I will definitely find you.
"I'll see An Qing upstairs. My place isn't far, so I'll just walk back. Wen Shaoyu, take my sister home—any later and the New Year's Eve traffic will be a nightmare."
As if afraid Ji Shuhe might jump out of the car with him, Ji Shulang shut the door behind him and waved for Wen Shaoyu to hurry up.
Seated in the passenger seat, Ji Shuhe watched her brother's retreating figure through the rearview mirror as he continued to wave. She silently closed her eyes.
She should have known—from the moment she was forced into the passenger seat, or maybe from the moment Ji Shulang suggested this dinner—his main goal was...
She shifted her gaze to the side. Wen Shaoyu's expression was blank as he restarted the car. As the engine roared to life, Ji Shuhe gripped her seatbelt and quickly looked away.
She swore, she would never listen to her brother again like she did when they were kids!
The moment the car pulled away, An Qing, who had been pretending to be drowsy from the alcohol, immediately straightened up. Watching Ji Shulang stare into the distance, she looked clearly contemptuous: "Do you really think that'll work?"
"Trust me, they just need an opportunity to clear things up." Ji Shulang adjusted his collar. "One of them genuinely wants to explain, and the other pretends not to want to listen. The one who wants to explain is too earnest and afraid of getting hurt, so they think the other really doesn't want to hear it and gives up."
Afraid An Qing wouldn't understand, he turned to her. "Get it?"
She didn't, of course. An Qing's head was already spinning, and now she was even more confused. "I have no idea what tongue twister you're saying, but don't ask me for help with this kind of thing again. I'm firmly on Xiaoshu's side."
"I'm on Xiaoshu's side too." Ji Shulang quickly agreed. "So I'll help just this once. If it doesn't work, I'm done."
"Fine." An Qing turned and waved at him. "I'm heading back. You go too. Happy New Year."
"I'll walk you to your building." Ji Shulang started after her.
"No need!"
Ji Shulang, feeling like a hero, imagined a grand, heartfelt reconciliation. In reality, the car was painfully silent. Neither spoke. Only after driving a while did Wen Shaoyu remember to ask Ji Shuhe where she was going.
"Where to?"
He slammed on the brakes just before the residential gate. Luckily, it was late and there were no cars behind him, or he'd have been cursed out.
Ji Shuhe's voice was low: "The Platinum Hotel."
"Ha." Wen Shaoyu let out a sarcastic snort. "Ji Shuhe, you're something else. Not treating me like a stranger, but a ride-hailing driver."
Ji Shuhe took a deep breath, her eyes wide and fixed firmly on Wen Shaoyu. "Wen Shaoyu, who was it that treated who like a stranger? Are you sure you don't know?"
Wen Shaoyu didn't answer. He stepped on the gas and turned onto the main road. The car fell into dead silence, broken only by the warm hum of the air conditioning.
Receiving no response, Ji Shuhe glanced at his cold, sharp profile, then turned to look out the window. The streetscape rushed past—blurry figures and the hazy glow of festive lights on trees were all she could make out.
Unfortunately, the New Year atmosphere was locked outside the window. Inside, the air was almost frozen.
Wen Shaoyu remained silent, changing lanes and overtaking with practiced ease, but there was an indescribable roughness to his movements.
The longer the silence stretched, the more anxious Ji Shuhe became. She watched the speedometer fluctuate, feeling the car speed up involuntarily. In a panic, she gripped her seatbelt tighter.
Finally, she couldn't hold back: "Wen Shaoyu, what's wrong with you..."
"It's me." He cut her off. "You're right. I treated you like a stranger first, so you just played along, acting like we didn't know each other."
He swerved into a side alley and pulled over abruptly. The tires screeched against the asphalt, startling passersby into frowning.
But Wen Shaoyu didn't care. He unbuckled his seatbelt, turned to face Ji Shuhe, and locked his gaze on her, something turbulent in his eyes that she couldn't understand. "Don't you have anything to say?"
"Wen Shaoyu! You're insane!" Ji Shuhe undid her seatbelt, opened the door, grabbed her things, and got out without looking back.
A rare burst of anger laced with familiarity.
Wen Shaoyu even weirdly smiled at that tone.
But Ji Shuhe, now out of the car, couldn't handle his madness. The facade she'd put up to fight him to the bitter end cracked under his questioning. Then, grievance and helplessness flooded her entire being.
Wen Shaoyu!
Psycho!
What the hell was wrong with him, scaring her like this on New Year's Eve!
Her vision blurred. With every step, she cursed Wen Shaoyu under her breath. But cursing didn't help. His face kept appearing before her eyes.
She wanted to accuse him, to make him look at who he was eight years ago. He had changed so much—he was the one who was different.
The boy who had told her to prioritize her own feelings, who bought her favorite milk tea flavor—he was the one she had fallen for, the regret of a love unfulfilled.
She still missed Wen Shaoyu. The young Wen Shaoyu.
And that helplessness consumed her completely. Ji Shuhe just lowered her head, and tears fell uncontrollably, one by one.
But she hadn't taken many steps when she bumped into something. A black cashmere sweater, a scent identical to the car's air freshener. Ji Shuhe knew that smell all too well.
She covered her stinging nose and turned to leave, but this time Wen Shaoyu didn't let her escape.
He had gotten out in a hurry, wearing only a thin cashmere sweater with no coat. His large hand was red from the cold, now gripping Ji Shuhe's wrist firmly.
"Ji Shuhe." Wen Shaoyu sighed deeply. "You're easy to talk to with everyone except me. You never say a single soft word to me."
"Do you remember what you promised me? I know you had no choice but to leave. But for eight years, not a word, because..." he trailed off.
He couldn't finish. It was too humiliating, making him feel like an abandoned dog.
At least Lizi had him. But he had no comfort left. Emotionally, what difference was there between him and a homeless dog?
So what bothered Wen Shaoyu most was whether Ji Shuhe had chosen to appease her mother over their bond without a second thought.