This wasn’t an easy decision for He Xiaoyuan.
The difficulty lay in the subconscious mindset shaped by his birth and upbringing: ordinary people and the elite could never truly be together.
This stemmed from his mother, He Zhenting’s experience—
She had been extraordinarily beautiful in her youth, working as a nurse. She applied to a private hospital and met a young, capable, and well-off director there.
The director liked He Zhenting and pursued her intensely. She liked him in return, and they quickly fell in love.
At first, He Xiaoyuan’s family was puzzled—how could such a highly educated, prominent director be interested in a newly employed nurse? But they didn’t dwell on it. They thought it must be because Zhenting was beautiful and kind. They were happy and supportive, believing that if it worked out, a couple of years of dating would lead to marriage—his family tended to think simply.
However, just as everyone thought the relationship was mature enough for marriage discussions, the director decided to pursue further studies abroad, with no intention of returning, and they broke up. At the same time, He Zhenting discovered she was pregnant.
Yet a child didn’t stop the director from leaving. He left as he wished, leaving the heavily pregnant He Zhenting to give birth and raise the child alone.
From childhood, He Xiaoyuan often overheard adults talking about his mother. The phrase most often repeated in sighs and reflections was:
“If only Zhenting hadn’t met that director.”
“His intentions were fleeting.”
“With such a huge gap in background, it was inevitable—they always seek someone of equal standing. How could he really pursue Zhenting? Unreliable as expected.”
“We were naïve back then, and Zhenting was foolish to insist on raising the child alone. She must have suffered so much.”
…
He Xiaoyuan grew up internalizing one truth: two people with too great a disparity could never truly end up together.
But the contradictory truth was what?
It was that He Zhenting gave He Xiaoyuan all the love she could, and even after that failed relationship, never spoke ill of his biological father in front of him.
If He Xiaoyuan asked, or circumstances required mentioning the father, she never framed them as abandoned or bad. She would say his father went far away to pursue a better life.
Why didn’t his father take them with him? She gently explained: “We have our own legs and feet. We can catch up to him ourselves. If he waits a little, we can catch up, right? You will catch up to him one day, Xiaoyuan.”
In his childhood, “dad” wasn’t a stranger—he was someone waiting far away.
As He Xiaoyuan grew older and deduced the truth from adults’ conversations, he no longer yearned for a father. He understood that he simply didn’t have one.
Even then, He Zhenting comforted him, saying that life has beginnings, processes, and endings. If the beginning and process are good, even if the ending is regrettable, one shouldn’t deny the value of what came before.
“Mom hopes you’ll be optimistic, experience life fully, and not just focus on outcomes.”
Later, as He Xiaoyuan matured further, his mother fell ill.
Lying weak in bed, she said: “Xiaoyuan, you already know what happened in my past, right? Actually, it wasn’t as sad as it seems. I want you to have your own experiences. When it comes to love, I hope my past doesn’t limit you. Be brave, face your feelings, and don’t run away. Follow your own path.”
So in He Xiaoyuan’s heart, he understood reality clearly, but he also felt the courage and desire to chart his own course.
Thus, when Lu Chen proposed living together, he hesitated but didn’t overthink. He knew he should seriously consider it, but deep down, he also realized: just as Lu Chen wanted to live together to build closeness, he wanted to build that closeness too. He wanted to see Lu Chen every day, to say goodnight face-to-face, and wake up to “good morning” without the parting “I’m leaving.”
If that’s what he wanted, why not do it?
Yes.
He made his decision.
And why should the story of two people with too great a disparity always end in failure? Must his mother’s experience necessarily serve as a warning for him?
…
No.
He Xiaoyuan knew he wasn’t his mother, and Lu Chen wasn’t his father who had chosen to leave and go far away.
He had a strong intuition—or perhaps a quiet determination—that things between him and Lu Chen would be different.
He Xiaoyuan was brave.
He had made his decision, and he had told his mother. He wanted to think that she would feel comforted, looking down from above, seeing him like this.
He crouched there a little longer, chatting with his mother:
“Mom, do you know how good the meals at SiPu are? I’ve actually put on some weight recently.”
…
The woman in the tombstone photo smiled gently.
—
After leaving the cemetery, He Xiaoyuan went to his aunt’s house.
Both uncles were busy and didn’t come, but his aunt was there. As soon as they sat at the table, she started serving him food, asking if his work had been tiring or busy lately.
He Xiaoyuan ate while chatting casually with his aunt, the younger aunt, and his cousin.
During the meal, his aunt suddenly asked, “Xiaoyuan, you don’t have a partner right now, do you?”
He paused.
The younger aunt chimed in: “Your aunt wants to introduce a girl to you.”
His aunt continued: “She’s a friend of a former colleague from my workplace. Her family had relocated…”
He Xiaoyuan replied calmly, “I’m already dating someone.”
Huh? Dating? Already?
His aunt, younger aunt, and cousin were all stunned.
Earlier, during the New Year chat, he had said he was still single.
He looked at them, calm as ever, and added, “It’s a guy.”
A guy?!
His cousin’s mouth dropped, the younger aunt even dropped her chopsticks, and his aunt stuttered: “Y-y-you… like a guy?”
A guy!!!
…
After the meal, He Xiaoyuan left under the shocked and lingering looks of his aunt, younger aunt, and cousin.
Descending the stairs, recalling their expressions, he couldn’t help but smile.
Back home, upstairs, the apartment was silent.
He sat on the sofa. The younger aunt regained her composure and asked: “It can’t be because of Zhenting’s influence, that you don’t like girls, right?”
His cousin frowned in confusion: “What does this have to do with our second aunt?”
His aunt’s face was full of question marks: “Because you’re disappointed in the opposite sex?”
His cousin: “…”
The younger aunt: “…”
His aunt: “…”
That afternoon, back at his apartment, He Xiaoyuan messaged the real estate agent who had rented him the place, saying he wanted to terminate the lease.
Agent: [Okay. You’re not in a rush to move out today, right? I’ll contact the landlord first.]
He Xiaoyuan: [No rush.]
He Xiaoyuan: [OK.]
Sitting on the sofa, He Xiaoyuan opened the chat with Lu Chen, thinking about whether to tell him immediately about the lease termination.
Should he wait a little? Make it a surprise?
But still, moving in required a heads-up, right?
While he deliberated for those two minutes, the agent contacted Chen Jun, who immediately called Lu Chen, informing him that He Xiaoyuan wanted to terminate the lease.
Lu Chen, who was playing golf, handed his club to the caddie. “Terminate the lease? Has he decided to move in together?”
Chen Jun waited for instructions. Lu Chen replied: “Got it.”
Chen Jun: “Should I find another place for him?”
Lu Chen: “No, let him cancel.”
After hanging up, Lu Chen told the other executive playing with him: “I need to leave.”
The executive was baffled: “Seriously? You’ve only just started?”
Lu Chen waved and headed to the golf cart: “We’ll have dinner another day.”
His phone was already dialing He Xiaoyuan.
The moment it connected, Lu Chen asked: “Where are you?”
He knew He Xiaoyuan had visited the cemetery that morning and would now be back at the apartment in the afternoon.
He Xiaoyuan: “At the apartment. You?”
Lu Chen bent over slightly, stepping onto the golf cart. “On my way to you.”
He Xiaoyuan hung up, thinking: if Lu Chen is coming now, he’s about to find out immediately. Forget the surprise.
Better just pack.
He got up from the sofa.
Not long after, Lu Chen arrived.
He saw He Xiaoyuan at the kitchen counter packing small appliances into boxes. Lu Chen looked on and asked: “Moving?”
He Xiaoyuan didn’t answer, just continued packing, glancing at Lu Chen.
Lu Chen approached, expression knowing: “You agreed? To live together?”
He Xiaoyuan shrugged, teasingly: “Nope. Just packing them.”
Lu Chen took two steps forward, cupped He Xiaoyuan’s face, and kissed him. “You little liar.”
He Xiaoyuan smiled and tilted his head: “Just packing.”
Lu Chen held his face, looking him over carefully: “Are you sure?”
He Xiaoyuan’s expression was serious: “I’m sure.”
Lu Chen kissed him again.
After the kiss, they began packing together. This time, He Xiaoyuan realized he really had a lot of stuff—more than when moving from school to the company dorm, or from the dorm to this apartment.
He walked back and forth, upstairs and downstairs, muttering: “How do I have so much stuff?”
Suitcases and bags weren’t enough.
At that moment, Lu Chen opened the familiar “Niu Niu” bag—the one he had used when moving from the company dorm to this apartment.
Holding it up, he smiled. It was still here.
He Xiaoyuan walked over, grabbed the bag, and gave him a mock glare.
Lu Chen said lightly, “Still a little kid, after all.”
He Xiaoyuan efficiently shoved his things into the “Niu Niu” bag and said with a grin, “Yeah, a little kid. If I’m the little kid, then you’re the big kid.”
Big kid Lu Chen stood nearby and made a quick call to Chen Jun to have a few large boxes sent over for packing.
He Xiaoyuan looked up, clearly wanting to say something.
Lu Chen: “Hm?”
He Xiaoyuan, still packing, asked, “Do big bosses usually have it so easy? Just make a call and someone else moves your stuff?”
Lu Chen stepped over the boxes on the floor, cupped He Xiaoyuan’s head from behind, and kissed him gently on the lips. “Look at who it’s for. Moving for someone else, sure, a call is convenient. Moving for you, it’s better to do it yourself.”
He Xiaoyuan tried to look serious but couldn’t help the curve of a smile.
“But there’s no pay, you know,” he teased.
Lu Chen bent down and kissed him again, voice low and teasing: “Isn’t this enough?”
He Xiaoyuan couldn’t hold back a laugh and lightly pushed him: “Alright, enough talking. Let’s work.”
Together, they packed efficiently and transported everything to Yanlan Bay in several trips.
After moving everything, He Xiaoyuan tidied up, mopped, and restored the apartment to how it looked the first time he had seen it upon moving in.
Finally, at the door, he paused and looked around, inspecting the apartment seriously, just like he had when moving out of the university dorm and later the company dorm.
He thought: Gone.
And then: Every move is a step toward a new life. How wonderful.
Goodbye.
He Xiaoyuan left the apartment and gently closed the door behind him.