Fu Shize's memory blanked for a brief moment—it was an extremely distant name. After a pause, he finally responded with a slow "Mm."
The atmosphere in the car abruptly shifted.
Yun Li glanced at Fu Shize from the corner of her eye. His expression remained largely unchanged as he said calmly, "He's a good person. You’ll probably like working there."
It seemed a certain trigger had been activated. His mood noticeably darkened, though none of it showed on his face. Yun Li looked to both sides before turning into a dead-end path lined with campus trees.
The car stopped at the end.
Lush evergreen trees flanked them, their leaves rustling in the wind, large swathes of green blocking out the sunlight.
Staring into his lifeless eyes, Yun Li unbuckled her seatbelt and leaned forward, wrapping her arms tightly around him.
She wanted to give him all her strength.
Yun Li regretted bringing it up just now.
Originally, she had thought that since she worked at this company, Fu Shize would eventually find out that Zhou Tiao was her team leader.
Rather than keeping it a secret, it was better to tell him upfront.
If he had any reservations about it, she could simply find another job.
"Should I change jobs?" Yun Li asked directly. "I haven’t turned down some of the other offers yet."
"No need." Fu Shize lowered his gaze to look at her. "Zhou Tiao was a friend of mine a long time ago. He’s a good person. You’ll enjoy working with him."
Zhou Tiao had once been one of Fu Shize’s closest friends. After Jiang Yuan’s accident, Zhou Tiao and the other teammates had reached out to him many times.
He never replied.
The others could all understand.
He and Jiang Yuan had attended the same schools and classes since middle school, high school, and university. They were inseparable, always at the top of their class, as close as brothers.
They all assumed he couldn’t bear the blow of Jiang Yuan’s death.
It had been a long time.
Only now did it dawn on him—Jiang Yuan had been gone for over three years.
"I should have told you earlier. You had the right to know." Fu Shize’s face was slightly pale. Yun Li pressed her lips together and shook her head. "You don’t have to tell me what happened in the past. Whether I know or not doesn’t matter."
Yun Li interlaced her fingers tightly with his.
She hoped he would never have to think of unhappy things again.
But this time, Fu Shize didn’t remain silent as he usually did.
Perhaps because he had suffered in his own heart for too long.
Perhaps because he, too, wanted to grasp a sliver of hope to move forward.
"The insomnia is getting worse," Fu Shize said softly.
Because lately, he often dreamed of Jiang Yuan.
Chen Jinping’s birthday was approaching, which meant Jiang Yuan’s birthday was also near.
Even after more than three years, Fu Shize still felt that person should be alive.
When he and Jiang Yuan enrolled at West Science and Technology University together, Fu Shize had thought it was the beginning of their youthful dreams—and everything had developed as expected.
In their second semester of freshman year, Jiang Yuan suggested participating in a drone competition. They formed a team with their roommates.
Young and spirited, they stood out from the crowd.
When naming their team, they unanimously thought of the word "Unique."
That night, after eating barbecue at the backstreet, Fu Shize looked up at the crescent moon in the sky and decided on their team emblem.
Without seeking guidance from professors, they pulled all-nighters for a month, often leaving the office in the dark.
Yet back then, they never felt it was hard work.
They were all just young adults, and Fu Shize, at fifteen, was determined to win the national championship.They watched as the drone was gradually assembled, its algorithms perfected through countless test flights until it finally wobbled into the air, prompting cheers in the office.
Pushing each other, they spilled out onto the lawn.
Fu Shize steadied himself and maneuvered the drone through the sky, watching it shrink into a distant dot. He tilted his head back, chasing after it as the others whooped and followed behind.
They won first prize.
When the award was announced, Fu Shize had intended to remain composed, but the others’ excitement was contagious, and he found himself smiling uncontrollably.
They didn’t stop at just one first prize.
From local competitions to international stages, their annual participation became an unspoken tradition among them.
Until Jiang Yuan took his own life.
From childhood, Jiang Yuan had always been gentle, often the quiet listener in a crowd.
He never voiced what he truly wanted.
Yet they had promised each other—no secrets, no unspoken words.
For Fu Shize, life had always followed the same rhythm: school, cram classes, and in his free time, mischief or adventures with Jiang Yuan.
Even during his Ph.D., little changed.
They spent their days in their respective labs, calling each other over to lean against the hallway railings and chat when tired, reminding one another to eat, waking up early and returning late together.
Fu Shize couldn’t pinpoint when the disconnect began.
Shi Xiangzhe took him under his wing, and as his workload grew, he often had no time when Jiang Yuan reached out.
Only one moment stood out—just after submitting a revised paper, he exhaled in relief and invited Jiang Yuan to the café downstairs.
Exhausted from days without sleep, Fu Shize forced a smile. “Finally got it out.”
“…”
Jiang Yuan looked at him, his usual gentle smile absent. Instead, his expression was lost, hesitant. “I went to the hospital. The doctor said I have severe depression and anxiety.”
The terms meant little to Fu Shize. He glanced at Jiang Yuan, hesitating. “Should I look it up?”
Jiang Yuan nodded.
The more Fu Shize read, the more unsettled he became.
Someone like Jiang Yuan—always smiling when they were together, often the one comforting him —how could he have depression and anxiety?
Fu Shize kept his tone measured. “Did the doctor prescribe anything?”
“A few different medications.” Jiang Yuan pulled a pillbox from his bag. Fu Shize’s chest tightened as he tucked the pills back inside. “Just follow the doctor’s advice. It’ll be fine.”
Jiang Yuan hummed in agreement.
“Has anything happened recently?”
“Nothing. Maybe just the stress of submitting the paper.”
Fu Shize frowned. “Is that the truth?”
Jiang Yuan nodded.
“Do you feel unwell?” Fu Shize didn’t doubt him but pressed further.
Finally, Jiang Yuan managed a faint smile. “I don’t really feel anything.” Then, as if snapping back to reality, he nudged the cake on the table toward Fu Shize.
“Eat up. You just submitted your paper—this is for celebration.”
Nothing seemed amiss to Fu Shize. After the diagnosis, he made a point to eat with Jiang Yuan regularly, and Jiang Yuan still laughed and chatted with him as always.
Until the day Jiang Yuan’s mother called, saying he had slit his wrists in his dorm.
Fu Shize’s mind went blank. He sprinted downstairs, hopped onto Little Turtle, and raced to the dorm, where police cars and an ambulance were already parked, surrounded by a crowd of students.There were many people at Jiang Yuan's door—his counselor, the dorm supervisor, security guards, and a doctor.
He stood frozen in place, his legs seemingly no longer his own, as he shuffled to the dorm entrance.
Jiang Yuan sat on the bed, his face deathly pale, while the doctor wrapped bandages around his wrist.
When he saw Fu Shize, Jiang Yuan coldly lowered his gaze, as if wanting no contact at all. Fu Shize walked over to him, his voice filled with sorrow. "Brother..."
Hearing this address, Jiang Yuan seemed slightly moved and replied bitterly, "I'm sorry."
Because the medication made him drowsy, and it coincided with Jiang Yuan's submission deadline, he had secretly stopped taking it.
This time, the cut wasn't deep—just a shallow wound—so he wasn’t sent to the hospital.
Fearing another incident, the school demanded Jiang Yuan take a leave of absence.
Jiang Yuan refused, even threatening to cut himself again.
His parents pleaded desperately, and Fu Shize also sought help from Fu Dongsheng and Chen Jinping. Only then was he allowed to continue his studies.
Jiang Yuan’s parents asked Fu Shize to monitor his medication daily.
Jiang Yuan became deeply withdrawn, rarely smiling anymore.
He often drifted into a dazed state, and Fu Shize would have to call his name several times before he snapped out of it.
After taking the medication for a while, Jiang Yuan would return to normal, and his interactions with Fu Shize would resume as before.
Fu Shize asked him several times about the cause of his depression, but Jiang Yuan only cited the overwhelming pressure of graduation.
After two months of late nights, Fu Shize rushed to complete a paper. During a meal, he brought it up with Jiang Yuan. "I have an article ready—it’s been submitted for editing. It should get accepted by a first-tier journal. The algorithm was your idea, so I plan to list you as the first author, with your advisor as the corresponding author. Professor Shi has agreed."
Jiang Yuan knew Fu Shize was willing to give up his own work for him.
And he phrased it so tactfully.
A bitter irony settled in his heart, and he slowly stopped eating.
Only when silence fell between them did he glance up at Fu Shize. "A-Ze, you don’t have to."
"I can do this myself." Jiang Yuan smiled. "Don’t worry about me. You should get more sleep."
At the time, Fu Shize didn’t notice the oddity in his tone, mistaking it for his usual concern.
Jiang Yuan’s parents had only one child.
During his time in Nanwu, Fu Shize visited Jiang Yuan’s home many times. The elderly couple treated him like their own son.
Fu Shize called them daily to update them on Jiang Yuan’s condition.
He did these things not because his parents asked him to.
Since childhood, Fu Shize had written in essays and diaries about having an older brother.
Even without blood ties, Jiang Yuan was already family to him.
He didn’t want anything to happen to his brother.
He was terrified of anything happening to his brother.
Every day at the appointed time, Fu Shize would walk to Jiang Yuan’s lab and knock on the door.
He always saw the same scene—Unique’s jacket hanging on the chair, and the drone from their first competition sitting on the desk.
Sometimes Fu Shize would enter, other times he’d just stand at the door and call out, "Brother."
When Jiang Yuan was in a good mood, he’d smile helplessly, toss the pill into the air, catch it, and swallow it with water. Then he’d show his empty palm and tease, "See? I took it~"
When he was in a bad mood, he’d silently place it in his mouth.
Fu Shize kept watch.
He never missed a single dose.
Jiang Yuan gradually returned to normal, though he often spoke pessimistically to Fu Shize.The dynamics of their relationship had shifted over time. When they were young, it was Jiang Yuan who guided him, but as they grew older, he became the one guiding Jiang Yuan.
On Fu Shize’s birthday that year, Jiang Yuan followed his usual habit and ran to the North Mountain Maple Forest.
At that time, Fu Shize’s grandmother was still alive, and he pushed her wheelchair outside.
Jiang Yuan lit sparklers in the yard and handed one to the elderly woman.
Though her hands trembled too much to hold the sparkler steadily, she was still overjoyed, grinning as she spoke haltingly, “Yuanyuan is more well-behaved than Zeze.”
Fu Shize paid no mind to her words.
Who was more obedient or better between him and Jiang Yuan didn’t matter. They had been together since childhood, and the thought of competition had never crossed his mind. What he cherished more was the two of them competing together and winning awards together.
He believed Jiang Yuan felt the same way.
On that final day,
Jiang Yuan knocked on the door of his lab.
Fu Shize was in the middle of an experiment when he smoothly pulled the door open. The other smiled and asked, “Got a minute?”
“In the middle of an experiment. Want to come in?” Fu Shize stepped slightly aside.
Jiang Yuan gave a quiet hum and followed him inside.
“Brought you some milk tea.” Jiang Yuan set the cup on the table.
Fu Shize had been burning the midnight oil for this project and only responded with a tired murmur.
Jiang Yuan leaned against the workbench, silently watching Fu Shize.
Assembling the robot, adjusting the code, operating it—the entire process was methodical, as if he were born to be here.
Fu Shize, focused on a small component of the robot, said, “Once I finish adjusting this, you can give it a try.”
“……”
Jiang Yuan didn’t answer.
Fu Shize looked up and saw that Jiang Yuan had taken the drone from his desk and was fiddling with it in his hands.
Jiang Yuan traced the U-shaped letter on the drone and smiled. “When we first entered this kind of competition, I never imagined we’d take first place.”
“I can still remember standing on stage to receive the award, surrounded by camera flashes. That first win was truly the happiest moment of my life.” Jiang Yuan tilted his head back. “Back then, it was so easy to be content. Do you remember the day that rickety plane finally took off? Zhou Tiao was so excited he nearly jumped into the trees, and when he ran too fast, a branch tore a huge hole in his pants.”
“Ask Zhou Tiao what he thinks.” Fu Shize also remembered those times and couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Zhou Tiao’s about to graduate, right? I heard he got an offer from one of the drone giants—they offered him a really high salary.” Jiang Yuan murmured.
“Yeah.” Fu Shize snapped the last component into place and straightened up. “Now, it’s just you and me left in Unique.”
The others had all graduated with their master’s degrees.
Jiang Yuan’s expression darkened. “Are we competing this year?”
“Why don’t you lead the team this time?” Fu Shize had too much on his plate and lacked the energy and time to continue as the team captain.
“I can’t.” Jiang Yuan refused. “Without your help these past few months, I’ve realized just how far behind I am compared to others.”
He gave a bitter laugh. “The pressure feels unbearable. Aze, I feel like this stress is crushing me.”
“……”
“What’s wrong?” Fu Shize frowned. “Last time, you said you were fine.”
Back then, Jiang Yuan’s expression had been calm, though exhaustion lingered at the corners of his eyes. After a pause, he finally let out a slow, quiet hum."It's fine, but I want it to be better." Jiang Yuan's tone was as composed as ever. "Sometimes I wonder if I'd be better off now if I'd never met you."
"..."
Fu Shize didn't take such hurtful words to heart, remaining silent.
"Sometimes I envy you. You have everything," Jiang Yuan laughed, though there was no discomfort in his voice.
Fu Shize adjusted the controller, making the robot move slightly, then handed it to Jiang Yuan, hoping to lighten the heavy atmosphere.
Jiang Yuan shook his head. "No, these things aren't for me to touch."
His smile was bittersweet. "If you've never flown high, you can accept a lifetime of mediocrity."
Jiang Yuan was his closest friend, and Fu Shize never resented or reacted to his negativity. Calmly, he said, "Don't think like that. Most of the awards I've won were with you."
He pointed to the trophies in the cabinet. "We won them as a team—not just Fu Shize alone, nor just Jiang Yuan alone."
Jiang Yuan stared at the drone in his hands for a long moment before finally murmuring, "Mm."
"Put the drone away properly—there's only one of it," Fu Shize said, trying to ease the tension. He looked at Jiang Yuan. "Want to play basketball tomorrow?"
Jiang Yuan smiled faintly. "Forget it. I'm a bit tired."
Fu Shize nodded. "Alright. Let me know when you're up for it."
"Then I'll head out." Jiang Yuan waved, fiddling with the drone as he walked away.
Fu Shize watched his tall, slender figure disappear into the dim hallway and called out, "Jiang Yuan."
The other man turned to glance at him.
"I'll be late with experiments today. What time are you heading back?" Fu Shize paused briefly before adding, "Let's go together."
"I don't know," Jiang Yuan shook his head.
This wasn’t the first time such a conversation had passed between them.
Fu Shize thought nothing of it—just another ordinary exchange.
Time slipped away in the lab. When the sound of rain reached him, Fu Shize looked out the window. Dark clouds blotted out the moon, and the night was restless.
He adjusted the robot’s algorithm, and with a smooth motion of the controller, the robot moved fluidly.
Then—a deafening thud .
Fu Shize glanced toward the door but paid it no mind, continuing to operate the robot. He mused about testing its combat performance with Jiang Yuan tomorrow—an idea they’d conceived long ago.
The lab building had poor soundproofing.
He heard screams.
He heard frantic footsteps in the hallway.
He heard someone calling for an ambulance.
Finally, he heard someone shout Jiang Yuan’s name.
Fu Shize’s hands froze on the controls. He stumbled out, the world tilting around him as rain slanted into the corridor.
He remembered Jiang Yuan’s wrist-cutting incident long ago—how relieved he’d been then.
He’d believed Jiang Yuan didn’t want to leave this world.
This world had his family.
He wouldn’t leave.
By the time Fu Shize reached the first floor and stepped into the rain, approaching the shadow on the ground, he still clung to the thought— It can’t be Jiang Yuan.
One look at the face would confirm it wasn’t him.
He couldn’t accept it.
This became Fu Shize’s most agonizing memory.On that night, no different from any other, thunder roared and rain poured, leaves rustled violently as the storm washed over the earth. Feeling the raindrops pelting his skin, he recalled the rains they had endured together in the past, the scoldings they had weathered side by side.
That person—his brother, his closest friend.
Now lay before him, just like this.
"Brother."
The rain swallowed Fu Shize's voice.
"Jiang Yuan."
The icy rain battered his body, just as it did Jiang Yuan's.
The blood had already been diluted by the downpour.
Moving like a lifeless shell, Fu Shize took off his thin jacket and draped it over Jiang Yuan.
His body still trembled faintly.
His body still held warmth.
Fu Shize repeated to him, over and over.
"Jiang Yuan."
"Stay awake."
"Don't close your eyes."
Around them, umbrellas of different colors bloomed like flowers in the rain, silently accepting the deluge.
So did he.
Jiang Yuan lay on the concrete ground, his gaze no longer carrying the warmth and laughter of the past.
Instead, it was cold.
Devoid of emotion.
......
Fu Dongsheng and Chen Jinping rushed to the hospital as soon as they received the news.
In the hospital corridor, Fu Shize sat on a chair.
Drenched from head to toe, puddles of water pooled around him. The cold fluorescent light cast a stark pallor over his face.
Fu Dongsheng quickly removed his own coat, stripping Fu Shize of his wet clothes on the spot and replacing them.
Fu Shize remained motionless, like a puppet, letting them maneuver him.
The emergency light flickered off. The doctor stepped out and shook his head regretfully.
Fu Shize seemed unable to comprehend. He grabbed Fu Dongsheng's arm, his words frantic and irrational: "Can you save him?"
His voice trembled. "Don’t you know so many medical professors?"
"Dad, Mom, can you save him?"
Even if he became a vegetable. Even if he lost all his limbs.
Any outcome would be fine—just don’t let him die.
He was my only brother.
Don’t let him die.
He knew it was impossible.
He had received a proper scientific education. He knew every question he asked now was nothing but futile desperation.
Yet he kept repeating them.
......
The police found discarded pills in a jar inside Jiang Yuan’s desk drawer.
Turns out, Jiang Yuan himself had never swallowed the medication.
On the desk, a drone pressed down on a note—written in Jiang Yuan’s handwriting.
[Personal actions. No one else is involved.]
Jiang Yuan’s parents never got to see him one last time.
By the time they arrived at the hospital after their flight, Jiang Yuan had already been moved to the morgue.
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