After checking her phone, Yun Li realized that many workplace newcomers had experienced exploitation by senior employees.
She couldn’t be certain if Qin Haifeng was deliberately targeting her. The task at hand was due to be submitted to Fang Yuning the next day, and Qin Haifeng could easily tell Fang Yuning that he had already assigned the work to her.
Yun Li didn’t want to give anyone a reason to criticize her for not completing the task. She brewed a packet of cold medicine, popped a mint in her mouth, and finished the remaining work in just over half an hour.
As she was packing up, Fu Shize entered. It was nearly nine o’clock, and she was surprised to see him working overtime as well.
Fu Shize asked, “Do you have a cold?”
Unaware that her nasal voice was so heavy it was unrecognizable, Yun Li replied, “Just a bit. I’ll be fine if I drink more hot water.”
Her voice hoarse, she asked him, “How did you know?”
“Xia Congsheng called,” he responded.
“Oh, so Xia Xia…”
“Your friend Deng Chuqi said you had a severe cold and were sleeping at home. You hadn’t replied to messages,” Fu Shize gave her a meaningful look, “She thought you might have gone into shock.”
“…”
Yun Li checked her phone and realized she hadn’t responded to messages for hours. Deng Chuqi probably thought she was sleeping at first, but after several hours of silence, she must have panicked.
Yun Li: “You didn’t tell her…” that I came to the company, right?
Fu Shize: “I didn’t need to.”
Yun Li: “?”
Fu Shize showed her his chat history with Fu Zhengchu.
[Uncle! Big sis called and said Li Li has a fever and isn’t responding to messages!]
[I’m at Li Li’s door now, knocked for ages but no answer]
[Uncle, is Li Li okay? [crying][crying]]
[Don’t know how Li Li is now, can’t find the property management here]
[I’ve called a locksmith, they’re coming soon!]
The last message was from about two minutes ago.
[Li Li’s not home, why isn’t she at home if she has a fever?]
[Uncle, is this illegal entry? [crying]]
[I even lifted Li Li’s blanket, will she think I’m a pervert?]
[Don’t tell Li Li!]
Fu Shize had replied with a single word: [Okay.]
“…”
Yun Li hadn’t expected that working overtime would result in her door lock being picked up.
While they were reading the messages, Fu Zhengchu sent another: [Uncle, could Li Li have fainted somewhere? Should we call the police?]
Fearing it might escalate into a city-wide police search, Yun Li urged, “Tell him!”
The girl before him, her cheeks unusually pink from the fever, spoke with a stutter in her urgency. Fu Shize lowered his gaze and asked, “Tell him what?”
“J-just say we’re together…”
Fu Shize: “?”
The content of her words was odd.
Worried that Fu Shize might not agree to cover for her, and knowing Deng Chuqi would be angry if she found out she was at the company, Yun Li reached out her hand.
Nervously, Yun Li said, “G-give me your phone.”
Fu Shize looked at her without saying anything and handed over his phone.
The phone was set to the default nine-key input method. Between her fever and unfamiliarity with the system, Yun Li struggled to type.
It took her a minute or two before she returned the phone.
Fu Shize glanced at it.
[She’s with me. I’ll take her home.]
[Understood, Uncle.]
“…”
Fu Shize spoke up, “I’ll get my car keys and drive you home.”
The Science and Technology City was just across from Qilixiang. Yun Li, who hadn’t been outside since catching her cold, shook her head and told him, “I’d like to go for a walk.”
With everything that had happened recently, she thought some fresh air might do her good.
Fu Shize didn’t insist. He went to his room to get a coat and followed behind Yun Li.
Along the way, lights twinkled, the south wind rustled, and the square was bustling with people.
Today, there happened to be a children’s market in the square, with three rows of stalls. Vintage warm-colored light bulbs were wrapped around the stall frames.
Yun Li, staring at the dense lights of the market, said, “I want to go in and take a look.”
Fu Shize nodded.
Inside, the stalls sold a variety of items, including one that sold light-up toys.
Yun Li stopped to look when she passed by. The vendor, who had been quiet all evening, eagerly stood up to greet potential customers.
“What would the handsome gentleman and beautiful lady like to see?”
Yun Li shook her head; these light-up toys were only suitable for children.
Perhaps sensing Yun Li’s disdain, the vendor called out “Wait a moment” twice, then mysteriously pulled out a red cloth-wrapped bag from under the stall and opened it for them to see.
Inside were boxes of pink “fairy sparklers.”
“Fifteen yuan a box,” the vendor said, observing their reactions. Noticing a slight change in Yun Li’s expression, he immediately said to Fu Shize, “How about buying a box for the lady? Our little stall’s fairy sparklers are made for fairies.”
He continued with a string of flattery until Yun Li, embarrassed, waved her hand to stop him.
As the vendor dejectedly started to put the bag away, Yun Li stopped him: “I’ll take a box, please.”
Yun Li quickly paid for it.
Since Fu Shize was essentially doing her a favor by sending her home, Yun Li felt awkward about troubling him further. She said stiffly, “Do you want to play with these? They’re quite fun. Even though I’m not feeling well, I can keep you company for a while…”
“…”
Fu Shize started walking first, with Yun Li following. After leaving the market, he stopped by the fountain in the square and sat down in a clean spot.
Yun Li: “Can we play here?”
Fu Shize: “Mm-hmm.”
Opening the box, there were six sparklers neatly arranged inside. The structure was simple: a wire about fifteen centimeters long, wrapped with light gray material.
Yun Li took one out.
She couldn’t remember the last time she had played with fireworks.
When she was young, most fireworks were loud firecrackers. Later, as city regulations became stricter, small vendors were no longer allowed to sell fireworks openly, which was why the stall owner had hidden the sparklers earlier.
“When I was little, one Mid-Autumn Festival, I spent nearly half a year’s savings to buy a lot of fireworks to play with my brother,” Yun Li said, twirling the sparkler in her hand and smiling sheepishly.
“Later, they were all confiscated by the city management uncles. My brother cried for a long time.”
At the time, the city management said they were carrying extremely dangerous toys.
Yun Ye was only six years old then, hugging the legs of the city management officer and crying that it was all his sister’s saved money, and if they took it away, she would be very sad.
Yun Li thought at the time that they had committed a terrible crime, trembling as she pulled Yun Ye back. Fortunately, the city management officers were very kind, smiling, and wishing them a happy Mid-Autumn Festival.
Thinking back, Yun Li sighed, “I wonder how they handled it… So many fireworks weren’t very safe.”
Fu Shize, who had initially taken out a cigarette, paused for a moment before putting it back, and simply said, “They probably took them to play with themselves.”
Yun Li: “…”
Yun Li: “Can I borrow your lighter?”
Fu Shize made a sound of agreement and beckoned Yun Li over.
Unlike her impression, Fu Shize was now sitting on the stone bricks by the fountain, his white shirt wrinkled, and covered by a black windbreaker. He looked a bit like a delinquent youth.
Combined with his face, which appeared cold when looking at people.
Yun Li walked about half a step away from him.
Fu Shize: “Come closer.”
These words reminded Yun Li of the time Fu Shize had leaned in to whisper to her at the dinner table, causing her to blush slightly as she slowly inched toward him.
“…”
Seeing that Yun Li had misunderstood his intention, Fu Shize added, “The sparkler.”
Yun Li realized and awkwardly moved her hand closer.
Fu Shize took out a lighter from his pocket, rubbed his thumb a couple of times to light it, and brought it close to the sparkler. The flickering flame trembled in the wind.
After a few unsuccessful attempts, Fu Shize took the sparkler directly. The steady flame moved closer, and a few strands of light sprayed outward, followed by dense, fuzzy light strands like the fluff of a pompom.
The orange light illuminated part of his profile.
Yun Li stared at Fu Shize, transfixed.
He made a soft nasal sound and gently pushed the cluster of light strands towards her, indicating for her to take it with her hand.
The light strands reflected in his eyes, along with her shadow.
Taking it in her hand, the light strands seemed to dance, constantly changing.
“It’s quite pretty,” Yun Li said, waving the sparkler foolishly, leaving traces in the night sky.
After drawing a few shapes, Yun Li was about to show Fu Shize a mid-air portrait when the light suddenly disappeared.
Probably not expecting a single sparkler to burn out so quickly, she awkwardly rubbed her nose and said, “I was about to become a great artist.”
“Try again,” Fu Shize took another one from the box, lit it, and handed it to her.
As her hand drew random patterns in the air, Yun Li’s attention was focused on Fu Shize’s absent-minded expression. Unsure if he was bored, Yun Li tried to find a topic of conversation: “Have you played with these before?”
Fu Shize seemed to just snap back to attention: “Mm, with my childhood friend.”
Yun Li: “Is it Mr. Xu?”
Fu Shize: “No.”
The two fell back into silence. Fu Shize stood up and walked a few steps to a nearby tree, leaning against the trunk.
He didn’t do anything else, just lit another sparkler for Yun Li when hers went out, otherwise remaining as silent as a shadow.
Yun Li: “My only childhood friend is my brother…” Thinking of her unpredictable relationship with Yun Ye, she found it somewhat amusing.
Fu Shize didn’t speak.
When Yun Li looked back, she noticed he was standing under the tree, half his face hidden in shadow.
Realizing his mood wasn’t high, Yun Li also fell silent.
After escorting her to the building entrance, Fu Shize nodded to her and turned to leave.
She watched his retreating figure for a long time.
If one second Yun Li felt immersed in warm springs, the next she felt as if she had returned to an icy mountain.
Yun Li carefully thought over their conversation today but couldn’t find any clues.
After returning home, Yun Li’s fever continued to fluctuate. This time, she didn’t dare to push herself and took a few days of sick leave. Deng Chuqi planned to visit her, and fearing she might be bored alone, invited Xia Congsheng and the others to have a hotpot at Yun Li’s place.
The two of them came directly from the company after work. Fu Shize and Fu Zhengchu, who were closer, went to the mall to buy ingredients. By the time they arrived at Qilixiang, it was already six o’clock.
Fu Zhengchu, carrying a bunch of things, huffed and puffed as he burst through the door. Seeing Yun Li, he took out a box of chocolates from the bag: “Sister Li Li, picking your lock was an accident. Please don’t take it to heart.”
Deng Chuqi couldn’t help but tease, “Looks like university isn’t easy. Just a few days away and you’re already engaging in illegal activities.”
Fu Zhengchu brazenly said, “No, no, Uncle taught me.”
Fu Shize: “…”
“It’s good that it was Fu Zhengchu who picked the lock. I don’t even need to change it,” Yun Li was in a good mood and smiled slightly. “But thank you for going to such lengths to help.”
Fu Zhengchu, unaccustomed to such sincere thanks from others, smiled shyly for once.
“But Sister Li Li, why is your cold so severe this time? Are you okay?”
Xia Congsheng chimed in, “Yeah, Li Li. They say fools don’t catch colds. My brother hasn’t had a cold in almost ten years. Uncle, on the other hand, gets sick often. You had a bad cold just half a month ago, right?”
As the topic shifted to Fu Shize, he nodded indifferently.
His health did indeed seem poor. Looking at him, his eyes were full of weariness, always giving the impression of chronic sleep deprivation.
As it was their first visit, everyone brought gifts for Yun Li. Fu Shize brought two bottles of exquisite sparkling wine, with small deep red bows tied around the bottlenecks.
Fu Zhengchu clicked his tongue twice: “The older generation is different, they like to drink… It feels a bit dissolute.”
“…”
The seemingly offensive words didn’t affect Fu Shize. Compared to when he said goodbye last time, his mood seemed much better today.
After being on edge for two or three days, Yun Li finally felt relieved.
Deng Chuqi took inventory: meat for hot pot, vegetables, meatballs, tofu products, and hot pot bases were all purchased. They just needed to wash the ingredients.
With limited kitchen space, Deng Chuqi and Xia Congsheng washed things inside. The other three sat in the living room preparing vegetables.
The two men, inexperienced in cooking, hadn’t thought much when buying groceries and chose the most labor-intensive water spinach and green beans.
After dividing the work, Fu Shize placed two baskets of vegetables on the table and looked at Yun Li: “Do you know how to prepare these?”
Yun Li nodded.
Fu Shize pushed the basket towards her: “Teach me.”
“Oh…”
Since knowing him, Yun Li always felt that with Fu Shize’s intelligence, there couldn’t be anything he didn’t know.
Now, with him watching her, Yun Li demonstrated less confidently: “Remove the tops, then divide them into appropriate lengths.”
Fu Shize repeated Yun Li’s actions and asked her: “Is this right?”
Seeing Yun Li nod, he settled into the sofa, placed the vegetable basket on his lap, and slowly prepared them one by one.
The house had the heating on, and after a while, he seemed to feel hot. He straightened up and took off his coat, turning to find a place to put it.
Seeing this, Yun Li stood up: “I’ll help you find a place for it.”
Fu Shize made a sound of agreement and continued preparing vegetables with his head down.
There wasn’t much extra space in the living room, so Yun Li took the coat to the bedroom and found a hanger to hang it up.
It was the same windbreaker from last time. Yun Li moved a bit closer; the coat had a faint smell of tobacco and citrus, probably from laundry detergent.
Just as she was about to hang it by the door, Yun Li had a thought and folded her coat together with Fu Shize’s.
As if they had been together from the start.
The hot pot base was boiling, and everyone gathered around the table.
Fu Zhengchu used a bottle opener to open the sparkling wine, pouring a glass for Deng Chuqi and himself. Fu Shize and Xia Congsheng had to drive, and Yun Li had a cold, so they couldn’t drink.
Fu Zhengchu: “Uncle, look at the gift you brought.”
Yun Li smiled: “It’s like you’re helping me entertain you all.”
“Li Li, I just looked in your kitchen, and it seems you have all kinds of cookware,” Xia Congsheng said while eating. “A wok, an egg pan, even a pan for making thick omelets.”
Yun Li said: “As a food blogger, I need to have everything. But some were bought before, and I had my mom send them to me.”
Fu Zhengchu asked: “So why did you decide to become a food vlogger? Sister Li Li is also pretty, I feel like you could be a beauty vlogger too.”
Yun Li thought for a moment, “Actually, I’m quite clumsy, so I always make things over and over until I think they’re perfect.” Then, a bit embarrassed, she said: “Later, my brother said I made things look so good, I might as well record videos and post them online.”
She looked at Fu Shize: “If you want to learn how to prepare vegetables, I’ve also made a video about it.”
“…”
Considering Yun Li was still recovering, the group didn’t let her clean up after the meal. Deng Chuqi and Xia Congsheng tidied the table, putting the dishes by the sink for the uncle and nephew to wash.
Fu Shize walked to the kitchen, and Fu Zhengchu followed, putting a hand on Fu Shize’s shoulder: “Uncle, they want us to wash dishes together.”
“This makes it look, look,” Fu Zhengchu paused, saying dizzily: “Like we’re very loving.”
Fu Shize: “…”
The three in the living room: “???”
Deng Chuqi sighed: “Xia Xia, I think your brother is drunk.” She picked up the empty sparkling wine bottle and looked at it, saying: “This wine is 14 degrees, I couldn’t even taste it.”
Xia Congsheng: “…”
Worried that Fu Zhengchu might hurt himself, Yun Li went to the kitchen to call him out: “Fu Zhengchu, why don’t you come sit in the living room for a bit?”
Fu Zhengchu refused without thinking: “No, I want to wash dishes with Uncle.”
Yun Li said helplessly: “Uncle’s not washing anymore, you can come out with him.”
Fu Zhengchu insisted on staying in the kitchen: “Uncle’s not washing dishes either, in the end, only I’m left, Uncle can’t be relied on.”
“…”
Xia Congsheng couldn’t bear it anymore: “Uncle, help me pull him out.”
Fu Zhengchu: “Why are you forcing me!” Although he was a bit drunk, his actions weren’t forceful. He was half-pushed, half-pulled out of the kitchen.
Deng Chuqi said: “You guys watch him, I’ll wash the dishes.”
Yun Li quickly said: “No need, just leave them there.”
Deng Chuqi pouted: “What are you saying? How could we let you do it?”
While the two were talking, they didn’t notice Fu Zhengchu had run back into the kitchen and started chattering to Fu Shize: “Uncle, two of my previous girlfriends broke up with me after meeting you.”
Fu Shize: “…”
After drinking all night, they finally reached an explosive point. Deng Chuqi, who had also had some wine, couldn’t care about Yun Li at this moment and went straight to the kitchen door: “Your uncle stole your girlfriends?”
“Not exactly, they said,” Fu Zhengchu looked a bit dejected, “they were afraid they wouldn’t be steadfast enough and might not be able to resist in the future.”
“…”
“They lack self-awareness, Uncle wouldn’t like them anyway.”
“…”
Noticing Yun Li’s gaze, Fu Zhengchu continued, “You don’t believe me? You can ask Uncle. Uncle, tell them, do you like,” Fu Zhengchu’s thoughts were a bit jumbled, “men?”
Fu Shize seemed to be used to this, his tone flat: “Go find a place to lie down.”
Fu Zhengchu continued: “Tell me first, do you like women or men?”
Fu Shize washed the dishes, ignoring him.
The alcohol had hit him hard, and Fu Shize didn’t plan to indulge him. Until everyone left, Fu Zhengchu was on the side, counting the number of girls who had crushes on Fu Shize in elementary school, then started counting Fu Shize’s award certificates.
Before leaving, Yun Li brought out Fu Shize’s coat, and he casually put it on.
“Sister Li Li, I’m saying, you’re pretty.” Before Fu Shize could put on his coat, he grabbed Fu Zhengchu, who was lunging towards Yun Li, and pulled him out.
After pushing Fu Zhengchu out the door, he still tried to talk to Yun Li through the gap. Fu Shize blocked him, with only half of his face visible through the crack, his hair messed up by Fu Zhengchu’s grabbing.
He lowered his eyelids and said softly: “Get well soon.”
Then he closed the door.
After everyone left, the house became much quieter. While brushing her teeth, Yun Li took out her phone, opened her chat with Fu Shize, and typed [Have you all gotten home?]
After thinking for a moment, she deleted the sentence.
Never mind.
The next day, the package Yang Fang sent arrived. The express package was sealed tightly, and it took Yun Li some time to open it with an art knife. The robot and envelope were wrapped in many layers of old newspapers.
It had been nearly two months since she’d been home.
Thinking of her mother Yang Fang, who probably packed everything so carefully, afraid of damaging anything that might upset her, Yun Li felt she shouldn’t have stayed away from home for so long out of stubbornness.
It took quite a while, but Yun Li made a video about repairing and modifying the robot. For some reason, this video was recommended and reached a million views on the first day.
Repairing the robot wasn’t particularly difficult; she just replaced a part. But she was still very proud of it and tried to make it crawl around her room for a while, though after so long, Yun Li wasn’t very good at controlling it anymore.
She went down to the grass below, set up her camera, and started controlling the joystick.
The robot moved shakily, like a clumsy hippopotamus, wobbling back and forth.
Not even three seconds passed.
A white figure came running over.
In the blink of an eye, it snatched the soccer ball in front of the robot.
The robot also toppled over as a result.
The end of the video showed Yun Li’s entire process of chasing the dog to get the ball back, with the robot in the frame still flailing, seemingly trying to get up.
She got the ball back, but she was quite disheveled.
Although Yun Li tagged this video as technology and handicraft, everyone else unanimously considered it a comedy video.
When Deng Chuqi came to visit her on the weekend and saw this video, her first reaction was: “Li Li, this robot kind of looks like you.”
The saying “like an owner, like a pet” might not be without reason. After looking at the robot for a long time, Yun Li developed some special feelings for it.
“Hey, did you see Xia Congsheng’s Moments? It seems they had a family gathering today,” Deng Chuqi called loudly from the balcony. “Their family is super…”
Yun Li waited for the next sentence.
“Super fucking big.”
“…”
Yun Li opened her Moments and saw that Xia Congsheng’s update wasn’t posted long ago. It was a large group photo.
There were over twenty people in the photo, with a plain frosted wall as the background. Everyone was dressed in formal wear. Fu Shize stood in the middle, wearing a tie, his shoulders perfectly positioned, gazing at the camera. Sitting in front of him was a middle-aged couple who shared some facial features with him.
Xia Congsheng’s caption read: This year, Great-aunt said she wanted her birthday to be more Western-style.
Judging by the positioning, tonight must be Fu Shize’s mother’s birthday.
Yun Li: “This dinner looks so serious.”
Deng Chuqi: “Xia Xia mentioned before that Fu Shize’s parents are both professors at Western Science University. He said the two elders love to have fun and look more like they’re in their twenties compared to Fu Shize.”
“…”
Seeing Yun Li still staring at the photo, she said with a grin: “A family of scholars, after marriage the in-laws would be reasonable. Seriously consider it.”
“Don’t talk nonsense.” Yun Li glanced at her, hesitated for a long time, then zoomed in on the photo.
“Look at the girl next to him, isn’t she standing a bit close to Xia Xia’s uncle?”
In the photo, Xu Qingsong stood on Fu Shize’s left, and a long-haired girl stood on his right. She had delicate features, and you could see her arm touching Fu Shize’s.
After looking carefully for a while, Deng Chuqi recognized the person in the photo: “Xia Xia has posted about her several times before. They practice piano together, and she’s also Fu Shize’s niece. Don’t overthink it. Xia Xia said his uncle is very clean, and usually only plays with boys.”
“Plays with boys?”
Yun Li repeated, feeling this wasn’t a good sign either.
“I’ve seen this Lin Wanyin too. She’s tall and thin, and when she speaks, it’s like she hasn’t eaten.” You could hear that Deng Chuqi’s evaluation of the girl wasn’t high, and she didn’t want to continue this topic.
This name directly touched Yun Li’s sensitive spot.
She had always remembered this name and also remembered those over a hundred unread messages.
She couldn’t help saying: “Last time, I accidentally saw Xia Xia’s uncle’s phone. She sent him over a hundred messages.”
Deng Chuqi didn’t understand: “Who sent to whom?”
“This Lin Wanyin to Xia Xia’s uncle, but they were all unread…”
“Then you should be even more at ease. Look, Xia Xia’s uncle doesn’t even have the interest to read her messages.”
“…”
Deng Chuqi raised an eyebrow, unable to bear Yun Li’s hesitation, and said directly: “Li Li, last weekend when I came to take care of you, you told me you wanted to have Fu Shize’s children.”
Yun Li: “…”
She was shocked and blushed: “How is that possible!”
“Don’t you like Xia Xia’s uncle? If you don’t, maybe Xia Xia’s uncle will have children with Lin Wanyin.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Yun Li almost stood up: “How could that be allowed? That’s incest!”
Deng Chuqi was speechless: “Then Lin Wanyin sent over a hundred messages, and before that probably sent tens of thousands. Open your phone and count, how many have you sent?”