Why did these things always happen at the same time?
He cleared his throat and glanced at Lin Ran. “Ran, the person downstairs is a girl. She’s a sophomore at Chucheng University.”
To He Mo’s surprise, Lin Ran’s expression didn’t change at all. He kept flipping his lighter in his hand without missing a beat.
This made He Mo even more anxious. “Ran…”
Lin Ran suddenly smirked sarcastically. “Mo, didn’t you want to get into Chucheng University too?”
He Mo: “…”
Is that the main point here?
Lin Ran stood up and walked over to the railing, casually glancing down.
The girl in the floral dress hadn’t noticed his gaze. She stood quietly at the door, her head slightly bowed, her long black hair falling neatly over her shoulders, her side profile delicate and graceful.
Lin Ran looked for only a moment before shifting his eyes away.
So this is the girl Lin Youcheng dared to claim resembled his mother? Lin Ran decided he’d ask Lin Huang to schedule an eye exam for Lin Youcheng at the hospital tomorrow. While he was at it, he might as well get his father’s eyes thoroughly washed.
—
Cheng Jiayue had been standing in the lobby for fifteen minutes, quietly shifting her legs.
During this time, she had stayed by the entrance, not wandering around or even glancing much at her surroundings.
She knew well that wealthy young men preferred quiet, well-behaved girls.
After a while, the chubby guy she’d spoken to earlier poked his head out from the second-floor railing. “Hey, Lin Ran said he doesn’t take out the trash here. So if you’re looking for someone, go find them elsewhere.”
For a brief moment, Cheng Jiayue’s face turned pale.
At twenty, a girl’s self-esteem was at its peak.
Cheng Jiayue had always known who was behind the financial support she received. Once, when she went to the administrative building to find her group leader, she happened to see Lin Youcheng and his entourage leaving.
She avoided the crowd and tried to enter through the side door, but unintentionally overheard her own name.
They were discussing Lin Youcheng’s scholarship recipients and plans for future funding projects.
That was the first time Cheng Jiayue realized who had been sponsoring her education.
She had searched for Lin Youcheng’s name online, and all the results pointed to a man at the pinnacle of society. Why had someone like him chosen to sponsor her?
Cheng Jiayue came from a poor background. After graduating from junior high, her father had demanded she drop out to work and support her two younger siblings, as well as her older brother, who did nothing around the house.
In the end, it was she and her mother who promised her father that no further education expenses would come from the family, and that she would definitely get into university. Only then did her father reluctantly agree not to force her into the workforce after middle school.
Cheng Jiayue’s life had not been easy over the years.
Until earlier this year, she still had to work part-time every day to make ends meet.
Later, Lin Yucheng appeared.
Cheng Jiayue hadn’t lived like an ordinary person in years. Lin Yucheng had pulled her out of the mud. In addition to the official financial aid from the school, there was also a mysterious account depositing money into her account every month.
But last month, Lin Yucheng’s assistant came to see her. The assistant informed her that all financial support was being cut off, though the school had agreed to waive her tuition fees for the next four years.
Cheng Jiayue spent half a month trying to figure out why.
She discovered that it was all because of a dead woman.
—
Xie Zhen watched as Cheng Jiayue left the garage. He turned around and called out, “Ran, she’s gone.”
Lin Ran was lounging lazily on the sofa, his fingers moving rapidly across his phone screen as he casually replied, “I’m hungry. Where’s the delivery?”
Xie Zhen checked his phone. “It’s almost here.”
He Mo, observing from the side, was completely baffled. Lin Ran was acting like a different person. A girl had just come looking for him, yet he wasn’t angry? In fact, he seemed to be in a surprisingly good mood.
At that moment, Lin Ran was replying to Sheng Qingxi’s messages, paying no attention to the university girl.
—
[Xiao Xi: Lin Ran, I’ve landed. The organizers sent a car to pick me up.]
[Firegun: Did you check their ID?]
[Xiao Xi: Yes, I did. I’m in the car now. There’s also an auntie with me who’s also competing.]
Lin Ran had looked into it and found out that the National Gomoku Championship was open to all enthusiasts, which meant participants ranged from the elderly to children.
[Firegun: What about the hotel? Are you staying in a single room or a double?]
[Xiao Xi: It’s a double, but I’m staying alone. The older participants said I’m just a kid, so they let me have a room to myself.]
[Firegun: Mm, you are a kid. Be good and listen to them.]
Lin Ran didn’t chat with her much. He knew flying was tiring, so he reminded her to send him her location and to rest instead of playing on her phone.
After wrapping up the conversation with Sheng Qingxi, Lin Ran let out a deep sigh.
She had only left that morning, and by the afternoon, he already wanted to go and pick her up.
—
Once the holiday ended, Lin Ran and the others returned to their pre-holiday routine.
For He Mo and Xie Zhen, life went back to normal, just like before. But for Lin Ran, something felt off. He was restless and unsettled.
Even though he had promised Sheng Qingxi to focus on his studies, Lin Ran couldn’t stop thinking about her.
He Mo and Xie Zhen first noticed something was wrong during the break between classes.
Lin Ran was slumped in his chair like a zombie, his eyes blank and his mind seemingly empty. His entire demeanor radiated the energy of a dejected teenager.
They didn’t bother asking him what was wrong, because it was obvious: it had to be about Sheng Qingxi.
Without her at school, Lin Ran would probably stay in this state for the next four days.
On the first day of Sheng Qingxi’s absence, Lin Ran couldn’t muster the energy to do anything.
That night, he called Sheng Qingxi, but she didn’t answer.
After a while, she finally sent back a message.
[Xiao Xi: Lin Ran, I’m playing chess. I’ll get back to you later.]
Lin Ran tossed his phone aside and buried his face in his pillow, motionless.
He had been spoiled by Sheng Qingxi lately, and now that she was giving him less attention, he felt restless and suffocated.
She was in Ningcheng for a competition, and it was already a blessing that she could spare a moment to reply to his message. Lin Ran thought there might be something wrong with him, but he couldn’t help it.
On the second day of her absence, Lin Ran lay slumped over his desk, staring at his two coins from 2009 and 2018.
He had dug those coins out of the trash with great effort, treating them like treasures ever since, as if Sheng Qingxi’s warmth still lingered on them.
He Mo glanced at Lin Ran, who looked half-dead, and shook his head repeatedly. “Ah Zhen, you see this? Love is poison. Ran was a perfectly fine person, and now look at him.”
Xie Zhen, sucking on a lollipop, mumbled, “You’re not even considering who the other person is.”
He Mo thought for a moment.
True, if the other person was Sheng Qingxi, who wouldn’t act like this?
He Mo and Xie Zhen had privately discussed Lin Ran and Sheng Qingxi before, both agreeing that Sheng Qingxi must have been bewitched somehow. Otherwise, why would she tolerate Lin Ran the way she did?
Over the past couple of years, they had seen plenty of girls interested in Lin Ran, but Sheng Qingxi was the first of her kind.
You could say she was foolish, but she was always at the top of her class. On the other hand, it seemed like she was indeed a bit foolish in other ways.
At 9 a.m., Lin Ran’s phone vibrated lightly.
He immediately unlocked it and saw a message from Sheng Qingxi with a live stream link.
[Xiao Xi: Lin Ran, the women’s competition is tomorrow. Here’s the live stream link.]
Lin Ran eagerly opened the link, but instead of seeing Sheng Qingxi, all he saw were a group of elderly men in team uniforms and a few young guys, with no women in sight.
[Firegun: Are you sitting in the audience?]
[Xiao Xi: Yes, I’m sitting with the aunts and older sisters watching the competition.]
Lin Ran: “…”
This silly girl actually thought he wanted the live stream link to watch the competition.
The stream wasn’t particularly clear, but Lin Ran patiently watched the older men play chess for a while. The more he watched, the more uneasy he felt. His precious Sheng Qingxi must stand out like a sore thumb in that crowd.
Lin Ran carefully scanned the people on screen, his worry growing with each glance.
Two male staff members were looking in a particular direction, whispering to each other. For quite a long time, their gazes kept drifting toward that area.
Frowning, Lin Ran opened his chat with Sheng Qingxi.
[Firegun: Where are you sitting?]
[Xiao Xi: At 6 o’clock.]
Lin Ran checked the live stream and noted that the two staff members were staring toward the 9 o’clock direction.
[Firegun: What’s at 9 o’clock?]
[Xiao Xi: Picture]
Sheng Qingxi sent a photo in response.
Lin Ran opened the picture.
The image showed a bright red banner, with beautifully embroidered peonies on either side. On the banner, an Arabic proverb was written:
“Never reveal your true skills! That way, no one will know how bad you actually are.”
Lin Ran: “…”
What kind of competition is this?
Lin Ran had been watching the live stream for a while. When the bell for the break between classes rang, he was still glued to his seat, watching the competition.
He Mo curiously leaned over for a peek and couldn’t figure out why Lin Ran was so focused on a group of old men. Were they playing Go? Something didn’t seem quite right.
It took He Mo a while to realize that they were actually playing Gomoku.
He gave Lin Ran a perplexed look.
What’s going on with this guy?
No matter what He Mo and the others thought, Lin Ran had now reached the third day of Sheng Qingxi’s absence.
His mood was slightly better than the previous two days, mostly because he expected to finally see his Xiao Xi on the live stream today. He had already started refreshing the page before 9 a.m., but even by 9:10, Sheng Qingxi was nowhere to be seen.
At 9:15, a notice appeared on the stream.
Due to a power outage at the competition venue, this morning’s match would not be broadcast.
Lin Ran: ???
At that moment, Lin Ran wanted nothing more than to crawl through the internet and personally install a generator for them.
—
Sheng Qingxi didn’t have time to contact Lin Ran until 3 p.m. The morning match had been delayed because of the power outage.
She sent Lin Ran a message, but he didn’t respond. Figuring he might be in class, she decided not to bother him further. By 5 p.m., when classes were over, she called him, only to find that his phone was turned off.
Next to her, Aunt Zhao called out softly, “Xiao Xi, we’re planning to have dinner together tonight. Even though we didn’t know each other before, it’s fate that we’ve met. The others are worried you might feel uncomfortable, so they asked me to invite you.”
As the youngest participant, all the aunties had affectionately taken to calling her Xiao Xi.
After learning that Sheng Qingxi had come alone to compete, they became even more protective of her.
Sheng Qingxi smiled and nodded. “Sure, I’ll join you for dinner.”
After the competition, she followed them to a famous Japanese restaurant in Ningcheng. On the way, she tried calling Lin Ran again, but his phone was still off.
Aunt Zhao, who had been sitting next to her, noticed her making calls. She had seen the girl texting someone all day yesterday as well.
Gossip is a natural human instinct.
Unable to resist, Aunt Zhao asked, “Xiao Xi, couldn’t get through? I noticed you’ve been trying to make a call all afternoon.”
Sheng Qingxi shook her head slightly. “It’s nothing, I just wanted to let someone at home know how I’m doing.”
Aunt Zhao and the others had already been puzzled by the situation. Here was this beautiful young girl, traveling all the way to the competition alone, and yet no one from her family had come with her. If it were their own daughters, they’d be too worried to even eat.
And now, even her calls home weren’t going through.
What a pity.
Aunt Zhao sighed softly.
By the time Sheng Qingxi and the others arrived at the Japanese restaurant, it was already 8 p.m.
The night view of Ningcheng was beautiful. The city was bustling and lively, with brightly lit streets and a vibrant, dazzling atmosphere no matter where you looked.
The aunties ordered some sake, and since it wasn’t very strong, they poured a little for Sheng Qingxi as well.
Sheng Qingxi usually didn’t drink, but after starting work, there had been many unavoidable occasions where she had to. Over time, she learned to handle a little alcohol, so when the aunties offered her sake, she didn’t refuse.
Meanwhile, a plane flying from Chucheng to Ningcheng was slowly descending at the airport.
The moon, which had been hidden by clouds, quietly revealed half of its face.