I'm sorry, but your fiancé loves me.

In the days that followed, Yun Muqian felt like Qin Qihan was glued to her.

Qin Qihan didn't go anywhere. He stayed in her apartment until noon the next day, cooked a pot of frozen dumplings that she had found in her refrigerator, and the two of them ate in silence. When he went to wash the dishes, she leaned against the kitchen door frame watching him, thinking the scene was too absurd.

In the end, she had to forcefully push him out the door, saying, "Are you really not going to work?" Only then did he frown and say he would come back in the evening.

"Don't come again." Yun Muqian leaned against the doorframe, looking at him coldly. "Let's pretend last night never happened. This is the end."

Qin Qihan stood outside the door, his coat draped over his arm. He turned to look at her upon hearing this. His expression was calm, devoid of any strong emotion: "You think it's over just like that? Do you think I agree to that?"

"Qin Qihan, I said I was informing you, not asking for your consent."

"Then I'll let you know too. You can refuse, you can refuse as many times as you want. I'll pursue you again."

Yun Muqian looked at him, remained silent for a few seconds, and then closed the door. Before the door closed completely, she heard him say from outside, "I'll buy some fish tonight."

She didn't want to get entangled with him anymore; she wanted to move on cleanly.

But Qin Qihan is a stubborn person; once he sets his mind on something, he becomes incredibly stubborn.

Yun Muqian took a deep breath and banished him from her mind, because she also had her own things to do.

Zhou Xue has suffered a major blow. The Zhou family has been busy with her affairs and is exhausted. This is a good opportunity to take advantage of her weakness. Shen Xubai's family is large and powerful, and she wants him to help her bring down the Zhou Group.

Moreover, she had been thinking about a problem these past few days. The only assets she had were her appearance and temperament, the kind of look that people couldn't forget at first glance. It would be a waste to use them only to find the next "Qin Qihan" type sugar daddy.

She recently followed some entertainment news and discovered that several of the top actresses in the industry had similar backgrounds to hers, without any particularly strong connections, but had managed to rise to fame through their looks and good opportunities.

She suddenly realized that she seemed to have a broader path to take.

Instead of hoping for charity from others, become the one who is admired.

So lately she has been focusing all her attention on this matter. Through the connections she made while working with Qin Qihan, she got in touch with a producer and obtained the contact information of several agency managers. She has been busy organizing her information these past few days.

She was so busy that she didn't even have time to rest. She didn't even look at the messages Qin Qihan sent, which were all things like "What are you eating today?" and "What time are you coming home?" She read them all but didn't reply.

But there was one thing she hadn't anticipated—Chi Qiusheng's phone call.

Chi Qiusheng was the person she had a crush on in high school. He was a popular figure in school back then, good-looking, academically excellent, and gentle to everyone. She thought that she and he would always be from two different worlds, but now he actually contacts her frequently.

Yun Muqian felt as if he recognized her.

But she didn't understand what he had in common with her past self that he still missed.

Chi Qiusheng was very polite. At first, he would ask her if calling her would bother her. She said no, so he would take some time every day to call her.

She was initially a little lost, but she got used to it over time.

Being with Chi Qiusheng was, after all, her dream during her teenage years, and it was a way of fulfilling her past dream.

That evening, after having dinner with the producer, she drank about half a bottle of red wine. She wasn't drunk, but her mind felt a little sluggish.

After getting home, she changed into her pajamas and snuggled on the sofa. With the air conditioning blasting, she wrapped herself in a blanket and scrolled through her phone for over half an hour, not even sure what she was looking at. Suddenly, her phone vibrated, and Chi Qiusheng's name popped up:

Are you busy today?

Yun Muqian stared at the name for a few seconds, then pressed the voice call button. After two rings, the call was answered, and Chi Qiusheng's voice came through the receiver, tinged with amusement:

"Still up so late?"

"I can't sleep." Yun Muqian buried her face in the sofa cushions, her voice muffled. "What about you? What are you doing?"

Chi Qiusheng didn't answer, but instead asked her, "Why do you sound so listless? Are you tired?"

"...I had a few drinks." Her tongue was a little slurred, and she spoke more and more softly than usual. "I met a producer today, the conversation went well, but I'm tired."

Chi Qiusheng said, "Drink less alcohol; it's bad for your health, especially since your stomach isn't good to begin with."

Yun Muqian was taken aback: "How did you know I have a stomach problem?"

Chi Qiusheng remained silent for a moment.

Of course, it was discovered back at school; she always had stomach aches.

"Chi Qiusheng." She called his name, her voice muffled, "How can you be so good to me?"

"You've had too much to drink. Where do you live? Do you need me to come and take care of you?"

Yun Muqian's head was spinning. She rolled over in the sofa and mumbled her address. After she finished speaking, she yawned, her phone slipped into the sofa cushions, and she drifted off to sleep.

She didn't know how long she had slept. When the doorbell rang, she thought it was the delivery, frowned, got up, wrapped herself in a blanket, and walked barefoot to the door. She peeked out through the peephole—and then she was wide awake.

Chi Qiusheng stood outside the door.

He was wearing a thin, dark gray sweater with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms, and carrying an insulated bag. The hallway light illuminated his profile, softening yet defining the contours of his brow bone and nose, as he patiently waited for her to open the door.

Yun Muqian was a little at a loss, but she still opened the door.

Chi Qiusheng looked up and saw her, smiled, and his gaze lingered on her disheveled hair and the fact that she was only covered by a blanket. He picked up the insulated bag and said, "I thought you probably hadn't eaten much after drinking, so I made some soup and brought it over."

"Did you make this?" Yun Muqian leaned against the door frame, her hair disheveled, still half-asleep.

"Yes." He spoke as casually as if he were commenting on the weather. "Let me in? The soup will get cold and won't taste good."

If he was really just delivering soup, he could have left once he got there, but he insisted on coming inside and sitting down.

Yun Muqian stepped aside to let him in. Chi Qiusheng changed his shoes, picked up a thermal bag, and walked into the kitchen.

He had a husbandly air about him, making soup for her and tidying up the house she hadn't had time to clean because she was too busy. He even washed the clothes she had piled up in the bathroom.

Yun Muqian curled up on the sofa, looking at Chi Qiusheng's face under the warm yellow light, and suddenly spoke: "Chi Qiusheng."

"Um?"

"You came all this way in the middle of the night to bring me soup, just so I could have a sip?"

I'm worried about leaving you home alone."

"How did you know I was home alone? What if I live with someone else?"

Chi Qiusheng said calmly and gently, "You can drink with your roommate if you want."

Even so, he began to look around intentionally or unintentionally, as if searching for any trace of someone else living with her.

Yun Muqian's voice was soft, slightly tinged with the lingering effects of alcohol, as if it slipped from her lips without her thinking: "Chi Qiusheng, can you hug me?"

There was a moment of silence in the living room after he said that.

Yun Muqian herself didn't expect to say those words. She sat on the sofa, looking up at him. The blanket slipped down her shoulders a little, revealing a small patch of her collarbone above the neckline of her pajamas.

Looking at Chi Qiusheng's face, softened by the light and shadow, and noticing his slightly paused expression, she suddenly felt a pang of regret—but the words were already spoken and couldn't be taken back, so she simply didn't lower her head and just looked at him.

Chi Qiusheng's voice carried a restrained, cautious tone: "Is it really okay?"

Yun Muqian raised her hand, palm up, and stretched it out towards him.

He walked over, sat down on the edge of the sofa, turned to the side, opened his arms and pulled her into his embrace. His arms went around her shoulders, and his palms landed on her back. Through the thin fabric of her pajamas, his palms were warm.

Yun Muqian buried her face in his chest, and in that instant she smelled his scent, a faint soapy fragrance mixed with a hint of the lingering smoky aroma of pork rib soup from the kitchen, very clean.

His sweater was the kind of soft, cozy material that tickled her cheeks slightly, but she didn't want to move, so she just buried herself in his chest.

She had longed for this hug for so many years.

In high school, she sat in the back row of the classroom, watching his back through several rows of desks, watching his heels slightly raised when he wrote on the blackboard, and watching the smile on his face when he lowered his head to talk to his deskmate.

At that time, she was so far away from him that she felt she would probably never be able to get to his side in this lifetime.

But now she was leaning against him, smelling his pleasant scent, and feeling his hand gently stroking her hair, delicate and tender.

She suddenly felt a burning sensation in her eyes.

It was a vague, indescribable ache, and she mumbled, "Can I ask you a question?"

"What's the problem?"

"Who was that girl you kept inside your laptop at your house that day?"

That ordinary-looking, unremarkable girl, you actually remembered her for so many years?