The office air conditioner hummed, and cicadas chirped endlessly outside the window.
The counselor pushed a red-headed document toward him, looking pleased. "Xiao Jinyu, the department is taking your act of bravery this time very seriously. We've decided to give you a commendation, along with a ten-thousand-yuan bonus."
"It wasn't my doing. It was…" Xiao Jinyu paused, the image of that girl hoisting a riot fork and pinning the man against the wall flashing through his mind.
Come to think of it, she'd saved his life too.
"It was that girl."
The counselor smiled. "You mean Wen Li, right? Don't worry, I've already contacted her college. She's getting a commendation too, with the same bonus."
"Give her mine as well."
"Huh?" The counselor instinctively pushed up her glasses. "But I think you could really use this bonus too. You earned it—no need to be shy about it."
"Give it to her." Xiao Jinyu's tone was firm.
"Alright, since it's your decision, I won't say more."
Xiao Jinyu gave a slight nod and turned to leave.
The counselor looked down and flipped open the file on her desk. In the emergency contact column for Xiao Jinyu, it read: None.
She'd always known he had outstanding grades and abilities, but his tuition came entirely from student loans, and his living expenses depended on scholarships and part-time jobs. She'd guessed his family situation wasn't great, and when this opportunity finally came up, she'd been genuinely happy for him.
And then he just gave it away to someone else.
_
Wen Li's act of bravery this time had landed her directly on the college's headline news.
The college had specially sent her a banner of honor, thanking her for her courageous assistance. The Orthopedics Department went even further—they hung a banner right at the hospital.
[All staff of the Orthopedics Department thank Wen Li for her courageous assistance]
Red background with gold lettering, hanging at the main entrance of the outpatient building, fluttering in the wind, visible from miles away.
Wen Li: "…"
So awkward.
One act of bravery, and she'd become introverted for life.
Strangely enough, she wasn't the only one who'd acted that day—Xiao Jinyu had helped too. Why hadn't anyone hung a banner for him?
Maybe she should go ask him?
Wen Li recalled their last awkward conversation and gave up on the idea.
Fu Qin walked past her from behind. "What are you doing, spacing out like that?"
"A bit awkward. I don't know how to chat with my crush."
"Normal. It's already a blessing that a cold fish like him even replies to you."
Wen Li flopped her head onto the desk. "Maybe I should just give up. Nothing is hard if you're willing to quit."
"Don't do that. You've already added him on WeChat—you're ahead of most people already."
"What's the use?"
"Chasing a guy isn't that hard. With this kind of proud, icy type, you just have to be relentless. Thicken your skin a little." Fu Qin patted her shoulder. "Don't you want to wait until you've hooked him, then make him kneel in front of you and sing 'Conquest'?"
Wen Li pictured the scene and nodded firmly. "Yes."
"There you go. Get your game face on."
Wen Li perked up again and opened her browser to search for tips: [Opening lines for chatting with your crush]
She scrolled down, and the most-liked answer read: [First, give him a detailed self-introduction, highlighting your strengths. Be sincere, sincere, sincere—important things said three times]
That made sense. She had to be sincere.
Yesterday's message hadn't been sincere at all. She edited a new one.
Big Pear: [Hello, Classmate Xiao. My name is Wen Li. Height 161, weight 55 kg, age 19, local. I'm considered fairly pretty (according to others), honest and kind, optimistic and outgoing, always happy to help others. I'm healthy with no bad habits, and my family is harmonious. I hope we can be friends]
She finished it off with a handshake emoji.
Sent.
She turned around and ran straight into Fu Qin's face, which was a picture of speechless disbelief. "This is the opening line you thought about for half an hour?"
Wen Li: "Is it no good?"
Fu Qin patted her shoulder and said meaningfully, "Li, Márquez once said that when a woman wants to sleep with a man, there's no wall she can't leap over. You need to be more proactive."
"Am I not proactive enough?"
"You call that proactive?" Fu Qin dragged a chair over and sat down, opening her own WeChat to demonstrate. "Watch closely. Learn well."
Wen Li nodded seriously.
Fu Qin opened the chat with the contact labeled "PE Department Dream Guy"—a guy she'd met in her elective PE class. Sunny, handsome, eight-pack abs. She'd had her eye on him for a while, and today was the perfect chance to practice.
She tapped the screen and typed: [Handsome, want to hang out?]
Looking at Fu Qin's confident smile, Wen Li was skeptical. "That's way too direct. What if he rejects you?"
"Impossible. No man turns down a woman throwing herself at him, even if she's not his type."
The moment she finished speaking, "typing…" actually appeared above the chat box.
PE Department Dream Guy: [Sure]
Wen Li was shocked. It actually worked?
"See? What did I tell you." Fu Qin said smugly. "Men are single-celled organisms. You can't overthink them. That old-fashioned blind-date-style self-introduction of yours is outdated. Now you have to do it like this—hit straight, settle it fast."
Wen Li was baffled but impressed—so guys really did fall for this kind of thing.
She thought for a moment, pulled out her phone, and sent Xiao Jinyu a message in imitation, about to ask for the next move when she caught sight of Fu Qin's phone screen lighting up out of the corner of her eye.
PE Department's Top Catch: 【I'll meet your grandma】
Fu Qin: "?"
Fu Qin: 【Why are you cursing at me?】
After she sent that, a cold system notification popped up in the "PE Department's Top Catch" chat window.
【The other party has enabled friend verification. You are not yet their friend. Please send a friend request first.】
Fu Qin: "…"
Wen Li: "!???"
Wait, what are you doing, strategist?! Didn't you say no man could resist a woman throwing herself at him?
_
Xiao Jinyu's phone rang.
He glanced at the caller ID and slid to the decline button. Not long after, a WeChat notification popped up—a message from someone saved as "Mom." Well, calling her Mom wasn't quite right either; to be precise, she was his former mom.
He tapped in.
Mom: 【A'yu, can we meet this weekend?】
Mom: 【I'm at the People's Hospital recently. Your younger brother is very sick. Do you want to come see him?】
Mom: 【A'yu, I'm begging you】
He didn't know what had come over him that day—he'd actually accepted her friend request. Later, he'd wanted to delete her, his fingertip hovering over the delete button for a long time, but in the end, he never pressed it.
He tapped her profile picture and scrolled through her Moments.
Almost all of it was warm, everyday content of a loving mother and devoted son. The latest post was from a hospital ward—a short line of text with a photo of her and Qi Siyuan.
【Son, you'll make it through this time. Mommy loves you.】
【A'yuan, happy birthday. Seventeen years old—you're a big man now】
【Carnations from A'yuan. So blessed】
Xiao Jinyu silently finished reading her Moments without replying, then changed her contact name back to her real name: Jin Mo.
After doing that, he returned to his chat list, where a little red dot had appeared—a message from a rabbit Judy avatar.
Big Pear: 【Hello, Classmate Xiao. My name is Wen Li. Height 161, weight 55 kg, age 19, local. I'm also reasonably pretty (according to others). Honest and friendly, optimistic and cheerful, always happy to help. In good health with no bad habits, and I come from a harmonious family. I hope we can be friends.】
Xiao Jinyu stared at the message and thought back. The first thing that surfaced in his mind was a pair of clear, round eyes—they did bear some resemblance to the little rabbit in a police uniform on the avatar.
He typed in the input box: 【Can I help you?】
Just as he was about to send it, his mobile banking app received a transfer notification—Jin Mo had sent him 100,000 yuan. A moment later, the ringtone followed.
On a normal day, he wouldn't have answered. But right now, looking at that 100,000 yuan made him irritated, and without thinking, he pressed the answer button.
The moment the call connected, before he could even speak, the other side struck first: "Finally willing to take my call. It's really hard to get a word in with you."
"What exactly do you want?"
The other side seemed to let out a sigh: "Mom just wants to see you. Is that not allowed?"
Xiao Jinyu said coldly: "Are you sure the person you want to see is me?"
"Of course," she sounded urgent. "Even without this bone marrow match, I've always wanted to see you. I've called you many times before—you just never picked up. A'yu, are you still resentful of me?"
Xiao Jinyu said nothing. Or rather, he didn't know what to say.
"A'yu?" After a long pause, her voice grew smaller and smaller, sounding deeply wronged, with a faint tremor of tears. "Don't you miss me at all? How many years has it been since we last saw each other?"
"You don't need to put on an act for me, and we don't need to meet." His voice was cold to the extreme. "Bone marrow transplants follow the double-blind principle."
The other side grew displeased: "Nonsense. Double-blind refers to strangers in the bone marrow bank. Are we strangers too?"
Xiao Jinyu wanted to argue—weren't they?
Jin Mo pleaded: "Just once. Let me see you. Just this once. After that, I won't bother you again, okay?"
He was silent for a long time. Without saying a word, he hung up.
After hanging up, his mood turned sour. His chest felt blocked, as if a stone were pressing down on it—restless, suffocating, unable to catch his breath.
Was she really coming to see him, or coming to check whether the donor was healthy?
He knew her intentions all too well, and he held no expectations. So why did his chest still feel so tight?
He returned to WeChat, irritated. He had very few contacts on WeChat, and even fewer who messaged him. In just a moment, Jin Mo's chat had already been pushed down, and at the very top was the rabbit avatar.
Big Pear: 【Handsome, you up for a date?】
Xiao Jinyu frowned at the message.
He could imagine the expression on her face when she sent those words—her eyes must have been sparkling, full of smugness and reckless audacity. He wasn't good at dealing with people like her. Her aggressiveness was too strong, almost breaking through the boundaries he had drawn. He didn't like this feeling—as if something was slipping out of his control.
Besides, didn't she have a boyfriend? Why would she send him such an ambiguous message?
Just as he was hesitating, another message popped up from the other side.
Big Pear: [Big Pear recalled a message]
Big Pear: [Sent by mistake!! Sorry, please don't delete me QAQ]
Xiao Jinyu: "…"