"Did they ever find the man who escaped in Atlanta?" Sheng Yuxiao asked.
"No," came the simple and straightforward response from the other end, sounding completely devoid of the childishness of a little kid, so much so that it initially seemed cold and clear.
But then the voice continued, "It's strange, isn't it? So many people, so many eyes watching, yet no one has found any trace of him."
"He must be very clever and cautious..."
"But why would someone like that go to such great lengths to target Qin Yue? It doesn't make logical sense."
The voice on the other end analyzed seriously.
Sheng Yuxiao thought to himself that he might not be that clever, as he likely had a script in hand.
He knew more than Li Qingqing.
Li Qingqing was more concerned with using her "foresight" to gain personal benefits, while this person seemed to just want everything to follow its original course.
This discovery sounded downright alarming.
If he were to voice it out loud, it would probably be to the extent that Sheng Yuxiao would be suspected of having a mental illness.
"This matter has been over for a long time," the voice on the phone continued.
It had been several years since Xiao Ya left Atlanta.
"The last time I visited Uncle Qin's house, he told me not to worry about it, saying that since there's no Sky Net abroad, if someone is determined to hide for one or two decades, it's normal not to find them."
She paused there and asked, "Sheng Yuxiao, where are you now?"
"In the country."
The other end sounded a bit happier: "You're back? When did you come back? I saw Ning Heng yesterday, and he didn't mention it."
Sheng Yuxiao's lips curved into a smile: "How could he know if you don't?"
"Is this a secret?"
"It was, I was planning to suddenly appear at your birthday party."
The voice on the other end said seriously, "I don't want such a surprise. I like it when you tell me in advance, so I can start being happy and looking forward to it many days in advance."
Just like when she was a child, straightforward and honest.
Sheng Yuxiao thought.
"Alright, I'll remember that." He replied to her.
"So when will you come to see me?"
"Tomorrow?"
"I have a group project with classmates tomorrow, how about the day after?"
"I have a meeting the day after tomorrow and need to fly to Jiangcheng," Sheng Yuxiao said with a bit of helplessness.
Fortunately, he was slowly getting used to the fact that as they grew older, everyone had more and more things to do, making it hard to find a common time.
"Alright, then let's talk on the phone the day after tomorrow." The voice on the other end didn't show much disappointment.
"Goodbye," Sheng Yuxiao said softly.
"Goodbye," the voice on the other end repeated.
*
Xiao Ya put away her phone and stared at the magazine cover in her classmate's hand for a while.
Her classmate noticed her gaze and asked with a smile, "What are you looking at?"
As she asked, she flipped the magazine over and saw the cover.
"Oh, you're looking at him," her classmate said with a sigh, "Sheng always showed a strong hand in the anti-takeover case three months ago in the 'Yongneng Struggle.' It's said to have become a classic case in the finance department next door."
"Sheng always?" Xiao Ya tilted her head and smiled lightly.
"What's wrong?" her classmate asked.
"It's just a bit hard to get used to."
"What's hard to get used to?"
Xiao Ya shook her head and didn't continue.
It was just hard to get used to, the "Sheng the Young Master" everyone talked about had now become "Sheng always."
Time seemed to pass really quickly.
From middle school to high school, and then to university.
Xiao Ya didn't feel that going to school was very hard or tiring, she was just always busy, so busy that it felt like the world had changed just by blinking.
"It's getting late," her classmate glanced at her wristwatch, "let's go, the play is about to start, Zhou Xiaoshu and An Ying might be waiting for us at the door."
Her classmate, Hang Meng, was from the same department as Xiao Ya and they were quite close. Later, when Zhou Xiaoshu and An Ying often came to school to see Xiao Ya, Hang Meng got to know them too.
They had booked tickets for the Shaoxing opera "New Dragon Gate Inn" early on.
Otherwise, Xiao Ya would have asked in the phone call if Sheng Yuxiao was coming to see her today.
Xiao Ya put away her phone and stood up.
She was half a head taller than Hang Meng.
She had completely grown up.
From a skinny little duckling, she had grown into Zhang Ruoshui.
Hang Meng looked at her 175 cm height and suddenly laughed out loud: "Last time I posted a photo of your back on my Moments, my junior high school classmates thought you were my boyfriend, haha."
"And there was this guy from the next department, he wanted to sit next to you during dinner, and Zhou Xiaoshu happened to come see you and caught him. Zhou Xiaoshu saw that he wasn't even as tall as you and turned purple with anger."
Hang Meng laughed by herself for a while and asked, "Is it not funny the way I tell it?"
Zhang Ruoshui, formerly Xiao Ya, shook her head and instead asked her, "Am I too old-fashioned?"
Hang Meng let out a sigh of relief and quickly said, "No, no, you're not old-fashioned. You have too many good qualities... You're straightforward and cute, steady and strong, beautiful, and you study very hard. If you were also humorous, then no one else would have a chance."
"So, you just lack a little bit of humor."
A little lack of humor made her even more adorable. Hang Meng thought to herself.
"You're also very cute," Zhang Ruoshui looked at her and counted seriously, "and very kind, you study well too, and you're very humorous."
Hang Meng was moved.
See, she really is straightforward and cute!
Being praised by her like this, my heart feels like it's floating in the sky.
How can there be someone who can say such sweet words so seriously?
"Let's go," Zhang Ruoshui said, reaching out to help her carry her bag, "Zhang Shaoyi said in class today that your right hand has dislocated again out of habit."
Zhang Shaoyi was another classmate of theirs.
After saying that, Zhang Ruoshui suddenly placed her hand on Hang Meng's forehead: "Your face is so red, are you feverish?"
Hang Meng was at a loss for words: "No, it's not that... I... I..."
She stammered for a moment, but thinking that the other person was straightforward, she had to be straightforward too: "Have you never noticed that I like Zhang Shaoyi? He specifically told you that, does he have feelings for me too?"
This question...
Too complicated.
Zhang Ruoshui frowned, a bit unable to answer.
Hang Meng sighed: "Alright, never mind, you never read posts about relationships, so you can't be expected to have any insights."
But Xiao Ya was a good friend.
She immediately said, "Then you show me next time, will I understand after seeing it?"
Hang Meng hesitated: "That's... really hard to say. I suspect you just don't have that nerve."
"..."
Hang Meng said that, but on the way to the theater, she was browsing social media and came across a ridiculous post, immediately sharing it with Zhang Ruoshui: "Wow, this is too absurd. The blogger complained that her boyfriend has a neighbor's sister who has no boundaries, always sending messages to her boyfriend."
"What she ate today, what she saw that was fun."
"When she got off work and it rained without an umbrella, she asked her boyfriend if he could pick her up. After watching a movie at midnight, she also told her boyfriend that she was scared after watching a horror film."
"Basically, she has to involve her boyfriend in everything."
"Look at the conversation, too much of a green tea, this guy doesn't know how to avoid suspicion... This isn't his real sister. During a date with his girlfriend, he was called away by a phone call from this girl crying and shouting..."
