A small skewers shop near the entrance of No. 1 Middle School.
The weather wasn't cold anymore, so the two of them sat at the stall by the door.
In perfect unison, one of them went to get the skewers, and the other went to get two bowls of dipping sauce. Ruan Chen, who returned first, turned on the stove in the small pot. Fu Jian returned later and, without asking about turning on the stove, simply put the skewers in, as if he had already tacitly agreed that Ruan Chen would do it.
Then he picked up the bowl of condiments without garlic, scallions, or cilantro and sat down.
Ruan Chen's bowl didn't have sesame paste in it.
"Did you get the purple sweet potato balls?"
Fu Jianzhi poked at the small pot. "I only got you one. Ruan Chen, don't you think this tastes strange? It's neither sweet nor salty."
"A little dessert after dinner." Ruan Chen's face was a little red from the steam rising from the pot. She tilted her head, pressed her knuckles against her temples, and smiled. "I'll share half with you later. You'll know how delicious it is once you try it."
She could tell that Fu Jianzhi was being disrespectful again, calling her "Ruan Chen" repeatedly, but she was too lazy to correct him.
The kids are growing up, and their rebellious phase has begun. Let them do whatever they want.
"Where did you come from today? Did your driver take you?" Ruan Chen didn't want to ask about Fu Jianzhi's affairs; she just wanted to know how the boy would get home later, since it was already dark.
Fu Jianzhi stirred the pot, which was just beginning to boil, and said naturally, "I've been at Jinghua University of Technology and the Martial Arts Research Institute all afternoon. Training ended early today, and I'm eating in the cafeteria right now—perfect time to eat. I took a taxi here, but my family's driver is waiting at the intersection ahead."
Fu Jianzhi's statement contains a lot of information.
This was the first time he didn't make up some lame excuse about "studying abroad" and told everyone without reservation where he was and what he was doing.
Logically speaking, this shouldn't be the case. Fu Jianzhi is Zhanlu's pilot, and his whereabouts are one of China's top secrets.
He hadn't said it was to protect Ruan Chen before, but when he saw Ruan Chen's name in the student record information of Jinghua University of Technology and saw a bright red question mark in the mental strength column, he knew that he probably didn't need to keep these things a secret from Ruan Chen anymore.
It's just unknown how far Ruan Chen has progressed, or which sword he will resonate with.
Fu Jianzhi waited expectantly for Ruan Chen to continue his conversation—for example, how he got into Jinghua University of Technology, what kind of training he was undergoing, and her course schedule.
Fu Jianzhi stared at the small pot with apparent restraint, but her eyes, hidden behind her eyelashes, were full of anticipation.
Ruan Chen asked.
What kind of food does the cafeteria serve? Is it good?
Fu Jianzhi: ......
His thick, dark eyelashes drooped somewhat sadly, like the feathers of a wounded bird, but he still said, "It has to taste good and be nutritious, and it has to look good and be nutritious too."
Ruan Chen laughed, "No wonder they're all taller than me."
Then she stopped asking questions.
Fu Jianzhi started making conversation, "Our training has been really tough lately, and I'm so bored by myself. We even have extra classes after practice. I'm really bad at chemistry and biology."
Ruan Chen: "Academic subjects are very important. You can ask me anything you don't understand. I'm pretty good at biology and chemistry. Or you can come to my house on the weekend. I haven't changed the password."
Fu Jianzhi didn't know if he had heard the answer he wanted.
Probably not, because he could go to Ruan Chen's small apartment anytime he wanted, but Ruan Chen wouldn't ask him a single question he wanted her to ask.
“We’ve just received a new batch of equipment for our training area. Do you know how expensive it is? Each one costs 20 million.”
Ruan Chen nodded, "It's okay. If you accidentally break it, I'll pay for it. I have money."
Fu Jianzhi was filled with mixed feelings.
He finally blurted out what he had been holding back for a long time: "Sis, don't you feel like we've known each other for many years?"
Ruan Chen was biting into a crispy tripe when Fu Jianzhi's words made her bite the tip of her tongue, and the pain brought tears to her eyes.
She took a napkin, wiped away her tears, and ate the crispy tripe as if nothing had happened. "It's been many years, three or four years. Back then, I could still pick you up, but now you carry me on your back."
"That's not what I meant," Fu Jianzhi said, dipping a potato slice from his own bowl into Ruan Chen's bowl, carefully avoiding the garlic and cilantro. "I meant, what if we knew each other in a past life and met again in this one?"
Ruan Chen looked bored. "Three hundred years ago, after the world's first super-large particle accelerator was started, it was already proven that time is indeed an irreversible river."
"But long rivers do intersect."
Ruan Chen took all the enoki mushrooms and put them in his own bowl. "One hundred and eighty years ago, basic physics had already explained it very clearly. We cannot prove the existence of parallel universes, which means that even if they exist, the two rivers will never meet."
Ruan Chen didn't know why she was refuting Fu Jianzhi. Actually, she really wanted to tell Fu Jianzhi about the things she had seen.
I have actually seen things happening on another timeline.
But she had a vague feeling that this was something that could not be spoken of or explored.
It's as if something terrible will happen the day I learn the whole truth.
Ruan Chen didn't know what it was; she just instinctively avoided it.
"Ruan Chen, have you ever..." Fu Jianzhi said these six words and then fell silent.
Ruan Chen seemed to know what Fu Jianzhi was going to ask; perhaps by asking, she had already made her stance clear.
“Ruan Chen,” Fu Jianzhi looked up at Ruan Chen’s somewhat unreal face through the steaming hot pot, “I went to an island country a while ago. The people there are very interesting. They believe in religion, and their religion believes most in karma.”
"Do you know what cause and effect are?" Fu Jianzhi continued speaking regardless of whether Ruan Chen paid attention to her.
"If you help someone one day, that person will help you one day in return; but if you harm someone, retribution will come for you sooner or later."
"But what I see is not a cycle of cause and effect, but that sometimes a casual decision you make can cause the fates of two people to intersect, and they will be bound together for all eternity."
Fu Jianzhi's voice trembled slightly. He took a sip of water. "It's like when I push open a rusty door and, out of kindness, pick up a wounded little stray cat; or like when you're wandering the streets in the middle of the night and pick up a dog that has been abandoned by its owner."
He concluded his long-winded speech.
Ruan Chen lifted her face from the bowl, wiped her mouth, and asked, "And then?"
Fu Jianzhi was taken aback by the question, "What do you mean, 'later'?"
Ruan Chen spoke slowly and deliberately, "Later, the puppy I picked up, its owner came looking for it, and the puppy went home with its owner first, but it still always thinks about me who picked it up. What about your little stray cat? Did you heal her wounds? How did she become?"
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