Meng Dan never wandered around aimlessly. The changing room had its dog food and bed, and most of the time it wouldn’t even leave that space. So when it rushed out of the courtyard, Xiao Ke was beside herself with worry and hurriedly chased after it. Fortunately, it hadn’t run wild but merely jumped onto Jiang Mu. Even so, this was enough to make Xiao Ke extremely anxious.

She quickly went to pull Meng Dan away, repeatedly apologizing to Jiang Mu, explaining, “I’m so sorry, it’s usually not like this at all. Meng Dan is usually very timid and doesn’t even get close to us, let alone approach customers. I’m sorry about this.”

However, when Meng Dan rushed toward her, Jiang Mu’s heart surged with emotion. She couldn’t speak for a long while, her eyes fixed intently on Meng Dan as she asked, “Has it always been called Meng Dan? No other names?”

Xiao Ke told her, “Yes, we all call it Meng Dan. But I came here late, and just started this year, so I don’t know if it had other names before. You’d have to ask Gu Tao about that.”

Jiang Mu returned to the coffee shop, where Gu Tao stuck his head out and asked, “Everything okay?”

Xiao Ke patted her chest, “We should keep it tied up. If Meng Dan gets lost, the boss will kill me, right? Oh yeah, she was asking if Meng Dan had any other names?”

Gu Tao looked at Jiang Mu and said, “I only know that Meng Dan was named by Oon’s first shop manager. Because of its reserved personality and how it doesn’t interact with people, everyone started calling it Meng Dan.”

Jiang Mu walked to the counter and asked directly, “What’s your boss’s name?”

Gu Tao hesitated, thinking she wanted to file a complaint, and nervously asked, “Is there something I can help you with?”

Jiang Mu lowered her gaze to the elegant menu on the counter with its prominent moon logo, her emotions churning. She looked up and asked, “Could you give me your boss’s contact information? I’d like to consult with him about something.”

Gu Tao glanced at Xiao Ke. This wasn’t the first time this had happened. Previously, other girls had also made excuses to get their boss’s contact information. Giving it out had led to serious consequences, so Gu Tao diplomatically replied, “We can’t give out the boss’s personal contact information, but if you have any concerns, you can tell us first, and tomorrow the manager will respond to you.”

Jiang Mu knew that suddenly asking for the coffee shop owner’s contact information was a bit rash, but she had been buying coffee here for so many days without running into him, and she didn’t have time to keep waiting around. She had to think of something.

So she nodded understanding without showing any emotion, then ordered another Oon coffee to go. While Gu Tao and Xiao Ke were busy, she took out a fountain pen from her bag and placed it on the counter. Worried that other customers might take it, she pushed it a bit to the side. After receiving her coffee, she anxiously glanced at the pen before turning to leave.

She didn’t return to the coffee shop after that. She was taking a gamble, betting on whether someone would contact her. The coffee shop staff didn’t have her contact information, but her domestic phone number hadn’t changed in all these years. If someone contacted her about that pen, then all the pieces would fall into place.

But clearly, her clever plan had failed. A week passed with no word from the coffee shop. Worried that the pen might truly be lost, Jiang Mu hurried back to Oon after work on Friday. As soon as she entered, Gu Tao said to her, “Finally! Did you lose something?”

Jiang Mu smiled awkwardly, “Yes, a fountain pen. Did you find it?”

Xiao Ke chimed in from the side, “We did see it. We put it in the pen holder thinking you’d come back for it the next day.”

Jiang Mu replied, “Work has been busy lately, so I’m only coming to get it today.”

Gu Tao told her, “Well, I need to apologize – you’ve come for nothing. Our boss took your pen a few days ago. He’ll be in the shop this Sunday morning and said if you came looking for the pen, to ask you to come then. He’ll return it to you personally.”

Jiang Mu stood rooted to the spot. The lights felt warmer, and her heart was along with them. The coffee aroma penetrated every cell of her body, making it surge with excitement until her eyes grew moist.

Gu Tao and Xiao Ke exchanged confused looks. She quickly composed herself and said to them, “Thank you, please tell him I’ll see him Sunday.”

Jiang Mu didn’t know how she got through Saturday. She stood before her full-length mirror, scrutinizing herself from head to toe. She had never been so meticulous before meeting anyone of the opposite sex, worried about having even the slightest imperfection. She even planned to sleep early to avoid having dark circles under her eyes the next day.

But things rarely go as planned. She had just laid down when she received a phone call asking her to come to the institute tomorrow morning. Her team was going on a business trip to Pucheng, Shaanxi next week, so they needed to have a small meeting before the trip to discuss the content and arrangements.

Jiang Mu calculated the timing – she would go to the institute at 8:30, and since the coffee shop opened at 9:30, she should be able to make it there after the meeting. However, the morning meeting didn’t end until 10:30. Jiang Mu asked the researcher if she could leave early due to some personal matters. The researcher was understanding and told her to go ahead if she needed to, just to arrive early on Monday.

After leaving the institute, Jiang Mu immediately tried to get a taxi. After waiting ten minutes without success, she was nearly going crazy with anxiety. By the time she finally got in a car, it was already past eleven. She found Oon’s number on a delivery app and called. Gu Tao’s voice came through: “Hello, this is Oon.”

Jiang Mu anxiously said, “It’s me.”

Only then did she realize she had never told them her name, so she could only say, “I’m the one coming for the fountain pen? Something came up at work so I might be late. Is your boss still there?”

Gu Tao told her, “Just a moment.”

The line went quiet, and Jiang Mu waited anxiously. Soon, Gu Tao picked up the phone again and said with a smile, “The boss says not to worry, take your time on the road. He’s not going anywhere, he’ll wait for you here.”

Sitting in the taxi, Jiang Mu held her phone with trembling hands.

When the taxi stopped in front of Oon, Jiang Mu got out and suddenly found it hard to breathe from nervousness. Wearing black ankle boots and a beige trench coat, she had just stepped into the courtyard when a middle-aged man sitting in a wicker chair looked up at her with a smile, leaving her dumbfounded. She stopped and walked toward him, her expression already stiffening, and had just started to ask, “Are you…”

Before she could finish, Gu Tao was frantically waving at her from inside. Jiang Mu awkwardly said “Sorry” to the customer and turned to enter the coffee shop. Looking around, she didn’t see the person she wanted to meet. Her restless heart kept tightening. She walked to the counter and asked Gu Tao, “Where is he? Didn’t you say he’d wait for me?”

Her words came out with barely contained emotion. The hurt that had crossed time, crossed countries, and crossed feelings naturally flowed through her voice. While her tone hadn’t changed much, the emotions bursting from her eyes instantly affected Gu Tao, making him feel as if he had wronged this customer somehow, and he became inexplicably nervous.

When Jiang Mu’s voice rang out, the man behind the pillar had already raised his eyes. Gu Tao awkwardly jerked his chin toward that corner, and Jiang Mu immediately turned to look.

In that moment of turning, years flowed like water, and countless changes had passed like seasons.

He sat there, almost unchanged from the last time she had seen him many years ago. His handsome, defined features and deep, serene eyes remained the same. His dark jacket lay on the sofa backrest beside him, and he wore a dark patterned knit sweater. His frame seemed slightly thinner than before, and his temperament had changed noticeably – where once his gaze had been as distant as smoke, now it seemed even more profound.

Across the fifteen-meter distance, Jiang Mu’s eyes welled with tears as she looked at him, but her feet felt like lead. The short distance felt like it spanned mountains and seas, leaving her unsure how to approach him.

Jin Chao had an open book in front of him. He unhurriedly closed it, capped his pen, and tucked it into his notebook. After neatly arranging everything on the sofa beside him, he raised his eyes to look at her and gestured toward the seat opposite him.

It took Jiang Mu twenty steps to reach him, and by the time she sat down across from him, she had swallowed back the tears that had threatened to spill from her surging emotions.

Jin Chao silently observed her. She had changed greatly – when she had been speaking to Gu Tao with her back to him, he had barely recognized her.

Her once ear-length short hair had grown long, falling to her shoulders, soft and enchanting. The baby fat from her youth had finally faded with the years, making her more mature and radiant. Only the addition of glasses on her nose bridge made her look more composed.

When their eyes met, the naivety that had once been in her eyes was gone, replaced by a bright, flowing gaze full of grace – a look Jin Chao had never imagined.

He lowered his eyes and smiled faintly, “It is you.”

Jiang Mu’s gaze remained fixed on him: “Who else could it be?”

Jin Chao took out the silver fountain pen from his pocket and placed it on the table.

Jiang Mu’s gaze followed the pen as it lowered: “You guessed it was me from seeing this pen?”

Jin Chao slowly leaned back against the sofa, smiling, his gaze never leaving her face.

“There aren’t many people who would use an astronomical telescope, could affect lightning, and have this pen.”

Jiang Mu glanced at the book beside him and asked, “Did you go back to school?”

Jin Chao replied casually, “Just getting a degree.”

Gu Tao approached with coffee and cake, and both fell silent. The coffee was placed in front of Jiang Mu – she hadn’t ordered, but it was the Oon she usually drank.

After Gu Tao left, Jin Chao moved the cake toward her as well, his voice deep and steady: “They say you like this matcha flavor.”

Jiang Mu didn’t move, staring straight at the delicate little cake. After a few seconds, she pushed the cake aside: “I don’t like it.”

The atmosphere between them grew quiet following these three words.

Whether during her studies or later at work, Jiang Mu had always been even-tempered. But for some reason, whenever she encountered Jin Chao, those repressed emotions naturally flowed out – hurt, sadness, and unwillingness. However, it had been too long since they’d last met, and their lives no longer intersected. Not knowing each other’s current situations, that insurmountable sense of unfamiliarity stood between them upon meeting again. She could no longer act unreasonably with him as she had in childhood, and could only express her deep-seated emotions in this way.

Jin Chao raised his hand to signal Gu Tao to take the cake away, but Jiang Mu moved it back in front of herself and told him, “But I’m hungry.”

Gu Tao had started to walk over, but Jin Chao shook his head at him, and he stopped.

Jiang Mu took a small, dignified bite of the cake, then used the small spoon to play with the matcha powder on top, her voice somewhat muffled: “Why didn’t you contact me?”

The warm noon sun slanted through the floor-to-ceiling windows, and the silver fountain pen lay quietly between them. Jin Chao picked up his coffee and took a sip as if considering his words. Only after setting down the coffee cup did he speak again: “The distance was too great, it would have been difficult to maintain. If either of us met someone suitable nearby, it would have been awkward for both parties. Better to live more freely.”

Jiang Mu stuck the small spoon into the cake and looked up to ask, “So have you been living freely?”

Jin Chao’s lips held a half-smile, but the light in his eyes was as deep as the ocean, unfathomable.

Suddenly remembering something, Jiang Mu put down her small spoon and looked at him solemnly: “Are you… married?”

The light in Jin Chao’s eyes flickered for a moment, but his expression remained the same – a faint smile, neither confirming nor denying.

She waited for his explanation. Even if he had made up some excuse, she would have forgiven his sudden disappearance. But there was nothing, not even a perfunctory lie.

Jiang Mu suddenly found the matcha taste on her tongue unbearably bitter. She picked up her coffee and took a large sip, averting her gaze while carefully hiding the turmoil in her heart.

Then she heard Jin Chao ask, “What about you? Do you have a boyfriend?”

Jiang Mu turned her head to look at the distant mountains, her throat tight: “Yes, we’re getting married at the end of the year. I came to work in Nanjing for him.”

Jin Chao’s eyelids gradually lowered, and he said two words: “That’s good.”

Those two words nearly caused Jiang Mu’s emotions to completely collapse. After all this time of yearning and missing him, all she got upon meeting again was his “that’s good.”

Jiang Mu forcefully suppressed her surging emotions, turned her head with fire in her eyes, and asked, “If I invite you to my wedding, will you come?”

Jin Chao unconsciously moved the black coffee cup in front of him, his gaze dark: “Not sure if I’ll be in Nanjing then.”

Jiang Mu’s nose reddened: “I’ll tell you the date in advance.”

Jin Chao nodded almost imperceptibly: “I’ll try my best.”

Then he glanced at his watch and said to Jiang Mu, “I have to go somewhere else this afternoon, so I won’t ask you to stay for lunch.”

Jiang Mu couldn’t sit there any longer. She picked up the fountain pen, shouldered her bag, and stood up.

As she turned, all the heartache welled up in her eyes. She hurriedly pushed open the wooden door and strode out, but just as she left the courtyard, that feeling of unwillingness held her feet back. She rubbed her eyes and walked back into the courtyard, looking at him through the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Jin Chao still sat in the same position, hadn’t even changed his posture, staring in the direction she had left. The moment her figure disappeared, the light in his eyes vanished too. But he hadn’t expected that after just fifteen seconds, Jiang Mu would reappear in his view, standing in the courtyard, giving him a cold stare.

Jin Chao slowly stood up. The moment he rose from the sofa, his figure seemed much taller. He didn’t walk particularly fast, but step by step he came to stand before her, moving in a way that gave Jiang Mu no hint of what he was thinking.

Her eyes were still slightly red, but her expression was fierce as she said to him: “Give me your phone number. How can I invite you to my wedding without any contact information?”

Jin Chao stood motionless. Jiang Mu stepped closer to him, tilting her head up: “You’re not trying to avoid giving a wedding gift, are you?”

Jin Chao tugged at the corner of his mouth helplessly and took out his phone.

After noting down his number, Jiang Mu turned to leave. At the courtyard gate, she deliberately turned back to tell him: “I’m going on a business trip tomorrow. When I get back, we need to have a proper talk about that lightning incident.”

Her aggressive manner suggested she was ready to fight for custody.

Back home, Jiang Mu packed her luggage for tomorrow’s trip and finished her work preparations. After showering and lying in bed, she took out her phone and searched for Jin Chao’s number on WeChat. She found his account – even his WeChat name hadn’t changed, still simply “Chao.” The scene felt strangely familiar.

However, Jin Chao’s profile picture was now a sun. The sunlight wasn’t intense, making it hard to tell if it was a rising sun or one about to set behind western mountains. It seemed open to interpretation, depending entirely on one’s state of mind.

Coincidentally, when she left Tonggang that year, she changed her WeChat name from “Heavy Sleeper” to “Mu,” and her profile picture from a cartoon rabbit-eared moon to a full moon, which she has kept unchanged until today.

She sent the friend request, and Jin Chao accepted it after a few minutes. She stared at his profile picture for a while, then looked at her own, suddenly sitting up in bed.

When she saw him during the day, various emotions had intertwined – anger at his years of silence, anger at his secretly settling in Nanjing, anger at his lack of explanation or apology. In the heat of the moment, she had said all sorts of confused things.

But as night fell and everything grew quiet, Jiang Mu’s emotions gradually calmed.

Oon, Mu, Moon.

What more explanation did she need? What else needed to be explained?

When she first started university, Jin Chao had asked her why she chose that major. Jiang Mu told him that she had never had any grand ambitions or ideals from childhood, her only ideal was him. Since he no longer walked this path, she had to walk it for him.

She even imagined how many nights he had used that astronomical telescope to gaze at the same starry sky as her.

That grand planetary chart carried their shared dreams!

The coffee shop, the mountain foot, Nanjing city…

Weren’t they all telling her those feelings that couldn’t be expressed in words? Yet during the day, she had been so caught up in the excitement and resentment of meeting Jin Chao that she had overlooked it all.

Looking again at their profile pictures and WeChat names, Jiang Mu suddenly smiled as she sat on her bed. As she smiled, her eyes grew warm. She picked up her phone again and sent Jin Chao a spinning sun emoji.

After a moment, Jin Chao replied: “Get some sleep.”