On Saturday, they couldn’t go to the pet market as planned because Fang Nianchen was sick.
North City had been rainy for days. On the night they brought Christmas home, there was a downpour. It was just a few steps back home, but she got a little wet, and the next day she felt all listless with no energy.
Fang Nianchen thought her health was decent; she rarely got sick during school. She didn’t take it seriously and went to the company anyway, where she was blasted by air conditioning all day. Her symptoms worsened, and she even started running a fever.
She could only hazily send a WeChat message to Yu Wan expressing her apologies and promising to go next time.
As for when exactly “next time” would be, she had no idea.
She’d taken some cold medicine before bed the night before, and it worked well, so she slept relatively soundly that night.
Around noon on Saturday, Fang Nianchen was woken by her phone ringing. She croaked into it hoarsely: “Hello?”
“Sorry to bother you. Is this Fang Nianchen?” A woman’s voice came from the other end.
“Yes, it is. What’s up?” Fang Nianchen sat up as she spoke, feeling weak and limp all over.
“I’m Su Xiazhi. Here’s the thing—your department transfer application has been approved by our department head. Now we just need your current supervisor to sign off on it.”
What the person on the phone was talking about felt like ancient history. Fang Nianchen groggily rummaged through her memories before finally recalling what that “application” was about.
The previous HR director was an old man she couldn’t stand.
Normally, regular employees rarely interacted with director-level bosses. Important matters would be reported up through team leads and managers, layer by layer.
But Director Liu insisted she report her tasks directly to him. Fang Nianchen had no choice but to comply.
Soon, though, she realized Director Liu wasn’t just checking on work matters. To be precise, his mind wasn’t on work at all—he had other intentions.
Whether it was verbal harassment or the way he’d leer at her with those disgusting, lecherous eyes whenever they met in the office, Fang Nianchen’s disgust grew stronger by the day.
She wasn’t naive enough to pin her hopes on the company’s reporting system. Those black-and-white rules could be twisted with words; whether they were enforced depended entirely on their willingness.
Yu Wan’s arrival was a surprise, but even before meeting her, Fang Nianchen had already made up her mind.
Not long after, rumors spread that the director was being replaced, and Director Liu started behaving himself.
Fang Nianchen still wanted to dodge him. The planning department at the company was short-staffed, so she submitted a transfer application. It sank without a trace, and she gradually forgot about it.
“Um…” For once, Fang Nianchen didn’t agree right away. “Can I have a few days to think about it?”
Su Xiazhi asked, “Do you have any concerns?”
“I’m not really needing to switch departments right now.” Fang Nianchen kept quiet about her workplace harassment ordeal. With Director Liu gone, she was content to let it all settle into the dust.
Of course, she wouldn’t flatter herself into thinking Yu Wan wanted her to stay, nor was there any need to stay for Yu Wan’s sake.
She just felt like doing so would seem like she was deliberately avoiding Yu Wan.
She couldn’t bear for Yu Wan to think that of her—like every confrontation ended with her fleeing in defeat.
Her damn competitive streak always reared its head at the worst times.
And avoiding Yu Wan over and over… She remembered that time on the Ferris wheel when Yu Wan had pressed her relentlessly with “Why are you so afraid of me?”—she’d clearly been at a loss.
Fang Nianchen felt an inexplicable guilt.
“I see…” There was a hint of regret in Su Xiazhi’s tone. “I looked at your resume—your undergrad and master’s degrees are impeccable.”
Su Xiazhi didn’t hold back on the praise and earnestly persuaded her: “You’re really strong professionally. It’s a waste to stay in HR.”
Fang Nianchen neither confirmed nor denied the assessment: “I might not even be suited for planning.”
“How will you know if you don’t try? You’re only twenty-two—do you plan to stay in HR forever?”
Fang Nianchen lowered her gaze. Her concept of the “future” had always been blurry.
From childhood to now, there had always been two voices telling her what she should do, what kind of person she needed to be.
What trapped her were the shackles called “rules” and “plans.” She’d finally broken free, but as long as they still dragged at her ankles, they’d constantly remind her of her pathetic past.
“I’ll think about it some more. Thanks.” Fang Nianchen looked listless, lacking the energy to continue.
The other woman wasn’t hard to talk to. She “mm”-ed: “Sorry for bothering you on the weekend. No rush—take a week to decide. Even if you ultimately say no, that’s fine. It’s your call, but you’re welcome anytime if you want to come.”
“Thanks.”
After hanging up, Fang Nianchen looked at the cats nestled by her feet.
She was someone who sought stability. Knowing her current salary could cover everything she had seemed enough to satisfy her.
She didn’t want to venture outside her comfort zone, just like these cats and dogs who slept all day.
Knowing to eat when hungry and sleep when tired—that was plenty.
Compared to her, everyone else had firm, simple goals: Tao Zhixing looked forward to finding her perfect match soon, while Qiao Yan hoped to save up for her own place.
She didn’t want marriage, didn’t want to bust her ass half her life for a brick-and-mortar coffin she only had usage rights to, and even found interacting with people an extreme waste of energy.
She was utterly boring… Only these simple-minded little animals were willing to get close to her.
Over these five years, she’d thought more than once: That crush ending fruitless was the best outcome.
If Yu Wan discovered this awful side of her, they probably couldn’t even be friends.
Maybe it was the illness, but she’d been stuck in this pessimistic mood all morning. Glancing at the time, it was nearly noon, but she had zero appetite and didn’t want to force herself out of bed to cook.
Her phone on the side buzzed. She picked it up and tapped into WeChat.
Senior Yu 0720: [Awake yet?]
[I’m downstairs at your place. Cool if I come up?]
Seeing the messages, Fang Nianchen bolted upright, heart pounding.
In disbelief, she read them again, then ran barefoot to the balcony and looked down. Sure enough, a silver-white sedan was parked in the yard.
Her sudden movement flung the blanket, sweeping the sleeping cats above her onto the floor. Now, pairs of resentful eyes stared at Fang Nianchen, meowing in discontent.
Fang Nianchen paid them no mind; her brain was a total mess.
Why was Yu Wan here?
The question ballooned into a huge mark in her head.
But with the person already downstairs, she couldn’t very well leave Yu Wan standing there.
Her place, though… Fang Nianchen frowned as she scanned around. It was a bit messy—not dirty, just lacking the solemn tidiness of a “high-end residence.”
With that in mind, she messaged Yu Wan the door number while frantically tidying up.
—
After receiving Fang Nianchen’s reply, Yu Wan got out of the car.
Though she’d been waiting here since early morning, considering Fang Nianchen was sick and needed rest, she’d deliberately waited until noon to tell her.
The complex’s security doors were pretty old; the surfaces eroded by wind and rain, and even the electromagnetic locks between doors were busted—easy to pull open.
Way too unsafe.
That day when she’d dropped Fang Nianchen off, the thought had occurred to her: Fang Nianchen shouldn’t live here. She couldn’t live here.
Was it a money issue?
Fresh grads didn’t have much savings, and life got tight after going independent—even she wasn’t an exception.
Yu Wan could certainly find Fang Nianchen a place as a “senior” or even an elder and have her move in.
But would Fang Nianchen definitely go along if she suggested it?
A hundred percent chance of rejection.
She had a hunch that if she dared open her mouth, their relationship would immediately turn tense.
She didn’t want to risk it.
The rundown building had no elevator; Fang Nianchen was on the sixth floor, and climbing the stairs was no small feat.
Yu Wan’s stamina wasn’t bad, but huffing up to the sixth floor left her a bit winded.
She did some deep breaths at the landing to steady her heartbeat.
The stairwell wasn’t as dirty and chaotic as she’d imagined. Some floors even had freshly painted walls, shoe racks, and mats by the doors—no real worry about thieves.
There were no random odds and ends by Fang Nianchen’s door, and it even had Spring Festival couplets from last year—handwritten ones, more dignified than store-bought.
The security door was ajar. Yu Wan leaned in close and heard rustling sounds inside.
She knew Fang Nianchen had left it open for her, but she couldn’t help worrying about her safety awareness. Even on a weekend didn’t mean bad guys wouldn’t show up.
She pulled the door open, wondering what her place would look like.
The moment it swung wide, a fluffy white figure darted out from her feet.
“Ah! Snowball!” Fang Nianchen was clearly keeping an eye on everything around her, immediately spotting it. She cried out, dropped the sofa cushion in her hand, and rushed over.
Because she rushed too hastily, the cat underfoot had no time to dodge, and Pan-fried Dumpling was still obediently lying at the door.
Fang Nianchen wanted to lift her foot to step over, but being ill, she wasn’t that nimble. Just as she was about to step on Pan-fried Dumpling, she quickly turned in another direction.
It was precisely because of this that she lost her balance and stumbled out the door.
Just as she was about to fall flat on her face, Yu Wan stretched out both arms and caught her steadily.
Fang Nianchen’s scent filled her embrace, warm and cozy.
“You…” Yu Wan heard a voice explode in her ear, her breathing catching.
This clumsy hug might be an accident, but… her heart fluttering is no accident.
“Fang Nianchen.” Composing herself, Yu Wan steadied her by the shoulder and chuckled softly, “So happy to see me?”
