“You’ve got some nerve, haven’t you?” Zong Yuan’s father sneered across the dinner table, his voice dripping with sarcasm. He smugly added, “Caused trouble but still had to come home, huh? Didn’t you say you’d never come back in this lifetime?”
Zong Yuan continued eating as if he hadn’t heard a thing. He casually picked up a green vegetable and placed it in his mother’s bowl.
Zong Yuan’s mother, who was in the middle of her diet, happily accepted it. “Our son is so filial.”
Zong Yuan’s father tapped his bowl in dissatisfaction. “Where’s mine?”
With a sigh, Zong Yuan picked up a piece of meat and placed it in his bowl, relenting, “Alright, alright, I was wrong.”
His father finally smiled with satisfaction.
Meanwhile, Fu Xin was determined to find out Zong Yuan’s address. He had been squatting outside the principal’s office for several days, stubbornly waiting for an answer. The principal finally relented with a helpless sigh, “Even if I tell you, what could you do? What difference does knowing where he lives make?”
“It makes a huge difference,” Fu Xin replied, his eyes filled with pleading desperation. “Please.”
Clutching a slip of paper, Fu Xin returned to the classroom. Yang Fan, curious, asked, “What’s that?”
“Just a classmate’s contact information,” Fu Xin replied, diverting the conversation. His eyes shifted towards the desks of Zhang Zhi’liang and He Xiu’xiu, which were being cleared by their family. “Why do they look so happy?”
Yang Fan scoffed, “Don’t you know? Zong Yuan gave them a lot of money.”
Zhang Zhi’liang’s parents were smiling and greeting other students nearby.
“They said Zhang Zhi’liang wasn’t badly hurt and got a hefty sum of money out of it. Tsk tsk, why don’t things like that ever happen to me? Actually, never mind. I get scared just seeing Zong Yuan. I wonder what Zhang Zhi’liang did to make him so angry.”
Fu Xin absently touched the jade under his shirt, his eyes softening.
Later that evening, Fu Dongqiang furtively called Fu Xin aside. “Fu Xin, was that boy’s name Zong Yuan?”
Fu Xin carefully tucked a letter into an envelope, his voice carrying the gentleness of the evening’s softest emotions. “Yes.”
Fu Dongqiang rubbed his hands together nervously, leaned in, and whispered something into Fu Xin’s ear.
Fu Xin’s pupils constricted and he gripped his father’s wrist tightly. “You’re saying he gave you money?”
Fu Dongqiang patted Fu Xin’s head excitedly. “Son, you don’t have to worry about your college tuition anymore!”
Fu Xin, in a daze, murmured, “Zong Yuan…”
…
“Zong Yuan! What are you spacing out for?”
The noisy atmosphere of the club was buzzing. Someone slung an arm around Zong Yuan’s shoulders and shouted over the loud music, “Come on, aren’t you going to join in? We’re all here to celebrate you!”
Reeking of cigarette smoke, Zong Yuan replied, “You guys have class tomorrow. Go home.”
His friends looked at him incredulously, “…”
Zong Yuan chuckled, “Study hard, make progress every day.”
As if.
The principal had complained to Zong Yuan over the phone several times, “If it’s so troublesome, why don’t you just call him yourself? Why does he have to pester me every day to ask about you?”
You don’t understand anything. This is romance. Zong Yuan smirked. “Next time, just ignore him.”
The principal suddenly asked, “He… he doesn’t like you, does he?”
“Hm?” Zong Yuan leaned against the wall, looking particularly innocent. “I don’t know.”
The principal, feeling conflicted, had to say something. “You’re both boys, you know. Don’t get the wrong idea.”
“Getting the wrong idea about liking Fu Xin? Principal, you’re still a bit old-fashioned. But don’t worry, I—” Before Zong Yuan could finish, his father came down the stairs and interrupted the conversation, crowding around the phone. “Fu Xin? Who’s that? You like her?”
His face lit up with curiosity as he yelled into the phone, “Hey, Old Liu! What’s going on? Who is this Fu Xin, and how does she look?”
The principal quickly hung up the phone and noticed Fu Xin standing at the door. He had no idea how long Fu Xin had been there and he felt a bit guilty. “You should be eating. What are you doing here?”
Fu Xin’s eyes were bright. “Principal, you could’ve just asked me directly.”
The principal stubbornly replied, “Ask you what?”
Fu Xin smiled slightly and said softly, “I like him.”
“I like him very, very much.”
Meanwhile, He Xiu’xiu was clinging to her father. “Dad, I don’t want to transfer schools.”
Her father’s face was stern. “Shut up.”
When Zong Yuan gave an order, it was final. He hadn’t even had time to do much, but people had already caught wind and were rushing to show their loyalty to him.
Three days later.
Zong Yuan was dozing off in the back row of his new high school. His friend in the front called out, “Zong Yuan, you’ve got a letter.”
Heads turned in the direction of the voice, where a bright pink envelope stood out conspicuously.
Zong Yuan buried his head deeper. “Not reading it.”
“Fine, don’t read it then,” his friend chuckled, full of gossip. “It’s from Fu… Fu Xin.”
“That’s a nice name.”
Zong Yuan snatched the letter out of his friend’s hand.
“I thought you said you weren’t interested.”
Several girls who had been paying attention to him looked heartbroken.
So he had a girlfriend after all.
Leaning against the wall, Zong Yuan opened the thin envelope. Inside was a single sheet of paper and a drawing. He unfolded the paper, which was covered entirely with the words, “Zong Yuan, Zong Yuan, Zong Yuan,” written over and over again. 0046, his system, was stunned for a moment and asked in confusion, “Did they send you a letter just to write your name?”
Zong Yuan then opened the drawing, but the lines were so messy that whatever was being expressed wasn’t clear at all. 0046 lost interest. “I don’t get it.”
Zong Yuan smiled, folded the letter carefully, and put it in his pocket.
Even though the letter was filled with his name and the drawing was unclear, they both conveyed one clear message. And Zong Yuan could see it perfectly: Fu Xin was simply saying, “I miss you.”
A subtle, restrained longing.
Someone nearby asked him, “Is that really your girlfriend?”
Zong Yuan replied, “Just a kid who’s chasing after me.”
Seeing the smile on Zong Yuan’s face, his friend didn’t believe a word.
Zong Yuan’s father took advantage of a business trip to visit the principal. Casually, he brought up something that had been on his mind. “The other day, you mentioned Fu Xin. Which classroom is she in? I might as well take a look.”
Fu Xin hurried into the principal’s office, sweat still beading on his forehead. “Principal, do you have my reply?”
The principal spread his hands, exasperated. “No, no. Fu Xin, don’t you get tired of coming here every day?”
Fu Xin shook his head. Zong Yuan’s father interrupted, his expression odd. “Your name is Fu Xin?”
Fu Xin nodded politely, “Yes, sir.”
Zong Yuan’s father was silent for a long time, then turned to the principal, “Do you have another student named Fu Xin here?”
The principal replied, “Don’t overthink it. He’s the same Fu Xin your son knows.”
Only then did Fu Xin notice that this dignified uncle sitting before him had a somewhat familiar face—his eyes and expression resembled Zong Yuan’s.
Zong Yuan’s father, feeling complicated, couldn’t help but take another look at Fu Xin before asking, “Classmate, are you… a boy?”
Fu Xin nodded, unsure how to respond. “Yes, I am.”
Zong Yuan’s father was taken aback. “This is too much, old friend. I need to leave and take a moment to process this.”
Fu Xin quickly stepped forward, his face filled with urgency and nervousness. “Uncle Zong, how is Zong Yuan? Is he doing okay?”
The sincerity in his voice was unmistakable. Zong Yuan’s father didn’t want to be upset with a kid, so he replied, “Thank you for your concern about my son. Zong Yuan’s doing just fine.”
He was eating heartily and showed no signs of anything weighing on his mind.
But this kid, hearing what his old friend said, was still coming every day, waiting for news.
Fu Xin pulled out a small notebook from his pocket and looked at Zong Yuan’s father with hopeful eyes. “Uncle Zong, could you please give this drawing to Zong Yuan for me?”
Faced with that hopeful gaze, Zong Yuan’s father reluctantly nodded. Fu Xin’s smile lit up his face, giving off the impression of a well-behaved child. He didn’t hesitate to tear out the latest drawing from his notebook. “Thank you so much, Uncle.”
Zong Yuan’s father took a casual glance at the drawing and his eyes brightened. “Hey, this flower and grass drawing isn’t bad at all.”
Fu Xin humbly smiled, “It’s nothing special.”
Zong Yuan’s father admired it even more. “Very good, very good. I really appreciate your style. How about it, young man? Interested in joining my team?”
Fu Xin, feeling a bit embarrassed, replied, “You’re too kind, sir.”
The principal, who had been Zong Yuan’s father’s friend for many years, rarely saw him this enthusiastic. Curious, he leaned over to take a look at the drawing, only to be utterly confused. “What on earth is this? Where are the flowers and grass?”
All the praise he had been about to give stayed bottled up inside.
But Zong Yuan’s father was genuinely fond of the drawing. He extended an invitation with great enthusiasm, “So, your name is Fu Xin, right? Xiao Xin, you want to see Zong Yuan, right? How about this—let me take a look at more of your drawings and I’ll take you to see him.”
Fu Xin hesitated for two seconds, pretending to struggle with the decision. But as soon as the moment passed, he immediately handed over his sketchbook to Zong Yuan’s father. “Okay.”
The principal stood there dumbfounded. Wait, wasn’t he supposed to be conflicted?
When Zong Yuan casually returned home later, he was met with the sight of Fu Xin sitting on his family’s couch, eagerly discussing something with his father. The moment Fu Xin noticed him, his face lit up with excitement. “Zong Yuan!”
What’s going on?
What happened to the script where they wouldn’t meet for years, only to bump into each other in college?
What happened to the bittersweet, romantic, unrequited love story? Had it all been fed to the dogs?
Moonlit: HAHAHAHAAHAHHAHA I lost it when Zong Yuan’s father recognized what Fu Xin drew HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH And then when the principal was confused where the grass and flowers were, I almost couldn’t take it HAHAHAHAHAHA
