Chapter Ten – An Unexpected Encounter

"Why is it you?"
"Why is it you?"
...
When Su Yishu and Yan Lu arrived at Huafeng Plaza in the city center, they happened to run into Xu Shixi and Qiao Siming coming toward them.

Huafeng Plaza was just beginning its most splendid show of the day.

The main shopping building, constructed from evenly sized glass panels, shimmered with a kaleidoscope of lights. In some lighter sections, one could clearly see the featured fashions displayed in the window—along with the streams of people passing by.

Every tree lining the plaza was wrapped in pale yellow LED strips, so that from a distance they resembled rows of artificial snowflakes. In the open center, a colossal Ferris wheel dominated the space. Of course, it was purely decorative and not meant to be ridden.

Everyone was dressed impeccably, as if about to attend the gala of the century.

Yan Lu was not surprised that Yishu and Shixi knew each other; she had been present at their first meeting. Yet the identical questioning and the meaning behind their words left her puzzled.

"What’s going on with you two?" Yan Lu stared at Yishu, her pupils especially large in the dim light.

"Actually, the redevelopment of the urban village was contracted to Xunyuan," Yishu struggled to find a better explanation. "He’s the project manager."

So much had happened lately—it was hard to explain in a few words. In truth, there wasn’t much worth explaining.
Was it the strange fate that had them share a car by accident?
The few words exchanged before the rain that night?
Or the bowl of tomato and egg noodles made at home?
Perhaps the enthusiasm of helping with the move that morning?

But this was not the right time to recount any of it. Besides, these bittersweet moments, if spoken aloud, would only embarrass those involved.

"What a coincidence. Are you here to shop?" Xu Shixi broke the awkward silence, trying to ease the tension.

"No, I’m here to accompany Yan Lu on a blind—" Before Yishu could finish, Yan Lu pinched her arm. She got the message. "I’m here to shop with her."

"You two really are fated. Meeting twice in one day—if you say you’re not a couple, no one would believe it," Qiao Siming said, right hand in his trousers pocket, left hand absently rubbing the back of his head. "Sorry, but I’ll need to borrow your boyfriend tonight. Hope you don’t mind."

Borrow your boyfriend?

Yan Lu was even more confused.

"What does he mean by that?" she asked.

Yishu had no answer and chose silence.

People moved around them, footsteps quickening.

"The beauty beside you is pretty, too—though she looks a bit fierce for my taste," Qiao Siming grinned roguishly. "I like someone gentler, soft as water."

"What business is it of yours if I’m fierce or gentle!" Yan Lu’s temper flared. "You look human, but nothing you say makes you sound like one."

Sensing an imminent explosion, Su Yishu and Xu Shixi hurriedly separated the impending fire and dynamite.

The Ferris wheel flashed rapidly through all the colors of the rainbow. Its intricate central structure glowed in shifting shapes.

Yishu often wondered if meeting someone here, in a scene like this, might be romantic.

To avoid escalating conflict, she and Shixi went their separate ways.

The four of them walked off in two pairs, heading in opposite directions.

Once the distractions were gone, Yan Lu unleashed all her pent-up questions.

"Is there really nothing?" Yishu couldn’t answer. In fact, there really was nothing—nothing at all. He’d never expressed anything; she’d never taken the initiative. Could such vague feelings be considered real?

After repeated explanations and clarifications from Yishu, Yan Lu stopped pressing. Maybe there really was nothing? After all, people flock together, and that man’s words just now were so flippant—perhaps the other one wasn’t so decent either.

"Really nothing?" Yan Lu’s mouth, having asked too much, now moved on its own inertia.

Yishu rolled her eyes but felt uncertain inside.

Huafeng Plaza was vast inside, designed as an S-shaped layout. The first floor was devoted to clothing, the second and third to a variety of fine restaurants, and the fourth to a cinema.

Yan Lu had forgotten the exact meeting spot her mother had mentioned, so she dragged Su Yishu from the west entrance on the second floor to the east, then took the escalator up to the third.

Issar Restaurant.

The space was dominated by dark tones, shrouding it in mystery and privacy. The yellow overhead lights cast a faint glow over each area.

With every seat taken, all they could see were heads of black and brown hair. Yan Lu gave up searching and called her blind date.

—Hello, where are you? I’ve arrived.
—I’m inside, by the window.

The voice sounded strangely familiar.

Without hanging up, Yan Lu walked inside with her phone and saw, to her astonishment, the person she disliked most today standing there with phone in hand, equally shocked.

It’s you?
It’s you!

"Well, there’s nothing more to say." Yan Lu grabbed Yishu’s hand. "Let’s go."

Qiao Siming lowered his phone. "My aunt must be getting senile—she told me my blind date would be a gentle, demure beauty. I won’t comment on her looks, but as for gentle, I think that’s a hundred thousand miles off."

Yan Lu rolled up her sleeves and stepped forward. "My gentleness is reserved for those I like. For someone like you, not a chance!"

"Yan Lu, that’s enough," Yishu whispered in her ear. "Didn’t your mom say you had to record a video of your blind date to send her?"

Reminded, Yan Lu suddenly recalled her mother’s instructions before she left: Since she was worried Yan Lu would go through the motions, her mother had planned to supervise in person. Only after Yan Lu’s repeated assurances did she agree to stay home—if there was video proof.

Yan Lu had never feared anyone. That was Yishu’s most direct impression of her.

She remembered in their first year of middle school, a group of boys barely distinguishable from delinquents blocked their way after school. Yan Lu had actually been terrified; Yishu could feel her trembling. Her face, blurred by the setting sun, looked both desolate and resolute. As the boys finally disappeared into the dusk, Yishu clearly saw the scabbed wound on her friend’s face.

But her mother was the exception.

Perhaps Yan Lu’s fiery, brash nature was the perfect inheritance from her formidable mother—just not as deeply cultivated.

"In that case, we’ll be off," Qiao Siming said, grabbing his jacket and tugging at Xu Shixi.

"Wait," Yan Lu said with difficulty. "Since we’re already here, why not talk for a bit before leaving?"

"Are you sure?"

"I’m sure!"

Yan Lu sent Yishu away, determined to fight her own battle. In truth, she was afraid something embarrassing might happen—and if a friend was present, she wouldn’t be able to save face.

Qiao Siming likewise dismissed Xu Shixi. The reason was probably much the same.

In this moment, it wasn’t just time that seemed to pause.

At the very least, the gazes of onlookers also froze.

Yishu was not good at handling social skirmishes, especially when laced with tension.

She and Xu Shixi were politely ushered out.

The great crystal chandelier hanging from the dome scattered dazzling beams of light.

They walked apart, threading through the busy crowds, trying to carve out a small space for themselves.

Yishu wondered, if she could just keep walking like this, would she eventually reach the end of time?

And on that vast shoreline, would there be a place for her?

"Are you cold?" Xu Shixi took off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders.

"I’m not cold," Su Yishu replied, instinctively clutching the fabric.

He knew she wasn’t cold—after all, the temperature had soared to thirty degrees during the day, and even now hovered around twenty.

He just wanted to show he cared, but didn’t know how.

Yishu sometimes doubted whether he really worked in real estate planning. A planner ought to be quick-witted and eloquent, but he always struggled to find the right words. Then again, so did she—fluent and sharp at a computer screen, yet tongue-tied in person.

Unwittingly, they wandered to the edge of Huafeng Plaza. Restaurants lined the walls in a circle: bubble tea, barbecue, pastries—all sorts.

Yishu and Shixi suddenly realized they were past hunger; even "hunger" had lost its strength.

After much insistence from Xu Shixi, Yishu followed him into a dessert shop called St. Lott.

He liked sweets?

"The women at my office often come here for afternoon tea," Xu Shixi explained. "I thought you’d like it, too."

Yishu smiled in reply. Indeed, she loved sweets.

Inside, the warm air made the sugary scent even richer.

All around, couples filled every table.

And what about her and him?

After waiting nearly half an hour in line, Xu Shixi carefully brought over several vibrantly colored pastries.

Yishu had no energy to admire or analyze them. She picked up a fork and ate in small bites. Shixi, not fond of things too sweet, stuck to the plain croissant closest to him.

The couple at the next table glanced over, a hint of curiosity in their eyes.

They seemed out of place. Among all these couples—most under twenty-five—this slightly older, ambiguous pair stood out.

"We probably can’t see each other for a while," the girl at the next table said tearfully. "My dad applied for me to study at a foreign university. I’ll be leaving in a few months."

"That’s so sudden," the boy replied, visibly upset.

"It’s not really sudden. We’d planned it before the New Year, but I didn’t know how to tell you," she explained, her voice lacking confidence.

"Don’t you know? Young love can’t stand waiting," the boy said, standing up. "Because love grows old much faster than time!"

Yishu was suddenly reminded of a TV drama she’d seen years ago, with a line that went something like:

Some waits in life cannot be too long,
Some loves need not be proven by time.
Who says only love tested by time counts as true love?
That is the love of the dead.
In real life, there are not so many long-awaited reunions.
Shouldn’t ordinary lives have ordinary love, too?

Xu Shixi hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back.

Yishu hoped for something, and was disappointed.

When Yan Lu sent her message, their meal was nearly done.

On the way home, Yan Lu kept pestering Yishu with questions about her and Shixi. Naturally, until Yishu could think of a good explanation, she could only dodge with vague replies.

"And what about you and Qiao Siming?" Yishu changed the subject.

"Nice try," Yan Lu said, annoyed. "Nothing happened. I’d never be with a man like that in my life. I’m afraid I’d end up fighting him."

"Is it really that bad?" Yishu looked at her, surprised and confused.

"Men look for women mostly to relieve loneliness. Women look for men for security," Yan Lu said seriously. "The reason I’m still single is that I’d rather devote my youth to time itself than waste it on some rotten man."

"'Fragrant' ones are the exception."

Her short, neat hair, lightly made-up face, and unique views—only now did Yishu realize that Yan Lu’s understanding of love was so profound. It was as if she were seeing her anew.