Chapter 4

Dinner was set at Biyuntian, a renowned Chinese restaurant in Beijing known for its elegant, tranquil atmosphere and constant lack of empty seats.

Gu Qing had booked a private room well in advance. She pulled Zhong Yin to sit beside her and said considerately, "I specifically chose a restaurant that specializes in Shanghai-style cuisine. Yin, feel free to order whatever you like; there is no need to stand on ceremony with your Auntie."

There were only four people in the room. With her mother and Auntie Gu on either side, it was only natural that he sat across from her. Zhong Yin flipped through the menu, her mind elsewhere.

As they were ordering, Gu Qing and Bai Fan began chatting back and forth.

"The two children haven't met yet, have they?" Gu Qing asked.

Bai Fan turned to her daughter. "Have you seen Yi Chen at school?"

Zhong Yin replied without a second thought, "No, I haven't. We don't know each other."

Yi Chen looked up, an absurd expression on his face.

"It doesn't matter if you don't know each other yet; you do now, don't you?" Gu Qing looked at Zhong Yin kindly and introduced him. "This is my son, Yi Chen—'Chen' for enthusiasm. He’s also at S University, a sophomore this year."

Bai Fan draped an arm around Zhong Yin's shoulder and introduced her daughter. "Xiao Chen, this is my daughter, Zhong Yin. She just started at S University this year. Please, take good care of her in the future."

Yi Chen slowly repeated, "Zhong... Yin?"

His gaze fixed on her face, studying her. Zhong Yin’s heart skipped a beat. Had he heard her name before?

"Oh?" Bai Fan asked with interest, "Have you heard of Yin before, Xiao Chen?"

Finally connecting the person to the name, Yi Chen looked away and uttered a few words: "I've heard the name."

Afraid he might say something unpleasant, Zhong Yin tried to interject several times, but Bai Fan didn't give her the chance, adding proudly, "My Yin is a host at the campus radio station. That might be why so many people know her."

Yi Chen brushed it off with, "I see."

Zhong Yin breathed a sigh of relief.

As the waiter served the dishes, the two women shifted to another topic.

"Your mother and I were childhood friends who grew up in the same compound; we were incredibly close," Gu Qing said, looking straight at Zhong Yin. Unable to hide her affection, she took her hand. "But then my whole family moved to Beijing. After all these twists and turns, it’s been over thirty years."

"I'm just glad we're back in touch now," Bai Fan said, sighing as she patted her chest. "Sister Qing, you have no idea—I wanted her to stay in Shanghai for college, but she wouldn't listen. She insisted on coming all the way up north, where she has no family or friends. I haven't been able to sleep well since; I’ve been tossing and turning."

Zhong Yin pressed a hand to her forehead. "Mom, it’s not that dramatic..."

"I understand," Gu Qing nodded repeatedly. "Yin is so beautiful, and coming all this way alone for school—I wouldn't be at ease either. But now she has me here, right? Yin, just treat Auntie's place like your own home."

"And besides me, there's also Chen. Both children are at the same school. If Yin needs anything, she can just go directly to Chen." In her peripheral vision, Gu Qing kept signaling to Yi Chen, but the little brat acted as if he were blind to her cues today.

She had to make her point with words: "Right, Chen?"

Zhong Yin braced herself. "Auntie, I'll be fine. There's no need to trouble him..."

This was like pouring oil on fire. "—Yi Chen!" Gu Qing raised her voice, shooting him a furious glare in a blind spot.

Yi Chen’s temple throbbed. "I heard you."

"That's more like it," Gu Qing said, sipping her tea with satisfaction. She turned to Zhong Yin, changing her expression in a second. "You two should add each other on WeChat. Chat whenever you have free time, go out together on weekends, and feel free to come over to Auntie's house anytime—I'll bake you a cake."

"That's right, add each other on WeChat; it'll be easier to stay in touch," Bai Fan added, resting her chin on her hand with a smile. She knew both families inside and out, and she was satisfied with Yi Chen in every respect—it was certainly better than her daughter associating with some boy she knew nothing about.

The two women stared with burning anticipation, clearly forcing their hands. Zhong Yin looked at Yi Chen immediately, blinking innocently; this had nothing to do with her. The latter took a large gulp of tea, his face expressionless.

Under the table, Gu Qing kicked her son. "Xiao Chen, hurry up and add Yin."

Seeing Yi Chen’s expression, Zhong Yin lowered her head, suppressing a laugh. If the situation allowed, she would even have liked to smugly sing "Destiny" in his ear.

She happily pulled up her QR code and raised an eyebrow at him. "You scan me."

Yi Chen picked up his phone without a word.

With a "ding," the scan was successful. A red dot appeared on Zhong Yin’s contact list. Seeing that Zhong Yin had accepted the request, Gu Qing finally turned her gaze away, not forgetting to emphasize, "You must stay in touch."

Zhong Yin glanced at her friend list. Yi Chen’s WeChat name was "001," and his profile picture was an orange cat napping on a bench. Zhong Yin recognized the background—it was the sycamore forest behind Yanming Lake at school.

During a lull in the women's conversation, Zhong Yin took out her phone again. She couldn't help but open the WeChat interface and click into Yi Chen's profile for a quick patrol.

So what if he didn't want to? After all the twists and turns, hadn't they added each other anyway? She wanted to see if his WeChat was lined with gold.

Zhong Yin clicked into Yi Chen’s "Moments" and scrolled through, searching for any trace of the other person. Yi Chen’s posts were few and far between, and set to be visible for only six months. There was only one post from a few months ago, captioned: [Victory.]

The first few photos were code and models that Zhong Yin didn't understand, but the center photo was a group shot of several people holding a trophy.

Zhong Yin zoomed in on the picture. It showed a group of young men wearing medals. In the center, the trophy was held up on both sides by Yi Chen and Lin Yinian.

One was unruly, the other refined.

Youthful spirit, in their prime.

Zhong Yin looked at it for a long time before tapping her fingertip to save the image.

"Nannan?"

She suddenly snapped back to reality, instinctively turning off her screen and tucking away her phone. "Yes?"

"Are you full?"

"I am."

"Your Auntie Gu and I still have a lot to talk about. Why don't you and Chen head back first?"

Zhong Yin thought about it and nodded—the person across from her had been acting like he’d been kidnapped all night.

"Xiao Chen, I’ll have the driver take you and Yin back to school. You must see her to her dormitory building, you hear me?"

Hearing he could leave, Yi Chen grunted twice and stood up, glancing at Zhong Yin. She understood, gave a polite farewell, and followed him out of the room one after the other.

They reached the street. The driver hadn't arrived yet, and the two stood a short distance apart in an incredibly awkward silence. Zhong Yin wasn't used to the cold shoulder; just as she was about to speak, she felt she was asking for a snub and closed her mouth.

Just then, Yi Chen turned his head. Their eyes met, and she swallowed the words she had been about to say. "What a coincidence."

He rolled his neck and retorted nonchalantly, "Is it?"

The air froze for a moment.

Zhong Yin changed the subject. "Your computer should be fine, right?"

Yi Chen said lazily, "If I say it's broken, will you pay for it?"

Zhong Yin wondered, "Wasn't it fine last time?"

"If you knew, why ask?"

"..."

Zhong Yin held back, but couldn't help it. "Do you always talk like that?"

"Although there were some misunderstandings, since we’ve met, there’s no need to be at daggers drawn, is there?"

Her voice was light, scattering in the wind like willow catkins drifting into one's nose in spring. It was a strange feeling. Yi Chen’s throat moved, and he wanted her to stop making noise.

Just then, the driver pulled up. He walked straight to the passenger seat. "The car is here. Get in."

Stubborn! Mule!

Zhong Yin stared at his back, took two steps forward, and slammed the car door shut.

No one spoke during the entire ride. Zhong Yin was scrolling through her phone in the back seat when a ringtone suddenly broke the silence. Yi Chen answered.

On the other end, Cheng An chuckled. "Brother Chen, have you eaten?"

Yi Chen couldn't be bothered. "Speak."

"Brother Chen knows me," Cheng An said with a sheepish laugh. "Can you bring some late-night snacks back for the guys from the back gate?"

"Brother Chen?"

"Brother Chen-Daddy?!"

Only then did Yi Chen deign to speak. "Call me that twice more, and I'll consider it."

"Chen-Daddy, Chen-Daddy."

"How many?"

"Just one, A-Xu has already eaten."

Yi Chen asked, "What about Lin Yinian?"

In the back seat, Zhong Yin instinctively looked up, her eyelashes fluttering.

Cheng An said, "Brother Nian isn't back yet... oh, he just walked in! Let me ask him. Oh, he hasn't eaten either! Chen-Daddy, bring one more."

"What do you want?"

"I want fried rice, from Zhao's~" Cheng An said. "Brother Nian says he wants tomato and egg noodles. You know him—no green onions, no cilantro, no spice."

"Troublesome," Yi Chen scoffed. "Wait for it, hanging up."

The phone emitted a "Game Over" sound, and Zhong Yin finally came to her senses, lowering her head to turn off her screen.

Yi Chen, in the front seat, suddenly said, "I need to buy something at the school's back gate."

"Hmm?" A few seconds later, he made another sound.

Zhong Yin realized, "Are you talking to me?"

Yi Chen said, "I'm talking to the air."

Zhong Yin ignored his sarcasm. "Are you getting food for your roommates?"

"Yeah."

Zhong Yin made small talk. "So they haven't eaten yet."

Yi Chen glanced into the rearview mirror. "What do you want to ask?"

"Nothing, just surprised you're eating so late."

He didn't take the bait and said again, "So, I need to buy something at the back gate."

Zhong Yin followed his lead. "Then let's go together."

Another silence. In this dead air, Zhong Yin finally realized what he meant. He’d laid the groundwork for so long, all for her to be "considerate" and say "I'll go back by myself," right?

Zhong Yin’s near-twenty-year streak of defiance flared up. She smiled. "I said together, did you hear me?"

Yi Chen was speechless for a long time. "...Suit yourself."

The back gate of S University was near the dorms. At this hour, the late-night snack street was bustling with young, vibrant faces. The driver dropped them off and added a reminder, "Young Master, the Madam told me to tell you that you must see Miss Zhong back to her dormitory building."

Yi Chen: "...I. KNOW."

Zhong Yin suppressed a laugh as she got out of the car, standing beside Yi Chen with her arms crossed. "Shall we go?"

"..."

They walked side by side, with enough space between them to fit another person. This was Zhong Yin's first time on this famous late-night snack street, so she couldn't help but look around. The street wasn't very wide, and it was packed with people and vehicles.

"Watch the road," a male voice came from above. Zhong Yin turned her head.

At some point, Yi Chen had moved to the outer side, expressionlessly blocking her from a bicycle speeding by.

Zhong Yin felt a little flattered. "Oh."

They arrived in front of a shop called "Zhao's." Business was booming; the chef was stir-frying at the stove, smoke filled the air, and the crowd even spilled out to the entrance.

Zhong Yin hesitated. Yi Chen seemed to have eyes in the back of his head. "If you don't want to go in, don't."

Zhong Yin was thinking just that. She tentatively said, "Then you buy the fried rice, and I'll go buy something else."

Yi Chen tilted his chin toward the opposite side. "Go to that place and buy a bowl of tomato and egg noodles to go. I'll transfer the money to you."

Zhong Yin looked over. Compared to this place, the noodle shop opposite was relatively empty, much brighter and cleaner.

She nodded. "No green onions, cilantro, or spice, right?"

Yi Chen instinctively started to say "yeah," then realized, "Were you listening to my phone call?"

Zhong Yin guiltily raised her voice. "Your phone volume was so loud, it would be hard not to hear."

"Then you could have covered your ears." Yi Chen sneered and walked into the restaurant.

Zhong Yin was in a good mood and didn't bother arguing with him. She turned and walked with a spring in her step to the noodle shop, ordering the tomato and egg noodles and strictly emphasizing all the dietary restrictions.

While waiting, she quietly opened the photo she had just saved, resting her chin on her hand and looking at it again and again. A genuine sense of happiness welled up in her heart—it felt like she was suddenly much closer to Lin Yinian.

Just then, a WeChat message popped up.

Yi Chen: [?]

Zhong Yin found it baffling and sent a question mark back.

Yi Chen: [How much for the noodles?]

Zhong Yin: [Don't worry about it, consider it my treat for your roommate.]

The screen showed "typing..." for a long time before a message appeared.

Yi Chen: [No.]

Zhong Yin thought he was just being polite and was about to insist when a new message popped up.

He sent a languid line: [I don't play that game.]

It was as if he were saying, "Give it a rest."