“First of all, I am no longer a child. I can take responsibility for my own actions, and I won’t just easily be tricked by anyone. You don’t need to worry about that.”
“Secondly, the company I went to interview with is Wei’s. It is a legitimate corporation.”
“Wei’s?”
Lin Yiming was stunned.
The barrier to entry at Wei’s was notoriously high, and their enterprise rarely recruited interns. Because of this, Lin Yiming had not even thought in that direction just now.
“I…”
“I know, it just didn’t cross your mind, so it’s fine.”
Shi Song answered for him, his voice carrying a hint of weariness.
“I’m sorry,” Lin Yiming said hurriedly.
After he said this, both of them fell silent.
In truth, Lin Yiming still wanted Shi Song to come to Lin’s. Even though Wei’s was excellent, they would be able to work together if Shi Song came to Lin’s.
Furthermore, he had gone to great lengths to secure that specific position at Lin’s, so he felt it was definitely better than being a lowly intern at Wei’s.
But no matter how dense he was, he could still detect Shi Song’s coldness.
Understanding that it was inappropriate to continue discussing this topic, Lin Yiming hesitated for a moment and said, “Alright, then what you like is the most important thing.”
“Oh right, baby, do you have time tonight? We haven’t eaten dinner together in such a long time.”
“Didn’t you say before that you wanted to try that newly opened barbecue restaurant? Let’s go give it a try.”
This was something Shi Song had mentioned back when they were in the honeymoon phase of their relationship.
Shi Song lowered his eyes.
After thinking it over, he said, “I don’t have time lately. I have to rush to finish my schoolwork. Let’s talk about it later.”
“Okay then. Whenever you’re free, remember to call me.”
Seeing that the other side had already hung up the phone, Lin Yiming frowned.
He didn’t know if it was just his imagination, but Shi Song seemed very cold today.
On the other side, Shi Song put his phone into his pocket.
He had actually given serious thought to his relationship with Lin Yiming. When his emotions were running high, the words “let’s break up” had even been on the tip of his tongue.
But after calming down, Shi Song felt that now was not a good time to bring up a breakup.
He had to save his own life first before talking about anything else.
Shi Song originally had no intention of dating during university. It was Lin Yiming who had pursued him relentlessly, which eventually led them to get together.
During that period, Lin Yiming had used every trick in the book, to the point where everyone who was close to Shi Song knew this persistent pursuer.
Lin Yiming was wealthy and handsome, and most importantly, he was considerate and granted Shi Song’s every whim. Coupled with his high-profile actions, everyone said he was simply a perfect man.
However, Shi Song could see the interactions between Lin Yiming and Su Tang very clearly.
Contrasting it with the trajectory of his dream made everything explicit. Although Lin Yiming liked him a lot right now, he clearly trusted Su Tang more.
There was definitely no need to continue this romantic relationship.
Shi Song was still unclear about how the version of himself in the dream had ended up in such a miserable state. However, he prided himself on not being a brainless lover; he would absolutely never ruin his own life to such an extent just for the sake of a relationship.
This matter concerned life and death, so Shi Song had to figure out what was going on before he could make his next move.
Lin Yiming was currently head over heels for him. Bringing up a breakup now would not only prevent him from getting away clean, but it might also trigger unpredictable and adverse consequences.
To protect himself, Shi Song had to be extremely cautious.
He and Lin Yiming would break up sooner or later, but it couldn’t be done haphazardly. He had to find a way to make Lin Yiming give up entirely, or at least ensure that he wouldn’t come back to pester him after the breakup.
For now, letting the relationship cool down gradually was a more progressive approach.
Thinking of this, Shi Song massaged his temples with a bit of a headache.
After this sequence of events, Shi Song no longer possessed the lighthearted mood he had just a moment ago.
But after a moment of thought, he still sent that message to Wei Huaichen: “Brother, do you have time lately? I’d like to treat you to dinner.”
After a while, Wei Huaichen sent a brief sentence back: “Sorry, I’m a bit busy lately. Let’s talk about it later.”
In an instant, Shi Song’s mood plummeted to rock bottom.
He let out a soft sigh and then got into the car heading back to school.
Fortunately, Ju Bao’s illness was completely cured.
Perhaps because the kitten was currently in its growth phase, Shi Song would find that Ju Bao was a bit heavier than the day before every time he put him on the scale over the past two days.
In order to get familiar with Wei Huaichen more quickly, Shi Song sent him videos of Ju Bao every day. As the days went by, their chat history became filled with the kitten playing with yarn balls, the kitten squeezing into cardboard boxes, the kitten eating canned food, and so on.
Wei Huaichen replied to every single video seriously. Thus, gradually, Shi Song developed a feeling that they were co-parenting a cub together.
On this particular day, while he was recording a video of Ju Bao, a notification suddenly popped up in the school’s lecture announcement group.
[BLOCKBUSTER! The School of Economics is honored to invite Mr. Wei Huaichen to give a lecture at our university]
Wei Huaichen?
It couldn’t be the one he knew, could it?
Shi Song set aside Ju Bao, who was letting out a “meow meow” of protest, and hurriedly opened the group message. A black-and-white promotional poster came into view.
He was truly handsome.
The person in the picture wore a well-tailored suit, his body turned slightly to the side. His brows were sharp, his skin fair, and his dove-gray eyes curved slightly, carrying a somewhat lazy and detached smile within them. His Adam’s apple protruded slightly, making his entire being exude an aura that was both abstinent and elegant.
It was simply striking.
And just as Shi Song expected, the group chat had already exploded.
“Wei Huaichen? Is that the commercial genius?”
“My god, he looks so handsome in this photo! Is he really not a celebrity? I am totally swooning over his looks!”
“I bet the lecture hall will be packed to death that day. Get your plastic stools ready, girls, I’m rushing in!”
Flipping through the group messages, Shi Song couldn’t help but want to laugh a little.
He originally wanted to forward the group message to Wei Huaichen to take a look, but after hesitating for a moment, he decided against it.
It would make it seem like he was hinting at something.
After thinking it over, Shi Song still sent a video of Ju Bao.
“Today’s portion of kitten has been delivered, please check and accept it~”
On the day of the lecture, Shi Song still didn’t go to join the crowd.
Although he usually enjoyed dropping in on lectures from other departments, looking at their momentum today, there would definitely be too many people. Shi Song felt that he didn’t really have a compelling reason to go.
However, when he stepped out of the dormitory to head to the art studio, he looked at his watch and hesitated for a moment.
Ultimately, he chose to take the longer path.
That was the only route that would pass by the lecture hall.
Shi Song didn’t go with the mindset that he absolutely had to see Wei Huaichen. Unexpectedly, when he arrived, he found a small cluster of people gathered around the entrance of the lecture hall.
Right in the very center of that small cluster of people stood Wei Huaichen.
Across the crowd, their eyes met.
Shi Song hesitated for a moment and stood still where he was.
“Alright, alright, everyone please quiet down.”
“President Wei has other matters to attend to later, so he probably won’t be able to answer any more of your questions. It will be the same if you come and ask me later.”
Standing next to Wei Huaichen was a young lecturer from the School of Economics.
He quickly dispersed the surrounding students in a few words. Seeing Shi Song standing outside the periphery of the crowd without moving, he asked in confusion, “Student, you are…?”
“Hello, teacher. I am… his younger brother.”
Even now, bringing up this identity still made Shi Song feel a bit embarrassed.
“Ah, so he was looking for you specifically.”
The lecturer was stunned for a moment, his smile warm. “I really couldn’t tell. Your younger brother looks so handsome. Is he also from our school?”
Wei Huaichen gave a faint “mm.”
He didn’t correct the lecturer’s use of the word “specifically.”
“Tsk, he must be a little campus heartthrob.”
The lecturer made a joke in high spirits.
“I was originally planning to take you on a tour around the campus, but since your younger brother is here, you two should go ahead.”
It took Shi Song a moment to react. The lecturer probably assumed that they had made plans beforehand.
But by this time, the lecturer had already waved his hand at them and walked away.
He had no choice but to look at Wei Huaichen. “Brother, then should I take you for a walk?”
As he spoke, a gentle breeze blew past the side of Shi Song’s face, lifting his hair slightly. When the youth smiled, his eyes curved into crescents as if hiding a small patch of stars. His nose was small and pert, and his lips looked very soft.
Wei Huaichen gave an “mm” and said gently, “Sure, let’s take a stroll together.”
The scenery of Capital University was famously beautiful, and Shi Song introduced it to Wei Huaichen as they walked.
Seeing the grey brick building of the Academy of Fine Arts just ahead, an idea suddenly struck Shi Song. “Brother, would you like to take a look at my art studio while we’re at it?”
Before this, Shi Song had never shown his paintings to his family members.
However, over all these years, the thing he had invested himself in the most was painting. He had poured all of his passion into it.
He had also achieved a few minor accomplishments, so he wanted his family to see.
Shi Song realized his own petty mindset with a bit of shame, and his fingers rubbed against the hem of his shirt anxiously.
Wei Huaichen looked down and noticed that Shi Song’s ears were slightly red, appearing just like white jade tinged with a flush of pink.
He could faintly sense that the youth seemed close to him, which was something he had never experienced in the past twenty-odd years of his life.
Wei Huaichen’s voice softened. “Sure, let’s go.”
A small burst of joy flashed through Shi Song’s heart.
“Let’s go, let’s go, it’s just over there.”
His luck was quite good; there happened to be no one inside the art studio today.
“Brother, look, these are all painted by me.”
Shi Song pointed them out to Wei Huaichen.
Wei Huaichen raised his chin slightly, his eyes locking onto the artwork, a few hints of amazement flashing through them.
Shi Song’s paintings had a very distinct style of their own. His use of color was bold, and he was skilled with light and shadow. At a single glance, they were extremely pleasing to the eye.
Wei Huaichen could tell how outstanding he was right away.
“They look very beautiful,” Wei Huaichen said sincerely.
After being praised, Shi Song felt quite proud of himself. “Oh right, there’s also this side. I’ve only finished half of this one.”
Shi Song found his own drawing board and then lifted the white cloth that was draped over it.
Rustle—
Without knowing what he had brushed against, a piece of paper unexpectedly drifted out from within.
“Eh?”
Catching sight of the pink tone of the paper and the heart shape on the back at first glance, Shi Song was stunned for a moment.
This didn’t seem to belong to him?
“Something fell, why aren’t you picking it up.”
Wei Huaichen’s gaze shifted downward.
He bent his waist, his well-defined fingers helping Shi Song pick up the piece of paper.
“It seems to be… a love letter?”
Wei Huaichen held that piece of paper between two fingers, handing it to Shi Song in a very gentlemanly manner.
A warm smile still lingered within his gray eyes, except that smile didn’t seem capable of penetrating to the depths of his eyes.
Shi Song’s heart skipped a beat.