Because a dedicated assistant was helping out, this shoot had actually wrapped up faster than usual once the director’s detailed requirements had been met.

“That’s a wrap, that’s a wrap! Anyone want to grab a meal together?”

Qi Xi didn’t dare stay for dinner. She felt like she was behaving completely abnormally, like a patient who’d slipped out of a psychiatric hospital—if she stayed any longer, someone would see through her disguise and drag her back.

The moment the shoot ended, she took advantage of Gu Yan stepping out to the restroom and all but fled the scene.

She could have pretended to be composed, said goodbye to Gu Yan properly before leaving—but Qi Xi felt like she couldn’t even manage that anymore.

Just as she made it back to Gu Xuehan’s apartment, Gu Yan’s call came in.

His voice was even, and didn’t sound like he was interrogating her, but there was something odd in his tone. “Wasn’t there supposed to be a group dinner after the shoot?”

Qi Xi started scrambling for excuses. “Something suddenly came up—there’s a case file Attorney Gu asked me to sort out, and some electronic materials I need to organize and file, there’s a lot to sort through—”

On the other end, Gu Yan’s voice was low and pleasant. “Do you need help?”

Qi Xi refused almost instantly. “No need!”

Caught off guard by such a clean, immediate rejection, Gu Yan’s voice went silent for a beat too, as if he’d been stunned along with the man behind it. He might have felt a little awkward, but in the end he said nothing more about it.

The two of them fell into a sudden silence.

After a moment, just as Qi Xi was about to make up another excuse to hang up, Gu Yan spoke again—

“When it’s too hot, sometimes my heart races.”

Hm?

Qi Xi was still a little dazed when she heard Gu Yan calmly add, “It was too hot during the shoot just now.”

The man’s voice turned a little uneasy. “It’s too hot today.”

He finished the thought with no clear beginning or end, and then fell silent again.

Even though he hadn’t really said anything, Qi Xi found herself growing tense. She let out a bluffing little “Oh,” trying to cover it. “Then you’d better go see a doctor, get an EKG, rule out any heart issues. A lot of modern people have heart problems, things like myocarditis and so on…”

…

By the time she finally hung up, Qi Xi didn’t even know what she’d just said.

Annoyed with herself, she tossed the phone aside and dove straight into bed, burrowing under the covers.

Aaaaahhh.

What was she even doing!!!

**

By the next day, Qi Xi still hadn’t figured out what expression to wear in front of Gu Yan.

Did Gu Yan… did he actually like her a little?

Qi Xi was still nervous and unsettled, but Gu Yan seemed to have already returned to his usual self.

The working environment gradually calmed her down, but watching Gu Yan sit there typing up documents, composed as always, Qi Xi—though she didn’t want to admit it—felt a small pang of disappointment.

Fortunately, Gu Xuehan called her on the internal line soon after and gave her an assignment—

“Tomorrow it’s our firm’s turn to cover the duty shift at the Judicial Bureau’s Legal Aid Center. It was originally supposed to be Attorney Lü’s turn, but he’s got an urgent client matter and can’t get away. Gu Yan has a meeting to attend with me tomorrow morning. So Qi Xi, of everyone free at the firm right now, it’s just you. You’re still an intern attorney, but handling basic phone consultations and walk-ins at the Legal Aid Center is well within your abilities. You’ll cover the shift there tomorrow.”

Gu Xuehan smiled as she said this. “Gu Yan actually got thrown into that same duty shift right before you joined too. If there’s anything you’re not sure about, you can ask him.”

**

Once Qi Xi left the office, she stopped thinking about Gu Yan and instead grew a little anxious and nervous about the legal aid work ahead of her.

This would be her first time on duty at the Legal Aid Center under the Judicial Bureau, entirely on her own. On the surface she looked composed and unbothered, but inside she was more than a little scared.

Would the phone consultations and walk-in questions be difficult? What if they touched on areas she didn’t know well at all? Would the Bureau’s staff help her? How was she supposed to guide people who needed assistance?

Qi Xi sat back down at her desk, her head full of questions. She glanced over at Gu Yan, who was writing an email nearby, and without any more hesitation, eagerly wanted to ask him for advice as someone who’d been through it. “Gu Yan! I’m going on duty at the Judicial Bureau’s Legal Aid Center tomorrow!”

Qi Xi had assumed Gu Yan would offer up some of his own experience—after all, the two of them were so close now, and Gu Yan even seemed to have some kind of feelings for her.

To her surprise, Gu Yan only gave a soft “Mm,” seemingly with no interest in chatting or passing on advice. His eyes didn’t even leave the computer screen.

Qi Xi knew that the meeting Gu Yan and Gu Xuehan were attending tomorrow had been called on short notice by a client, so the moment Gu Yan had come in today, he’d been buried in a pile of tasks, with a stack of documents to write. This man, normally so composed and unhurried, now had his brow faintly furrowed.

He was probably swamped and stressed out of his mind right now, with no time to spare for anything else because of tomorrow’s meeting—especially not something as trivial and unimportant as Qi Xi’s situation.

She understood all this logically, but perhaps because her expectations had been too high, she still felt an inexplicable pang of loss.

Maybe Gu Yan did have some fondness for her, but it really was just a little fondness, nothing more.

What made Qi Xi feel even more dejected was that Gu Yan had shown that female neighbor from the elevator some consideration just a few days ago…

And yet when it came to her, all she got was one “Mm.”

It sounded so dismissive.

And as if determined to rub it in further, not long after, a colleague from admin came to tell Gu Yan someone was outside looking for him.

Gu Yan exchanged a few words with the front desk colleague over the intercom, and once he confirmed who was waiting for him at the door, the man practically dropped what he was doing on the spot and walked straight toward the entrance.

So who was it? Someone important enough to make Gu Yan abandon all that pressing work? An important client?

Qi Xi wrestled with herself for a moment before finally deciding to go refill her water at the cooler. She took a slight detour past the entrance of the firm, and that was when she saw Gu Yan’s visitor.

It was the female neighbor.

Today she was wearing a stylish red wool dress, the color setting off her fair skin beautifully. Standing beside her, Gu Yan looked every bit like one half of a picture-perfect, easy-on-the-eyes couple.

Qi Xi hadn’t eaten anything strange, and yet her stomach churned as though she had, and she tried hard to talk herself down and process the feeling.

Maybe it was work-related…

The female neighbor could have some legal matter to consult Gu Yan about too.

But even Qi Xi knew that explanation didn’t hold up, because just then, the neighbor took out her phone and started playing something. Gu Yan pressed his lips together, then leaned in, and the two of them focused together on the phone screen, as though watching a video or listening to some audio—nothing about it looked like discussing work. Qi Xi couldn’t think of any legal consultation that wouldn’t be handled formally in a conference room inside the firm, and she couldn’t think of any legal matter that required standing that close together to look at a phone.

Qi Xi’s chest burned with a mix of quiet resentment and sour jealousy—what even was this. It was so unfair, she thought. Just now, when she’d asked about what to watch out for on duty tomorrow at the Legal Aid Center, Gu Yan had been so cold he wouldn’t even spare a few simple sentences for her—yet the moment that female neighbor showed up, he’d trotted right out during work hours to watch videos with her!

Watching the two heads bent so close together, Qi Xi suddenly felt a wave of discomfort. She didn’t want to look anymore and hurried back to her seat.

**

That evening, Qi Xi had dinner plans with Zhao Yiran.

Zhao Yiran, for once not working late, looked thrilled. “Oh right, Qi Xi, I’ve pretty much found the apartment. Next time I’ll take you to see it in person—if there’s no issue, we’ll sign the lease, and if things move fast we could move in as soon as next week.”

This should have been great news, but Qi Xi couldn’t muster any enthusiasm. She let out a listless “Mm” and made idle small talk with Zhao Yiran for a while. She’d meant to keep it to herself, but in the end she couldn’t hold back and complained to Zhao Yiran about Gu Yan’s blatant double standard between her and the neighbor.

Gu Yan didn’t have time to even tell her a few things about the legal aid shift, but he had time to run to the door and watch videos with the female neighbor.

But when Zhao Yiran heard all this, instead of sympathizing, she looked at Qi Xi with disdain. “You’re a top student, and pretty sharp when it comes to cases, but honestly, when it comes to emotional intelligence—the moment it involves the people and things closest to you, you’re a little dense.”

Qi Xi naturally wasn’t having it. “Fine, then explain to me why Gu Yan treats me the way he does!”

“Didn’t you tell me before that things between you two are actually pretty good now? That right there proves he genuinely thinks of you as a friend—so of course there’s a difference between how he treats people close to him and people he doesn’t know well! Think about it—in front of your boss, you’re always on edge, desperate to perform your best. But at home, you naturally relax more.”

Zhao Yiran laid it out with confidence. “Gu Yan thinks of you as a friend now. You said it yourself, he’s swamped with work—so when he’s that busy and can’t spare time for you, doesn’t respond to you in a special way, it’s probably because deep down he figures you two are close enough friends that you won’t mind. But with that neighbor, he still has to maintain his gentlemanly image at all times. And besides—being that attentive to someone, even walking her home—doesn’t that seem suspicious to you?”

Qi Xi pressed her lips together slightly, resisting the direction Zhao Yiran was steering her thoughts toward.

Zhao Yiran, though, looked as though she’d struck gold. “You think Gu Yan might actually like her? People are usually different around someone they like—they even try to make themselves look better in front of that person, trying to show their best side, especially before they’re officially together!”

Zhao Yiran flipped her hair. “Either way, I really can’t picture Gu Yan being that proactive about anyone else.” Then she fixed her eyes on Qi Xi, practically glowing. “So what’s the neighbor like—is she pretty? I’m so curious what kind of girl Gu Yan would go for! Do you know how many people used to chase after him? If he’s finally taken, is the whole world about to gain a fresh batch of heartbroken women…”

Fortunately, Zhao Yiran had no shortage of topics and quickly moved on, gossiping about the drama in her court’s criminal division—but Qi Xi couldn’t stop dwelling on it.

That female neighbor had gone to the same school as Qi Xi and Gu Yan, and Gu Yan really had mentioned before that his cherished unrequited love, though she’d turned him down, still kept popping up in front of him from time to time. If she was his neighbor, then everything made sense—even after graduation, living in the same building meant they’d keep running into each other now and then, so maybe it really was…

Qi Xi felt all those bubbly, fizzing emotions inside her pop, one by one, the instant they hit the open air, just like bubbles rising out of a sealed can.

She began to feel embarrassed and ashamed of herself. Was Gu Yan really that special toward her?

Was she once again reading too much into things, imagining feelings that weren’t there?

From the very start, when she’d received that love letter and immediately assumed Gu Yan was the one who wrote it, mistaking herself for the one he liked; to now, after starting work, once again suspecting through their everyday interactions that Gu Yan liked her…

Looking back on it now, it all seemed like nothing more than Qi Xi’s own wishful thinking.

One of the three great delusions of life is reading too much into someone else’s attitude, mistaking it for affection, even getting flustered and self-conscious over it, only to realize in the end that all that fluster had been for nothing.

Gu Yan was a genuinely good person—that was why he’d set aside their past and accepted Qi Xi despite her mistakes; because he never resented anyone’s talent, he never held back at work and was always willing to help; because his character was upright and kind, he’d stepped up without hesitation when Qi Xi was in danger…

Maybe none of it had been special treatment. Maybe it was simply because Gu Yan was a good person, full stop.

As for the racing heart—even she herself, when forced into physical contact with a man for some reason or another, might feel a simple kind of nervousness that made her own pulse quicken.

It was just like the suspension bridge effect: “When a person crosses a rickety bridge with their heart in their throat, their pulse naturally quickens. If, at that moment, they happen to encounter someone else, they might mistake the racing heartbeat caused by the situation for attraction to that person, misreading fear as sudden romantic feeling.”

Could that be what was happening with Gu Yan?

Qi Xi shook her head hard, deciding she must have too much free time lately, since her thoughts had grown this reckless, with so much room to dwell on nonsense like this. To keep it from happening again, she resolved to keep herself busier—starting with researching tomorrow’s upcoming legal aid work.

**

Even though tomorrow would be her very first shift at the Legal Aid Center, Qi Xi couldn’t muster any excitement. By the time she got back to Gu Xuehan’s place, her mood was still a little low.

Though there hadn’t originally been any travel planned, Gu Yan mentioned that Gu Xuehan had ended up going on a last-minute business trip that evening, so once again, Qi Xi would be staying alone at Gu Xuehan’s apartment for the night.

Gu Yan had apparently stayed late at the firm today, working on documents—by the time Qi Xi turned off her light to sleep, the light in the room next door still hadn’t come on.

Somehow, Qi Xi found herself unable to sleep, tossing and turning for what felt like ages until she’d worked up an appetite. With no trace of sleepiness left, she finally got up to make herself a late-night snack.

Gu Yan came home just as Qi Xi finished cooking a bowl of poached-egg noodles.

The moment Qi Xi heard movement across the hall, she rushed to the door. She’d made more noodles than she’d meant to—if Gu Yan was hungry, she could invite him to join her for a late-night bite.

But having recently gone through that terrifying incident with the thugs, Qi Xi decided to play it safe and not open the door right away—she pressed her eye to the peephole first to check.

It was indeed Gu Yan.

But there was a girl walking behind him—the very same female neighbor who’d greeted him in the elevator before, and who had come to the firm that afternoon looking for him.

Good thing she hadn’t opened the door—how awkward that would have been.

The hand Qi Xi had rested on the doorknob slowly loosened. She knew she shouldn’t watch, but she couldn’t help herself.

She watched Gu Yan leave the girl waiting at the door while he went inside to set down his files, then came back out and murmured something to the girl before walking off together with her.

Even though she’d suspected as much before, there had never been any solid proof—now, seeing it with her own eyes, Qi Xi felt a wave of dizziness. It was so late—where was Gu Yan going with her?

The answer she didn’t want to admit to herself was practically staring her in the face.

Qi Xi shuffled slowly back into the kitchen, suddenly finding that the noodles she’d just made no longer smelled appetizing. She wasn’t hungry at all anymore.

She wandered into the living room and, without quite meaning to, found herself looking out the window.

Gu Xuehan’s apartment had a great view—she could see the road leading to the entrance of the complex, and further off, glimpses of the street beyond. The area was in a commercial district, close to a number of CBD business zones and upscale hotels, with the added advantage of being quiet despite the bustling location.

Outside, the night was still, streetlights casting a dim yellow glow, the road already nearly empty of pedestrians—which was exactly why, when Gu Yan appeared with the neighbor girl, they stood out impossible to miss.

Qi Xi hadn’t expected to be able to see them from the window as they left the building, and it hurt more than she’d expected—but she stubbornly stayed at the window, watching them go—

Gu Yan seemed to be in a hurry, his stride long, and the neighbor girl behind him had to half-jog to keep up. He didn’t look back once. The two of them walked out through the complex gate, one in front of the other, growing smaller and smaller, farther and farther from Qi Xi.

Then Qi Xi watched the shrinking figure of Gu Yan walk straight down the street outside the complex toward a five-star hotel not far away.

Gu Yan went inside, the neighbor girl with him.

This late at night, the two of them heading into a hotel together—what would happen next was more or less obvious.

Qi Xi suddenly didn’t want to keep staring at the hotel entrance anymore. Because she found herself feeling a little ridiculous.

Had she really been hoping for something?

She probably didn’t even have the right to hope for anything.

Like any story that fizzles out with a whimper, by the time Qi Xi finally realized she had a tiny bit of feelings for Gu Yan, the story had already reached its ending. It was already over.

Gu Yan had never been special toward her. He didn’t like her.

He had a girl he liked—and now, piecing together all the little clues, that female neighbor was clearly the unrequited love he’d carried a torch for all this time. They’d gone to the same school, which explained why she’d show up at the library, and why Gu Yan had gone to the library for her sake too; and because she was his neighbor, even after graduation she could keep drifting in and out of his life, keeping him hooked every time he tried to let go.

Though Gu Yan had said her temper was bad, which didn’t match Qi Xi’s first impression of her at all from that day in the elevator.

Qi Xi thought sullenly—maybe that was exactly the skill of a manipulative woman! Gentle and soft on the surface, but secretly good at controlling people’s hearts? Maybe for men, a woman who treated them well counted for less than one who tormented and pushed them around, leaving a deeper mark?

Of course, from Gu Yan’s perspective, after overcoming so many obstacles, he’d finally gotten together with the girl he liked, moving fast enough to already be checking into a hotel. However she looked at it, Qi Xi ought to be happy for him.

But Qi Xi felt like the wicked stepmother from Snow White. She’d meant to force a smile at the mirror, but her performative grin collapsed halfway through.

To hell with being happy for Gu Yan.

She wasn’t the least bit happy. Not even a little.