Xie Ru He stood a head taller than Shu Nian, requiring him to deliberately lower his gaze when looking at her. As if not understanding the meaning of her words, his face remained expressionless, though his eyes held a measuring look.
Seeing that he still showed no inclination to speak, Shu Nian felt dejected. “Why aren’t you saying anything?”
“…”
Shu Nian had never encountered such a situation before. The other party wasn’t exactly ignoring her—he would stop when she called out to him. He wasn’t treating her like air either, as he would listen to what she said, but he simply wouldn’t respond.
“This is impolite,” Shu Nian began to lecture him. “I’ve said so many things to you, how can you not acknowledge me at all?”
Xie Ru He averted his gaze, remaining silent.
At this point, Shu Nian suddenly thought of something, becoming a bit uneasy. “You’re not unable to speak, are you…?”
Hearing this, Xie Ru He’s eyelids twitched, his dense eyelashes trembling slightly.
His reaction further confirmed Shu Nian’s suspicion.
“If you can’t speak, you can use hand gestures to communicate with me.” Shu Nian no longer dared to look at him, feeling that she had been too forceful just now. “…I didn’t mean to.”
Xie Ru He didn’t look at her, his expression casual and indifferent. He seemed unconcerned by her words but showed no intention of leaving either.
Shu Nian fell silent, carefully choosing her words. After a long while, she steeled herself and said, “What were you doing outside Uncle Li Hong’s house yesterday? I saw you standing there for a while.”
“…”
Her words seemed to be swallowed by the air, not causing the slightest ripple.
Shu Nian frowned, grabbing his wrist again and moving closer to him, speaking at a volume only the two of them could hear: “It’s indeed wrong for Uncle Li Hong not to pay you, but you shouldn’t do this sort of thing.”
Hearing these words, Xie Ru He finally showed a reaction. He looked at Shu Nian, a hint of confusion passing through his eyes.
Shu Nian didn’t notice this, just continuing on her own: “What if he checks the bicycle brakes, finds something wrong, and then comes after you?”
“…”
“A person must never do bad things,” Shu Nian said earnestly. “Because no matter what, even if you escape by luck now, in the end, you’ll still…”
Xie Ru He’s expression gradually became clear. Connecting to what Shu Nian had said earlier, he understood the meaning behind her words, and his eyes darkened. Without even letting her finish, he jerked his wrist away from her grip.
A loud snap—
At that moment, everything around them seemed to fall silent.
Xie Ru He’s gaze turned icy, cold, and filled with heavy resentment. He pressed his lips together, his expression showing undisguised disgust and self-mockery.
Then, ignoring Shu Nian’s stunned expression, he turned and left.
…
…
Because of the phone call she had made yesterday, Shu Nian couldn’t sleep.
She tossed and turned in bed, and even with her eyes closed, she felt no drowsiness. It wasn’t until dawn approached that she finally managed to fall asleep.
The next day, Shu Nian didn’t get up until one in the afternoon.
After throwing together something to eat in the kitchen, Shu Nian went to the living room and took two cold medicine tablets, feeling that her throat wasn’t as itchy as it had been in previous days. She cleared her throat a couple of times, then foolishly made several “Ah—” sounds, feeling that her vocal condition wasn’t too bad.
She then popped a loquat candy into her mouth.
Shu Nian didn’t dawdle any longer and left the house.
Outside, the rain had stopped, but the ground was still wet. The sky was gloomy, the clouds so heavy they seemed about to press down to the earth. The air carried a layer of moisture as if trying to seep into the bones along with the cold wind.
Although it wasn’t particularly cold yet, the changing seasons were when illness rates were highest. Shu Nian had a weak constitution and didn’t want her cold to worsen, so she wrapped herself in two woolen sweaters plus a camel-colored coat that extended past her thighs.
She bundled herself up tightly.
In this weather, she was certainly overdressed.
On the bus, Shu Nian found a seat in the back row.
By now she was feeling somewhat hot, with fine beads of sweat forming on her forehead, and she instinctively tugged her collar down a bit.
Following the address her teacher had given her, Shu Nian got off at the Northern City Station. It was her first time visiting this recording studio, and she wasn’t familiar with the route. Following her phone’s navigation, she walked to a building at the intersection of North Second Ring Road and Jin Ling Road.
She took the elevator to the fifth floor.
After confirming the location, Shu Nian stood outside without moving and first sent a text message to her teacher.
Not long after, a woman in her early forties opened the door. She seemed to be quite warm, wearing only a thin knit top, with her hair pinned up, giving her a very efficient appearance.
The woman walked out and greeted Shu Nian.
Shu Nian respectfully called out, “Teacher Huang.”
The woman before her was Huang Li Zhi, Shu Nian’s diction teacher at the university.
Huang Li Zhi smiled at her, “Come. There’s a role here, you can do a voice test to see if it suits you.”
Shu Nian responded with a “yes” and quickly followed her steps.
Huang Li Zhi brought her to the control room to meet the dubbing director.
Now, Shu Nian could no longer handle strangers as normally as before. She had developed mild social anxiety and would become nervous and sweaty when talking to unfamiliar people. She licked her lips, forcing herself to look up, meeting the director’s eyes, and awkwardly introduced herself.
“My name is Li Qing, just call me Director Li.” Li Qing smiled, his attitude not particularly warm, and handed her an A4 paper. “Alright, let’s do a sound test first.”