Arriving home after work, the furnishings in the house were exactly the same as when she left, yet somehow everything felt different. Yun Li tossed her bag onto the sofa. The Cardboard Drone she had assembled a few days ago still sat on the coffee table.
She probably wouldn’t be giving it away now.
The cardboard-made drone was fragile—too delicate to pack into a box, yet too bulky to leave on the table. Yun Li held it in her hands, weighing it for a long time.
In the end, she couldn’t bring herself to throw it away.
She found a higher shelf, cleared a spot, and placed it there. Out of sight, out of mind.
Sitting in front of her computer with swollen eyes from crying, Yun Li scrolled through the comments on EAW’s promotional video released that day. Most were talking about booking visits to the EAW Experience Center.
The promotional video had achieved its purpose, but Yun Li’s mood couldn’t have been worse.
She skimmed through the fans’ affectionate comments, filled with phrases like “Wifey is amazing” and “Wifey is a tech genius.”
A blank avatar with a username of random letters caught her eye—just two words: “Looks good.” The comment was quickly buried under the flood of new ones.
For three days straight, Yun Li remained gloomy, and falling asleep became difficult.
She attended classes as usual, still frequently picking up her phone. But the WeChat interface she used to check obsessively was now inaccessible.
Fu Zhengchu even tried inviting her to play Honor of Kings , planning to rope Fu Shize into a trio. Despite Fu Zhengchu’s enthusiastic efforts, Yun Li didn’t have the courage to tell him about her crushing defeat. She made up an excuse to decline.
Since that meeting downstairs, she hadn’t seen Fu Shize again.
The two of them were like parallel lines with no intersection. Even now, despite her one-sided withdrawal, Fu Shize might still be completely unaware.
It was as if she had no presence at all.
On Tuesday morning, Yun Li stayed in bed, unwilling to get up.
She felt that returning to EAW was something that required overcoming many obstacles. One of the reasons she had taken the internship was now gone. If she were to see Fu Shize at EAW again, she couldn’t imagine how she would react.
After struggling for a while, Yun Li dragged herself up with dark circles under her eyes and went to brush her teeth. She had spent three days psyching herself up—there was no need to abandon her first internship just because of a romantic failure.
At the company, Yun Li took her usual bread and milk to the break room for breakfast. She had barely sat down when she heard movement from the sofa behind her.
Yun Li stiffened slightly and looked up to see Fu Shize walking toward her. How many days had it been? Six? Seven? Eight?
She couldn’t remember.
Fu Shize also seemed sleep-deprived, looking somewhat listless.
He stopped in front of the coffee machine. The sound of beans grinding filled the room, and then she heard him ask,
“Want coffee?”
Confirming there was no one else around, Yun Li realized he could only be talking to her.
She lowered her head. “No, thanks.”
She had imagined this scenario many times, but now that it was happening, she only felt flustered. Yun Li grabbed her half-finished milk and hurriedly stood up to leave.
At this moment, Yun Li acted as if Fu Shize were some kind of monster. He tilted his head slightly, looking puzzled.
Fu Shize thought back to what had happened a few days ago.
That night, after dropping Yun Li off at Seven Mile Fragrant Capital, he didn’t drive back to South River Garden until 3 a.m.
Before sleeping, he turned his phone’s ringer to the loudest setting, afraid Yun Li might message him in the morning. By the time he woke up, it was already noon on Saturday.Hastily thawing two sandwiches, he sat on the balcony and went through every comment under Yun Li's videos again.
As dusk began to fall, Fu Shize realized Yun Li hadn’t contacted him all day.
Grabbing a bottle of ice water from the fridge, he checked the time—5:30 PM. He downed half the bottle in one go, the chill bringing back a sliver of rationality, but it did nothing to soothe the restlessness in his heart.
He wanted to see her.
Before leaving with his jacket, Fu Shize spotted the scarf on the sofa. He picked it up and carefully wrapped it around his neck twice in front of the mirror.
Driving to Sea Sky Mall, he bought some small cakes.
When he arrived at her building, Fu Shize called twice, but Yun Li didn’t answer.
With nothing else to do, he waited where he was.
From the shadows, Fu Shize saw Yun Li step out of a car. She wore light makeup and a green dress, its hem still swaying slightly.
The one who drove her back was Yin Yucheng.
Both were prominent figures at their respective schools and had crossed paths more than once.
Yin Yucheng had even gotten out to open the passenger door for her. After returning to the car, another figure could be seen in the back seat. Yin Yucheng only rolled down the passenger window, his intense gaze lingering on Yun Li for several seconds.
As a man himself, Fu Shize didn’t need words to understand the intent behind such actions.
For a moment, Fu Shize felt lost.
He looked down at the cigarette between his fingers. The wound on his palm had already scarred over. Recalling how few sober days he’d had in the past year and a half, he quickly regained his composure.
—His presence might only tarnish her.
But someone else was being irrational in his stead.
A day later, his phone notification showed an update from "Xianyun Didajiang"—a video about making a Cardboard Drone. At the end, she said, "For someone important."
For some reason, he felt a wave of relief.
He had given up on himself, but someone else hadn’t given up on him.
And he realized he didn’t want her to give up either.
Originally planning to stay at EAW from morning till night, Fu Shize ended up spending a few days at the hospital caring for an elderly family member. When Xu Qingsong came to visit, the two chatted briefly in the hallway.
After getting recommendations for places to eat from Xu Qingsong, Fu Shize asked before leaving, "Was there anything on my desk?"
Xu Qingsong: "Glanced before I left—just a few books and your laptop."
Fu Shize fell silent.
...
Back in the present, Yun Li’s demeanor was distant as she walked toward the door. Fu Shize lowered his head, idly tapping the cup handle with his index finger.
"That drone... wasn’t it meant for me?"
Yun Li froze but didn’t turn around. "No."
When Fu Shize said nothing more, she closed the door behind her.
Returning to her seat, Yun Li placed the milk on the table and stared blankly at the words on it. Earlier, she had only wanted to escape the break room, but now she belatedly realized her chest felt heavy, as if blocked by a boulder.
She closed her eyes.
Perhaps because she had been the one pursuing him from start to finish before giving up, Yun Li felt like she’d been performing a one-sided drama. It sounded like Fu Shize had watched her videos and even thought the drone was meant for him—just as she had imagined.
Fu Shize hadn’t even noticed she’d deleted him from WeChat.
A sudden wave of frustration washed over her. The whole process had been nothing but setbacks—a failed confession, an unrequited pursuit, and even her decision to give up feeling like a solitary act.
Yun Li wanted to send Fu Shize a WeChat message telling him she had given up on pursuing him and wished him happiness.
...
But she had already deleted him.
At noon, Yun Li unexpectedly received a call from Yin Yucheng.The voice on the phone was deep and gentle: "Hello, I'm Yin Yucheng, Yin Yunyi's older brother."
Yun Li searched her memory for a moment before recalling that this was Yun Ye's classmate.
"Since Yunyi lives at school, I'm the one who picks up the letters sent to our home. I noticed that her former class has been sending her postcards—about two per week for the past three months."
Yun Li was a bit puzzled: "Yunyi seems quite popular."
Yin Yucheng chuckled lightly: "Indeed. Although they're all signed by Class 15 of the second year, I compared the handwriting and found it's all the same."
Yun Li: "Oh..."
Yin Yucheng: "Hmm, it matches the handwriting on that gift box from before."
Yun Li: "..."
Yin Yucheng: "Our family is a bit concerned that Yunyi might be in a relationship at this stage. I'm near Sea Sky Mall—would you be free to meet and talk?"
After arranging a time with Yin Yucheng, Yun Li sent Yun Ye a message: 【Yun Ye, I am utterly impressed by you!!!】
At this hour, Yun Ye was likely at school and probably too busy to check his phone.
Yun Li couldn't help but suspect that every time Yun Ye had urged her to come home over the phone, it was just so she could deliver gifts to Yin Yunyi.
At the same café as last time, Yin Yucheng was already waiting when Yun Li arrived. Seeing her, he handed her the menu.
Yun Li: "No need, I have to get to work soon."
Yin Yucheng closed the menu: "Which company are you interning at nearby?"
Yun Li: "EAW, the VR Experience Center."
Yin Yucheng rested his chin on his hand, thoughtful, but before he could ask further, Yun Li took the initiative: "So, what you meant earlier was that my brother and your sister might be in a puppy love?"
Seemingly caught off guard by her directness, he smiled and pulled out a stack of postcards from his briefcase. Most were simple kraft paper cards, with a few commemorative postcards from West Fuling Experimental High School mixed in.
"Our family is quite strict with Yunyi. We only let her use a smartwatch, which might be why your brother resorted to sending postcards." His tone was almost amused, as if waiting to see what would happen next.
"It might not be what you think..." Yun Li trailed off as soon as she saw the handwriting on the back of the postcards and fell silent.
The stack of about twenty postcards all bore familiar handwriting to Yun Li. But unlike his usual scribbles, every word on these postcards was neatly written.
Yun Li handed them back: "What are your thoughts?"
She had only glanced briefly, which surprised Yin Yucheng: "Aren't you going to read the contents?"
Yun Li: "No, it looks like my brother's writing. I don't dare snoop through his letters."
He laughed at her words: "Don't dare?"
Yun Li blinked, unsure what was funny about her statement.
Yin Yucheng studied the slightly flustered young woman before him and didn't press further: "I just wanted to confirm with you whether this is your brother's handwriting, so I can be sure."
Yun Li looked at the postcards, her expression complicated: "Did Yunyi agree to you bringing these out?"
"Yunyi is still quite naive. She probably just thinks they're from her old class."
Yun Li understood his implication—this was one-sided affection from Yun Ye, and the family was worried it might affect Yin Yunyi's studies.
This was the first time Yun Li had to handle something like this for Yun Ye. Her voice carried a hint of apology: "Then I'll talk to Yun Ye when I get back."Yin Yucheng thought for a moment before adding, "We haven't decided yet. If it doesn't affect his studies, we don't plan to interfere. If you hear anything, just give me a call."
Yin Yucheng invited Yun Li to stay for dinner again, but she declined. After some hesitation, she couldn't help asking, "Um, can I ask you something?"
Yin Yucheng: "Go ahead."
Yun Li: "Does Yun Yi write back to Yun Ye?"
Yin Yucheng pondered briefly: "Probably not. As far as I know, she doesn't have pocket money to buy stamps."
Yun Li: "Oh..."
She thought of Yun Ye—how he fidgeted every day, either solving problems or playing games, still very much an uncouth teenager.
Yet he'd persisted for three months, sending letters that went unanswered.
Yun Li couldn't help but put herself in his shoes, feeling a surge of sympathy for him.
Yin Yucheng put on his jacket and followed her out, saying politely, "Let me walk you to the company entrance. I can also see where Yun Ye's sister works."
Yun Li was about to refuse when Yin Yucheng's tone lifted playfully: "We might be family someday."
Yun Li: "..."
They didn't speak along the way. Yin Yucheng glanced at the girl beside him—she seemed uncomfortable around strangers, her unease palpable.
At the EAW entrance, Yin Yucheng didn't go in. Smiling, he said, "Don't stress too much about this. We'll keep in touch if there's news."
Yun Li nodded, swiped her card, and turned away. The glass door reflected Yin Yucheng's figure—he hadn't left yet. Pretending not to notice, she hurried to the break room.
It was 12:45 now. Her lunchbox was still there. The break room was empty, two lunchboxes left in the thermal bag on the table, their sauces leaking into the bag.
Before the door could close, someone stopped it from behind. Fu Shize pushed it open and stood beside her. From her peripheral vision, she could see the tips of his shoes and the hem of his pants.
Yun Li just wanted to grab her lunch and leave. The person beside her moved slightly, gently nudging her outstretched hand aside.
"Don't dirty your hands."
Fu Shize wiped the edges of the lunchboxes clean with a tissue, then placed both in the microwave to heat.
The air conditioning was set to 30°C, making the room stiflingly hot. He opened half the window, and only after the cold air rushed in did Yun Li feel she could breathe a little easier.
The familiar figure moved before her, yet her legs seemed glued to the spot, unable to move.
Ding.
Fu Shize opened the microwave, lined the table with two sheets of paper, and placed the lunchboxes side by side. He unwrapped each one, then the chopsticks.
Pulling out a chair, he looked up at the person still standing motionless.
"Sit here?"
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