Song Zhanyue’s cooking skills still hadn’t reached a proficient level.

In less than a week of hiding, she met with Mu Zanglin and clarified their relationship.

The day they officially became a couple happened to coincide with Song Mianfeng going to K City for a charity event. Despite the distance of over a thousand kilometers, Song Zhanyue had a long-distance call with Song Mianfeng to explain everything truthfully. She even took the initiative to suggest having a meal together when he returned to S City, which improved Song Mianfeng’s mood somewhat, preventing it from affecting his work too much.

As for Song Shaochen and Su Jieyi, since Su Jieyi had seen Mu Zanglin a few times when she visited Song Zhanyue’s home and had a good impression of him, the two of them were quite happy about the relationship. After all, it was just a new relationship, and there was no rush to think about the future.

September had just turned over, and S City ushered in autumn with a rainy day. The weather was getting cooler, and every day when Song Mianfeng called Lu Yin Zhen, he would remind him to “wear more clothes and beware of catching a cold.” Ironically, in the transition from summer to autumn, Lu Yin Zhen, who rarely caught colds, didn’t catch one, but Song Mianfeng ended up falling ill.

The onset of a seasonal cold, coupled with a long-dormant stomach ailment, troubled him for several days.

This illness was largely due to being busy with work. Lu Yin Zhen insisted that in the future, he shouldn’t schedule his work so tightly just to squeeze out some free time to come to B City. He even managed to get in touch with Liu Chengyin and, together with Song Zhanyue, supervised him to rest and recover at home.

With Su Jieyi’s nagging and Lu Yin Zhen’s care, Song Mianfeng’s illness gradually subsided after a few days of rest.

Once he recovered from his illness, Song Zhanyue scheduled a dinner date with Mu Zanglin.

They agreed to meet at Wangjianglou, where Mu Zanglin had booked a private room in advance, showing that he was quite serious about this. Song Mianfeng’s impression of him rose slightly.

Mu Zanglin arrived a little earlier than Song Zhanyue. After finishing work in the afternoon, Song Mianfeng rushed directly from the filming location to Wangjianglou. When he arrived, the two of them were already sitting in the private room, chatting quietly.

Song Mianfeng pushed open the door to the private room, cleared his throat, and Song Zhanyue looked up, smiling softly. “brother.”

Mu Zanglin nodded and followed suit, calling out, “Brother.”

Song Mianfeng responded lightly, greeting, “Have you been waiting long?”

Song Zhanyue promptly poured tea for him. “We just arrived a little while ago.”

Song Mianfeng raised an eyebrow. “Both of you?”

“Zanglin came to pick me up after work,” Song Zhanyue calmly helped improve Mu Zanglin’s impression.

Song Mianfeng nodded and sipped his tea. “Hmm.”

The service at Wangjianglou was always attentive, and soon the dishes started to arrive. There were both light and spicy dishes, clearly catering to Song Zhanyue’s and Mu Zanglin’s preferences.

During the meal, Song Mianfeng asked about Mu Zanglin’s work. Mu Zanglin mentioned he was a freelancer but didn’t elaborate on the specifics of his job. Song Mianfeng didn’t feel it was appropriate to probe further on their first formal meeting, so he only mentally noted this question mark regarding Mu Zanglin’s work and asked some other questions in a casual manner.

Song Zhanyue occasionally made a comment or two to lighten the mood and divert from overly serious topics.

After the meal, Mu Zanglin went to settle the bill, and Song Mianfeng and Song Zhanyue left first. Standing at the entrance of Wangjianglou, Song Zhanyue took a deep breath of fresh air, finally completely relaxing.

Song Mianfeng chuckled softly. When Mu Zanglin finished paying the bill and came out, he casually said, “Wait here for a moment, I’ll go with Mu Zanglin to get the car.” Suddenly, Song Zhanyue felt a bit confused.

Mu Zanglin remained composed, smiled reassuringly at her, and didn’t say much, then followed Song Mianfeng to the underground parking lot.

Song Mianfeng didn’t walk too fast. The two of them were of similar height, and their walking pace was also similar. They walked side by side, chatting in a friendly manner, giving the impression to others that they were just casually conversing as friends.

But in reality, the atmosphere was somewhat tense.

Song Mianfeng asked, “Forgive me for being forward, but what exactly is your job?”

Mu Zanglin’s expression was slightly unnatural for a moment, but he quickly adjusted and replied, “…I’m an online writer.”

Song Mianfeng didn’t react much to this information, just naturally continued, “So you mostly work from home?”

Mu Zanglin replied with a simple “Yes,” and added, “Most of the time.”

Song Mianfeng smiled. “That does sound quite liberating.”

Being able to arrange and manage one’s own time, as long as one was committed, there would surely be no shortage of time to spend with one’s girlfriend.

The conversation didn’t end there. Mu Zanglin waited for Song Mianfeng to continue.

Song Mianfeng asked, “Although it might be a bit sudden, may I know your pen name?” He added, “It’s just out of curiosity. If it’s not convenient to reveal, then forget it.”

“…” Mu Zanglin fell silent for a few seconds, then quietly mentioned a pen name.

Song Mianfeng was taken aback for a moment, somewhat surprised and even suspected that he was joking. However, Mu Zanglin seemed serious, not at all like he was joking, and it wouldn’t make sense for him to joke about such a matter. After a while, Song Mianfeng realized, and couldn’t help but furrow his brow. “Does Zhanyue know?”

“She doesn’t know yet.” Mu Zanglin lowered his gaze. “So I would like to ask you to keep it confidential for now.”

The young man stood tall and looked at him, revealing a gentle smile, the kind of tenderness that belonged only to his beloved. He said, “I want to tell her myself, but it’s not the right time yet.”

“Mu Zanglin.” In Mu Zanglin’s gentle smile, Song Mianfeng’s heart finally settled. He also smiled slowly, and as he smiled, he shook his head and sighed softly. “You’re holding an ace in your hand.”

“But I’m Mu Zanglin.” He paused for a moment, his tone gentle yet firm. “A flesh-and-blood person, not just a pen name, nor a few cold books.”

He could have taken a shortcut to get close to Song Zhanyue, even easily winning her affection, but he didn’t. He chose a long and arduous path. Just for this reason, Song Mianfeng admired him.

“Young man, you have integrity—but Zhanyue isn’t easy to appease when she’s upset.” Song Mianfeng patted his shoulder, seemingly able to foresee Mu Zanglin’s candlelight vigil after Song Zhanyue finds out about this. “Good luck to you.”

…

Days of busy work always seemed to pass particularly quickly, and long-distance relationships didn’t seem so difficult to endure anymore.

But that was only an illusion.

By the time of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the family had enjoyed a hearty dinner together, sitting around the sofa watching the Mid-Autumn Festival Gala, chatting and eating mooncakes.

After accompanying her parents for a few programs, Song Zhanyue found an excuse to leave first.

It was the Mid-Autumn Festival, the honeymoon period of their relationship, and the young couple wanted to admire the moon and eat mooncakes together. Song Mianfeng understood completely. He didn’t feel jealous at all about his younger sister going on a date with her boyfriend. He just sent a “cry” emoji to Lu Yin Zhen on WeChat.

Lu Yin Zhen sent a voice message in response, which Song Mianfeng didn’t listen to until he closed the door to his own room.

Actually, they had a fixed time for their daily calls, from ten to eleven in the evening, an hour-long call to bid each other goodnight and ensure a peaceful sleep. But when he heard Lu Yin Zhen’s voice coming from the earpiece, Song Mianfeng felt like it had been a long time since he last heard his voice, and he missed it dearly.

He held his phone close, as if Lu Yin Zhen’s words were being whispered directly into his ear, each word falling onto his heart.

Lu Yin Zhen said, “You’re a good boy, don’t cry.”

In the background, the faint sound of mahjong tiles clashing together could be heard, along with voices, indicating a lively atmosphere. But it was also quiet, with only a faint background noise audible. Lu Yin Zhen clearly chose a quiet place to send the voice message.

Song Mianfeng listened to the voice message a few more times, feeling his heart soften.

Emoji were often exaggerated to express emotions, so he casually selected one, still listening to cross talk as he sent it. Now, back in his own room, isolated from the lively background noise of the Mid-Autumn Festival Gala in the living room, hearing Lu Yin Zhen’s soothing words, he felt a bit teary-eyed.

The sudden longing overwhelmed him, so he lay flat on the bed, allowing himself to be tormented by these emotions, dragging Lu Yin Zhen into it as well.

He replied to Lu Yin Zhen’s voice message, intentionally softening his voice as he called his name, pausing for a moment before adding softly, “I miss you.”

Lu Yin Zhen called back.

As the call connected, there was silence on both ends. This time, there were no other sounds in the background. Lu Yin Zhen had probably returned to his own room, where it was quiet, without any disturbances.

After a while, Lu Yin Zhen sighed softly, his tone gentle and light.

He said, “I miss you too.”

Their mutual expressions of longing were like simmering syrup in a pot, slowly bubbling over a low flame. Even the steam that rose from the simmering mixture smelled sweet.

Song Mianfeng’s heart was softened by the syrup, temporarily relieving his lovesickness. “When are you coming back?” he asked.

“In a few hours, after the Mid-Autumn Festival is over.”

They had agreed to meet after the Mid-Autumn Festival, but after the Mid-Autumn Festival was over, the next day was still “after,” as were the following days. Even ten or eight days later were still “after.” It wasn’t difficult as long as he didn’t dwell on it, but once he thought about it, every day, every hour, every minute became difficult to bear.

Lu Yin Zhen wasn’t faring much better either. He even wanted to change his flight immediately and fly to S City.

This kind of impulsive behavior that only comes with young love had been delayed for a long time, causing him to lose his composure for a moment. He had already opened the flight information before coming to his senses, realizing he had lost his sense of proportion.

“The project with Cen Fengzhi is scheduled to sign tomorrow, and the flight is booked for the day after tomorrow. Otherwise, should I change it to tomorrow night?” he asked Lu Yin Zhen while inputting the date again, looking at the flights for the next day.

Song Mianfeng was momentarily stunned. “You’ve already booked the ticket?”

Lu Yin Zhen confirmed with a “Yes” and said, “I wanted to surprise you, but I couldn’t bear for you to wait without any anticipation.”

“No need to change it… just one or two days.” Song Mianfeng rolled over in bed, then rolled back, happily hugging his pillow to his chest. The soft fabric rubbed against his face, while he pretended to be unhappy, saying, “You’re going to meet Cen Fengzhi and sign a contract, so what kind of signing method is it? Are you going to find a private room like you did with Lu Changting?”

“We’re signing at the company.” Lu Yin Zhen knew what he wanted to hear and was willing to tell him, despite his stubbornness. “In the main conference room, with everyone in the company watching.”

After Lu Yin Zhen finished speaking, he added, “I also need the leader’s approval.”

His tone was serious, and it sounded quite believable.

Song Mianfeng chuckled at his teasing, cleared his throat, and said, “Alright, I approve.”