Chapter 8

6:00 AM (1)

At six o’clock, an oval clock hanging on the wall at the front desk suddenly started playing music.

The sound resembled a metallic percussion instrument known as a glockenspiel.

Xu Muzi was quite sensitive to music. Tilting her head to listen for a while, she asked Xia Xia, “I don’t think I’ve heard it chime like this before at the hour?”

“Our boss said it won’t chime after the lights go out; it probably has a light sensor system,” Xia Xia replied.

In her impression, such vintage clocks always carried a sense of nostalgia, and Xu Muzi remarked unexpectedly, “It’s quite smart.”

Seeing that Xu Muzi really had no intention of borrowing clothes from Deng Yun, Xia Xia scratched her face and said to wait a moment, then squatted down behind the front desk, rummaging around for quite a while.

When she stood up again, Xia Xia handed over a thicker bathrobe.

“Miss Xu, please wear this when you go out.”

Xu Muzi took the bathrobe, feeling its quality: “Is this yours?”

Xia Xia smiled warmly, like a friendly neighbor: “No, this is our thick bathrobe for the autumn and winter seasons. After the weather warms up, the shop switches to thinner ones. These are spare ones at the front desk; I thought you would be warmer in this.”

The food and supplies selected by the inn were very thoughtful, and Xu Muzi sincerely praised, “Even star-rated hotels can’t match this comfort.”

Mentioning this made Xia Xia seem quite proud. She said that all these selections were made by the inn’s owner, who was very dedicated to the place.

“If it doesn’t rain in the next few days, it would be great. On a sunny day, when you came in the early morning, you would definitely see stars. It’s beautiful. Last week, some stargazers even came with professional equipment to take pictures.”

Xu Muzi hugged the thick bathrobe and took an umbrella from the stand beside the front desk: “It’s okay if there are no stars; I’ll go check out the berry garden first.”

“Right now? The rain is still so heavy…”

“I have limited time; I have to go back by this time tomorrow.”

Xia Xia hesitated for a moment, pausing a few seconds before saying, “You might occasionally see wild rabbits in the berry garden; good luck!”

Xu Muzi wrapped herself in the bathrobe and opened the umbrella: “Thank you.”

Until Xu Muzi walked out of the inn, Xia Xia was still waving her hand at the door, reminding her: “Miss Xu, breakfast is at seven-thirty!”

Xu Muzi waved back and replied in a prolonged tone, “Got it—”

When she was in school, Xu Muzi really wanted to be the kind of cute, down-to-earth girl like Xia Xia.

They laughed freely in the crowd, like little suns, full of energy and positive vibes.

Who wouldn’t like that?

In the past, Xu Muzi had a crush on a boy from her IELTS class.

After graduating from high school, they both attended a music academy abroad.

One studied piano performance, and the other studied music production; they were schoolmates.

So she knew that later on, that boy’s girlfriend was just like Xia Xia—always smiling.

It was during her first year of college, during the winter break, that she truly realized she and that boy weren’t suited for each other.

It was the day she delivered ceramic tableware to Deng Yun.

Xu Muzi stood at Deng Yun’s door, and before she could even respond to his question, she received more than twenty group messages in just a few minutes. The notification sound from her phone kept ringing, and even Deng Yun glanced at her down jacket pocket.

Xu Muzi was also confused; in front of Deng Yun, she took her phone out of her pocket to check.

It was the group for her IELTS class.

The classmates from her IELTS class often organized gatherings, and since they spread out to different universities, it was difficult to gather everyone again, so they probably wanted to meet before school started. Someone had initiated a call for a gathering in the group.

Xu Muzi had never attended such gatherings before.

When others in the IELTS class would go out to play or head home together after class, she would be rushing to catch a taxi, eager to get home to practice piano, and had never really gotten close to anyone.

This time was unexpected; someone had specifically tagged her and asked if she was going to the gathering.

Taking a closer look at the avatar, it was the boy she had a good impression of.

Others in the group probably found it interesting, and some joked about their situation.

Xu Muzi held her phone, feeling lost, and when she raised her eyes, she met Deng Yun’s gaze, her face instantly turning red.

She hurriedly bid farewell to Deng Yun, and in the taxi, she stared at her phone for a long time, considering her response before pretending to have just seen the messages and replying ambiguously in the group.

Unintentionally, she learned some of her mother’s social phrases for certain situations, modestly saying she was afraid she wouldn’t have enough time to practice piano and that she would have to see how things went before deciding.

After that reply, the boy only responded with a “Okay” emoji.

After that, no one asked Xu Muzi about the discussions regarding food, drink, and fun anymore.

A few hours later, after Xu Muzi finished at her piano teacher’s house, she scrolled through the group message history and saw that they had already booked a restaurant and KTV amid their playful banter.

Seeing her silly reply made her want to find a hole to crawl into.

“Stupid, stupid, stupid! Xu Muzi, you really are a big fool!”

“Just say you want to go!”

“If you don’t have enough time to practice, come back earlier and stay up late to adjust to the time difference!”

“Someone went through the trouble of tagging you, and you’re still acting all high and mighty?”

“No wonder you don’t have many friends.”

Xu Muzi spent two days in a state of self-criticism, her mood fluctuating between sunshine and gloom.

On the day of the class gathering, she couldn’t sleep and got up early to practice the piano. By four in the afternoon, when she stepped out of the practice room, she had already completed ten hours of practice.

Her parents were also at home, but it seemed they were planning to go out. Xu Muzi’s mother was putting on a new fur coat and was facing the mirror on the wall in the living room while putting on earrings.

“Auntie’s ankle is a bit seriously hurt and is still swollen. Mom just told her to go back and rest. If you don’t have to practice, why don’t you go out to eat with your dad and mom?”

Xu Muzi replied weakly, “I don’t want to go.”

Her dad said the dinner gathering wouldn’t have any business discussions, and several uncles would bring their children along.

There wasn’t much food at home, so it would be better to go eat with them. He suggested the driver could take her back early.

It sounded like yet another gathering for parents to show off their kids.

Xu Muzi’s mother fastened one earring and rummaged through the box for the other, tilting her head to put it on. She held it up to her earlobe, then frowned and took off the one she had already put on, replacing it with a pair of brand-name, new ones. “What restaurant was it again?”

Xu Muzi heard her dad mention the name of a restaurant and suddenly sat up straight from the sofa.

She scrolled through the group messages and realized it was the same restaurant.

The group chat mentioned that this restaurant had become very popular recently and was fully booked; one had to make reservations in advance to get a table.

No wonder they were going there; Xu Muzi heard her parents say the same thing.

When Xu Muzi entered the restaurant’s private room with her parents, she found Deng Yun there too.

A younger uncle was playing Go with Deng Yun. Upon seeing Xu Muzi enter, he joked with a smile, “It’s not easy today; both the academic achiever and the talented girl decided to come out!”

Deng Yun said nothing, connecting his pieces into five and winning against the uncle.

The uncle said, “Muzi, come on, play with Brother Deng Yun! We older folks can’t keep up with the lively minds of the youngsters. We’ve lost three rounds in a row.”

Xu Muzi sat down.

She wasn’t good at Go, and she was still keeping an eye on the group messages, so she was losing every round against the uncle.

Deng Yun was merciless, showing no leniency, and within ten moves, he wiped her out completely, tossing a few black pieces back into the box and stopping the game.

As the server began bringing in dishes, the parents called out, “Kids, come eat!”

Halfway through dinner, Xu Muzi saw messages in the group chat; her IELTS classmates had already arrived and were dining in the lobby downstairs. They even took a group photo and posted it in the chat.

Xu Muzi had observed the environment when she arrived and knew where their table was. Acting as if she coincidentally encountered her classmates downstairs, she went over to greet them.

The classmates were quite friendly, saying things like, “If we knew you didn’t have practice today, we would have invited you!” “Were you upstairs with your parents? Just come say hi and join us!” “Exactly! What’s there to talk about with parents?”…

Everything seemed to be going smoothly, and Xu Muzi felt a little happy that she could stay.

That year had a warm winter; it wasn’t cold outside, the heating was too strong, and there were too many diners, making the lobby feel a bit stuffy.

Xu Muzi stood up and pointed to the path leading to the restroom. “I’m going to the bathroom.”

Her face felt hot. She adjusted her hair in front of the mirror and unbuttoned the top button of her small stand-up collar shirt.

After thinking for a moment, she unbuttoned another one.

When she looked up again, she met Deng Yun’s gaze in the mirror.

Deng Yun looked at Xu Muzi, saying nothing. As she awkwardly stepped aside to let him pass, he brushed by her, walked to the sink, silently pumped soap into his hands, and washed them off.

Xu Muzi said, “I… I’ll head out first?”

“Mm.”

As she approached the corner near the front desk, she heard familiar voices from her classmates discussing beer with the server: “Six cold, six at room temperature, and add two hot almond drinks. Then check how much the bill is.”

The gathering was Dutch treat; someone would pay first, and then everyone would split the bill later.

Xu Muzi was silently reminding herself to remember to transfer money to her classmates when she suddenly heard her name.

“Xu, I feel like Xu Muzi came here for you today!”

“Really?”

“Of course! You tagged her in the group, and she didn’t directly refuse. Xu Muzi usually doesn’t join extracurricular gatherings. When has she ever talked in the group?”

The boy Xu Muzi liked said, “You’re overthinking it. Xu Muzi and I are schoolmates; we’ve interacted a few times while studying abroad. I can’t not invite her to a gathering.”

“We all thought there was something between you two.”

“Stop joking.”

“So, does she have a crush on you? What a coincidence that you both happen to run into each other?”

The tone grew increasingly impatient: “Alright, stop saying nonsense. She’s just an ordinary classmate.”

“True, she seems a bit reserved. Just now when someone told a joke, she didn’t understand it. I don’t even know what to talk about with her; it’s hard to connect.”

The boy didn’t defend her but simply confirmed the bill amount and payment method with the server.

Did they find her presence annoying?

Xu Muzi silently took a half step back, sensing someone behind her, maybe it was Deng Yun, maybe not, but she didn’t turn around.

When her classmates finished settling the bill and returned to the table, Xu Muzi stepped out from the corner.

She didn’t continue eating with them, saying she was going upstairs to accompany her family. After bidding farewell to everyone, she turned to leave.

Of course, Xu Muzi didn’t go back to the older folks. When she maintained a stoic face without any expression, she looked quite indifferent, but that carefree facade only lasted until she walked out of the restaurant door.

She originally wanted to find a place to digest her sadness, but unexpectedly ran into Deng Yun.

He was sitting on a stone step, smoking.

Xu Muzi slowly squatted down, her mind filled with self-doubt, almost overwhelmed.

She thought it would be like being in front of the elders, a mutually non-intrusive mode.

But Deng Yun spoke up.

He tilted his head slightly toward the restaurant window and asked, “Which one inside do you like?”

Xu Muzi hung her head. “I don’t like anyone.”

After a few minutes of silence, she finally said it was the boy sitting on the side near the corridor, wearing a light gray sweatshirt.

In fact, she hadn’t really thought about how she wanted to interact with that boy; she just felt a small thrill at being invited to a gathering by someone she had feelings for.

She also wanted to catch his attention a little more.

But this winter was too disheartening.

She hadn’t fully accepted that she was an ordinary person with average abilities and had discovered that the person she liked didn’t like her back, and her classmates whispered behind her back that she was dull and boring…

Xu Muzi thought: Yeah, I am really dull and boring.

Deng Yun had already extinguished his cigarette, and from the movement of his shadow on the ground, it seemed he tilted his head slightly, probably glancing inside through the window before commenting, “He looks okay, somewhat handsome.”

Xu Muzi sulked silently, squatting in place without saying a word.

She heard Deng Yun continue, “But his taste is average. The chubby kid sitting next to him has even worse taste.”

She looked up and saw Deng Yun had walked over and was extending his hand toward her: “You’re not boring; you’re quite interesting.”

It was a late winter night with rising temperatures, and her breath no longer turned to frost. Deng Yun pulled Xu Muzi up from the ground and helped her fasten the two buttons on her shirt collar.

His fingertips brushed against her jaw, which felt slightly cool.

But it seemed that no matter how cool it was, it couldn’t compare to the biting cold of the storm outside…

No matter which way she held the umbrella, it couldn’t completely shield her from the rain.

Xu Muzi’s calves quickly got wet, and the hem of her skirt stuck to her skin. After taking a few more steps, the wind almost turned the umbrella inside out.

Before her were trees and branches blown at odd angles by the wind. She struggled to discern the road conditions in the storm, clearly still some distance away from the berry orchard.

Passing through a small area blocked by a landslide, she finally arrived at the berry orchard, where the wind had died down a bit.

However, she saw few berries, and there were no signs of wild rabbits. Instead, she kept hearing faint cat meows in her ears.

She stopped in her tracks, scanning the area, and finally spotted a few cats in the grass not far away.

There was nowhere nearby to take shelter from the rain, only a practically useless low bush.

A slightly larger calico cat was guarding two small kittens, both of them soaking wet and looking at Xu Muzi warily.

Stray cats?

Would they freeze to death in this cold weather?

Xu Muzi didn’t dare to approach them, nor could she bear to leave. She held the umbrella and pondered for a long time before deciding to call the inn for help.

When the call connected, she was surprised to hear a male voice on the other end: “Hello.”

Xu Muzi almost instantly realized it was Deng Yun’s voice, so she asked, “Deng Yun, why are you answering the phone? Where’s Xiaxia?”

“She’s preparing breakfast; I happened to pass by.”

“Can you ask Xiaxia for me? I found a few wet kittens outside.”

Xu Muzi glanced worriedly at the three shivering little furballs and continued, “They seem really cold…”

Really cold. What then? Did she have to trouble Xiaxia to take them in?

Xiaxia was just a staff member at the inn; could she even make that decision?

Xu Muzi realized that her behavior might not be appropriate and gradually quieted down.

Deng Yun said, “Don’t touch them for now; stay where you are. I’ll come find you.”