Chapter 2

Chapter 2

We were juniors this year, and Qi Zheng and I had both started going to auditions here and there.

To make our schedules freer and more convenient, Qi Zheng’s parents rented a small two-bedroom apartment near campus for us.

Maybe because I’d already lived at his house for several years by then, he didn’t object to moving into that place with me.

After that, we lived there for two years. We even got our marriage certificate during that period.

Compared to the fully furnished apartment Qi Zheng bought after he became wealthy, I actually felt that rental felt more like home.

At the very least, back then, we still often sat down and ate together.

A thought occurred to me. I took out my phone, and sure enough, my shopping cart was packed full of household items I hadn’t had time to place orders for yet. On this current timeline, the apartment had only just been rented, and all I could think about was how to make it warmer and cozier.

Looking at it now, there really was no need.

I deleted everything from the shopping cart.

Then I looked up at the person in the driver’s seat and said, “Uncle, please drop me off at the intersection up ahead. I need to go see a classmate.”

While I’d been waiting for Uncle and Auntie earlier, I’d scrolled through my Moments for a while and saw a girl from the dorm next door post that her family had a place for rent near campus. I messaged her and said I’d come by that afternoon to take a look.

At the street corner, I saw a classmate who felt both familiar and unfamiliar.

Fan Cheng smiled and waved at me. “Xiao Yu, over here!”

She linked her arm through mine with practiced ease, and for a moment, I was a little dazed.

After struggling in the entertainment industry for several years in my previous life, I’d long forgotten what it felt like to walk arm in arm with a girl friend.

“What are you spacing out for? I’m talking to you.” She shook my arm.

“What did you just say?”

“The place belongs to my brother. Let’s go find him first and let him know.”

All along the way, my mind was filled with all sorts of messy memories from my previous life.

By the time I snapped back to myself, my ears were already filled with loud laughter and rowdy voices.

“Holy shit, you’re really not betting on Brother Ye?!”

“Looks like hot pot for a month is settled!”

“I swear Brother Ye’s arm definition has gotten even crazier lately.”

…

Fan Cheng pulled me over at a quick jog. “Are they sparring again?! How many meals are you betting this time?”

“Yo, Chengcheng’s here!”

The circle of grown men ahead of us opened up to make space.

I lifted my eyes and saw a man in the boxing ring, leaning lazily against a corner post as he unhurriedly adjusted his boxing gloves. When he heard us and looked over, there was still a reckless, devil-may-care smile hanging at the corner of his mouth.

Flashy. Unrestrained.

He stared straight at me, and the faintly aggressive look in his eyes made me instinctively want to look away.

Maybe he noticed my discomfort, because he finally moved his gaze to Fan Cheng. “Why aren’t you in class? What are you doing here again?”

Fan Cheng dragged me to the edge of the boxing ring. “Bro, since you’ve been kicked out of the house and you’re short on money, aren’t you? I rented out that little apartment upstairs for you.”

“Who told you to-”

Before he could finish, Fan Cheng pushed me forward. “Here, your tenant!”

Thinking about how Fan Ye had been interrupted just now, I worried that he didn’t actually want to rent the place out and that this might all be Fan Cheng acting on her own.

So I waved my hand. “If it’s inconvenient for you, I can-”

“It’s convenient.” The words slipped out of his mouth at once.

“Oh… Then can I see the apartment today?”

Fan Ye straightened up and started rotating his wrists and ankles to warm up.

“You can, but do you want to place a bet first for fun?”

“Huh?”

Fan Cheng lifted her chin toward a small table not far away. “It’s an internal friendly match at their club. Bet on the right person, and you get food!”

I was just about to refuse when Fan Cheng dragged me to the little table.

Holding the sticky note in my hand, I glanced back at the boxing ring.

Unexpectedly, my eyes met Fan Ye’s again.

He smiled and mouthed two words at me: “Pick me.”

…My face felt a little warm.

In my previous life, Jiang Manyu had only ever had eyes for Qi Zheng. Even while surrounded by handsome men in the acting department, she had never noticed anyone else.

This was the first time I realized that good looks really could be pleasing to both the eyes and the heart.

I smiled without thinking and gave him an okay sign.

Then I turned and tossed the slip of paper with my name written on it into the box labeled with Fan Ye’s name.