“Did you buy these?” Shu Ci asked.
“The ones from yesterday died,” Lu Xianyan replied calmly.
What?
Shu Ci turned to look at the vase on the dining table—the bouquet Fu Zhiheng had given him last night had already withered!
Even fresh flowers shouldn’t last very long, but they shouldn’t die overnight.
Surprised, Shu Ci muttered to himself about how they could wilt so quickly.
“Maybe the quality wasn’t very good,” Lu Xianyan comforted him.
Then he handed over the flowers he had just bought. “Do you like these?”
Shu Ci had felt a little disappointed, but at the sight of the fresh bouquet, his mood visibly improved.
Lu Xianyan would get jealous whenever another man gave Shu Ci something.
Especially when someone invited Shu Ci out to dinner.
But he didn’t dare say anything.
Like a restrained, lurking beast, silent and patient.
He was afraid that questioning him would make Shu Ci unhappy, so he could only endure it at home and wait for him to return.
Of course, in Shu Ci’s eyes, it was simply like having an overly clingy large dog at home.
The moment he came back, Lu Xianyan would approach him, as if sniffing to check whether he had picked up any “flowers and grass” outside.
After a while, Shu Ci grew curious.
He wasn’t the type to actively seek out friends. But humans are social creatures. Even if he didn’t reach out first, others would contact him—editors, college classmates, former schoolmates, club members… They would chat, and when the conversation flowed well, they would arrange to meet.
Zhou Mingran, whom he was close to, would invite him out every few days.
He thought he was already quite a homebody, but Lu Xianyan seemed even more so.
Other than the lab, he went straight home.
Shu Ci often saw him in the living room reading research papers or answering calls—probably academic questions.
After answering, Lu Xianyan would refuse invitations with an indifferent expression.
He looked especially cold.
Just like he had in high school.
—It seemed he still only had Shu Ci and Zhou Mingran as friends.
Shu Ci was curious. In all the years they hadn’t been in touch, hadn’t Lu Xianyan made any new friends?
But he felt too awkward to ask, and didn’t know how to begin.
He was afraid that if he asked, the answer would be: “Those people aren’t important.”
Not important—
Including him.
There was something Shu Ci had never told anyone: before leaving Jiangcheng, he had been secretly sulking at Lu Xianyan on his own.
He had long forgotten the reason, but the feeling of anger remained.
On the surface, Shu Ci appeared calm and detached. But in reality, he was someone with emotional needs. He hoped his friends would value him deeply, give him ample emotional reassurance. To put it more selfishly—he wished he could be their only friend.
Unfortunately, that was difficult to achieve.
Autumn arrived.
Every year at this time, Shu Ci would return to Jiangcheng.
His grandmother’s grave was there.
He told Lu Xianyan he was going back, but didn’t explain why. Lu Xianyan didn’t ask. Instead, he took the initiative to pack his luggage.
It was only a three-day trip, yet Lu Xianyan prepared clothes and even cold medicine for him. Before he left, he insisted on accompanying him to the station.
Shu Ci declined gently. Lu Xianyan had returned very late from the lab two nights ago—
When Shu Ci arrived, he saw someone sweeping and quietly called out, “Ge.”
Shu Rong responded and glanced at the broom in his hand. “You’ve already been there?”
Shu Ci nodded.
“The bedroom’s been cleaned. Go rest first.” Shu Rong opened the door and somehow produced a bottle of mineral water, placing it beside him before continuing to clean the main hall without another word.
The two brothers were both quiet by nature.
Shu Ci hadn’t clung to his brother much when he was young.
Not because he didn’t want to—but because he couldn’t.
Shu Rong’s time had never belonged to him.
Their father, Shu Guofen, had been a swimming coach his entire life. From childhood, he had treated training Shu Rong as his lifelong mission. In his eyes, nothing mattered more than Shu Rong competing and winning medals.
They had originally lived in Wucheng. When Shu Ci was six, the whole family accompanied Shu Rong to Jiangcheng for a swimming competition. With no one watching him, Shu Ci had been lured into an alley by a stray cat—unaware that it was a common trick used by kidnappers.
He only learned these details later from Chai Jing. After being rescued, he had come down with a high fever. His memories were fragmented, almost completely blank.
At the time, wracked with guilt, Shu Rong had refused to continue swimming. Shu Guofen locked him in a room and beat him. Terrified, Shu Ci had clung to Shu Rong’s arm and cried, saying he wanted to see his brother swim.
All of Shu Guofen’s attention remained on Shu Rong.
Later, for Shu Rong’s better development, the entire family moved to Jiangcheng.
Shu Ci left behind familiar friends and came to an unfamiliar city, going to school silently on his own every day.
How his grades were, what year he was in, whether he chose arts or sciences, what happened at school, how he got along with classmates—Shu Guofen knew none of it.
What he did know was how many competitions Shu Rong had and how many special training sessions he needed each day.
Shu Ci remembered once handing over an exam paper for a signature. Shu Guofen didn’t even look at the bright red 100 marked at the top. After casually signing his name, he said in slight surprise, “You’re already in high school?”
…
Dust rose and drifted through the sunlight.
Shu Ci coughed.
Hearing it, Shu Rong paused his movements and sprinkled some water from outside to settle the dust.
Halfway through cleaning, he suddenly asked, “Did you come alone?”
Shu Ci nodded, then realized he was half-hidden by the door and answered softly, “Mm.”
“Want to come home for dinner?” Shu Rong added after a moment, “There won’t be any buses later.”
Shu Ci hadn’t planned to return to Wucheng directly; he had already booked a hotel. But he felt awkward refusing outright.
He answered tactfully, “There are people at home. I won’t go.”
Unexpectedly, Shu Rong replied, “I’ve moved back. I left a room for you.”
The “room” Shu Rong mentioned wasn’t just any bedroom with a bed.
He had moved all the belongings Shu Ci hadn’t taken with him when he left years ago back into the room.
Shu Ci stared at the layout in surprise—the bed, the wardrobe, the desk… it all looked like his old room.
He turned around, looking at Shu Rong with delight, not knowing what to say, and simply called out excitedly, “Ge!”
Shu Rong scratched his hair. “Rest first.”
After he left, Shu Ci sat on the bed, glancing around for several minutes before opening a drawer.
Inside was a family photo of the four of them.
Shu Guofen was holding up a medal—
An Olympic medal.
When Shu Ci had just entered his second year of high school, Shu Rong had lived up to expectations and won the championship for the swimming team. Shu Guofen replayed the victory footage countless times, even printing screenshots to display in the living room.