Yu Wan said she had foods she didn’t like to eat, so of course Fang Nianchen wouldn’t force her.
She tossed the dumplings into the freezer and never mentioned them again.
“There’s not much left in the fridge. I usually only go shopping on weekends.” Fang Nianchen opened the fridge, where only one layer had a few bags of vegetables, making it look very empty. “See if it’s enough.”
Yu Wan looked carefully. It was just enough for two dishes, plus some steamed rice—it would make a very hearty lunch for two people. “No problem, it’s plenty.”
Over the span of several long years, Yu Wan had always given her the impression of being reliable. If she said no problem, Fang Nianchen wouldn’t doubt it in the slightest. She just asked from the side again, “Do you need any help?”
“You’re still not fully recovered. Go lie down. I can handle it alone.”
Although Fang Nianchen had been full of energy since they met that morning, when she quieted down, one could still sense the exhaustion all over her body.
Her gaze was deeper than usual, and her movements had become sluggish as a result.
If she didn’t know Fang Nianchen was sick, she might have thought she was troubled by some difficult problem and lost in thought.
Fang Nianchen said reluctantly, “I’m much better now. And if you’re working here while I lie down, it feels a bit inappropriate.”
Outside, the wind was warm and the sun mild, but the breeze carrying heat wasn’t very friendly to a patient.
Without thick loungewear to keep warm, Fang Nianchen shivered and shuffled a few steps further into the kitchen.
The living room windows were open, but the airtight kitchen was enclosed on all sides, making it a good spot for warmth.
But to Yu Wan, these little movements of hers looked like she was afraid of being chased out, so she simply barged right in.
“Alright.” Yu Wan relented, pausing her busy hands for a few seconds. “Then come help me chop vegetables?”
The process of cooking was nothing more than washing, chopping, and stir-frying. Washing vegetables meant getting hands in cold water, and stir-frying meant lots of oil smoke that could be choking, so this left her with the relatively easier task.
“Sure.” Fang Nianchen had no objections.
Yu Wan planned to make vinegar-stirred shredded potatoes and mixed broccoli. She wasn’t sure if it was out of consideration for the patient, but there wasn’t a hint of meat, and everything was very light.
Fang Nianchen peeled the potatoes and placed them on the cutting board. She wielded the knife with her right hand and started slicing. Her cuts were steady, the speed wasn’t slow, and most importantly, the shreds were uniform in thickness.
Yu Wan stood and watched for a bit. She felt her earlier worry about her cutting her hand was quite unnecessary, so she turned back to her own tasks.
No longer able to glimpse her in her peripheral vision, Fang Nianchen subtly let out a breath of relief, and her movements slowed down.
During this time, she always felt tense whenever she saw Yu Wan. The reason wasn’t anything other than fear that she would discover her secret crush from back then.
She felt inferior, thinking it was an embarrassing experience—whether it ended tragically upon learning Yu Wan had a boyfriend, or that her heart still fluttered upon reuniting.
She had always felt she was ridiculous.
She had hidden and dodged, but Yu Wan always managed to catch her and casually expose her fears without a care.
Gradually, Fang Nianchen became somewhat numb to it.
She started to think self-destructively: Even if this history was exposed, what could she possibly lose?
She never intended to continue being friends with Yu Wan anyway. From the moment she resolved not to contact her, she had stuck to it well for these five years.
So even in the worst case—if Yu Wan found out everything and started distancing herself—it would just be a return to the state of the previous five years.
After figuring this out, she no longer racked her brains for excuses to avoid Yu Wan. She knew her excuses were rotten anyway.
She wasn’t good at lying.
But today, when she grew tense around Yu Wan once again, she keenly noticed that the source of her tension had changed.
It wasn’t fear that Yu Wan would discover something anymore. It was that she had noticed what Yu Wan was deliberately showing her.
Those clues were like lotus buds hidden under leaves that suddenly poked through, spreading across the water’s surface in an instant.
Her oldest memory was what Yu Wan said during the camping trip—that she was her favorite underclassman.
She remembered that night when Yu Wan’s gaze didn’t shy away at all. That was her unique boldness, unafraid of the word “like” being misunderstood.
Later, Fang Nianchen learned she had become someone who could understand Yu Wan more deeply.
She had deliberately asked Qiao Yan, and before getting the answer, she had already guessed.
But she was afraid of wishful thinking, so she dragged Qiao Yan in as a buffer. At least in the end, she could comfort herself: Even if there were fools in this world, they came in pairs and she wouldn’t be alone.
And just now, Yu Wan’s veiled hint—she got it.
What was sour probably wasn’t the vinegar, and what she didn’t like to eat wasn’t the dumplings.
Hints were meant to be seen, with the ultimate goal of letting the other person know.
Fang Nianchen happened to be a sensitive and smart person, figuring out her intentions in no more than three tries.
But even knowing this, what could she do?
If she really wanted to do something, she should have found an excuse today to keep Yu Wan from coming in.
Her downward slicing motions stopped along with her thoughts. Fang Nianchen neatly arranged the chopped vegetables and pushed the plate aside.
The kitchen was just big enough for two people standing back-to-back, neither getting in the other’s way. When Fang Nianchen quietly glanced back at Yu Wan, she naturally wasn’t noticed.
A few seconds later, she spoke up to remind her, “All chopped.”
“Mm, leave it there. I’ll stir-fry.” As Yu Wan spoke, she gathered her long hair.
She apparently hadn’t expected to cook and didn’t usually tie her hair up, unlike back in school when she always had a hair tie on her wrist. Now she could only grab at it awkwardly.
For convenience, Fang Nianchen had tied her hair into a small bun before chopping; her hair wasn’t long, and she smoothly removed the hair tie.
She handed it over to Yu Wan without extra words.
“Thanks.” Yu Wan instantly understood and took it.
Her slender fingers threaded through her hair strands, deftly gathering the loose bits. With a few twists, she tied it into a ponytail.
“Go out. Stir-frying makes a lot of smoke.” As she poured oil into the wok, Yu Wan reminded her.
“Call me if you need help.” This time, Fang Nianchen didn’t insist on staying and quickly turned to leave.
Yu Wan had a great grasp of timing when stir-frying. By the time the steaming hot dishes hit the table, the rice was perfectly steamed too.
The two of them cooked quickly, but with all the earlier chores, it was already past noon when they sat down.
“Try it, see if it suits your taste.” Yu Wan didn’t touch her chopsticks, waiting for Fang Nianchen to eat first.
Her cooking skills hadn’t been specially honed. She usually ate at the company cafeteria, and her place provided daily meals too, so she never had to fuss much over food.
The cat-like skills she’d picked up in college finally came in handy. For once, she wasn’t too confident in herself.
Fang Nianchen picked up a chopstickful of vegetables and ate it as devoutly as ever. Only after swallowing did she nod. “Mm, it’s delicious.”
The stir-fried broccoli had been lightly sauced. Yu Wan had been generous with the seasonings, making it no different from the cafeteria fare.
Compared to Yu Wan, Xiao Ning’an was a total young miss who never touched water or fire. Though she knew Xiao Ning’an didn’t represent Yu Wan, Fang Nianchen was still quite shocked that Yu Wan had such skills.
Yu Wan’s tense brows and eyes relaxed a bit upon hearing her praise. “Sorry for making you eat grass this time. Next time there’s a chance, I’ll definitely add some meat dishes for you.”
“After all, you’re still growing.” Yu Wan treated her like a kid, coaxing her.
“No need to grow anymore.” Fang Nianchen lowered her gaze, knowing she was talking about her height. “I’m already tall enough.”
Then came silence.
Her chopsticks didn’t even touch the bowl’s edge as they silently scooped away a few grains of rice from the top.
Mealtimes were the quietest moments of Fang Nianchen’s day. Not only was she silent, but anyone who tried talking to her while she ate without exception got the cold shoulder.
Yu Wan knew her little habit and didn’t start any new topics.
After taking a couple of token bites, she held her chopsticks and let her gaze sweep over Fang Nianchen.
This was a good chance to observe her properly.
At the company, she was always too busy to spare a glance, let alone time to think of her. Their meeting at the campsite had been too rushed too.
Actually, that time at the campsite, when they’d stood together, Yu Wan had realized she was taller than her now.
Thinking back to their first meeting as freshmen, Fang Nianchen hadn’t had much of a height advantage back then, even needing to tilt her head up slightly to look at her.
In these five years, the changes were really quite big.
It wasn’t that she was only noticing the difference now; it was just that right here, right now, she felt the emotion.
Having graduated with her master’s a year ago and worked at the company for half a year, Fang Nianchen was naturally far from green anymore. The maturity beyond her years only added to her appeal.
Quan Cige was right—Fang Nianchen made people feel warm. She had a pair of eyes always brimming with sincerity, and when she smiled, she gave all that sincerity away.
Whoever received it would be enveloped in warmth, never wanting to leave her for the boundless wind and snow.
Once enough people gathered around her, she became that little sun that glowed and warmed on her own.
But being too warm and bright made her easy to covet.
For example, giving her a bottle of vitamins could be used as an excuse to return the favor and achieve other goals.
Having been in society for a while, Yu Wan wasn’t unaware of parents’ “little schemes,” of course—provided their kids were willing to play along.
Evidently, that guy was very willing and even seemed overly excited about it.
Seeing that Fang Nianchen had almost finished eating, Yu Wan knew it was time to ask her to clear things up.
After all, she didn’t like letting people she didn’t care about become a mental burden for her.
“Is that guy just now also a resident in the building?”
“Mm, his parents live on the third floor, and they keep a little corgi. Auntie Liu is a really nice person—it’s not the first time she’s brought me food.” Fang Nianchen seemed to know what she wanted to ask and introduced the basics of his family situation. “That guy just graduated from university and is still prepping for grad school. He basically stays home all the time.”
This level of concern wasn’t excessive, but Yu Wan still picked up on the subtle difference. “So he’s your friend?”
“No, he sees me as a blind date prospect.” Fang Nianchen said it honestly, her tone full of indifference. “But I don’t like him.”
With cause and effect laid out, it finally gave Yu Wan that reassuring shot in the arm.
Yu Wan relaxed a little. “It’s totally normal for people your age to have someone they like. No need to worry—just let nature take its course.”
“Then do you have someone you like?”
Seemingly caught off guard by the direct question with no preamble, Yu Wan’s expression shifted slightly. She inadvertently looked up and met Fang Nianchen’s gaze.
“Yes.”
Despite a moment of hesitation, Yu Wan answered calmly. “What about you? Do you have someone you like right now?”
The topic had naturally shifted here, and neither of them shied away from it.
Fang Nianchen merely parted her lips slightly, a light breath escaping from the corner of her mouth before turning into a faint, barely noticeable chuckle:
“Not right now.”
