owing.”
Yun Li looked up at the other stalls. In the corner was a simple candy figurine stand, the kind occasionally seen near schools when she was young.
Yun Li: “Can I buy that?”
Fu Shize: “Mm.”
Yun Li: “Then wait for me, I’ll go buy it.”
After saying this, Yun Li ran over.
Supporting a small copper pot, the old man used a copper ladle to scoop some syrup, dripping it onto a steel plate to outline a pattern.
While waiting for the candy figurine to set, Yun Li remembered that when she was smelling the coffee beans earlier, Fu Shize’s palm was just two centimeters from her. She touched her burning cheeks with the back of her hand.
She couldn’t remember the last time she had felt like this.
Her heart was pounding, and her mind filled with images of another person, even the smells she caught, the sounds she heard, and the things she saw seemed to carry his presence.
He probably… didn’t dislike her.
This thought emboldened Yun Li. She wasn’t usually proactive, always passively interacting with others, forced to engage in conversations.
The moon in the human world was always distant.
But now, the moon had come before her.
Yun Li’s lips curved into a smile.
Yes, how lucky she was that the moon was right in front of her.
After the candy figurine set, it was attached to a bamboo stick and handed to Yun Li.
It was pumpkin-shaped, with a wide grin.
Quite cute.
She handed one to Fu Shize.
“For me?”
Fu Shize stared at the candy figurine in his hand, its surface gleaming with a brownish luster. It was hard to imagine such an exquisite shape could be made in just two or three minutes.
But how was he supposed to eat this?
He looked at Yun Li. The pumpkin-shaped candy was larger than her small face. Having just run back, her cheeks were flushed like peach blossoms. She admired the candy figurine in her hand for a moment before slowly moving it towards her lips.
Then, she licked it.
…
He couldn’t just lick it too, could he?
Yun Li continued to lick her lips, taking a small bite when she noticed Fu Shize’s gaze. She looked a bit surprised. “Are you… sneaking glances at me?”
Fu Shize looked away, unusually telling a lie, “No.”
The night air was cold, but he suddenly felt hot all over.
The neon lights seemed even more dazzling. When he came to his senses, the pumpkin-shaped candy in his hand had been bitten to pieces.
“…”
“Hey, Yun Li?”
As they wandered among the various stalls, someone suddenly tapped Yun Li’s shoulder, causing her to instinctively flinch.
Looking up, she saw a person she thought she’d never cross paths with again in this lifetime.
Qu Mingxin approached, greeting her warmly, “How many years has it been since we last met? I never expected to run into you here.”
“Why aren’t you saying anything? Do you remember me? In high school, I was—”
Yun Li cut her off: “I remember.”
“Is this your boyfriend? He’s quite handsome,” Qu Mingxin continued, oblivious to Yun Li’s aloofness.
Yun Li replied, “No, he’s my colleague.”
“So you’re already working? I heard from other classmates that you didn’t get into graduate school and were preparing for the entrance exam—” Qu Mingxin maintained her casual demeanor. “After graduating from university, I came to work in Nanwu. My friend is doing her master’s at Nanli Tech, and I’m here to visit her today.”
“…”
Seeing Qu Mingxin’s enthusiasm, Yun Li felt bewildered and could only respond haltingly, “I’m also doing my master’s here.”
“Let’s go,” Fu Shize, who had been standing nearby, suddenly spoke up and started walking away.
Yun Li snapped back to reality and hurriedly said to Qu Mingxin, “We have to leave now.”
Qu Mingxin smiled, “Alright! Let’s get together for a meal sometime! It’s been so long since we’ve seen each other.” She waved goodbye and turned to find her friend.
As Yun Li caught up with Fu Shize, her thoughts drifted back to Qu Mingxin.
Why did she act so familiar?
Didn’t you say it yourself?
That you hated people like me.
In her first year of high school, Yun Li had been quite outgoing. Soon after the term started, she became close with her dormmates, particularly Deng Chuqi.
Deng Chuqi was cheerful, and the two often performed comedy skits together, earning them popularity in class.
After choosing between liberal arts and science in their second year, Yun Li joined the science class where she knew almost no one.
That’s when she met Qu Mingxin.
Qu Mingxin was friendly to everyone, including Yun Li.
She would greet Yun Li in the hallways, her eyes crinkling into crescents as she smiled.
Skilled at livening up the class atmosphere, Qu Mingxin was the school’s star host, always in the spotlight. Everyone in the class, including Yun Li, liked her vivaciousness.
At first, Yun Li quite enjoyed her new class. Although her close friends were elsewhere, she was eager to forge new relationships, shyly getting to know her new classmates.
Strangely, no matter how hard she tried, her classmates seemed to maintain a certain distance from her.
The lunch break lasted two hours. Most students would return to their dorms to nap, while some stayed in the classroom to do homework, chat, or play games.
One day, not feeling particularly sleepy, Yun Li decided to join Qu Mingxin and a few other classmates who usually spent their lunch break in the classroom.
Before she entered, she overheard their conversation.
“Should we invite Yun Li to play Three Kingdoms this weekend? She mentioned during morning exercises that she knows how to play,” said a girl Yun Li recognized as the one who stood behind her during exercises.
Another girl responded, “Oh, she plays too? She seems so quiet and cute, I thought she wouldn’t be into that.”
Qu Mingxin hesitated before saying, “I’d rather not invite her. I don’t like her.”
The first girl asked, “Why? Isn’t she quite adorable?”
Qu Mingxin replied, “She just seems fake to me. Her former roommate told me she was close with the boys in her previous class. She comes across as a green tea bitch.”
“No way…”
“I dislike that type. If you invite her, count me out.”
Suddenly, Yun Li felt as if she couldn’t understand people anymore.
She knew there were all kinds of people in the world—tattooed barbecue uncles with warm smiles, beautiful but cold-hearted executioners. Yet she had always thought such extremes were far removed from her life. Her understanding of two-faced behavior was limited to her brother Yun Ye secretly asking if their parents were looking for him after running away, or Deng Chuqi pretending to read studiously when the class monitor announced the teacher’s arrival after copying someone’s homework…
Just moments ago, at the snack shop, Qu Mingxin had noticed Yun Li’s orange juice and smiled, saying she’d buy the same.
Yun Li wanted to burst into the classroom and tell them she wasn’t what Qu Mingxin described.
She longed for a lively atmosphere, enjoying the harmony when everyone was together.
But she found herself unable to move.
No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t take a step forward.
If only she could have been a bit braver.
She decided to return to her dorm instead.
Yun Li didn’t quite understand why she had been so easily discouraged back then. It wasn’t as if she had never encountered people gossiping behind others’ backs before.
She suddenly realized it might have been because she had liked Qu Mingxin.
Perhaps she couldn’t bear such a stark contrast—
Lost in thoughts about her high school days, Yun Li failed to notice two people in pumpkin-headed mascot costumes approaching. One of the round, plump mascots bumped into her.
When she came to her senses, the mascot twice her size opened its arms, seemingly wanting to hug her. ???
Yun Li froze, unsure how to react.
A cool hand grasped her wrist, pulling her back. Yun Li felt a gust of wind as she found herself behind Fu Shize.
Dazed, she followed the warmth on her hand and looked up to see his hand still gripping her wrist.
Fu Shize himself hadn’t fully processed what happened. He had instinctively pulled Yun Li behind him when he saw the mascot about to engulf her.
The mascot also seemed to freeze for two seconds.
Then it continued its previous action, hugging Fu Shize instead.
“…”
The mascot then produced a rabbit-shaped balloon from its tail and offered it to him.
“…”
Seeing that he didn’t take it, the mascot insistently pushed it towards him again.
Fu Shize reluctantly accepted.
The balloon was fully inflated, its rabbit ears protruding. Holding this object made Fu Shize extremely uncomfortable. He turned around and held it out to Yun Li.
“For you.”