As soon as Song Chutong left, Jiang Zhixing asked Song Weiran to meet him in the small grove behind the dorms.
“Zhixing!”
Overall, Song Weiran was in a pretty good mood today.
She had won first place in the dance competition and secured the lead role. On top of that, Jiang Zhixing had kept his word—he had publicly broken things off with Song Chutong.
As for Song Chutong claiming she liked Jiang Sheng, Song Weiran didn’t believe it for a second. They had lived together for five years—she knew Song Chutong inside and out.
Song Chutong loved Jiang Zhixing deeply, to her core. There was no need to explain it—she wasn’t the type to hide her feelings. Once she came back, everyone would see the truth.
Looking at the fair, delicate girl in front of him, Jiang Zhixing finally smiled. His usually cold expression softened instantly.
“You got the lead role?”
“Mm!” Song Weiran smiled and threw herself into his arms.
After a brief pause, Jiang Zhixing gently placed a hand on her thin back. “Tonight, I’ll take you to the state-run restaurant to celebrate. We’ll get something nice to eat.”
Song Weiran didn’t answer right away. After a moment, she lifted her head from his chest, her clear eyes filled with concern.
“Zhixing… are you unhappy?”
“No,” he replied immediately, forcing the image of another face out of his mind.
Even so, he didn’t quite understand why he felt unsettled. He knew Song Chutong liked him—what she said earlier was clearly just stubborn denial. Yet somehow, it still bothered him.
Even if he had never cared much before, losing something so suddenly still stirred a faint ripple in his emotions.
Out loud, he said, “I don’t like being compared to others.”
That much was true. What he hated most was being compared to Jiang Sheng.
Song Weiran pressed her lips together. “To me, you’ll always be the best.”
Jiang Zhixing smiled. “You’re the only one who understands me.”
Then, after a brief pause, he added, “By the way… Weiran, can you return that box of cookies to me first? You know how Tongtong is…”
For a split second, Song Weiran’s smile stiffened, but she quickly recovered.
“I already brought them,” she said gently. “Tongtong cares a lot about these things. If she comes asking, it’ll be hard for you to explain.”
Though she had prepared for this, hearing him ask still sent a chill through her.
But perhaps it was a good thing—it gave her another chance to step on Song Chutong while she was down.
As she spoke, she took out the beautifully packaged box of cookies.
Jiang Zhixing accepted it with a trace of guilt. “You’re always so kind and generous. Don’t worry—I’ll make it up to you with something better in the future.”
Even though she was good at hiding her emotions, he had still caught a hint of reluctance on her face earlier.
His girl was always this thoughtful—before he even needed to ask, she had already prepared everything.
At that moment, his guilt peaked—and with it, his dislike for Song Chutong deepened even further.
He would definitely find a chance to teach her a lesson.
…
“What’s wrong with you? Feeling unwell? Should I take you to the state-run restaurant for ‘treatment’? Let me think—which doctor should I get for you… sweet-and-sour pork?”
Song Chutong was still sitting absentmindedly in the communications office when Wei Ying appeared at some point.
Hearing his voice, she immediately stood up. “Uncle!”
But once she processed what he had just said, she curved her red lips into a smile. “You’re making fun of me again.”
“Crybaby.” Wei Ying patted her on the head.
Wei Ying was her mother’s youngest brother, only seven years older than her. When she was little and visited her maternal family, he was always the one who played with her—and bullied her the most. Every time she cried, he’d end up getting scolded for it.
Song Chutong’s expression turned a little dazed.
It had been a long time since she’d last seen him. The dream from the previous night had felt so real, so long, as if she had already lived through an entire lifetime.
Now, seeing him again, she didn’t even find his teasing annoying anymore.
Staring at his face—so similar to her mother’s—Song Chutong pressed her lips together, her eyes reddening.
She was usually lively and noisy. Seeing her suddenly so quiet made Wei Ying suspect she had really been wronged this time.
After greeting the guards at the entrance, he led her out with him.
“What’s wrong? Did that guy bully you again?”
Wei Ying had never liked Jiang Zhixing. He couldn’t tell whether the old man genuinely liked Jiang Zhixing as a person or just approved of the Jiang family—but either way, he was surprisingly supportive of the marriage between him and Tongtong.
As for Wei Ying, he always felt Jiang Zhixing wasn’t as simple as he seemed—someone who treated people differently depending on their status.
Song Chutong shook her head. “Let’s not talk about him anymore. I don’t like him anymore.”
It was such a simple sentence, yet it made Wei Ying stop in his tracks. He looked at her closely.
“He dumped you?”
Wei Ying had never been in a relationship, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t read people. Jiang Zhixing clearly had no romantic feelings for Song Chutong. So while the situation surprised him, it didn’t feel unexpected.
He had warned her before—young love could turn into obsession—but she had been too deep in it to listen.
Song Chutong lowered her beautiful eyes slightly. “Did you already know he didn’t like me?”
No matter how tough she acted outside, she couldn’t keep that front up in front of family. A single dream couldn’t change the fact that she was only nineteen. She couldn’t be perfect in every way.
Wei Ying opened the car door for her. “Why bother about him? There are plenty of men out there—especially in the military. Take one glance and it’s all single guys!”
Song Chutong fastened her seatbelt. “Is that why you still don’t have a girlfriend?”
Wei Ying froze for a second. He raised his hand, intending to smack her head again—but when he saw her reddened eyes, he changed it into a rough squeeze instead.
He didn’t go easy on her though—after a few vigorous rubs, her hair turned into a mess.
Ignoring her glare, he held back a laugh and started the jeep. “I just have standards, alright? If I’m going to fall in love, it has to be real—mutual feelings!”
Song Chutong rolled her eyes. “There you go again, mocking me.”
Wasn’t he just emphasizing the obvious—that Jiang Zhixing didn’t like her?
Wei Ying grinned. This was more like the girl he knew. “What, sweet-and-sour pork isn’t enough to cure you? Then what do you want to eat?”
Song Chutong deliberately made things difficult. “I want crab. Big ones. Already peeled!”
But this wasn’t crab season—and in the capital, they were even harder to come by.
Wei Ying suddenly remembered the second “task” his father had given him over the phone. He had originally been against it, but faced with her request… the only way might be to take her to that person’s place.
Still, now that she had finally broken things off with Jiang Zhixing, he had no intention of letting them get back together. At worst, he could just have that guy come up with an excuse to bring a few good crabs out for his little crybaby.
“Alright,” he said easily. “In a few days, I’ll personally feed them to you, okay?”
Song Chutong made a disgusted face. “No thanks. That’s gross.”
Wei Ying raised an eyebrow, though he was smiling.
“Uncle… are you still close with Jiang Sheng?”
Her sudden question made Wei Ying slam on the brakes, nearly throwing her forward in her seat.
Well… that answered the question. They were definitely close.
“Why are you asking about him?” Wei Ying asked.
Song Chutong thought for a moment. “Just remembered him suddenly. Why?”
The innocence on her face wasn’t entirely an act—she truly didn’t know Jiang Sheng that well.
Wei Ying started the car again. “Just treat him like an elder. Call him ‘uncle’ when you see him. And whatever you do—don’t provoke him.”
Song Chutong shrank back slightly.
He sounded… difficult.
At this point, she just hoped that in a few days, when her uncle inevitably heard the rumors, he wouldn’t come after her for trouble.
Honestly, what had she been thinking, bringing up Jiang Sheng of all people?
Oh right.
Because in her dream—
he was the one who collected her body.