By August, the weather had finally become more comfortable.
A gentle evening breeze passed through the tennis court while the repeated sound of balls being struck continued without pause.
“I’m done. I’m done.”
Qin Yun threw down his racket and waved towards the person opposite him, too breathless to speak properly.
“I’m exhausted.”
Zhou Wu turned and walked to the side of the court.
He casually tossed his racket onto a chair, picked up a towel and wiped away his sweat.
Qin Yun needed a while to recover before slowly walking over from the other end.
He raised one arm and flexed.
“Hey, Zhou Wu, look at this.”
Then he lifted the hem of his shirt, exposing his abdominal muscles.
“And this. What do you think? Don’t I look even stronger than I did in Bincheng?”
Zhou Wu sat on the chair with his long legs spread apart.
Sweat covered his face.
Although he had left school years ago, the moment he wore sportswear and worked up a sweat, he once again carried the energy of a young man.
“Mm.”
“Could you at least look up at me before saying that?”
Qin Yun was speechless.
He also picked up his phone, photographed his muscles and sent the picture to Dou Yiqing.
“Do you think something is wrong with Dou Yiqing? She has such a handsome, muscular man standing right in front of her, yet she refuses to look. She prefers watching those half-naked men online with beauty filters.”
Zhou Wu scoffed without replying.
He disliked the feeling of being drenched in sweat.
After drying his hair, he stood and began changing his shirt.
Once Qin Yun had sent the photograph, he looked up and saw Zhou Wu’s bare upper body.
He could not stop himself from swearing.
“We train the same way, so why the hell do you look like that? Do you eat protein powder as meals?”
Zhou Wu answered lazily and irritatingly, “Natural advantages.”
Before Qin Yun could insult him, Zhou Wu turned to retrieve a clean shirt from his bag.
The moment Qin Yun saw his back, he blurted, “What the f*ck?!”
Zhou Wu pulled on the shirt and was about to adjust it when Qin Yun caught the fabric at the back first.
“No, seriously, what the f*ck?”
Qin Yun questioned him in shock.
“What are these marks on your back? Who scratched you?”
“Who do you think?”
“Yeye?”
“Get lost.”
Zhou Wu knocked his hand away with an elbow, pulled down his shirt and cursed with a scoff.
“…”
Qin Yun was stunned beyond words.
He remained frozen for a long time before sitting beside Zhou Wu.
“Who was it? Which woman? Do I know her? She must be fierce as hell to scratch you like that.”
For no apparent reason, Zhou Wu smiled.
“Mm. She’s never done that before.”
“Before?”
Qin Yun stared at him.
“F*ck. You got a girlfriend and didn’t even tell me? Are we still brothers?”
Zhou Wu tossed his racket into the bag and lifted it.
“She isn’t my girlfriend yet.”
“…”
Qin Yun questioned him throughout the entire journey from the tennis court to the car.
He did not obtain the slightest information about the attacker and was so anxious he practically scratched his own head.
Eventually annoyed by the interrogation, Zhou Wu frowned.
“I’ll tell you after I win her over.”
“?”
Qin Yun fell silent for a moment before politely asking, “Are you pursuing her, or is she pursuing you?”
“Me,” Zhou Wu said.
“…”
Although Qin Yun hated admitting it, he still asked, “Which country’s princess have you set your sights on? There’s actually someone you can’t get?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t started pursuing her yet.”
Qin Yun became even more confused.
“Why not?”
Because she f*cking liked someone else. How was he supposed to pursue her?
Zhou Wu had been outstanding since childhood and had always remained one step ahead of everyone.
This was the first time he had experienced the feeling of losing the advantage.
Wen Ci was so thin-skinned.
If he openly confessed and she rejected him, it was entirely possible she would become embarrassed and begin avoiding him.
The thought irritated him.
Zhou Wu wanted to kick Qin Yun out of the car.
“I’m thinking about how to pursue her.”
“It isn’t as though you’ve never pursued anyone before.”
Qin Yun found it amusing.
“Just pursue her the same way you pursued Duan Wei.”
Zhou Wu fell silent.
There had never truly been any pursuing involved back then.
After graduation, the two of them had gone to an arcade together.
Qin Yun had not arrived yet.
Duan Wei could not win a toy from the claw machine and asked Zhou Wu to help.
She pressed herself against the glass beside the machine and smiled at him with blinking eyes.
“Zhou Wu, if you get it out, I’ll become your girlfriend.”
They had grown up together.
His mother had met Duan Wei before she died and had even joked with Duan Wei’s mother about the two children.
Familiarity, combined with a small amount of affection, had been enough for Zhou Wu to win the toy.
During the two months he dated Duan Wei, Zhou Wu did not feel their relationship was much different from before.
After going abroad, he became too busy.
Only when Duan Wei confronted him and asked whether he intended to break up did he realise he had not contacted her for a long time.
He had not missed her very much either.
Although he had no other experience, Zhou Wu understood that liking someone was not supposed to feel like that.
So he agreed to the breakup without hesitation.
Zhou Wu suddenly remembered something from a while ago.
He had been attending a meeting in Singapore.
During a ten-minute break, he had held his phone beneath the table and found time amid his work to message Wen Ci.
Every reply she sent was polite and distant.
“No wonder you’ve completely ignored Duan Wei recently. You’ve found someone new.”
Qin Yun adjusted his seat and slowly reclined.
“Men. Last year, when she got married, you were so upset and drank so much…”
“Seek treatment if you’re ill.”
Zhou Wu’s voice was indifferent.
“The afternoon of their wedding, Zhou Huacheng had just brought his second illegitimate son home.”
“Huh? That was what upset you that day?”
Qin Yun raised his head.
“That doesn’t make sense. You also said you were waiting for her to regret it.”
Zhou Wu tried to remember.
Had he really said it that loudly?
How had everyone heard?
“I was drunk, irritated and wanted to disgust Xiang Wenwen.”
Qin Yun looked baffled.
“Why did you want to disgust him?”
“He tried to steal my girlfriend,” Zhou Wu said lightly.
When Duan Wei had broken up with him, her exact words had been:
*Zhou Wu, if you keep behaving like this, I’m going to date someone else. He’s already been pursuing me for more than a month!*
Only after he later received the wedding invitation did Zhou Wu learn from Duan Wei that the “someone else” had been Xiang Wenwen.
They had already graduated by then, but everyone in their class had known Zhou Wu and Duan Wei were together.
Yet Xiang Wenwen had openly pursued her anyway.
What had that meant?
Zhou Wu had not cared that much originally, but he had happened to be in a terrible mood that day.
“?!”
Qin Yun abruptly sat upright.
“F*ck. He really did steal your girlfriend? That day, I even said—”
“Said what?”
“…Nothing.”
Qin Yun immediately changed his answer.
“Why didn’t you tell me earlier? Blue Note’s second anniversary is in a couple of days, and I invited him.”
Zhou Wu did not care.
“There was nothing worth saying. It’s over.”
Qin Yun gave him a thumbs-up.
He was about to speak when WeChat chimed.
Dou Yiqing had replied with a voice message, sounding extremely impatient.
“I know, Qin Yun. Are you annoying or what? I already said I’ll go. Send me the address of the bar.”
Qin Yun held down the voice-message button.
“Country bumpkin. You don’t even know where a bar as incredible as Blue Note is? Fine. I’ll reluctantly collect you when the time comes.”
After lowering his phone, he could not resist questioning Zhou Wu again.
“Brother, I’m begging you. Who scratched your back? Do I know her? If you don’t tell me, I genuinely won’t be able to sleep tonight.”
Zhou Wu suddenly asked, “Is Wen Ci attending your anniversary celebration?”
“She probably is. I invited her.”
Zhou Wu rested his elbow against the car door and gave a lazy hum.
Qin Yun became anxious.
“So who is the woman?”
“Qin Yun, Dou Yiqing was right.”
Zhou Wu looked deeply at him and sighed softly.
“You genuinely are stupid. Find time to have your brain examined.”
Qin Yun:
“?”
“Wait. Refuse to tell me if you want, but why are you insulting me?”
…
After the argument at dinner, Wen Ci barely received any response when she spoke at home over the following days.
Her father had always been quiet.
Her mother was giving her the silent treatment.
Wen Ci did not care.
Every day, like clocking in for work, she would announce towards the living room, “I’m going to the library,” before opening the door and leaving.
On the day of Blue Note’s anniversary celebration, Wen Ci still asked for her mother’s permission.
She did not say she was going to a bar.
She said she was visiting Dou Yiqing’s home.
Mother Wen finally spoke.
“No.”
Wen Ci nodded.
“All right.”
When Zhou Wu received Wen Ci’s message, he was checking the dog food inside Yeye’s bowl.
**Wen Ci: Sorry. My family won’t allow me to go out.**
Zhou Wu stroked the dog as he considered the situation.
Would encouraging someone to sneak out at night be too wicked?
Wen Ci would probably tell him again that being around him made her feel free.
The thought made Zhou Wu smile.
He decided to be the bad influence anyway.
Just as he began typing, another message arrived.
**Wen Ci: So could I trouble you to collect me from outside my window?**
…
Having learned from experience, Wen Ci prepared thoroughly this time.
She carried no bag and wore jeans and trainers that were suitable for climbing through a window.
She had even mailed Qin Yun’s gift in advance.
Unfortunately, the more careful a person became, the more likely an accident was to happen.
The moment Wen Ci jumped into Zhou Wu’s arms, she heard the front door at the other end open.
Her mother’s voice sounded as she spoke on the phone.
“You start the mahjong machine first. I’ll throw away the rubbish and come over immediately.”
The rubbish area was behind the alley.
She would have to pass them.
Wen Ci froze and instinctively pushed Zhou Wu.
“You should hide—”
A bucket hat was placed over her head.
Zhou Wu had also come prepared.
He wrapped the coat in his hand around her, lifted her around the waist and said, “Hide your face.”
Wen Ci moved before her mind could react.
She wrapped her arms around Zhou Wu’s neck and buried her face against his chest.
Mother Wen had just turned into the back alley when she felt a gust of wind rush past her.
Her voice paused.
Only after the person on the phone called her several times did she recover.
She turned and looked at the tall figure running away.
“No, I just encountered someone…”
“I don’t know which family they belong to. Running wildly through the alley this late at night while carrying a girl.”
“Young people nowadays are truly improper. I don’t know how their parents raised them.”
…
Wen Ci sat in the front passenger seat, still wearing the hat.
One of the windows was open slightly, allowing wind to pour into the car.
Zhou Wu had placed the hat on her too quickly, so it sat badly and her trapped hair flew around the car.
The window reflected her bright eyes and white teeth.
Although she had not run, her cheeks were flushed, and she could barely conceal her happiness.
Zhou Wu glanced towards her and smiled too.
“Were you frightened?”
“I was.”
Wen Ci turned towards him.
“But I suddenly remembered high school.”
“What about it?”
“During the sports day, you carried me like this too.”
It had been the same hold.
Even while carrying someone, Zhou Wu had run faster than the athletes beside him.
Wen Ci had already fainted at the time and had thought she was flying.
Zhou Wu held the steering wheel and remained silent for several seconds.
Then he raised an eyebrow and spoke lazily.
“You can still admit the truth. Were you genuinely not sent by Old Yu to stage an accident and trap me?”
Wen Ci immediately sat upright and seriously defended their form teacher.
“No. It genuinely happened because I was terrible at running and fainted in the heat.”
Zhou Wu turned aside and laughed.
She was beyond saving.
Even hearing Wen Ci describe herself as terrible was adorable.
…
When other people celebrated the anniversary of a business, they offered discounts and promotions to attract customers.
Qin Yun did the opposite.
His bar did not accept ordinary customers that evening, and only friends he had personally invited could enter.
Luxury cars filled the area outside the bar.
Two bodyguards dressed in black stood at the entrance.
Zhou Wu sometimes genuinely worried that the police might mistake the place for a criminal operation and raid it.
He tossed the car keys to the valet and looked back.
Wen Ci had just removed her hat.
Her hair was dishevelled.
She wore a white, round-necked knitted top with jeans, appearing far too obedient to match anyone around her.
Zhou Wu reached out, smoothed the messy hair at the top of her head and caught her wrist.
“Let’s go.”
It was still early, so the atmosphere inside had not yet become lively.
Every booth was occupied.
Everyone appeared to know one another and spoke across tables, creating a harmonious atmosphere.
The moment the two entered, someone called out to them.
“Wen Ci?”
Wen Ci turned.
Unexpectedly, it was Xiang Wenwen.
He wore suit trousers and a white shirt, appearing to have come directly from work.
When he saw Wen Ci, he moved aside to create room and said in delight, “You came too? Sit here. Everyone at this table is from our class.”
Only then did Wen Ci notice two other familiar faces sitting there.
Before she could respond, another voice called from the other side.
“Zhou Wu!”
At the central booth on the ground floor, Duan Wei waved towards them.
“Why are you so late? Hurry over! It’s about to start!”
Someone noticed the strangeness of the situation.
One former classmate could not resist teasing Xiang Wenwen.
“Brother Xiang, why aren’t you sitting with Duan Wei?”
“I’m catching up with all of you.”
Xiang Wenwen smiled.
“Besides, her table is already full. It doesn’t matter.”
After hearing that, Wen Ci instinctively glanced in that direction.
Indeed, the seating in the centre was almost completely occupied.
The hand around her wrist shifted.
Wen Ci raised her head and met Zhou Wu’s dark eyes.
He lowered his gaze and asked casually, “Where do you want to sit?”
In unfamiliar environments where most people were strangers, Wen Ci instinctively remained in the corner, just as she had during Qin Yun’s birthday party.
Besides, if she sat over there, she might once again hear Zhou Wu and Duan Wei discussing things she did not want to know.
Remembering what she had overheard on the way to dinner during the school anniversary, Wen Ci swallowed.
Half of the happiness she had felt inside the car suddenly faded.
After pausing, she hesitantly said, “…Maybe I’ll sit here.”
Zhou Wu stared at her silently for several seconds.
His gaze gradually turned cold.
First, he gave a chilly, drawn-out, “Oh.”
Then he said, “No.”
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