The road out of the city at night was wide and unobstructed, shrouded in darkness. Ye Sibei gripped the steering wheel, her eyes fixed nervously ahead.
The speedometer showed 30 km/h as the car crawled forward like a tortoise through the night. Qin Nan sat in the passenger seat, lighting a cigarette and taking a deep drag, his expression grave as he stared at the road ahead.
When the car approached a pedestrian crossing, Ye Sibei hit the brakes, honked the horn, and inched forward cautiously.
Watching this textbook driving school maneuver, Qin Nan held back for a long moment before finally asking, "How long have you had your license?"
"Don't talk to me," Ye Sibei kept her eyes on the road. "I'm nervous."
Taking the hint, Qin Nan inhaled deeply from his cigarette and turned away to compose himself.
An hour had passed since their escape plan began, but thanks to Ye Sibei's "safe driving," they hadn't even reached the highway yet. Even Qin Nan's normally steady temperament was fraying at the edges from the agonizingly slow pace.
"Maybe I should drive instead."
Qin Nan stubbed out his cigarette, resolved. Ye Sibei shook her head stubbornly, her gaze fixed ahead.
"No," she said firmly. "I want to drive myself."
Qin Nan paused, glancing at the speedometer with a hint of despair. But seeing her determined expression, he straightened up and offered some advice: "Fine, you can drive. But remember one thing."
"What?"
"Driving below 100 on the highway," Qin Nan said with dead seriousness, "is illegal."
Ye Sibei: "..."
She drove slowly but persistently. Qin Nan dozed off intermittently, waking occasionally to find them still moving before drifting back to sleep. After several cycles of this, he awoke to find the car parked in an open lot. Ye Sibei was slumped over the steering wheel, fast asleep. The sky was still pitch black, with only a faint glimmer of light in the distance.
Qin Nan looked around and spotted a large billboard nearby featuring a cartoon tiger with outstretched arms, welcoming visitors to "G City Amusement Park!" He glanced between the sign and the woman sleeping on the wheel, unable to suppress a soft chuckle.
She'd actually made it.
Lighting another cigarette in the quiet night, he studied her slightly distorted profile pressed against the wheel and found himself wide awake.
It felt like he was meeting Ye Sibei for the first time—or witnessing her return. This woman possessed such tenacious vitality, stubborn and unyielding. She'd driven them to their destination all by herself while he merely sat there.
As he watched her, time seemed to stand still.
The sun gradually rose, its light falling on Ye Sibei's face. The surroundings slowly came alive with voices as shops opened and breakfast vendors set up their stalls. Ye Sibei blinked awake.
Qin Nan was stretching his legs outside when he saw her sit up. He approached the window and called out, "Let's go. Find somewhere to freshen up and grab some food."
They retrieved their toothbrushes and cups from the car, used a public restroom to wash up, then headed for breakfast together.
"Where to next?"
"The amusement park," Ye Sibei said between bites of noodles. "I worked there once but never got to visit properly."
"Ah," Qin Nan nodded. "Same. Never been."After finishing their meal, they bought tickets and entered the amusement park. The morning queues weren’t long, so they quickly boarded the roller coaster together and fastened their seatbelts. Ye Sibei turned to Qin Nan and asked, "Are you scared?"
"What’s there to be scared of?" The roller coaster slowly started moving, and Qin Nan replied nonchalantly, "I’m a grown man… holy sh*t!!!"
Amid the screams, Ye Sibei heard Qin Nan’s uncharacteristic curse, and her own shrieks turned into breathless laughter.
The roller coaster rose and plunged, and when they finally got off, Qin Nan rushed straight to a nearby trash can, dry heaving. Ye Sibei quickly fetched water and watched him with concern. "Are you okay?"
Qin Nan waved her off, straightened up, and drank the water. After resting for a while, they moved on to the next attraction.
Afraid of overthinking, Ye Sibei dragged them toward all the thrilling rides. During a break, she spotted the carousel and challenged Qin Nan to rock-paper-scissors—loser had to ride it. Qin Nan lost and was forced to wear a pair of cute animal headbands meant for kids before boarding the carousel with a crowd of children.
Parents and kids kept glancing back, wondering what was wrong with this tall, stoic man. Meanwhile, Ye Sibei stood to the side taking pictures, laughing uncontrollably.
Her laughter made her bolder, and she pulled Qin Nan toward the bungee jump next. Strapped into their harnesses, Qin Nan stood at the edge, trying to appear calm but refusing to move forward. Ye Sibei stood behind him and asked again, "Are you scared to jump?"
"What’s there to be scared of?"
Qin Nan glanced down, his face paling further. "I just need a little more prep."
"Get used to it first," Ye Sibei said, nudging him forward. "Stand right at the edge—just stand here. Don’t worry, I won’t—"
Before she could finish, she gave him a hard shove. Qin Nan grabbed her in panic, shouting, "Ye Sibei!!!"
"Ahhhhhh!!!"
They plummeted together, Qin Nan instinctively clutching her tightly as their screams merged. In his arms, hearing him yell her name, Ye Sibei felt the rush of wind and the weightless sensation of near-death—yet strangely, she wasn’t afraid at all.
By the time they finished all the rides, it was already afternoon. Qin Nan was completely drained, slumping onto a bench to rest.
Ye Sibei turned to him. "Still up for more?"
Qin Nan abandoned all pretense of toughness and shook his head immediately. "No more."
"Alright," Ye Sibei checked the time. "Let’s grab some food first."
They headed to a shopping mall and ate barbecue on the rooftop. Ye Sibei ordered beer, while Qin Nan, who was driving, stuck to cola. As they ate, they chatted.
Qin Nan told her about the world he’d seen while working as an apprentice along the coast—how girls there wore tank tops and shorts in the city center, sporting bold makeup, laughing and fooling around in public squares without a care for standing out or worrying about being judged or stared at.
In turn, she shared stories from her university days—how she envied classmates who owned laptops as freshmen, those who were well-read, or those who scored over 100 on the TOEFL in their first year.
Listening to her, Qin Nan instinctively asked, "What’s a TOEFL?"
Ye Sibei froze. She looked at him, and in that moment, she suddenly realized how meaningless her past insecurities had been. Qin Nan didn’t even know what the TOEFL was—yet he was far stronger, far more confident, living with dignity and grace in this world.She looked at Qin Nan for a long while before speaking softly, "Qin Nan, next time, if I feel like cursing someone, you have to stop me."
"Stop you how?" Qin Nan glanced up at her. "What new insults could you possibly come up with?"
Ye Sibei smiled and said earnestly, "Stop me from cursing them to death."
Qin Nan paused mid-sip of water, then laughed and raised his glass to her. "Leave it to me."
On the way back to Nan City, Qin Nan drove while Ye Sibei sat in the passenger seat, searching online for curse words and reciting them haltingly.
"Do you know why my grandma lived so long? Because she minded her own business."
"Today I feel like cursing someone, so I won't curse you."
...
Ye Sibei repeated the lines over and over, growing more fluent as she went. Qin Nan listened as he drove, chuckling to himself.
As the car moved further away from G City, Ye Sibei couldn't help but look back. It felt as though they were driving from a beautiful dream into reality, and she was reluctant to leave.
Qin Nan glanced at her, seeming to sense her feelings.
"Ye Sibei."
He called her name softly. She turned to him, and Qin Nan spoke calmly, "After the lawsuit is over, I'll sell the house, and we can move to G City."
Ye Sibei was stunned. She met his gaze, finding his eyes steady and reassuring, as if every word he spoke could truly come to pass.
"See?" He held her gaze. "Moving on isn't so hard."
Ye Sibei didn't dare respond. She listened but couldn't bring herself to believe it.
She was afraid to place her hopes in someone else, unable to control their rise and fall.
But secretly, she tucked that hope into her own heart.
Watching the headlights cut through the darkness as they sped down the highway, she whispered, "Okay."
One day in the future, with or without Qin Nan, she would leave.
But before she did, she needed the world to give her an answer.
Qin Nan drove much faster, and they arrived home before 11 p.m.
As soon as she stepped inside, Ye Sibei received a call from Ye Nianwen.
"Jie," Nian Wen said excitedly.
Hearing his voice, Ye Sibei instinctively held her breath. Nian Wen continued happily, "I heard the DNA match came back—it's Fan Jiancheng."
Ye Sibei's lips trembled, but she couldn't speak.
"The police have detained him and are gathering more evidence. I just wanted to let you know."
Ye Sibei nodded. "Okay."
Her voice was hoarse. "That's great."
After hanging up, she looked at Qin Nan, who smiled and was about to say something when her phone lit up again.
Ye Sibei checked the screen—it was a call from someone named "Xu Xia."
Noticing her hesitation, Qin Nan gave her a questioning look. Ye Sibei explained, "A colleague of Fuqiang's. She was always kind to me before."
After a moment's thought, she answered the call.
Before she did, Qin Nan whispered, "Remember to curse."
Ye Sibei couldn't help but laugh before stepping onto the balcony.
"Hello, Xia Jie. What's up?"
"Ah, Sibei," Xu Xia began. "What are you up to?"
"Just at home."
"Oh, well, the reason I called... I heard some news. I heard General Fan was detained, and that you reported him."
"I did."
"Sibei, you know, General Fan has always been a good person. He treated you well too. When you first joined the company, HR didn't want to hire you, but he insisted on keeping you.""Sister Xia, what exactly are you trying to say?"
"Ah, actually it's nothing much. I don't know what's really going on between you two, but I'm saying this for your own good. I want to advise you to be merciful where mercy is due. Whatever issues you have, talk it out privately. There's no need to insist on sending someone to prison, don't you think?"
Ye Sibei remained silent. Seeing this, Yang Xia relaxed and continued her persuasion: "If this escalates, it'll look bad for the company and embarrass you too. And if you won't think for yourself, at least consider your family? How will people view Qin Nan after this? And Chuchu—if you don't relent, do you think the company will keep her? Not to mention your parents—"
"And what else?" Ye Sibei interrupted her, leaning against the doorframe while staring at the patterns on the floor. "What else can you threaten me with?"
"Sibei, how can you say that?" Yang Xia's tone immediately turned stern. "I'm doing this for your sake, how could you—"
"Thanks," Ye Sibei cut her off swiftly. "You and I aren't close enough for you to be this concerned about me. Once a criminal case is filed, whether to withdraw the charges isn't up to me. Don't call me again—it's pointless."
"Ye Sibei, think carefully. How easy is it for you to find a job? With General Fan's connections—"
Before Yang Xia could finish, Ye Sibei hung up.
After ending the call, Qin Nan approached. "What did she say?"
"Nothing important."
Ye Sibei smiled. "Tomorrow I'll look for a job, and you go to the shop. Don't worry about me."
Qin Nan hesitated, wanting to say something, but ultimately stayed silent.
He had considered asking Ye Sibei to stay home but feared that the confidence she had painstakingly built might shatter again under such "special treatment."
The two fell quiet. After a moment, Ye Sibei said, "Let's sleep."
Qin Nan nodded, hesitating before finally asking, "Where should I sleep?"
Ye Sibei froze. Qin Nan looked at her. "If I sleep on the bed, I'm afraid you'll feel uneasy. If I sleep on the floor, I'm afraid you'll overthink it."
Understanding his meaning, Ye Sibei lowered her head, chuckled softly, and then asked, "Where do you want to sleep?"
"On the floor."
"Why?" Ye Sibei knew that by voicing it, he meant sleeping on the floor wasn't because he was uncomfortable with the situation. Qin Nan didn't answer directly. Instead, he went to fetch bedding and murmured, "Because I want to."
With that, he laid out the bedding. That night, as they lay side by side, Ye Sibei whispered, "Qin Nan, have you ever liked someone?"
Qin Nan gazed at the moonlight, his voice soft. "I don't know what liking someone means. But there is someone I've always wished well."
"I never thought about being with her, but I've always hoped she'd have a good life."
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