Yu Tu found himself plunged into unprecedented busyness. His colleagues at the research institute had long grown accustomed to working day and night and working six days a week, but even they were somewhat taken aback by his all-consuming dedication.
Emerging from the laboratory, Da Meng couldn't help but advise him, "Take it easy. Don't end up in the hospital like Lao Guan."
He still didn't know the true severity of Guan Zai's condition.
Yu Tu replied, "It's fine. I know my limits."
Of course he wouldn't gamble with his health. Since returning to the institute, his life had become even more regimented than before. Where he used to occasionally skip meals and rest while working with Guan Zai, he now ate, rested, and exercised with unwavering punctuality.
He scheduled his time with tight precision, leaving no gaps, and executed his plans with strict discipline.
Speaking of which, you didn't actually rest during your several days off, did you?" Da Meng said.
"Why do you say that?"
"You've been working like you've been divinely inspired since coming back. One after another, you've solved all the previous sticking points. Old Yu, with this kind of drive, are you trying to seize the throne while Lao Guan's in the hospital?"
"Get lost." Yu Tu dismissed him with two words.
After Da Meng actually left, Yu Tu remained standing where he was. After a long moment, he let out a self-mocking laugh.
On a Saturday afternoon in the middle of the month, Yu Tu received a call from Zhai Liang.
"Xia Qing is in Shanghai. She says she wants to make up for last time and treat everyone to a meal. She asked me to invite you. Either today or tomorrow works."
Yu Tu refused directly, "I don't have time."
"Alright, I just thought I'd ask. It's probably better you don't go anyway, to avoid that jerk Qu Ming acting up again." Zhai Liang hung up cheerfully. However, around ten o'clock that night, just as Yu Tu was about to leave work, Zhai Liang called again.
When Yu Tu answered, the voice that came through was Xia Qing's. She seemed somewhat intoxicated as she unexpectedly asked, "Yu Tu, Miss Qiao... who is Miss Qiao?"
Miss Qiao...
It had been quite a while since he last thought about Miss Qiao, yet so many people seemed to enjoy bringing her up. In both his high school and university group chats, he constantly saw them actively discussing her.
He clearly didn't want to hear her name, yet when they mentioned her, part of him seemed to welcome it. Perhaps because only in these moments could he release those imprisoned emotions.
Yu Tu raised his hand and turned off the office lights. In the complete darkness, holding the phone, he said calmly and composedly, "Of course it's Jingjing."
Yu Tu didn't expect to receive another message from Xia Qing the next day, just as he was about to enter a meeting.
"Zhai Liang said you're working overtime. Do you have time for a cup of tea?"
He glanced at the message and indifferently locked his phone in the signal blocking cabinet. The meeting didn't end until after eight in the evening. When he retrieved his phone, there were two more messages on WeChat.
"I'm waiting for you at the café next to your workplace."
The other was a location pin, sent at 6:50 PM.
Xia Qing sat in the café wearing a thin cashmere coat, her entire appearance meticulously put together yet seemingly effortless in its elegance, starkly contrasting with the relatively simple café.
Though finding any café in this area was an achievement in itself.
Coming here, she felt she must have been possessed.
But even if possessed, at this moment she had to see Yu Tu. Otherwise, her heart, which had been burning since she saw the video, would never find peace.
She still couldn't believe it.She had long heard Qu Ming mention "Miss Qiao"—the Miss Qiao who had drunk Romanee Conti with Yu Tu. She had wondered if it might be Qiao Jingjing, but how could that be possible?
How could Yu Tu be involved with Qiao Jingjing? He had never liked her.
Xia Qing had always harbored complex feelings toward Qiao Jingjing. In middle school, Xia Qing had been the true golden girl—the smartest and most beautiful. But in high school, there was suddenly a girl in their class who was even prettier and more popular than her. It was hard for Xia Qing not to develop some resentment. Still, it was a relief that her own grades far surpassed Qiao Jingjing's, and it was a relief that Qiao Jingjing had failed when confessing her feelings to the boy Xia Qing also liked.
So when Xia Qing later successfully confessed to Yu Tu in university, the first thing she did was tell her long-uncontacted high school deskmate. She knew this classmate was gossipy and would surely spread the news to everyone in their high school class.
At that time, besides the joy of fulfilling a long-held wish, she felt doubly pleased whenever she thought of Qiao Jingjing's failed confession.
But years later, Yu Tu ended up with Qiao Jingjing? They drank together, played games together, appeared publicly together with high profile...
Xia Qing lay awake all night.
It could have been anyone—but how could it be Qiao Jingjing?
He said "of course it's Jingjing"—why "of course"? Just because she's a celebrity now?
It was ridiculous.
Sensing something, she turned to look out the window. Across the street, Yu Tu was walking toward the café. His overcoat wasn't expensive, but with his natural good build, even ordinary clothes looked elegant and impressive on him.
Some girls on the street turned to look at him, but he seemed completely unaware. This had probably been one of the appealing qualities that fueled her teenage crush on him—a boy so many people liked...
Actually, in the earlier years, Xia Qing had never regretted breaking up with Yu Tu.
Why should she regret it? A man who could have earned a high salary but, for his so-called ideals, expected the other party to take on more family responsibilities—that was too immature and selfish.
The high costs of big cities never offered discounts for his ideals. They both came from ordinary families in third or fourth-tier cities. If they didn't work hard together, how could they establish themselves in major cities like Beijing or Shanghai?
Housing, their future children's education—each required enormous expenses. How could a research institute's salary possibly cover all that? Was she supposed to shoulder everything? Why should she?
After the breakup, she had mentioned Yu Tu to friends more than once.
Her high school deskmate, university roommate, work colleagues... She would inevitably bring him up in conversations—her ex-boyfriend—explaining her reasons for the breakup.
Of course they agreed with her, and she grew increasingly convinced of her own correctness.
She didn't regret it at all.
The only thing that still bothered her was that when she proposed the breakup, he had agreed directly without the slightest attempt to persuade her to stay.
Until one day, she realized her thirtieth birthday was approaching. Yet the dream partner—someone as intelligent and outstanding as Yu Tu, and as successful as herself—hadn't appeared.
It wasn't that there were no suitors around. She had been in another relationship since, but those men were either not smart enough or not witty enough. Compared to Yu Tu, every one of them seemed mediocre.Suddenly she felt that Yu Tu might actually be acceptable after all. Although he had no money, after comparing him with others, this shortcoming could be completely compensated by his other advantages—his high education, a respectable job despite the lack of wealth, and being far more handsome than all her female colleagues' boyfriends or husbands.
After all, she was now earning a seven-figure annual salary. The reluctance she felt years ago about shouldering more financial responsibility now seemed acceptable. She had sufficient economic strength.
During that period, she grew restless and paid extra attention to her high school and university group chats, even deliberately initiating conversations twice.
But when she saw Yu Tu being called upon by classmates to fix a purifier, she felt hesitant again.
While she was still wavering, she heard that Yu Tu was going into investment banking.
Almost instantly, she decided to change her plans and go to Shanghai.
She knew clearly how popular Yu Tu would become once he stepped out of the closed research institute and entered the financial circle.
That meeting, however, didn't go as well as expected. With her own pride and dignity, she certainly wouldn't cling desperately, but if she let go just like that, wouldn't some stranger who had never invested anything—a latecomer—reap the benefits?
She hesitated and calculated.
But all hesitation and calculation came to an abrupt end when she saw the video of Yu Tu and Qiao Jingjing.
Yu Tu pushed the door open and entered.
Xia Qing collected her scattered thoughts. Taking a deep breath, she reminded herself that she had acted improperly while drunk yesterday—now was the time to regain her composure.
She smiled warmly as Yu Tu sat down and delivered her well-prepared opening line.
"Zhai Liang said your phone often has no signal, and it's true. Is this some kind of security measure? Can't phones be brought into the lab?"
Yu Tu nodded slightly and went straight to the point. "What did you need to see me about?"
"I waited for you for two hours. Did you really think we'd finish discussing everything in just a few sentences and then leave?" Xia Qing's attitude was noticeably different from last time. "Have you had dinner? Should we order something?"
"I already ate at the cafeteria."
A server approached, and Yu Tu casually ordered a cup of tea.
After the server left, Xia Qing said, "After the gathering ended yesterday, Zhai Liang and I found another place and drank for quite a while. I heard you've returned to the research institute?"
"Yes."
"He's actually quite worried about you. He said you seemed off lately but didn't want to pry too much." Xia Qing feigned friendly concern. "Is there some issue with Zhongx?"
Yu Tu glanced up at her.
Zhai Liang would never worry about such things—using someone else as a pretext was tiresome. He checked his watch, intending to end this meeting as quickly as possible, and replied curtly, "There's no issue. I'm just more suited to the research institute."
Noticing his expression, Xia Qing decided to change the topic immediately—this subject wasn't important anyway, and she had no real interest in it. She was only using Zhai Liang as an excuse to rationalize her reason for seeking him out.
With a smile on her lips, she moved on to what truly concerned her: "By the way, how did you end up playing games with Qiao Jingjing? Everyone at the gathering yesterday spent a long time discussing it, blaming us for not mentioning earlier that Qiao Jingjing was our high school classmate. But how could we have brought it up? We were never close to her."
"I heard you even had a drink together? I kept thinking it seemed unlikely, so after everyone left, I specifically wanted to confirm with you." She smoothly glossed over her drunken phone call from the previous night and smiled. "I didn't expect it to really be her."
"How did you two end up meeting?" she asked, feigning curiosity once more.Yu Tu said indifferently, "We were high school classmates, so it's not strange that we're in touch."
Xia Qing was momentarily speechless.
Weren't I also your high school classmate? Isn't this answer too perfunctory?
"That's true," Xia Qing agreed with an understanding expression. "But she's never been in the class group chat. I thought she didn't like keeping in touch with former classmates."
"Speaking of which, she's the most successful among our classmates now." She stirred her coffee and sighed. "Meanwhile, the rest of us haven't achieved much. After entering society, good grades don't matter much - emotional intelligence is what really counts."
Yu Tu lowered his gaze slightly. "She graduated from a top university."
"Really?" She looked somewhat surprised. "I didn't pay much attention during our school days. But I really admire her. The entertainment industry is such a complex place, with all kinds of people mixed together. For her to achieve such success and popularity, she must have put in tremendous effort."
Her tone was light, as if merely making casual conversation.
"Xia Qing."
Yu Tu suddenly called her name.
Xia Qing paused.
"I think perhaps I should apologize to you."
Under Xia Qing's surprised gaze, Yu Tu looked directly at her and said unhurriedly, "Back then, I agreed too rashly. I only considered that you were sufficiently independent, but never thought about what I needed to contribute. The facts have proven that I really wasn't a good choice. Fortunately, you've always been smart and knew when to cut your losses."
Though his words were apologetic, his eyes held nothing but coldness, without the slightest hint of remorse.
Xia Qing suddenly understood - he wasn't actually apologizing. Clearly, it was because she had just implied that Qiao Jingjing might have achieved her status through improper means, and he was eagerly defending her.
This seemingly apologetic speech, from beginning to end, was just his way of telling her that he had never truly loved her.
In that instant, her heart felt as if pierced by needles.
She had only made one implied remark, yet he could wound her so deeply with his words.
Xia Qing almost wanted to sneer. "Yu Tu, is this your idea of grace?"
Yu Tu's expression remained calm. "We haven't been in contact for a long time. Why bother?"
Xia Qing fell silent. All her prepared probing had lost its meaning now. The resentment that had been growing like weeds in her heart these past days was instantly extinguished, leaving her completely chilled.
She knew she had completely misjudged her remaining importance and emotional weight in Yu Tu's heart. He didn't even have the patience to engage with her anymore, leaving her with nothing but total loss. At least no one else had witnessed this defeat.
She forced herself to finish her coffee with elegance, summoned the waiter to pay the bill, and as she stood up, she said meaningfully, "No wonder you returned to the research institute. After all, you don't need to worry about material possessions anymore. I hope you can hold on tight to what you have."
With things having reached this point, there was no need for them to ever meet again.
Yu Tu remained seated in the café for a while longer.
When he left, a light rain had begun to fall outside. Standing under the eaves, Yu Tu suddenly thought - if he were already with her at this moment, would he need to report today's events to her?
How would he say it? How would she respond?
But in the end, he would probably choose not to mention it.
After all, today was her birthday...
He remained lost in thought for a long moment before quickly realizing how ridiculous he was being. Turning up his collar, he lowered his head and walked into the curtain of rain.
By the time he returned home, he was completely drenched. Zhai Liang came forward somewhat awkwardly, but upon seeing his condition, quickly slipped into the bathroom to get him a towel."I told Xia Qing your work address, is that okay? She could find it online anyway."
"It's fine. She probably won't contact me again."
After processing this, Zhai Liang couldn't help but sigh, "How heartless of you."
"You didn't mention Jingjing to them yesterday—" Yu Tu paused while drying his hair, "—or about playing games with us, right?"
"Of course not. You told me not to, so I acted like I didn't know Mian Hua, let alone mention how badly she used to play."
Yu Tu glanced over, and Zhai Liang quickly made a zipping gesture over his mouth.
"I mean, you're not feeling, heh" He shook his head. "Speaking of which, Mian Hua is quite adorable—lively and cute, just like a little girl. I still can't connect her with that big celebrity."
"But even though she's your high school classmate, the gap is too big now. Way out of our league. We played games with her for almost two months, and now she's disappeared without even a greeting." Zhai Liang shrugged. "Big celebrities really are hard to approach."
"In the game... has she not logged in at all?"
"Nope. I checked her history—it still shows the day of your competition. The last two matches had some impressive stats."
Yu Tu silently dried his hair for a moment before saying, "She gave me two KPL tickets for you and me to go together. I didn't tell you."
Zhai Liang's eyes widened. "What?"
He couldn't believe it. "She gave me tickets?"
"The tickets are under the coffee table in the living room." Yu Tu closed his eyes behind the towel. "Zhai Liang, she's not showing up because I made her angry. Don't misunderstand her."
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