With the immortals fighting, the little demon exits the stage left. Li Chengfan, Zhao Langming, and a few others being particularly sensitive to the situation, awkwardly exchanged a couple of words with Shen Xingruo and then vanished at the speed of a rocket launch. It was a live broadcast scene of a plastic bro-friendship falling apart.
Lu Xingyan was stunned for a few seconds before regaining his senses. Facing Shen Xingruo alone, he didn’t know what to say for a moment. He called the waiter to sign the bill and then had someone bring a bottle of lemon soda. While unscrewing the cap, he brewed an air of nonchalance.
When it was ready, he approached and handed the drink to Shen Xingruo. “Why did you come back so soon? I thought you were coming back tomorrow. Were you tired on the road? If you had told me you were coming back today, I would have gone to the airport to pick you up.”
Shen Xingruo didn’t take it. His hand hovered in the air for a moment, then stiffly withdrew, and he took a sip himself. The atmosphere slowly descended into silence.
But Lu Xingyan didn’t know what else to say, so he awkwardly commented, “Xu Chengzhou and the others ran off fast. I hadn’t even paid for the table after clearing it.”
Seeing Shen Xingruo’s unclear expression, he tried to cover it up by placing his hand over hers, attempting to take the handle of her suitcase. But Shen Xingruo didn’t let go. She looked coldly at Lu Xingyan’s feigned ignorance and insincere smile, and what had cooled halfway through was now completely chilled.
“Let go!” She suddenly pushed away Lu Xingyan’s hand, grabbed her suitcase, turned around, and walked briskly toward the exit.
Lu Xingyan was taken aback for a moment, then immediately chased after her. When he reached the door, Shen Xingruo had just caught the elevator. He hurriedly pressed the button again, but it wouldn’t open, no matter how hard he pressed. The other elevator was still on the twenty-second floor, and it wouldn’t come down for a while. So he pushed open the emergency door and ran down the stairs.
The midsummer daylight lingered long. Normally, in the early evening, the sky would still be bright, but today it looked like a storm was brewing, with the sky dark and heavy, hot and humid.
Shen Xingruo stood at the crossroads, waiting for the traffic light with her suitcase in tow. Lu Xingyan saw her and quickly caught up, grabbing her arm. “Shen Xingruo, let me explain.”
Shen Xingruo glanced at his hand, then looked at him calmly, her voice equally calm. “Alright, explain.”
Shen Xingruo was straightforward, and Lu Xingyan met her gaze, but suddenly, he didn’t know where to start. He decided to start by being humble, admitting his mistake first. Admitting one’s mistake was never wrong.
So he quickly put on a pitiful expression. “I was wrong. It’s all my fault.”
“You were wrong? What did you do wrong?”
Lu Xingyan looked earnestly at her. “I was wrong not to tell you about changing my college preferences.”
Shen Xingruo remained unmoved.
In truth, Lu Xingyan didn’t feel like he had done anything wrong. Seeing her reaction, he quickly defended himself, “But if I went to Xing University, we’d be in a long-distance relationship for four years. Four years! There are so many long-distance relationships that end in breakups. Everything I’m doing is for our relationship, for you…”
“Don’t do it for me. I can’t bear it.”
Shen Xingruo’s cold words swiftly cut him off.
She had been accompanying the admissions office for visits and experiences over the past few days, feeling exhausted from the packed schedule. But amidst the exhaustion, she also felt fulfilled. She could sense that the upcoming four years of university would be a challenging new journey in her life. Naturally, she hoped that Lu Xingyan would be there with her until the end. Therefore, she had included him in all her plans.
But every time she outlined a bit of the future, she would see Lu Xingyan and his friends changing their locations every day, having fun everywhere.
She understood.
After all, the results had just come out, and Lu Xingyan was naturally someone who enjoyed having fun. It was only natural for him to relax a bit after being confined for so long. During their conversations, she had never once tried to stop him from doing these things. She had only planned to discuss their plans for the next four years slowly during their trip to Europe.
Who would have thought that Lu Xingyan would be so determined, to return and keep quiet about such a big plan? She remembered how Lu Xingyan had just talked about the things he had done, showing off without a hint of guilt. The fire in her heart was burning, but she held back, unwilling to say harsh words.
Yet Lu Xingyan didn’t seem to realize the seriousness of the situation at all. He grabbed her hand, stubbornly pleading, “Alright, stop being angry. I promise I’ll study hard from now on, okay? My efficiency in studying is higher when I’m closer to you. If I’m not with you, I won’t study at all.”
“Besides, my parents are grateful that I managed to reach the cutoff score for a top-tier university. They won’t be upset about this. You don’t need to worry,” Lu Xingyan continued.
“Alright, we’re going on a trip tomorrow. I’ll accompany you for a stroll in the mall, and I’ll buy you whatever you like,” he said, wanting to hug Shen Xingruo.
But Shen Xingruo moved back, avoiding him, silent. She lowered her gaze and slowly unwound his fingers. Then she looked up at Lu Xingyan, her gaze direct and cold. “Enough said. We have different paths to take. Since you think there’s nothing to talk about regarding a four-year long-distance relationship, then let’s end it now.”
The pedestrian light had already changed from red to green. After saying this, Shen Xingruo stepped back, dragging her suitcase, and walked across the street. The sound of car wheels gradually faded as she walked along the uneven zebra crossing.
Lu Xingyan was stunned for three seconds, pondering over the words “Let’s end it now.” It sounded like a breakup. Damn it! Shen Xingruo meant to break up with him!
He rushed to catch up to clarify, but by the time he came to his senses, Shen Xingruo had already crossed the street and was about to enter the subway entrance. He hurriedly chased after her before the traffic light changed.
The traffic conditions in Xingcheng were average, and he was forced to stop midway to let two reckless motorcycles pass. When he reached the subway entrance, Shen Xingruo had already passed the security check and swiped her card to enter the subway station.
He wasn’t carrying a bag or luggage, so he didn’t need to wait. Unexpectedly, at the normally lax subway entrance where bags were rarely checked, he was stopped and asked to take a sip of his lemon soda.
Lu Xingyan was dumbfounded and didn’t expect to be stopped. He reluctantly took a sip of the sour drink in front of everyone.
In the blink of an eye, he finished half the bottle of lemon soda and passed the security check smoothly. However, Shen Xingruo had already disappeared into the crowd at the subway station during rush hour, lost among the sea of people.
Lu Xingyan didn’t have a subway card or even the A card for the subway turnstile, and he didn’t have any spare change on him. He kicked the wall in frustration, feeling annoyed, and rubbed his hair vigorously. Finally, he resigned himself to finding a corner with decent signal reception and continued to call Shen Xingruo frantically.
The more he called, the angrier he became.
What kind of attitude was Shen Xingruo displaying? Everything he did was for her! What did she mean by “different paths”? It’s not like he didn’t know he wasn’t keen on studying. So what if he’d spent a year and a half on a different path and then aimed for the top spot in the exam? Wasn’t that still part of his journey?
Was the Big Enrollment Group toxic?
Damn it! He wanted to find a complaint hotline and give those brainwashed idiots a good scolding.
He kept dialing for ten minutes until his phone’s battery dropped below 10 percent.
Before he could vent his frustration, he suddenly heard the subway’s female voice announcing an unfamiliar station, one that seemed particularly far away.
He looked up and carefully examined the subway map—
Damn it! He got on the wrong train!!!
Lu Xingyan remembered a piece of motivational talk Chen Zhu had shared about the universe concentrating its energy to fulfill one’s desires.
What a load of crap!
When he was in trouble, the whole universe probably looked down on him and wanted to kick him!
With only 10% battery left on his phone and feeling increasingly frustrated, Lu Xingyan couldn’t act out anymore.
He got off at the next station and then boarded the train going in the opposite direction.
The subway was crowded, and he stared at the battery percentage dropping continuously while thinking that he shouldn’t spoil Shen Xingruo when he got home; he should show her some attitude.