Cold Night and Warm Light
In the empty living room, a deathly silence, like a viscous liquid, enveloped every breath of time. His father's cold commands, his stepmother's complex, hesitant gaze, and Shi Zhiyuan's "system maintenance principles"... all of these swirled and pressed in his mind, almost bursting through the dam of his reason.
He didn't know how long he had been sitting there until the last ray of daylight outside the window was swallowed by the night. The motion-sensor lights in the villa turned on one by one, the cold light outlining the luxurious furniture, but without any warmth.
Shi Xu slowly stood up, his movements somewhat sluggish from being stiff for so long. He didn't look at the "home" again, but walked straight to the entrance and pushed open the door.
A cool night breeze, carrying the chill of early autumn, swept over him, dispelling some of the stuffiness in the room, but it couldn't dispel the gloom in his heart. The driver remained silently waiting by the car, opening the door for him.
"Back to the apartment," Shi Xu uttered, his voice slightly hoarse.
The car smoothly drove away from the villa area where elites gathered, merging into the traffic of the city night. Outside the window, the lights were dazzling and the neon lights were flashing, outlining the outline of the bustling metropolis, but these lights and shadows fell into Shi Xu's eyes and were only a blurry phantom.
His fingertips unconsciously traced the outline of the pebble beneath his clothes, the cool touch seeping through the fabric to his skin, bringing a faint sense of clarity. Shi Zhiyuan called the gap in the clouds a "redundant process," and her father said she was "insignificant." They used their standards and logic to easily deny a person's value, to deny the connections he cherished.
(Time Sequence's inner monologue: Your definition of "optimal" is nothing more than a cage built of cold, hard data. I, on the other hand, would rather have the warmth that "redundancy" brings.)
His phone vibrated in his pocket. He took it out and saw a message from Yun Ying.
[Cloud Gap: Are you back? I left you some soup.]
A simple sentence, like a small lamp lit for him in the cold night.
Shi Xu stared at the screen, his fingertips lingering on the cold glass for a long time before slowly typing:
[Timeline: On the road.]
He didn't say much, nor could he express the suffocating sense of oppression at that moment.
Back at the apartment building, Shi Xu told the driver to leave, and stood downstairs for a while. He looked up and saw that the windows of their rented floor shone with warm yellow light, ordinary yet unique in the entire building.
He took a deep breath, trying to dispel the chilling aura of the villa that had clung to him, before turning and going upstairs.
The door opened from the inside as soon as the key was inserted. Yunxi stood in the doorway, her face showing obvious worry. She was wearing soft loungewear, her hair loosely tied up, and she still carried a hint of the warm, smoky scent of the kitchen.
"You're back?" she asked softly, her gaze quickly sweeping across his face as if to make sure he was unharmed.
"Hmm," Shi Xu responded, stepping aside to enter the room.
A faint, enticing aroma of food filled the apartment, dispelling the chill of the night. Sure enough, a bowl of steaming soup sat on the small dining table.
"Have some drink to warm yourself up." Yunxi pushed him to the dining table. "You don't look well."
Shi Xu sat down, picked up a spoon, and scooped a spoonful of soup into his mouth. The warm liquid slid down his throat, warming him all the way to his stomach, seemingly relaxing even his tense nerves a little. He silently drank the soup, while Yun Xi sat opposite him, not asking any questions, simply keeping him company quietly.
This silent companionship and understanding stood in stark contrast to the suffocating interrogation that had just taken place in the villa.
After finishing the soup, Shi Xu put down his spoon, looked up, and met Yun Xi's concerned gaze.
"What...did they say?" she finally asked, her voice soft and cautious.
Shi Xu looked at her, at her clear eyes under the lamplight, where his reflection was mirrored, filled with complete trust and worry. Those cold, insulting words churned in his throat, but he forcibly suppressed them. He couldn't repeat them to her verbatim; that would hurt her.
“Nothing new,” Shi Xu tried to keep his tone calm. “It was just an emphasis on the importance of the provincial competition, to get me to focus.”
Yunxi blinked, clearly disbelieving: "It's that simple? Shi Zhiyuan... was there too?"
“Yes.” Shi Xu’s eyes darkened. “He provided some ‘data support’ to prove the ‘negative impact’ of emotional relationships on the competition objectives.”
He spoke casually, but Yunxi understood instantly. Her face paled, her lips tightened, but she quickly relaxed them, revealing a stubborn smile: "Oh? Did his data model calculate the power boost that 'belief' and 'the person you want to protect' can bring?"
Shi Xu was stunned for a moment. Looking at the girl in front of him, who was trying to be relaxed but couldn't hide her nervousness, the resentment in his chest strangely dissipated a lot.
"Maybe not." A very faint smile appeared on Shi Xu's lips. "His database is probably missing this parameter."
Seeing that he seemed to relax a bit, Yunxi felt a sense of relief. She reached out and placed her hand on the back of his hand, which was resting on the table: "Shixu, don't let them influence you. Just be yourself."
Her hands were still warm, carrying a comforting power.
Shi Xu grasped her hand in return, tightening his grip. He didn't speak, but all his emotions—anger, resentment, and an unwavering determination—were conveyed through their clasped hands.
He knew his father's warning was not empty talk, and Yun Zhiyuan's "data" collection would not stop. The road ahead would only become more difficult.
But at this moment, holding this warm hand and feeling the genuine warmth in this small apartment, he understood more clearly than ever before—
He would never let them take away what he cherished.
He must win the provincial competition.
Not only do we have to win, but we have to win in a way they can't deny, and show them that we've won.
“The soup was delicious,” he said softly, breaking the silence. “Thank you.”
Yunxi smiled, her eyes crinkling: "That's good. Go take a shower, you have to go to the lab tomorrow."
Shi Xu nodded and stood up. On his way to the bathroom, he glanced back at Yun Xi, who was clearing away the dishes. Her silhouette appeared exceptionally soft yet resilient under the lamplight.
The war horns have sounded, and he is no longer just a boy who can only passively endure. He has a fortress he must defend, and a reason why he absolutely cannot lose.
As night deepens, the city remains bustling, but in this small apartment, warmth and determination are quietly growing, resisting the cold torrent from afar.
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