For so many years, she hadn't met the girl who supposedly made him unable to have her.
It wasn't that she doubted the truth of it.
After all, when he was a freshman, he had returned with silver hair.
The reasons behind it were explained to her by Que You.
She naturally believed him.
But she was just curious. Given his personality, if he truly encountered someone he liked, he would definitely take the initiative.
Yet… after more than four years, he had shown almost no movement.
He spent his days either competing or flirting with girls.
It simply didn't add up.
"He likes..."
Yu Wenli and Xing Jiahe instantly looked at Xie Jinnyi.
Xie Jinnyi smiled and continued, "Why don't you just ask him and find out?"
"That makes sense."
Instead of him forcing her.
"Why did you have to break up?" Wen Tingxue couldn't understand. "Luo'er is such a good girl, and you..."
"I know she's very good."
Having heard such words countless times, Chi Zerui instinctively cut her off.
A deep weariness surfaced in his eyes, and Wen Tingxue froze.
"Sorry."
He raised his hand to cover his face.
After about half a minute, he adjusted his demeanor and said, "I didn't say Luo'er wasn't good. She is very good, but there's someone in my heart, do you understand? There's already a girl living in my heart, and I can't fit anyone else.
"I broke up with her because I didn't want to hold her back. She deserves someone who is a thousand, ten thousand times better than me, someone who cherishes and loves her, instead of suffering by my side every day."
Wen Tingxue looked at him in silence for two seconds and asked, "Since you like her so much, why don't you go after her?"
He turned back dully.
As the first word was sung, Wen Tingxue finally saw the song title on the screen – "How Can I Keep You."
Chi Zerui sat beside her, holding the microphone in one hand, his gaze fixed ahead.
He sang in a hoarse, weathered voice:
"One by one, they passed by.
"One by one, they were missed.
"Again and again, they came..."
As he reached the climax, tears welled in his eyes, shimmering brightly, obscuring the emotions within.
But his slightly trembling voice betrayed the deep-seated bitterness in his heart.
"Because I enjoyed its brilliance.
"Because I endured its decay.
"You say don't love, yet are reluctant to part.
"So life, it is bitter as a song..."
The atmosphere gradually quieted, leaving only his tear-jerking song.
Wen Tingxue rarely heard him sing, but on the few occasions she remembered, he was always cheerful.
No matter how sad the song, as soon as he opened his mouth, he would change the melody.
He had just asked her, "What if you can't let go?"
Her first reaction was, "Then keep trying to let go."
But now, she had changed her mind.
Because she knew, he couldn't let go.
In this lifetime, he would never be able to let go.
If that was the case, then there was no need to persuade him further.
As the song neared its end, Wen Tingxue prepared to get up and leave.
But her wrist was firmly held by him.
"?"
Wen Tingxue looked at him. He was still gazing forward, tears retracted. His captivating eyes, devoid of their usual allure, held a blankness.
She struggled, but he held on even tighter.
She couldn't understand what he wanted.
Wen Tingxue could only sit and wait for him to finish singing.
As the last note faded, he tossed the microphone to the girl.
Simultaneously, he released her hand, leaned forward, and grabbed his wine glass, downing it in one gulp.
His throat burned, but his heart felt uneasy.
Sensing her gaze from behind, Chi Zerui hesitated, then sat back, lowered his eyes, and looked at her, asking, "I'm curious about something."
"Mm."
Wen Tingxue nodded, looking as if she was eager to hear.
Chi Zerui averted his gaze for a moment, then quickly met hers again, and in one go, said, "If, on the day you first arrived in Jiangcheng, it wasn't Brother Yu who helped you, would you still have fallen for him?"
"Huh?"
What kind of question was that?
"Just hypothesize," he smiled, then urged, "Would you?"
Wen Tingxue rolled her eyes and pondered for a moment before shaking her head. "I don't know."
She truly had no answer to such a purely hypothetical question.
Chi Zerui asked again, "Then if it was me who helped you, would you have fallen for me?"
"Huh?" Wen Tingxue looked at him with a bewildered expression. "What are you up to?"
Chi Zerui anxiously scratched his head. "Ah, just tell me, I'm curious."
"I don't know." The same answer.
Because she genuinely didn't know.
If the beginning changed, what about the rest?
Would it change along with it, or remain the same?
So, how could there be an answer?
Chi Zerui nodded, his expression unreadable to Wen Tingxue.
"Alright, go keep Brother Yu company. Don't interrupt me flirting with the ladies."
He pushed her away with a smile.
Wen Tingxue found him strange and gave him a speechless glare before walking towards Yu Wenli.
Halfway there, she suddenly realized something.
Could it be… he liked her?
As the thought emerged, Wen Tingxue was greatly startled.
But it seemed impossible. They hadn't interacted that much; how could he have fallen for her?
But if that wasn't the case, why would he ask such questions?
Wen Tingxue turned back hesitantly.
The crisscrossing lights hid her expression in the shadows, making it difficult to discern.
He, however, was fully exposed in her view.
With his arms around the beauties on either side, flirting with them with a laugh, there wasn't a ripple of emotion in his eyes.
Perhaps sensing her gaze, Chi Zerui looked up.
As their eyes met, he paused for a second, then smiled faintly.
He wanted her to know, yet he also wanted her not to know.
Even more so, he wished she would know and pretend not to know.
That way, they could still maintain their superficial friendship. As long as it wasn't revealed, everything could be maintained and explained.
All he sought was to accompany her as a friend.
To be able to lend a hand when she needed it.
Beyond that, he truly hadn't thought of anything else.
Wen Tingxue fled in disarray, her mind in a turmoil.
Yu Wenli immediately chased after her.
Xing Jiahe looked back and forth, then finally looked at Xie Jinnyi. "Are you happy now?"
Xie Jinnyi smiled. "I guess so."
Xing Jiahe didn't want to say more and walked over to find Chi Zerui.
"Change the song, change the song! What's going on?" Chu Hefei shouted from the side. "Just sang a tear-jerker, and now another one. This won't do. It's such a good day; we should sing love songs, sweet ones."
Saying that, he pulled Que You closer and seductively said, "Brother You, sing with me? I feel so awkward by myself."
"Sure," Que You had a good relationship with him and usually obliged. "I'll sing the male part, and you sing the female part."
"Why should I sing the female part?" Chu Hefei playfully protested.
Que You dodged his playful attacks and retorted righteously, "You're so good at acting spoiled, like a girl. If you're not singing the female part, what are you going to sing?"
Xie Jinnyi rested her chin on her hand, watching them bicker, when Han Xianyun called.
She smiled and answered, "Finished already?"
"...You sound so happy?" Han Xianyun felt his fatigue dissipate significantly and asked with a smile, "Where are you? It sounds like a lively place."
"KTV, someone's singing love songs."
Fearing he wouldn't believe her, she deliberately stretched her phone forward.
Ensuring he could hear the singing.
"Does it sound good?"
"So-so," Han Xianyun put a cigarette in his mouth and said, "It would sound better if you sang."
Xie Jinnyi didn't act coy and sang a section earnestly.
Her sweet and charming voice made Han Xianyun forget about his cigarette and instruct his driver to drive.
"Where are you? I'll pick you up."
Xie Jinnyi feigned ignorance, "Why?"
Han Xianyun rolled down the window, flicked out the cigarette, and said, "To pick you up and have you sing to me in bed."