"Like the Moon in the Sky" - Chapter 11

Perhaps because she had been silent for a while, the man in the driver’s seat spoke again in a low voice.

“What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”

Zhu Jinyue snapped out of her thoughts.

After a nap, all the emotions stirred earlier had faded.

After all, ten years had already passed.

Zhu Jinyue shook her head, “No.”

Outside the car, neon lights flickered, and the towering buildings were brightly lit, presenting a familiar scene of prosperity.

—Right outside the gate of her residential complex.

“How long have we been here?” Zhu Jinyue asked him, “Why didn’t you wake me?”

Shen Qinghuai gently waved his phone, “I had some urgent work to handle, and you were sleeping so soundly, so I didn’t wake you. You don’t have any other urgent matters tonight, do you?”

Zhu Jinyue shook her head again.

The drowsiness from just waking up hadn’t completely worn off. She couldn’t help but let out a small yawn, her slightly round deer-like eyes glistening with tears that blurred the handsome features of the man beside her.

As she straightened up slightly, something slid down her.

—It was the fleece blanket.

She looked down.

It seemed to be a tan-colored blanket.

With only two people in the car, it was obvious who had covered her with it.

Zhu Jinyue pointed to the blanket, “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.” The man paused, as if remembering something, then added with a smile, “It’s new.”

Zhu Jinyue, “…”

He even remembered that she was a bit of a clean freak—and yet he claimed his memory wasn’t that great.

Though back in her second year of high school, she was just somewhat particular about cleanliness.

That it had developed into a full-blown obsession with cleanliness now was probably due to all the messy gossip she’d encountered both inside and outside her circle.

“You don’t have hyperthymesia, do you?”

Shen Qinghuai chuckled, “Not that extreme.”

Zhu Jinyue looked at the person beside her.

After ten years, his appearance hadn’t changed much. But compared to the gentle, youthful boy he used to be, he now carried an air of composed steadiness that was hard to gauge.

Though he wore a smile on his face, his eyes were like lakes veiled in mist, always seeming to conceal other emotions, making them difficult to read.

Perhaps influenced by her earlier reminiscence, Zhu Jinyue suddenly felt like asking him about the past. But though she opened her mouth, no words actually came out.

After all, ten years had passed.

And since they hadn’t been in touch for so long, asking about his personal affairs would be strange—she didn’t know if it might reopen old wounds.

Zhu Jinyue suppressed those thoughts, picked up the blanket, and reached across the center console to hand it to the driver, “Here, back to you.”

Shen Qinghuai reached out to take it.

Zhu Jinyue suddenly remembered that this person probably also had some slight cleanliness quirks.

She instantly pulled her hand back.

On the other end, Shen Qinghuai had already taken hold of the blanket.

The folds in the fleece tightened slightly.

Shen Qinghuai looked puzzled, for once, “What’s wrong?”

“Should I take it back and wash it for you?” After saying it, Zhu Jinyue felt that washing it before returning it would be troublesome, so she quickly changed her solution: “Or how about I just buy it from you? Since it’s new anyway.”

Shen Qinghuai didn’t let go. He looked at her steadily for a few seconds, his eyes still like misty lakes, then smiled and said, “Even though we haven’t been in touch for so long, we were still classmates after all. Do you really need to be this polite with me?”

Zhu Jinyue thought about it and realized he was right.

It was just a blanket.

Even if he found it off-putting and didn’t want it anymore, he certainly wasn’t short on money now—he could just toss it later.

She released her grip, and the blanket was fully taken by Shen Qinghuai.

Instead of putting it away immediately, he unfolded it and began folding it back into a neat, square shape with deliberate care.

See!

She knew this person had some quirks about cleanliness and orderliness.

She herself wasn’t much for tidying things—as long as they were clean, that was enough.

Another wave of drowsiness hit her. Remembering how late it was, Zhu Jinyue waved to the person beside her, “Well, I’m heading back then.”

Shen Qinghuai looked up, his gaze returning to her face, “Alright.”

He paused.

“Be careful.”

Zhu Jinyue nodded casually, unbuckled her seatbelt, turned slightly, and was about to open the door when she suddenly heard Shen Qinghuai call her name.

“Jinyue.”

Zhu Jinyue turned back, “Something else?”

Shen Qinghuai set the blanket aside, took a paper bag from the storage compartment, and handed it to her.

“This is for you.”

Zhu Jinyue was puzzled, “What is it?”

Why was he suddenly giving her something?

“It’s a peripheral gift set our company recently sent to players,” Shen Qinghuai explained. “I remembered I still had one in my car.”

“A peripheral gift set from You Yi Cun?” Zhu Jinyue immediately perked up with interest, withdrawing her hand from the door handle. “What’s inside?”

Shen Qinghuai, “I think there’s a plush keychain, badges, a mousepad, and things like that.”

“That’s quite a bit,” Zhu Jinyue said, still curious. “It’s not for every player, is it?”

“No,” Shen Qinghuai replied. “It’s only for those who have recharged a certain cumulative amount.”

So, it was a top-up reward to encourage spending.

If she hadn’t started playing a bit later, Zhu Jinyue was sure she would have qualified for this gift set herself. Without hesitation, she reached out and took it, “Thanks.”

Shen Qinghuai chuckled, “If anything, we should be thanking you.”

Zhu Jinyue thought about it and agreed.

She had spent quite a bit on card draws tonight—accepting this gift set felt entirely justified.

So, she lifted her porcelain chin and continued without a hint of politeness, “You really should thank me.”

The man in the driver’s seat chuckled again.

Maybe it was her imagination, but Zhu Jinyue felt the mist in his eyes seemed to have lifted slightly, and his smile appeared a bit brighter than before.

He nodded, going along with her words, “Mmm, thank you.”

Remembering her terrible luck tonight, Zhu Jinyue accepted his thanks without a second thought. She waved the paper bag at him:,”I’m really going now. Goodbye.”

“Goodbye,” Shen Qinghuai said softly.

Zhu Jinyue got out of the car and soon walked through the gates of her residential complex.

Near the entrance, the black Bentley remained parked quietly.

Some time later, a soft sound broke the silence in the dimly lit car.

Shen Qinghuai turned on his phone and saw several WeChat messages from Yuan Xiu.

—When he didn’t have to talk to people face-to-face, Yuan Xiu could be quite chatty.

Yuan Xiu: 【Where are you?】
Yuan Xiu: 【You said you’d come back to the company today to help me fix the BUG】
Yuan Xiu: 【You didn’t forget, did you?】
Yuan Xiu: 【Oh, and what about that peripheral box?】
Yuan Xiu: 【I don’t know what you took it for, but hurry up and return it. It’s the only one I have left】

Shen Qinghuai lowered his gaze. After a few seconds, his fingertips lightly tapped the screen.

Shen Qinghuai: 【Heading back now】
Yuan Xiu: 【Then hurry up!】

Yuan Xiu: 【Next time, don’t ask me for help in such crowded places】
Yuan Xiu: 【By the way, what about my peripherals?】

Shen Qinghuai: 【Thanks for your help tonight】

Yuan Xiu: 【?】
Yuan Xiu: 【Don’t talk to me like that, it’s creeping me out】
Yuan Xiu: 【Whenever you’re this polite, I feel like you’re setting me up for a bunch of trouble. Forget it, you can keep the peripherals if you want. Just hurry back and help me fix the bug】

The phone screen soon went dark again.

Shen Qinghuai turned for one last look at the high-rise building in the distance, then restarted the car.

The Bentley merged back into the road it had come from.

****

As soon as Zhu Jinyue got home, she headed straight for the bathroom.

After showering, changing into pajamas, and drying her hair, she comfortably settled on the living room sofa, using the polar bear head cushion for back support, and opened the peripheral gift box Shen Qinghuai had given her.

The gift box had two layers.

The top layer contained a mousepad and small standees of game characters.

The bottom layer was divided into two compartments: the left held a plush keychain, and the right contained round badges. Both items were extremely small.

The quality was better than she had expected.

Just like her weakness for green gemstones, Zhu Jinyue had zero resistance to these super MINI-sized items.

She first took a photo with her phone, then couldn’t resist picking up the fluffy fox to squeeze.

It felt even softer than she had imagined.

She then took out each one, giving them all a good squeeze. Even after that, she still felt it wasn’t enough—

Fluffy things were just too adorable!

If she weren’t allergic, she would have loved to keep a few live ones.

It was a pity the peripherals were from an earlier release—this time, the little tiger and panda from the New Year pool weren’t included.

But she could always ask.

Zhu Jinyue picked up her phone and opened WeChat.

Since someone had just “resurrected” that afternoon, his avatar was right at the top. She didn’t even need to scroll down to find it—she spotted the white pigeon immediately.

Zhu Jinyue tapped on his avatar and sent a message: 【Will you be releasing tiger and panda peripherals later?】

After hitting send, she noticed the time in the top right corner: it was already past 1 a.m.

Shen Qinghu was probably asleep by now.

The thought had just crossed her mind when, before she could even set her phone down, a gentle vibration came from her palm. A new reply popped up in the chat box.

Shen Qinghuai: 【We will】

He’s still awake this late?

Zhu Jinyue opened her photo album and sent him the picture she had just taken.

Zhu Jinyue: 【Please keep following this standard】
Zhu Jinyue: 【I’ll buy them!】

Shen Qinghuai: 【Okay】
Shen Qinghuai: 【It would be our honour】

Zhu Jinyue stared at the screen for a few seconds, almost able to imagine the tone of his voice as he said those words with a smile.

He’s certainly become smoother with his words now.

Maybe it was the change of environment, or perhaps the fluffiness had a healing effect, but Zhu Jinyue was in a much better mood than when she had woken up that afternoon. She casually asked another question: 【Why are you still awake?】

Shen Qinghuai: 【Some last-minute work requires overtime】

How pitiful.

Zhu Jinyue let out another small yawn.

She could go to sleep now.

But for workaholics, overtime might actually be enjoyable—her sister was certainly like that.

Zhu Jinyue: 【Then keep busy. I’m off to sleep】
Shen Qinghuai: 【Okay】
Shen Qinghuai: 【Good night】

Zhu Jinyue didn’t reply further. She got up, slipped on her pajamas, and headed to the bedroom.

She left the fluffy items on the coffee table—she could see them again first thing in the morning.

The apartment had a cleaning auntie who came regularly. The warm atmosphere carried the scent of sunshine. Zhu Jinyue turned off the light and closed her eyes.

In the darkness, she suddenly remembered that Shen Qinghuai had also given her a gift on her birthday.

The birthday gifts she received that day were all sent to her home by Fu Zhiwang’s people the next day. But because the young master had made such a spectacle, she ended up with too many gifts. Unwrapping them was a chore, so she had delayed for two days. Then her parents and grandfather returned, and she forgot about it.

She’d open them tomorrow when she went back.

Zhu Jinyue slept until 11 a.m. the next day. As soon as she opened her phone, she saw a message from Cheng Yan asking if she needed the car today.

Half-asleep, she replied: 【No, you stay at the hospital. How’s your mom?】

Cheng Yan: 【She’s stabilized】

Zhu Jinyue: 【Call me if you need any help】

Cheng Yan: 【Giving me time off is already a huge help】

Zhu Jinyue wasn’t fully awake yet. Her phone slipped from her hand, and she fell back asleep.

When she woke up again, it was almost 1 p.m.—she was pretty much woken up by hunger.

Frowning, Zhu Jinyue first called a nearby hotel to have food delivered, then slowly crawled out of bed.

By the time she finished washing up, lunch had just arrived.

After eating, Zhu Jinyue initially planned to call Uncle Zhang to pick her up and take her back to the villa. But just before dialing, she remembered there was a Rolls-Royce Cullinan in the garage here.

It was a welcome-back gift from Zhu Qinghao.

Zhu Jinyue knew how to drive—she just didn’t enjoy it.

Her mind tended to wander easily, and she didn’t like tasks that required intense concentration, especially something as monotonous as driving.

Besides, her driving skills were only average. Her parents’ driving talent seemed to have been entirely inherited by Zhu Qinghao—

When Zhu Qinghao was stressed, she used racing as a way to unwind.

It had been a while since she last drove. Even though she didn’t like it, she figured she should put her hard-earned driver’s license to use. So she didn’t call Uncle Zhang. Instead, she went back to the bedroom to get the car keys and drove herself back to the villa.

The sound of the car pulling into the garage caught Aunt Yang’s attention.

As soon as Zhu Jinyue got out of the car, Aunt Yang rushed over, looking startled, “Yueyue, why did you drive back yourself? Was everything okay on the road?”

Zhu Jinyue nodded. “Everything was fine.”

“Cheng Yan’s mom is at the hospital, right?” Aunt Yang looked her over from head to toe, as if worried she might be hurt. “Why didn’t you ask Uncle Zhang to pick you up?”

Zhu Jinyue, “Auntie Yang, I didn’t bribe the examiner back then.”

“Ah?” Auntie Yang was taken aback.

Zhu Jinyue said with a stern face, “I got my driver’s license on my own.”

Auntie Yang came back to her senses, “Of course, there’s nothing our Yueyue can’t learn.”

Zhu Jinyue was amused by her again, “By the way, Auntie Yang, where did you put all those gifts Fu Zhiwang sent last time?”

“They’re in the storage room on the second floor. Do you want to open them now? Do you need our help?” Auntie Yang asked.

Zhu Jinyue, “I’ll open them myself. You can go about your work.”

She went up to the second floor and pushed open the door to the storage room.

She remembered that the gift Shen Qinghuai gave her that day was in a rather large box. It wasn’t even placed on the sofa—it was given to her by Ye Qian along with his own birthday gift when she first arrived at the estate. At the time, it seemed Shen Qinghuai hadn’t arrived yet.

The target was too large for Zhu Jinyue to miss.

She opened both gifts together and found that the two had given her the same thing.

It was a ceramic ornament from an Italian brand called HOPEBIRD—a pair of gold-trimmed ceramic birds, each in a different style.

They were quite cute, and the name had a good meaning, making it a very appropriate and suitable gift.

But for some reason, Zhu Jinyue felt that the gift didn’t quite match Shen Qinghuai’s style; it seemed more like something Ye Qian would choose.

Then again, she couldn’t quite say what Shen Qinghuai’s gift-giving style should be like.

This was actually the first time she had received a gift from Shen Qinghuai.

Back in her second year of high school at Xingnan, she had held a birthday party, but Shen Qinghuai hadn’t attended.

Wait.

She had sort of received something “given” by him before.

…

After getting the IV drip that day, Zhu Jinyue took two days off to rest at home. Right after that was the National Day holiday, so by the time she returned to school, it was already mid-October.

When they found out she was sick, both Zhu Yuanshan and Zhu Qinghao came to Xingnan to see her during the long holiday. Zhu Jinyue’s mood improved slightly, and when she arrived in the classroom that morning, she didn’t slump over her desk to sleep as she usually did.

Qu Wei, always diligent, had already arrived. As soon as she saw Zhu Jinyue, she greeted her energetically, “Yueyue, you’re back in class!”

Zhu Jinyue nodded at her.

Qu Wei added, “I had a feeling you’d be back today, so I wiped down your desk and chair for you while I was at it.”

Hearing that her desk and chair were already clean, Zhu Jinyue set her backpack down and sat directly. Remembering that the housekeeper had stuffed a box of pastries into her backpack before she left, she took it out and handed it to Qu Wei.

“Thanks. My housekeeper made them.”

Qu Wei accepted it happily.

“I’ll have them later,” she said, then asked, “Are you fully recovered now?”

Zhu Jinyue paused slightly while zipping up her backpack.

After the long holiday, she had almost forgotten that she hadn’t thanked Shen Qinghuai yet.

If only she had asked the housekeeper to pack an extra box of pastries for her this morning.

Just as Zhu Jinyue was about to turn around to see if Shen Qinghuai had arrived, a boy named Li Xinming from her class came over to talk to her.

“Zhu Jinyue, you’re back in class?”

Zhu Jinyue glanced up and saw a face she had no memory of.

Her mood had only slightly improved, and she wasn’t in the mood to chat with someone she didn’t know at all, so she just nodded dismissively.

But the other person clearly didn’t pick up on her reluctance to talk. He continued speaking and even leaned against her desk.

“I heard you got acute gastroenteritis after drinking milk tea at Shen Qinghuai’s shop, right? I’ve always thought the stuff in their shop wasn’t clean. You shouldn’t have gone there for milk tea.”

Only then did Zhu Jinyue take a closer look at him.

His hairstyle was clearly carefully styled, but his features were rather plain.

The school’s uniform dress code somewhat blurred the economic differences among students, but some people just couldn’t help showing off.

The person in front of her was one of them.

The watch on his wrist and the shoes on his feet had logos so large it was as if he was afraid others wouldn’t notice—he might as well have written “I’m rich” all over his face.

He also carried a strange smell, like a mix of perfume and sweat.

“My gastroenteritis has nothing to do with the milk tea shop. And—” Zhu Jinyue frowned, “don’t lean on my desk.”

Li Xinming awkwardly straightened up but still seemed somewhat unconvinced. He continued, “You went to the hospital right after drinking their milk tea. How could it not be related?”

Zhu Jinyue’s patience ran out, and her face turned cold. “I said it’s not related. Can’t you understand plain language?”

Li Xinming’s face flushed red and then pale before he finally turned and walked away.

Qu Wei handed her a couple of wet wipes and said quietly, “Don’t pay attention to him. He’s just jealous because the only thing he has going for him is his family’s demolition compensation money, and he can’t measure up to Shen Qinghuai in anything else.”

Zhu Jinyue nodded, took the wet wipes, wiped the part of the desk where he had leaned, and then used the remaining wipe to clean her hands.

After hanging up her backpack, she finally turned to look behind her.

In the last row of her column, a boy in school uniform was bowing his head doing homework.

She didn’t know when he had arrived.

Nor did she know if he had heard the conversation just now.

Zhu Jinyue walked over to his seat.

“Shen Qinghuai.”

Shen Qinghuai looked up, his expression calm. “Are you better now?”

The moment Zhu Jinyue met his eyes, she suddenly remembered what she had said to him that afternoon in the emergency room.

How had she managed to say something like that?

So embarrassing.

The awkwardness hit her belatedly, and her ears grew warm.

Perhaps because he hadn’t heard her speak, Shen Qinghuai asked softly, “Is something wrong?”

Zhu Jinyue didn’t like owing favors. She touched her ear, suppressing the embarrassment, and said, “Thank you for what happened last time. Let me treat you to a meal today.”