Fei Ni appeared in Fang Muyang’s camera viewfinder. Today, she wasn’t wearing her usual large face mask; instead, a thick knitted scarf wrapped around her chin, making her face appear even smaller. Fang Muyang’s first impression was that Fei Ni must have done well on her exam – if she hadn’t, she wouldn’t have handed in her paper before the bell rang, nor would she be so talkative.

Su Jing actively engaged Fei Ni in conversation about the novel he was reading, and as it happened, Fei Ni had read the English version. While discussing the book, Su Jing accidentally misnamed one of the supporting characters, and Fei Ni gently corrected him. Losing face in front of someone you admire brings double the embarrassment. Beyond embarrassment, there was also shame, though Fei Ni didn’t think Su Jing had any reason to feel ashamed – she was several years older than him, so it was perfectly natural that she would know more.

But Su Jing still blushed uncontrollably, something completely outside Fei Ni’s experience. Fang Muyang had never blushed in front of her; only she had ever blushed in front of him.

Fei Ni consoled him, saying that misremembering names was perfectly normal. She quickly moved past it, sharing her insights and occasionally quoting directly from the book. Su Jing had initially found Fei Ni beautiful and approachable, and when discussing the novel with her, he had wanted to show off a little – to prove that despite being younger, his knowledge wasn’t inferior to hers, hoping to earn the right to converse with her as an equal.

However, not only had Fei Ni read the book he mentioned, she had read it in its original English version, and her pronunciation was far better than his – superior not just to him but even to his college-educated sister. He realized he had been showing off his meager skills to an expert.

He felt both ashamed and increasingly admiring of Fei Ni. Amid these conflicting feelings, he found her even more endearing – her tone and manner were so gentle. When pointing out his mistake, she had been so tactful, so considerate of his pride that if he hadn’t been particularly sensitive about appearing foolish in front of someone he liked, he would have considered it a trivial matter.

Being young, Su Jing couldn’t hide the admiration in his eyes. Fei Ni regarded him as just a child, attributing his admiration entirely to his lack of experience. Still, his momentary worship made her happy. For years, she had been making hats at the factory, processing all the books she read by herself, with no one to share her thoughts with. She had suppressed her desire for intellectual discourse for so long that it had nearly died out, but now, meeting someone she could talk to, that desire had resurfaced. Fang Muyang had been her first audience, and for a long time, her only one.

This audience had given her immense comfort. Previously, she had only shared her insights with Fang Muyang. He could understand what she was saying, though sometimes she wondered how he could follow her train of thought without having read the books. Fang Muyang understood her but never worshipped her. Even when her grades completely overshadowed his, he never admired her – he would only put flies in her desk. Later, when Fang Muyang gained some minor fame and readers’ letters began arriving at their home, he was even less likely to admire her. She couldn’t imagine Fang Muyang admiring anyone.

Though Su Jing couldn’t fully grasp everything she said, he was an excellent listener. Everything from his gaze to his nods perfectly conveyed his appreciation of Fei Ni. He had received something unexpected from Fei Ni; he truly hadn’t anticipated that this gentle, beautiful girl would give him so many pleasant surprises.

Su Jing invited Fei Ni to watch an internal screening of a 1940s American film that evening. The tickets were very hard to obtain.

Fei Ni hesitated when she heard the title, knowing the film had once been highly acclaimed. But she quickly thanked Su Jing for his kindness and said she wasn’t available that evening.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to go, but she was spending the evening with Fang Muyang. She could hardly ask for two tickets so her husband could come along.

Su Jing was very disappointed. “If you change your mind, come directly to the archives. I’ll wait outside until the film starts.”

Fei Ni felt Su Jing was being a bit too enthusiastic, but in her eyes, he was still young, and she didn’t think anything more of it. She assumed he had simply read some books and needed someone to discuss his thoughts with, just like her.

Fei Ni told Su Jing, “I already have plans with my husband this evening.”

“Your husband? How old are you to be married already?” Su Jing couldn’t hide his surprise. To him, Fei Ni looked mature, but still only in her early twenties.

Fei Ni smiled, “I’m well past marriage age.” She was about to turn twenty-three.

Su Jing couldn’t hide his disappointment upon learning Fei Ni was married. Being young, he had always thought of marriage as something far in the future and had assumed it was equally distant for Fei Ni.

Fei Ni pointed to Fang Muyang taking photos nearby and introduced him: “That’s my husband.”

She turned her face away, thinking that at this rate, they’d need to buy more film again.

Su Jing immediately recognized Fang Muyang as the one who had accompanied Fei Ni at the skating rink and had helped him later. They were still together, and even married.

Su Jing had to admit they looked well-matched.

He only blamed himself for being too young – if he had been a couple of years older, things might have been different.

Su Jing forced a smile: “I hope the next time we meet, we’ll be classmates.”

Fei Ni bid farewell to Su Jing and hopped onto Fang Muyang’s bicycle. “Did you wait long?” If Fang Muyang hadn’t been waiting outside, she would have checked the film one more time, worried he’d been waiting too long.

“What were you talking about that made you so happy?”

Fei Ni said, “A book.”

“Have I read it?”

“No.” He had, but he had pretended not to know any of the words, coaxing Fei Ni to read it to him.

“Then you must tell me about it when we get home.” Fang Muyang smiled, “When you get home, I’ll make you a brooch with two words engraved: ‘Married.’ Whenever someone tries to chat you up, they’ll see those words and know to leave immediately.”

“You’re never serious,” Fei Ni thought Fang Muyang was overthinking it. “He’s so much younger than us, it wasn’t like that at all. He just wanted to discuss the books he’d read.” Besides, this made her feel more accomplished than when people approached her for her looks.

Fang Muyang laughed, “When I was his age, I thought about much more than that.”

Fei Ni laughed too: “Not everyone is as thick-skinned as you.” She remembered how Su Jing had blushed and wondered if Fang Muyang would have blushed at that age, and if so, for whom. She would probably never get to see Fang Muyang blush in this lifetime.

Though she wanted to see it.

The English exam further boosted Fei Ni’s confidence. She was almost certain she would get into university – all that was missing was the acceptance letter. Yet within this certainty lay a touch of regret: “Others can go to university at eighteen, but we’re so much older and still have to be their classmates.”

Fang Muyang thought that Fei Ni had already assumed he would get into university, but the acceptance letters wouldn’t come until next year, and he found it hard to worry about next year’s matters.

Old Fang had said early on that Fei Ni should come to their house for a meal after the exam. They happened to meet a candied hawthorn seller, and Fang Muyang bought four sticks, even one for Aunt Yang, but none for himself. Fei Ni took one bite and passed her stick to Fang Muyang, letting him eat too. By the time they reached the Fang family home, they had finished one stick between them.

Old Fang asked Fei Ni a few questions about the exam and felt relieved for her. He knew it would be very difficult for his son to get into university, and to spare his wayward son’s pride, he didn’t ask him a single question. Before the exam, he and his wife had wanted to arrange some tutors for their wayward son, but he had flatly refused.

Old Fang had criticized Fang Muyang at the time, saying if he wasn’t going to study seriously, he shouldn’t take the exam at all, but if he was going to take it, he should study properly and try to pass on the first attempt. How could he face getting several dozen points lower than his daughter-in-law on the same exam? Fang Muyang had immediately corrected his father’s error – how could it be just several dozen points? Conservatively speaking, Fei Ni would score over a hundred points higher than him. Old Fang saw no shame on his son’s face and sighed inwardly, wondering how he had produced such a son. If he had scored so much lower than his wife, he would have died of shame.

During the meal, Old Fang engaged in more self-criticism, mainly about how he had held Fang Muyang back, how smart and studious Fang Muyang had been as a child, and how if it hadn’t been for him, Fang Muyang would certainly have finished high school – properly finished high school – and probably would have had no problem getting into university. These words were mainly laying the groundwork for when Fang Muyang failed to get into university.

Fei Ni was very skeptical of her father-in-law’s words. She believed what he said about Fang Muyang being smart, but his claims about how studious Fang Muyang had been completely contradicted reality.

Fang Muyang reminded his father, “Fei Ni and I were primary school classmates.”

Old Fang immediately fell silent, resenting that his son hadn’t reminded him earlier – these lies might affect his image in his daughter-in-law’s eyes.

Fei Ni was also willing to cover for her husband: “Muyang is indeed very smart, it’s just that the review time was a bit tight this time.”

Both of them had found reasons to explain why Fang Muyang might not get into university.

Fei Ni hadn’t let the college entrance exam interfere with her daily plans and had taken more manuscripts from Old Fang to organize.

Old Fang sighed inwardly, wondering what virtues his wayward son possessed to deserve such a wife. To prevent his son from losing too much dignity in front of his daughter-in-law, he decided to hire several more tutors for his son, hoping he might pass the next college entrance exam – he had no hope for this one.

Before they left, Old Fang gave Fei Ni two movie tickets that Fang Muyang had asked him to keep the previous week.

Fei Ni looked at the film title on the tickets – it was the same movie Su Jing had invited her to see.

Fei Ni returned to their small courtyard with Old Fang’s manuscripts. Fang Muyang teased her: “You don’t let yourself rest for a moment. You’ve just finished the exam and already found something else to do.”

Fei Ni had originally wanted to let Fang Muyang relax for a few days, but for the sake of his future, if he hadn’t done well this time, this period would be the best time for tutoring. Once she started university, she wouldn’t be able to live in their small courtyard regularly, only coming back once a week. Then she wouldn’t be able to tutor him even if she wanted to. Thinking of this, she felt she should still compare answers with Fang Muyang to gauge his level. If he had managed most of the questions, that would be good, but if he hadn’t, she could use the time before university to help him fill in the gaps.

Fei Ni had anticipated Fang Muyang’s reluctance, so before getting to serious matters, she smiled and said to him: “You’ve taken such good care of me these past few days, now it’s my turn to take care of you.”

She pressed down on Fang Muyang’s shoulders, making him sit in the chair. “I’ll go make you some tea.”

After making tea, Fei Ni sat beside Fang Muyang peeling oranges. She removed the white pith, put it in her mouth, and fed the segments to Fang Muyang, just as he had done for her before.

She asked him, “Is it sweet?”

Of course, it was sweet.

She continued feeding him several orange segments.

Fang Muyang held her hand as he took the orange into his mouth.

Fei Ni, who had been the active one, suddenly became passive.

They were eating oranges for a while, both forgetting that Xu Hui was coming.

They forgot, but Xu Hui couldn’t.

When the time came, Xu Hui knocked on their door several times. Fei Ni left her position in Fang Muyang’s human chair and hurriedly stood before the mirror to fix her hair, her hands resting on her cheeks, waiting for the temperature to drop.

As soon as Xu Hui entered, she noticed the stone path and the wooden door blocking the moon gate, particularly admiring the door.

Once her face had cooled, Fei Ni came out to greet her guest.

“Your house is really lovely.”

Xu Hui had brought a bottle of wine and two paintings for this visit – one was her most satisfying work, and the other was the painting she had exchanged with Fang Muyang years ago. She thought Fang Muyang and Fei Ni would want to see this painting.

Fang Muyang’s studio temporarily made her forget her purpose for coming. She couldn’t help but notice the floor-to-ceiling windows. Looking through them, she discovered her ideal studio – with skylights and floor-to-ceiling windows. When the peach blossoms would be in full bloom, one could see the trees full of flowers through the windows – truly a magnificent sight. Fang Muyang knew how to enjoy life.

Compared to Fang Muyang’s studio, her own seemed too modest. Everything here was ideal. He had an independent courtyard, a studio with skylights and floor-to-ceiling windows, and a wife.

The greatest advantage of marriage that Xu Hui could imagine was having a reliable model. Who else but one’s husband or wife would agree to be a nude model? The answer was no one. She desperately needed a figure model, but if she made such a request to others, they would likely think she was indecent. Fang Muyang didn’t have this problem – he could make such requests to Fei Ni anytime, and even if she refused, there was no risk.

But she couldn’t marry just to have a figure model; that would be unwise. The more she thought about it, the luckier she felt Fang Muyang was – marrying the girl he had liked since childhood and being able to paint her in his studio whenever he wanted.

Seeing Xu Hui’s envy, Fang Muyang felt a moment of sympathy and almost offered to let her use the studio temporarily. But he knew her nature too well – once she got her foot in the door, it wouldn’t just be temporary use. Xu Hui was someone who had no personal life outside of painting, which would mean he and Fei Ni would end up having no personal life either.

Xu Hui not only expressed admiration for Fang Muyang’s studio but also praised the bedroom, living room, and bathroom, especially admiring the moon painting in the bedroom.

She asked Fang Muyang when and where he had painted that moon, saying she loved the feeling it conveyed.

Fei Ni remembered the scene when Fang Muyang painted it, recalling that dizzy sensation, unconsciously fixing her hair to hide her shyness.

Fang Muyang told Xu Hui it was the Mid-Autumn Festival moon seen through the skylight.

“You must have been drinking when you painted this.”

Fang Muyang neither confirmed nor denied it.

Seeing this painting left Xu Hui feeling somewhat defeated. She didn’t think Fang Muyang’s technique was much better than hers, but his conceptual sophistication was something she lacked.

Fei Ni cleared away the cold tea and poured fresh tea for Xu Hui, bringing out fruit and the pastries they had bought earlier.

Xu Hui thought the time was truly magical – the little girl in the painting had grown into an adult, now hosting her as the lady of the house.

Not only had she not expected this, but Fang Muyang probably hadn’t either.

Fei Ni asked, “May I see your paintings?”

“Of course.” That was why she had come.

She showed Fei Ni her painting first.

Fei Ni found that the painting truly reflected its creator – in Fang Muyang’s paintings, she always saw a sense of casualness, but Xu Hui’s painting displayed an ambition, one that didn’t fear being seen. On the contrary, she feared it wouldn’t be seen – there was an innocence in that ambition.

Fei Ni shared her thoughts with Xu Hui, who considered them and said, “You make a very good point.”

Fei Ni couldn’t help but smile – this person was indeed quite naive.

“So you’ll agree to be my model?”

Fei Ni couldn’t help asking, “Why must it be me?”

“Well… look at this painting and you’ll understand.”

Xu Hui showed Fei Ni the other painting, and after more than a decade, Fei Ni recognized herself in it.

The person in the painting was both strange and familiar. Back then, she had worn her hair in two braids, dressed in a white shirt and floral dress, her eyes mixing pride and hope, believing that with effort, she could achieve anything she wanted with her own hands.

Photographs couldn’t capture the expression in the painting, and the few photos she had were too small compared to this painting. She remembered her childhood, but some years were so blurry only the outline remained.

This painting stirred her memories.

Of course, Xu Hui hadn’t painted it. With this style, she couldn’t think of anyone but Fang Muyang.

But she really couldn’t figure out why Fang Muyang would have painted her at that time.

She didn’t remember Fang Muyang having any special feelings for her in primary school.

From the painting, she discovered that Fang Muyang hadn’t disliked her – one wouldn’t paint someone they disliked this way. He might have even liked her a little – without some affection, it would have been impossible to capture the details so precisely.

It must have been an artist’s fondness for their model, Fei Ni thought.

Fei Ni thanked Xu Hui, who apologetically said, “This was exchanged with Fang Muyang, and I need to take it back.” Although she knew the painting was important to Fei Ni and Fang Muyang, since it had been given to her, she had to keep it, unless…

Fei Ni instinctively asked, “What did you exchange it for?”

“The art books my father gave me.” Back then, Xu Hui had given Fang Muyang most of the art books her father had given her for this painting. She had thought there would be new art books, after all, they were just reproductions, but afterward, even painting what she wanted became difficult, and she never saw those art books again.

Fang Muyang suggested, “Let’s exchange it back then, you’ve looked at it for so many years anyway.”

Xu Hui smiled, “Is this painting only worth those art books to you?” With Fei Ni present, she was sure Fang Muyang wouldn’t dare say yes.

“What else do you want?”

“I want the moon painting from your bedroom, and I hope I can paint a portrait of Fei Ni in your studio. If you agree to both, I’ll leave this painting with you.”

Xu Hui made her conditions confidently, without any embarrassment.

Xu Hui hadn’t just looked at this girl’s portrait; she had copied it more than once, trying to find Fang Muyang’s feeling when he painted it. She finally realized she couldn’t recreate Fang Muyang’s emotions while painting because she had no special feelings for the subject. Only by looking at the subject with constant joy could one create such a painting.

Xu Hui asked Fang Muyang, “Did you fall in love with Fei Ni early on?”

If Xu Hui hadn’t mentioned it, Fang Muyang would have almost forgotten. When he painted Fei Ni back then, he was simply happy looking at her, a joy no different from seeing a flower or a cloud. He had viewed Fei Ni with an aesthetic eye. As a man in his twenties, it was hard to recreate the feelings of a child from over a decade ago – back then, he had just found her interesting, and happy to see her.

Of course, that could be called “liking,” but it was a liking without any desire to possess – just looking was enough. Who would want to possess a cloud? But now he wanted to possess her completely. He couldn’t recreate that feeling from years ago in his paintings anymore, and because he couldn’t capture it, he especially wanted to preserve it as a memento.

Fang Muyang firmly said, “I can’t give you the bedroom painting, but you can choose another one to take.”

“But I want that moon painting.” Xu Hui decided Fei Ni had more say in this household. “Would you like to exchange with me? If not, that’s fine, I’ll take good care of this one for you.”

Now seeing the moon in Fang Muyang’s room had rekindled her old feelings – to surpass him and collect his paintings. For the moon painting, she was willing to sacrifice this painting she was emotionally attached to.

Every time Fei Ni saw the moon painting, she thought of that dizzy feeling, and naturally couldn’t let the painting fall into someone else’s hands. As for her childhood portrait, they could only let Xu Hui keep it – after all, who told Fang Muyang to sell her portrait to Xu Hui for a few art books?