Xu Yitong froze for what felt like a full minute.  

No, probably longer than that.  

She stared at those two words, reading them over and over, her breath slowing as she wondered if she was hallucinating.  

After all, up until now, every message she’d sent to Yu Ge had gone unanswered. 

She hadn’t held out much hope for the ones she sent tonight either, though a tiny part of her had clung to the thought that if he saw them… he wouldn’t just ignore her about returning the umbrella, right?  

Of course, that was just wishful thinking.  

But who would’ve thought… who would’ve thought…  

Xu Yitong stared blankly at her phone, her heart pounding. 

Once she snapped out of it, the first thing she did was screenshot the message and send it to her group chat with her girlfriends, asking for advice.  

Happy Zhenzhen: [Image] How do I reply? Teach me!  

Happy Zhenzhen: I can’t take this, can you guys hurry up? I’m freaking out, my head is spinning!!!  

Planting Cai: […]  

Planting Cai: Did Pinduoduo hack your brain?  

Happy Zhenzhen: ?  

CC: It’s just two words, reply however you want. Have you never talked to a guy before?  

Damn it.  

Xu Yitong decided to rely on herself.  

She sat on the edge of the bed, then flopped onto the foot of it, shifting positions several times. 

After finally calming down a little, she thought carefully for a long time before sending her reply:  

[I checked the schedule, don’t you have a match against TG next Thursday? I’ll probably go watch. Can you bring the umbrella with you then?]  

Three minutes later.  

Little Fish: [Sure]  

Ahhhhhhhh!  

She read his second reply four, five, six, seven, eight times.  

Xu Yitong rolled around excitedly on her bed, kissed her teddy bear a few times, and felt like she might faint from happiness.  

*  

After the rain, Shanghai was hit with several days of scorching white skies and sweltering heat.  

To prepare for their next meeting, Xu Yitong specifically picked a family day to go shopping with her parents. 

She and Chen Bolan shopped nonstop while Xu Mingyi followed behind, swiping his card for them.  

While having dinner at a restaurant, Chen Bolan asked, “Zhenzhen, what have you been up to lately? You haven’t come home to see your parents in over a month.”  

Xu Yitong put down her chopsticks and said enthusiastically, “Mom, remember that craft shop CC opened?”  

“Of course, what about it?”  

“Her shop’s been doing really well. She’s even planning to open a second location. Since I’ve got some free time and a bit of money saved up, I’m thinking of investing and becoming her business partner.”  

“Oh, a business partner,” Xu Mingyi chuckled meaningfully.  

Xu Yitong glared. 

“What’s so funny? I am going to be a partner!”  

Chen Bolan shot her husband a look and pinched Xu Yitong’s cheek. 

“Don’t mind your dad. Tell me more, baby. What does this craft shop do?”  

Clearing her throat, Xu Yitong explained very seriously: “It’s a place for young people to go on dates. There’s a crafting area where you can make rings, pendants, paint oil paintings, stuff like that. Then there’s a lounge area for coffee and desserts. It’s super trendy right now. A dating show even filmed there once!”  

“That sounds wonderful!” Chen Bolan approved.  

With her mom’s support, Xu Yitong grew even more determined. 

“This time, I’m definitely going to make money!”  

The pottery studio, clothing boutique, coffee shop, and other businesses she’d opened before that went under were clearly just flukes.  

“Where are you planning to open the shop? Do you need some help from Mom?”  

Xu Yitong pondered. 

“We haven’t finalized the location yet. CC and I are still scouting spots. It’s gotta be a good one… We need to think it through.”  

Xu Mingyi commented dryly, “When little Xu starts thinking, God starts laughing.”  

Interrupted again, Xu Yitong felt both annoyed and guilty. 

“Just you wait, Xu Mingyi. When I make money, I won’t support you in your old age!”  

“If you’d stop wasting my money, I could retire just fine on my own.”  

Before Xu Yitong could retort, her phone suddenly rang. 

She answered irritably, “What?!”  

“Tongtong, oh my god, guess who I just saw?” Moli’s hushed voice was full of mystery.  

Xu Yitong replied offhandedly, “Zhao Benshan?”  

“Are you insane?” Moli sounded exasperated.  

“Then who?” 

Xu Yitong wasn’t in the mood to guess. 

“Isn’t Zhao Benshan your crush?”  

Moli was silent for a few seconds. 

“It’s your crush.”  

“Song Dandan?”  

…  

After hanging up, Xu Yitong jumped to her feet. 

She grabbed her car keys and dashed out, only to realize she’d forgotten her bag after running a few meters. 

She turned back, nearly colliding with a waiter.  

Chen Bolan called out anxiously, “What’s going on? Watch where you’re going! Where are you off to? You’re not even finishing dinner?”  

Still running, Xu Yitong waved her hand and shouted over her shoulder, “Something came up with a friend. I’ll go check on them!”  

Chen Bolan yelled, “Drive carefully!”  

“Got it!” Xu Yitong didn’t look back.  

*  

It was just past seven, the height of Shanghai’s evening rush hour. 

The roads downtown were jammed, and the ten-plus-kilometer drive took over an hour.  

When she finally arrived at the hospital Moli mentioned, Xu Yitong hurriedly parked and didn’t even wait for the elevator, sprinting up four flights of stairs instead.  

Pushing open the stairwell door, Xu Yitong froze mid-step.  

Why was this floor… the pediatric department?  

A nurse at the front desk stood up when she saw someone approaching. 

“Who are you here to see?”  

“I—” Xu Yitong panted, looking around.  

“Over here! Here!” 

Moli waved from further down the hall.  

Xu Yitong rushed over. 

“What’s going on? Where’s Yu Ge? Is he okay?”  

“Keep your voice down,” Moli tugged at her. “Don’t panic. Yu Ge is fine. Come here, I’ll explain.”  

“Then why did you make it sound so scary on the phone?” Xu Yitong was exasperated.  

“Because it is scary!” 

Moli led her down a hallway. 

“My nephew had a fever today. My brother’s away on business, so I came to the hospital with my sister-in-law to keep her company. Guess what I saw.”  

Xu Yitong stopped dead, horrified. 

“Did Yu Ge have a secret love child?”  

Moli rolled her eyes.  

She pulled Xu Yitong behind a large potted plant in the corner and pointed. 

“Look.”  

Xu Yitong followed her gaze.  

At the other end of the hallway, a crowd had gathered, but they were clearly divided into two opposing groups. 

In the middle, a middle-aged man with a slight paunch paced irritably.  

On the left was a distraught middle-aged woman who looked like she might collapse if not for the people supporting her. 

A child wailed shrilly in the background, crying out in pain.  

On the right, a woman in a black dress sat quietly on a bench, her face pale and exhausted. 

Yu Ge stood beside her in a black shirt and pants, both silent.  

Xu Yitong squinted. “That girl looks like Yu Nuo.”  

“Your brother’s girlfriend?”  

“Yeah!” 

Xu Yitong was about to message Chen Yuzheng but remembered he still hadn’t replied to her last message from four or five days ago. 

She decided against it.  

“What’s going on here?”  

“No idea.”  

As the two whispered, the situation suddenly escalated.  

The middle-aged woman let out a hoarse scream, pointing at Yu Nuo. 

“An accident? You call that an accident? If you saw him taking the photo, why couldn’t you just talk to him properly? How old is he? What does he understand?”  

Her voice was so loud that even from a distance, Xu Yitong could catch most of it. 

The tirade alternated between Mandarin and the local dialect, peppered with insults like “little bastard,” “ungrateful brat,” and other vicious slurs.  

Xu Yitong was fuming. 

She leaned forward and couldn’t help shouting back in dialect: “Old hag, did you eat shit for breakfast? Your mouth is filthy!”  

Moli yanked her back. 

“Don’t lose your temper, don’t!”  

Having grown up in Beijing and studied abroad, Moli wasn’t fluent in Shanghainese. 

“What are you saying?”  

Xu Yitong grumbled as she crouched back down. 

“I said that woman’s mouth is full of crap. How can she curse like that?”  

Moli soothed her. 

“Hey, it’s their family drama!”  

The commotion grew so loud that doctors and nurses stepped in to mediate.  

Amid the chaos, Yu Ge walked forward alone, separating the groups and shielding Yu Nuo behind him.  

Sun Erlan, hysterical, pointed at Yu Nuo. 

“If anything happens to my son, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life.”  

Yu Ge seemed to find this amusing.  

His expression remained indifferent as he smirked faintly. 

“Interesting.”  

Sun Erlan trembled, glaring at Yu Ge. 

She tried to shove him, but he didn’t budge.  

“If anything happens to your son, it’s because you cursed him,” Yu Ge said calmly, his tone so measured it gave the woman pause.  

Standing protectively in front of Yu Nuo, he enunciated slowly and clearly, “You think you have the power to ruin my sister’s life?”  

The words infuriated and stunned Sun Erlan. 

She raised her hand to slap Yu Ge.  

Yu Ge coldly blocked her. 

“I wouldn’t try that if I were you. I’m not exactly known for my patience.”  

The standoff continued until Yu Jiang couldn’t take it anymore. 

He steadied Sun Erlan. 

“Do you even respect me as your father? How dare you speak to your aunt like that? She’s your elder. Don’t be disrespectful.”  

Yu Ge scoffed. 

“She’s not worthy of my respect.”  

“Oh my god… they’re actually family?” Moli was floored.  

Xu Yitong was equally stunned.  

She stared blankly at Yu Ge.  

In the midst of such a chaotic and noisy scene, Yu Ge stood against his own family as if they were enemies. 

Yet he remained composed, no different from his usual self.  

Ironically, from the very beginning, many people had told Xu Yitong that Yu Ge was popular.  

So, like everyone else, she assumed he’d always been doted on, which shaped his aloof and indifferent personality.  

But today, Xu Yitong realized that might not be the case at all.  

*  

That night, another rainstorm swept through Shanghai.  

Xu Yitong left the hospital alone, got into her car, and slowly fastened her seatbelt before zoning out for a while.  

When the drama finally ended, she and Moli had remained in their hiding spot, watching the siblings leave. 

Xu Yitong knew she wasn’t close enough to Yu Ge to offer comfort—it wasn’t her place.  

After much deliberation, she eventually sent Chen Yuzheng a message about what had happened at the hospital.  

Back home, Xu Yitong couldn’t sleep.  

Despite being exhausted, she lay wide awake in bed, her mind racing. 

When her phone buzzed with a notification, she snatched it up immediately.  

Squinting against the bright screen, she unlocked it to find a belated reply from Chen Yuzheng:  

Conquer: [I’m with her.]  

Xu Yitong’s eyes widened as she checked the time.  

6:45 a.m.  

Had he been with her all night?  

Xu Yitong was worried… Chen Yuzheng was only 19. Kids these days…  

Suppressing the urge to lecture him, she asked: [What happened?]  

Conquer: [Her grandmother passed away.]  

The message stunned Xu Yitong.  

Outside, the rain continued to pour. 

The heavy curtains kept the room pitch-black. 

She lay back down, staring at the ceiling, now wide awake.  

Suddenly, the lonely figure she’d seen by the convenience store flashed through her mind.  

It dawned on her.  

Had Yu Ge been quietly grieving for his family that day?  

Xu Yitong felt a pang of sadness.  

She’d always known she was surrounded by love. 

Whenever she was upset or faced difficulties, she never hesitated to let the world know. 

She had an abundance of love to heal any sadness.  

But if Yu Ge was hurting… Why was he alone?  

He wasn’t lacking in love either.  

For the first time, Xu Yitong felt a twinge of heartache.  

It occurred to her.  

Maybe… Little Fish was a very lonely fish.