At this moment of quiet excitement, can it really be considered premeditated?
Since she returned to Nan City once again and decided to re-enroll in Tiancheng High School for Zhou Xinyue, she met him at her most helpless and confused.
Separated by the ends of the network, she and he were originally just two insignificant dust particles in this world.
But Xie Tao, in such a helpless situation, found a little sense of stability with this stranger.
For everything Zhou Xinyue had experienced, Xie Tao was full of anger but didn’t know what to do.
Never had there been a moment where Xie Tao felt so useless.
It was Wei Yun who step by step told her what to do.
Even though he was always so reticent, he was always helping Xie Tao, gradually uncovering all the truths for her, and in the end, ensuring that the person who deserved punishment received it.
This should be the best outcome.
Even when Zhao Yixuan was strangling her neck, almost losing all consciousness, Xie Tao never regretted her choice.
Because she knew that when Zhou Xinyue chose to help her initially, she never hesitated for a moment.
And now, she was the same.
Without him, perhaps this matter wouldn’t have been resolved so smoothly, perhaps she would have spent more time, or perhaps… she wouldn’t have been able to seek justice for Zhou Xinyue at all.
That night, she dragged her stitched leg, carrying all her wounds back to the rented house, finally relieved of all the hidden burdens in her heart.
It was also that night when she finally knew his name.
Wei Yun.
Perhaps it was from that moment onwards, her curiosity about him was like the tender green sprouts budding in early spring, gradually deepening, sprouting, and flourishing.
He seemed to be an especially knowledgeable person.
Not only could he recite ancient books like “Zhi Lun” fluently, but he also knew many things about astronomy, geography, and worldly matters that Xie Tao didn’t know.
Although he seemed to always be confused about some things in modern society, like an old man living in the mountains.
He plays chess, paints, practices calligraphy, brews tea with incense, enjoys the snow, the moon, the wind, and the flowers. It’s as if he lives the poetic life that one would only read about in books, reminiscent of a noble son from ancient times. How could there be someone like him in the world? Xie Tao sometimes wonders.
She would sometimes stare for a long time at the portrait she set as her phone’s wallpaper. Its clear outlines and stunning beauty – could they really be just fabricated? If not, then is that really what he looks like?
Months have passed, through spring and into summer solstice, during the intense heat of midsummer, Xie Tao seems to have gotten used to sharing all her trivial matters with him, incessantly talking. Perhaps due to a past filled with repression, Xie Tao had been used to keeping all her emotions inside. But now, she is willing to share everything, good or bad, with him.
All those emotions, never voiced before, seemed to start with curiosity. The fluttering of her heart at this moment is not a sudden impulsive reaction. Perhaps it was like a seed, carried by the wind, landing at the bottom of her heart, growing roots unnoticed.
Listening to his clear voice, when he said “Happy Birthday,” her heart started racing uncontrollably. Without a second thought, she blurted out: “I really like you.”
Like the first snow that inevitably comes after a long winter, like the first apricot blossom that blooms at the end of spring, or like the first light that pierces through the eternal night… Her confession of liking him seemed just as natural.
Her murmured drunken words were like an endless flame burning by his ear. His breath hitched, Wei Yun’s pupils shrank slightly, and his fingers twitched, causing the scroll in his hand to fall to the ground with a thud. Despite his usually calm demeanor, her straightforward words shook him.
She seems to be unconsciously calling out his name, again and again, in a soft, tender voice, like a deliberately affectionate small animal.
Wei Yun, the Imperial Advisor of the Great Zhou Dynasty, with his extraordinary appearance and unparalleled wisdom, can predict the future and devise strategies. As soon as he entered the world, his fame spread far and wide. Despite rumors in the imperial court and among common folk about Wei Yun’s ambitious nature and cunning, his admirers are many. Especially among the young ladies of the capital, many fantasize about this young, striking Imperial Advisor.
Yet, this young Imperial Advisor has never heard such straightforward words as these, spoken by a girl from across time and space, from a star disk floating above a copper pendant.
He has never indulged in romantic affairs, nor does he care for them. Even though his ears are clearly burning at this moment, Wei Yun remains seated, stiff and unsure of how to respond.
Suddenly, the rotating star disk shattered into a stream of pale golden light, diving down like a falling star, breaking into light and dissolving without a trace.
Her soft muttering also vanished in an instant, leaving behind nothing but silence. The candle in front of him continued to flicker, and the swaying tree shadows through the window lengthened his figure. Wei Yun sat quietly for a long time, his expression indescribable.
At this moment, Xie Tao was holding her phone, gradually falling asleep without realizing it. The corners of her eyes still bore the marks of tears not yet dried, her brows slightly furrowed as if she couldn’t find a moment’s peace even in her dreams.
When she finally woke up, it was already the next day’s morning.
Due to her eyes swollen from crying the day before, she found them slightly sore and her head felt dizzy and ached when she opened her eyes today.
She dared not rub them and propped herself up to sit, her gaze lowering to the phone she didn’t realize she had tossed aside at some point.
Picking it up, she lit the screen to check the time, then noticed a WeChat message from Zhou Xinyue.
She entered the chat with Zhou Xinyue:
“Tao Tao, thank you for trying so hard to make me want to live well. I will take good care of myself. You must wait for me to come back.”
“Meeting you in this life is the happiest thing for me.”
“Happy Birthday, Tao Tao.”
Seeing these words, Xie Tao’s lips curved into a smile.
After a long while, she touched the screen with her finger and replied:
“I’ll wait for you to come back, Xinyue.”
When she exited the chat with Zhou Xinyue, her gaze moved down to a profile picture that was blank, and she instantly saw the [Voice Call] icon.
She was momentarily stunned, her finger moved, and she entered the chat with Wei Yun.
Displayed there was:
“Call Duration 14:03”
???
Xie Tao stiffened, holding the phone while sitting on the bed, completely dazed.
Many memories from the previous night surged up, and it seemed as if she heard such a voice in her ear:
“I like you so much…”
“Wei Yun.”
Clearly, it was her own voice.
Last night, she wrapped herself in the blanket, bravely opened the voice call on WeChat, and then she heard a clear and cool voice.
In a blur, she heard him later say: “Happy Birthday, Xie Tao.”
And then, it was her…
Xie Tao’s face suddenly flushed red, and the phone in her hand instantly felt like a hot potato.
Ah ah ah ah ah!!!
Xie Tao suddenly buried her head into the pillow, twisting and turning like a caterpillar, tucking herself back into the blanket.
What should she do??
How could she say such things!!
Would he think she’s absurd? Would he… never want to deal with her again?
In that instant, many thoughts popped into Xie Tao’s mind.
She quickly lit up the screen to take another look at her phone, and after confirming that Wei Yun’s WeChat was still quietly lying in her list, she inexplicably breathed a sigh of relief.
A moment later, she covered her face, as if she was somewhat unable to face herself for what she had said to him yesterday.
Why did she suddenly say such a thing!
As if after a long mental preparation, she reopened the chat interface with Wei Yun, typed out some words in the dialog box, and then deleted them one by one, repeating this process many times. Finally, she tentatively sent a message:
“Wei Yun, about yesterday…”
What she originally wanted to say was that it was her drunken ramblings, not to be taken seriously, and that he should not misunderstand.
But the moment her fingers touched the screen, she remembered seeing that wooden box in the parcel locker downstairs yesterday afternoon.
She turned her head and saw the wooden box she had placed on her bedside table.
She remembered the “Happy Birthday” he had said to her yesterday.
The calmness that had settled in her heart overnight seemed to ripple again at this moment, making her momentarily distracted as she stared at her phone screen.
“Last night, you were drunk.”
Ten minutes later, she received such a reply.
Xie Tao stared at the message for a while, and suddenly a surge of inexplicable emotion welled up inside her. Almost without thinking, she quickly replied:
“I was very serious!”
Like a spark suddenly ignited, she suddenly found the courage:
“Wei Yun, that’s what I really thought.”
When she typed out this line, up until she pressed the send button, her fingers were trembling, as if even her breathing became somewhat labored.
Meanwhile, Wei Yun, in another time and space, sat behind his desk, staring fixedly at the three pieces of gold-sprinkled letter paper spread out on the desk, his gaze wandering back and forth, his expression somewhat bewildered.
Today, he had no court duties and had slept restlessly last night because of the drunken words of this young girl.
Half-asleep, he seemed to always hear her saying, “I like you so much…”
She seemed to like calling his name, over and over, with a rising tone at the end, her voice soft, with a hint of coquettishness, which made him suddenly open his eyes from sleep and then stare at the plain ceiling above for a long time, unable to fall back asleep.
He had initially thought it was just her drunken ramblings.
But at this moment, looking at the words on the letter paper, he suddenly realized that this young girl seemed to have really given him her true heart.
Her clear and delicate face appeared in his mind, especially those bright, clear eyes.
But how absurd is this?
To her, he was just a stranger whose face she had never even seen, so how could she entrust her true heart to him so earnestly?
Perhaps because of his father, Wei Changning, Wei Yun has always refused to believe in true love between men and women in this world.
He was even more incredulous about the sincerity of her sudden affection.
It might have been just a whim, nothing more than a momentary impulse of a young girl.
Wei Yun picked up his pen, and his first thought was to refuse.
But when his gaze fell on the copper pendant beside him, he paused, his eyes suddenly deep in thought.
After a long while, he looked towards the door: “Wei Jing.”
Holding a long sword and dressed in a black robe, Wei Jing came in at his call, quickly bowing, “My lord.”
“If…”
Wei Yun barely started speaking before pausing, as if pondering something, then finally said, “If you refused a girl who is interested in you, would she disappear without a trace?”
“Ah?”
Wei Jing was stunned.
He didn’t quite catch on.
What… what question did the lord just ask him?
Was he hearing things?
“Yes or no?” Wei Yun obviously had little patience, his brows furrowed with irritation.
“…In my opinion, that seems about right. After all, girls are shy. If, if the lord… oh no, if that girl was rejected by the man she expressed her feelings to, she would probably stop doing what she wants and naturally, she would no longer have any dealings with this man.”
Wei Jing answered with a sweat on his forehead.
Killing with a sword was his forte, but he seemed hesitant to answer these kinds of questions.
No longer in contact?
Upon hearing this, Wei Yun immediately frowned.
If this caused the end of their mysterious connection, then how would he investigate the secret of the copper pendant? And when would his mysterious adversary reveal their true intentions?
All of this was clearly deeply connected to her.
Wei Yun’s pen hesitated to fall, his eyes shifting, ultimately unsettled.
The words of refusal were ultimately hard to lay down.
