Farewell Before Leaving

After he got home that evening, Su You told his parents that he would soon be leaving for Hongning Base City.

To his surprise, his mother, Gong Yanrong, showed no sign of sadness. She even said that at last she wouldn't have to make breakfast every day anymore. Her words dealt Su You a critical blow, showing him what fake motherly love looked like.

The one who was most reluctant to see Su You go was naturally Tang Yongqing. But she had been prepared for it, too. In September, she would be going to Kyoto University with her younger brother, Tang Yongyuan, to register. Their temporary separation was inevitable.

So, in the days that followed, the two of them went on dates at their rendezvous spot in Guanglan Residential Quarter almost every day.

On the afternoon of August 23, Su You made an excuse to slip away from Tang Yongqing, then went to a nearby mall and bought a Buji Beast plushie.

It was the pet of the main character in the hottest cartoon of the moment. It looked extremely cute, and Buji Beast was even far more popular than the cartoon's protagonist, beloved by children everywhere.

After buying the plushie, Su You headed straight for Yourong Steamed Bun Shop on Wenjing Road. Since he was leaving Tianjin City, he naturally had to say goodbye to the beautiful steamed-bun seller.

Over the past two months, things had moved quickly between him and Tang Yongqing. She also kept a pretty close eye on him, so Su You had visited the shop far less often—only a dozen or so times a month.

It had really frustrated him. He wished he could travel back in time and buy a copy of Time Management Master to study.

He arrived at the shop around four in the afternoon. It was still open, but there were hardly any customers. Only a delicate little girl sat at the front of the shop.

At that moment, she was hunched over a table, scribbling away in a notebook. A small pink backpack sat beside her.

"Yuan Yuan," Su You called.

"Brother Su You!"

The little girl looked up and saw Su You. Her face immediately lit up with a smile, and she ran over to grab his arm.

The girl was He Wenyuan, the daughter of the "beautiful steamed-bun seller." She was only ten years old and was about to start fifth grade.

"Brother Su You, you haven't come to see me for nine days." The little girl pouted, looking a little upset.

"Ahem." Su You's face reddened. Ever since he had returned from the assessment, he and Tang Yongqing had been dating every day because they were about to part. He had been so caught up with her that he'd forgotten all about this place, and hadn't visited in days.

Su You apologized to Yuan Yuan, then produced the Buji Beast plushie he had just bought. That finally cheered her up.

"You little rascal, what brings you here at this hour? Aren't you spending time with your girlfriend?"

The familiar teasing voice came from behind the shop. Someone lifted the curtain and came out through the back door.

It was He Yourong, the beautiful steamed-bun seller who was always on Su You's mind—and one of the only two fish in his little pond.

As a single mother nearing thirty, she had to look after her child while working hard to make ends meet. Yet the years had left no trace on her. If anything, they had given her a ripe, mature charm.

"Girlfriend? What girlfriend? Unless you're willing to be my girlfriend, Sister Yourong?" Su You said with a grin.

"Pah!" He Yourong spat. "Wasn't that young woman who came with you last time your girlfriend?"

Without changing his expression, Su You replied, "She's a classmate. Don't read too much into it."

He Yourong laughed so hard her body shook, and Su You found it hard to look away.

She rolled her eyes at him and teased, "You're full of lies, you little rascal. I wouldn't believe a single punctuation mark you said."

Su You let out a long sigh and sobered up. He patted Yuan Yuan on the head and told them that he was going to leave Tianjin City soon.

"Where are you going? Is it far?" He Yourong felt a little reluctant to see him go.

She had known this smooth-talking rascal ever since Yourong Steamed Bun Shop opened more than two years ago.

Though he was always teasing her, he had genuinely helped her a lot. Especially after he had saved her daughter, Yuan Yuan, from a truck. Yuan Yuan had grown attached to him, and He Yourong herself seemed to feel a little of the same.

Still, because of their age difference, she had always thought of Su You as a little brother.

Su You nodded. "Hongning Base City."

He Yourong froze for a moment. In this era, aside from children, there probably weren't many people who hadn't heard of Hongning Base City.

It was a human stronghold established by "Hong," the world's most powerful warrior, and his followers. It was also widely recognized as the safest base city in the world.

It was in western Asia, nearly four thousand kilometers from Kyoto Base City. There was no way to get there except by plane—and in this era, even the wealthy couldn't bring themselves to fly, let alone ordinary people.

Yuan Yuan clutched Su You's arm and looked up at him. Tears glimmered in her eyes, and her face was full of reluctance. Even at ten, she already understood a lot.

"Brother Su You, will you come back to visit me?"

At those words, He Yourong suddenly felt a little flustered, though she couldn't say why.

Su You rubbed Yuan Yuan's head and smiled.

"Don't worry. I'll come back for the New Year. And I'll video-call you every day from now on. How does that sound?"

Yuan Yuan immediately stopped crying and nodded hard.

Su You was delighted. He quickly turned to He Yourong and said with a pained expression, "Sister Yourong, you have to take me off your blacklist. Otherwise, I won't be able to video-call you, and Yuan Yuan and I will both be heartbroken."

He Yourong secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but said, "Hmph. It'd be better if I never saw you again!"

Su You could tell she didn't mean it, and couldn't help feeling secretly pleased.

But Yuan Yuan was still young and had no idea what her mother really meant. Thinking that her mother truly wouldn't let her video-call Brother Su You, she burst into tears and started making a fuss.

He Yourong's pretty face flushed, and she glared fiercely at Su You.

Su You didn't care in the slightest. His main purpose in coming had been to get He Yourong to take him off her blacklist. Otherwise, once he got to the Basic Training Camp, he wouldn't be able to keep in touch with her, and his progress in winning her over would probably take a big hit.

The result was even better than he'd expected. He Yourong's saying one thing and meaning another proved that his efforts over the past two years hadn't been wasted.

Besides, with Yuan Yuan as his trump card and himself off her blacklist, how could He Yourong get away? Sooner or later, she'd end up in his arms. This was what you called a roundabout approach!

Watching her daughter cry and fuss, He Yourong felt both sorry for her and amused. She had no choice but to promise to let Yuan Yuan video-call Su You, though she strictly limited how long they could talk each day.

But to Su You, taking the first step meant he'd already won. The final victory was only a matter of time.

He Yourong was on the first level, while Su You was on the second.

After watching He Yourong remove him from her blacklist, Su You pressed his advantage. He helped Yuan Yuan with her homework and gave He Yourong a hand. He stayed until the shop closed that night before heading home.