Chapter Summaries

After the café’s cream cake squares became popular, Lu Lin quietly tried one while thinking about Yan Heqing. The chapter ended with Yan Heqing getting a haircut near his home.

• Yan Heqing reflected on how Lu Lin had bought a cream cake despite supposedly disliking it, then recalled how Lin Fengzhi’s birthday cake had once been rejected by Lu Lin.
• Lu Muchi took Lin Fengzhi’s strawberry cake into Lu Lin’s office, but Lu Lin had the secretary take it away to share.
• Lin Fengzhi later mistook Lu Muchi for Lu Lin while drunk and kissed him for half an hour.
• Lu Lin overheard women praising Yan Heqing at work, then ate the cream cake square he had kept beside his computer.
• Yan Heqing got his hair trimmed and chatted with the barber about his head shape.

Yan Heqing accepted a lucrative job mixing drinks at Xie Yunjie's bachelor party, where Lin Fengyi recognized him and challenged him to a humiliating dice game. Yan Heqing agreed to play as a black Bugatti arrived outside the bar.

• Yan Heqing remembered his parents and explained his advice on keeping a baby's head round to a barbershop owner.
• Yan Heqing studied Russian on the subway and agreed to work Xie Yunjie's private party for triple pay and a ten-thousand-yuan bonus.
• Yan Heqing began mixing drinks for the guests, including a Godfather for the drunk Chu Ziyu.
• Lin Fengyi recognized Yan Heqing and, hoping to embarrass him, challenged him to dice, where the loser had to kiss someone or strip.
• Yan Heqing calmly accepted the challenge as a black Bugatti stopped outside the bar.

Yan Heqing lost a dice game and chose Lu Lin as his forfeit kiss partner, leaving them alone in the private room after Lu Lin cleared everyone out.

• Chu Ziyu called low, and Yan Heqing beat Lin Fengyi by rolling three ones.
• Lin Fengyi lost and French-kissed a man beside him for five minutes before demanding a high-roll rematch.
• Lin Fengyi rolled eleven while Yan Heqing rolled four, so Yan Heqing lost the second round.
• Yan Heqing asked Lu Lin, who had appeared at the doorway, whether he could kiss him, and Lu Lin agreed by pulling him close.
• Lu Lin ordered everyone to leave, and Xie Yunjie and Chu Ziyu ushered the others out before closing the door behind them.

Lu Lin rescued Yan Heqing from a dice game at the bar, then stayed with him through the night while Yan Heqing slept. In the morning, Lin Fengyi confronted Yan Heqing and accused him of earning money through his body, leaving their argument unresolved.

• Yan Heqing admitted he had taken leave from university because he badly needed money, and Lu Lin told him to rest in the private room instead of returning to work.
• Lu Lin raised the room temperature when Yan Heqing coughed and curled up from the cold, then stayed awake and refrained from smoking beside him.
• Yan Heqing woke at six, left the bar quietly, and bought a banana crepe and soy milk from a street stall.
• Lin Fengyi, who had followed Yan Heqing from the bar, confronted him about working there and threatened that it would embarrass Zhizhi.
• Yan Heqing defended earning money through his own labor, and Lin Fengyi accused him of staying in Lu Lin's private room because Lu Lin desired him.

Yan Heqing blackmailed Lin Fengyi into keeping their conflict quiet, then returned to work and delivered coffee to Lu Lin’s office building. During their elevator ride, Yan Heqing spoke about fishing and his determination to change his fate, while Lu Lin remained interested in him.

• Yan Heqing showed Lin Fengyi a video of him kissing another man and warned him to stay out of each other’s way or they would both suffer.
• Xie Yunjie found Lu Lin alone in the private room and learned that Yan Heqing had already left.
• Yan Heqing worked at the café, studied between tasks, and arranged with Lin Fengzhi for him to collect his belongings the following day.
• Yan Heqing delivered a large coffee order to the fifty-sixth floor and met Lu Lin in the elevator on the way down.
• Lu Lin asked about Yan Heqing’s health and his interest in fishing, and Yan Heqing revealed his hope of changing his predetermined fate.

Yan Heqing quit his bartending job after another night of Feng Zhixian pursuing him, then kept to his routine of eating and studying Russian at home. The chapter left him calling someone on Sunday morning.

• Yan Heqing told Zhang Qing he was quitting his second part-time job after that day.
• Feng Zhixian brought a crowd to the bar and offered Yan Heqing a trip abroad, but Yan Heqing rejected him and told him to be quiet.
• Yan Heqing told the manager he was quitting for personal reasons and left the bar after thanking him.
• Feng Zhixian offered to drive Yan Heqing home, then rushed back into the bar after Yan Heqing hinted that Feng did not know what had happened there the previous night.
• Yan Heqing steamed dumplings, studied Russian vocabulary, checked that he weighed 114 jin, and made a phone call.

Yan Heqing applied to volunteer at Rainbow Bridge Welfare Home, where he hoped to disrupt the events that had once brought Lin Fengzhi and Lu Muchi closer. After receiving his bar wages, he met Lin Fengzhi at Ruixing Plaza and gave him an Ultraman figurine tied to a childhood memory.

• Yan Heqing applied to volunteer at Rainbow Bridge Welfare Home, where Lu Muchi's mother worked and where Lin Fengzhi had once planned to revisit their childhood memories.
• Yan Heqing vomited, then received 17,656 yuan in wages and a bonus from the bar.
• Lin Fengzhi invited Yan Heqing to Ruixing Plaza for a meal, and Yan Heqing agreed to bring a paper bag.
• At the plaza, Yan Heqing stayed where he was instead of approaching Lin Fengzhi, who jogged over to him.
• Lin Fengzhi led Yan Heqing through the mall while searching for a hot pot restaurant, and they ended up in the children's section.
• Yan Heqing gave Lin Fengzhi an Ultraman figurine and recalled how Lin Fengzhi had cried after breaking one as a child.

Lin Fengzhi and Yan Heqing shared hot pot, and Yan Heqing described their birth parents before they parted. Later that night, Yan Heqing returned from a bookstore and found Lu Muchi confronting Feng Zhixian outside his apartment building.

• Yan Heqing led Lin Fengzhi to a hot pot restaurant and ordered spicy broth with baby cuttlefish, pretending to remember Lin Fengzhi enjoying them as a child.
• Lin Fengzhi asked about their birth parents, and Yan Heqing described their mother, Yan Qiushuang, and their father, whose surname was Dong.
• Lu Muchi called Lin Fengzhi about sending him king crabs, then left his office after hearing Yan Heqing's voice.
• Yan Heqing paid for dinner, invited Lin Fengzhi over, and watched him leave before going to a bookstore instead of going home.
• After the bookstore closed, Yan Heqing walked home and saw Lu Muchi facing off with Feng Zhixian near his apartment building.

Lu Muchi confronted Feng Zhixian over Yan Heqing, who rejected Feng’s confession and sent him away. Lu Muchi followed Yan Heqing to feed the stray cats, but his frustration boiled over when Yan Heqing refused to engage with him.

• Lu Muchi told Feng Zhixian that Yan Heqing belonged to him and warned him not to come looking again.
• Yan Heqing gave Feng Zhixian the coffee he owed him, rejected his feelings, and told him how to leave the apartment complex.
• Lu Muchi waited outside Yan Heqing’s door with cat food and followed him downstairs to feed the stray cats.
• Yan Heqing called the cats One, Two, Three and stroked a kitten while Lu Muchi complained that he would not look at him or smile.
• Lu Muchi scattered the cat food, grabbed Yan Heqing by the shoulders, and demanded to know whether Yan Heqing thought he could ignore him.

Yan Heqing confronted Lu Muchi about using him as a substitute for Lin Fengzhi and refused to be intimidated, while Lin Fengzhi happily remembered his day with Yan Heqing in his diary. The chapter ended with Lin Fengyi relieved that Yan Heqing had not told Lin Fengzhi about his secret.

• Lu Muchi grabbed Yan Heqing and insulted him, but Yan Heqing punched him in the nose and said he was returning the favor.
• Yan Heqing confronted Lu Muchi, saying he knew Lu Muchi loved Lin Fengzhi and had chosen him as a substitute.
• Lu Muchi threatened to have Yan Heqing expelled if he told Lin Fengzhi, then warned him to give in before he left.
• Yan Heqing opened a can of cat food and added it to the stray cats’ feast.
• Lin Fengzhi wrote in his diary about receiving an Ultraman figure from Yan Heqing and enjoying hot pot with him.
• Lin Fengyi questioned Lin Fengzhi about his visit with Yan Heqing and felt relieved when Lin Fengzhi showed no sign of knowing his secret.

Yan Heqing was invited to discuss his application with Rainbow Bridge Welfare Home, and Lu Lin arranged a visit there for the same afternoon. On his way to the welfare home, Yan Heqing bought snacks and yogurt that reminded him of Lin Fengzhi.

• Lin Fengzhi asked Lin Fengyi to take him to Xie Yunjie's wedding, hoping to see Lu Lin there, and Lin Fengyi agreed.
• Lu Lin learned that Xie Yunjie's wedding would be Saturday and ignored Chu Ziyu's question about his feelings for a young bartender.
• Lu Lin changed his schedule to visit Rainbow Bridge Welfare Home after reviewing Lu Group's charitable initiative.
• Yan Heqing received approval from Rainbow Bridge Welfare Home to come in for a detailed discussion and requested the afternoon off from the café.
• Yan Heqing bought snacks, fruit yogurt, and milk at a convenience store, remembering how much Lin Fengzhi had loved strawberry yogurt.

Yan Heqing visited Rainbow Bridge Welfare Home to begin volunteering long-term and saw how the children lived. After patiently sharing snacks and stories with children on the third floor, he was taken to the locked fourth floor, where a woman warned that Teacher Xu was teaching.

• Yan Heqing arrived at Rainbow Bridge Welfare Home with snacks and milk and met the staff member who had arranged his visit.
• Yan Heqing told the staff member he intended to volunteer long-term, and the man offered to show him around before he decided.
• The man explained that the children lived on different floors according to their conditions and described the challenges of caring for them.
• Yan Heqing handed out snacks and milk to the children on the third floor and told them stories, impressing the staff member with his patience.
• The man took Yan Heqing to the locked fourth floor, where a gray-haired woman came to unlock the gate and said Teacher Xu was teaching a class.

Yan Heqing toured Rainbow Bridge, met Xu Qiaoyin, and agreed to volunteer there once a week. After Lu Lin pledged major funding to the orphanage, Yan Heqing left in the storm, soaked and taking shelter outside a convenience store.

• Auntie Zhang showed Yan Heqing around the fourth floor, where he watched Xu Qiaoyin teach art to the children.
• Yan Heqing handed out food and gave an extra serving to a deaf girl so she could share with her best friend on the fifth floor.
• Yan Heqing agreed to volunteer once a week, and the man gave him a blue staff badge.
• Yan Heqing lent Xu Qiaoyin his umbrella as she prepared to leave in the rain, then ran off without it.
• Lu Lin pledged hundreds of millions to Rainbow Bridge for a library, an infirmary, and a new dormitory.
• Yan Heqing bought a jam bun and water and sheltered from the rain outside a convenience store.

Yan Heqing accepted Lu Lin’s ride home after they met at the Rainbow Bridge Welfare Home, and the two talked during the drive. When Yan Heqing invited Lu Lin inside to escape the rain, Lu Lin accepted and entered his apartment barefoot.

• Yan Heqing got into Lu Lin’s Maybach after the driver said President Lu wanted to see him.
• Lu Lin drove Yan Heqing home and learned that Yan Heqing had grown up at the Rainbow Bridge Welfare Home after his parents died.
• Yan Heqing told Lu Lin that his hair curled when wet, and Lu Lin gave him ginger tea.
• At Yan Heqing’s building, Yan Heqing invited Lu Lin upstairs for hot water, and Lu Lin agreed.
• Yan Heqing led Lu Lin into his apartment and turned on the radiant heater.

Yan Heqing prepared dinner while Lu Lin waited out the storm at his apartment, and they talked about Yan Heqing’s studies, reading, and eating habits. As Yan Heqing served hot pot, Lu Lin learned he had quit his bar job and was left to wonder whether his earlier advice had influenced him.

• Lu Lin waited in Yan Heqing’s apartment while Yan Heqing changed, cooked rice, and prepared food.
• Lu Lin noticed Yan Heqing’s Russian cytology book and learned he planned to transfer to biology next semester and enjoyed Agatha Christie’s mysteries.
• Lu Lin asked whether a piece of bread had been Yan Heqing’s whole dinner, and Yan Heqing explained he was trying to gain weight.
• Yan Heqing invited Lu Lin to stay for dinner because of the heavy rain, and Lu Lin agreed.
• Chu Ziyu called Lu Lin, recognized Yan Heqing’s voice, and asked whether Lu Lin had caused him to quit the bar; Lu Lin realized he had not known about the resignation.
• Yan Heqing served a hot-pot meal with rice, dipping sauce, and vegetables.

Yan Heqing shared a hot pot meal with Lu Lin, gave him homemade fishing bait, and learned he was thirty. After Lu Lin left, Yan Heqing went to the hotel where a future incident involving Lu Lin was set to happen and applied for a kitchen job.

• Yan Heqing served Lu Lin pork meatballs, and they discussed his work and plans to study abroad while washing the dishes together.
• Yan Heqing gave Lu Lin a jar of homemade fishing bait, and Lu Lin told him he was thirty before leaving.
• Yan Heqing searched for Pine Blossoms Brew Spring and planned to help Lu Muchi discover Lin Fengzhi's feelings for Lu Lin early.
• Yan Heqing went to Pine Blossoms Brew Spring the next morning and applied for a temporary kitchen job.
• Yang Zhen took Yan Heqing into the kitchen and asked him to carve a rose from a carrot.

Yan Heqing carved a rose during his interview with Yang Zhen, who offered him a paid shift at a wedding banquet. Later, he delivered coffee and cake to Lu Lin and stayed to eat lunch, leaving with fruit for himself and leftover pork for the stray cats near his home.

• Yang Zhen recognized Yan Heqing's years of kitchen work and invited him to help at a wedding banquet on Saturday.
• Yan Heqing returned to the café, where a customer requested that he deliver coffee and cake to the Lu Group.
• At Lu Lin's invitation, Yan Heqing ate lunch in the general manager's office and said he disliked the overly sweet shredded pork.
• Yan Heqing asked to take the leftover pork for stray cats, and Lu Lin told him to take the fruit for himself as well.

Yan Heqing shared Lu Lin’s fruit on Moments, then video-called Lin Fengzhi, who asked him for outfit advice and encouraged him to accept someone’s romantic feelings if he felt the same. The next evening, Yan Heqing bought a notebook and fountain pen and began fabricating Lin Fengzhi’s diary.

• Yan Heqing posted a photo of the fruit Lu Lin had given him and messaged Lin Fengzhi to say good night.
• Lin Fengzhi video-called Yan Heqing to show him a suit, and Yan Heqing suggested wearing something casual for the wedding.
• Lin Fengzhi noticed Yan Heqing’s expensive restaurant takeout and learned that a friend had given him the food and fruit.
• Yan Heqing asked Lin Fengzhi whether he should accept someone who liked him, and Lin Fengzhi advised him to follow his feelings.
• The next day, Yan Heqing bought a notebook and fountain pen, practiced writing Lin Fengzhi’s name, and began fabricating Lin Fengzhi’s diary.

Yan Heqing prepared a diary entry modeled on Lin Fengzhi’s and arranged to meet Lu Muchi, intending to use the diary as bait. At dinner, he confronted Lu Muchi about his obsession and lack of courage, then left Lu Muchi watching as other people admired him.

• Yan Heqing wrote a diary entry modeled on Lin Fengzhi’s and prepared bait for Lu Muchi.
• Yan Heqing changed his café shift so he could take Saturday off, then messaged Lu Muchi to meet and settle things.
• Lu Muchi arrived at the restaurant and admitted through his thoughts that Yan Heqing’s beauty and resistance made him want to possess him.
• Yan Heqing called Lu Muchi pathetic for seeking people who resembled the person he liked instead of confessing to him.
• Yan Heqing and Lu Muchi ate dinner, and Lu Muchi watched several people flirt with Yan Heqing while he waited to pay.

Yan Heqing rejected Lu Muchi’s proposal because he refused to be anyone’s stand-in, but Lu Muchi found Yan Heqing’s diary and followed him to a wedding venue, where Yan Heqing worked in the kitchen and banquet hall. Lin Fengzhi headed to Lu Lin’s hotel room, while Yan Heqing continued setting the tables for the wedding.

• Yan Heqing told Lu Muchi he refused to be a stand-in, and Lu Muchi said he no longer saw Yan Heqing that way.
• After dropping Yan Heqing off, Lu Muchi found his notebook and read an entry about Yan Heqing giving himself to someone the next day.
• Yan Heqing took a taxi to Pine Blossoms Brew Spring at four in the morning, and Lu Muchi followed him there.
• Lu Muchi recognized the venue as Xie Yunjie’s wedding banquet and watched Yan Heqing work through the kitchen’s surveillance feed.
• Lin Fengzhi learned Lu Lin’s room number and went up to room 2120, planning to surprise him.
• Yan Heqing helped set the banquet tables and folded a napkin into a swan.