Ning Qianjin was taken aback, giving the boy a thumbs-up: “Then you’re a true sage.”

The boy was a bit more persistent than Chen Yu had expected. Holding his glass, he walked over, his eyes full of unabashed admiration: “Mr. Chen, I’m Lin Zhao. Can we get to know each other?”

When the bar first opened, Chen Yu often encountered such advances. Over time, regulars realized that Mr. Chen seemed to be a bachelor, but his bachelorhood was different from those who were single in spirit but sought pleasure in the flesh. He truly didn’t date or hook up, and the number of people trying to approach him gradually decreased.

Customers in the café were not as straightforward as those in the nightlife scene. However, there were still many who tried to get his contact information under various pretenses, but Chen Yu remained steadfast.

As Ning Qianjin put it, Chen Yu had been single for so many years by his own choice, and while he might not date, he was certainly adept at refusing people.

Now, with the person standing right in front of him, Chen Yu’s expression didn’t change, and he directly declined: “No dates, no talks, no interest in meeting.”

Chen Yu was completely indifferent. The young man downed his drink, gave a brief greeting, and left. After he was gone, Ning Qianjin whistled: “Mr. Chen’s charm hasn’t diminished over the years.”

In his twenties, to reduce social interactions, Chen Yu often kept a cold face and acted cool, but there were always people who fell for this act, and those who pursued him were like swarming bees and butterflies, regardless of gender.

Chen Yu lowered his eyes: “I don’t remember him.”

The boy had said Chen Yu had wished him a happy birthday. It was likely that he had ordered a birthday package, and Chen Yu had casually wished him well, leaving no lasting impression.

“Hey,” Ning Qianjin lifted his chin, looking mysteriously, “Do you know what they say about you behind your back?”

Before Chen Yu could ask, Ning Qianjin answered: “The moon.”

“You’re the moon, hanging in the sky. You don’t need to remember anyone; it’s enough that they remember you.”

One moment he was a sage, the next a moon. Ning Qianjin’s words were enigmatic, but Chen Yu just shook his head.

He wasn’t a sage, though he had few worldly desires. If he really wanted a partner and found it impossible, he would come to the bar to drown his sorrows.

Chen Yu had a feeling that missing Lawyer Meng would make finding a partner even more difficult in the future.

Mr. Chen’s alcohol tolerance was poor, and after one drink, he began to feel dizzy, his reactions slowing. Ning Qianjin, needing to attend to customers, was worried that Chen Yu might be taken advantage of if left alone, so he called a ride-share to send him home.

Ning Qianjin gave the location as the café. The ride-share driver, who had likely been a ride-hailing driver before, stopped the car at the entrance and immediately took out his phone, waiting for Chen Yu to get out. Chen Yu thought the driver had stopped for a reason and sat in the car with him for a minute. The driver then remembered: “Should I leave the car here?”

“There’s a parking spot,” Chen Yu pointed out, but the spot was already occupied. The driver got out to check: “There’s no phone number on the car. Can I park nearby?”

“Sure.”

The bar had a mix of scents—alcohol, perfume, and the occasional cigarette despite the no-smoking signs. Inside, these scents weren’t noticeable, but once outside, they were very apparent. Chen Yu sniffed his coat and, upon realizing how it smelled, took it off and threw it into the washing machine.

After taking a shower, he remembered that his phone was in the coat pocket—something that shouldn’t have been in the washing machine in the first place.

He turned off the power, took the water-soaked coat out, and placed it in a basin. He then fished out the phone and pressed the lock button, which surprisingly lit up.

However, the screen was partially water-damaged and unresponsive. Chen Yu dried it with a tissue and decided to deal with it the next day. Unfortunately, the phone had other plans. The screen jumped to WeChat, opened Lawyer Meng’s chat, and made a video call.

Chen Yu, who had been feeling a bit dazed, was suddenly wide awake. He hurriedly pressed the lock button. Three seconds later, the option to restart appeared, and the video call was answered.

Chen Yu stood there, stunned.

“Chen Yu?” Lawyer Meng’s voice was lower than usual, and the screen was dark, indicating he had been asleep and was woken up.

“Lawyer Meng,” Chen Yu stammered, apologizing, “My phone got wet, and I accidentally made the call.”

But Lawyer Meng didn’t hang up; instead, he said, “Hold on.”

Lawyer Meng turned on the bedside lamp, and the screen brightened.

Chen Yu could see Lawyer Meng’s current appearance, which was very different from his usual business attire.

He was wearing a robe, leaning against the headboard, with slightly squinting eyes, looking groggy from being woken up. His collar was slightly askew, his collarbone visible, and a hint of chest muscles could be seen—definitely not the physique of someone who spends all day in an office.

Lawyer Meng noticed this and adjusted his robe: “Did you drink?”

“Um,” Chen Yu repeated, “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Lawyer Meng said.

Chen Yu, avoiding the camera, wanted to end this unexpected and awkward call but didn’t know how to start. He began to ramble: “I’m fine, my phone is broken…”

“Okay,” Lawyer Meng replied patiently.

Chen Yu had been out in the wind, taken a shower, and experienced this unexpected incident, so he was mostly sober. However, his ears were red, and his mind wasn’t clear as he started to explain about the parking spot: “My spot was taken, so I parked yours. I… will move it tomorrow morning.”

“No need, I’m on a business trip and won’t be around for a few days.”

“Right, your business trip,” Chen Yu remembered. He looked at the camera and called out, “Lawyer Meng.”

But he didn’t know what to say.

Perhaps it was the night, the lighting, or Chen Yu’s white plaid pajamas that made him look softly dazed. Lawyer Meng added, “I’ll be back next week.”

Chen Yu’s eyes were blank, but his intuition told him it was time to end the call.

“Then, good night?”

“Good night.”

Chen Yu slept deeply and was woken by the noise from the café opening. He rubbed his forehead, feeling a bit of a headache.

Last night, Bobby had made him a Long Island Iced Tea, and given his low tolerance, a headache was expected. Additionally, the wind and damp hair while making the call didn’t help.

The call…

Chen Yu remembered he had called Lawyer Meng in the middle of the night.

Because of this call, Lawyer Meng had sent a message in the morning to check on him. The phone screen was still a bit unresponsive but much better than yesterday. Chen Yu struggled to reply with a “good morning,” but he received no response, likely because Lawyer Meng was boarding a flight.

Chen Yu thought this polite and distant matchmaking would continue for some time. At least in the short term, he couldn’t bring himself to tell Lawyer Meng that they weren’t a good match.

When Chen Yu came out of the break room, Xiao Lan was surprised: “Boss, you’re here? We were just wondering where you stayed last night.”

“Where else could I stay?”

Xiao Lan chuckled: “Your car was parked in Lawyer Meng’s spot.”

Chen Yu didn’t understand the connection between where he stayed and where his car was parked: “So what?”

“So I thought you spent the night with him.” Under Chen Yu’s incredulous gaze, Xiao Lan’s voice grew quieter and then louder: “Why else would your phone be unreachable?”

After saying this, she quickly explained: “But I already know you didn’t. Xiao Mei said Lawyer Meng is on a business trip.”

“You asked Xiao Mei?” Chen Yu’s headache worsened. To stop her from overthinking, he said: “I went to a bar last night, and my spot was taken. What’s up?”

The café didn’t really need him, so Xiao Lan must have called for a special reason.

“Oh, right, I almost forgot,” Xiao Lan looked at a sticky note on the screen, “A girl came to apply for a job. I told her to come back this afternoon.”

“Part-time?”

“No, full-time.” Xiao Lan hesitated for a moment, “Boss, if you can take her, that would be great?”

Chen Yu was surprised: “Didn’t you say you were looking for a student?”

Someone who could work full-time was definitely not a student.

Xiao Lan said: “She’s only eighteen, a bit like me when I started.”

Chen Yu said: “Okay.”

Xiao Lan immediately praised him: “Boss, you’re so nice, you’ll definitely find a partner this year.”

Chen Yu laughed: “Do you want to check the calendar to see how many days are left this year?”

Xiao Lan insisted: “But you have Lawyer Meng, right?”

Chen Yu shook his head, not wanting to discuss the possibilities: “I’m going out.”

He moved his car and then went to get his phone repaired.

His phone was a year old, and the last time it needed repair was when the screen broke. There was a brand repair shop near the Old Silver Building, and Chen Yu, familiar with the process, walked over. The technician disassembled his phone and said: “The motherboard is damaged.”

It sounded serious, and Chen Yu was confused: “It was just a bit unresponsive. I made a call last night and could still send messages this morning.”

“You saw it go black just now,” the technician explained, “When a phone gets wet, it should be turned off immediately to prevent damage.”

“I didn’t know that,” Chen Yu regretted, “Can it be fixed?”

“Do you want to fix it?” The technician was a bit surprised. This phone wasn’t expensive, and it was a year old. Chen Yu’s attire suggested he wasn’t short of money.

Chen Yu’s spending habits were always modest compared to his income. Besides the phone, he had also put a non-machine-washable coat in the washing machine, which was even more expensive than the phone. Any reduction in loss would be good.

“How much?”

“It doesn’t need a whole new motherboard, just a few components. It will cost about 500 to 600 yuan, but I don’t have the parts in stock. It will take two days.”

“Then fix it.”

The technician pulled out the SIM card and placed it in a small sealed bag, then asked: “Do you have a backup phone?”

Most people kept their old phones as backups, but Chen Yu didn’t. He always used a phone until it broke, and if it could be repaired, he would continue using it. He only replaced his phone when it became slow and the screen broke, like his last one.

However, he still said: “Yes.”

He had a semi-smart, knockoff phone from over a decade ago that he had kept for certain reasons. This old, knockoff phone could hold two SIM cards, which was a trendy feature back then.

Chen Yu charged the battery, inserted the SIM card, and started using it.

Xiao Lan and the new girl were quite impressed, especially the new girl, who exclaimed: “This phone is so convenient, the battery can be removed and charged!”

Chen Yu didn’t play games or watch videos, and he rarely used the apps that many young people couldn’t live without. Whether the phone was smart or not made little difference to him.

The only problem was that this phone couldn’t run WeChat.

Most of his contacts had phone numbers, so they didn’t rely on WeChat. But Lawyer Meng didn’t have a number, and he said he would be back next week.

Chen Yu thought for a moment and decided to buy a new phone. The old one, once repaired, would serve as a backup.