The night in Mohe had very bright stars, the Milky Way was clearly visible, and there was a first-quarter moon.

Cheng Shuo sent a message to the counselor, asking when she was free, ready to talk to her about that friend of his.

The person on the other end had probably already gotten off work to heal herself. He placed his phone face down and lay on the bed.

There were many things to do, such as speaking at Cen Zeng's funeral, talking to the counselor about this person who was like a wisp of wind, impossible to grasp, and confirming with Ms. Zhang that they were both okay.

And then there was his secret return to the past—something he hadn't had time to ponder the cause of, something he both feared and anticipated.

But none of that mattered on this winter night. He poured himself a glass of warm water, and then, in the warmth, allowed himself to fall into a deep sleep.

When he was woken up by a call from Zhang Yijie, Cheng Shuo was still groggy. 'What is it now?' he asked.

The voice on the other end was filled with an excessive amount of exasperation. 'Who was it that called me before bed yesterday and made me promise to wake you up at nine-thirty sharp, because you absolutely had to get up early, get all dressed up, and pick up the farewell gift you ordered for Xing Ji?'

Anyone who didn't know better would have thought he wasn't coming back in three months, but was settling down in the States for good.

He only heard Cheng Shuo laughing on the other end, a laugh both desperate and joyous.

"Are you crazy?"

"No," Cheng Shuo said. "I'm just happy, and also very speechless."

"What kind of crazy fit are you having now?" He could even imagine Zhang Yijie rolling his eyes dramatically on the other end.

He hung up hurriedly, still feeling the absurdity of it all.

The sky was bright and clear, the autumn air crisp and refreshing—it was truly a wonderful time of year.

Everything was perfect, so perfect it was fit for writing 'I say that autumn days are better than spring mornings,' and perfect for Cheng Shuo to score some points with his White Moonlight by presenting a beautiful gift, only to then face the gentle, pre-anticipated rejection.

For a moment, he wanted to just send Xing Ji a message saying, 'Sorry, I'm not coming.' He figured the other person would probably breathe a sigh of relief.

He wanted to go back to sleep.

The living room was spacious and empty. There was no one in the guest room, and the sheets were freshly made.

Someone hadn't moved in yet, nor had they tidied the room to look like a model home. He took a deep breath, and the scent of sunlight rushed into his nostrils.

Cheng Shuo lay on the guest room mattress, closed his eyes, and let out a long sigh.

'I can't listen to the counselor's analysis anymore, so what now?'

'I still wanted to see the snow in Mohe, so what about that?'

'The eulogy for the funeral, which I spent five hours writing on the train, is now completely useless. Is that a good thing?'

Fate was as absurd as a bad joke. At ten years old, Cheng Shuo would have just called it boring.

Everything weighed heavily on his chest, then in the space of a breath, it gathered, dispersed, and then fell silent.

But it didn't matter, it didn't matter. Cheng Shuo would forgive the world for one day—no, for half a year.

The date was September 13th. He had returned to six months ago.

After slacking off for twenty minutes, the sales associate sent another five messages.

The prepared Brunch, fresh flowers, and sparkling water were all waiting for his arrival.

He got up, brushed his teeth, and went to pick up the custom brooch that awaited him with such fanfare.

He frowned, trying to remember what the gift he was giving looked like.

Then he remembered: the imagery of the first clearing after snow, adorned with sapphires and diamonds. Fine. Wearing his trench coat and a thin wool sweater he had hastily thrown on, he hurried to the shop.

When he arrived at the restaurant, Chen Ziheng, Xing Ji, and Zhang Yijie were already there.

Chen Ziheng was sitting next to Xing Ji as usual, and Zhang Yijie had, as a matter of course, saved the seat opposite the guest of honor for him.

Cheng Shuo thought for a moment, then said very naturally, "Scoot over."

Completely bewildered, Zhang Yijie stomped on Cheng Shuo's foot under the table. But he didn't get angry, instead meeting Chen Ziheng's gaze with a grin.

The man shot him a look of astonishment, as if he'd just seen a dung beetle turn into a human.

He was in too good a mood, or perhaps too bad a mood, to get angry even looking at Chen Ziheng's usual stiff, pretentious face. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Xing Ji eased the awkwardness, saying that he had a bit of conjunctivitis recently and his eyes weren't comfortable.

Chen Ziheng and Cheng Shuo both accepted the excuse and said nothing.

The brunch was filled with idle chatter.

The cringey, hard-to-reject, flirtatious advances from Cheng Shuo that Chen Ziheng had anticipated—so nauseating he could recite them by heart—never happened at all.

It was as if Cheng Shuo had just come to have a meal with an acquaintance and give a farewell gift.

The rest of the time, he was busy talking with Zhang Yijie about the new sports car that Ms. Zhang had finally agreed to buy him.

It was so normal it was abnormal.

Xing Ji, however, was very content. With a pleasant expression, he was in the mood to ask what he should bring back for him when he returned during the winter break.

"That's still three months away," Chen Ziheng replied. "Just WeChat me a week before you come back."

Then, before they left, Cheng Shuo asked Xing Ji, "Can I speak with you alone for a moment?"

'Here it comes,' Chen Ziheng knew Cheng Shuo wouldn't stay this well-behaved for long.

He shot Xing Ji a look. However, his friend, who was always concerned with propriety, nodded in agreement. "Sure."

So, Zhang Yijie and Chen Ziheng left the private room and sat by the door.

"What crazy thing is Cheng Shuo up to now?"

"Don't look at me." Zhang Yijie waved his hand, ultimately speaking up for his friend. "I don't know either. But it's not like he's ever done anything really bad, right?"

"Would he dare?" Chen Ziheng asked. "If he dares, I'll expose him to our entire social circle and let everyone laugh at him."

He was so filled with righteous indignation that Zhang Yijie really wanted to laugh. He pressed his lips together, forcing back the smile he could barely hide.

Meanwhile, Cheng Shuo, who hadn't done anything bad, calmly took out the gift.

"It's a brooch..." he handed it to the person opposite him. "I remember Auntie Xing saying that she gave you this name because the day you were born happened to be the first clearing after a snow, a good omen for spring."

Xing Ji was very well-mannered. He opened it, praised the beauty of the brooch, and then accepted it. "Thank you, you've spent too much. When it's your birthday, I'll have Chen Ziheng bring you a gift in return."

He was actually always like this—calmly refusing while maintaining propriety, always giving a return gift of a similar price and without any romantic connotations. You couldn't find any fault in it.

Cheng Shuo also smiled and said, "Sorry for all the trouble I caused you before. And thank you, for maintaining a normal friendship and not making things difficult for anyone. I won't be like that anymore."

They were both intelligent people. Xing Ji smiled faintly from across the table, which made Cheng Shuo's skin crawl. "Didn't I tell you a long time ago?"

"What?"

"I told you back in senior year of high school not to use your weird desire for conquest on your friends." He showed a rare bit of malicious glee. "It's a good thing you inexplicably went after me. If it had been Chen Ziheng, he probably would have blown up our entire social circle."

"Don't say such terrifying things." Cheng Shuo shuddered, unable to imagine that scene.

"I don't know if you've gotten your head straight yet..." Xing Ji's ancestral home was Suzhou, and his words carried a hint of passive-aggressiveness beneath their gentle tone. "Let this be a wake-up call for you. Stop being such an idiot."

They looked at each other and smiled, saying no more.

As they were leaving, he heard Xing Ji say to Chen Ziheng, "Cheng Shuo and I are just friends from now on."

Zhang Yijie, on the other hand, clapped him on the back. "What did you say?"

"I gave him the gift, and then decided to just forget it."

Good. His friend's expression shifted through a myriad of changes before finally settling on, "Well, that's good then."

"Aren't you surprised?"

"That you suddenly stopped acting crazy is a little surprising, but anyway, I never thought you liked him that much. It's just that Xing Ji seems easygoing but is actually quite tough, and you just like people who are good-looking and hard to get."

"Oh..." Cheng Shuo nodded. "Mm..."

"Wanna go to a bar after class? To celebrate you and Xing Ji escaping this sea of suffering?"

Great, so even Zhang Yijie thought Xing Ji was unlucky.

"No thanks." Cheng Shuo smiled. "I've turned over a new leaf."

This statement was so shocking that Zhang Yijie took two steps back. "Are you running a fever?"

"No." Cheng Shuo smiled, putting on his usual demeanor to reassure his friend. "I'm just interested in someone else."

This was so in character, yet Zhang Yijie, for some reason, still found it horrifying. "Who's unluckier than Xing Ji?"

Cheng Shuo snapped his fingers. "You'll meet them soon enough."