Countless times, Tao Shuran jolted awake from nightmares, clutching the edge of her blanket and gasping for air in the pitch-black night.
“Tao Shuran, we’re broken up. Let’s never meet again.”
That sentence embedded itself in Tao Shuran’s mind like a nightmare. The courage of her youth vanished the moment her secret crush ended fruitlessly, and by the time she left, she lacked even the courage to look back.
But Tao Shuran could imagine Liang Yuanjing’s expression.
With his arrogantly unyielding personality, after being toyed with and rejected by her, he must have felt genuine disgust from the bottom of his heart.
In her final two years at Qing University, Tao Shuran lived in a state of self-loathing.
She dared not hear any news about him, retreating into her shell like a turtle at Linchuan Campus.
The last piece of news about him came on graduation day.
Compared to that summer after senior year of high school, this time Tao Shuran truly felt the separation.
Fu Changpei could not return from his internship in Shanghai, and Fang Qingyi had chosen to teach in a remote city during her junior year. In the vast campus, only she remained, a solitary figure, to take graduation photos.
No one knew what happened that summer day.
They only knew that the bright girl who once always smiled on her face never returned, and the eventual parting of Fang Qingyi and Fu Changpei—one north, one south—always evoked sighs of regret.
In the instant the photo was captured, Tao Shuran’s smile faded.
Everyone around her tossed their bachelor’s caps high, cheering for graduation, while she sorrowfully thought that her courageous yet lonely youth had finally come to an end.
After the photos, Lin Tingzhou came over to her on her own initiative.
“Congratulations, you’ve gotten what you wanted.”
That year, Tao Shuran was officially recommended for graduate studies in cultural relics restoration at Qing University, becoming Teacher Lin’s student in name and deed.
She occasionally heard news about Liang Yuanjing from Lin Tingzhou’s mouth. She knew his current situation—he had gone to American Aviation University for an exchange program.
In a life undisturbed by her, he pursued his dream of soaring into the clouds with ferocious speed.
Tao Shuran smiled but mostly did not engage, content to be a mere passerby in his life.
Later, once at the door of the restoration room, she ran into Zhao Zhengnian, who had returned to the alma mater to give a speech. In the past two years, he had won many competitions and was at the peak of his fame, brimming with youthful vigor.
The moment he saw her, however, he froze.
“You’re still here?”
Tao Shuran softly uttered an “Mm.”
Over these years, everyone had left, and it seemed she alone remained stuck in place.
Zhao Zhengnian raised an eyebrow. “Do you have any news on A Jing?”
“No.” Tao Shuran rubbed her fingers and turned her head away, striving to speak calmly. “He and I lost contact long ago.”
“Really? From the year you broke up, it’s been four years, right?”
Zhao Zhengnian sucked in a breath. “You two went all out. What happened? Was it worth it?”
Tao Shuran knew their breakup had been quite abrupt.
But compared to the end, their beginning had been even more like child’s play.
Once the sweet tide of ambiguity receded, those repeatedly chewed-over memories turned into a heartbreaking bitterness.
Tao Shuran gradually tasted the emotions from back then. Because of her natural fondness from liking him, she slowly immersed herself in his gentleness and thoughtfulness.
He did not like her.
She had simply gotten too deep into the role.
At this thought, she smiled and said lightly, “I was the one who suggested breaking up.”
“Zhao Zhengnian, you’ve always known, right? We weren’t in a real relationship.”
Zhao Zhengnian touched his nose. “But I felt like A Jing really liked you a bit.”
“I’ve never seen him act that way with any other girl.”
The teasing, the occasional mischievous grin, the meticulous care and concern—Zhao Zhengnian had been astonished when he first learned of their fake relationship.
Liang Yuanjing, pursued by admirers for who knew how many years, had come up with the absurd ploy of a fake romance right at the start of university.
It did not fit Liang Yuanjing’s style at all.
It suited his tendency to say one thing and mean another, though.
“It doesn’t matter anymore.”
Tao Shuran looked at him with clear, moist eyes. “I won’t delude myself into thinking he liked me again.”
Zhao Zhengnian let out a long sigh, as if regretting their fate as an ill-fated couple.
He pulled his cap brim down low, cautiously avoiding discovery by fervent fans, and leaned in to ask softly, “Tao Shuran, do you have any updates on Fang Qingyi these years?”
“Is she doing well?”
“She’s doing great. She has things she loves doing and like-minded friends. As for romance—”
Tao Shuran paused before saying, “Some things can’t be forced.”
Zhao Zhengnian deeply agreed with that statement.
He too had been wandering these years, shuttling between cities domestic and abroad, rarely returning to Fuqing City.
“Are you about to graduate from grad school?”
With a touch of emotion, Zhao Zhengnian said, “I really wonder if she’ll come back on your graduation day so we can all gather.”
“We won’t meet again.”
Tao Shuran lowered her head and murmured to herself.
Amid all the changed scenes and people, she always remembered Liang Yuanjing’s words: “Never meet again.”
He was a man of his word.
And she lacked the courage to meet him again.
That summer when she officially graduated from grad school, after hastily taking two group photos, Tao Shuran received a notice from Lin Tingzhou to head to North City for a major cultural relic salvage operation.
They had discovered a Southern Song Dynasty tomb in a village there, requiring at least a year of archaeological excavation.
It was a rare hands-on opportunity, so Tao Shuran had no reason to refuse.
Most of the team members were old classmates from the Restoration Group. As Teacher Lin’s last batch of students, Tao Shuran was the little junior sister of the entire sect.
After getting off the plane, they boarded a shuttle bus to North City. The road was bumpy, with a strong push against their backs.
Wearing a mask, Tao Shuran leaned against her seat to catch up on sleep when she suddenly heard someone call her name. She cracked her eyes open slightly and heard Gu Songnian, hugging his backpack, turn to chat animatedly with the back row.
“Let me tell you, that’s my junior sister. She’s amazing, super steady hands. You all saw that painting from last year’s international art exhibition, right?”
“My junior sister restored it. The painting was shattered into pieces. Several old masters came to look, shook their heads, and said it was hopeless. My junior sister picked up the pieces and put them back together.”
“She just graduated from grad school this year, only 25.”
At the last sentence, Tao Shuran finally could not help but open her eyes fully. She took off her mask, sighed, and looked over helplessly.
“Gu Songnian, are you using me as your billboard again?”
Gu Songnian raised his eyebrows. “Isn’t it the truth? I heard Old Man Yuan from the Clock Group really wants to poach you. He’s asked Teacher Lin several times openly and covertly, but Teacher Lin won’t let go.”
“That’s because our group is short-staffed as it is.”
Tao Shuran sighed helplessly. From the first day of enrollment, after hearing she had entered as the top student with double excellence, Gu Songnian had viewed her with inexplicable hero-worship.
He had enrolled a year earlier than her, yet acted like her fanboy.
“Control him.”
With no other choice, Tao Shuran shot a pleading look at Jin Boyu sitting beside her.
She did not want to become famous before even reaching North City.
Jin Boyu smiled mildly and handed her a neck pillow from his bag.
“Use this to sleep. It’ll be much more comfortable for your neck and shoulders.”
Tao Shuran softly said, “Thanks.”
Lin Tingzhou had long passed retirement age. In the past two years, her energy had waned, and she no longer took new students.
Thus, there were only three under her: them. Teacher Lin had not planned to take more students, but she saw Tao Shuran as promising and felt it a pity not to train her personally.
Besides, the two boys in the group were not always meticulous in their work. Having a girl to guide them would be good.
Upon arriving in North City, they had to transfer to a local bus to the village.
They heard that once in town, they still needed to take a village vehicle over a stretch of mountain road to reach the final site.
After the long journey, even the sturdiest body would falter. During a midway transfer, Tao Shuran got off to get some air.
She rested against a dilapidated streetlamp. Not far off, a pale new moon hung in the night sky.
Tao Shuran tilted her head up to gaze at it, silently swallowing the dry, tough biscuit in her hand.
She actually had no appetite.
But to conserve energy, she had to eat.
Before coming, Lin Tingzhou had considered whether to bring her. North City was near the border, with high mountains, distant roads, and treacherous terrain—the hardships deeper than imagined.
As a girl, Tao Shuran was at a natural disadvantage in stamina, something she had already felt during the long hours of restoration work.
But she had gone to Lin Tingzhou herself, saying only one thing:
“If you can do it, then I certainly can too.”
At that moment, Lin Tingzhou knew she had not misjudged.
This girl was stubborn; once she set her mind on something, she followed it to the end.
North City had drastic day-night temperature differences. Tao Shuran buttoned her jacket and tilted her head into the wind.
In the corner of her vision, a pair of clean, slender hands reached over. Jin Boyu unscrewed the cap of a mineral water bottle and handed it to her.
In a tone that seemed familiar with her habits, he said, “Conditions here are rough. Make do with this for now. Once we reach the village, I’ll get you some hot water.”
Tao Shuran had a habit of drinking hot water.
It was just because her stomach was not great; cold water always made her uncomfortable. Normal mineral water was fine, though.
She did not have to have hot water, just like she did not have to like someone. These years, she had grown accustomed to being single—such a life was not bad.
But Jin Boyu insisted on accommodating her habit. As the eldest, he always took it upon himself to be the caretaker in their group.
Tao Shuran smiled, took it, tilted her head for a small sip, and said casually, “It’s fine, all the same.”
Upon reaching the village, the village chief came ahead to arrange their lodging.
Not expecting a girl in the team, the chief slapped his forehead. “Didn’t notice there’s a girl. Not many empty rooms in the village; can’t clear one out tonight.”
Tao Shuran quickly said, “No problem. Treat me the same as everyone.”
Just as she spoke, Gu Songnian beside her tugged her sleeve and whispered, “Junior sister, I just checked. We’re in six-person dorms, the kind with one big shared bed.”
“How can you, a girl, sleep there?”
Tao Shuran pressed her lips, about to say it was fine—as long as she could come here, she could endure any hardship.
But then she thought, even if she could take it, others would feel awkward.
In a flash, she thought of Fang Qingyi.
They had been in touch recently, and Tao Shuran vaguely remembered Fang Qingyi was teaching in some village in North City.
If not too far, she could stay with her for the night.
With that, Tao Shuran immediately called Fang Qingyi.
Unexpectedly, she was here too—a coincidence. Fang Qingyi agreed on the spot for Tao Shuran to stay over.
With lodging sorted, Tao Shuran felt a huge relief.
For the first work banquet, they prepared unique local dishes as a pre-work warm-up.
The overly spicy flavors, heavy with onion, ginger, and garlic, hit Tao Shuran like a warning shot with the first bite.
She was unaccustomed to the local conditions and had little appetite. She slipped out quietly amid the crowd.
As she left, she could not help but sigh that she had become even less suited to such occasions than before.
By the time she stepped out, night had fully fallen. Away from the city’s dazzling neon lights, the stars shone brightly—the one benefit.
Tao Shuran held a bottle of sparkling water, tilting her head to sip slowly.
After a while, a voice sounded beside her. Unaware, she got a big scare and nearly stumbled.
Jin Boyu steadily supported her.
“You like looking at the moon?”
Tao Shuran paused. In the vast night sky, she had not expected anyone to notice she was looking at the moon.
She uttered an “Mm” and softly said,
“The moon hangs high, never falling.”
“It’s not just the moon that never falls.” Jin Boyu turned his head, smiling as he tapped her nose.
Teasingly, he said, “Your Banyue Xing shines just as high and bright.”
The reason she had not changed it for so many years was very simple: a pure love that began during her youthful girlhood.
No matter what, she would not choose to forget.
In the night sky, when a certain planet orbited near the moon, the astronomical phenomenon of a “moon companion star” appeared. The star closest to the moon was called a Banyue Xing.
She wanted to be a Banyue Xing, the brightest and most dazzling star beside the crescent moon.
And even until that day, though the moon was no longer there, the bright and shining dream had never been abandoned for a single moment.
In truth, every time she pushed herself, Tao Shuran thought of Liang Yuanjing. That persistent, unyielding drive of his always propelled her forward.
She always deliberately tried not to think of him, yet she felt he was everywhere.
Just then, Jin Boyu turned his head and asked her—
“Thinking of someone?”
Her heart skipped a beat, and Tao Shuran smiled frankly as well.
“Is it that obvious?” she asked.
“Your eyes look ready to cry.”
She subconsciously rubbed her eyes. After a moment, she realized what he meant and pouted reproachfully. “Senior Brother, you’re teasing me again.”
Jin Boyu smiled. “When are you going to share that story of yours with us?”
“No.”
“Why?”
Tao Shuran was uncharacteristically stubborn. “Never.”
Not speaking meant there was no longing.
The twenty-five-year-old Tao Shuran no longer possessed that one-sided, courageous affection.