At the same time, on the hospital rooftop:
After replying to Jiang Fuyue’s message, Yi Ci put his phone away and coldly looked at the boy in front of him. “You did it on purpose, didn’t you?”
Yu Jiaze frowned. “What do you mean?”
“Making Zhong Ziang break his leg. You did it on purpose.” This time, Yi Ci didn’t even frame it as a question.
Yu Jiaze narrowed his eyes slightly. “Whether it was me or you who did it on purpose—don’t get it twisted.”
Yi Ci: “What’s your goal?”
Yu Jiaze: “What are you after?”
Yi Ci gave him a deep look. “A fox eventually shows its tail. Watch yourself.”
With that, he turned and left.
Yu Jiaze remained in place, unmoving, as the night wind passed, carrying a slight chill.
Yu Kaixin stepped out of the shadows, smiling. “Brother, it’s windy; let’s head back.”
Yu Jiaze walked past her without a word and strode away.
The girl kept her smile but looked far into the sky, her gaze deep.
After a moment, she muttered softly, “Fine, don’t appreciate it…”
…
Outside the hospital, there was still a bit of distance to the main entrance. On both sides of the path stood tall and lush sycamore trees, their layered branches breaking the warm, yellow lights into fragments scattered on the ground.
A cool breeze brushed her neck, and the next second, something warm pressed against her back.
A jacket, carrying the man’s warmth and the scent of pine, was draped over her shoulders. Jiang Fuyue froze for a moment, but by the time she realized what had happened, Xie Dingyuan had already withdrawn his hand, returning to walk by her side.
“You gave it to me; aren’t you cold?”
Xie Dingyuan: “Not at all.”
Jiang Fuyue pondered briefly, then said, “Today’s incident doesn’t feel like an accident.”
Xie Dingyuan frowned, glancing at her.
“I didn’t go on the field, and the stands were some distance from the game. Although there were blind spots in the view, from the overall positions, even if Zhong Ziang got hurt, it shouldn’t have been his right leg.”
At that moment, there hadn’t been time to think deeply, but afterward, she started to realize something wasn’t right.
“You mean… someone did it on purpose?”
Jiang Fuyue looked up, meeting his eyes. “Better safe than sorry. I’m heading off; you should go back.”
Unknowingly, they had already reached the hospital entrance.
Jiang Fuyue took off the jacket and handed it back. “Thank you.”
With that, she turned and disappeared into the night.
Xie Dingyuan stood there holding the jacket, dazed, her lingering warmth and the light fragrance of orange blossom and amber faintly drifting in the air.
The next second, he didn’t hesitate any longer and dashed after her…
Jiang Fuyue received a message from Yi Ci saying he couldn’t find her and had left.
She put her phone away, stepped to the side of the road, and was about to hail a cab when a black Mercedes-Benz smoothly stopped beside her. The window rolled down, revealing the man’s cool, sharp face, which seemed to have a faint hint of warmth—whether due to the lighting or something else.
“Get in. I’ll drive you home.”
Jiang Fuyue didn’t hesitate, opening the passenger door and sitting down.
The Benz merged smoothly into the traffic, moving steadily forward.
The car interior was silent.
Jiang Fuyue turned her head to look out the window at the retreating neon lights and dazzling lamps. Xie Dingyuan, looking straight ahead, knew that ever since she got in, his gaze had been glued to her reflection.
Quiet. That was his first impression of her.
But upon closer look, there was a detachment beneath that quietness.
That distance lent her an aura of aloofness and reserve.
For a moment, he felt as if he were looking at a reflection of himself.
The two spoke very little along the way, yet the atmosphere wasn’t awkward.
He kept his silence, while she kept her composure—an odd harmony and mutual understanding.
“…We’re here.”
The car entered the Yutian Estate and stopped in front of the Jiang family villa.
Jiang Fuyue thanked him and got out.
As Xie Dingyuan turned the car to leave, he couldn’t help glancing at her through the rearview mirror, catching a final glimpse of her figure as she faded into the shadows.
Under the moonlight, they were two people, moving in different directions.
…
Back in the hospital ward, it was already 10 p.m.
Zhong Ziang was on his bed, playing on his phone with his mic fully open: “Get him! Get him! Where’s Lin Shumo? Get back already, we’re pushing the crystal!”
“What the—why on earth would you, as a support, challenge Zhao Yun alone?! D*mn it! Let’s go—”
Too late, his character had already fallen, and there was no saving it.
The final “Defeat” announced their crushing loss.
Zhong Ziang threw his phone down, yelling, “Kick Lin Shumo out! If anyone teams up with him again, don’t blame me for cutting ties! D*mn it—”
The voices on the other end babbled, likely trying to calm him down.
Zhong Ziang’s face softened slightly, though he still kept his defiant attitude: “Not playing anymore.”
He logged off immediately.
Looking up, he saw Xie Dingyuan had returned. “Uncle, why were you gone so long?”
He’d already played five or six high-level matches, and he’d lost every single one…
D*mn!
Xie Dingyuan’s expression was calm. “I took her home.”
“Oh, it’s good you did. It’s late, and a girl alone—it’s not safe.”
“Mm.”
Zhong Ziang thought nothing of it and kept grinning. “Uncle, does this mean I don’t have to go to school for a whole month?”
“You don’t.”
“Hehe…”
“But you still need to finish all your assignments.”
Zhong Ziang’s grin faded.
But the next second, a thought came to him, and he smiled again. “That’s fine; anyway, Jiang Fuyue is going to bring me her problem sets. Alone time is the best for building feelings. Maybe by the time I’m discharged, she’ll be my girlfriend.”
Xie Dingyuan: “…”
“Uncle, be nice to her. She’s your future niece-in-law.”
“…” His fists clenched slowly.
Under the same moonlight, Yi Ci had just arrived home.
The housekeeper greeted him, asking if he’d had dinner.
“No, I’m not hungry.”
“How about a glass of milk? It’ll be ready in a minute.”
“Where’s my father?”
“Master is in the study.”
Yi Ci nodded and headed upstairs.
Passing the study, he noticed the door wasn’t fully closed, and he heard his father’s voice on the phone.
“…Even if the ad agency couldn’t find out, couldn’t you figure something out?! It’s right there, clear as day—it didn’t just appear out of thin air! There must be another way… In short, find out no matter what!”
Yi Ci listened for a moment—it was just company matters, which didn’t interest him, so he went to his room.
With a soft click, he locked the door.
In the study, Yi Hansheng ended the call, pacing in front of his desk with his hands on his hips.
After hearing about the origins of the sign from Jiang Da, he had immediately sent people to investigate the ad agency.
But the agency claimed they had no record of anyone ordering such a sign from them.
However, the gilded frame logo was unmistakably theirs.
This left only one possibility—
Someone had bought the materials and assembled the sign themselves.
This made tracking it down difficult.
Not to mention that it happened nearly six months ago and all the surveillance footage was long gone. Even if it had been recent, there were too many customers buying framing materials, many of whom were downstream resellers. How could anyone trace it?
But Yi Hansheng was determined, leaving the people on the other end feeling overwhelmed.
“Useless! All useless!”
Yi Hansheng cursed softly.
He hadn’t been this angry in years, not even when bickering with Ling Qingzhou.
Even his temples were throbbing.
After a moment, he calmed down, regaining his composure.
If the ad agency couldn’t help, he’d have to approach it from a different angle. There might still be a way.
Picking up his phone again, he dialed a number. “Send someone to keep an eye on Jiang’s Pancakes. Be discreet; don’t get caught…”
The night deepened, the moonlight gentle as water.
Some slept soundly; others laid awake.
…
The following day was Friday.
During a break between classes, Xu Jing called Jiang Fuyue to his office. “The preliminary round of the National Math Olympiad is next month. What are your thoughts?”
Jiang Fuyue found this question odd. “What do you mean?”
Her thoughts? What did that have to do with the competition?
Xu Jing hesitated for a moment, then spoke more bluntly. “Are you still planning to participate?”
“Why wouldn’t I participate?” She looked surprised.
Xu Jing blinked. “But you already declined the guaranteed admission offer…”
Jiang Fuyue replied, “I didn’t participate in the competitions for the admission qualification.”
If that were the case, she would have only needed to compete in one subject and win a gold medal.
Why bother with a second, a third—why strive for a perfect score in each?
Xu Jing was baffled.
Students take exams for academic advancement—so why else would she do it?
For fun?
For entertainment?
To challenge herself?
Jiang Fuyue smiled. “Being excellent alone is kind of lonely. I wanted to see if standing on stage while everyone applauds would make it feel a bit livelier.”
Xu Jing: “?”
What kind of bizarre reason was that?
But if Jiang Fuyue was willing to continue competing in Olympiad math, he was absolutely, 120% in favor.
Who knows? Maybe she’d pull off another perfect-score, first-place win and take home the special gold award again.
As her tutor, he couldn’t even begin to imagine how proud that would make him!
Ah, the kind of pride that bubbles over~
