First Frost

The scene seemed to have reached a stalemate.

In the quiet space, the thick soup in the pot bubbled with a gurgling sound. The swirling steam before them acted like a filter, blurring Sang Yan's features.

"I didn’t originally plan to choose this major," Wen Yifan lowered her gaze, casually offering an excuse. "I miscalculated my scores back then and didn’t get into the program I wanted, so I was transferred to online media."

Hearing this, Sang Yan also averted his eyes and calmly took a sip of his drink.

Sang Zhi glanced at Sang Yan, then back at Wen Yifan, sensing an odd tension in the air.

Wen Yifan, however, acted as if she noticed nothing and continued, "But now it seems like you can check your scores before filling out your preferences. You can refer to the cutoff scores from previous years to have a better idea when applying."

"Okay," Sang Zhi replied obediently. "Thank you, Yifan-jie."

The conversation gradually shifted to other topics.

The earlier minor episode seemed to have been brushed aside just like that.

After dinner.

As the one who had cooked, Sang Yan left the table immediately after eating, lounging on the sofa like a young master and playing on his phone.

Sang Zhi, out of habit, was about to head toward the living room as well, but noticing Wen Yifan getting up to clean, she paused and went back to help.

Wen Yifan looked at her and smiled. "Go study. I can handle this."

"It’s fine," Sang Zhi curved her lips. "A little time won’t make a difference."

"Then help me gather the dishes together."

"Okay."

Half a minute later.

"Yifan-jie," Sang Zhi lowered her voice, whispering out of curiosity, "can I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"If you don’t want to answer, just pretend you didn’t hear me." Sang Zhi felt a bit awkward asking but was eager to know—after all, she’d never get this information from Sang Yan. "Did you and my brother date before?"

"..." Wen Yifan said, "No."

Receiving a negative answer, Sang Zhi wasn’t surprised. "Because my parents mentioned that my brother had a high school sweetheart. Then I remembered that time I ‘got lost’ in front of you, so I thought it might’ve been you."

"..."

"So he just didn’t manage to win you over," Sang Zhi pondered, then guessed, "and then he switched to someone else—"

Before she could finish, Sang Yan suddenly stood up. "Brat."

Sang Zhi turned. "What?"

"Let’s go," Sang Yan picked up his jacket from the sofa, his tone indifferent. "I’ll take you home."

Sang Zhi hadn’t finished her gossip session and looked reluctant. "Can’t I stay a bit longer?"

"Weren’t you in a hurry to go back and study?" Sang Yan slipped on his jacket. Since he’d been drinking, he only took the house keys. "Or was that just hot air?"

"..." Sang Zhi could only say to Wen Yifan, "Yifan-jie, we’ll talk next time. I’m heading out now."

Wen Yifan looked up. "Alright, be careful on your way."

...

Outside the neighborhood, Sang Yan hailed a taxi.

Sang Zhi got in first and fastened her seatbelt, then remarked, "Brother, I feel like you don’t treat Yifan-jie very well. Isn’t she nice? She speaks so gently too."

Sang Zhi had met most of Sang Yan’s friends, but they were almost all guys.

Nearly all of them were chatterboxes, gathering together in childish and rowdy groups. Even with those friends, Sang Yan’s attitude wasn’t exactly warm—his words were harsh and arrogant, making people want to fight him to the death on the spot.But the way he treated Wen Yifan was different.

It was almost cold and indifferent, even his tone icy.

However, Sang Zhi had never seen any other girls around him.

She wasn’t sure if this attitude was normal.

"Is this your current way of picking up girls?" Sang Zhi stared at his face and muttered under her breath, "But just based on looks alone, you two aren’t even from the same world."

Sang Yan glanced at her.

Sang Zhi earnestly gave him advice: "And, brother, girls won’t like this kind of attitude from you."

"..."

"Generally, they prefer someone gentle," Sang Zhi thought for a moment, counting on her fingers as she spoke, "good-tempered, attentive, and not always ignoring them. It’s fine if their family background isn’t great—"

Remembering how Sang Yan had been jobless for so long after quitting, she wanted to remind him: "They just need to be hardworking and motivated. Don’t stay at home all day being unemployed."

Sang Yan finally spoke, impatiently: "Is Duan Jiaxu your ideal type?"

"..."

Sang Zhi immediately shut her mouth.

The rest of the ride was silent until they reached the neighborhood gate.

Sang Zhi got out of the car and turned to see Sang Yan still inside. She paused, puzzled: "Why aren’t you coming down?"

Sang Yan: "Go up by yourself."

Sang Zhi realized and said incredulously, "You’re not coming home to sleep tonight either?"

Sang Yan: "Nope."

"Aren’t you afraid Mom and Dad will break your legs!" Sang Zhi never imagined he’d be this bold. "Then call them yourself, or they’ll ask me about it when they get back."

Sang Yan clicked his tongue, too lazy to even bother with excuses: "Can’t you just cover for me?"

"..."

"Leaving."

After clearing the dining table, Wen Yifan returned to her room.

She didn’t go to shower immediately but sat at her desk and checked her phone. She noticed Zhao Yuandong had sent her a few more WeChat messages, similar to the previous ones—reminding Wen Yifan to take care of herself during the Spring Festival overtime and to visit her when she had time off.

She replied with a simple "Okay."

After sending it, Wen Yifan opened another episode of a drama to watch.

Before she knew it, her thoughts drifted.

She recalled Sang Zhi’s words earlier.

—"Because my parents said my brother had a high school romance."

If she wasn’t mistaken,

the person being referred to was probably her.

Back in high school, their teacher had suspected the two of them of dating and called them in to talk about it, even involving their parents. She remembered it happening twice—once in their first year and again in their second.

Wen Yifan’s thoughts were interrupted by a phone call.

She answered and heard Zhong Siqiao’s voice on the other end: "Are you working tomorrow?"

Wen Yifan hummed in agreement.

Zhong Siqiao sighed: "Ugh, we haven’t even met up these past few days."

Wen Yifan laughed: "There’ll still be chances."

"Why do we live so far apart..." Zhong Siqiao continued lamenting. "I’ve been visiting relatives for days—so tiring and boring. Either they’re asking if I have a boyfriend or if they should introduce me to someone. It’s like they planned it."

"How’s it going with your crush?"

"I thought we were getting somewhere, but he still hasn’t brought it up." Zhong Siqiao sounded troubled. "Is he keeping me as a backup? Or is he waiting for a special occasion to confess?""If you really like him, there's nothing wrong with making the first move. But you should first see what kind of person he—" Before she could finish, Wen Yifan suddenly heard the sound of the front door opening and closing, and her words trailed off.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I just heard some noise in the living room." Wen Yifan hadn’t expected him to come back tonight and said casually, "It must be Sang Yan returning."

Zhong Siqiao was surprised. "Has he not been staying at home since the third day of the new year?"

Before Wen Yifan could answer, Zhong Siqiao continued, "But even now, hearing that you two are roommates still feels a bit surreal. Didn’t he like you back then? Really, nothing happened between you?"

Wen Yifan answered honestly, "We barely even saw each other."

"Alright then," Zhong Siqiao said. "I guess that makes sense—it’s been so many years after all."

Remembering their earlier conversation about college, Wen Yifan brought up another topic. "Qiaoqiao, was Xiang Lang originally planning to apply to Yihe University? I don’t really recall that."

"He mentioned it a few times at the start of freshman year," Zhong Siqiao replied, then caught on. "Oh, you’re talking about what he said during that Truth or Dare game, right? I wanted to call him out on it back then but held back."

"..."

"He was just being a jerk—he said that deliberately to provoke Sang Yan. They never got along well in senior year." Zhong Siqiao laughed. "I forgot to tell you—after we took you home that night, that idiot accidentally let it slip. He said he was so used to it that he forgot how many years had passed. He even said Sang Yan seemed too cold now, no fun at all, whereas back then, a comment like that would’ve set Sang Yan off into mocking him for ages."

"..."

They chatted for a while longer.

After hanging up, Wen Yifan got up.

As she prepared to shower, she picked up her phone again. Biting her lip, she opened her chat with Sang Yan and slowly typed: [About what Xiang Lang said earlier—about going to Yihe University with me...]

She stared at the screen, her fingers pausing.

After what felt like an eternity, Wen Yifan exhaled and deleted the entire message.

Never mind.

It’s been so long.

Bringing it up now would just seem random.

Besides, she hadn’t handled it well back then.

Even if she wanted to explain now, there was no point—

The brief three-day holiday came to an end.

Wen Yifan returned to her routine of leaving home as soon as she woke up and going straight to bed after washing up each night. The slightly more harmonious dynamic with Sang Yan seemed to fade along with the holiday spirit.

Things soon reverted to normal.

Technically, they saw each other every day.

But their conversations were few and far between.

Still, Wen Yifan wouldn’t call their interactions unpleasant. At most, their recent interactions hadn’t brought them any closer, fulfilling their initial promise of mutual non-interference—each living their own life.

Before she knew it, February had passed.

Almost overnight, the bitter cold was chased away by the arrival of spring, and temperatures gradually rose.

Wen Yifan hadn’t visited Zhao Yuandong during the Lunar New Year.

Perhaps because of this, Zhao Yuandong began reaching out to her much more frequently. She’d message Wen Yifan daily, and the conversations always ended with, "When will you have time to come see your mom?"After a while, Wen Yifan felt that dragging things out like this was a bit troublesome, so she decided to meet just to get it over with. She figured that after this meeting, Zhao Yuandong probably wouldn’t contact her as frequently as she did now.

Wen Yifan’s day off was the day after Arbor Day.

That afternoon, following the address Zhao Yuandong had given her, Wen Yifan took the subway there.

As soon as she arrived at the entrance of the residential complex, she spotted Zhao Yuandong.

Zhao Yuandong was wearing a long dress, her makeup light, her hair cascading down to her waist in soft curls.

Time seemed to have left no trace on her face. Compared to a few years ago, her appearance hadn’t changed much—still breathtakingly beautiful, yet carrying the grace befitting her age.

Wen Yifan’s looks mostly took after her.

When Zhao Yuandong saw Wen Yifan, her gaze paused, and she immediately walked over. The excitement in her expression was impossible to hide, but her movements seemed hesitant as she lightly grasped Wen Yifan’s arm. “Ajiang, you’re here.”

“Mm.”

“Why are you dressed so lightly when you go out?”

Wen Yifan, holding the fruit she had bought on the way, smiled. “I’m not cold.”

—Silence.

Zhao Yuandong’s eyes lingered on her face.

It had been years since they last saw each other, and both felt a sense of unfamiliarity.

Looking at her face, Zhao Yuandong’s eyes gradually reddened, and she instinctively turned away. “Look at me, I…”

“…” Wen Yifan wasn’t fond of dealing with such situations. She pursed her lips slightly. “Let’s go inside first. I have something to do later, so I’ll have to leave after dinner. I can’t stay here for too long.”

“Okay, okay, come home with Mom.” Zhao Yuandong wiped her eyes. “Mom’s also worried about disturbing your work and rest. If you’re busy, I can come over to your place sometime. In the future, if you want to eat anything, just give me a call, and I’ll come cook for you.”

“I share the place with a roommate. I don’t want to disturb them.”

“Then come over more often when you’re free.” Zhao Yuandong looked her up and down, her eyes filled with concern. “Look how thin you’ve gotten—there’s no meat on you at all. Have you been eating properly?”

Wen Yifan: “I have.”

Zhao Yuandong studied her for a few more moments before sighing. “Our Ajiang has grown up. You’re even prettier than before.”

Wen Yifan simply smiled.

The two walked to the building where Zhao Yuandong lived.

The place Zhao Yuandong lived in now wasn’t the same as the one Wen Yifan had moved into after her remarriage. She must have moved a few years ago. It was a new, high-end residential complex with well-maintained greenery and property management.

The space was also much larger.

From what Wen Yifan could recall, Zhao Yuandong had mentioned this to her before.

But Wen Yifan hadn’t paid much attention, so she didn’t quite remember when it was.

As they rode the elevator, Zhao Yuandong spoke beside her. “By the way, you haven’t met Xinxin yet.” At this, her smile brightened noticeably. “He’s almost three years old now.”

The Xinxin Zhao Yuandong referred to was Zheng Kexin.

Wen Yifan’s half-brother.

“Your Uncle Zheng is still at work.” The elevator arrived just then, and Zhao Yuandong took out her keys from her pocket. “Jiajia isn’t home either—she’s in college and only comes back every few weeks. She even mentioned to me once that she was too young back then and treated you with too much malice, but she’s moved past it now and feels sorry for you.”

Wen Yifan gave a slow, indifferent “Mm.”

Zhao Yuandong opened the door and let Wen Yifan enter first. “Have a seat.”As she spoke, she suddenly remembered something: "Oh, right, Ajiang. Your aunt is here too. A few days ago, when she heard you were in Nanwu, she specially came all the way from Beiyu today just to see you—"

Hearing this, Wen Yifan looked up.

At the same time, she saw the aunt Zhao Yuandong mentioned, Che Yanqin, walk out of the room.

"Oh, First Frost is here," Che Yanqin said with a permed middle-aged hairstyle. Though around the same age as Zhao Yuandong, she seemed to belong to a different generation, her voice rough and loud. "Come here, come here, let your aunt take a look at you."

"..."

"It's been so many years," Che Yanqin chided as she walked over, laughing. "You really are heartless, child. After going off to university, it's like you forgot where home was. Never even came back to visit your aunt."

Wen Yifan's expression stiffened, and she turned to silently look at Zhao Yuandong.

Zhao Yuandong didn’t notice, only asking, "Where’s Xinxin?"

"Sleeping. He was fussy all afternoon and finally got tired." After saying this, Che Yanqin steered the conversation back to Wen Yifan. "First Frost has grown even prettier."

Zhao Yuandong smiled. "Yes, so pretty it’s hard to look away."

Che Yanqin: "Much prettier than you were in your youth."

"Of course," Zhao Yuandong chuckled, then took Wen Yifan’s hand and pulled her to sit down. "Let’s sit first. Ajiang, sit with Mom and chat for a bit."

"..."

Che Yanqin sat on another sofa and casually asked, "What does First Frost do for work now?"

Wen Yifan didn’t answer.

Instead, Zhao Yuandong replied for her: "Same as when she was in Yihe—a journalist."

Che Yanqin frowned. "That doesn’t pay much, does it? And it’s hard work."

"As long as Ajiang likes it," Zhao Yuandong said. "Anyway, she earns enough to live. She doesn’t need much more."

"True." Che Yanqin suddenly reached out and patted Wen Yifan’s arm, pretending to be upset. "First Frost, why didn’t you greet your aunt when you saw me? Did all that studying make you forget your manners?"

Wen Yifan looked up at her but still said nothing.

"Ajiang’s personality is much calmer now, and she doesn’t talk as much..." Sensing the awkwardness, Zhao Yuandong forced an awkward smile. "Ajiang, why didn’t you greet your aunt? She’s been good to us—she even helped take care of you for a few years back then."

Che Yanqin resumed her cheerful demeanor. "Yes, I treated First Frost like my own daughter."

Wen Yifan felt their voices were like bombers, pounding against her skull until it nearly split.

She lowered her head, suppressing the urge to stand up and leave immediately.

"Yuandong," Che Yanqin said, noticing the fruit on the table. "Look, First Frost brought fruit. Go wash and cut some for us. Don’t let her kindness go to waste."

Zhao Yuandong finally remembered. "Right, let’s have some fruit, then I’ll start preparing dinner."

Once Zhao Yuandong went into the kitchen, Che Yanqin stared at Wen Yifan’s face, clicking her tongue. "First Frost, you really don’t know how to use your advantages. You’re so pretty—just find a good husband to marry, and you won’t have to live so hard."

Wen Yifan pretended not to hear.

"Don’t think your aunt is nagging. I just want what’s best for you. It pains me to see you struggle like this," Che Yanqin said. "Quit your job and come back to Beiyu with me. Your aunt can take care of you again.""Your uncle has a business partner who's extremely wealthy, just a bit older than you, but he's a very good man," Che Yanqin said. "Let your aunt introduce you. You shouldn't keep living like this—you need someone to care for you."

Wen Yifan looked up.

Che Yanqin continued, "Also, your brother is getting married this year, and they still haven't sorted out the wedding apartment. We've taken care of you for so long—it's time you helped out a little. After all, as a girl, you don't really need—"

The "brother" she referred to was her own son, Wen Ming.

"I recently met a company owner," Wen Yifan interrupted expressionlessly, "also very wealthy, and coincidentally, he prefers men. Would you like me to introduce Wen Ming to him?"

"..." Che Yanqin froze momentarily before exploding in anger. "How dare you speak like that!"

Hearing the commotion, Zhao Yuandong hurried out from the kitchen. "What's going on?"

Wen Yifan's bag had remained on her shoulder since she arrived. Now she stood up abruptly, having reached her limit of tolerance. Straightening her clothes, she said, "I won't be coming here anymore."

Zhao Yuandong didn't catch it clearly. "What?"

Meeting her mother's gaze directly, Wen Yifan repeated deliberately, "This is the last time I'll visit you."

"..."

"I didn't want to maintain contact with anyone at all. But before he left, Dad made me promise to take good care of you after he was gone." This time, Wen Yifan couldn't even muster a smile as she spoke slowly. "I can't just ignore his dying wish."

"..."

"Then consider me dead along with him."—

By the time Wen Yifan returned home, night had fallen completely.

Changing into slippers, she immediately saw Sang Yan lounging on the sofa as usual, playing with his phone. Dressed casually with strands of hair falling across his forehead, his posture was the epitome of relaxation.

The image overlapped with that of the boy from their youth who used to sit behind her, constantly nudging her chair with his leg to get her attention.

The living room TV was blaring some obscure movie, currently emitting exaggerated laughter.

Pausing in place, Wen Yifan inexplicably called out, "Sang Yan."

The two of them hardly ever interacted at home.

Perhaps surprised, Sang Yan looked up from his phone. "What?"

"..." Wen Yifan snapped out of it, swallowing whatever she'd meant to say. Instead, she smiled faintly. "I might turn in early tonight. Could you keep the TV volume down after nine?"

Sang Yan studied her for a moment before responding uncharacteristically agreeably, "Sure."

Wen Yifan nodded. "Thanks."

She retreated to her room and took a quick shower.

Emerging from the bathroom, Wen Yifan felt utterly drained, as if she could fall asleep the moment she closed her eyes. Yet her mind involuntarily replayed countless fragmented images, gradually tearing her psyche apart.

Eventually, dreams and drowsiness began piecing her back together.

......

Meanwhile.

Seeing Wen Yifan had gone to her room, Sang Yan turned off the TV immediately. Something felt off about her. He played a few more rounds of his game but quickly lost interest and exited.

Opening their chat window, Sang Yan typed: [What's wrong with you?]

After staring at the screen briefly, he hit send without hesitation. Then he absentmindedly started another game. By the time he finished a round, there was still no reply.

Asleep already?Seeing that it was getting late, Sang Yan put his phone aside and got up to return to his room. He picked up his change of clothes and headed toward the bathroom, but when he glanced toward the master bedroom, his gaze paused for a moment. He then went back to the living room to retrieve his phone.

Only then did he enter the bathroom.

Sang Yan turned up his phone volume, took off his clothes, and started showering.

By the time he finished and checked his phone again, there was still no reply from the other end.

The corner of Sang Yan’s lips twitched. He pulled on his clothes and stepped out of the bathroom. Tucking his phone back into his pocket, he dried his hair with a towel and headed toward the kitchen to grab a bottle of cold water.

He had just reached the dining area when the sound of a door opening suddenly came from behind him.

Sang Yan turned around.

There stood Wen Yifan, moving somewhat sluggishly, her expression dazed.

He raised an eyebrow, draping the towel over his neck. "What are you doing?"

Wen Yifan didn’t answer, walking toward him instead.

She stopped right in front of him.

"You come out right after I finish showering? No need to be so blatant about your intentions," Sang Yan looked down at her, his tone teasing. "If you wanted to see a handsome man fresh out of the—"

Before he could finish, Wen Yifan suddenly reached out and hugged him.

"..." Sang Yan froze.