As autumn turned to winter, the sycamore trees at the campus  entrance had become bare.

Xia Liyang, wearing a cashmere coat and a thick scarf, walked out of the examination room after her doctoral exam.

“Congratulations, Dr. Xia.”

Leaning casually against the luxury car under the sycamore tree was Xu Songnian, who straightened up lazily and teased her with a smile.

“I just finished the exam; whether I passed or not is still uncertain.” Xia Liyang exhaled a breath of cold air and gave him a slightly amused glance.

“You’ll be fine; the only question is whether you can enter with the same first-place results as in your master’s program.” Xu Songnian stepped aside to open the car door for her.

Xia Liyang smiled noncommittally, took her bag off her shoulder, and bent down to sit in the passenger seat.

“Is Song Jinhe going to the sushi restaurant by herself? Don’t we need to pick her up along the way?” Xu Songnian followed her into the driver’s seat, fastening his seatbelt as he asked.

“No need, she just happened to be shopping at the mall with friends this afternoon.” As Xia Liyang spoke, she took out her phone from her coat pocket and sent a WeChat message to Song Jinhe, informing her that they would arrive at the restaurant in about half an hour.

“OK.” Xu Songnian nodded, his well-defined hand resting on the steering wheel as he started the car.

When they arrived at the sushi restaurant, Song Jinhe was already sitting on an outdoor waiting bench, looking down at her phone.

“Ah, you’re here!” She looked up at the approaching Xia Liyang and Xu Songnian, smiling as she stood up. “Xia Xia, how did you do on the exam?”

“It was okay, nothing special,” Xia Liyang replied with a smile, glancing at the various shopping bags beside her and teasing, “You’ve had quite a successful shopping trip today!”

“Hehe, it’s the year-end, and the company has given bonuses, so I have to spend it well.” Song Jinhe’s eyes curved with a smile. “I actually haven’t finished shopping yet; we can plan another outing next week. Anyway, you’re done with your exams and have time now.”

“Sure, I was just thinking of getting another down jacket; it’s so cold this winter.” Xia Liyang nodded.

“It’s really cold. I’ve been using an electric blanket at night recently!” Song Jinhe agreed.

“Let’s go in and chat.” Xu Songnian turned his head to signal to the two after confirming the reservation with the waiter wearing a kimono at the entrance.

Since it was Saturday night, the sushi restaurant was almost full.

Even the empty table for two next to Xia Liyang had a “Reserved” sign on it.

Xia Liyang sat beside Xu Songnian, took off her scarf and coat, and handed the menu across to Song Jinhe. “Take a look at what you want to eat; order whatever you like; I’m treating today.”

“Hey? Today is to celebrate the end of your doctoral exams. How can I let you treat us? If anyone is treating, it should be me and Xu Songnian,” Song Jinhe waved her hand.

“Previously, you helped me so much with my novel. I should have treated you to this meal long ago,” Xia Liyang smiled.

“Ah, that’s nothing! No need to treat me,” Song Jinhe paused, then curiously asked, “So, have you completely cut off contact with Lu Huaicheng now?”

Xia Liyang, who hadn’t heard that name in a long time, was slightly dazed and nodded, saying, “Yeah, it’s cut off.”

“He hasn’t tried to contact you again?” Song Jinhe tilted her head.

“No,” Xia Liyang gently pressed her lips together, urging her, “Hurry and look at the menu. I’m already hungry.”

“Okay, okay,” Song Jinhe obediently stopped talking and looked down at the menu.

Xu Songnian glanced at Xia Liyang beside him and saw her long eyelashes gently droop, her expression subtly melancholic.

He couldn’t help but feel a touch of gloom in his eyes.

He didn’t know what Xia Liyang had said or done when she went to see Lu Huaicheng that day with the acquisition contract.

But ever since that day, Lu Huaicheng had indeed stopped sending people to block the entrance of his office to discuss the acquisition.

He even transferred a substantial amount of money to his account, claiming it was compensation for the trouble he caused him before.

Although Lu Huaicheng had indeed caused him trouble, it didn’t really require that much money for compensation.

So he returned the money to him unchanged.

However, the next day, the money was transferred back to him again, along with a message: “Take better care of her.”

In response, Xu Songnian felt even more conflicted and replied, “I don’t need you to say that, and I don’t need your money either.”

He transferred the money back once again.

As a result, the two of them transferred this money back and forth no less than ten times.

Xu Songnian was really tired of it and didn’t want to engage in such meaningless matters with him anymore.

So he deposited the money into an account he wouldn’t use.

But he didn’t tell Xia Liyang about this. He couldn’t figure out whether she had genuine feelings for Lu Huaicheng.

He just wanted to minimize her contact with him as much as possible, allowing her to completely move on from this ambiguous relationship.

When the first dish, wasabi octopus, was served, a waiter finally came to remove the “reserved” sign from the empty table next to them and smiled as he guided two men entering from the door: “Gentlemen, please sit here.”

As Xia Liyang stuffed the wasabi octopus into her mouth, she instinctively turned her head to take a look.

To her surprise, she saw Lu Huaicheng in a long brown coat, his shoulders broad and straight, dark striped suit pants hugging his long, straight legs. His deep features and warm, jade-like face gave off a refined and aloof air.

But the moment he saw her, he froze for a moment.

His calm and elegant exterior revealed a slight crack.

Their eyes met across the slightly stagnant air for two seconds.

Xia Liyang suppressed her inexplicably quickening heartbeat and was the first to look away.

But she was choked by the intense wasabi in her mouth, the sudden stimulation rushing up her nasal cavity made her tear up instantly, and she turned her head to cough vigorously against the wall.

“Yang Yang? Are you okay? Drink some water!” Song Jinhe hurriedly pushed a cup of water towards her.

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” Xia Liyang shook her head, feeling a bit embarrassed.

This was their first encounter after nearly two months apart.

Although she felt like her heart was no longer stirred by him, meeting his deep and mysterious gaze seemed to revive the emotions she had buried.

But it was definitely not to the point of crying!!!

This damned wasabi octopus!!!

Which sushi restaurant puts this much wasabi in their dish?!

“This place’s wasabi really is a bit strong. If it’s too much, you can wash it down with water,” Xu Songnian handed her a few tissues and gently patted her back, helping her catch her breath..

“Yeah…” Xia Liyang accepted the tissues and wiped her nose and the corners of her eyes.

“But I really love this place’s wasabi; it’s especially addictive,” Song Jinhe smiled and then noticed that someone had sat down at the empty table next to them.

When she saw the person’s face, she was momentarily stunned, unsure whether she should greet him.

At this moment, Lu Huaicheng’s eyes, filled with unspoken emotions, finally shifted away from Xia Liyang. He glanced at Song Jinhe, who was staring at him in a daze, and slightly nodded.

Then he lowered his eyelids and picked up the menu on the table.

Xu Songnian, who was the last to catch a glimpse of Lu Huaicheng, felt a complex shift in his emotions. After exchanging glances with Song Jinhe across the table, they tacitly decided not to mention the person at the next table to Xia Liyang.

They pretended not to see and chatted with her about other topics.

When the second dish, grilled beef tongue, arrived, Xia Liyang ate several bites before finally recovering from the earlier wasabi shock.

The heart disturbed by the sudden appearance of Lu Huaicheng also returned to calm.

In fact, she hadn’t felt good leaving his office that day either.

It felt like there was a hole in her heart; while she could still breathe smoothly, there was always something missing.

However, she focused her thoughts on preparing for her doctoral exams afterward and quickly shook off that feeling.

Until the moment she saw him earlier, the sponge in her heart that had shrunk down to nothingness suddenly swelled up and blocked her throat.

Making it impossible for her to even greet him.

Actually, she had imagined before that if they were to encounter each other again by chance, they could smile at each other and naturally inquire about each other’s well-being.

This would finally represent that the past between them had turned a new page.

No one would care anymore, and no one would hold it in their heart.

But since she missed the first opportunity to greet him, pretending to be natural while trying to say hello now would seem a bit forced.

Forget it, let it be.

After all, they won’t have any more interactions.

At the table next to them, Lu Huaicheng simply ordered a few skewers of grilled bird and beef before handing the menu to Wen Yuchen across from him.

“You’re ordering so little?” Wen Yuchen raised an eyebrow.

“Mm, not hungry.” Lu Huaicheng’s tone was calm.

“Oh.” Wen Yuchen held the menu, glancing sideways at Xia Liyang sitting at the table by the wall, and lowered his voice, saying, “It wouldn’t be because of her, would it?”

“…” Lu Huaicheng neither confirmed nor denied it, just lowered his head to sip his tea, as if trying to hide his inner unease and discomfort.

“Hey, you two have been broken up for a while, right? You’re not still hung up on her, are you?” Wen Yuchen sighed, his gaze probing him.

Lu Huaicheng’s throat tightened slightly; after a few seconds of silence, he replied, “How could that be?”

“But looking at you now, it doesn’t seem right!” Wen Yuchen paused for a moment before joking, “How about after dinner, I take you to a club to unwind? There are plenty of girls like her out there.”

“Are you trying to get me to call your sister again?” Lu Huaicheng frowned.

“…I’m just trying to help you get over your heartbreak!” Wen Yuchen pulled a wry smile and then grew serious, saying, “And I don’t want you to be thinking about another woman when you’re about to get engaged to my sister. You might not like Yulin, but you can’t have your heart elsewhere; that would just hurt her.”

“I know that.” Lu Huaicheng paused before asking, “Is Yulin still not dating anyone?”

“No, her eyes are only on you. I even introduced her to two good guys before, but she completely ignored them,” Wen Yuchen said with some frustration. “However, recently your younger brother Lu Mingyu went on a business trip to London and invited her out a few times; she went and seemed to enjoy herself.”

“……” Lu Huaicheng’s movements slowed, and his brow furrowed tighter. “Lu Mingyu went to London?”

“Yeah. Didn’t you know?” Wen Yuchen looked at him.

“No, the family company doesn’t need him to manage the business in London,” Lu Huaicheng thought for a moment and said, “Zhou Yuling actually really wants Lu Mingyu to marry into your family, so I suspect his so-called business trip is actually aimed at Yulin.”

“Damn! I’ll tell Yulin to stop seeing Lu Mingyu,” Wen Yuchen hurriedly pulled out his phone from his pocket.

“Yeah, give her a heads up. Even if I don’t end up engaged to her, she can find someone better than my brother,” Lu Huaicheng said.

“Yeah, I think that guy from the Xu family is pretty good. He’s been pursuing my sister since college, and I think he’s much more suitable for her, but unfortunately, my sister refuses to even look at him. It’s frustrating,” Wen Yuchen said while typing on his phone.

“Mm, the Xu family is indeed good,” Lu Huaicheng nodded, picking up his teacup, his gaze once again involuntarily drifting toward Xia Liyang at the next table.

She was wearing a light beige cashmere sweater that softly wrapped around her beautiful figure, making her skin appear even whiter.

Her small face glowed with a natural and healthy rosy hue under the warm orange light.

She smiled lightly, chatting with Xu Songnian.

The latter was laughing heartily at something she said.

The atmosphere was relaxed and sweet.

But it was a feeling he could no longer experience.

Lu Huaicheng felt his heart, which he thought had let go, inexplicably tighten

The teacup he wasn’t holding securely slipped from his hand and fell onto the table.

It made a crisp sound.