To the girl, Yun Li's words sounded more like a declaration of sovereignty—her tone soft as cotton, yet her eyes held an undeniable certainty.
After the girl left, Yun Li took a sip of her mocha. Out of the blue, Fu Shize asked, "You still remember that?"
Yun Li turned to look at him. The man's features were sharp and cold, yet they couldn't conceal his youthful air. His expression was as calm as ever.
An inexplicable sense of pressure washed over her. Yun Li feigned composure. "Not really. I just wanted to encourage her since she's my fan."
Fu Shize set down his fork and knife. "Encourage her about what?"
"We've known each other for a while now. We should be considered friends, right? Friends can help friends find potential partners."
Fu Shize replied, "I thought we weren’t that close."
"..."
After just that one jab, Fu Shize returned to the topic. "What kind of partner?"
His tone was as indifferent as usual, but to Yun Li, it carried a hint of temptation and allure.
All the thoughts she had buried deep in her heart surged to the surface in an instant.
Struggling to suppress her anticipation and nervousness, she simply wanted to confirm whether Fu Shize might like someone of her type.
Yun Li swallowed hard, staring at him with a probing tone. "Someone pretty and quiet—introverted around others but extroverted around you, always circling you like a satellite. Would that work?"
She didn’t even give him other options.
Nor did she want to hear any other answer.
Fu Shize paused, leaning slightly to the right. He took a sip of water before flipping through her textbook.
"This is a key point."
Not getting the answer she wanted, Yun Li redirected her attention to the scribbled flowcharts and formulas on the page.
It had already been fifteen minutes past the agreed time, and Fu Zhengchu still hadn’t arrived. Yun Li checked her phone—there was a message from him fifteen minutes ago.
Fu Zhengchu: [Lili-jie, should I still come?]
Yun Li: [Why wouldn’t you?]
Fu Zhengchu: [Feels kinda awkward. Won’t I just kill the mood?]
Yun Li: [You’re not wrong.]
Fu Zhengchu: […]
Yun Li: [Please still come qaq, otherwise my intentions will be way too obvious.]
Fu Zhengchu: [On my way.]
In reality, Fu Zhengchu had arrived near the café long ago, hiding in a corner while observing the two of them as he read. After watching for a while and finding it utterly dull, he finally sent the message.
Once inside, Fu Zhengchu sat across from Fu Shize and opened his book, silently studying.
He barely spoke the entire time.
Fu Shize found it odd and tapped Fu Zhengchu’s book with his pen.
Fu Zhengchu stayed silent.
Fu Shize tapped the book again. "Bad mood?"
Fu Zhengchu shook his head. "Uncle, I’m studying. Stop bothering me."
Right now, he just wanted to be invisible.
Rarely dismissed by Fu Zhengchu like this, Fu Shize shifted his focus back to Yun Li.
After explaining the core concepts for each type of problem, two hours had passed. Fu Shize glanced at past exam papers, picked one of moderate difficulty, and placed it in front of Yun Li.
His instruction was simple: "Do it."
As Yun Li worked, Fu Shize rested his chin on his hand, watching her paper with lowered eyes.
…
Yun Li felt like she was back in third grade, with her math teacher looming over her, ominously tapping a ruler against his palm as a warning.
Every time she made progress, she had to gauge his reaction.Fu Shize rarely concealed his thoughts. Every time Yun Li got a multiple-choice or true-false question wrong, or made a mistake in the formulas on her draft paper, subtle changes would appear on his face—a frown or a squint.
Half an hour later.
After finally completing the twenty small questions, Yun Li was already covered in cold sweat.
Fu Shize checked her answers—all correct. His brows relaxed, clearly very satisfied with the results.
Yun Li didn’t understand. Was this the joy of a top student?
Not only did he have to get everything right himself, but the person he was supervising also had to get everything right?
Staring at his face, Yun Li couldn’t help but ask, “Did you used to help others cheat often?”
“?”
Yun Li: “You seem really skilled at it.”
Fu Shize was momentarily speechless. Yun Li continued, “Actually, I find these questions really brain-burning. If it weren’t for the exam, I probably wouldn’t even touch them…”
Fu Shize looked at her, noticing the hopeful expression on her face as if seeking validation. He forced a slight smile and perfunctorily said, "Yeah."”
“I might not be great at studying,” Yun Li began to justify her lack of academic prowess. “But being a content creator is pretty good. My last video already has three million views, and it’s in the handmade tech category.”
She emphasized the words “handmade tech,” as if to imply the video had at least some technical merit.
“I reassembled a Robot.”
Fu Shize: “Let me see.”
Yun Li opened the video and placed it on the table. Fu Shize watched the screen in silence the entire time, only showing a slight change in expression when the small football appeared.
Remembering something, Yun Li casually asked, “I need to shoot a new post for EAW. Can you help me operate the equipment later?”
Fu Shize absentmindedly hummed in agreement.
Before the video finished playing, E-Station pushed dozens of notifications to her. Yun Li hadn’t planned to check them, but accidentally tapped one, revealing a post with a string of comments tagging her. The post contained nine photos taken from the same angle.
First photo: Fu Shize leaned over the table, explaining a problem to her while she listened attentively, her gaze fixed on his face.
Second photo: Fu Shize wrote something on the draft paper with a pen while she propped her chin on her hand, her gaze fixed on his face.
Third photo: Fu Shize moved a piece of waffle to his lips while she lay on the table solving problems, her gaze fixed on his face.
Fans quickly noticed that in all nine photos, no matter what the two were doing, Yun Li’s gaze was always on Fu Shize’s face.
[@闲云嘀嗒酱 You two are so perfect together!] I’m shipping you so hard, wuwuwu!Women are all liars. My heart is broken. My wife got stolen. Unfollowing.Wuwuwu, my wife is remarried.】
Who the hell took these photos?
Yun Li was stunned. Judging by the angle, the photos were taken from the direction of the café’s restroom, where only a few scattered dried flowers were placed.
Fu Shize glanced at them, and Yun Li immediately covered her phone.
Perhaps it was because the comments had triggered her too many times.
Yun Li blurted out, “Wife, let’s do the questions.”
Fu Shize’s hand froze.
Fu Zhengchu tried hard to maintain his invisibility but couldn’t help laughing.
Looking at the two of them, Yun Li had only one thought in her mind—
So awkward.
So, so awkward.
How could something this awkward even happen?Not sure if he hadn't heard or simply couldn't be bothered, Fu Shize didn't utter a single unnecessary word. This silence multiplied the atmosphere a hundredfold, seeping into every pore of her being.
Averting her gaze, Yun Li covered her face, trying to cool down the rising heat.
"I need to use the restroom." Failing to lower her temperature, Yun Li fled in embarrassment.
Back at the table, Fu Zhengchu was still suppressing his laughter when Fu Shize tapped his head with a pen.
Unfazed, Fu Zhengchu clutched his stomach and burst out laughing: "Hahaha, wifey!"
Fu Shize: "..."
"Let me ask you something." He tapped Fu Zhengchu again with the pen.
Seeing Fu Shize's expression, Fu Zhengchu immediately quieted down.
He opened his mouth, struggling to force out the words: "Do I look like a girl?"
...
By the time Yun Li returned, both of them appeared completely composed. She calmly took her seat again, mechanically scribbling away while her mind wandered elsewhere.
"Hey, Yun Li."
Just as Yun Li was battling with past exam papers, Qu Mingxin's voice sounded above her head. She looked up to see Qu Mingxin in a delicate white lace dress, her makeup flawless, lightly draping an arm around Yun Li's neck.
"I saw you outside earlier and wondered if it was you."
"Can I sit here? Is this the colleague from last Halloween?" Without waiting for an answer, Qu Mingxin familiarly pulled up a chair and sat down, waving behind her. "Li Weiran, come over here."
Only then did Yun Li notice another fair-skinned girl behind them, who also pulled up a chair to sit.
With the intrusion of strangers, Yun Li instantly tensed up, stiffly greeting the two.
"Let's sit somewhere else. My classmates are studying for exams here."
But as she stood up, she realized the café was already full.
"We'll sit here. I'd like to get to know your friends too." Taking charge, Qu Mingxin naturally pulled Yun Li back into her seat.
An awkward silence fell over the group.
Yun Li didn't like Qu Mingxin, but she also knew their high school days were long past.
As the victim, those memories remained vivid and indelible.
Yet she didn't want to define someone forever based on behavior from when their personality was still forming.
Qu Mingxin chatted about her work and asked about their situations. When Yun Li's phone kept vibrating, she checked it to see He Jiameng calling. Holding up her phone, she gestured: "I'll take this outside."
He Jiameng wanted to confirm the theme for the promotional video. Having already considered it, Yun Li gave her immediate response.
"I want to make this EAW promotional video about a minute long, with the theme 'Trying.' What do you think?"
Reflecting on her entire journey as a content creator, there had been many attempts. Starting in the food section, gradually moving to crafts and lifestyle, then to the recent viral robot video.
For career prospects, she'd chosen automation for both undergraduate and graduate studies, initially aiming for EAW's technical department during her internship.
Being assigned to HR disrupted her orderly plans but brought new attempts and opportunities—she'd once longed to blend into the crowd; she wanted to prove that introversion didn't mean she couldn't excel at this job.
Yun Li loved this theme.
Trying always carried expectations for the future.
And she had expectations for her future with Fu Shize—stronger than all the rest."Just now, I saw Yun Li chatting with you all outside the window. She seems much more cheerful now, and I'm really happy for her," Qu Mingxin said with a smile. "I'd like to know how she's been doing lately. How about we exchange WeChat contacts?"
She proactively took out her phone. Hearing this, Fu Zhengchu unlocked his phone and was about to hand it over when a finger pressed down on his wrist.
Fu Shize: "No need."
This was the first time Qu Mingxin had been rejected when asking for someone's WeChat, and the other party seemed completely unapproachable.
Fu Zhengchu gave them an apologetic smile. "If you have anything to ask, you can talk to Lili-jie directly." Since they were Yun Li's friends, he didn’t want to seem distant and asked, "Are you her high school classmates?"
Qu Mingxin: "Yeah, we were really close in high school. But Yun Li usually got along better with boys. Among girls, her only close friends were me and Deng Chuqi."
"I’ll order some drinks for you, as a way to host you on Lili-jie’s behalf." Without overthinking it, Fu Zhengchu pressed the service bell.
Qu Mingxin first chatted casually with Fu Zhengchu about South Science and Technology University before steering the conversation to Yun Li’s high school days: "Yun Li had it pretty rough in high school. Because she couldn’t hear out of one ear, she often couldn’t understand what the teacher was saying in class. When called on to answer questions, she wouldn’t even know what the question was. Our teachers would scold her for not paying attention."
Fu Shize shifted slightly.
Fu Zhengchu clearly hadn’t processed this yet.
She continued regretfully: "So in high school, she was often punished by standing in class, and her grades weren’t great either. I heard later in university she didn’t get into grad school through the recommendation system—probably because she couldn’t hear the lectures clearly either. But it’s not like it was her fault. She’s been deaf in that ear since she was little, and because of it, she faced a lot of discrimination. She kind of stopped keeping in touch with us too."
"A lot of people have asked how she’s doing now, but she never replied. Still, seeing her so happy with you all, we feel relieved."
Fu Zhengchu was about to say something, but noticing Fu Shize’s expression from the corner of his eye, he automatically shut his mouth.
The server happened to bring the menu over. Just as Qu Mingxin took it, Fu Shize grabbed the other side and handed it back to the server.
Fu Shize: "You mentioned—you graduated with a bachelor’s degree and are working now."
Qu Mingxin nodded. "Yeah, right now I’m—"
Fu Shize rarely interrupted people, but this time he made an exception. With a cold laugh, he said, "Listening to you expose Yun Li’s shortcomings, I’ve been puzzled since last time—"
"You don’t seem like someone who’s been educated."
Qu Mingxin’s smile faltered. She defended herself: "I just wanted—"
Fu Shize: "Wanted us to notice her flaws, is that it?"
Fu Shize: "Haven’t noticed hers, but yours are quite obvious."
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