Be Passionately In Love

After handing the gold chain over to the community office, Xu Zhi suggested treating them to a late-night snack as a token of gratitude.

Cai Yingying immediately chimed in, "Yes, yes! I know a place nearby that stays open late—great food, clean, and with five-star reviews on Dianping. Seriously, thank you so much tonight. That necklace means a lot to my bestie."

Zhu Yangqi: "Sounds good."

Chen Luzhou: "I’ll go home and eat instant noodles."

Cai Yingying’s face instantly fell. As expected, the ultra-handsome ones were hard to reel in. She feigned indignation, "Seriously? That’s so rude. What’s the big deal about grabbing a bite? Afraid we’ll hit on you? We both have boyfriends, okay?"

"Ah, both of you… have boyfriends?" Now even Zhu Yangqi, who had been dismantling the rod, didn’t want to go anymore.

Xu Zhi instinctively glanced at Cai Yingying, who continued in a righteous tone, "You helped us out so much, and you even took apart his model. We don’t want to owe you, okay? This is purely to thank you. Don’t overthink it."

Then, Cai Yingying leaned in and whispered in her ear, "Guys like him are all aloof and arrogant. We have to do the opposite, or they’ll think we’re trying to latch onto them."

Xu Zhi was baffled. "Wait, what’s your deal? What about Zhai Xiao?"

Cai Yingying put on a virtuous front. "What’s it to me? Weren’t you the one who suggested treating them? I’m just tagging along for a meal with a hot guy." She nodded toward the guy. "One like this—I doubt we’ll meet another one this year who’s this top-tier. What’s wrong with a meal? Besides, Zhai Xiao and I aren’t official yet, and you and Tan Xu aren’t even dating—plus, you’re about to break up anyway. What’s there to worry about?"

Xu Zhi wasn’t bothered by that, but she didn’t argue. She just sighed. "Just don’t scare him off."

She had her own calculations, though she wasn’t great at chatting, especially with guys.

Zhu Yangqi was about to say, If you both have boyfriends, then I’ll go home for instant noodles too , when Chen Luzhou, who had been squatting to tie his shoelaces, spoke without looking up. "Sure, where are we eating?"

From her angle, all she could see was his fluffy, soft hair and his broad, straight back—like a mountain ridge at sunrise, tempting her to climb it.

Xu Zhi suddenly felt he might not be so hard to handle after all. Staring at the top of his head, she said, "Just outside the gate."

Chen Luzhou took his time tying his laces, giving them a final firm tug before standing up. They stood by a tree, but Xu Zhi felt his presence was denser than the trunk, enveloping her completely. A faint scent of sage body wash drifted into her nose. Under the vast night sky, she felt as though he carried the weight of the world on his back—strangely, it gave her a sense of security.

"You guys go ahead. I’ll lock up first," he said, turning to head inside. His shadow, like a loyal follower, immediately trailed after him.

"We’ll wait for you outside!"

Xu Zhi and Cai Yingying stood under the streetlamp by the building’s entrance, their elongated shadows motionless in the warm yellow light, like two "waiting-for-husband" stones. Fireflies flitted around aimlessly. Xu Zhi nudged her. "Cai Yingying, wipe your drool."

"That’s not drool," Cai Yingying said. "It’s tears of envy."

"Envy for what?"

"Envy for his future girlfriend."

Xu Zhi asked, "How do you know he doesn’t have one?"Cai Yingying's eyes were firmly fixed on the building entrance as she declared with absolute certainty, "He definitely looks single, and let me tell you, this ultra-handsome guy won't be easy to chase."

No sooner had she spoken than a soft door-closing sound came from inside, followed by two tall, youthful figures emerging one after another from the building entrance. The "tagalong" had clearly freshened up, sporting an assortment of trinkets around his neck that jingled like a music box in need of repair as he walked. He had simply changed into a clean black T-shirt and, perhaps anticipating the evening chill, draped a sport jacket over his shoulders—his fair complexion accentuating the smooth, powerful lines of his arms, where veins stood out prominently.

He ambled lazily behind the "tagalong," head bowed as he plugged a power bank into his phone. The tagalong cracked some joke with a cheeky grin, eliciting a half-hearted chuckle from him before his gaze drifted toward Xu Zhi's direction. Seemingly unsure how to address them, he coolly averted his eyes but remained standing in place. Xu Zhi couldn't shake the feeling there was something covert in his glance.

Without hesitation, Cai Yingying grabbed Xu Zhi and marched over. The four of them headed out of the alley.

In that short span, Chen Luzhou had already pulled up a movie to watch. Cai Yingying complained, "Seriously? Are we that boring to hang out with that you need a movie to pass the time?"

"Don't mind him. He does this even when he's out with his girlfriend. Bet you didn't know Bohui Cinema is—" Zhu Yangqi blurted out, nearly spilling all his secrets before Chen Luzhou shot him a lukewarm glare. Zhu Yangqi swiftly pivoted, "—he's seen every single movie that's ever screened at Bohui Cinema."

Cai Yingying, thinking she'd misjudged, whispered to the tagalong, "Wait, he has a girlfriend?"

Zhu Yangqi tsked twice. "Hey, didn't you say this was just dinner? What, trying to chase my bro?"

"Pfft, I have a boyfriend, okay?" Cai Yingying rolled her eyes defiantly. "But speaking of Bohui Cinema, their tickets are ridiculously expensive, and they never give out coupons—"

"Obviously—it's the biggest cinema in the city—"

Xu Zhi lagged behind, glancing over. The guy was genuinely engrossed in his movie, clearly not interested in chatting with her—and it was some old disaster film, no less.

"Only watching this now? I remember it came out in our first year of high school," Xu Zhi ventured, feigning expertise.

"Really? Must've missed it—been busy."

"The sequel's coming out this summer."

"Hmm."

Xu Zhi racked her brain for conversation. "Do you usually watch movies at Bohui?"

"Hmm." Even more indifferent than before.

"Anything you wanna catch lately? My treat," Xu Zhi offered.

Chen Luzhou finally looked up, baffled. "What's that supposed to mean? One dinner wasn't enough thanks?"

Xu Zhi couldn’t exactly blurt out, I’ll treat you to a movie if you introduce me to your mom . How could she naturally get closer to his mother?

"Never mind."

Xu Zhi was sure it just wasn’t natural enough.The alley was deep and silent, its walls mottled with moss. Layers of leaves hung from the high walls, and moonlight spilled over the tops, making nostalgia easy to ferment. It was a downhill slope, and the wind sounded especially clear in their ears. Behind them, bicycle bells jingled incessantly as a group of carefree young boys rushed past them under the moonlight without any intention of slowing down.

Xu Zhi didn’t notice, too absorbed in figuring out how to strike up a conversation more naturally. She barely registered nearly being brushed by the boys and forcefully moved on to the next topic. "What’s your birth year and month?"

As soon as she asked, she realized it was the wrong question—the timing didn’t add up. There was no way he could have a son his age.

"Me? Asking for my birthday?"

Chen Luzhou glanced up at the reckless kids and wordlessly moved to her outer side. Seemingly amused, the corner of his usually indifferent mouth lifted slightly. "You might as well ask for my name first. Don’t you know the basic steps of striking up a conversation?"

"...Oh."

No follow-up came.

Chen Luzhou: "..."

"Aren’t you going to let your boyfriend know?"

As they reached the mouth of the alley, Chen Luzhou locked his phone, pinching it between two fingers and lazily twirling it back and forth. Whether casually or deliberately, he stood at the bustling intersection, watching the traffic light about to change, and suddenly asked this question.

Xu Zhi sensed hostility in his tone. Her immediate second thought was that being his girlfriend must be incredibly stifling.

"Can’t someone with a boyfriend go out to eat with the opposite sex?"

Her gaze was too earnest—so earnest that Chen Luzhou’s absentminded twirling of his phone paused briefly.

"...Good question."

Yifeng Alley’s barbecue street was famous far and wide, drawing crowds not just from Qingyi City but even neighboring towns. At this hour, the place was packed, with all sorts of flashy cars squeezed into every available parking spot. Xu Zhi had no patience for waiting in line, so she booked a table at the least crowded spot on Meituan—a local specialty, seafood and bone barbecue.

The moment they sat down, Chen Luzhou’s phone rang. He skimmed the menu and glanced at the screen before swiping to decline the call. The display read: Her Majesty the Queen.

Xu Zhi and Cai Yingying exchanged a look.

Zhu Yangqi knew it was his buzzkill of a mother. "Oho, growing some backbone, huh? Daring to ignore Her Majesty’s call now? Don’t want your credit card unfrozen?"

"You just reminded me," Chen Luzhou sighed in defeat and tossed the menu to the two girls across the table. "You order."

Zhu Yangqi eagerly drummed the table. "Hurry up, hurry up! Don’t hold back on his dime—get the boss to bring out ten lobster sashimi first."

Cai Yingying snatched the ordering tablet. "We’re treating, okay?"

Zhu Yangqi: "Relax, he never lets girls pay."

Chen Luzhou went to the restroom to return Lian Hui’s call. He tucked the phone between his ear and shoulder, washing his hands with his head lowered. "Mom."

Ms. Lian Hui’s voice was as dignified and gentle as ever. "Now that your exams are over, aren’t you planning to move back home?"

He chuckled carelessly, turning off the faucet and grabbing a paper towel to dry his hands. "I’ll be leaving the country in a couple of months anyway—no point moving back and forth. What, do you miss me?"

"We’ve mostly prepared your documents for studying abroad. If things go smoothly, you’ll have a video interview next week."

"Got it." Chen Luzhou tossed the paper towel into the trash and leaned lazily against the sink.

"Aren’t you going to ask which university it is?""No matter which one, I can definitely get in, right?" Chen Luzhou looked up in exasperation, pressing his fingers against the bridge of his nose. "Mom, I get what you mean. No matter what shady college he finds for me, I’ll go without a fuss."

Zhu Yangqi took a bite of his mushroom skewer and frowned, blurting out without restraint, "Girl, didn’t your mom teach you not to pick boyfriends from the trash? You went straight to the recycling center, huh?"

Xu Zhi wasn’t angry, but Cai Yingying was furious. She wanted to scold Zhu Yangqi—"Do you even know how to talk? Why bring someone’s mom into this?"—but before she could speak, Chen Luzhou, who had been leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed, coldly observing, casually picked up a golden bun from the table and stuffed it into Zhu Yangqi’s mouth without a word, signaling that if he couldn’t speak properly, he shouldn’t speak at all. "Were you thrown in there or did you go digging yourself? Does her having a boyfriend interfere with your trash-picking? Afraid you won’t hit your KPI by year-end because of her?"

Zhu Yangqi wasn’t as measured with his jokes as Chen Luzhou. Now that he thought about it, his comment was indeed inappropriate—especially to a girl they’d just met. So he took the out Chen Luzhou gave him and muttered, "Yeah, competition’s tough these days."

Cai Yingying’s anger subsided a little, though she still didn’t want to talk to Zhu Yangqi for the moment. Instead, she turned to Chen Luzhou. "I heard you have a nickname—‘Fairy Grass.’"

Xu Zhi looked at Chen Luzhou. For some reason, maybe because of that woman whose voice was identical to her mom’s, she felt an inexplicable closeness to him—even though he carried himself like an aloof, untouchable king.

Chen Luzhou’s expression seemed to say, "Don’t ask me. Ask whoever calls me that. Even if I were narcissistic, I wouldn’t introduce myself with a nickname like that."

Xu Zhi and Cai Yingying simultaneously turned to Zhu Yangqi.

Zhu Yangqi immediately puffed up with pride. Gnawing on a bone, he explained, "Haven’t you heard? The guys at our No. 1 High School are next-level competitive—like gods battling it out. He’s the one who ‘won,’ the Fairy Grass among gods."

Chen Luzhou, scrolling through his phone, thought, When did I ever participate in that? But he let it slide. No use courting lightning strikes for showing off.

Only then did Cai Yingying realize, looking between them, "Wait, you two also go to No. 1 High?"

Zhu Yangqi glanced at Chen Luzhou, who ignored him entirely, showing no concern for their school’s reputation. He lounged lazily, legs sprawled, his phone buzzing nonstop—as if someone had sent him an essay too long for a single message. Yet he read every word with interest, embodying the image of a "top-tier No. 1 High playboy with a packed schedule."

Zhu Yangqi quietly scooted away, deciding to keep his distance. Sitting up straight, he said to Cai Yingying, "What, we don’t look the part?"

Cai Yingying looked from Chen Luzhou to Zhu Yangqi. She wasn’t sure who didn’t fit, but something felt off. "A little."

Zhu Yangqi thought, Ignorant. But he figured it was best not to engage with Chen Luzhou right now.Out of the corner of his eye, he realized the essay wasn’t what he had imagined. Chen Luzhou was truly inhuman—he could actually read such a lengthy, vitriolic rant with such relish. The guy was probably one of Gu Yan’s simps, having somehow added Chen Luzhou on WeChat, and the language was downright filthy.

“How can you stand this?”

The TV in the barbecue joint was playing a French film. Chen Luzhou leaned back in his chair, craning his neck to catch the movie’s title before setting the chair legs back down and saying to Zhu Yangqi, “He sounded so sincere in his insults, I thought he actually knew where my ancestors were buried. Got curious, but he never left an address by the end.”

“……”

Cai Yingying had no clue what they were talking about and steered the conversation back. “Since you’re from City No. 1 High, do you know Zhai Xiao?”

Chen Luzhou shook his head.

Zhu Yangqi searched his memory. “Yeah, we played basketball together a while back.”

“Which one?” Chen Luzhou turned to him. “Have I met him?”

Zhu Yangqi: “Duh, we’ve played a few times. But you usually run with Jiang Cheng’s crew, so you probably don’t remember him.”

Cai Yingying’s eyes lit up. “He must be a top student at your school too, right?”

“Not exactly, but he studies hard—the diligent type.”

Couldn’t compare to the guy next to him, though.

Cai Yingying retorted indignantly, “Sounds like you’re some academic ace? What’d you score on the college entrance exam?”

“Around 400-something, just under 500.”

“And you’ve got the nerve to talk big.” She scoffed.

“I’m an art student. That score’s enough for the Central Academy of Fine Arts, okay?” Zhu Yangqi said.

Cai Yingying and Xu Zhi exchanged a glance and didn’t press further, automatically lumping Chen Luzhou together with Zhu Yangqi as part of the arts students.

The barbecue shop gradually filled with more customers. After repeatedly confirming that Xu Zhi was full, Chen Luzhou picked up his phone and stood as if to go pay the bill. Xu Zhi swiftly followed him.

Only Zhu Yangqi and Cai Yingying remained at the table, still gnawing on the last bits of bone. Unable to resist, Cai Yingying asked, "So, do many girls usually hang around Zhai Xiao?"

"Girls? Never noticed," Zhu Yangqi shook his head at first, then suddenly had a lightbulb moment. "Oh, he has a girlfriend from another school, I think."

Cai Yingying smiled mysteriously.

Oblivious, Zhu Yangqi sucked the marrow from the bone and mumbled, "Think her name was something like Jingjing."

Cai Yingying rolled her eyes. Jingjing, Yingying—could he really not tell the difference?

Patiently, she gave him a hint, "Think about it—doesn’t it sound a lot like my name?"

Zhu Yangqi instantly had an epiphany: "Right! It was Chai Jingjing, from No. 8 High School."

Cai Yingying’s smile froze. "..."

Xu Zhi doggedly followed Chen Luzhou to the counter, phone in hand, ready to fight him for the bill—she’d even pulled up her payment QR code in advance.

Turns out, Chen Luzhou had only gone to grab a pack of tissues. He turned and saw her trailing behind, then looked down at her with a meaningful gaze.

The counter was bustling with people settling their tabs, the noise fragmented and chaotic. Yet his eyes were on her alone. Those eyes—clear and bright, like the moon hidden behind sparse fences—could make hearts race across miles. Vast and boundless, they seemed capable of weathering all storms like the open sea, yet also of quietly cradling the tender thoughts of youth like a still pond.

Casually picking a piece of fruit candy from the counter’s candy box, Chen Luzhou handed it to her naturally, laughing. "Why’d you follow me? Thought I was paying?"