The elevator car was quiet. The girl who had come up to strike up a conversation politely asked about Nanda, and Ye Yanzhi answered each question seriously.
The girl's phone case was very feminine—soft pink with rhinestones stuck on it. Ye Yanzhi held it with both hands, typing out his WeChat ID in the settings menu.
Ye Yanzhi's hands were cleanly trimmed, his long fingers well-proportioned with distinct knuckles, like slender bamboo.
Huh?
Ye Yanzhi's hands were holding someone else's phone—so whose hand was the one currently interlaced with hers?
As if she'd seen a ghost, Ta Cheng's back instantly broke out in goosebumps. She frowned and jerked her head down.
In the cramped space, amidst the drifting subtle fragrance, white fabric gently brushed against white fabric. A jade-like, pampered hand appeared before her eyes.
Twisting veins like gnarled roots climbed from the back of the hand all the way up to the elbow, straining into powerful, muscular lines.
Sensual yet restrained.
Her heart jolted suddenly, and she realized she'd grabbed the wrong hand.
She didn't even need to look up at the face—just from the beauty of the hand alone, she knew it was Zong Xubai's hand behind her.
Her heart hung high in her throat, and she didn't dare look at Zong Xubai's expression. She wanted to pretend nothing was wrong and let go, but that hand seemed to deliberately twist around hers, holding on tightly.
His palm was smooth, moist as jade, refined and luxurious.
Her nerves were taut, her neck instantly flushed red, her mind in chaos. The uneasy speculation from the car surged back like a tidal wave. What did he mean by this? Why wouldn't he let go? It was her fault for grabbing the wrong hand, but—what did he mean by holding on and refusing to release?
She was a little flustered, a little annoyed.
Setting aside the possibility that he had designs on her, based on what she knew of him, she suspected he was deliberately punishing her for grabbing the wrong hand by refusing to let go.
Just like how if she called him "Mr. Zong," he'd respond with "Ta Cheng, baby."
He was a bit of a scoundrel at heart.
But out of courtesy, she couldn't hit him or scold him.
She couldn't help but look up and saw an extremely handsome, gentle face. A faint smile curved at the corners of his lips. Behind his glasses, his peach-blossom eyes rested warmly on her, the corners seeming to carry a thin layer of enticing spring charm.
He leaned lazily against the elevator wall, his posture so relaxed he seemed boneless.
In that position, he observed her with an inscrutable gaze.
His look was loose yet focused with interest.
Those peach-blossom eyes, already full of deep affection, combined with the inappropriate intimacy of their current position, stirred a thick, sticky sweetness into the air.
Ta Cheng froze—he really was doing it on purpose.
She didn't know why he was teasing her like this. Her scalp prickled with fear and tension. His hand was like half-melted candy, sticking to her and making her heart panic.
The interest in Zong Xubai's eyes remained strong, reflecting her stubborn brows and eyes. He leisurely leaned down, his shadow pressing inch by inch over her face, casting a dark tone over her features.
He whispered low by her ear,
"How can you not even recognize your boyfriend's hand?"
"Is his longer than mine? Softer?"
Every word was a verdict on her carelessness, a proud, arrogant taunt at her expense.
Ta Cheng's spine stiffened, her mind going blank. What kind of scandalous words was Zong Xubai saying? It sounded like they were having a secret affair right in front of Ye Yanzhi.
Her skin burned hot, her thoughts tangled into an unbreakable mess, and for a moment she couldn't think at all.
After Ye Yanzhi returned the phone to the girl, he seemed to notice something was off and looked at Ta Cheng, who was frozen stiff as stone. "What's wrong?"
Ta Cheng's eyes went wide with helplessness, her heart pounding in fits. Half her body instinctively leaned toward Zong Xubai, and she guiltily hid their clasped hands behind her back.
Like she was hiding some unspeakable secret.
Nothing had actually happened between her and Zong Xubai, and there was no romantic tension between them, but right now their hands were genuinely intertwined. And she really hadn't been able to tell her boyfriend's hand apart, which gave her a rising sense of betraying her boyfriend.
On one hand, she was afraid Ye Yanzhi would discover she was holding someone else's hand; on the other, her heart kept silently struggling.
While her mind waged war, the sensation of being gripped beneath disappeared. Her hand regained its freedom, fresh air rushing over the palm that had broken out in a fine sweat. The lingering warmth made her uncomfortable and displeased.
She let out a heavy breath, and her numb hand quickly moved away from Zong Xubai's, bringing it to her front and clasping it with her other hand.
She swallowed and said in a low voice, "Nothing."
Behind her, a low snicker escaped Zong Xubai's nose, as if mocking her for not being able to tell her boyfriend's hand apart.
She was furious and deeply guilty, her hands clenching tightly together, almost digging bloody marks into her palms.
Is Mr. Zong crazy? She desperately wanted to ask him directly—why was he teasing and toying with her like this? She really didn't want to think badly of him, but after knowing him, everything that had happened now spread out like a net, trapping her so she couldn't breathe—panicked, terrified, with nowhere to run.
The girl who had registered the WeChat account looked shyly at Zong Xubai and asked in her Hong Kong-accented Mandarin, "Are you from the mainland too? Can I add you on WeChat?"
From a distance, Wu Cheng spotted Zong Xubai. After entering the elevator, she saw him standing far away and heard another man speaking Mandarin, assuming they were all there to learn about the mainland. She started chatting with the man first, adding him on WeChat in a flurry of activity.
Zong Xubai gave a faint smile and replied in Cantonese, "Hong Kong person, no WeChat, not adding friends, have a girlfriend." (No WeChat, not adding friends, have a girlfriend.)
The girl let out an "oh oh" sound, her mood like a roller coaster, eyes full of disappointment. She had thought since he was from Hong Kong she could add him on WhatsApp, but he had clearly stated he wasn't adding friends and had a girlfriend.
Her gaze fell on the blushing Ta Cheng. "Is this your girlfriend? She's very pretty."
Zong Xubai gave a light chuckle, glancing sideways at He Cheng's head, and answered lazily,
"She is quite pretty."
Ta Cheng understood now—those two letters "bb" left a deep impression, and she was instantly speechless. Zong Xubai used her as a shield to reject others so effortlessly.
The suspicions from the car resurfaced clearly. Wu Cheng's heart raced wildly, almost bursting from her chest. Fine sweat broke out at her temples, and goosebumps rose on her skin.
Wu Cheng didn't want to have dinner with him anymore.
A voice inside her screamed loudly that she wanted to escape, she wanted to leave.
She secretly glanced at Ye Yanzhi—he probably hadn't understood or hadn't heard clearly.
The elevator reached the top floor, and a waiter greeted them with a smile outside the doors. After stepping out of the elevator, Ta Cheng instinctively tugged at Ye Yanzhi's sleeve. He looked down and asked with a gentle smile, "What's wrong?"
"How about we go eat by ourselves…"
Ye Yanzhi deliberately lowered his voice to comfort her, "Is it because this place feels too upscale? Since we're already here, and he said he'd treat us to dinner, don't worry about the money. Let's just treat it as an experience."
That wasn't the reason. It was that Wu Cheng felt something was a bit dangerous—Mr. Zong was a bit dangerous, Mr. Zong seemed to have changed somehow… changed into something like, like a ghost, inexplicably and relentlessly clinging on…
But Wu Cheng didn't know how to explain this subtle, unsettling feeling to Ye Yanzhi…
It was Wu Cheng who had boldly claimed Mr. Zong was a good person, and it was also Wu Cheng who now suspected with malicious intent that he was a bad one. She wasn't sure if she was being overly sensitive.
The two huddled together whispering and discussing, completely leaving Zong Xubai aside. He listlessly lowered his gaze and spread open his palm—on the clean palm lines, there seemed to still be traces of Wu Cheng's struggle. He stared at it, his dark eyes cool, like water emitting cold mist.
He looked up, his cold features curving into a friendly expression, asking with gentlemanly thoughtfulness: "What's the matter? Don't like this restaurant? Shall we switch to another one?"
The two looked at him simultaneously.
Ta Cheng, half her face hidden behind Ye Yanzhi's arm, had clear wariness and fear in her bright eyes.
Zong Xubai smiled and pushed up his glasses. She really was like a rabbit—scared and immediately hiding. At this point, how much longer would he let her hide?
He said warmly, "Yanzhi, I often use this restaurant to entertain friends who come from afar. I hope you don't mind."
Ye Yanzhi, elevated by these words, let out an "ah" of flattered surprise and gave a shy smile. "Not at all. Mr. Zong's arrangements are very thoughtful."
"It's me who should thank you both for agreeing to dine with me. I was worried I might be a third wheel interrupting your date."
"Not at all," Ye Yanzhi said against his conscience. "It's just a meal anyway."
He glanced sweetly at Ta Cheng. "Besides, we're not really on a date right now."
Ta Cheng silently observed Zong Xubai. His words and eyes were sincere, impossible to fault. When speaking with Ye Yanzhi, he never looked at her at all, his lips curved in a polite smile throughout, without the pressure of a superior or any condescension—he truly seemed to be simply entertaining a good friend.
Mr. Zong was truly someone she couldn't figure out.
"Alright, let's go in then."
Watching Zong Xubai walk ahead, Ta Cheng felt her feet as heavy as lead. Her instincts screamed at her to get away quickly, but reality was that Ye Yanzhi was holding her hand and following, so she had no choice but to trail along step by step.
At the same time, a voice told herself: perhaps Mr. Zong meant nothing else? He was just teasing her for grabbing the wrong hand.
Those bad suspicions were just her subjective imagination. Mr. Zong was such a good person—how could he possibly have any ill intentions?
This time it was a private room.
A small round table, and outside the window was Victoria Harbour at sunset. The setting sun melted into gold, bathing the rippling waves and building shadows in warm, magnificent afterglow.
Ta Cheng and Ye Yanzhi sat together.
The moment Ta Cheng's bottom touched the seat, the corner of her eye caught Zong Xubai sitting down beside her. That meant she had people on both sides, with the opposite side half empty.
The incident of grabbing the wrong hand in the elevator earlier still left Ta Cheng uneasy and suspicious. Now he had silently sat down beside her again, and that clinging presence once more wound around her like a shadow from hell. The discomfort surged like a tsunami into her mind, numbing her nerves, her spine stiffening straight.
With so many seats available, why did Mr. Zong have to sit next to her?
Why?
The bad thoughts he had just suppressed swelled up again like a balloon. All those strange things he could say—calling her "bb" and teasing her for not being able to tell boyfriends apart—all those dense, frivolous, ambiguous remarks came crashing down on her all at once, suffocating her.
Could Mr. Zong's true nature really be like this?
That would be far too frightening.
A dangerous chord was being pulled taut in Ta Cheng's mind: so what if he was like that? Mr. Zong wasn't someone she had much contact with anyway.
Before coming to Hong Kong, Ye Yanzhi had done his research on affordable eateries, all high-value cha chaan tengs. But now, a bowl of plain congee cost three figures, a bowl of soup cost four figures—wasn't Hong Kong currency the same as mainland money?
A huge sense of disparity washed over him.
Though he had mentally prepared himself for Zong Xubai's spending level—something ordinary people couldn't compare to—his heart still sank the moment he truly felt it.
He looked up at Ta Cheng. Her face was a bit pale, and she hadn't even touched the menu.
Zong Xubai didn't bother asking if they had any dietary restrictions or preferences, and simply ordered directly.
He glanced sideways at Ta Cheng, who sat motionless, stiff as a puppet, and asked in a low voice, "Would you like the same white wine as last time?"
His voice wasn't loud, but the private room was so spacious and quiet that Ye Yanzhi heard it clearly. He looked at Ta Cheng.
"Last time? Cheng Cheng has been here before?"
Ta Cheng's wandering thoughts were pulled back by their voices. She looked up and met Ye Yanzhi's scrutinizing, puzzled gaze. "What?"
Ye Yanzhi noticed she was distracted. "What are you thinking about? I'm asking, when did you come here with Mr. Zong?"
Ta Cheng didn't look at Zong Xubai, keeping her back to him. She had been spacing out just now and wasn't sure how he had explained it to Ye Yanzhi.
It was such a normal thing, but under Ye Yanzhi's naked gaze, she suddenly realized that a man and a woman dining alone together didn't seem quite so innocent and aboveboard.
Still, she had a clear conscience and had done nothing wrong, so she answered frankly, "I came last week. I didn't think it was important, so I didn't mention it to you."
Having dinner with Zong Xubai wasn't an important matter, so she hadn't told Ye Yanzhi about it.
A hint of disappointment flickered in Ye Yanzhi's eyes. He didn't say anything more, but his heart felt sour. What was he supposed to make of his girlfriend sneaking off with another man to such an upscale restaurant with such a nice atmosphere?
He had thought they were both first-timers.
He never expected that not only had his girlfriend been here before, but she had no intention of explaining herself—and even said she didn't think it was important? How could it not be important? He shared everything he ate at school with her.
Frustration welled up in his chest. Silently and irritably, he flipped open the menu and, on a whim, ordered the most expensive bottle of wine on it.
Under the table, Ta Cheng gently tugged at Ye Yanzhi's sleeve.
She signaled for him not to order recklessly, but he pretended not to notice and smiled. "Is that alright, Mr. Zong?"
Zong Xubai slowly swirled his glass, a hint of a wicked smile curling at the corner of his lips. "Of course. If you can't get your fill here, we can switch venues afterward—they have better liquor there. Though I'm not sure about your tolerance."
"Tolerance doesn't matter much. I just want to try something new."
His nonchalant, money-means-nothing attitude—that smile that didn't reach his eyes—stirred an inexplicable resentment toward the wealthy in Ye Yanzhi's heart. In a fit of pique, he added another bottle.
Zong Xubai didn't care in the slightest and went on to mention that the restaurant had a signature cocktail worth tasting.
Ye Yanzhi accepted everything.
Ta Cheng frowned. Ye Yanzhi had always been rational and sensible. Why was he acting like a brat today? She immediately stopped the waiter: "No wine."
Then she turned to Ye Yanzhi and asked gently, "What's wrong with you? Planning to get drunk on wine?"
"Just want to try it. Never had it before."
Ta Cheng's concerned questioning of Ye Yanzhi irritated Zong Xubai. He turned to the waiter and said to bring up everything they had just ordered.
Ta Cheng tried to stop it, but failed—the waiter had already scurried off.
Zong Xubai gently swirled the lemon water in his glass, lifted his eyes past Ta Cheng to look at Ye Yanzhi, and asked casually, "Ta Cheng mentioned you're in medicine too? Why didn't you apply to HKU? Medicine is HKU's flagship program."
Ye Yanzhi felt he was being glib—talking as if it were easy. To get into HKU's medical school, international students and mainland students needed gaokao scores above the "Tsinghua-Peking line."
Besides, he was a year ahead of Ta Cheng. How could he have known in advance that she was considering HKU, let alone that she'd gotten in?
Meeting Zong Xubai's eyes, Ye Yanzhi suddenly felt his throat go dry, as if he had been seen through completely. Eager to prove something, he said, "I'm planning to apply for HKU's medical graduate program."
Seeing Zong Xubai raise his handsome brows, a curve forming at the corners of his lips as he let out a casual, low chuckle.
Ye Yanzhi's neck flushed red instantly. He had been a top student his whole life and never felt inferior to anyone. When he got into Nanda's medical school, his family booked an entire restaurant for the celebration banquet. But that smile from Zong Xubai—to him, it was mockery.
He had seen too many people like Zong Xubai, raised by capitalist families. Either they were spoiled rich kids with no real skills, buying their way through the back door with donations to get a university diploma, or they were all show and no substance, throwing money at two years abroad to get a watered-down master's degree and package themselves as shiny "returnees."
Truly capable rich kids were few and far between.
He didn't know what kind of person Zong Xubai was, and it seemed he might even carry some academic elitism. He didn't believe he happened to be one of that rare few.
Following the topic, he asked, "May I ask which university Mr. Zong graduated from?"
Zong Xubai glanced at him with a half-smile, looking nonchalant. "I studied philosophy for both my bachelor's and master's at Harvard. By the time I was your age, I'd already graduated with my master's and returned to the country."
Ye Yanzhi was taken aback. Studying philosophy fit his stereotype of a wealthy young heir perfectly—someone so high above the rest didn't need to learn a practical skill to make a living; life was merely an elegant pastime.
But having both degrees from Harvard, and returning home with a master's by that age—that wasn't something ordinary people could match through hard work alone. That was talent.
So Zong Xubai really was one of that rare few.
He'd lost ground again.
A sense of defeat crept into his heart.
Ta Cheng sensed Ye Yanzhi's dejection and spoke up for her boyfriend. "With Yanzhi's college entrance exam scores, getting into the University of Hong Kong would've been more than enough. He just didn't include it in his options at the time. I believe he'll apply for a master's at HKU in the future."
"Mr. Zong was born a child of privilege—you graduated from Harvard with a master's at twenty. Yanzhi is twenty, studying medicine at Nanda. Our starting points are different, and our destinations are different, but right now, we're sitting here together."
She was actually a little uneasy. The only reason they were sitting together was because Zong Xubai had invited them out of courtesy. With their difference in status and class, they should never have crossed paths otherwise.
The private room fell into silence.
Zong Xubai hadn't expected her to defend her boyfriend with such ferocity, even going so far as to break their unspoken understanding by calling him "Mr. Zong" and "you" in that formal tone.
To her, he was the respectful "Mr. Zong," but her boyfriend was just "Yanzhi."
It grated on his ears.
He narrowed his eyes, studying her face with an unreadable gaze. He picked up his glass and took a slow sip of lemon water.
"True. Flowing water doesn't race ahead—it surges endlessly."
Zong Xubai first agreed with her words, then let out a faint, elusive laugh and asked casually,
"Why did you choose HKU back then? Wouldn't it have been nice to study at Nanda with your boyfriend?"
"Or is it that, in your eyes, your boyfriend isn't actually that important?"
Ta Cheng froze. His words were like an airtight net closing in around her, trapping her in a suffocating grip she couldn't escape.