Chapter 67 Pretending not to know...

Pretending not to hear was too late, but Fang Minzhou didn't even try to pretend.

The bamboo leaves swayed gently in the breeze, the lamplight was dim, and it stirred Wang Kan's expression, like a pool of ever-changing water.

Fang Minzhou thought of that evening many years ago in high school. The light was dimmer then, and she couldn't see Wang Kan's expression clearly, but it was probably similar to what she saw now. Fang Minzhou felt strange; he was the one gossiping behind people's backs, so why was he still so resentful?

She smiled slightly and looked again at the painting on the wall.

"I'm done." Joyce came out of the bathroom, followed Fang Minzhou's gaze and praised, "This painting is nice." She then caught sight of someone behind the window out of the corner of her eye and said, "Hey, hello bosses."

He Wenlun looked over when he heard the voice, and his face instantly froze. "...Hello, hello, everyone's here."

Fang Minzhou raised an eyebrow, slightly surprised, pretending not to notice them, and said, "Want to take another look?"

Didn't you hear me?

He Wenlun glanced at Wang Kan again, his face inexplicably gloomy, as if he was the only one feeling guilty.

"Let's head back now." He Wenlun straightened his back secretly.

On the way back to the guesthouse, everyone chatted in twos and threes, with Fang Minzhou leading the way.

Joyce and Xiongxiong are going to try and win tickets to a singer's concert in Jiangcheng next month. Although the chances of winning are slim, they're happy to participate.

They asked the others if they wanted to join, but Lao Wei waved his hand, saying he had a phobia of this singer. When asked why, he said it was because his girlfriend in college really liked this singer. Once, he went to a concert with her, but they had a fight and broke up after the concert.

"Really?"

"Really?"

"That means you two already had conflicts, right? I've seen many people propose at his concerts."

Old Wei sighed, "I suppose so."

"So you don't stop listening to his songs now, do you?"

At the risk of being ridiculed, Lao Wei nodded.

Joyce and Xiongxiong exclaimed "Ouch!" as if this meant that Lao Wei hadn't forgotten his ex.

Old Wei had to solemnly clarify: "I do have a trauma, what's it called, PTSD. Whenever I hear his songs, I'll remember the scene of arguing back then, and I can't stand it."

Joyce and Xiongxiong exclaimed in unison: "Scumbag!"

He Wenlun also laughed.

"How am I a scumbag?" Old Wei protested, feeling wronged.

"Your ex-girlfriend is the one who's traumatized. She was enjoying the concert and then they broke up."

Old Wei paused for a moment, then said, "It's alright, she was the one who broke up with me."

"And then you agreed?"

"..."

"They might have just been saying things out of anger, and you didn't even try to stop them."

These people don't know the specifics, and it's a trivial matter that Lao Wei doesn't want to talk about anymore. "I think she still went to this person's concert later."

"How did you know? You've been keeping an eye on her. What does your ex-girlfriend look like? Maybe we'll run into her at this concert."

Old Wei got annoyed by the embarrassment and clicked his tongue, "We were college classmates, we still keep in touch."

"Just kidding," Joyce said, giving Lao Wei a way out.

Xiongxiong noticed Guan Yang next to her and was surprised to find that there was a young boy who had just come of age. "Little brother, don't be scared by this old man. Going to a concert with your girlfriend is a wonderful thing."

Guan Yang nodded sheepishly.

Old Wei sneered, "You all went to see it with your boyfriends?"

"I've seen it."

"But they've broken up now, haven't they?"

"..."

"Don't try to twist the facts, okay? The breakup happened later, it doesn't affect your ability to attend the concert." Xiongxiong said, looking around and pulling Fang Minzhou to her side.

Fang Minzhou smiled but remained silent.

"Don't you feel awkward thinking about it after you've broken up?" Old Wei asked again.

When Wang Kan was called out by name, he raised his hand.

Guan Yang was the only one who felt uncomfortable, keeping his hands in his pockets the whole time.

"Okay, next question," Lao Wei said. "Raise your hand if you still feel good about it now."

The three girls and He Wenlun all raised their hands. Old Wei lost, but he got a vote from President Wang and was satisfied.

He Wenlun couldn't help but ask Wang Kan, "What happened? Did you two have a fight too?"

Unexpectedly, Wang Kan smiled and said, "Yes."

The others' eyes lit up with the excitement of hearing gossip, but they looked at each other, wanting to ask but not daring to.

As Fang Minzhou walked under the tree, a drop of water fell on her face, feeling icy cold.

He Wenlun glanced at Fang Minzhou, wondering if she had overheard his conversation with Wang Kan in the theater troupe. He didn't want to tease Wang Kan too much at the moment. He had only heard that Wang Kan had a girlfriend he was very close to in college; they were in a long-distance relationship but saw each other often. He didn't know whether this would be a plus or a minus for him.

"And then you broke up?" Xiongxiong boldly asked.

Although Mr. Wang is usually quiet and reserved, they work for an event planning company, and since everyone is around the same age, they get along quite freely and equally.

After all, who hasn't had a relationship that ended without a trace during their college years? It's a thing of the past, so it's okay to talk about it.

"No," Wang Kan replied flatly.

"Then why did you argue?"

"She was too busy and was called away by someone else halfway through."

Several people said "Oh," each understanding what the other meant.

Mr. Wang is a workaholic, so it's not surprising that his ex-girlfriend was too.

Aside from matters of principle, arguments between couples are usually over trivial things. Having asked enough, Xiongxiong turned to Lao Wei and asked, "What about you? Why do you argue?"

Old Wei thought for a moment, then said, "I forgot."

Xiongxiong rolled her eyes at her.

They walked on the bridge, the babbling of the streams on either side drowning out the sound of the rice seedlings sprouting and flowering. Fang Minzhou looked ahead and quietly took a deep breath.

Back at the guesthouse, Grandma cooked pear and white fungus soup. Wang Kan said he was going to take a shower first. After a while, everyone else had finished drinking, but Wang Kan still hadn't come down. Grandma was about to take it upstairs when Fang Minzhou said, "I'll do it."

Knock on the door.

It's not open.

Knock on the door again.

The door was opened.

Wang Kan was wearing a white bathrobe, his hair slightly damp. When he saw her, a look of surprise flashed across his face, then his eyebrows twitched slightly, the meaning of which was clear: Didn't they say there was no food delivery service?

But Fang Minzhou still reached out to take the tray, and instead of handing it over, she asked, "Would it be convenient for me to come in?"

Wang Kan was clearly taken aback for a moment, and then spoke again with an ambiguous smile, "Isn't that inappropriate? There's nothing in my room that needs repair right now."

"I have something to say to you," Fang Minzhou said frankly.

Wang Kan looked at Fang Minzhou carefully and stepped aside to let her in.

Fang Minzhou placed the tray on the coffee table and then sat down on the single sofa to the side. Wang Kan closed the door, walked over, sat down on the long sofa, picked up a spoon, and took a sip of the sweet soup.

"How does it taste? Is it to your liking?" Fang Minzhou asked.

She admitted that her words were somewhat sarcastic.

"You didn't cook it, did you? It's fine," Wang Kan said. "What are you trying to say?"

He was direct, and Fang Minzhou also got straight to the point. She had come with the intention of resolving the matter, saying, "I should apologize to you again about the concert. I didn't know you were still bothered by it."

She remembered that their argument wasn't just because she had to leave halfway through.

After the National Day holiday during her sophomore year, Wang Kan's favorite singer announced a tour plan, with the first stop in Beicheng.

That was a meeting time outside of their agreed-upon schedule, but there was a reason for it. On the phone, Wang Kan cautiously but expectantly asked her if she wanted to come along, saying he would buy the tickets, "But it's okay if you don't want to go."

“Sure,” Fang Minzhou said. “I also like listening to his songs.”

"What?"

He routinely gets scolded, even though he's right.

More than the concert itself, she was there to accompany Wang Kan, and she didn't need him to cover the expenses. The ticket prices were a bit expensive, but still within her budget; her bigger worry was not having enough time.

After being recommended for scholarships at the beginning of her sophomore year, Fang Minzhou became more acutely aware of the gap between herself and her classmates. She began participating in some projects and competitions, and the concert was scheduled for the final stage of a business competition's preliminary rounds. However, by then, the business plan should have already been submitted, and Fang Minzhou felt there wouldn't be much of a problem.

Later that night, Wang Kan sent me a ticket purchase link and left a message saying, "Remember to grab it."

The next morning, Fang Minzhou woke up and saw the ticket, replying "Okay" without opening it to look at it carefully, rushing to class first. In the afternoon, when Wang Kan asked her if she had managed to get a ticket, Fang Minzhou realized that it was a ticket available for purchase that day; she hadn't tried, and neither had Wang Kan.

Fang Minzhou was embarrassed. Wang Kan said that if she wasn't interested, "I can really go by myself, I'm not a child." Fang Minzhou said that she wanted to go, but she had been too busy lately. In the end, Wang Kan bought the ticket from a scalper.

Looking back on the incident, Fang Minzhou felt that perhaps she shouldn't have made the promise back then, but if she hadn't gone, it might have caused other arguments.

Essentially, although Wang Kan appeared understanding, he still wanted to be with her, as did Fang Minzhou. Moreover, both emotionally and logically, she couldn't let Wang Kan go alone.

In order to free up time for the concert, she worked overtime to complete tasks in the week leading up to the concert. However, in the middle of the concert, she still received a message from her senior, Zhuo Ruizhuo, saying that there were problems with the data processed by others and that there were not enough people to do the work. She had to rush back to school to help.

That competition was originally because the senior student was a good person and was willing to help her and other lower-grade students.

Fang Minzhou felt that Wang Kan should be able to understand her, but Wang Kan couldn't, so they argued, but later made up.

Liking someone might happen without you even realizing it, but the reasons for breaking up are always traceable.

Fang Minzhou felt that her relationship with Wang Kan was like a two-player game. They encountered problems, so they saved and revived, but they could never complete the game. After failing once again, Wang Kan chose to quit.

It might be Game Over for him, but a Bad Ending for her.

Fang Minzhou thought that those who withdrew first wouldn't hold a grudge like she did.

Wang Kan put down his chopsticks, turned to face her, and after a while, his lips twitched slightly as he asked, "Is this all you wanted to tell me?"

"Because I noticed you didn't raise your hand just now."

"I'm just stating the facts, it doesn't mean I still mind." Wang Kan stared at her, his deep gaze piercingly sharp. "And you, do you really think it's wonderful?"

Fang Minzhou looked at Wang Kan, perhaps she had just had a dream, his youthful appearance was now clearly in her mind.

His face shape, features, and even hairstyle haven't changed much, but he's lost his youthful naiveté and his bright, smiling eyes. When they no longer love each other, is the Wang Kan of today the same person as the Wang Kan of the past?

Fang Minzhou suddenly smiled, as if a harmless lie had been exposed, and said with a little embarrassment, "It wasn't very nice, but I didn't want to cause any trouble, so I raised my hand anyway."

The suppressed anger in Wang Kan's body cracked open, and branches uncontrollably grew from that crack, turning it into a ferocious shape. "You yourself are hypocritical, and you think that I didn't raise my hand because I still care. What if I had raised my hand?"

Fang Minzhou was not provoked. Now that she had spoken, she was determined to make things clear. There were some things she had kept to herself for many years.

Time flies; they've spent more time apart than they've actually been together.

“After the breakup, I thought about it. I always said you were immature and impulsive, but I also had some shortcomings. For example, I was too strong-willed and not very gentle and considerate. I was always controlling and meddlesome. When we argued, you were always the one who came to make up with me.” Fang Minzhou said slowly, “So many times, you were actually accommodating my emotions, but I didn’t realize it myself. Including the fact that you wanted to break up in the end, it might be because I accidentally broke my promise again. I need to apologize to you for that.”

She should be open and honest, but she couldn't help feeling a little uneasy, perhaps because the past was hard to bring up and the lingering unease was hard to shake off. "I'll be staying here for a while longer, and you probably won't mind if I don't come to Sungai for the event. Besides, we might run into each other in other places later. If possible, let's try to get along peacefully?"

Wang Kan's unpleasant expression told her the answer.

Fang Minzhou was puzzled. Did he really hate her that much? Had she really caused him such deep harm?

She backed down: "If it doesn't work out, that's okay. I won't contact you unless it's absolutely necessary, so you can rest assured."

"Don't worry..." Wang Kan repeated the word with a cold laugh, "Fang Minzhou, so your acting skills are this good, or have you always been good at acting?"

Fang Minzhou understood Wang Kan's implied meaning and calmly replied, "I'm serious, I don't want to argue with you anymore."

"What makes you think I can still get along with you?" Wang Kan said coldly.

Fang Minzhou clenched her fist, her nails digging into her palm. "If it can't be done, then forget it."

She didn't insist.

"Okay, I understand. I'll treat you like a stranger, so you can rest assured."

“That’s not what I meant.” Fang Minzhou was annoyed by Wang Kan’s sarcastic tone and didn’t want to be misunderstood by him anymore. “Right now, in front of my grandparents and your colleagues, we can continue to pretend we don’t know each other. But in the future, like at a class reunion, we might meet again. Are you going to make me give you the cold shoulder like this? Or are you going to avoid me forever? I just feel that we don’t need to become like enemies.”

Wang Kan said coolly, "I can't be as generous as you, being able to be friends with your blind date and also with your ex-boyfriend."

"You don't have to be so rude."

"Is that hard to hear?"

"Or tell me what you're still angry about? I can apologize to you."

"Do I need an apology from you?" Wang Kan's anger remained undiminished.

With each question, Fang Minzhou's patience and good temper finally ran out. "If you want to be like this, there's nothing I can do. Whatever. I thought that after all these years, you would at least have made some progress. You asked me before if I was going to say you were childish again. Now I'm answering you, yes, you are still very childish."

After finishing the call, seeing Wang Kan's forehead veins bulging and his speechless, clenched teeth, Fang Minzhou felt an unusual sense of satisfaction.

She was being hypocritical, and she wasn't a generous person either. Yes, why should she try to get along with him? She used to be so angry with him, but... she thought she had really let go, that she should let go.

The guesthouse's single rooms were quite spacious, resembling single apartments. A sudden silence fell over the bright, airy room. Fang Minzhou looked at the white fungus soup on the coffee table; her grandmother had only added a small amount of sugar. She could smell the scent of Wang Kan's shower gel. Their gazes didn't meet; there was nowhere to hide.

After a long silence, Wang Kan spoke, her tone unexpectedly gentle: "Fang Minzhou, you should have said this a long time ago. This is what you truly mean."

She spoke so well; every word she uttered was like a stone thrown at him, crushing him like a dog that dared not bark.

Fang Minzhou looked at Wang Kan again, feeling a sense of the impermanence of life: Why did things turn out this way between them?

"When I break up with you first, do you feel a sense of relief?"

"yes."

"Really?" Wang Kan smiled faintly. "You might not believe it, but I thought at the time that breaking up with you would be a good thing for you."

"Indeed, it seems I shouldn't apologize to you; I should thank you instead."

"You're welcome," Wang Kan replied. "So, how have you been these past few years?"

"fine."

"That's good."

"And you?"

"I'm fine too."

Fang Minzhou nodded. "Getting together in the first place was a mistake. I've already told you not to pursue me."

Wang Kan laughed out loud.

The atmosphere suddenly changed, and everything became calm.

After Wang Kan finished the bowl of white fungus soup, Fang Minzhou picked up the tray and left. Before she opened the door and stepped out, she heard Wang Kan say softly behind her, "I'm sorry."