Chapter 5: Shamelessly Heartless

They had spent quite a while over there, and as soon as Xia Zhi Cha returned to the table, Jiang Lili grabbed her arm and pulled her back into her seat.

“Hey, you just went to wash your hands—how did it take so long? I almost thought you fell into the toilet—”

An entire case of empty beer bottles had already piled up beside the table. The two people still drinking were clearly tipsy. Xia Zhi Cha gave a helpless little smile and coaxed softly, like calming a child, “I’m back now, aren’t I?”

Jiang Lili, who often came back drunk to the dorm, was used to drinking, and Xia Zhi Cha had long learned how to calm her down. As expected, Jiang Lili immediately brightened, grabbed her arm with a grin, and squinted her eyes. “Good! Gao Yuyang, shall we open two more bottles?”

Gao Yuyang instantly raised an empty bottle and slammed it on the table with gusto: “Let’s go! Fill ‘em up—!”

“……”

These two were clearly very drunk.

Xia Zhi Cha hadn’t expected Gao Yuyang, who always looked polite and proper, to be this unreliable when tipsy.

Seeing them drunkenly play-act pouring alcohol from empty bottles, she sighed, called over the shop owner, returned the remaining unopened bottles, and ordered some soup to help them sober up.

“By the way, Fu Chiyu went to the restroom too earlier. Did you see him?” Gao Yuyang suddenly asked her.

“Ah… I did.”

Xia Zhi Cha’s gaze faltered slightly, and she nodded vaguely.

“Tsk, what’s taking him so long…” Gao Yuyang groaned, pressing on his phone and scrolling through it. “His ex-girlfriend called me just now, asking where he was. Called multiple times…”

“Why would his ex call you?” Jiang Lili asked curiously.

“She couldn’t get in touch with Fu,” Gao Yuyang shrugged. “That girl, man… she knew he never took relationships seriously, but still clung to him asking whether he loved her. After he dumped her, she acted like she went insane—kept pestering him. Even dragged us into it. When will it end…”

Before he could finish, a hand suddenly landed on his shoulder. Gao Yuyang flinched and turned to see Fu Chiyu standing behind him with a nonchalant expression.

He instantly looked guilty. “Hey, you’re back?”

Jiang Lili laughed dramatically, “Speak of the devil—!”

Fu Chiyu didn’t mind being talked about behind his back. He looked down slightly, his tone flat: “I already told her not to look for me again. We agreed it’d be one month. Time’s up, so it’s over.”

He said it with no emotion, like stating a simple fact—one that didn’t affect him in the slightest.

“One month?” Jiang Lili widened her eyes. “Your relationships come with an expiry date?”

“That’s how he does it,” Gao Yuyang explained. “When a girl confesses to him, he lays it out right away: one-month trial. If she agrees, fine—they date. If not, he walks. It’s mutual.”

“Seriously?” Jiang Lili gasped. “That’s so… scummy—”

“He’s just heartless,” Gao Yuyang laughed. “We’ve all been betting—he keeps playing like this, karma’s bound to hit him someday.”

Fu Chiyu had already returned to his seat. Hearing Jiang Lili’s comment, he simply lifted his eyelids slightly, lips curling into a faint, careless smile. He didn’t argue.

His long, slender fingers tapped the table casually—like he was openly acknowledging it.

Cold and emotionally detached.

Xia Zhi Cha slowly looked away and quietly peeled peanuts with her fingers, a tightness in her chest.

…And yet, it was exactly this emotionally distant, detached side of him—the way he never stayed for anyone—that was the most dangerously attractive.

---

Jiang Lili and Gao Yuyang chatted the whole meal. By the time they finished and walked out of the restaurant, night had fully fallen.

They hadn’t drunk much in the latter half of the evening, so the two who had drunk the most were noticeably soberer now.

“Should we take a cab back to campus?” Jiang Lili asked Gao Yuyang.

“Nah, we’ve got another stop tonight. You guys go ahead.”

“Wow, your nightlife is really thriving,” Jiang Lili muttered. She hailed a ride and looked around while waiting. “What about Fu Chiyu?”

“No clue.” Gao Yuyang shrugged.

“Fine,” she said.

Just then, she saw Xia Zhi Cha walking toward the convenience store and called out, “Zhi Zhi, grab me a drink while you’re in there!”

“Okay,” Xia Zhi Cha replied gently.

This particular convenience store was small, with only a few aisles of shelves. As she entered, the staff gave a lifeless “Welcome.”

She walked to the back to pick up two packs of sanitary pads.

She was on her period, and the ones in her dorm were almost gone. Figured she’d stock up now.

Then she heard the same dull “Welcome” from the front again.

She didn’t have much to buy and skipped the basket. After grabbing Jiang Lili’s drink from the fridge near the checkout, she turned a corner around the shelf—

—and froze in place.

Standing at the register was Fu Chiyu.

He was scanning the cigarette shelves behind the cashier, casually asking about a specific brand.

While the cashier searched the shelves, his gaze swept lazily to the side—landing on her.

Xia Zhi Cha’s face flushed instantly. She quickly turned and hid the items behind her back.

Fu Chiyu didn’t seem to care. He glanced at her once, then looked away.

After exchanging a few words with the cashier, he stepped away from the counter to look for something else.

…Maybe he didn’t notice?

Xia Zhi Cha clenched her fingers slightly and let out a breath of relief. She walked up to the counter to check out.

After paying, she stuffed the items into her canvas tote. Then she heard approaching footsteps behind her—Fu Chiyu was coming back.

She didn’t look at him, didn’t say a word, and turned to leave.

Just as one foot stepped out of the store, a slow, deliberate voice called out behind her:

“Xia Zhi Cha, wait a second.”

She froze.

That was the first time he’d called her name since their reunion.

His voice was smooth and crisp, tinged with a subtle Beijing accent. It curled lightly at the tip of his tongue—lazy, flippant, effortlessly charming.

She didn’t know what he wanted. She stood there, blinking in confusion, just about to turn and answer—

—but Fu Chiyu had already reached her side.

As they brushed past each other, his wrist flicked slightly.

He pressed something into her hand.

Warmth spread through her palm.

Fu Chiyu didn’t stop. With a calm expression, he walked straight out of the convenience store.

Only when his tall, nonchalant figure had faded into the night did Xia Zhi Cha snap out of her daze. She lowered her head to see what was in her hand.

It was a bottle of warm milk.

Freshly taken from the store’s warming cabinet—perfectly warm.

But for some reason, it felt hot enough to burn.