He Yi looked at Zheng, smiling and wiping away tears, and said helplessly, "Girls are like this, Xiao Yi is the same, usually competing with each other, but when they see a slightly sad TV show, they cry so much, it's really incomprehensible."

  Zheng Wei said, "No way, women are just easy to shed tears for other people's stories, it's quite ridiculous." Her eyes were still red, but her enthusiasm suddenly surged, and she stood up and called out, "Don't just talk about those irrelevant things, let's drink!"

  Everyone nodded in agreement. If she had been somewhat reserved when drinking at first, now she was completely uninhibited, and the more she drank, the clearer her head seemed to be. Under this kind of momentum, those old hands on the wine scene were all afraid of her.

  After buying the ticket, a group of people walked to the entrance of the restaurant, chatting and laughing. He Yi jokingly suggested, "It's still early, do you want to find a place to start the next round?"

  "Everyone's fine, right? Those who didn't fall down, let's go have some fun, either to a PUB or sing K?"

  He Yi was somewhat surprised, seeing her initial nervous appearance, guessing that she had another appointment after dinner, but it was just to tease her, didn't expect her to take it seriously. The people present were all relatively young middle and backbone personnel, who usually had a good relationship and loved to play, hearing Zheng Wei's proposal, they responded one after another, several cars went straight to the agreed location.

  In the KTV room, everyone ordered a few more beers and was half-drunk. Some were playing cards, while others were singing. He Yi had always been the microphone king, and when he sang Jacky Cheung's songs, he looked quite like him. One after another, his signature tunes came on, and as he sang, he suddenly realized that the hostess had become very quiet, leaning against the sofa, not making a sound. He Yi was closest to her among everyone, so he sat down beside her with a thud, "What's wrong? You were fine just now, who made you angry? I'll help you vent your anger."

  Zheng Wei gave him a push, "Go on, sing your song, I like this one, you sang it well today, beyond expectations, I'm listening."

  He Yi sat down beside her and picked up the microphone to continue singing.

  "...I sang and she was enchanted, I sang and her heart broke. Adults parting ways are like nothing matters. With friends buying karaoke, singing my song to accompany people in tears, hey... accompanying people in tears..." He turned his head, "Switch to another one, today this song is not quite fitting, or else I'll sing a birthday song for you?"

  Zheng applauded slightly, "This song is sung well." Then picked up the beer glass and clinked it with his, "I'll drink, whether you do or not is up to you."

  He Yina pretended to be weak, raised her head and drank to the bottom, and muttered, "Going back will have a face to look at... Look, the phone is coming..."

  He took out his mobile phone, looked at the number, raised an eyebrow in surprise, gestured to turn down the volume of the music, and then walked out of the private room into the corridor while answering the call.

  In just a few minutes, he pushed open the door and walked in with a serious face.

  Someone laughed and said, "He Yi, your wife is checking on you!"

  He waved his hand in annoyance, "No. You all continue, I'll leave first." He was an active member of the group, and everyone said, "If you leave, what's the point for us? Afraid of your wife being controlled to death, call Wei Shao Yi over together with your family."

  Zheng Wei also said, "Yes, let's call Shao Yi over together. What's she doing staying at home all the time?"

  He Yi said, "It's her. The call was from Chen Da's assistant, saying that there were problems with the quality assurance documents of our project department and asking me to revise them overnight and send them back to him. Old Wang, I'm afraid you'll have to go back with me too, as some data still needs to be provided by your marketing department."

  Everyone says, "Is it necessary for him to do this? Can't he just do it at work tomorrow?"

  "Never mind, never mind. The higher the official, the more oppressive to people. You're not unaware of his temper. If things aren't placed on his desk by tomorrow morning, his face will likely look even worse." He Yik picked up his coat, "Old Wang, let's go."

  It's a bit of a letdown for everyone, "Zhou Qu hasn't even caught up with him yet."

  Zheng Wei saw the scene and also stood up with his things, "In my opinion, since they have something to do, let's all disperse together. Let's play more happily next time when there's nothing going on."

  Since she said so, everyone nodded in agreement.

  As they reached the gate, those who had cars all said, "Zheng Wei, would you like me to give you a ride?"

  "He Yiyu said, 'You're not living in a big courtyard, are you? I'll just send you on your way, let's go.'"

  Zheng Wei shook his head, "You go back first, this place is quite close to my university alma mater, and it's still early, I'll go for a walk and clear my head."

  "You're a girl, you've had a drink, it's not safe outside, come back with me," said He Yi.

  Zheng Wei pushed him onto the car, "Go, go, I told you not to bother me, what's with all the nagging."

  He Yiyi's expression changed, "Oh, I see. You have other plans, don't you? Just say it out loud, we're not people who can't take a hint. In that case, I'll leave then. Be careful."

  Zheng Wei saw them off, and walked alone along the pedestrian path in the direction of G's place. She knew she had drunk a lot, her footsteps were a bit unsteady, but her mind was clearer than ever before, with a blank and calm clarity in her brain.

  G University is just at the front intersection, it has been nearly four years since graduation, even the school gate is not the same as before. However, Zheng Wei easily found the basketball court she used to visit most often. She sat on the spectator seat beside it, in the dimly lit area there were couples with their arms around each other, only to wonder what kind of situation these people who couldn't bear to be apart would be in after a few years.

  She sat for a while, and the phone in her bag started vibrating again. This time she finally picked up the call, and before she could say anything, the anxious voice on the other end came through, "Where are you? Why didn't you answer the phone... Speak up, what's wrong with you? Do you know how many times I've called you?"

  He couldn't see her expression at that moment, all he heard was her saying, "Sorry, I didn't hear you, I'm currently at the G Stadium basketball court, do you want to come over?"

  He asked in puzzlement, "Where did you run off to... Weiwei, is something wrong?"

  "She said lightly, 'Nothing much, it's been a long time since I came back to take a look. If you come over, we'll talk again.'"

  He arrived quickly, perhaps she was immersed in her own thoughts, and didn't even notice the passage of time. It wasn't until he sat down beside her that she realized it, this place, this scene was too familiar, but somehow couldn't overlap with memories.

  "You've had quite a bit, haven't you? Your face is all red like that." His voice was tinged with tender reproach.

  She turned her head, smiled at him, and this smile made him dizzy for a moment. Every day, they smiled and nodded to each other, but how long had it been since he last saw the cheerful face that captivated his soul?

  He raised his hand as if possessed, wanting to lightly touch her smiling face, where there were countless dimples that had made him drunk, but just as he touched the delicate skin, his hand retreated slightly, as if afraid that what was in front of him was just an illusion that would disappear with a touch.

  Her hand pressed down on his in time, overlapping on the back of his hand, slowly sticking to her face.

  "A Zheng." She called out his name as she had countless times in her dreams.

  Chen Xiao Zheng closed his eyes, this was the warmth he had yearned for so long, yet no longer dared to hope for. If God were to ask him at that moment, what would you be willing to trade in exchange for holding onto this moment? He would say, "Everything."

  Really, fame, wealth, career, family, life... everything can be given up, as long as she is here, as long as this warmth of the moment. He isn't someone who loves without regard for anything else, yet at this time he has no other desires.

  He felt her hand gently stroking the back of his, with a hint of nervousness, almost holding his breath, afraid that as a man he would cry because of this. He repeatedly asked himself in his heart, Chen Xiao Zheng, what virtue and ability do you have to still have such a day...

  Her hand found his ring finger, then his middle finger, wandering over them one by one.

  "A Zheng..." She murmured again.

  "I'm here, I'm here." He replied in a low voice.

  Zheng Wei's fingers wrapped around his middle finger, such ambiguity made him blush and become infatuated to the point where he almost missed her casual remark.

  "Isn't something missing here?"

  "Huh?"

  "Perhaps it's a ring?"

  ……

  He didn't know how long it took him to digest her words, and he was suddenly shocked, his hand on her face shrinking back. She grabbed his hand again, her smile still sweet, just like the teasing when they were in love, "Answer me."

  He didn't say a word, slowly, his head drooped down, feeling the temperature of her hand gradually cooling down, which also made him feel chilled to the bone.

  Her smile was still there, but it had become infinitely desolate. "You know what? Even in that moment just now, I actually still had a thread of expectation. I hoped you would say 'I don't understand what you're saying', or maybe just shake your head."

  She suddenly felt no longer sad, perhaps at the moment when she shed tears at the dinner table, everything had already been decided. When she heard those unconfirmed rumors, she woke up instantly, and only then did she realize that she was not believing in rumors, but rather too familiar with him. The current quest for evidence is just a desperate attempt to cling to the last hope, waiting for it to completely disappear.

  "Don't be like that, Ah Zheng." She saw the pain in his expression and wanted to comfort him. "Is she the kind of woman who suits you, the one who can make your great hall rise from the ground? If so, I'm really happy for you, you've finally found her."

  He didn't argue about anything, this was the life he chose, only he hadn't expected that in this life he could still experience such sweetness as before, and so he had extravagant hopes again, falling from the most beautiful dream, pain is also inevitable.

  His silence thus took on a sense of despair and self-abandonment.

  Zheng Wei didn't look at her, she gazed into the distance, as if speaking to him, yet also to herself. "Perhaps you know, I never thought about what it would be like for a Zheng Wei who no longer loves you. In the years you were gone, even in my most difficult moments, I never hated you, because the happiness you gave me was not less than the pain of our separation. You left, and I still had memories, I could continue to live, get married, and spend the rest of my life with those memories. When I'm old, maybe I'll have forgotten your last departure, and only tell my children and grandchildren that when I was young, there was a boy who loved me, he gave me the happiest years of my life. But you came back, this time you helped me, I not only hate you, but also thoroughly despise you. Chen Xiao Zheng, I can finally stop loving you, it's all thanks to you."

  She thought she had cried, but actually hadn't.

  When he lifted his head, his face was wet. He then used his other hand to wrap her hand in his palm, as if he had made up his mind. "If I told you that there's a special reason between me and Ouyang, would you still believe me?"

  Zheng said in a soft voice, "I can't believe you again and again, it's impossible..." She spoke word by word, watching the light in his eyes fade away slowly, finally turning cold.

  Perhaps they should have understood that the little dragon had long since disappeared, and the proud and aloof young man she had loved with all her heart had also died in the spring of his youth. Now sitting opposite each other were Zheng Wei and Chen Xiao Zheng, Secretary Zheng and Assistant Chen, two ordinary men and women who were gradually losing their luster in the mortal world. Like a song that stopped at its most thrilling moment, it wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but they were too greedy, stubbornly thinking they could sing on, only to find out that the melody that followed was unbearable.

  "You go ahead," Zheng Wei said, "we both have work tomorrow."

  "Yes, we still have to go to work tomorrow." We used to think that we could die for love, but in fact, love can't kill us. It will only prick us with a needle at the most painful spot, and then we'll be left with no tears to cry. We'll toss and turn, become experts in our own suffering, and be tempered like steel. You're not the wind, I'm not the sand, and no matter how entwined we are, we can't reach the ends of the earth. Wipe away your tears, tomorrow morning, we both have to go to work.

  "I'll send you back."

  She smiled slightly, looking at him finally restrained himself and stood up.

  He's a clever man, and at this point, what's the use of saying more. Things that are destined to be lost, once lost, are just an early death or an early rebirth.

  "It's okay, you can go now"

  "It's so late, how can you be alone here?"

  "I'm letting you go. Chen Xiao Zheng, if you still have any lingering feelings for me, then leave now, because looking at you for one more second before work tomorrow is still unbearable."

  He turned away, remained silent for a while, then started dialing on the phone.

  "Who is it for?" Zheng Wei asked.

  Taxi company.

  Zheng pointed at his nose and said, "Don't force me to tell you to get out."

  He left, she stayed in place, bent down, taking big breaths. The weather was great, the night cool as water. Who cares about such a corner? Two hearts secretly died. She tried to stand up, only to find everything around her spinning and drifting. How much had she drunk, she knew herself.

  At this time, she still thought of Ruan Ruan first, dialed the phone, but no one answered on the other end. She called the landline, and it was the same. She walked a few steps slowly, her head getting heavier and heavier, so she sat down again. In a daze, she only knew that she had finally dialed a number, and as soon as the person on the other end said "hello", she began to sob, "I'm at G University, come quickly."