“Is she still not awake…”
After knocking several more times, there was still no sound from inside. Shen Yi grew a bit restless.
If not for worrying about causing a commotion, he would have knocked the door down.
“Did she drink too much again?”
Shen Yi wasn’t being overly suspicious. Given Shu Yunyi’s current state, it was hard to judge her by normal standards. He really feared something might happen to her alone.
Thinking this, Shen Yi cautiously looked around. The corridor happened to be empty.
“Beep beep beep…”
Seeing no one was paying attention, he quickly entered the password.
The door unlocked with a click. As expected, the password was still the same one.
Shen Yi swiftly pushed the door open and slipped inside, carefully closing and locking the door behind him.
If possible, he would have preferred a normal visit. But this was no simulation, and barging in like this would be hard to explain if someone saw him halfway.
However, driven by concern for Shu Yunyi’s safety, he had no choice but to take this risk.
The moment he stepped inside, Shen Yi froze.
“What…”
Holding a bouquet of flowers at the doorway, he hesitated, feeling like he might be in the wrong place—had he not entered with the password.
The room was immaculate. The floor gleamed, the living room was neatly arranged, the windows were spotless, and a pleasant, refreshing scent filled the air.
Gone were the previous gloom, clutter, and scattered liquor bottles. The place looked as if it had just been deep-cleaned.
These changes didn’t align with the scenes from the simulation, yet Shen Yi couldn’t help but smile.
This indicated that Shu Yunyi must have regained her memories too, or else none of this could be explained.
“She must have cleaned the room herself. She’s truly changed…”
Overjoyed, Shen Yi placed the flowers on the table and headed toward the bedroom. He guessed that Shu Yunyi might be sleeping.
“Yunyi?”
He called softly. The bedroom door was slightly ajar, and he pushed it open.
“Huh?”
Inside, the room was tidy. The bed was neatly made, but there was no sign of Shu Yunyi.
Shen Yi called her name a couple of times, louder this time, but the room remained silent.
There were clothes hanging on the balcony to dry. Shen Yi touched them—still slightly damp. It was clear that Shu Yunyi hadn’t moved out.
“She’s not home. Where could she be?”
“Maybe she went out for a morning run?”
As Shen Yi wandered around, he suddenly remembered that Shu Yunyi might have kept her old habit of jogging in the morning.
But glancing at his phone, it was already 9:40. The second class would be almost over by now. How could she still be out running?
“Oh no!”
Suddenly, he stopped by the couch, realizing something.
“Could she have gone to look for me?”
After a moment’s thought, Shen Yi realized it was very possible. After all, wasn’t he doing the exact same thing right now?
If he could come looking for her, why wouldn’t she come looking for him?
Understanding this, Shen Yi became restless. He quickly opened the door and rushed out.
…
Last night, Shu Yunyi worked late into the night cleaning the house.
She cleared out several big bags of garbage and liquor bottles. Along the way, she encountered several professors and lecturers who greeted her, clearly surprised to see her.
Shu Yunyi responded casually, acting as if nothing was out of the ordinary. Deep down, she sensed their subtle astonishment, but she didn’t bother explaining.
Her past, with all its layers, now felt like a breeze brushing past her. A few idle remarks from others couldn’t shake her resolve.
In this life, she cared about only two people: her mother and Shen Yi.
Exhausted, she lay down on the bed. Excited by the recent events, she struggled to sleep soundly, constantly thinking about past and present.
By 8 a.m., she couldn’t lie still any longer.
Unable to sleep, she decided to get up, washed and brushed her teeth, then sat at her vanity to do her makeup.
“Bang!”
She slammed the vanity in frustration after sitting down for just a few moments.
Frustrated, she silently blamed herself. Since she’d been neglecting herself for so long, most of her makeup had expired and was unusable.
Shu Yunyi nervously applied some concealer to cover the dark circles under her eyes, remnants of her past lifestyle of heavy drinking and late nights.
There was nothing she could do about it now but accept it and work on improving herself gradually.
After finishing her makeup, she looked at her reflection, confidence restored. She thought to herself,
“This should be enough to win you over, right?”
Yes, she couldn’t wait any longer. Last night, she had decided to take the initiative and visit Shen Yi.
After tidying up, she stood before her wardrobe, looking at her outdated clothes and couldn’t help but sigh.
“Not a single new outfit. How could past me be so lazy…”
After some deliberation, she chose a blue, long dress, knowing it was her most youthful-looking piece. She let her hair loose and turned in front of the mirror, adjusting her appearance.
She pulled up the neckline to cover her chest, then nodded in satisfaction.
At her age, youth was already a distant memory, making her self-conscious.
Adjusting her dress, she glanced at the time—it was nearly 9 a.m. Shu Yunyi left her apartment and the campus behind.
After paying the driver, she looked up at the slightly aged neighborhood.
“This should be it… right?”
Shen Yi had mentioned the place he used to rent, though at that time, she hadn’t paid much attention.
Now, she wasn’t entirely sure, as she rarely went out back then, only visiting once when he moved out.
Last night, she thought hard but couldn’t recall many details, especially his phone number at that time.
Even though Shen Yi had changed his number several times later, Shu Yunyi felt she should have remembered. She even briefly wondered if she was going senile.
Entering the neighborhood, she followed her memory to the old building. There weren’t many people coming and going.
Shu Yunyi stood before two identical security doors, unsure which one to choose.
“Was it the one on the left or the right?”
She couldn’t remember clearly—she’d only been here once and had left in a hurry. Now, both doors looked the same to her.
“Probably the left one.”
In her hazy memory, she recalled old Spring Festival couplets on the door, and this one had them. So, she knocked.
As she waited, Shu Yunyi felt a mix of nervousness and excitement, as if the face she’d been longing for might appear at any moment.
“Click.”
The sound of the lock turning reached her ears, and Shu Yunyi instinctively smiled, hoping to present her best side.
The door opened halfway, revealing a young, stunning face.
She was momentarily captivated by the beauty before her.
Even with Shu Yunyi’s high standards, she had to admit this woman was exceptionally beautiful, a rarity in her experience.
Her smile faltered as she blurted out,
“Who are you?”