CHAPTER 25: EVERYTHING GROWS

Shi Yan’s impossibly beautiful eyes fixed steadily on her.
Hearing her drunken words, he actually laughed — a faint, restrained laugh, but devastatingly good-looking nonetheless.
When he smiled, it was as if starlight flowed within his gaze, dazzling enough to leave one utterly spellbound.

Ruan Zhizhi thought to herself, even the stunning, seductive ghostly beauties from Liaozhai Zhiyi probably couldn’t hold a candle to him.

Suddenly, noises erupted near the restroom door — the sound of several people walking this way, loud and rowdy.
Ruan Zhizhi frowned, straining her ears to listen carefully, only to realize in surprise — those voices… were all men’s.

What’s going on tonight?
Did everyone drink too much? Why are so many guys walking into the wrong bathroom?

She opened her mouth, about to say something to Shi Yan, but before she could, she saw his brows furrow tightly.
The next second, before she even had time to react, he strode over and grabbed her wrist.
Almost at the exact same moment the group outside reached the restroom door, Shi Yan swiftly pulled her into one of the stalls and sat her down on the toilet seat in one fluid motion.

The stall was cramped — a space meant for one person, now forcibly crammed with two.
Ruan Zhizhi sobered up a little, looking around the tiny space, realizing there was nowhere to retreat.
Resigned, she leaned back against the toilet, facing Shi Yan in the narrow, stifling stall.

Outside, several drunken men had entered and were now gathered together, smoking and chatting, their tone casual and crude as they told vulgar jokes.

Ruan Zhizhi listened for a while, feeling increasingly awkward, just about to speak — when Shi Yan’s hand suddenly covered her mouth, silencing her completely.

“Mm—!”

She made a muffled protest beneath his palm, but Shi Yan frowned, leaned down until his eyes met hers, and whispered lowly:

“Ruan Zhizhi, do you want everyone to know you walked into the men’s restroom?”

She froze, blinking up at him, then finally, successfully, quieted down.

Only when she calmed did Shi Yan remove his hand from her lips.

Silence settled between them.
Right now, the two of them in this tiny stall felt like they were in a completely different world from the chaos outside.
Beyond the door was noise and drunken revelry; in here, it was still and quiet, like time itself had paused.

Worried she might lose her balance and fall from the toilet, Shi Yan loosely held her by the waist.
He crouched slightly, his dark pupils carefully studying her face, then reached for a tissue from the dispenser.
With slow, deliberate gentleness, he wiped away the stains of alcohol and mess left on the corner of her lips.

Watching his movements, Ruan Zhizhi bit her lip, then tried to turn her face away in embarrassment, whispering softly:

“Don’t… don’t wipe it. It’s dirty.”

Shi Yan ignored her protests, gently turning her face back toward him.
He cleaned every trace of mess from her face, then carefully smoothed her disheveled hair with his fingers, his voice quiet and low:

“It’s not dirty. You’re very clean.”

In his heart, she had always been cleaner than anyone else.

Her heart thudded wildly at his words, impossible to control.
Ruan Zhizhi stared blankly at him, her fingertips trembling ever so slightly, her entire face gradually flushing red.

This was mortifying.
Why was it that whenever it came to him, she completely lost her composure?
Right now, she must look exactly like a sixteen-year-old girl experiencing her first crush — nowhere near the poised, mature professional woman she was supposed to be.

She forced herself to calm down, steadying her voice:

“Shi Yan… can I ask you a question?”

“You can.”

Encouraged by his permission, Ruan Zhizhi hesitated for a moment, then asked softly:

“The girl you told me about before… the one you said you liked, really, really liked…
Can you tell me who she is?”

If the answer wasn’t the one she hoped for, she could give up now.

Better to pull herself out early than sink deeper into a quagmire she couldn’t escape.

Waiting hopelessly for someone to love you back…
That kind of despair, she couldn’t endure a second time.
She didn’t want her life to repeat the same tragedy again.

Shi Yan’s pupils trembled almost imperceptibly.
When he finally spoke, his always calm, steady voice was uncharacteristically uncertain:

“Do you… really want to know?”

“Really. I really want to know.”

“Ruan Zhizhi… once you know, there’s no taking it back.”

His voice was soft, faint — yet the end of it quivered, as though something long-buried and fragile was pushing to the surface.
And under her subtle, unspoken encouragement, that secret emotion had already begun to sprout, unstoppable, growing wildly.

Emboldened by alcohol, Ruan Zhizhi nodded without hesitation:

“Tell me. I won’t regret it.”

Shi Yan gazed at her, a rare, precious smile blooming on his usually cool, indifferent face.
For a fleeting moment, it was as though a thin veil fell over his features, softening his sharpness into something almost dreamlike, gentle enough to steal her breath.

She was completely entranced by that smile.
He opened his mouth, about to speak—

But just then, Ruan Zhizhi heard voices calling her name outside.
It was Li Sichen and Lu Wanyi — anxious, searching.

Instantly, she realized she’d been gone too long. They must be worried.

Shi Yan clearly heard them too.
After a pause, he bent slightly and helped Ruan Zhizhi up from the toilet seat.

“Can you walk now?”

She nodded carefully.

“No one’s outside anymore. I’ll take you out,” he murmured, gently smoothing her messy hair back into place.
Then, noticing her short boots’ laces had come undone, he crouched naturally, tying them for her without a second thought.

“As for your question… if you still want to know after you sober up, you can come find me anytime.”

Ruan Zhizhi… no matter how long it takes, I’ll always be waiting for you.

Bewitched by his rare, patient tone, Ruan Zhizhi said nothing, only nodded quietly, letting him lead her out of the men’s restroom.

Thinking back on how confidently she’d accused him earlier of being the one who’d entered the wrong bathroom, Ruan Zhizhi suddenly wished she could find a hole to crawl into.

The moment they stepped out, the deafening DJ music once again flooded her ears.
And in this chaotic place full of men and women tangled together, Ruan Zhizhi instinctively found herself leaning just a little closer to Shi Yan’s side.

In her heart, Shi Yan had already become someone she could rely on without hesitation.

Which meant… the situation might actually be worse than she thought.

The moment the two of them stepped out of the restroom corridor, they spotted Li Sichen and Lu Wanyi in the crowded bar.

The second Lu Wanyi saw her, she nearly burst into tears.
“Zhizhi! Where did you go? When I sobered up and couldn’t find you, I was so scared! There are so many people here and it’s so chaotic—if something had happened to you, what would I have done? Wuwuwu…”

Hearing the tremor in her voice, Ruan Zhizhi’s heart softened.
“I’m fine. I just felt dizzy earlier and went to the restroom to wash my face.”
She then turned her head, noticing Li Sichen beside her, still panting from rushing over, and guilt surfaced in her tone.
“Sorry… I made you worry.”

“Zhizhi, do you know how terrified I was when I couldn’t see you at the bar just now?”
Completely ignoring Shi Yan’s presence, Li Sichen strode forward and grabbed her shoulders, his reddened eyes brimming with emotion.
“Promise me… never disappear on me again, okay?”

Ruan Zhizhi stared up at his anxious face, momentarily at a loss for how to respond.

But then Shi Yan, who had been silent all this time, suddenly let out a soft, mocking laugh.
“Li Sichen, if you really love her, then don’t give her the chance to leave your sight. Stop waiting until after you’ve missed her to realize you should turn back.”
With that, he stepped forward, his movements firm, inserting himself between them and physically forcing Li Sichen away from her.
“No one… will keep standing still, waiting for you forever.”

It was as if Li Sichen had just noticed Shi Yan’s existence for the first time. He looked up slightly — Shi Yan was half a head taller than him — and his expression hardened.
“Shi Yan, and what right do you have to say this to me? Who are you to Zhizhi?”

He paused, then retorted stubbornly,
“Three years ago, Zhizhi chose me. Three years later, she’ll still choose me.”

Shi Yan leaned lazily against the wall, arms folded, his dark eyes gleaming under the bar’s flashing lights. His tone was detached as always.
“But clearly, you can’t take care of her… and you can’t love her more than you love yourself.”

Then he lowered his gaze, turning to Ruan Zhizhi, and his voice softened.
“Zhizhi… you deserve better.”

Li Sichen’s shoulders trembled slightly, as though Shi Yan’s words had struck deep. He turned back to Ruan Zhizhi, eyes filled with pleading as he reached out a hand toward her.
“Zhizhi… don’t listen to him. Come back with me, okay?”

His brows, his expression, his voice — all of it was exactly like the person she once loved the most.
And yet now, looking into his eyes… Ruan Zhizhi realized she could no longer feel that frantic, breathless rush of a racing heart.

It was as though time had rewound itself to that day — Gu Nian’s wedding.

Back then, she had also stood between Shi Yan and Li Sichen, just like this.
And back then, she had also felt just as lost, just as overwhelmed.

Her foggy mind flickered through countless memories like scenes flashing by on a film reel…
And in the end, they all came together into one single image — his eternally distant, proud face.

She once thought he was born lonely, but now she understood: perhaps all his loneliness was just him waiting for the right reunion.

She once thought he was cold and detached, but now she realized: maybe the fire in his heart… had always been burning for only one person.

Whether or not the girl Shi Yan had loved all these years was truly her… she knew one thing for certain — she couldn’t bring herself to give him up again.

The atmosphere turned tense and suffocating, starkly contrasting with the roaring, passionate energy of the dance floor.
Lu Wanyi looked around awkwardly, as if she’d stumbled into the wrong movie scene, silently observing the obvious love triangle unfolding before her.

Ruan Zhizhi pressed her lips together, hesitated for a long moment, then finally lifted her head.
With soft, pleading eyes, she turned to Shi Yan.
“Shi Yan… if you’re free… can you send me home?”