Chapter 45

Originally, Yan Qinting had already prepared what he was going to say, but the moment he heard Li Sipei’s voice, his brain completely shut down.

Oh no!

What was he supposed to say again?

Even though the dorm room heater wasn’t on, a layer of sweat broke out on Yan Qinting’s face. He swallowed stiffly and, amid the pounding of his own heart, nervously stammered, “Mi—Mi Zhao is taking a shower.”

Damn it, he actually stuttered.

Clearing his throat, he tried to compose himself. However, the dead silence from the other end of the call made his teeth start chattering uncontrollably again.

This Li Sipei guy was seriously terrifying. How did Mi Zhao even manage to get along with him?

After a long, suffocating pause, the other party finally spoke.

“Who are you?”

“I’m Mi Zhao’s roommate. I’ve ridden in your car before—Brother, do you remember me?”

“Yan Qinting.”

The other party said his name effortlessly.

Yan Qinting hadn’t expected someone like Li Sipei to actually remember his name. He was both startled and oddly flattered. Blinking in surprise, he swallowed back the words ‘You actually remember me?’ and steered the conversation back on track.

“Are you looking for Mi Zhao for something?”

Li Sipei was silent for a moment before saying, “Give him the phone.”

“He’s showering,” Yan Qinting replied. “It’s not convenient for him to answer right now.”

Li Sipei’s tone was firm. “Tell him to stop and take my call first.”

“But he really isn’t available right now.”

The other end of the call seemed to take a sharp breath. Then, after a long pause, a chilling voice drifted over.

“Is he unavailable, or does he just not want to answer?”

“……”

Yan Qinting finally understood—so Li Sipei hadn’t believed him from the start.

Just moments ago, he was still debating whether to say those things on Mi Zhao’s behalf. Now, he had made up his mind.

“Brother, since you put it that way, I won’t beat around the bush.” Yan Qinting softened his tone and tried to persuade him. “You and Mi Zhao aren’t a good match. He’s only a junior in college—still just a student. He hasn’t even fully stepped into society yet. He’s playful, immature… maybe you two should just let this go.”

Another long silence followed.

Yan Qinting continued, “You’ve seen how he’s been acting this past week. It’s best if you both part on good terms and leave each other some dignity.”

Still, there was no response.

If it weren’t for the faint, slightly rushed breathing sounds, Yan Qinting would have thought the call had been disconnected. Just to be sure, he took a quick glance at the phone—seeing the call timer still running, he placed it back to his ear.

“Brother…”

The other person finally spoke. “Did Mi Zhao tell you to say this?”

Yan Qinting hesitated for a split second but didn’t dare make things too absolute. “I said it. I mean, I’m just an outsider looking at the situation clearly.”

Li Sipei’s voice tightened, turning utterly frigid. “Tell Mi Zhao to come and say it to me himself.”

Seriously?! Why was this guy so stubborn?

There was no way Yan Qinting was actually going to call Mi Zhao over. Biting his nails anxiously, he struggled to come up with a response.

But before he could say anything, Li Sipei suddenly spoke again.

“Forget it.”

Before Yan Qinting could react, the call ended.

Staring at the phone screen, now back to the lock screen wallpaper, Yan Qinting patted his chest and let out a breath of relief.

Not long after, Mi Zhao walked out of the bathroom, still holding the hairdryer. As he put it back in the drawer, he asked, “Who called just now?”

Yan Qinting replied, “That guy.”

Mi Zhao froze mid-motion, then suddenly stood up in a hurry. His face was full of urgency as he strode over to Yan Qinting’s bedside. “He called again?”

“Yeah,” Yan Qinting said, sounding drained. “A bunch of times.”

Mi Zhao held out his hand. “Give me my phone.”

Yan Qinting handed it over. As Mi Zhao turned on the screen and scrolled through the call log, his face quickly turned pale.

“What did you say to him?”

“I told him to break things off with you peacefully.”

“……”

“What?!” Yan Qinting noticed his reaction. “Did I go too easy on him?”

He pounded his chest in regret. “Damn it! I was too nervous—otherwise, I would’ve done even better!”

Mi Zhao twitched the corners of his mouth, wanting to say something but feeling utterly drained. His mind was a mess. Gripping his phone, he walked back to his desk and sat down.

Opening the WeChat chat with Li Sipei

He typed, then deleted.

Typed again, deleted again.

In the end, he sent nothing.

—

On Saturday morning, Mi Zhao had already contacted the factory to arrange for the completed plush toys to be delivered to the orphanage. He arrived half an hour early to wait at the entrance.

It was nearly November, and with the arrival of a cold front, the temperature had suddenly dropped. Even with a coat and scarf wrapped tightly around him, Mi Zhao still found himself shivering in the wind, stomping his feet to stay warm.

He cupped his hands in front of his face, blowing warm air into them.

Just then, a Bentley he had never seen before pulled up in front of him.

Mi Zhao looked up. The luxury car completely blocked his view, and his curiosity got the better of him. He took a few more glances and instinctively moved aside.

But as soon as he took two steps, the rear window of the Bentley slowly rolled down—

And a familiar face appeared inside.

The moment Mi Zhao laid eyes on Li Sipei, he froze. His feet felt rooted to the ground as he remained in his position, hands cupped in front of him, staring blankly at the man inside the car.

Li Sipei met his gaze for a moment before speaking succinctly. “Get in.”

Mi Zhao’s face flushed red. Whether it was from the cold wind or sheer embarrassment, he couldn’t tell. He stammered, “I—I’m waiting for someone. He’ll be here soon.”

Li Sipei didn’t respond. Instead, he turned his head toward the driver’s seat, where Ruan Xin was pretending to be deaf and mute.

“……” Ruan Xin sighed, unfastened her seatbelt, and got out of the car.

She walked up to Mi Zhao and made a welcoming gesture toward the car.

Mi Zhao lowered his hands into his pockets, hesitating for a few seconds before walking around the front of the car and heading toward the rear passenger door on the other side.

Just as he opened the door, Li Sipei’s voice came from inside. “Get in the front.”

Mi Zhao was stunned. “Huh?”

“You’re driving.”

“……” Mi Zhao pressed his lips together. “Alright.”

He had no idea where Li Sipei wanted to go, so he simply drove aimlessly for a few hundred meters. Spotting a café on the side of the road, he pulled over.

He thought Li Sipei would refuse to cooperate, but to his surprise, Li Sipei opened the car door on his own.

As Mi Zhao reached out, intending to help him out of the car, he realized that Li Sipei wasn’t using his wheelchair today—just a cane.

He extended a hand to assist, but Li Sipei smacked it away with a sharp slap.

The force wasn’t light, and with the cold weather, a red, swollen mark quickly appeared on the back of Mi Zhao’s pale hand.

Sucking in a sharp breath from the sting, Mi Zhao instinctively withdrew his hand. Looking up, he saw that Li Sipei showed no remorse for hitting him. His brows and eyes carried only an icy indifference as he stared coldly at him.

Feeling aggrieved, Mi Zhao blurted out, “Why’d you hit me?”

Just like Yan Qinting! Yan Qinting also had a habit of smacking him without warning, and it always hurt like hell. Normally, he’d retaliate with both hands, delivering a series of hard slaps to Yan Qinting’s back.

But this time, the one who hit him was Li Sipei—so he had no choice but to endure it.

Without anyone’s help, Li Sipei struggled to get out of the car and steady himself on his cane. Several times, Mi Zhao considered stepping in, but each time, he was met with an icy glare that stopped him in his tracks.

Once he was finally standing properly, Li Sipei coolly responded to Mi Zhao’s earlier complaint. “So you do know what pain feels like?”

“……” Mi Zhao was completely at a loss for words.

The wind outside was relentless. Knowing that Li Sipei didn’t want him touching him, Mi Zhao silently moved to his left and positioned himself in a way that could block some of the wind.

Maybe because Li Sipei rarely went outside, he was underdressed for the weather. Even in this cold, he was only wearing a thin shirt under an open coat, leaving his long, slender neck fully exposed.

The chilly wind had already turned his face and neck slightly red.

Mi Zhao stared at him for a while. He wasn’t sure what came over him, but before his brain could catch up, his body had already acted.

He took off his scarf and draped it around Li Sipei’s neck.

Since Li Sipei was much taller than him, he would have to lower his head slightly for the scarf to be properly wrapped.

But he didn’t. He remained still, lowering his gaze to look at Mi Zhao. Something flickered in his eyes, but it disappeared just as quickly, leaving behind only a bottomless silence.

“What is this supposed to mean?”

Hearing this, Mi Zhao’s hands, which were still holding the ends of the scarf, froze in mid-air before he quickly let go. The scarf hung loosely around Li Sipei’s neck.

He stammered, “It’s too—too cold, and you’re dressed so lightly.”

Without his scarf, the icy wind immediately burrowed into Mi Zhao’s collar. The sudden chill, combined with the lack of protection around his neck, made him shiver uncontrollably. Wrapping his arms around himself, he sneezed.

His face turned an even deeper shade of red. His eyes, slightly watery from the cold, gazed up at Li Sipei with a glistening softness.

Li Sipei’s eyes drifted downward.

First, they landed on Mi Zhao’s lips—his lower lip, plump and rosy, was pressed between his teeth, slightly pale from the pressure, while the exposed upper lip remained full and glistening, like a piece of jelly. Then, his gaze shifted to the smooth skin of Mi Zhao’s neck, which was now just as exposed as his had been earlier.

The skin there had also turned red from the cold.

Without a word, Li Sipei pulled the scarf tighter around his own neck, savoring the lingering warmth it carried.

Mi Zhao: “……”

He had watched Li Sipei stare at him for so long—he thought he was about to give the scarf back.

—

As they pushed open the café’s glass doors, a wave of warm air rushed over them, instantly dispelling the chill. Mi Zhao let out a satisfied sigh and stepped aside to let Li Sipei in first.

The café wasn’t very crowded. A waiter led them to a window seat.

Mi Zhao ordered two hot lattes.

Once again, Li Sipei fell silent, staring at him intently.

The unwavering gaze made Mi Zhao feel guilty. Under the table, he anxiously picked at his fingernails. It had been half a month since they last saw each other, and while Li Sipei hadn’t changed much, they had never been this silent before.

About thirty seconds passed before Mi Zhao awkwardly found a topic. “Are you still doing rehab training?”

“Yes,” Li Sipei replied. “Every day.”

Mi Zhao smiled. “That’s good.”

Then, Li Sipei asked, “Do you really have nothing else to say to me?”

Mi Zhao’s smile stiffened.

“Last Saturday’s phone call—did you ask your roommate to respond to me that way?”

Mi Zhao wasn’t sure exactly what Yan Qinting had said, but it was likely not far off from what he had told him. Feeling a bit uneasy, he gave a small nod.

“Can I know why?” Li Sipei still appeared composed. Not a single ripple disturbed his calm expression, but anyone familiar with him would recognize this as a sign that he was about to make things difficult.

“Do you still mind my relationship with Li Yan?”