Keep your 100,000 for a duck.

In mid-September, the weather in Dong'an City was filled with the scent of autumn. It was chilly, and a slight cold air crept into his collar. Chu Sinian pulled his coat tighter.

On the way to the library, Ning Zicheng was still chasing after him, chatting, "Why work so hard? I'll support you. I'm not short of money. Who forced you to come to my house? Anyway, my parents..."

Chu Sinian ignored him and went to reply to messages on his phone.

Yu Shi: [Sinian, he's come looking for me again.]

Chu Sinian was a little dizzy and typed back: 【You want to get back together?】

Yu Shi: [I don't know. He said he was just trying to appease his parents.]

Chu Sinian almost burst out laughing, replying, "I won't get involved in your affairs. You think it over and make your decision."

Yu Shi didn't expect this answer, but Chu Sinian didn't want to waste any more words trying to persuade her. In his mind, the matter between Liang Jingsi and Yu Shi was over.

When they arrived at the library entrance, he stopped and asked Ning Zicheng, "Do you want to come study with me?"

"Huh? No, you go ahead then. We'll have dinner together later. I'm going to find Liang Tong to go back and play games."

Chu Sinian entered the library, chose a seat, and glanced at the time.

Professor Isabella emailed me this morning, asking me to compile a paper on the evolution, properties, and latest discoveries of the Antares stars.

Antares, also known as the Heart of Scorpius, is the brightest star in the constellation Scorpius and the fifteenth brightest star in the entire sky.

Interestingly, it's a binary star system, consisting of a primary star and a blue companion star, and has never been alone since its birth. Despite its enormous size, Antares is only a few million years old; compared to the lifespan of the entire universe, it's still a child.

From a human perspective, Antares are very happy.

Chu Sinian stayed inside until closing time before coming out.

He didn't go back to his dorm room, but walked back to his apartment.

His apartment is neither too big nor too small, just over 120 square meters. Yu Shi had visited his apartment before and suggested that he get a dog.

But Chu Sinian didn't have the time to take care of a pet; it would take too much effort.

He changed out of his slippers, hung his coat on the hanger, and turned on the living room light.

Everything in this apartment was carefully selected by him. All the lighting fixtures in the apartment are concealed with no main light, which has the advantage of making it look high-end and sophisticated, but the disadvantage is that it is inevitably a bit dark.

Chu Sinian's decision to use it on a large scale was also due to his personal preference; he didn't like bright environments.

The room was quiet, the curtains were open, and the living room was bathed in the colors of dusk. Chu Sinian sat on the sofa, pulled out Ning Zicheng's WeChat, stared at his profile picture for a long time, but did not open it.

He put down his phone and began wiping the spotless table. He had secretly taken the table from an unknown Italian designer.

Before boarding the plane, Chu Sinian was chased and scolded by the designer over the phone for a long time, but in the end he succumbed to the power of money and stopped pursuing the responsibility for what the designer had taken.

This table is that designer's final masterpiece; it's one of a kind.

The living room light shone directly on the sapphire, making the brilliant crystals sparkle.

Chu Sinian admired it for a while, then picked up his phone and stared at the screen without moving.

A breeze blew in through the large French windows. He thought of something and suddenly laughed in the empty living room, a clear, crisp laugh like a mountain spring.

—

Two days later, Ning Zicheng arrived at the apartment excitedly.

Chu Sinian didn't need to look; he knew who it was just by the urgent knocking.

As soon as he opened the door, he felt something rushing towards his calf. He instinctively stepped back, but the thing still grabbed his calf.

Chu Sinian looked down and saw an underage American Cocker Spaniel.

Where did it come from?

Ning Zicheng laughed, "Stolen."

The Cocker Spaniel puppy has big, round, black eyes, a round nose, a round face, and big, droopy ears; it's very affectionate.

It realized that the person it was scrambling to was ignoring it, so it circled around Chu Sinian.

It's fluffy and cute.

Chu Sinian tilted his head, then suddenly remembered something, squatted down, and touched it. "Don't you think it looks a lot like a person?"

Ning Zicheng asked curiously, "Who?"

Chu Sinian stroked its chin, "Yu Shi."

Ning Zicheng was convinced.

He rolled his eyes, took the little Cocker Spaniel by the hand, walked into the living room, sat down casually, hugged it, and said, "All you can think about is Yu Shi. My little Cocker Spaniel is named Lele."

He grinned foolishly, showing his bright white teeth, "Lele was given to me by Wanbai."

Chu Sinian closed the door, walked over and sat down. "Why did she give you this?"

Su Wanbai is a new female friend of Ning Zicheng, but he fell in love with her at first sight and is pursuing her.

Ning Zicheng said, "Xiaobai is going to Beijing, and there will be no one to take care of Lele. He asked me to help take care of her for a few days."

Chu Sinian asked, "Does she have pets and live off-campus?"

Ning Zicheng said, "Yes, she's similar to you, sharing an apartment with others."

Has her application for off-campus enrollment been approved?

"Oh my god! I forgot to tell you, her off-campus application came through that very day."

Chu Sinian narrowed his eyes and changed the subject, "Are you planning to leave it with me?"

Ning Zicheng grinned, "Is that not allowed?"

Chu Sinian watched as Xiao Ke moved toward him, her legs short and chubby, looking adorable. "Keep her."

The little Cocker Spaniel ran into his arms, and Chu Sinian obediently groomed its fur.

Do you have dog food and a cage?

Ning Zicheng then remembered, "No."

Chu Sinian made a phone call, "Bring over some pet supplies this afternoon. Don't buy too much, just enough for the dog to live on for a week." As he spoke, he looked at Ning Zicheng questioningly, wondering if the little Cocker Spaniel would be staying for a week.

The answer was yes.

He hung up the phone, went to the refrigerator, and took out a bottle of rum. "Want some?"

Ning Zicheng walked over, opened the refrigerator, and looked at the pile of wine. "You don't cook at home, do you expect to hire a private chef every day?"

"Let's just grab something to eat outside." He took the rum to the island counter, pulled out two stemmed glasses, poured the rum in, and said, "Why don't you have a drink when you come to my place?"

Ning Zicheng took it. "No food, just drinks?"

Chu Sinian sat on a high chair, his left foot resting on a wooden slat, his right foot on the ground, tapping the floor repeatedly. "Want some steak?"

Do you have any at home?

"You can fry it yourself."

Ten minutes later, Chu Sinian's personal butler brought over the pet supplies along with a fresh steak.

Ning Zicheng casually praised the housekeeper's efficiency and immediately unpacked the package.

The kitchen is open-plan, located opposite the island. The kitchenware is all black and looks as clean as if it has never been used.

Ning Zicheng rubbed olive oil on the steak, marinated it briefly, and then put it in the pan. The rising white smoke was quickly drawn away before it could even spread.

Have you contacted Yu Shi recently?

Chu Sinian sat opposite him and swirled his wine glass at him. "We've always kept in touch."

Ning Zicheng glared at him, "Did you know that Liang Jingsi went to get back together with him again?"

Chu Sinian raised an eyebrow. "And who told you that?"

"Their affair has caused a huge uproar in the industry, it's all over the place, it's hard not to know about it. Honestly, you should stay out of it, or you'll ruin your own reputation."

His words were rather harsh, and Chu Sinian's expression changed slightly. Ning Zicheng immediately changed his tune: "I didn't mean anything by it! I wasn't targeting Yu Shi; I was talking about Liang Jingsi. Everyone in the industry knows how cunning he is, but Yu Shi is the only one who looks down on the situation and doesn't believe it no matter what."

Chu Sinian did not express his opinion.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Ning Zicheng changed the subject, "To reward you for helping me take care of my pet, come have dinner with me tomorrow."

Where to eat?

“Let’s get together with all the students from Dong’an at that empty villa. I’ve invited your favorite private chef, and we’ll open two bottles of Louis XIII.”

He winked at Chu Sinian, "How about that, pretty good, huh?"

Chu Sinian said, "If you open two more bottles, you'll be bankrupt."

"That's not the case. If you beg my mom, she can still live."

"Are you close to Zhao Jiechao?" Chu Sinian suddenly asked.

"Huh?" Ning Zicheng was stunned and couldn't react for a moment.

"It's alright, they're just friends from school, you know what I mean."

"How does Zhao Jiechao plan to handle this matter?"

"I don't know, we're not that close."

Chu Sinian took a sip of his drink. "Were they there at the dinner party?"

Ning Zicheng raised the shovel in his hand, "Guess why I specially invited so many Dong'an students."

Chu Sinian put down his wine glass. "Ning Zicheng, what are you doing?"

He laughed, "Don't worry, nothing serious will happen. I've invited Chen Chi along too. Whether he comes or not is up to him."

When the steak started to burn, Ning Zicheng picked it up and put it in aluminum foil to rest.

The little Cocker Spaniel smelled the aroma of meat and quickly ran over, grabbing Ning Zicheng's leg and spinning around, whimpering softly, clearly used to causing trouble at its original owner's house.

Chu Sinian walked over, picked it up, and put it in the cage. "He's not the kind of person who would come to a party."

"I think so too, but who knows? Never mind."

The little Cocker Spaniel was locked in its cage and seemed a bit angry, scratching and pounding on the cage. Chu Sinian squatted down and looked into its round eyes. "Not as good as Yu Shi."

The little Cocker Spaniel seemed to understand and barked at him.

On the day of the party, Chu Sinian was delayed by some matters and did not arrive until late at night, even though the party started in the afternoon.

He walked into the manor as dusk was falling.

It has been a year since he last came.

The previously messy grass was leveled, the vegetation that had been climbing all over the manor was completely removed, and the walls were no longer as desolate as a haunted house.

Instead, there were fresh flowers, red wine, long mahogany dining tables, lace tablecloths draped over each chair, waiters walking around, and tall candlelight.

The moment he entered, all eyes were drawn to this latecomer.

Fang Xue walked towards him, holding a wine glass in both hands. "Long time no see."

Chu Sinian took it, "It hasn't been long."

As soon as Fang Xue saw him, she wanted to talk to him about Yu Shi, but Chu Sinian obviously wouldn't discuss his personal matters in such a social setting.

Fang Xue teased him, "The moment you arrived, so many people's eyes were glued to you."

Chu Sinian raised his glass to her, "I can't just tell them to stop watching."

Fang Xue laughed, "Won't they think I'm your girlfriend?"

"That would be my honor."

Fang Xue glanced at him from head to toe.

Chu Sinian wore a well-tailored shirt, brown suit trousers that slightly revealed his ankles, and sneakers in the same color as his trousers.

Fang Xue looked at his face again. "No, it should be mine."

The crowd that inadvertently gathered around them in the park seized the opportunity to strike up a conversation.

Chu Sinian was a rare sight at Dong'an Academy.

His face, in particular, has made him famous, which has piqued the curiosity of many people.

When Wei Ning saw him in person again, she was once again captivated by the charm that flowed between his brows and eyes.

He always had a faint smile, was refined, and had a calm and composed demeanor, but his face somehow reversed his seriousness, making him seem charming and amorous.

Wei Ning had wanted to make a move for a long time, and had previously offered him 100,000, but no one had shown any interest.

Except for the first day of school, he seemed to have disappeared from Dong'an.

Wei Ning was still puzzled, as he had connections and shouldn't have been unable to find him.

Fortunately, I ran into him tonight, otherwise I don't know how much longer I would have been delayed.

Taking advantage of a lull in their conversation, Wei Ning chimed in, "You look a bit unfamiliar, classmate. Which department are you from?"

Chu Sinian and Fang Xue were chatting about the winery when they heard this, and he politely replied, "Astronomy Department."

Wei Ning didn't forget to ask the girl next to him, "What a pretty classmate, which department are you in?"

Fang Xue sized him up. "Studied law." Fang Xue glanced at Chu Sinian, but Chu Sinian pretended not to see it.

Wei Ning said, "I do know a little about stars, though, since we usually study what the astronomy department does."

Fang Xue burst out laughing.

Such sneer is extremely impolite in social situations, but Wei Ning ignored it and asked Chu Sinian directly, "What's your name, classmate?"

"Didn't you already know that, Wei Ning?"

Wei Ning smiled and looked at Fang Xue, "How does a classmate know my name?"

"Didn't you spend 100,000 yuan to find him when you started school? How come you don't recognize him now?"

Wei Ning's expression changed slightly. "How did you know? Did your classmate mistake you for someone else?"

Fang Xue looked at him playfully, "Are you curious why you haven't been able to find any news about him after searching for so long? Because I've suppressed it, dear Wei Ning."

"Keep your 100,000 yuan for buying ducks."

This was the first time Chu Sinian had heard of this matter.

He laughed out loud, raised his wine glass and first clinked it with Fang Xue to express his gratitude, then touched Wei Ning's glass, which she was holding shakily in anger, and said, "Don't be angry, she was just joking."

Wei Ning gave a forced smile. "Classmate Chu, why would I be angry? I've finally found you, I'm too happy to even think about it."

Fang Xue vomited.

Chu Sinian didn't want to waste any more words with him. "Drink this cup of wine as an apology, how about it?" he said with a smile.

Wei Ning's eyes widened, and he quickly poured himself a drink. "I don't mind. How could I take it seriously? Don't worry, junior, I'm very magnanimous."

As he spoke, he tentatively extended an invitation to Chu Sinian.

Chu Sinian did not explicitly refuse, but it was clear to everyone that there would be no next time.

But Wei Ning didn't think that way at all, or rather, he thought whatever he wanted.