Shen Yanjun’s expression changed slightly, and he frowned. “What illness?”

In the years Zhou Yining was in the UK, he would visit whenever he had time. Though Zhou Yining sometimes refused to see him, they still met two or three times a year. The meetings were never long, but she always seemed fine. There were no signs of illness; in fact, she seemed to be getting better and better. She grew prettier, her temper improved significantly, and she changed a lot, but to him, these were all positive changes.

At the time, he had thought that her going abroad was the right decision.

So, when Zhou JiaHui said Zhou Yining was sick, Shen Yanjun found it hard to believe.

Zhou JiaHui lowered her voice. “Do you remember when she was in her teens? Sometimes she was incredibly violent. She smashed my posters, vases, mirrors, and everything at home…”

Shen Yanjun instinctively defended Zhou Yining, interrupting her. “That was because you threw her cat away.”

Shen Yanjun knew very well how vital Maoqiu was to Zhou Yining. In the Zhou family, no one loved or cared for her, and she had no close family members. At school, she didn’t have many close friends either, and Zhou Yining of that time was very hard to get close to.

Maoqiu was something Zhou Yining had chosen to raise. He knew her too well; if it were something she chose herself, she would cherish it more than anyone. If anyone dared to touch her things, she would fight them to the death.

That was why, knowing she had chosen Ji Dongyang, he felt so hopeless.

That was her choice, and no one else could change it.

Zhou JiaHui explained hurriedly, “I didn’t do it on purpose. I’m not that vicious… Yanjun-ge, I was just so angry with her at the time. I only wanted to hide the cat to scare her. The cat ran away on its own. Didn’t I go out to look for it later, too?”

Shen Yanjun looked straight at her. “Maybe you didn’t do it on purpose, but the result is that Maoqiu is gone, and you have to bear the consequences, JiaHui. You can’t escape that. Maybe in your eyes, it was just a cat, but in Yining’s eyes, it was a life. No matter how bad her temper was, no matter how much conflict she had with you, she never touched your cat.”

“She is kinder than you.”

Shen Yanjun finished his sentence and turned to go downstairs.

Zhou JiaHui stood there stunned, her face changing colour rapidly. Suddenly, she shouted, “Then did you know she is a severe dissociative identity disorder patient? To put it bluntly, she’s a mental case!”

Shen Yanjun’s body swayed violently. He froze on the spot, looking up at Zhou JiaHui, his throat dry and hoarse. “What did you say?”

He heard it clearly.

He just dared not believe it.

Zhou JiaHui didn’t repeat herself. Holding the railing, she walked down to him. “When she was little, she was obedient and quiet. After she turned ten, her personality suddenly changed drastically, but occasionally she would become obedient again. Back then, she would never call my mother ‘Mom,’ but sometimes, she would become very well-behaved, call my mother ‘Mom,’ and even try to please her… At that time, I always thought she was deliberately disgusting us, that she was so manipulative at such a young age. When she became obedient, she was very clingy with you. Have you forgotten? That’s why I hated her so much…”

Shen Yanjun hadn’t forgotten. When Zhou Yining was clingy and obedient, he was just happy. When her temper worsened, he thought, It’s fine. If her temper is bad, so be it. I’ll just indulge her. He hadn’t expected…

He hadn’t expected…

He never could have imagined it would be like this…

He closed his eyes briefly.

Her unpredictability turned out to be an illness.

For so many years, he hadn’t noticed a thing. His hands, hanging by his sides, clenched tightly, trembling slightly.

Zhou JiaHui was still saying something, but he wasn’t listening closely. His mind kept replaying various incidents from Zhou Yining’s childhood, and he felt more and more like a bastard. Such obvious signs, how had he not noticed? Why hadn’t he suspected? Perhaps he had suspected, but he never dared to think deeply in that direction.

“Do you know how terrifying this illness is? She’s fine now, but who knows when she might suddenly get worse again? Uncle Shen and Auntie didn’t like her much to begin with. When you were getting engaged, they…”

Shen Yanjun’s face was cold as he shouted, “Enough!”

He looked at her coldly, said nothing more, turned, and walked quickly downstairs. No matter what Zhou JiaHui shouted, he didn’t stop.

…

The day after Ji Dongyang returned to B City, Zhou Yining finished filming in the afternoon and rushed back to get her luggage and head to the airport.

As soon as she got home, Zhou Lihui called her again, inevitably asking to have dinner together.

“I have to go to the airport soon. Next time, Dad.”

Zhou Yining hung up. Recently, Zhou Lihui hadn’t asked her to come home for dinner. Had he also realised that her relationship with Zhou JiaHui and Xia Yun would never be good? Sitting at the same table to eat was like a war.

After more than twenty years, Zhou Lihui had finally gotten smart for once.

Zhou Yining hadn’t expected to run into Shen Yanjun on the plane, sitting right in the seat next to her. She froze for a moment, then sat down and sighed, “You didn’t do this on purpose, did you?”

Shen Yanjun didn’t answer, just staring at her, taking it as a default admission.

Zhou Yining smiled. “Do you need something?”

Shen Yanjun smiled back. “If I said this was a coincidence, would you believe me?”

She nodded. “I believe you.”

Shen Yanjun stopped smiling and closed his eyes. Two girls in the row behind them were discussing the plot of Taiping Dynasty.

“I knew that Consort Ning must be bad. When she first appeared, she felt like a villain, and she really is.”

“She’s starting to show her true colours. I just want to see how she stirs up trouble.”

“Dong-ge is so handsome, his voice is to die for…”

…

Zhou Yining pulled her turtleneck sweater up, covering half her face, revealing only a pair of almond eyes. The unique mole on her fair cheek was also exposed. Shen Yanjun turned to look at her and suddenly raised his hand, ruffling her hair as he used to when they were kids.

Zhou Yining frowned and looked back at him. Shen Yanjun smiled and withdrew his hand. “Cover up a bit more. You can still be recognised.”

He adjusted his seat and stopped looking at her.

Zhou Yining fished a black eye mask out of her bag, put it on, leaned back, and tilted her head toward the window.

Shen Yanjun looked back at her and took a deep breath.

“She’s fine now, but who knows when she might suddenly get worse again?”

Zhou JiaHui’s words suddenly jumped into his mind. For the past two days, he had been blaming himself. How could he not have noticed?

It was already past 9 PM when they arrived in B City. Ji Dongyang should have finished recording the show by now.

While waiting for her luggage, Zhou Yining called Ji Dongyang. A Ming answered. “Dong-ge is still recording.”

Zhou Yining frowned. “Still not done?”

“Almost, almost. There was a segment that needed re-recording, so it’s a bit late.”

“Where will he stay tonight?”

“The same place as New Year’s. It’s close to here.”

“Okay, I’ll go there and wait for him.”

Ji Dongyang’s homes all had keypad locks. Zhou Yining asked A Ming for the code. A Ming hesitated, but Zhou Yining laughed. “A Ming, I’m his girlfriend now.”

A Ming immediately handed over the code.

Hearing it, Zhou Yining realised… Wasn’t this the same code as before? The same one for the door opposite hers.

Hanging up, she put on her mask and hurried out. B City in February was still chilly. She pulled up the hood of her down jacket.

Shen Yanjun had been following behind her. Seeing her about to hail a taxi, he called out, “Yining, let me give you a ride.”

Zhou Yining looked back at him, glanced around, and seeing no suspicious people, said, “No need. I can just take a taxi.”

Shen Yanjun stood there. “I have something to say to you.”

Zhou Yining felt a bit cold. She pointed to the airport coffee shop. “There aren’t many people at night. Let’s sit over there.”

Shen Yanjun looked into her eyes and suddenly smiled. “Never mind. I’ll be here for a few days. We can meet when you have time, or back home.”

Suddenly, he stepped forward and hugged her.

A low voice whispered, “I’m sorry.”

Three seconds later, they separated.

He turned and left, his black coat blowing in the wind.

Zhou Yining stood frozen. Just now, he said, “I’m sorry.” Why did he apologise to her?

Just as she was about to chase after him to ask, her phone rang. It was Ji Dongyang.

“Are you at the airport?”

Zhou Yining looked away from Shen Yanjun’s retreating figure. “Mm, just arrived. Are you done recording?”

She heard the Ding-dong of an elevator. Ji Dongyang’s lowered voice came through. “Mm. Go home and wait for me. I have some things to do.”

He paused. “Go to your home.”

Zhou Yining: “Are you coming back here too?”

He gave a low “Mm,” and then she heard a car door close.

Hanging up, Zhou Yining took a taxi home.

On the way, she carefully watched behind her for any following cars. Perhaps her fame wasn’t high enough yet; after all, she was just playing the role of Consort Ning, and her most brilliant scenes hadn’t aired yet. She hadn’t made any public appearances recently either, so her worry was truly unnecessary.

Stepping out of the elevator, Zhou Yining stood between the two doors, hesitating for a second.

She turned toward Ji Dongyang’s door, stared at the keypad, and entered the previous code.

The door opened.

She laughed out loud. Ji Dongyang, that sly fox, still waters run deep.. He hadn’t even changed the password. Every time he opened the door, he made her look away. Totally burying his head in the sand.

…

Ji Dongyang leaned back in the car. Yang Xun sat beside him. As soon as they left the TV station, they were tailed by paparazzi.

Yang Xun turned to look at the car following them, then looked at Ji Dongyang, his face serious. “Why didn’t you answer according to my script?”

Ji Dongyang looked tired, gazing out the window. “Your answers were too official. I wanted to be a bit more real.”

Yang Xun sighed. “I hope your decision is right.”

Ji Dongyang didn’t speak. Yang Xun asked, “Zhou Yining is here too?”

Ji Dongyang nodded. “Mm.”

He looked at A Ming. “Take a detour. Lose the car behind us.”

A Ming’s driving skills weren’t as good as Ji Dongyang’s. He circled two streets but couldn’t shake them, eventually ending up near another residence, so they had to go there first.

After all this trouble, it was already 1 AM when Ji Dongyang returned to the home where he had agreed to meet Zhou Yining.

He stood between the two doors, taking out his phone. It was very late.

He turned to open his own door and was surprised to find a light left on in the living room.

NOTES

Ball Ball (- Máopill): Zhou Yining’s cat.

Men Sao: A slang term describing someone who appears cold, stoic, or serious on the outside but is passionate, romantic, or wild on the inside. Often translated as “closet romantic” or “stoic pervert” depending on context.

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