**21**
After midnight, 0929 still hadn’t received any messages from Puppy.

She held her phone waiting through the night, unable to help but smile. Habits are truly frightening; it had only been a short time, yet every night she would occasionally check to see how that colleague had annoyed Puppy today.

Maybe she had something going on tonight. Shen Yizhi thought.

It wasn’t until morning that she found out what was going on with Ning Zhi.

On the way to the set, Zhou Tong saw a video on Weibo and casually said, “She even went to learn oil painting?”

Hearing this, Shen Yizhi opened Weibo and saw Ning Zhi’s name trending at number one.

The video was posted on her own Weibo, with no caption, just a video.

Clicking it open, it showed her holding a pen, drawing methodically under the teacher’s guidance.

Given her skill level, it was more like smudging than drawing; stroke by stroke, it didn’t resemble anything at all.

She was still very serious about it, concentrating intently on applying her work.

Shen Yizhi pressed pause and carefully examined it for a while before realizing that she had drawn a narcissus flower.

The paintings used during filming were all props painted early in the morning; Ning Zhi only held the brush to pose.

This one was drawn by herself, not well done, clumsy and rough, but Shen Yizhi still looked at it a few more times.

“It’s quite lively here,” Zhou Tong said, scrolling down through the comments and laughing.

Shen Yizhi was about to exit when she heard this. Her fingers paused, scrolling down a bit. Sure enough, the comment section was noisy—some kindly mocking Ning Zhi’s poor drawing, some advising her to act well and learn more from the seniors, and others telling her to take good care of herself.

Shen Yizhi didn’t even take her own Weibo comments this seriously, but unconsciously, she scrolled down several pages.

It was indeed lively, with all the stars crowding around Ning Zhi like planets orbiting the moon.

Shen Yizhi recalled how Ning Zhi used to hate being alone. Whenever her grandmother wasn’t home on weekends, she would come knocking at her door, bringing her homework along. With a diligent and studious attitude, she would bring questions from her books to ask Shen Yizhi, often staying the whole day.

Children of eight or nine years old, no matter how deep their thoughts, still seem very shallow in Shen Yizhi’s eyes. She knew that the child simply didn’t want to stay home alone, so she didn’t expose it and let her stay nearby.

But now, whenever she posts a video, so many people respond with a chorus of voices, treating her like a treasure, coaxing and praising her. She probably hasn’t felt lonely for a long time.

Shen Yizhi should have been happy for Ning Zhi, but as she looked at those warm and enthusiastic lines of text, she suddenly felt a bit uneasy.

Ning Zhi was tormented by that past event and couldn’t sleep all night. When she arrived at the set in the morning, she drank a large cup of black coffee to wake up. When Shen Yizhi arrived, Ning Zhi’s face was still creased from the bitterness of the coffee. That’s how Shen Yizhi saw her, all wrinkled like that.

Shen Yizhi looked at her in confusion, about to ask what was wrong, when Ning Zhi suddenly regained her composure. At the moment their eyes met in midair, Ning Zhi nodded at her as a greeting, then turned and went to the makeup room.

Shen Yizhi watched her leave and went upstairs to the filming location.

There was no scene for her today; they were shooting the part where Chi Sheng returns home.

After finishing her sketching, she first went to see Ruan Yinmeng, but they parted on bad terms over a painting of a daffodil. Chi Sheng returned home feeling sullen.

Unlike Ruan Yinmeng’s bright and tidy home, Chi Sheng’s house was gloomy. Although it was also clean and the windows were open, due to the orientation and ceiling height, sunlight couldn’t get in. Additionally, the house was filled with furniture, all old and worn, which inevitably made the place feel dreary.

She entered the house, the emotions she brought from Ruan Yinmeng still lingering on her face, her brows tightly furrowed, making a bit more noise than usual while changing her shoes.

Grandma heard the noise inside and came out, taking the schoolbag from her hand as she said, “Why the long face?”

When Grandma came out, Chi Sheng had already hidden her emotions. She always reported good news to Grandma and never bad, unwilling to let her worry about anything that happened outside.

“Nothing, just a bit hungry,” she said.

Grandma glanced at her, shook her head, seemingly scolding but actually feeling distressed: “Did you get so focused again that you forgot to eat?”

Chi Sheng smiled obediently and put everything down.

Grandma bent down to pick up her schoolbag and the tote bag with clothes, preparing to take out the dirty clothes for washing.

But when she picked them up, Grandma looked them over twice and asked with some confusion, “Why is the bag so clean this time?”

She was getting old, her figure somewhat stooped, and when she looked up at Chi Sheng, her age was fully apparent.

The cleanliness was because Ruan Yinmeng had cleaned for her. Chi Sheng suddenly felt a pang of guilt because of her secret interactions with Ruan Yinmeng.

“I brushed it myself.” She mumbled, not daring to look at Grandma.

Grandma nagged, “No need to brush it yourself, bring it back and Grandma will do it for you, it’s no trouble.”

She carried everything to the sink on the balcony, then headed toward the kitchen: “Grandma will make you something delicious, go tell your parents.”

This was their family’s usual habit; whenever they returned from a trip, they had to inform their parents.

Chi Sheng actually didn’t believe this. The person had been gone for more than ten years—how could they still hear or see anything? But Grandma believed, and believed very devoutly, so Chi Sheng believed too.

This was what she usually did—just walking up to the portrait and saying, “I’m back.” But today, it was as if something was stuck in her throat. She stood in front of the portrait with her head bowed for quite a while before whispering softly, “I’m back.”

Grandma finished cooking the noodles and brought them out, calling to Chi Sheng to eat while they were hot.

She lifted her apron to wipe her burnt hand and sat down opposite Chi Sheng.

Chi Sheng picked up a chopstick of noodles, blew on it, and put it in her mouth. Although the food was clearly delicious, she felt as if she had bitten into a mouthful of sand.

“How is it?” Grandma asked.

Chi Sheng swallowed the food in his mouth and said, “Delicious.”

Grandma smiled with satisfaction, then seemed eager to show off something good: “Look underneath.”

Following her words, Chi Sheng used chopsticks to lift the noodles on top, revealing a golden fried poached egg. Chi Sheng had liked half-cooked fried poached eggs since childhood; every time she made noodles, Grandma would fry one for her.

She picked it up, took a bite, chewed and swallowed, and still said, “Delicious.”

“If it tastes good, that’s what matters.” Seeing her enjoy it, Grandma’s aged face broke into a kind smile. She looked at her and couldn’t help but sigh, “Once you go to college, Grandma won’t be able to make delicious food for you anymore.”

The words “go to college” made Chi Sheng pause for a moment. She had completely forgotten that in two months she would be moving to another city.

“I’ll come back as soon as the holidays start.” A huge weight seemed to press down on her heart. She lifted her head but didn’t dare to look closely at Grandma, quickly lowering it again to fiddle with the noodles in her bowl.

But Grandma said, “Once you start school, don’t keep thinking about home. Studying well is the most important thing.”

Chi Sheng nodded.

And your tuition…” Grandma frowned, but Chi Sheng immediately said, “I have a scholarship and can also apply for a student loan. That will cover the tuition, and I have enough for living expenses. I can also do some part-time work when the time comes.

Grandma disapproved: “Loans have to be repaid, what your parents left for you…”

Chi Sheng interrupted her, saying firmly, “The money my parents left, Grandma, you keep it for yourself.”

Her temper was stubborn and headstrong; once she was set on something, no amount of persuasion could change her mind. Grandma knew about her tough nature and didn’t argue with her, only thinking that she should work an extra job, save more money, since Chi Sheng would have many expenses in the future.

Grandma went to wash her clothes, the sound of scrubbing coming from the balcony, accompanied by the darkening sky outside and the fading sunset on the horizon.

Yesterday there was also a sunset, over the river in the countryside, a burning setting sun, late but brilliant. Just a day apart, the sunset seemed so exhausted it was only late dusk, a weary and drained dusk.

Chisheng finished the entire bowl of noodles. She ate without tasting, but unwilling to waste her grandmother’s kindness, she forced it all down.

She returned to her room and lay down as if drained of strength.

The door closed, closed tightly. Chisheng could finally catch her breath.

She had always known that what was happening with Ruan Yinmeng was wrong, but before, “wrong” was just a vague concept, because Ruan Yinmeng was that kind of disreputable woman, because they were both girls, because she was only seventeen and shouldn’t be involved in such things.

But all of this was buried deep beneath her curiosity and infatuation with Ruan Yinmeng; she was intoxicated by the unprecedented novelty and tenderness that Ruan Yinmeng brought, unwilling to wake up.

Until now, all those buried hesitations and fears surged to the surface, along with the guilt she felt toward her grandmother, overwhelming her almost to the point of drowning.

She lay flat on **, her head resting against the wall, her eyes looking through the window at the sky, and at the balcony on the third floor below the sky. Compared to the vast, boundless blue sky, that balcony was as tiny as a leaf drifting on the sea.

Chi Sheng saw a few pieces of clothing drying on the balcony railing. A few days ago, she had seen her own clothes drying alongside Ruan Yinmeng’s, a feeling of indescribable joy. She closed her eyes, as if by doing so she could stop looking, stop thinking, stop hesitating, and stop doubting.

Meilan stared intently at Ning Zhi’s face, which had closed eyes.

She’s improving really fast,” Mei Lan admired, then looked up at Shen Yizhi beside her. “She used to rely too much on emotions, only the scenes with you could be performed smoothly, but with other actors, it was all stumbling. But today’s scene cleared her name; she’s progressing, integrating into the role of an actor.

Shen Yizhi nodded as he watched Ning Zhi, who was smiling and talking with the elderly actress playing the grandmother. “Indeed, fast.”

She should have felt happy for Ning Zhi, but that uneasy feeling surfaced again.

What does “cleared her name” mean? Does it mean that besides acting with her, Ning Zhi can also perform smoothly with other actors?

This is obviously a good thing, but Shen Yizhi felt very uncomfortable.