When I Meet the Moon - Chapter 73

Chapter 73

Accustomed to early morning classes, Yun Ye habitually woke up at seven o'clock. Passing by the kitchen, he saw a figure already moving back and forth inside.

Yun Ye: "Why are you up so early?"

Yun Li: "Preparing lunch."

The kitchen window faced the morning sun, casting light and shadows that blurred Yun Li's silhouette. Yun Ye yawned and scratched his head. "Isn't it just morning?"

"Cooking porridge. Even the fast version takes a few hours."

"Oh, right." Yun Ye walked into the kitchen while brushing his teeth. "I'm going to find my brother-in-law today."

Yun Li: "?"

Yun Li: "You changed how you address him pretty quickly."

"..." Yun Ye was too embarrassed to mention that Fu Shize was going to give him a drone.

Yun Ye: "I asked my brother-in-law myself yesterday. I'm going to pick up the drone from him today."

Yun Li frowned: "Weren't you leaving my room pretty late?"

Yun Ye glanced at his phone. "Around two, I guess. Brother-in-law wasn't asleep yet either."

"Go brush your teeth." Yun Li chased him out of the kitchen. Stirring the rice porridge in the clay pot with a spoon, she watched the drawn-out circular arcs vanish in barely a second, gazing at them in a daze for a moment.

Ever since the two of them got together, Fu Shize's state in front of her had always been very good.

He remained poised and composed when dealing with classmates and friends, and Yun Li didn't want to forcefully interrogate him about his past.

During her previous relationship, she had asked a few times, but Fu Shize seemed rather reluctant to talk about it—much like how she disliked people bringing up her own breakup.

She felt that when the time was ripe, Fu Shize would tell her everything.

The fact that he hadn't brought it up on his own probably meant he hadn't fully digested it yet.

Yun Yongchang and Yang Fang had also woken up. Seeming accustomed to Yun Li bustling about early in the morning, they didn't ask many questions.

Yun Ye accompanied his parents for a quiet breakfast, the two elders' gazes constantly darting back and forth toward Yun Li.

After a long while, Yang Fang asked softly, "Lili, your dad says you have a boyfriend. Why don't you invite him over to the house for a meal..."

"I'll ask him." Yun Li answered distractedly.

Yun Ye changed his clothes and was just about to step out when he saw Yun Li holding two insulated bags. "Are we going on a picnic later?"

"Mm, lunch." Yun Li replied offhandedly.

Yun Ye said haughtily, "Oh, I don't want to eat any."

"Who said it was for you?" Yun Li shoved the insulated bag into Yun Ye's hands. "I'll drive you over. Once you pick up your drone, go home by yourself."

"..."

The car parked at the School of Control and Computer Engineering. Yun Ye followed Yun Li upstairs, and Fu Shize opened the door. The office windows were wide open, and his figure was bathed in sunlight, looking calm and carrying a hint of gentleness.

"Brother-in-law," Yun Ye called out.

Fu Shize opened the long cabinet beside his desk, which held quite a few drones. "Pick one."

Yun Ye's eyes lit up as he stepped closer. He wasn't someone who liked taking advantage of others. "I'll borrow it to use and then bring it right back."

"It's fine," Fu Shize leaned against the side. "Leaving them here is just a waste."

Hearing him say that, Yun Ye didn't act coy.

Embarrassed to take a brand-new one, he went straight for the oldest-looking drone. It already looked somewhat aged, with a chipped letter "U" printed on it.

Yun Ye: "Can I take this one?"

Fu Shize paused, and Yun Li could catch his momentary slight change in expression, but right after, he calmly nodded.

"Let's go." Fu Shize picked up a baseball cap from the desk and placed it directly on Yun Li's head. The cap was a bit large and blocked Yun Li's vision.

Standing behind her, his fingers occasionally brushed against her occipital bone as he silently adjusted the tightness for her.

The outdoor weather was bright and the breeze crisp, with occasional groups of students picnicking on the large lawn of Western Science and Technology University. They found a shady spot under a tree, and Fu Shize tilted his head to tell Yun Ye how to operate the drone.

Standing together, the two tall and slender figures—with Fu Shize wearing a loose white shirt—had a youthful vibe similar to Yun Ye's.

Yun Ye's plan was simple: use the drone to carry a postcard to Yin Yunyi up in the teaching building. Postcards held special significance for them; it was through exchanging postcards that they had first understood each other's feelings.

Although this confession process wasn't earth-shattering,

Yun Ye figured Yin Yunyi would probably like it.

After Fu Shize taught Yun Ye the basic operations, he stayed under the tree with Yun Li to enjoy the shade.

Finding a chance to be alone, Yun Li finally asked, "Yun Ye told me today that you were still awake past two o'clock last night..."

During the day, he looked to be in fine spirits.

Normal enough that no one would suspect he had any issues.

However, Yun Li had also heard others say that the year of graduating with a Ph.D. brought immense pressure, and insomnia was a regular occurrence.

Fu Shize: "I actually had a bit of trouble sleeping."

Yun Li didn't probe further, waiting for his next sentence. Fu Shize played with the controller and remarked casually, "The pressure of writing the doctoral dissertation must be getting to me."

"Oh... do you want me to help you edit your doctoral dissertation?" Yun Li felt she had nothing else she could do.

Yet, upon second thought, she was just an ordinary master's student from a key university, and trying to help a Ph.D. student from a top-tier institution edit his graduation thesis felt a bit overly ambitious.

After holding it in for a long while, Yun Li added, "I can help you draw diagrams."

Seeing no reaction from him, Yun Li continued, "Or help you check the data?"

"Help you format?"

"Worst case scenario, I can help you check for typos."

Yun Li even tacked on a condition: "As long as your thesis isn't in English."

Listening to her ramble on for so long, Fu Shize turned his head and asked, "Have you finished writing your own?"

"..."

Yun Li was thoroughly honest. "Even though every time I open my graduation thesis, I can't squeeze out a few words for half a day, and I can sit frozen in front of the computer for a whole day."

"But I didn't suffer from insomnia because of it," she pointed out to highlight her advantage.

Yun Li didn't feel like she was putting on a false front of bravery; she wouldn't have to hand in her master's thesis until a few months later, and right now she ate well and slept well, putting her in a much better state than Fu Shize.

Aware of her current situation, Fu Shize asked in return, "You don't need me to help you?"

Yun Li said with a straight face, "Finish yours first."

She calmly added, "Then you can help me with all your might."

Fu Shize leaned against the tree trunk, raising his head with his pupils directed toward her. "Why do I feel like I'm about to write two papers?"

"No." Yun Li leaned against his shoulder. "Clearly we're writing them together."

After test-flying for a short while, Yun Ye consciously decided not to play the third wheel and packed up to go home. Yun Li handed him the car keys, ignoring his strong protests and sticking a student-driver magnet onto the car.

...

Having visited the School of Control and Computer Engineering many times, this was the first time Yun Li interacted with the people from Fu Shize's laboratory.

The few male students were all a bit shy when they saw her. She awkwardly sat down next to Fu Shize; the workstation was quite spacious, and pulling up a chair was enough to accommodate them both.

Fu Shize poured a cup of water, tested the temperature, and placed it in front of Yun Li. Right after, he opened a document of his own and began writing with intense concentration.

Fu Shize gave her a laptop to handle her own work. She downloaded a few master's theses to skim through, but as soon as she tried to focus, her attention was scattered by the people walking back and forth around them.

Unconsciously, she glanced over at Fu Shize beside her.

For the first time, Yun Li truly felt that she was dating a top-student boyfriend.

Several times in the middle, others got up to get water, and people from other labs came over to discuss problems. When Yun Li locked eyes with them, she would smile and then lower her head awkwardly.

Yet Fu Shize acted as if he heard nothing, the text on his screen reflected deep in his eyes.

Influenced by him, Yun Li settled her mind and studied for an hour. Then, she couldn't help but look at the WeChat app that had been blinking for a long time.

It was Fu Shize's account.

She tapped it open to find a small lab group chat, with new messages popping up at intervals.

[Holy shit! Senior brother brought his girlfriend over.]

[Senior brother has an object of affection; we finally have a way out!]

[Damn, take a picture! No picture, no proof.]

[No way, it's too obvious. His girlfriend is sitting right next to him.]

[Sister-in-law is drop-dead gorgeous, sitting there looking just like a female celebrity.]

Seeing that sentence, Yun Li's face flushed slightly.

[Stop rambling, take a picture!]

[Come look for yourselves, just pretend you're coming to grab something or discuss a problem.]

"..."

She only then realized that those people earlier had all come to look at her.

Upon learning this, Yun Li felt like she was sitting on pins and needles, her body tightening every time someone new entered. Fu Shize suddenly turned his head to look at her and asked, "What is it?"

"..."

Yun Li's mouth felt sewn shut. She shook her phone at Fu Shize and sent a message: [It feels a bit inconvenient here...]

Fu Shize: [Inconvenient]

Before Yun Li could finish typing her reply, he sent another line— [Doing what?]

Reading the two messages together, Yun Li leaned back and looked gloomily at Fu Shize.

[Then should we go to the empty room next door?]

With the preceding context, the whole story took on an ambiguous tone, and Yun Li struggled internally for a moment.

Agreeing would feel as though she were proactively saying: I didn't come here to study hard with you today.

It instead sounded like she had other intentions.

Fu Shize stood up directly and retrieved one of the laboratory's laptops from the cabinet behind them. Standing beside the workstation, his gaze carried a hint of teasing.

Yun Li got up slowly, hugging her laptop as she followed behind him.

Not wanting to draw attention, she purposely maintained a one-meter distance between them.

Fu Shize stopped in his tracks, as if remembering something, turned sideways, and took her hand. Yun Li tried to pull away, but he held it tightly.

Holding her hand, he continued walking outward.

Knowing that the doors here had poor sound insulation, Yun Li didn't speak the entire way. Fu Shize led her into a small sub-laboratory, which had an operating console at the entrance, along with an office desk and a single-person sofa.

The room had no windows and carried a slight damp smell. Fu Shize turned on the ventilation fan; the machinery was old, and the fan blades rattled loudly.

Just as Yun Li placed her laptop on the console, she was abruptly pressed against the door by him.

The back of her neck pressed straight against the cold door, while her front met his warm torso. He leaned in close to her right ear: "Convenient now?"

His voice drowned out in the noise of the ventilation fan, yet it echoed in her ear like a thunderclap.

Yun Li already found the room stuffy, and at that moment, she felt the heat seep straight to the top of her head.

She licked her lower lip, staring into his pupils like black lacquer. His lips were less than half a centimeter away from hers, and Yun Li finally turned her head away, using the back of her hand to shield her lips.

Blushing, she said, "Go write your thesis."

Fu Shize obediently let her go, opened his laptop, and sat down. He glanced at Yun Li twice and used a nasal tone to urge her to sit in front of him.

Yun Li had felt trepidation the entire way. She pulled up a chair to sit beside him, braced her hands on the seat cushion, moved her lips, and asked in a small voice, "If we walked out so blatantly, won't your junior lab mates say you're neglecting your proper work, won't they say you're consumed by lust?"

Fu Shize tilted his head. "They probably will."

"Then what should we do?" Yun Li let out a long "ah," the corners of her eyes drooping.

"It doesn't matter," Fu Shize said indifferently. "What they said is the truth."

"..."

At times like this, Yun Li only felt that Fu Shize's words were astonishing, and the crucial part was that his face didn't even flush and his heart didn't beat fast.

She was more serious than him and had plenty of concerns: "Then maybe I shouldn't come here anymore in the future. I don't want other people to say bad things about you."

Yun Li felt that this sort of thing easily spread by word of mouth and could easily invite criticism toward Fu Shize.

She knew Fu Shize didn't care about other people's opinions, but she cherished his reputation.

Seeing her cautious and serious demeanor, Fu Shize asked, "Not even bringing porridge anymore?"

"I'll still bring it, that way I can still see you in the morning." Yun Li thought of work matters. "I plan to go to Yousheng's subsidiary; they might let me start early, and if that happens, the chances of us meeting will be even more limited."

Yun Li planned it out: "Before that, I'll come see you often."

"Before that, don't worry about other people's views," Fu Shize rested his upper arm on the sofa armrest, played with a strand of her hair, and said casually, "After that, you don't have to either."

Yun Li hesitated for a moment: "If I'm by your side, will it affect your work?"

"Not just now," Fu Shize turned back to tell her. "When you're not here, I have to check if you've sent me messages, which makes it easy to interrupt work."

With her present, Fu Shize found it harder to get distracted.

There were only a few months left until the final submission of his doctoral dissertation, and he hadn't had this motivation before.

Yet, thinking that the person beside him would prefer it, he still wanted to win a national outstanding graduation thesis award.

"However," Fu Shize set his laptop aside and pulled her to the other corner of the single-person sofa. "Now there is a little bit."

The atmosphere suddenly turned ambiguous.

Fu Shize bit her lips twice: "With just the two of us, there's no way to study."

...

After sharing the porridge she brought during midday, Fu Shize grew a bit sleepy. Because she usually stayed up late, Yun Li didn't have the habit of taking afternoon naps.

Perhaps because he had slept late the previous night, Fu Shize fell asleep on the sofa in barely a few seconds.

When Yun Li lifted her gaze from her phone, he was already asleep.

She stood up and drew the curtains without making a single sound.

The curtains had a low shading rate, and through the filtered light, his facial features were still clearly visible.

Yun Li sat on the small stool in front of him, observing his expression.

Fu Shize's eyes were tightly shut, his brows knitted together, and his slightly pursed lips seemed to signify he was in an unpleasant dream.

She reached out and smoothed the space between his brows, and his pale face finally relaxed somewhat.

Yun Li quietly looked at his sleeping face. He seemed to have fallen into a deep sleep, leaning relaxed against the cushion.

The phone on the table lit up its screen with a notification alert, the lock screen still showing their photo together.

Yun Li unlocked the phone and swiped to the WeChat interface. He had pinned her chat window to the top, and the nickname was still the three characters "Yun Lili."

Opening the chat window, Yun Li scrolled up and paused in surprise.

On the day they reunited, Fu Shize had sent her a WeChat message: [Lili]

Scrolling further up, every single day, Fu Shize would send her a message containing only the two words 'Lili'.

The responses were all red circles before the messages and the system prompt stating the other person was not a friend.

Hardly believing it, Yun Li continued scrolling up, her fingers swiping many times, yet she never reached the end.

The room was so quiet that only his breathing could be heard. Yun Li scrolled upward tirelessly until the chat history went back to the period when they broke up.

She lowered her head, looking at the sleeping person beside her, feeling an extreme ache in her heart. Until the alarm he set went off, Yun Li pressed it off.

Fu Shize stretched his body slightly and naturally pulled Yun Li onto his lap.

Yun Li's voice was hoarse: "You used to send me a message every single day before?"

Fu Shize let out a lazy "mm."

Yun Li's hands tightened around her hem: "But didn't I delete you..."

Fu Shize supported his hair and made a reasonable guess: "You probably added me back secretly."

His tone was very relaxed: "Just like last time."

During those year-and-a-half of days and nights, he held onto hope every single day.

Maybe next time, the response on the interface wouldn't be that cold prompt, not that glaring red.