Shi Guanghua slept deeply, his high fever gradually subsiding. Undisturbed by outside noises, he truly resembled a sleeping prince from a fairy tale.
Chu Yueyi watched him quietly for a long while before slowly standing up and tiptoeing out of the bedroom.
In the kitchen, Chu Yueyi scooped the now-cold rice porridge from the pot and carefully stored it in the refrigerator. She then began washing the used dishes. As the small stream of water rinsed the kitchenware clean, she drained the water from the pot while reminiscing about many things.
She had always maintained a conservative attitude towards relationships, never experiencing a moment of heart-fluttering attraction. Even in an art school teeming with handsome men and beautiful women, she remained a thorough spinster, as if completely oblivious to romance.
The university professors were open-minded and approachable, often encouraging drama students to date, claiming that good actors needed to nurture rich emotions. However, Chu Yueyi graduated still single, inexplicably becoming the relationship counselor for her class.
She believed that fleeting passion offered no benefit to acting, let alone dating to improve one's acting skills – such notions seemed absurd to her. By that logic, the Oscars shouldn't select outstanding actors but should award the golden statuette directly to playboys.
She had heard too many tales of lovelorn men and women, growing increasingly indifferent to them. Some people experienced love at first sight, their passion lasting no more than three months; some lacked a sense of security and love, needing to draw strength from others; some were mutually in love but couldn't withstand the pressures of reality.
The beginnings of these stories were all wonderful and romantic, but the endings were invariably bleak.
Many people didn't understand what it meant to like someone. They mistakenly believed that expressing and taking were enough, not realizing the need to consider and give for this joy. After tasting the initial sweetness, only blandness remained.
During her school years, Chu Yueyi once shared her thoughts with Bai Yiyang, only to be met with an extremely surprised expression.
Bai Yiyang exclaimed in astonishment, "So you're an idealist when it comes to relationships?"
"Is that not allowed?"
"It's not that it's not allowed, but isn't it unrealistic? Liking someone isn't a lifelong affair. Thinking so much about it is exhausting, and you're easily taken advantage of. The other person might not think the same way as you, right?"
"I see."
Chu Yueyi responded casually at the time, but she found herself pondering a new realization: people's feelings were so casual and unreliable, without even a blueprint for planning, less enduring than the love of paper characters in games.
She might as well remain single.
Idealists shouldn't enter the game carelessly. Why grieve over something so vague and unclear?
She felt no pressure participating in dating shows either. After all, many people in the world didn't take relationships seriously, so who would believe in a performance-based reality show?
She hadn't anticipated her current situation. Despite priding herself on her clear-headedness, she too had been infected by something vague and unclear.
It turned out she was just an ordinary person. Once touched by human emotions, everyone becomes foolishly vulnerable.
In the morning, the curtains in the bedroom were slightly parted, allowing sunlight to pour through the gap, shining directly onto the snow-white wall, appearing bright and warm.
When Shi Guanghua woke up again, his body felt light, but his mind was clear, dispelling yesterday's confusion and fatigue. He felt like a person trapped in a cage finally able to breathe freely. He seemed to have had a beautiful dream where he had the fortune to see her, still feeling joyful at the thought.
Shi Guanghua propped himself up, hearing a soft female voice nearby, tinged with a hint of sleepiness.
"Awake?" Chu Yueyi rubbed her eyes. She had accidentally dozed off in the chair and now stood up to inquire, "How do you feel now?"
Shi Guanghua froze, staring in disbelief at Chu Yueyi in his bedroom. She was still in yesterday's outfit, only her hair slightly disheveled, as if she had kept a quiet vigil by his bedside all night.
"No way, it's still you when I wake up."
Shi Guanghua suddenly recalled the promise in his dream, unable to describe his current feelings. His voice hoarse, he asked, "...Didn't you sleep?"
Chu Yueyi was standing and stretching her stiff body. Hearing his question, she glanced at him sideways, seeming to guess his thoughts, and said lazily, "Don't overthink it. I didn't sleep because I was thinking about things. The more I thought, the less I could sleep."
She wasn't lying. Recently, she had been overwhelmed with work and hadn't had time to organize her thoughts. Last night, she finally had some free time, but her frantically running mind couldn't stop, causing her to think deep into the night.
Shi Guanghua couldn't help but be curious: "What were you thinking about?"
"I was thinking..." Chu Yueyi pondered for a few seconds. She smiled at him and said lightly, "Let's get to know each other again after we finish the show."
The content in the variety show was all fake, just scenarios set up by the production team and their well-coordinated performances. She couldn't convince herself with these. If they started with ulterior motives, they would only end with hidden agendas, nothing more than a mirage, a bubble dream.
The performance was for the audience; life was for themselves.
Perhaps they should get to know each other more purely and sincerely after being freed from their binding.
After speaking, Chu Yueyi didn't wait for Shi Guanghua to react before walking to the living room to wake up Cheng, who had spent the night on the sofa.
Shi Guanghua was stunned in the bedroom, temporarily unable to understand the meaning of "getting to know each other again." Didn't they already know each other now?
After the three of them freshened up and reheated the rice porridge, they had breakfast together. Facing the recovered Shi Guanghua, Cheng couldn't help but mutter at the dining table, "No wonder you're a big shot, even when you're sick, you have two people looking after you."
Cheng had persuaded Chu Yueyi to go home and rest yesterday, but she had barely slept all night, keeping watch by Shi Guanghua's bedside the entire time.
Shi Guanghua glanced at Chu Yueyi drinking porridge across from him. He didn't want her to have endured a sleepless night either and said, lowering his eyes, "Actually, having Cheng here would have been enough."
Chu Yueyi stirred the porridge in her bowl with her spoon and said calmly, "Well, you wanted to hear a bedtime story, so I couldn't leave right away."
Cheng looked reproachfully at a certain someone: "Tsk, tsk."
Shi Guanghua: "!!?"
Shi Guanghua felt himself burning up again, wishing he could die of embarrassment on the spot. Honestly, he was usually the one making others uncomfortable, but he had never felt so embarrassed before, barely able to lift his head.
Seeing him lower his head with a slight blush, Chu Yueyi switched to a Taobao customer service tone and said with a smile, "Sweetie, please don't start burning up again. I don't have time to take you to the hospital today."
Shi Guanghua now had his head lowered, but the tips of his ears were turning slightly red, making one wonder if he was starting to run a fever again.
His illness had come on suddenly, but his recovery was also quick, bringing back some memories from when he was sick, nearly breaking through the bottom line of his self-esteem.
After breakfast, Chu Yueyi bid farewell, needing to go home and rest. Breakfast had been prepared by Chu Yueyi, with Cheng responsible for cleaning up. Shi Guanghua, as the recently recovered patient, was tasked with seeing Chu Yueyi out.
Chu Yueyi didn't even let him go downstairs, with the two saying goodbye at the elevator.
Shi Guanghua stared at the constantly changing elevator numbers, then looked at Chu Yueyi waiting quietly to the side. He suddenly said in a low voice, "...Thank you."
He was truly happy that she had stayed.
But he wasn't good at flowery words and could only squeeze out a dry thank you.
People seem to be like this – when faced with important people or things, they always become incapable and powerless, not knowing what to do, unable to perform at their normal level.
Chu Yueyi blinked. Although she hadn't slept all night, her almond eyes were bright and shining. She said directly, "Is 'thank you' all you have to say?"
Shi Guanghua was taken aback.
Chu Yueyi smiled and said, "Sweetie, I suggest transferring a hundred million. It would definitely be more powerful than saying thank you."
Shi Guanghua stared at Chu Yueyi wordlessly and helplessly as she teased him again.
Chu Yueyi pretended to be innocent and asked, "Can't transfer a hundred million from your account?"
Shi Guanghua played along and said, "...That's right."
Chu Yueyi sighed lightly, "Oh well, I guess I can't expect you to be the breadwinner."
She had a Beijing hukou and property; it wasn't like she lacked money. If they truly "got to know each other again" successfully, he wouldn't even need to work in the future if he didn't want to. He could stay at home as a house husband and raise the children.
Shi Guanghua: "?"
The elevator numbers stopped at the current floor. Chu Yueyi saw the elevator doors slowly opening and was about to step forward to wave goodbye to Shi Guanghua when his arm blocked her path.
Shi Guanghua, after hearing her words, felt something wasn't quite right and instinctively blocked her way.
Chu Yueyi, stopped by him, wore a confused expression and tentatively asked, "Don't tell me this is what they call a kabedon?"
The elevator doors closed again, and Shi Guanghua quickly lowered his hand. He covered his mouth and muttered, "There's still one hundred million won in the account."
Chu Yueyi: "..."
Chu Yueyi asked in disbelief, "...Are you still trying to negotiate with me?" They hadn't even "gotten to know each other again," yet why did it feel like they were haggling over a bride price?
Shi Guanghua hurriedly said, "No, but you mentioned supporting a family..."
Chu Yueyi was surprised that he had listened so carefully and could grasp key phrases so well. She was momentarily speechless.
To be honest, Shi Guanghua had virtually zero experience interacting with girls and often displayed the thought process of a painfully straightforward man. He had basically been growing throughout the show, accumulating experience through his interactions with Chu Yueyi, stumbling along the way and even facing setbacks.
Before his illness, he had learned how to engage with Chu Yueyi, and they had developed a harmonious and stable dynamic. However, after waking up from his illness, he found the world slightly different, and she seemed to have undergone an upgrade, with her attitude towards him changing somewhat.
He didn't know the reason for the change, only that she didn't used to say many things before, such as "kiss" or "supporting a family."
"Otherwise, I'll transfer what's in the account first. I'm not sure how much there is," Shi Guanghua suddenly pulled out his phone and began logging into his mobile banking app, making a swift decision. He didn't have many flowery words or thoughts; he simply gave whatever he had.
Chu Yueyi saw his serious expression and wasn't sure if it was a joke. She reached out to cover his screen, "Wait, something's not right with you!"
Blocked by her, Shi Guanghua simply looked up and scrutinized her, pointedly saying, "You're the one who's not right."
He had just had one fever, and she had suddenly changed.
"Oh, is that so?" Chu Yueyi faced his questioning gaze without avoiding it, looking back at him and saying lightly, "Then how do you think I should be to be 'right' for you?"
She had a fair, oval face like porcelain, not an aggressively beautiful appearance, but carried an inherently cool and aloof quality that was usually hidden beneath her professional smile. Now it was revealed without restraint.
She looked like a sweet girl, but her inner self wasn't sweet at all.
There was laughter in her eyes, but it wasn't entirely harmless. Instead, she smiled with deep meaning, inexplicably making it even harder to look away, appearing dazzling and captivating.
What did it mean to be "right" for him?
Shi Guanghua's breath caught, and he was instantly flustered.
The opponent's level had risen overnight, but his hadn't kept up.
Chu Yueyi laughed, "Why aren't you saying anything? Are you a contemporary riddler?"
Shi Guanghua suddenly didn't dare look at her at this moment. He awkwardly averted his gaze and said reservedly, "Is one hundred million won not enough?"
Chu Yueyi pressed the elevator button again and said decisively, "No, it's not."
The elevator doors opened once more, and Chu Yueyi stepped in, turning to look at Shi Guanghua outside, and casually pressed the button for the first floor.
Shi Guanghua was now wearing dark-colored home clothes, his messy bangs slightly disheveled and his eyes dark. His gaze fell to the lower side as he said, seemingly casually, "Oh, then wait for me to go earn it."
Chu Yueyi: "...Are you Jin Jianlin, aiming for one billion?"
As the metal elevator doors were closing, she looked at the unsettled Shi Guanghua and couldn't help but laugh.
"Don't bother earning it, just owe it. Pay it back with your service."
Her calm voice disappeared behind the elevator doors, but it scratched at his heart like a claw, making it itch.