Chapter 7

The library was brightly lit.
Du Ruo had fallen asleep with her head on the desk. She dreamed of getting lost in far-off mountains, pushing through brambles, scaling cliffs... Only when she finally made it to the main road did she realize: all her classmates had long since left by train.
There wasn’t a single car on the road. She started to panic, nearly burst into tears, when suddenly a voice echoed down from above, He Huanhuan’s voice: “Xiao Ruo, Xiao Ruo!”
Du Ruo jerked awake and raised her head. The other students were gathering up their things.
“The library’s closing, let’s head back.”
“You could have woken me sooner,” she groaned, annoyed at herself.
Her book wasn't even halfway done.
“You only slept ten minutes.” Huanhuan grinned. “You looked exhausted, I didn’t want to wake you.”
The two of them gathered their books and walked back to the dorm.
Xia Nan and Qiu Yuchen were gone; the National Day holiday started the next day, so they’d both gone home.
He Huanhuan asked, “Want to go play somewhere with me for National Day? I’m meeting some high school friends in Tianjin.”
Du Ruo, wallet empty, said, “Nah, I’m in major sloth mode, plan on catching up on sleep for a few days in the dorm.”
Huanhuan didn’t push. “That works. If you get bored and want to binge something, just use my laptop. Password is six zeroes.”
“Mhm.”
The next morning, He Huanhuan took off.
When Du Ruo dragged herself out of bed, she was the only one left in the dorm. She went out to the sports field to practice her English, but the place was practically empty. Zero vibes. She left early.
On campus, students were few and far between, almost everyone had already left for the holiday. The boulevards were empty, just rows of pristine trees rustling in the wind.
The library and teaching building were deserted, most of the cafeteria windows closed up tight.
The dorm hallways were eerily silent.
Du Ruo drifted restlessly between these familiar settings, still studying, but with zero motivation.
She’d somehow fallen into a rut she couldn’t shake, every attempt to drag herself out only made her feel more stuck.
One morning, her tightly-wound nerves finally snapped. She accidentally slept until eleven.
She sat out on the dorm balcony, watching the deep green treetops swaying below.
The wind was wild.
Sitting on the glassed-in side, she listened to the wind, watched sunlight flicker in the leaves, and felt like time itself was slipping away, stolen by emptiness.
Before college, even when money was tight, she had never once seen herself as lesser than anyone. She’d had her grades, she’d had her own pride.
But now...
She worked herself raw just to keep up with her classmates. On paper, they were all starting from the same line, but in reality, she always lagged several laps behind, while others breezed ahead without breaking a sweat.
Her life was so packed with schoolwork that she didn’t even have time for a part-time job to support herself. And yet she still dreamed: of dressing up and feeling pretty like Xia Nan, of lazy fun like Qiu Yuchen, of snacking endlessly like He Huanhuan, even of experiencing a wild, unfamiliar romance like Min Enzhu, that last one made her chest ache just thinking about it.
Suddenly, she strode to the dorm door.
At the start of the semester, Xia Nan had stuck a full-length mirror to the back of the door.
The girl in the mirror had chin-length short hair, sallow skin, hollow cheeks, faded brows, colorless lips, nothing beautiful about her at all; her body was slender to the point of sickly, like a stunted bean sprout.
After a few seconds, she remembered Jing Ming’s raised eyebrow when they’d first met, her face burned with shame, and she looked away.
On the third afternoon of break, Ming Yi called and invited her over.
Du Ruo hesitated. Ming Yi said the house was empty and awfully lonely, so she agreed.
She tidied herself up and spent fifty minutes on the subway.
Her first time ever taking it, in the beginning, it was almost fun, until a transfer station, when she was nearly crushed by the crowd.
Du Ruo: Yikes!
Once again, she found herself at that jewel box of a villa, tucked between rough old trees.
At dinner, golden light filled the dining room. Jing Yuanshan and Jing Ming were nowhere to be seen.
“Uncle isn’t home?”
“He’s away on business in Shenzhen.”
“Not even taking National Day off, huh?”
Ming Yi just smiled and shook her head.
Du Ruo wasn’t about to ask about Jing Ming, but Ming Yi brought him up anyway: “Jing Ming ran off early with his little brother and sister, they went to Seychelles together.”
Du Ruo had no clue where the Seychelles were. Was it a country, a city? She let the comment slide.
“Have you bumped into Jing Ming at school?”
She lowballed it, “A couple of times, maybe.”
“Have you met his girlfriend?”
A weird question. Du Ruo thought about it, but it seemed harmless to answer, “Yeah, I’ve seen her.”
“What did you think?” Ming Yi smiled.
“She’s very pretty.”
Ming Yi kept smiling. “Yes, she is pretty.”
Du Ruo sensed, ever so faintly, that Ming Yi didn’t like Min Enzhu very much.
Rightly so, Ming Yi actually disliked that girl.
Jing Ming, eternally determined to do the opposite of what his family wanted, was a headache. Both their tempers were a terrible match, by all logic, they should never have lasted. But the more Ming Yi disapproved, the tighter those two clung together. And here they were, still tangled up.
Honestly, what a headache.
Ming Yi said, “You saw his girlfriend after just one or two times? She must visit him a lot.”
Du Ruo: “…”
Shit, I hope I didn’t just start some drama?
Merciful Buddha, please, Auntie, do NOT gossip with Jing Ming about this. The last thing she wanted was to get on his bad side.
Ming Yi dropped the subject, saying, “If you ever run into trouble at school, just ask Jing Ming for help, okay?”
“...Okay.”
“Eat more! Here, have some fish.”
“I am, I am.”
“The beef is good too. Oh, did you talk to your mom lately?”
“I call her twice a week.”
“Such a good kid. How’s she doing?”
“She’s doing well. She even asked me to say hi to you.”
“Tell her I said thank you. And how’s school? Are you adapting alright?”
The meal passed in warm conversation, and Du Ruo stayed over that night with the Jing family.
Ming Yi said the house was too quiet, begged her to stay a few extra days. But the next morning, her company called with an emergency, she dashed off and didn’t return all day.
Du Ruo hung around the house helping Aunt Chen cook and tidy up, helping Uncle Chen trim the flowers and trees. She wasn’t bored at all. Going back to campus felt suffocating; she was glad for a few days to breathe easy.
When Ming Yi got home, she actually felt guilty, so the next day she took Du Ruo out to have some fun.
Shopping, munching on snacks, buying clothes and shoes, they were as close as a real mother and daughter. Still, not a single shop clerk in the mall mistook them for family. Ming Yi was beautiful, elegant, dressed to the nines. Du Ruo, on the other hand, looked simple, almost plain, her expression wrapped up in a constant sense of wonder at her surroundings.
No matter how you looked at it, they weren’t from the same world. At best, some distant relatives from a small town somewhere.
Thankfully, Du Ruo was no longer awkward or timid around Ming Yi, and for someone like Ming Yi, whose daily interactions were either with subordinates or women her own age, chatting with a girl who felt like a daughter was downright relaxing.
They sat together eating ice cream in the mall, occasionally watching the crowds drift by.
Du Ruo said, “Since I came to Beijing, I haven’t really set foot outside campus, except for today. I usually spend weekends buried in homework. It’s just…so busy.”
Ming Yi replied, “I haven’t been out like this in ages either.”
“Auntie, is work that busy?”
“There’s no one to go with me. Your uncle’s job? Don’t even ask. As for Jing Ming, well, sons will never be as thoughtful as daughters.” Ming Yi sighed, “They’re so sweet when they’re little, but as soon as they’re grown, it’s all attitude with their moms. That boy, when he was small, I could coax him to go shopping with me. Now? Wild horses couldn’t drag him out. Honestly, kids are so much cuter when they’re little. The older he gets, the more stubborn he becomes. Throws a fit at the drop of a hat, I’m honestly scared of him now. ...Maybe I should’ve had a daughter back then?”
Du Ruo burst out laughing.
Then Ming Yi reconsidered, “But honestly, it’s just how kids are these days, spoiled to bits, all with bad tempers.”
Passing a lingerie store, Ming Yi dragged Du Ruo inside to buy some bras. Du Ruo felt awkward, and the prices were just ridiculous.
Ming Yi told her, “Lingerie is the closest thing to you. It’s worth investing in. It’s the one thing that shows how refined a girl really is. You could be decked out in designer labels, but wear shabby underwear underneath, it’s like opening a gorgeous gift box and finding a cheap plastic toy inside. Pick your lingerie carefully, trust me. Consider it a gift to yourself.” And with that, she nudged Du Ruo into the fitting room.
As Du Ruo undressed, she remembered Ming Yi’s words. Maybe this was what people meant by “living well.”
They came home loaded with bags, and Ming Yi threw in a few skincare sets for Du Ruo as well. “Listen, baby, girls have to take care of their skin. Always. You should aspire to look your best, not for anyone else, but just to make yourself happy. Got it?”
Du Ruo nodded, not fully understanding, but taking it in.
Back home, she sorted through the day’s haul. It was a crazy amount to spend, pocket change to Ming Yi, but Du Ruo still made a note of everything in her little ledger.
She even wrote an extra line: “Live well, and happily.”
The next few days of the break, the two of them got along comfortably. Sometimes they chatted; other times, they each did their own thing.
That afternoon, Ming Yi was curled up on the sofa reading and sipping tea, when Du Ruo saw a box of new books by the bookshelf that hadn’t been shelved yet and went to help sort them out.
Ming Yi spotted her and said, “Xiao Ruo, help me find a book called *Eternal Sleep*. It should be in the box.”
Du Ruo rifled through. “It’s not in here.”
Ming Yi tried to recall, “Then it must be in Jing Ming’s study, the first room upstairs. Go take a look, would you?”
“...Okay.”
“Oh, and one more thing, ” Ming Yi looked up from her book. “Don’t touch anything in his study, not even a single sheet of paper.” She shrugged, her smile indulgent. “That kid will throw a fit.”
Du Ruo nodded quickly, a bit nervous.
She went up to the third floor and pushed open the first door.
Ash-grey wood floors, a white desk stretched along one wall, and an entire wall painted deep blue. The wall was covered with blueprints, robot schematics, circuit diagrams.
The desk was a glorious mess of robot control boards, servo motors, and a jungle of blueprints mostly filled with hasty sketches and scrawled notes.
Several crumpled paper balls lay scattered on the floor beside the trash can. Someone must’ve been shooting baskets from the desk, some hit the mark, some bounced away.
Du Ruo stood dazed for a moment, then remembered what she was supposed to do: find the book.
Behind her, a floor-to-ceiling black bookshelf was neatly packed with books and figurines.
The whole room smelled of ink and paper. She was awe-struck.
At the end of the shelf, near the balcony, stood seven or eight robots in all shapes and sizes, some even looked human. They looked seriously cool.
She really wanted to go take a closer look, but she didn’t dare move a muscle. There was no one else here, and yet she acted like she’d get caught at any second.
Just then, she felt like she was back at the beginning, right back to her first time seeing Jing Ming at the train station.
He was at the top of the world, untouchable. She was a mess, awkward and lost, with nothing to her name.
At her feet was a cardboard box stuffed with new books. Right at the top was ‘Eternal Sleep’, the one Ming Yi wanted.
Suddenly, footsteps echoed in the hallway outside, a boy’s steps, coming straight for the study.
Du Ruo panicked, grabbed the book, and all but ran, bumping right into Jing Ming as he opened the door.
Jing Ming did a double-take, stunned for a few seconds. His brow immediately furrowed. “Who said you could come in here?”
Du Ruo shivered instinctively. “Your mom told me to get her a book.” She held the book up desperately to plead her case.
Jing Ming’s gaze swept coldly over the top of her head, scanning the room. He pushed the door open wider, stepped aside, and barked,
“Out!”
Du Ruo slipped past him and bolted down the hall. As soon as she left, the door slammed shut behind her with a bang.
It wasn’t until dinner that Jing Ming came downstairs.
Jing Yuanshan had just gotten home too. Over dinner, he asked Du Ruo about her classes and life, then said, “If you have any trouble at school, just ask Jing Ming for help.”
Du Ruo could only nod.
Jing Ming ate lazily, like he wasn’t even listening.
Jing Yuanshan frowned. “Jing Ming.”
Jing Ming didn’t bother to look up. “Yeah?”
“Did you hear what I said?”
“Your son is busy enough as it is. She’s not a grade-schooler, you know. She’s an adult, why does she need someone to hold her hand? I should be the one getting taken care of here.”
Jing Yuanshan shot him a sharp look but didn’t scold him. “Busy, huh? What are you so busy with all day? You barely come home since school started. Don’t let me catch you out goofing off.”
He glanced at Du Ruo.
Du Ruo mustered her courage. “Uncle, our courses are pretty heavy and complicated, so…it really is a lot to handle.”
Jing Ming made no move to pick up her lifeline.
Jing Yuanshan sighed. “If it’s all schoolwork, fine. I just don’t want you thinking you’re an adult now and staying out all night. If you were half as driven as she is when it comes to studying…that’d be something.”
Du Ruo felt mortified and sneaked a look at Jing Ming, who couldn’t care less, completely unfazed.
After a while, he asked, “Dad, did you get that car I wanted?”
“It’s coming in by sea freight. Took me ages to get it for you, use it for something useful, all right?”
“I’ll take it apart and give you a full report,” Jing Ming said lightly.
He finished eating, set his chopsticks down, and stood up to leave.
He collapsed on the sofa, started messing with his phone. Whatever he was texting, it put a rare smile on his face. Before long, he said, “I’m heading out.”
Ming Yi: “Where are you going?”
“Going out with friends.”
Ming Yi: “Perfect, take Xiao Ruo with you.”
Jing Ming: ???