Cheng Xu's arrival seemed to give Zhou Hui a genuine excuse to keep herself busy. In Xu Tangcheng's eyes, her demeanour was like she was in a rush, like she wanted nothing more than to cook all her best dishes in these three days for Cheng Xu. At meal times, Xu Tangcheng had already fallen so far from favour that he could only exchange looks with Xu Tangxi and watch Zhou Hui single-mindedly put the best dishes in front of Cheng Xu. Xu Tangxi's health was poor and thus, she was not completely neglected and could still receive Zhou Hui's "Let me take for you your favourite dishes" treatment. Xu Tangcheng was out of favour and could only pick from the remaining food after Zhou Hui was done distributing them.

On the last morning of the holiday, Cheng Xu finished washing his face and stood in the bedroom, rubbing his stomach as he asked Xu Tangcheng, "It's just been two days and I've put on weight. Is that normal?"

"It's normal." Xu Tangcheng nodded. "You were eating pork ribs after ten, how could you not put on weight?"

Cheng Xu smiled and said, a little embarrassed, "Auntie's cooking is really delicious."

"In that case, come visit more often." Xu Tangcheng folded the financial newspaper in his hand and rose with a smile. "She likes you quite a lot. So does my dad. The two of them like kids like you who are well-behaved and obedient."

Xu Tangcheng and Cheng Xu were coursemates in undergraduate and had been roommates for nearly half a year. He rarely saw Cheng Xu go out with friends, his days were usually filled with either studies or lab research. The academic advisor that Cheng Xu was under was a powerhouse and belonged to the type that normal people would consider mad and obsessed. Xu Tangcheng had been to his office twice and both times, the teacher had been facing his computer and tapping and peering, his appearance messy and dishevelled, while Xu Tangcheng strained to communicate with him at the side. The teacher was completely unaware of anything outside of his work and as long as what you said to him was unrelated to his research, he would have no desire to answer you. At most, he would spare you a glance and say, "I'm not sure about this." That teacher's appearance and expression left a deep impression in Xu Tangcheng's mind. That was why he was quite afraid that Cheng Xu would one day take after his teacher's style. Even though his accomplishments were indeed very deserving of respect, one couldn't help but feel fretful when looking at him.

They didn't have any plans for today. Xu Tangcheng casually asked Cheng Xu what he would like to do on the last day. Cheng Xu thought about it seriously for a while, then said that he didn't know.

This answer was completely within Xu Tangcheng's expectations. Left with no other choice, he followed the arrangement and suggested, "Then, let's go out and just walk around somewhere."

With this reminder, Cheng Xu finally remembered. "Oh, that's right. I want to buy a coat."

His words made Xu Tangcheng smile. "I've never seen you go out to buy clothes in Beijing but you came here to shop?"

"Beijing is too troublesome. I need to take a long subway and bus ride just to get to the mall. If I go to one place and don't manage to buy what I want, it takes a long time to get to the next place."

That was true. To someone like Cheng Xu who suffered from extreme car sickness, the agonising torment of the complicated maze that was the capital city's public transport network could completely defeat that tiny desire he had for clothes-shopping.

And so, Xu Tangcheng accompanied Cheng Xu to one of the larger malls near his home. Amidst a pile of down jackets, Cheng Xu wavered, unable to make a decision. Xu Tangcheng stood at the side and gave him some advice and realised that Cheng Xu had no opinions of his own at all. After he put on every jacket, he would ask Xu Tangcheng, "Looks good?"

When Xu Tangcheng asked him back the same question, Cheng Xu's reply would always be the same: "I don't know."

Xu Tangcheng pulled him over to the mirror. "Look at yourself. Do you feel that this one suits you? Compared to the grey one, which one looks better?"

Cheng Xu stared at the mirror for a while then shook his head at Xu Tangcheng in the mirror. Xu Tangcheng surrendered and started to seriously analyse for him—which one was not a suitable length for him, which colour made him look more lively… Cheng Xu listened until he was completely lost. In the end, he raised his thick glasses and pled for mercy. "Don't say anymore. Just tell me which one I should buy, please?"

A brief silence, and then Xu Tangcheng said, "The blue and black one with the hood."

Cheng Xu was relieved. He immediately turned around and told the salesperson who had been watching them the whole time with a smile that he was getting that one and happily went to pay. Xu Tangcheng looked at his back and shook his head, thinking that in the future, Cheng Xu had better find a girlfriend who was good at shopping for clothes and who could make decisions.

While thinking of this nonsense, he browsed around where he was. He looked left, then looked right; finally, his gaze fell on a mid-length black cotton jacket. He looked at the jacket for a long while, then inclined his head and went over to pick it up and held it up against himself.

When Cheng Xu came back, he heard Xu Tangcheng say to the salesperson, "This one, please get me one of this in the size…"

Xu Tangcheng stopped to think. He wasn't sure if he should get it in 185 or 190.

"You're buying one too?" Cheng Xu went over and asked.

Xu Tangcheng made a noise of affirmation. He tugged at the sleeve of the jacket to gauge its width. "I'm buying for someone."

When they were done shopping, Cheng Xu saw that it was late. At first, he suggested that they head back but Xu Tangcheng looked at his watch and said that he wanted to walk around some more. It was only when Xu Tangcheng's phone buzzed and he saw the message that his lips quirked and he said to Cheng Xu, "Let's go, time to head back and eat something good."

When the door to the house opened, Cheng Xu saw the birthday cake in Xu Tangxi's hands and was instantly alarmed. Xu Tangcheng let out an hey and clapped him on the shoulder before he could react. "Don't panic, my birthday's tomorrow. It's just that we're leaving this evening, that's why Tangxi is celebrating for me in advance."

After he spoke, the first to speak was not Cheng Xu. Instead, Zhou Hui grumbled a little disagreeably, "How can you celebrate your birthday in advance? If you're born on that day, then it's that day. Celebrating in advance…"

"It's fine." Xu Yueliang let out a laugh. He patted his wife's shoulder with a thick palm to get her to relax a little. "There's no need to be so particular about this."

They feasted on the meal in great joy. But all the way until the afternoon when they were packing for their return, Cheng Xu was still brooding over the fact that Xu Tangcheng had not told him about his birthday beforehand. He was just reprimanding Xu Tangcheng for knowing that it took so much effort for him to choose something and yet not giving him time to prepare a present when Xu Tangxi knocked on the door and poked her head into the room.

She saw Xu Tangcheng leaning against the desk and looking at her with a smile. Xu Tangxi made a face and extended her hand to pass him a shopping bag.

"It's all your fault," she grumbled. "You came back suddenly that day and gave me a scare. There's no surprise anymore."

"Okay, it's my fault." Xu Tangcheng held the bag in one hand and pulled her into his arms for a hug with his other arm. "A big thank you to our Tangxi."

Xu Tangxi wished him "Happy Birthday" again, then sat on his bed and hugged Xu Tangcheng's lion-shaped cushion to her chest. She saw that Cheng Xu was holding a new jacket and asked excitedly, "Cheng Xu-ge, you bought new clothes?"

When it came to beautiful clothes, the young girl would always be enthusiastic from the depths of her heart, even if the new clothes belonged to someone else. She stood up and walked over to stand before Cheng Xu, taking the jacket for a look and then smiling. "I can tell immediately that my brother picked this. It's completely the same style as what he normally wears. But this suits you too, you look even more like a student than my brother…"

After saying so far, Xu Tangxi suddenly paused. She blurted out an "Ah" and turned around.

"That's right, Ge, I nearly forgot to tell you. Yi Zhe-gege was the one who bought that pink down jacket for me."

Hearing that, Xu Tangcheng paused in the middle of folding his clothes. His body still bending over, he replied in faint surprise, "Yi Zhe?"

After Xu Tangxi made a noise of affirmation, Xu Tangcheng straightened up and turned around in puzzlement, "Why did he buy a jacket for you?"

"I went to buy your present a while back, didn't I? I didn't find anything suitable in the nearby mall so I went to Jinling Street."

Jinling Street was a pedestrian area filled with shops. It was built not long ago and the twisting, winding lanes occupied a large area in City C. Xu Tangxi had only been there once and wasn't familiar with the place. That day, after buying the present for Xu Tangcheng, she came out and looked up at the densely packed shops to find that she had suddenly lost her way. After wandering around for a long while, she realised that she was just going around in circles around the same shop. She was fretting when she heard someone call her name.

Yi Zhe was walking towards her, dressed all in black. His brows were slightly drawn together. He asked her what she was doing.

"I came to buy something." Xu Tangxi's couldn't stop her voice from trembling faintly. "When I was done shopping, I realised that I had gotten lost. The streets here are twisting and winding, they're too hard to recognise."

She had come out after lunch in the afternoon. The temperature then was high and on top of that, she had been in the mall the whole time so naturally, she hadn't felt cold. But after browsing for half a day, the sun was already setting. As she tried to find her way back, the thin cotton padded jacket she was wearing could not withstand the dipping temperature and the suddenly rising wind at all. Xu Tangxi shrank her neck back and hunched her shoulders, but despite already trying her best to curl into a ball, she was still so cold that she was stamping her feet. Her hand that was holding the shopping bag was already turning red from the cold.

Xu Tangxi was just about to ask Yi Zhe for directions when she heard the sound of a zipper being pulled.

"No need, no need." Seeing that Yi Zhe was only wearing a thin T-shirt inside, Xu Tangxi said hurriedly. "I'm fine, it's not that… cold."

She wanted to stop Yi Zhe from removing his jacket and giving it to her but in actual fact, Yi Zhe had already stopped doing that before she finished speaking and was tugging his jacket back into place.

Xu Tangxi trailed off and stopped speaking. She was just wondering if she had been overthinking things when she heard Yi Zhe say, "There's a cigarette smell. You can't breathe it in."

Xu Tangxi was momentarily stunned. She looked up at Yi Zhe's face.

Maybe he was feeling agitated; she saw that Yi Zhe did not even pull up the zipper on his jacket before turning his head around to look in all directions. When he spoke again, his tone was rather urgent.

"Come with me for now. I'll send you back later." Yi Zhe lowered his head and extended a hand to her. "Give me the bag, I'll carry it for you."

"It's okay, I…"

"Give it here."

Her demurral was easily cut off by his frank words. Xu Tangxi met Yi Zhe's eyes. Because of the look in his eyes, Xu Tangxi's mind was still stunned when she handed over the bag. She had followed after Yi Zhe for a couple of steps before she realised after the fact that this was not the first time. Even though the number of times she had looked into Yi Zhe's eyes in the past was not many, every time she did, he had that same look in his eyes—quiet and calm but firmly resolved. It was as though when he was looking at you, he could draw you into that slice of the deep ocean that belonged to him. Even if all he was doing was telling her at the entrance of their residential building that it was very cold outside.

Yi Zhe brought Xu Tangxi to a milk tea shop. Upon entering, Xu Tangxi saw a group of three people sitting together looking in their direction. True enough, Yi Zhe walked towards them.

"Hey, your little girlfriend? You sure hid her well." The boy whose hair was dyed the colour of chestnuts was the first to speak. His smile that did not harbour good intentions and his frivolous tone made Xu Tangxi involuntarily pause her steps.

Yi Zhe's reply was aggressive. "Cut the bullshit, carry on with your napping."

He pulled out the chair next to the girl and indicated to Xu Tangxi that she should sit there. Then, after she was seated, he passed the bag he was holding to her. It was only then that Xu Tangxi realised that the table was spread full of books and test papers, as well as someone's compilation of mistakes made.

Yi Zhe-ge is studying here? Xu Tangxi was a little surprised.

"Can you drink the stuff here? Shall I get you something that's not so strong?"

Perhaps it was because Yi Zhe's voice was too gentle when he asked. The chestnut hair boy was so shocked that the pen in his mouth fell sideways, scraping against his teeth.

"I can." Xu Tangxi glanced at the counter. "Just a honey and pomelo tea, please."

After saying that, she added in a careful voice. "Just a small one will do."

Yi Zhe nodded and went to the counter to order.

After Yi Zhe left, Xu Tangxi didn't know the other people at the table and for a moment, she didn't know what to say and only smiled awkwardly at them. She accidentally spied the chestnut hair boy looking as though he wanted to start gossiping, so she decided to turn her head around and pretend to be looking at Yi Zhe's back. She did this with hidden intentions but unexpectedly, after staring for a while, she suddenly felt that the way Yi Zhe looked when he was taking out money from his pocket—wrist curved and shoulder moving slightly, with the addition of his legs that were just standing there casually—added up to make a very good-looking picture.

"Little sister," the girl next to her suddenly called out to her.

She turned back and saw that the girl had a hand propped against her chin and was smiling widely at her, her expression clearly no different from the chestnut hair boy. Xu Tangxi's nose itched and she reached up to rub it.

"I'm Zhao Weifan." The girl tapped two fingers against the table, like she was very delighted. "I never thought that Yi Zhe could be gentle and considerate."

The chestnut hair boy pretended to gag and spat the pen in his mouth onto the table.

Before the pen came to a firm landing, Zhao Weifan was already turning his head to look at him. At the speed of the face-changers in opera, her face turned expressionless. "Go away if you don't want to stay here."

The other boy wore small square-rimmed glasses. He looked at the two of them, then very quickly lowered his head and continued correcting the papers, like he was used to their antics.

"It's not like that." Amidst the strange yet amiable atmosphere, Xu Tangxi waved her hands in denial. "We're neighbours."

While she was speaking, Yi Zhe returned. Zhao Weifan ran a hand through her hair and then, as though nothing had happened, seized the boy next to her and made him explain a question to her.

Yi Zhe passed the honey and pomelo tea to Xu Tangxi and told her to stay there for a while to get warm. He was leaving for a short while and would be right back. When he came back, he would take her home.

Xu Tangxi cupped the warm beverage in her hands and strained to look up and nod at Yi Zhe.

Before turning away, Yi Zhe gave the people at the table another look and said to Xu Tangxi, "You can ignore them. When they talk, just pretend you didn't hear anything."

Xu Tangxi choked on a large piece of pomelo that she had sucked up and thought that it probably wasn't nice to do that. When she turned around again, Yi Zhe was already pushing the door open and rushing into the cold wind.

Barely twenty minutes later, the door to the milk tea shop was pushed open. Back once again, Yi Zhe's hand was now holding a large bag, pink and white with vertical stripes. Xu Tangxi was really at a loss for what to do and felt that she had caused so much trouble for Yi Zhe. When Yi Zhe took out the jacket and shook it out, she was still stammering inarticulately. The chestnut hair boy was whooping non-stop at the side. Yi Zhe told him to shut up, then went to the counter to get the tags cut.

"That's what happened. Yi Zhe-ge bought that down jacket for me, then called a cab and sent me home. But I couldn't tell you that day." Xu Tangxi lifted her eyes to look at the ceiling. After thinking a while, she said, "Why don't we treat Yi Zhe-ge to a meal? Or maybe thank him in some other way?"

Xu Tangcheng didn't reply immediately. He turned around and looked at the shirt in front of him and spaced out. After staring blankly for a while, he slowly folded half of the shirt towards the center, then folded back the sleeves and smoothed out the lines.

After folding the shirt, he finally said, "Let me think about it.