Chapter 30: Looking Back

In the following days, Mosheng went on assignment and didn’t bring up the interview again. She had already discussed switching the case with Lao Bai, so it was no longer her concern.The photoshoot that day went smoothly, and Mosheng returned to the magazine office early. While washing her hands in the restroom, she was stopped by Ah Mei and a few other female colleagues, eager to gossip.

“Ah Sheng, it looks like you might not have to do that interview with the elite guy after all.”

“Why?”

“Tao Yijing didn’t even get to meet him—she was rejected outright! It’s hilarious. She was so confident before, and now she’s totally embarrassed,” Ah Mei said with a trace of schadenfreude.

“Yeah, I heard that when she called his office, his assistant said Lawyer He was sick.”

“Sick?” Mosheng, who was about to leave, paused at the comment.

“Is that true?”

“Probably not. I saw him on a TV program just yesterday.”

But shows like that are often pre-recorded. Is Yi Chen really sick?

Back at her desk, Mosheng still felt uneasy. Then she chuckled at herself. Zhao Mosheng, why are you worried about him? It’s none of your business anymore.

“Ah Sheng, phone call!” Lao Bai called out, transferring the line. “Looks like two people tried to reach you this morning. Yes, I answered it.”

Mosheng picked up the phone. “Hello?”

A calm male voice responded, “Zhao Mosheng? This is Xiang Heng.”They arranged to meet at a café called Silent World, located in the eastern part of the city.

After a brief exchange of greetings, Xiang Heng said, “You’re not easy to find. Luckily, Yi Chen once mentioned you worked as a photographer at a magazine.”

Seeing Mosheng look at him in surprise, Xiang Heng smiled. “What’s with that expression? Surprised Yi Chen mentioned you? He might not say much, but with someone like Lao Yuan, our middle-aged gossip machine, you can still dig out a few secrets.”

A waiter approached with the menu. After ordering their drinks, Xiang Heng got to the point.

“You’re probably wondering why I asked to meet you.”It was indeed strange. Though Mosheng knew the refined and handsome man in front of her, they were never close. Her only impression of him was “Yi Chen’s roommate,” and for a long time, she couldn’t even remember his name. Until one time, when she joined Yi Chen’s dormmates for hotpot. Each person had to bring a partner, but Xiang Heng was the only one alone. Someone teased him, “Xiang Heng, even He Yichen has found someone. How long are you going to stay single?”

Xiang Heng had sighed and replied jokingly, “Easy for you to say. Where can I find someone as fearless and relentless as Zhao Mosheng to handle me?”

Even Yi Chen chimed in, sounding exasperated: “If you want her, take her. I could use some peace and quiet.”

She had been so naïve back then, yet still somehow ended up the target of teasing. Law school boys were merciless.

But ever since then, she remembered Xiang Heng.

Noticing Mosheng lost in thought, Xiang Heng said suddenly, “To be honest, I never really understood how you ended up as Yi Chen’s girlfriend in college. You know there were many girls who liked him—many were prettier, smarter, and more impressive than you.”

Mosheng didn’t respond, unsure why he was bringing up the past. She simply listened.With a nostalgic expression, he continued, “Back then, one of our dorm activities was betting on which girl would finally win over Yi Chen. One night, after lights-out, we got into it pretty heavily. Some bet on the prettiest girl in the department, others on the talented debater who partnered with him. I think I put my money on a girl from the Foreign Languages Department.”

He laughed, remembering their youthful foolishness. “Yi Chen usually had a ‘three no’s’ policy—he wouldn’t approve, participate, or comment. He just kept reading or sleeping. But that time, after all our bets were placed, he suddenly said, ‘I bet on Zhao Mosheng.’ That was the first time I heard your name.”

No wonder rumors started that she was his girlfriend. Yi Chen had never spoken of it.

“You can imagine how curious we were about you. And even more shocked when we actually met you. Yi Chen was always calm, mature beyond his years. We expected someone just like him—mature and sensible. But you,” Xiang Heng said tactfully, “were nothing like what we imagined.”

“To be honest, at first I didn’t think much of you, but Yi Chen started to act like a normal 20-year-old around you. He’d get so angry he’d yell, or so happy he’d do everyone’s laundry. Like on his birthday…”

That really didn’t sound like Yi Chen.On his birthday, she had wandered all over the city trying to find the perfect gift, but ended up empty-handed. At around ten at night, she showed up at the bottom of his dorm building, exhausted, just to wish him a happy birthday.

Yi Chen looked at her, deadpan. “Where have you been all day? Where’s my gift?”

She couldn’t give him anything. He stared at her for a long time, then finally said, frustrated, “Forget it. Close your eyes.”

She obeyed—and he leaned down and kissed her.

That was their first kiss.