When I Meet the Moon - Chapter 32

Chapter 32

Thoroughly calmed down, Yun Li reflected on her own words from just a moment ago and realized she had been impulsive, so she stammered, "I didn't mean to snap at you."

"Mn."

Fu Shize didn't mind it.

Yun Li secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Recalling the decisive way he had tossed away the beer just moments before, she bit her lip and asked tentatively, "Did you throw the beer away because I... got angry?"

She watched the expression on Fu Shize's face. He placed his spoon inside the bowl and didn't deny it: "I probably got startled."

With an air of complete detachment, he wore no superfluous expression; even when he raised his eyes to look at her, his pupils were so clear that no other meaning could be read from them.

It didn't seem to be the way she had imagined either—he hadn't meant anything else by it.

After sitting in silence for a while, reminded of how his stomach had hurt at noon today, Yun Li couldn't help saying softly, "I don't want to interfere too much in your life, but your stomach isn't well, and drinking alcohol is really bad for it."

"If you're in a bad mood, you can talk to your friends. If you don't have any friends, I can reluctantly be your friend..."

Fu Shize remarked, "You don't look very reluctant."

Yun Li answered straightforwardly and directly: "Then what I want to be isn't a friend."

"..."

For reasons unknown, after being so decisively and ruthlessly rejected by Fu Shize, Yun Li felt rather uninhibited when speaking to him now.

When she spoke like this, Fu Shize didn't get angry.

Having spent a lot of time together, she no longer needed to walk on eggshells around him the way she did when they had just met.

Yun Li asked, "Why did you come up to the car?"

Fu Shize replied, "To talk about tomorrow's matters."

The moment she heard it was about work, Yun Li tucked away her other thoughts: "Go ahead."

Fu Shize finished packing his things neatly, then sat off to the side playing 2048 while briefly and casually outlining tomorrow's procedures.

Yun Li stared at his profile as he nonchalantly clicked and swiped on his phone. After playing for a bit, he politely said, "I'll sit for a while longer; I can't exit mid-game."

"Oh, there's no rush, I don't have anything going on right now."

Fu Shize didn't ask her why she was parked directly in front of the hotel he was staying at. He wasn't a fool, and furthermore, Yun Li made no effort to conceal her motives and intentions.

After playing 2048 in the car for over an hour and having a brief, casual chat, Fu Shize stepped out of the vehicle.

Upon getting home, Yun Li sent Fu Shize a WeChat message to let him know she had arrived safely. The other side replied within a few minutes, and a single simple character 'Mn' on the screen was enough to make her secretly thrilled.

The next day, Yun Li arrived by car forty minutes early at the print shop across from West Science and Technology University to pick up the promotional brochures. She parked her car inside the School of Control and walked over to the corner cafe on the first floor, carrying the stack of pamphlets.

Yun Li ordered her food at the front counter and chose an outward-facing seat to sit down.

The classroom where the conference was being held was right next to the cafe. With a quarter of an hour left before the meeting, faculty and students trickled into the cafe one after another. Yun Li craned her neck, and upon seeing Fu Shize follow the crowd through the doors, she waved at him.

Fu Shize walked over.

Yun Li pulled the chair beside her slightly outward: "Would you like to sit here in a bit?"

Fu Shize didn't answer directly: "I'll go place an order."

Yun Li's gaze followed Fu Shize as he stopped at the ordering counter. He stood there for a brief moment before four or five older people walked over to chat with him, the group looking as though they had known each other for a long time.

"Hi, we meet again."

With a familiar-sounding voice, Yun Li looked up and saw the bespectacled man from two days ago. He hung his bag over the back of the chair with practiced familiarity and pulled out a seat to sit down.

Yun Li said, "This seat is taken."

"It's not taken yet!" The bespectacled man seemed to think Yun Li's words were just an excuse, wearing an uninhibited, nonchalant smirk: "How about you reconsider adding me on WeChat?"

Yun Li shook her head: "No thanks."

Having been rejected, the bespectacled man didn't take it to heart: "Even though you claim to be Fu Shize's girlfriend, everyone in the department knows he's gay. You're a pretty girl, don't get tricked."

Yun Li: "..."

"I've spent eight years at West Science and Technology University and know quite a bit about Fu Shize. If you want to know, I can tell you. We can see each other often from now on."

This person was harboring ill intentions, and Yun Li hadn't intended to entangle herself with him further. But his words just then had struck a chord; she practically had zero opportunities to learn about Fu Shize's past.

Seeing her hesitate, the bespectacled man pulled out his phone: "Scan my QR code."

While Yun Li was still wavering, Fu Shize walked over carrying a food tray. Stopping right beside the bespectacled man, he said expressionlessly, "This is my seat."

The bespectacled man didn't continue arguing. With quick reflexes, he stood up to surrender the seat and nodded politely to Fu Shize: "Hello, Senior Brother Fu. I'm Chen Lirong, a joint-培养 [joint-training] PhD student under Professor Shi and Professor Xiang."

"..."

This guy—what the hell, his attitude flipped way too fast.

Chen Lirong acted extremely slick, offering Fu Shize a couple of polite flatteries before fixing his eyes on the last empty seat at the table: "There's still one spot here. Senior Brother Fu, do you mind if I sit..."

Fu Shize pulled the extra chair outward and pushed it directly over to the neighboring table.

He sat down indifferently and unwrapped his bag of toast, acting as though the person beside him didn't exist.

After Yun Li arrived at the classroom, Fu Shize pointed out a box of bottled water by the door and told her to place one on every seat, along with a copy of the printed materials at each spot.

Once the classroom was set up, Yun Li finally had a free moment.

After struggling internally for a long time, she walked up to Fu Shize: "Tomorrow is the last day, what date did you book your return ticket for?"

"Wednesday." Fu Shize had no intention of hiding it.

"I booked mine too, for Thursday." Yun Li opened a bottle of water and asked as casually as possible: "What time is your flight?"

Fu Shize lowered his gaze and stated a specific time based on the information in his memory: "Six-fifteen."

"Oh. It's pretty far to the airport from here, do you want me to give you a ride then?"

"..." Fu Shize expressed his rejection entirely through his gaze.

After Fu Shize took the stage to give his presentation, Yun Li sat in the very last row and secretly used a ticketing app to search for flights returning to Nanwu at 18:15 on Wednesday. Fortunately, there was only one flight at that exact time slot, so she didn't have to worry about ending up on different flights.

Seeing that there was only a single economy ticket left, Yun Li immediately placed the order.

Having booked her ticket, Yun Li guiltily looked up. Fu Shize was still introducing the tracking accuracy of these VR devices to the people in the front rows.

She opened her camera app and, taking advantage of the moment when Fu Shize wasn't paying attention to her side, secretly snapped a photo.

"To achieve precise tracking, this virtual reality product utilizes real-time kinematic differential GPS technology..."

Yun Li didn't fully understand what Fu Shize was currently introducing, but she still listened with rapt attention. Throughout the entire presentation, he was relaxed and at ease, his language fluent. Even when encountering obscure academic terms, he maintained a consistent, effortless composure.

This was the way he was meant to look.

The chair beside her creaked. Yun Li turned her head and found it was that same bespectacled man again. Startled, she scooted one space over.

On stage, Fu Shize paused abruptly for a split second.

He continued: "Indoor and outdoor somatic positioning..."

Completely oblivious, Chen Lirong shifted another seat closer in Yun Li's direction.

Fu Shize's gaze shifted to the back row of the classroom. For several long seconds, he couldn't get a word out.

At that moment, Chen Lirong showed Yun Li a photo on his phone. It had been taken from across the hallway, showing Fu Shize and another male student leaning against a railing, both holding cups of milk tea as if chatting.

Just as Yun Li wanted to lean in for a closer look, Chen Lirong switched over to his WeChat QR code. Caught in a dilemma between advancing and retreating, Yun Li scanned it anyway.

"Apologies, I'm a bit hazy on the product details. Let me grab the reference materials."

Acting as though nothing was wrong, Fu Shize stepped down from the stage and walked straight to the back row. The moment his gaze locked with Chen Lirong's, he lingered on him for a few intense seconds.

He reached out and picked up the promotional brochure from Yun Li's desk, brushing past Yun Li's body in the process, which caused her to slide another seat away.

The brochure brushed against Chen Lirong. Fu Shize lowered his eyes, waited a beat, and said in an aloof tone: "Excuse me."

When Fu Shize returned to the stage, for reasons unknown, Chen Lirong no longer insisted on sitting beside her, instead standing up and changing to a different seat entirely.

After the meeting ended, a few professors and students stayed behind in the classroom. An elderly professor with half-gray hair walked up to Fu Shize, spoke in his ear for a long time, and finally patted him on the shoulder.

He showed no impatience, listening quietly the entire time.

After packing up the remaining promotional brochures, Yun Li followed Fu Shize out the door. With both hands shoved into his pockets, his walking pace...

"Was that professor just now your advisor? Shi... Shi Xiangzhe?"

"Mn."

"Then that glasses-wearing guy just now, is he your junior..."

Yun Li wasn't sure how much of Chen Lirong's words she could believe, but if he really was Fu Shize's junior fellow student, it shouldn't be too far off base.

Yun Li didn't want the reason for her next rejection to be Fu Shize throwing out: I like guys.

Hearing her question, Fu Shize halted his steps, pulled out his phone with a cold expression, and hailed a ride: "I'm leaving."

Someone accepted the order immediately. The car was right inside West Science and Technology University and arrived at the entrance of the School of Control in no time. Yun Li watched as he opened the car door without even glancing back.

"Wait a second."

Yun Li's wave of dejection didn't last long. She shoved another promotional brochure into Fu Shize's hand, took a step back with a blushing face, and waited for him to get in.

Fu Shize was in a foul mood. Once inside the car, he immediately buckled his seatbelt and shoved the brochure into his bag with a cold face.

After a long moment.

He took the brochure back out, opened it, and found a paper-folded moon tucked inside. Its surface had been smoothed out flat, with a sticky note attached to it—

"The moment I saw you, it felt like I saw the moon."

...

On Tuesday night, Yun Li packed her luggage in advance to bring back to Nanwu. Sitting on the carpet wrapped in a plush bathrobe, she cross-referenced the items in her suitcase with the memo on her phone. Caught off guard by a gust of wind, she paused her movements and looked up.

The window had blown open again.

At that moment, a light knock sounded at the bedroom door.

Three seconds of silence. The handle was pushed down, and the door cracked open a sliver. Yun Li looked over and, unsurprisingly, spotted the only creature in the house who knocked when entering her room.

The young man had clear eyebrows and eyes, smiling to reveal a dimpled canine tooth that matched her own. One look made it obvious he had come with an agenda.

Who knew his crusade would start off ill-fated—before a single word could leave his mouth, a blast of wind hit him square in the face. Yun Ye's handsome face distorted for a fraction of a second as he shivered from the cold, his youthful voice cracking: "What the hell, Yun Li, why is your room like a freezer!"

Yun Li continued packing: "Help me close the window."

Being extremely obedient, Yun Ye hopped and scrambled over to slam the window shut. He tried twice, but it wouldn't latch properly, and he muttered in confusion: "Yun Li, is your window broken?"

"Seems like it," Yun Li said. "It won't latch; every time the wind blows, it pops open."

Yun Ye nodded, not paying it much mind. Sitting down on her bed, he looked like he had something to say but hesitated. Not long after, he stood up, paced back and forth a few times, and sat down again.

Then stood up again.

Sat down.

Stood up, walked a couple more steps.

As if he had thorns stuck in his backside.

Distracted by his antics, Yun Li asked with concern, "Did you get hemorrhoids?"

Yun Ye's fur stood on end: "No!"

"As long as it's not." Pondering for a moment, Yun Li offered consolingly, "At your age, sitting at a desk studying all day long, getting that kind of issue isn't anything strange. Go out and walk around more in the future, drink more water, and don't eat too much heat-inducing food—"

_

Yun Ye cut her off: "I don't have it!!"

"I know, I know." Yun Li chuckled, completely unbothered, and continued, "Just use the restroom normally these next few days. If it really doesn't work out, don't force yourself either."

"..."

"Observe how things go first, and if it's still no good, we'll head to the hospital."

Soon enough, Yun Ye locked the bedroom door, putting on the air of a top-secret summit.

Yun Li paused her movements slightly, silently shoving her wallet—which had been resting right at the top—underneath a pile of clothes, and struck first: "Don't even think about it, I have no money."

"..." Yun Ye, having just finished psyching himself up, choked on those words: "What kind of person do you take me for!"

"Oh, my bad, your older sister was judging you by her own petty standards," Yun Li reminded him, "You still owe me three hundred and two yuan and fifty cents, remember?"

"I just sent you 252..." Yun Ye took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to argue since he was currently begging a favor. Even though debtors were usually the ones lording it over others, he took the initiative to pull out his phone and sent her a red packet.

"Here, paid you back."

Finding it a novelty, Yun Li doubtfully tapped it open. Upon seeing the 2.5 yuan displayed on the screen, the corners of her mouth twitched, and her anger flared up: "You call this paying me back?"

"Well, I don't have money, so I can only do installment payments." Yun Ye justified righteously: "Starting next month, I'll pay you 2.5 yuan on the 1st of every month. I'll pay it off sooner or later."

Yun Li did the math: "You're going to take fifty years to pay back three hundred yuan?"

Yun Ye was about to agree, but fearing he might provoke her further, he forced himself to say: "Not necessarily. Once my financial situation loosens up in the future, paying it all off at once isn't out of the question."

"All right," Yun Li wanted to finish packing her luggage early. "What is it you actually want?"

Yun Ye started pacing back and forth again.

Impatient, Yun Li urged, "Spit it out."

Only then did Yun Ye stammer out: "I want you to help me take something to someone."

"To who? I'm heading back to Nanwu tomorrow."

Yun Ye explained awkwardly: "A classmate of mine. Her older brother graduated from Nanjing University of Science and Technology and stayed in Nanwu to work, so her whole family moved over there."

Finding it troublesome, Yun Li flatly refused: "Oh, mail it through a courier."

"I glued the item together myself, I'm scared it'll fall apart if it's shipped." Yun Ye put on a flattering tone, even changing his honorifics: "Sis, I'm begging you."

Yun Li stopped pushing back and instead asked, "Guy or girl?"

"..."

Yun Ye answered in a small voice: "It's a girl."

Yun Li eyed him suspiciously: "Are you puppy-love dating?"

At a loss for words, Yun Ye choked for a good while before barely managing: "No, we're just really good friends, but don't tell Mom and Dad or Dad will beat the living daylights out of me."

Thinking it over, Yun Li refused once more: "Do I have to meet up with her then? I don't want to go."

"Please, Yun Li." Yun Ye grew anxious. "I spent several late nights making this. It's almost her birthday, and I promised her before that I'd give her a gift."

Yun Ye's clueless, stubborn demeanor reminded Yun Li of her own days chasing after Fu Shize. She reluctantly nodded: "Fine, hand the stuff over."

Yun Ye's brows curved upward in a pleasant surprise: "Really?" With that, he scurried back to his room in a flash and zipped right back out, handing Yun Li a small, neatly wrapped box while instructing: "Keep this side facing up, absolutely don't shake it around."

Yun Li patted the desk: "Put it here."

Still uneasy, Yun Ye insisted: "You have to hand it to her directly into her hands."

"..."

For once, Yun Li found Yun Ye to be this agonizingly long-winded: "Fine."

After sending Yun Ye away, Yun Li curiously examined the box.

The box was tightly wrapped in pink frosted paper, making its contents impossible to discern. Having listened to Yun Ye's endless nagged warnings, she didn't dare test her luck by shaking the box.

Rotating it around, Yun Li noticed four elegant characters written on the back of the box—

"For Yin Yunyi"—

The next afternoon, Yun Yongchang volunteered to drive Yun Li to the airport. Wanting to arrive early, the two of them set off ahead of schedule.

Throughout the entire car ride, the father and daughter remained silent. As they neared the airport, Yun Yongchang finally chimed in with his parting words: "Take care of yourself in Nanwu, don't go wandering off to dangerous places."

"Got it."

Yun Li felt a complex swirl of emotions. After stepping out of the car, she murmured a soft "I'm leaving" and hurried into the terminal building.

The airline check-in counters were located at Row F of the terminal. Yun Li found a seat and sat down; with two hours still remaining before takeoff, she waited for over forty minutes until she spotted Fu Shize pulling his luggage suitcase through the entrance. After scanning his surroundings for a moment, he walked straight toward the first counter of Row F.

Yun Li sprang to her feet and briskly walked over to stand right outside the yellow warning line of the first counter. After Fu Shize finished checking in, he turned around to find Yun Li smiling awkwardly at him.

Yun Li rattled off the excuse she had fabricated beforehand: "My flight got canceled, so I switched it to today's flight. Can you wait for a moment? I need to check in too."

He didn't seem surprised, pulling his luggage off to the side outside the crowd to wait for her.

"That gentleman just now is named Fu Shize, he's a friend of mine. Can I be seated next to him?" Yun Li pulled out her identification documents.

The check-in counter agent looked somewhat skeptical, but didn't say much: "That gentleman is flying business class, while yours is economy."

"..."

The corners of Yun Li's twitching mouth tightened; she remembered that only economy class was eligible for company reimbursement.

Bleeding internally in her heart, Yun Li asked: "What about a seat upgrade then…”