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The heavy snow was still falling.

She didn't know how much time had passed, until she felt completely cold all over. She slowly turned around, intending to go back to the girls' dormitory to sleep, when she heard a hoarse voice call out, "Xiaoyu—"

It's Cai Wenchuan!

Ye Wenyu looked up in surprise and saw Cai Wenchuan standing alone under the camphor tree in the girls' dormitory. The camphor tree is an evergreen tree with lush leaves and white snow on top. In this scene, Cai Wenchuan under the tree looked even more thin, dark and haggard.

Ye Wenyu felt awkward for a moment, unsure how to face him. However, now that he had returned to the country, she had to take him seriously.

Therefore, she agreed and had no choice but to bite the bullet and stand in front of him.

She wondered how long he had been there. Did he see Jiang Zhiming bring her the New Year's gift earlier? Would he say something to Lin Tingyue?

The snow that fell a few days ago hasn't melted yet, and now it's snowing lightly again. The new snow piles up on top of the old snow, making the world look pale and still carrying some of the dirt from the past.

Ye Wenyu recalled Cai Wenchuan and Lin Tingyue's past. Her heart ached as she thought about how his past with Lin Tingyue was like a large, indelible stain on her clothes, or a mouthful of someone else's phlegm stuck in her throat—it made her feel uncomfortable, nauseous, depressed, and miserable whenever she thought about it.

More than half a year has passed, and he has been abroad for so long, so why has he been so slow to explain or make a statement?

She stood blankly in front of Cai Wenchuan, like a wooden pillar, her mind heavy with worries.

On the surface, everything seemed calm, but Ye Wenyu felt as if her heartstrings were being severed. She wasn't a vegetable in a garden, devoid of desires; she was an ordinary person who needed warmth and love and couldn't bear betrayal and hurt.

If Cai Wenchuan loved Lin Tingyue from the beginning, then why did he take the initiative to find her and let her continue to misunderstand? She did nothing wrong, did she?

Cai Wenchuan stood blankly in front of her, like a clay statue of a bodhisattva, his face as pale as snow.

Ye Wenyu stared at him and noticed that he had lost a lot of weight in the six months he had been abroad. Before, he was neither fat nor thin, and his complexion was excellent. He looked radiant, like a celestial being. Now, however, he was skin and bones, and his face was haggard. He was still handsome, but he looked like an addict who had become addicted to drugs, controlled by a terrible inner demon. His soul was no longer under his control.

True love is terrifying, isn't it? It can completely make or break a person.

Ye Wenyu was self-aware and knew that she did not have that ability.

She finally realized with sadness that the nearly three-month-long cold estrangement between her and Cai Wenchuan was not something she had intentionally created, but rather that Cai Wenchuan was also deliberately being indifferent to her. He no longer had the passionate feelings he once had for her, and they could no longer be intimate.

Feelings are like water left in the air; they disappear without you even noticing.

Old friends change easily, yet people say that old friends are fickle.

Time passed, and as Ye Wenyu pondered her heartbreak over her past relationship, Cai Wenchuan finally spoke. He said slowly, "Xiaoyu, I'm back in China. I've come to see you." His tone was full of apology.

His voice, like Lin Tingfeng's, was tired, but it was easy to tell that Lin Tingfeng was tired because he was busy with his career, while Cai Wenchuan was tired because he was troubled by his relationship.

He slowly raised his head, looked at the deserted girls' dormitory building. The campus during winter break looked like a large graveyard. He smiled bitterly and said sadly, "Are you still spending the New Year in the girls' dormitory this year?"

Ye Wenyu didn't speak, but just looked at him silently. How she wished he had figured it out, made his choice, and realized that the person he loved most was her, Ye Wenyu, not Lin Tingyue. How she wished he would treat her like before, take the initiative to invite her home for the New Year, and let her see Uncle Cai and Aunt Cai, whom she hadn't seen for more than ten years.

But Cai Wenchuan did not.

He simply handed the two gift bags to Ye Wenyu and said to her, "Happy Chinese New Year." While wishing her happiness, there was no trace of joy in his voice.

Ye Wenyu didn't want to speak because she was afraid that if she spoke, the pain and grievances in her heart would make her voice tremble, thus letting him discover her secrets.

Therefore, she had no choice but to silently accept his gift bag.

She thought painfully that what she needed was someone who cared for her, not these cold gifts. Gifts represent a person's love and sincerity, and when they lose these meanings, they are useless.

The gifts Cai Wenchuan is giving her now are merely a fig leaf to conceal his infidelity.

Cai Wenchuan said to her in a hoarse voice, "I can't spend the Spring Festival with you this year. I plan to go back to my parents' house for the holiday."

Ye Wenyu looked up and recalled that at this time last year, he had not yet gone abroad. He lived in the university's young teachers' apartment and spent every day with her around the Spring Festival, just to give her a warm and lively holiday.

In just one year, he has undergone tremendous changes.

Last year, no matter how much she tried to persuade him, he refused to go back to his parents' home to see them. But this year, he took the initiative to ask to go back and visit them.

This is really bizarre; Ye Wenyu was both in pain and bewildered.

Seeing that Ye Wenyu remained silent, Cai Wenchuan knew that she had probably sensed something. Thinking about how he had wronged her, he felt a burning sense of guilt.

He asked in a hoarse voice, "Xiaoyu, are you... are you doing well?"

"Me? I'm fine." Ye Wenyu forced a smile, finally able to speak. She calmly repeated the good news she had told her mother, only the good news.

Cai Wenchuan nodded and said in a hoarse voice, "Then I'm relieved."

When Ye Wenyu heard the word "don't worry," she felt an indescribable pain in her heart. A man will only be completely at ease with you when he doesn't love you. She wondered if she should return the gift that Cai Wenchuan had given her last year.

After all, those were a huge sacrifice for him.

Cai Wenchuan gazed sadly at Ye Wenyu, as if he had something to say, but after opening his mouth, he remained silent when he saw Ye Wenyu's strong and sensible appearance.

When a person is in a state of turmoil, telling others their darkest secrets will only complicate matters and cause them more pain.

Therefore, he said with a wry smile, "It's getting late, I'm going back now. You should get some rest too. You live alone at school, so be careful."

Ye Wenyu nodded, but still didn't say anything.

Cai Wenchuan turned and left. Ye Wenyu watched his receding figure, her heart aching as she thought, "Some loves are just like this. They disappear without a word of breaking up, and then the two people are no longer close, no longer caring, no longer trusting each other, and gradually become strangers."