A sincere heart

The next day, Wei Zelin took Shi Yuan to the train station. Carrying Shi Yuan's suitcase, he took a bulging, medium-small backpack out of the trunk and handed it to him. It seemed to be leather; the black material felt soft and luxurious.

"What's in here?" Shi Yuan asked curiously.

"I bought you some earphones so you can listen to music if you get bored on the way. There's a power bank and some snacks, too." Wei Zelin opened the backpack's smallest compartment and took out a compact, pure-white case without any logo. He tucked the earphones into Shi Yuan's pocket just as an announcement reminding passengers to have their tickets checked sounded through the hall.

"I'll go get my ticket checked, then. You should head to work. Drive safely." Shi Yuan put on the backpack, took his suitcase, and waved goodbye to Wei Zelin.

Wei Zelin acknowledged him but didn't leave right away. Instead, he watched Shi Yuan's retreating figure until he disappeared completely, then turned and walked out.

The high-speed train from Capital City to S City took only forty minutes, but the slow train took three and a half hours. Shi Yuan had bought a ticket for the slow train. A little over three hours-he thought that was fine.

Waiting for the train was the most boring part. He scrolled through videos in the waiting hall, and a local news story caught his attention with its eye-catching headline.

"Capital City socialite surnamed Sun targeted by vengeful ex-boyfriend, *** videos uploaded to a website"

Shi Yuan drew in a sharp breath. Someone surnamed Sun? Surely it wasn't Sun Yixuan?

He read on. The daughter of a shareholder in the Wei Corporation Group had broken up with her boyfriend. Unwilling to accept it, her ex had begged her to get back together, only to be humiliated by Sun Mother after his pleas failed. He had then posted intimate videos of them online. According to Sun's ex-boyfriend, she had cheated on him repeatedly during their relationship. The uploads included not only intimate images of the two of them but also obscene footage involving group *, multiple partners, drug-facilitated *, and more, implicating several socialites, wealthy young men, and victims. The Sun family had now filed a lawsuit against her ex-boyfriend...

From the looks of it, this had little to do with his boyfriend. Still, remembering Wei Zelin's certain expression that night, Shi Yuan felt he must at least have known about it beforehand.

At 7:25, Shi Yuan boarded the train. His boyfriend and his good friend sent messages checking in one after the other. Although he had slept well the night before, he had gotten up too early and was still bleary-eyed. After finding his seat, he put on the earphones and was surprised by how comfortable the pair Wei Zelin had given him were. He selected a French nursery rhyme on his phone. Mm, the sound quality was excellent, too. They probably hadn't been cheap. Sweetness filled Shi Yuan's heart. He closed his eyes, planning to take a nap while listening to the nursery rhyme.

Five minutes later, someone gently nudged his shoulder. Shi Yuan frowned. He had only just drifted into a light sleep. Looking up, he said, "Xiao Ying???"

Seriously, wasn't this too much of a coincidence? If I weren't gay, I'd start wondering whether I had some kind of male-lead halo.

This time, Xiao Ying had boarded with her best friend. Their seats weren't far from Shi Yuan's, and they had spotted him as soon as they came aboard.

The seat beside Shi Yuan was empty, so Xiao Ying plopped down in it and greeted him. "Yep, I didn't expect to run into you again either. Oh, and don't mind what happened last time. My mom's a little too lively."

Running into someone familiar away from home was always a pleasure. Shi Yuan smiled. "It's fine. Your mom was very friendly. Are you going to S City?"

"Yeah. There's a big event in S City soon, so my best friend and I are going for some fun. Her name's Wenwen." Xiao Ying pointed to the girl seated diagonally across from them. She was the same girl who had approached him with Xiao Ying on the subway last time, and she looked very quiet.

Shi Yuan nodded to the girl, and Wenwen smiled and waved at them.

"I'm going to S City to visit a friend, too," Shi Yuan said.

"Wow!" Both were delighted by the chance encounter. Shi Yuan took the initiative to add Xiao Ying on WeChat, and Wenwen came over to scan his code as well.

Shi Yuan dug plenty of imported snacks out of his bag and shared them with the two young women.

Xiao Ying returned to her seat with the snacks in her arms, and the two girls huddled together, talking quietly.

It was mid-October. With the National Day holiday just over, there shouldn't have been so many passengers, but when Shi Yuan looked around, he found the carriage almost full. Most of the passengers were young, their faces filled with anticipation and excitement.

Shi Yuan grew thoughtful. It seemed the celebration Magic Cube Technology was holding was quite well known. As he thought about it, he broke into a goofy grin-Wei Zelin would be coming the day after tomorrow, too. They could enjoy it together!

At 11:05, the train arrived right on time. After calling Wei Zelin, Shi Yuan walked out of the station and spotted You Gui in a lightweight trench coat, standing by the exit and looking around.

Even in dark-colored clothes, her strikingly beautiful face stood out in the crowd. Quite a few people nearby were sneaking glances at her, most of them men.

Shi Yuan rushed over, and You Gui hugged him in delighted surprise.

"Long time no see!"

"Long time no see!!!"

Ahhh! Seeing his friend made Shi Yuan even happier.

There were plenty of other people waiting to pick someone up at the exit. Zhang Xiushuo had also come for his younger sister. As it happened, he worked at Magic Cube Technology, too. Although he and You Gui weren't in the same department, they had met before.

Xiao Ying said, "Shi Yuan, have you booked a hotel? If not, why don't you stay at the same one as us? There are several more of us, so it'll be lively." Several online friends from their group, scattered across the country, had arranged to come together.

Zhang Xiushuo felt a little awkward. His younger sister didn't know Shi Yuan had rejected his advances.

Fortunately, Shi Yuan declined. "No, thanks. I booked before I came. I'm staying for eight days."

"All right, then." Xiao Ying was a little disappointed. Only she and Wenwen were from Capital City, and her brother might be too busy with work to look after her.

They parted at the station exit.

"See you at the venue tomorrow!"

"See you tomorrow."

Although Shi Yuan had gotten up early and spent half the day traveling, he had caught up on sleep on the train, so he wasn't too tired. You Gui took him to a restaurant serving S City specialties, and after eating, they returned together to the hotel he had booked.

Shi Yuan flopped onto the bed and rubbed his stomach. "That was my first time trying the food here. It's exactly to my taste!"

He had booked a standard single room. There was just one bed in the small bedroom, with no chair or sofa. You Gui sat on the bed with him and said, "As long as you like it. The food in S City tends to be sweet. It took me quite a while to get used to it."

Shi Yuan rolled onto his side and propped up his chin to look at her. "The food in Capital City tends to be savory and salty. I like that, too."

"I envy you. Watching you enjoy your food made me eat an extra half bowl of rice today." You Gui genuinely envied Shi Yuan. Her childhood had clearly been hard, but now that those difficult days were behind her, even the delicacies she had once dreamed of no longer tasted sweet.

Shi Yuan touched her thin wrist. "Why are you still so skinny? Haven't you been feeling much better since coming to S City?"

Copying Shi Yuan, You Gui lay down on her side to talk. "I don't know either. I tried to gain weight a while ago. I ate braised pork for a whole week, and I nearly made myself sick of it."

Shi Yuan knew about that. They often chatted on WeChat. You Gui was Shi Yuan's only friend, and wasn't he her closest confidant, too?

"Wei Zelin and I are dating." Shi Yuan suddenly dropped a bombshell.

Sure enough, You Gui said in surprise, "Didn't you say he was scheming, that his motives in the Wei Family weren't pure, and that you wanted to find a chance to divorce him?" Everyone had known the marriage alliance between the Wei and Shi families had forced the two of them together.

Shi Yuan fidgeted bashfully. "I was too extreme before. He's actually pretty good."

You Gui looked into his eyes and said earnestly, "I don't know what's happened between you, but my own past relationship was far from good..."

Only because You Gui truly considered Shi Yuan one of her own could she lay bare that painful, terrible chapter of her love life.

Although Shi Yuan had read the original novel, hearing one of its protagonists recount the relationship from her own perspective revealed many things the book had never described.

"So I still hope you'll think carefully about whether you want to be with him. It should still be easy to get out now. If he's very controlling, I'm afraid you'll fall into the same pain I once suffered."

The hotel was nothing special. Every so often, the sound of someone dragging a suitcase came from the hallway outside. A few shafts of sunlight streamed through the window, and a slightly cool breeze slipped through the narrow opening. It was quiet and comfortable.

Shi Yuan lay on the snow-white sheets, listening silently. The warm autumn sunlight shone on his young face, making his flawless skin look all the more luminous.

Seen like this, even sharing a room with You Gui, whose exceptional beauty in "Thorn" surpassed that of celebrities, he didn't pale beside her. Instead, he had a presence that put people at ease.

"I'm not losing my head. I've thought about our relationship, too. I know he isn't as gentle and modest as he seems. Even when he smiles at other people, it's as if he wants to measure the angle of his mouth with a ruler. He's calculating. I could rack my brain and still never outscheme him. When I realized my feelings for him were changing, my first reaction was to distance myself."

Shi Yuan's expression was peaceful, his gaze distant. His slightly husky voice rose softly, carrying a note of solemnity.

"But feelings don't develop just because I tell them to. I can't even... I can't even say when I started liking him. But the moment I decided to be with him, all my doubts and all my unease vanished in an instant."

"Gui, I want to trust him just this once."

To You Gui, who had failed in love, those words sounded like a gambler staking everything she owned on one final frenzy at the table.

She felt a sorrowful concern for him. "What if he betrays your trust? I heard Chairman Wei is grooming him now, and he keeps getting promoted. When he had no standing, he could compromise and accept an arranged marriage. Now, the more power he gains, the more his desires will grow. If the chairman tells him to marry someone else, will he be able to refuse? Whether he refuses or not, what if the Wei Family comes after you? What can you do in the face of absolute power?" Even though Wei Zelin was usually gentle and courteous, everyone knew he was weak and easy to manipulate.

Shi Yuan thought, What you're talking about has already happened.

Having read the original novel, he knew more than You Gui. Wei Zelin was far more frightening than the puppet she described. Only after they had confessed their feelings and Shi Yuan had seen another side of Wei Zelin had he stopped fearing him as he once had.

Shi Yuan rolled onto his back, his eyes shining, and said firmly, "Since I've decided to be with him, I won't worry about his motives. I'm all alone anyway. There's nothing much he could want from me. All I have is a sincere heart."

"But right now, I like him and he likes me. That much is real, isn't it? So while I'm with him, I'll do everything I can to give him what I'm able to give. I don't want to hold back my feelings. That way, even if we really do part someday because of something or someone, I won't have any regrets. Because I'll have put my heart into this relationship!"

You Gui watched her friend with a complicated expression. As he spoke of his love, his eyes moved with emotion, bright and radiant.

She thought that even the most despicable person in the world would be moved by such wholehearted love after hearing those words. It was a sincerity she could never learn, even in a lifetime.