After meeting at the hotpot restaurant, Zhou Heng had shared Cheng Wanyue’s WeChat contact with Xu Qian. The two added each other as friends and went shopping together once.

Xu Qian liked Cheng Wanyue’s hair color. When she went to the salon to dye her hair, she had asked Cheng Wanyue if the color recommended by the hairstylist would suit her.

Women can become familiar with each other easily. Whether they have common interests is secondary. If they both dislike the same thing, they can hit it off in minutes, even feeling like they should have met sooner.

Xu Qian disliked the female celebrity Qin Hua, including all the TV dramas, movies, and advertisements she appeared in. Coincidentally, Cheng Wanyue felt the same way, so they quickly became close.

When Cheng Wanyue said she would resign, she did just that. Although Meng Qi knew she couldn’t keep her, she showed enough sincerity. Cheng Wanyue felt a bit embarrassed, since she hadn’t given advance notice and hadn’t worked there long.

Meng Qi invited her out before Xu Qian did, with only about ten minutes’ difference between the invitations.

Initially, she didn’t want to go. Doctors don’t have weekends, and Qing Hang’s free time was squeezed out of his schedule. He might come to find her on any given evening, but Meng Qi said they would go early and return before dark.

If she just sat at home waiting eagerly, it would seem like she was too desperate.

She checked the weather forecast. Tomorrow’s temperature wouldn’t be too high, so she agreed.

Cheng Yanqing had a friend deliver her car to Beijing. It had just arrived yesterday. His friend hadn’t left yet, but since Cheng Wanyue needed to go to the suburbs, he gave her the car keys. It was more convenient to drive herself.

Except for studying, Cheng Wanyue was good at everything. She drove even better than her father’s chauffeur.

That night, she had experienced Chi Yue’s motorcycle and had thought about buying one to play with, but soon forgot about it.

Meng Qi had invited other friends, too. Those with cars went by themselves, while those without happened to fill up one car. Every one of them had difficulty getting up early. Once in the car, they either fell asleep immediately or kept yawning.

Xu Qian leaned on Zhou Heng’s shoulder and slept the entire way. The music didn’t affect her nap at all.

Both Qing Hang and Zhou Heng were used to getting up early. Meng Qi was driving, Zhou Heng was either playing games or wiping Xu Qian’s drool, and Qing Hang would occasionally look down at his phone, though he was just staring at the screen.

When getting out of the car, a male friend standing next to Qing Hang caught a glimpse of his phone, though he couldn’t see it.

“Is that beautiful woman in the photo your girlfriend?”

Zhou Heng casually asked, “What photo?”

The man said, “His phone wallpaper.”

“He’s always used the system default wallpaper,” Zhou Heng raised his hand to rub his shoulder. He turned his head toward Qing Hang, about to ask who the beautiful woman was, when he noticed Cheng Wanyue in the distance and lost interest in the question.

He was looking at Cheng Wanyue, and so was Qing Hang.

Cheng Wanyue had arrived earliest. She had parked her car under a tree and was listening to music with her eyes closed, leaning back in her seat with headphones on. Her beautiful neck was slightly tilted upward. The morning light and tree shadows fell on her, giving her a hazy, luminous aura.

The suburban area had good greenery, but also many insects.

She was touching her neck. The skin below her ear had a red spot, probably from a mosquito bite.

“Wanyue,” Xu Qian walked toward her, “have you been waiting long?”

“I just arrived,” Cheng Wanyue pushed open the car door and got out. As soon as she looked up, her eyes met Qing Hang’s.

Zhou Heng was quite reliable in this regard. “I’ll go rent the barbecue grill. You all take a look around first.”

The surroundings offered an open view. Although it would be crowded in the evening, at this time, there were hardly any people. Cheng Wanyue and Meng Qi shared a parasol, with Qing Hang walking on the outermost side.

Xu Qian looked back and forth between them. Though neither of them spoke to each other or walked together, creating an illusion of unfamiliarity, their acting was quite poor. She had just gone to help move some chairs, and in that short time, Qing Hang had already handed a bottle of milk to Cheng Wanyue.

The men were responsible for getting the charcoal ready, while Meng Qi went to select ingredients. Cheng Wanyue wanted to wash her hands, so she followed a shaded path forward to find the restroom.

Qing Hang happened to be coming out of the store. He had bought a bottle of mosquito repellent and anti-itch lotion.

When Cheng Wanyue saw him, she took off her ring and casually tossed it into the flower bed, then bent down and crouched by the roadside.

Qing Hang ran over in a few steps. “What are you looking for?”

She didn’t answer, just waved her left hand.

Qing Hang remembered that she had been wearing two rose gold rings today, thin ones on her middle and ring fingers. Now only one remained.

“I’ll look for it. You wait for me over there,” Qing Hang pulled her up, then walked into the bushes himself.

There was a swing nearby. Cheng Wanyue sat on it, and with just a slight push of her toes against the ground, she began to swing.

The ring sparkled in the sunlight, making it not difficult to find.

Qing Hang wiped it clean with his clothes before walking over to Cheng Wanyue. He held her hand and put the ring back on her finger, then sprayed some mosquito repellent on her, especially on her arms and calves.

Though not far away, Cheng Wanyue could still hear Xu Qian’s laughter. “They seem to be having fun. Why aren’t you joining them?”

Qing Hang said, “I didn’t come for the barbecue.”

Cheng Wanyue had only drunk a bottle of milk and was already getting a bit hungry. “But I want to eat.”

“Then I’ll go grill some,” Qing Hang said, walking a few steps away before turning back. He grabbed the swing’s rope to stop it. “Come with me.”

“I’m terrible at grilling. It would be a waste of food.”

“You don’t need to do anything. Just sit beside me.”

“…Alright,” Cheng Wanyue reluctantly stood up.

It had only been a few days, but to Qing Hang, it felt like a long time. When busy, he was fine, but once he relaxed, he kept thinking about these things. “Yan Ci has reached Shanghai.”

Cheng Wanyue knew, of course. The day Yan Ci left, it was Cheng Yanqing who took him to the airport.

“He helped you trick me. I’m not talking to him.”

“Because I was jealous of him, and he didn’t want us to keep arguing.” The love letter Qing Hang had received was still tucked inside his exercise book.

Before leaving Baicheng, he had sold all his books and test papers as waste paper, including the love letter hidden inside.

“Do you think I want to argue with you?” It’s not like she had nothing better to do. “Who feels happy after an argument? I certainly don’t.”

Qing Hang explained in a low voice, “I’ve never mentioned what’s between us to others.”

“Then how does your senior schoolmate know my name?”

“She’s seen my fountain pen.”

“What fountain pen?”

“A prize I received from a competition. The teacher said I could have it engraved.”

Only at this moment did the water-soaked cotton ball in Cheng Wanyue’s heart finally disappear. Whether those memories were good or bad, they belonged only to the two of them.

“I forgive you.” Having crossed this hurdle, her mood brightened.

Just a second ago, she had been acting aloof, but now she linked her arm with his. “I’ve taken a new job. From now on, I’ll have a lot of free time in the evenings.”

Qing Hang’s face also showed a smile. “What job?”

“Modeling. Mainly taking photos that might be published in some magazines.”

“Do you like it?”

“Yes, I did a lot of modeling in college,” She always had a strong desire to share with him. “A’Yu is sending the bridesmaid dress she prepared for me to Beijing next week. Would you like to see it?”

Qing Hang knew she would definitely be Zhou Yu’s bridesmaid. “I want to see you wearing it.”

“Then I’ll…” Cheng Wanyue’s voice trailed off.

Qing Hang followed her gaze. Li Yu was standing under a tree, with Zhou Heng setting up a parasol beside her.