Wen Zhan stayed in the hospital room for a while before a nurse called him away, saying another patient in a different room needed attention.

Qin Yu also stayed for about half an hour before leaving, but not without reminding her repeatedly, "Big sister, don't forget about my receptionist crush, okay?"

Gu Shunuan promised him that as soon as her leg healed and she was back at work, she would play matchmaker for them. Only then did Qin Yu leave with peace of mind.

Gu Shunuan, who was staying in a private room, thought she would finally get some peace once everyone left. But just as Qin Yu walked out the door, Wen Zhan walked back in.

The relief Gu Shunuan had felt moments ago quickly evaporated, and she snapped, "What are you doing back here?"

Wen Zhan, however, walked over to her with a serious expression and asked, "Who did you call an 'old man'?"

Gu Shunuan didn’t respond, so he took a step closer, "And who did you say cheated?"

"Whoever cheats is who I’m talking about!" Gu Shunuan’s tone was firm, though she instinctively leaned back a bit.

In general, she was more assertive around men, but with one leg out of commission, she would be at a severe disadvantage if Wen Zhan got angry and resorted to violence.

"So, Gu Shunuan, you broke up with me because you thought I cheated?"

Gu Shunuan let out a cold snort, her tone even more hostile. "At least you’re self-aware."

Her words were meant to mock Wen Zhan, but instead, he smiled.

Gu Shunuan had never encountered such a shameless man before. He was being accused of cheating, yet here he was, grinning like it was no big deal.

Remembering the hurt and frustration from the past, Gu Shunuan’s eyes reddened, and with her free hand, she slapped Wen Zhan across the face.

"Get out!"

And surprisingly, Wen Zhan actually left, covering his face, looking oddly pleased.

"…"

Gu Shunuan sighed and rubbed her forehead.

What a shameless man!

Maybe it was the stress of dealing with Wen Zhan before bed, but that night, Gu Shunuan dreamt about the moment she first caught Wen Zhan cheating.

Wen Zhan had been her senior in university. They started dating at the end of her freshman year and stayed together until her junior year, when Wen Zhan was preparing to graduate.

Everything had been going well, and their relationship seemed solid. Gu Shunuan had even considered marrying Wen Zhan after graduation.

But life had other plans—Wen Zhan cheated before she could even graduate.

The first sign came during the rainy season.

That day, Gu Shunuan was reading in the library. When she stepped outside, it was raining. Since Wen Zhan's dorm was nearby, she texted him, asking if he could come pick her up. He replied that he was busy and didn’t have time.

Gu Shunuan wasn’t the type to make a fuss, so she decided to wait for the rain to stop before heading back, standing at the library entrance.

Not long after, she saw Wen Zhan walking past the library with another girl, sharing an umbrella. They quickly disappeared into the rain, never noticing her standing on the library steps.

Gu Shunuan stood there, watching them leave, feeling a knot in her chest.

She ended up walking back to her dorm in the rain, surprising her roommates who exclaimed, "Why didn’t you call us to pick you up? And where’s your handsome Wen?"

Gu Shunuan didn’t respond, dazed. She didn’t drink the hot water they brought her, took a shower, and went to bed with her hair still wet.

The next day, she woke up with a cold. Wen Zhan called, but she was too upset to answer.

Then, Wen Zhan didn’t call again—for half a month, he disappeared completely.

Lying in bed with her cold, Gu Shunuan kept thinking it might have been a misunderstanding. Maybe Wen Zhan really was busy when he texted her and only helped the other girl later.

But that thought quickly crumbled—if he wasn’t busy, and even walked by the library, why couldn’t he come to pick her up?

He didn’t even care when she was sick!

The more Gu Shunuan thought about it, the angrier she became. When Wen Zhan finally came to see her, she greeted him with a cold expression. Wen Zhan coaxed her for a long time before she finally sighed and said, "That day at the library, I saw you using the umbrella I gave you to walk that girl home."

Gu Shunuan thought that if Wen Zhan offered even the slightest explanation, she might be willing to forgive and forget.

But instead, Wen Zhan looked surprised. "You saw that?!"

His expression confirmed everything, and whatever hope Gu Shunuan had left shattered completely.

She didn't cause a scene, but in the days that followed, Wen Zhan still didn't reach out to her. When they did occasionally cross paths, he was always with that same girl.

Gu Shunuan's heart grew colder. She had always been a proud girl, and Wen Zhan's behavior felt like emotional neglect, pushing her toward breaking up with him.

So, just before Wen Zhan's graduation, Gu Shunuan ended things. She didn't have the courage to do it face-to-face, so she sent him a text message and blocked him on all platforms before he could even reply.

Afraid of the awkwardness of running into him at school, Gu Shunuan took a leave of absence and stayed away for a long time, like a turtle hiding in its shell.

Only after Wen Zhan and his classmates graduated did she return to campus.

She refused to be the kind of foolish woman who would cry and beg after being abandoned.

Even though she loved him deeply, if he no longer cared for her, she wouldn’t force it.

In her memories, she was so strong, but now, under the covers, Gu Shunuan bit her blanket and cried through the night.

Pretending she didn’t care because she knew she couldn’t have him.

The brave warrior by day, only daring to turn her blanket into armor and cry secretly at night.

When Gu Shunuan woke up the next day and saw her puffy eyes in the mirror, she hated Wen Zhan even more.

When Wen Zhan came to check on her, Gu Shunuan rolled her eyes so hard it hurt, and Wen Zhan, unable to bear it, reached out to cover her eyes.

"If you keep rolling them like that, you'll go blind."

Gu Shunuan slapped his hand away, snapping, "I wish I would go blind so I wouldn’t have to see scum like you."

Hearing her call him "scum," Wen Zhan sighed helplessly. "Nuannuan, if I wasn’t the scum you think I am, would you still have broken up with me?"

"Scum is scum, there are no ifs, and who said you could call me Nuannuan?!"

Seeing her about to explode, Wen Zhan wisely shut his mouth. Any further and there would be no way to salvage the situation.

After finishing his check-up, Wen Zhan left, but Gu Shunuan was still fuming. It had been years since they broke up, and yet here he was, acting all clingy. She waited until after Qin Yu finished work, then called him, asking him to come over and continue pretending to be her boyfriend.

Qin Yu had originally planned to have dinner with friends after work, but thinking about the receptionist he had a crush on, he turned his car around and headed to the hospital where Gu Shunuan was staying.

When Qin Yu arrived, Wen Zhan was already sitting by Gu Shunuan’s bedside.

But Gu Shunuan ignored Wen Zhan. When Qin Yu walked in, holding the fruits she had asked him to buy, he cheerfully announced, "Nuannuan, I brought your favorite fruits…"

Before he could finish, Wen Zhan glanced at the bag in Qin Yu’s hand, frowning.

"She can't eat mangoes."

Qin Yu was startled by Wen Zhan’s stern tone. After a moment, he stammered, "Who said that? Nuannuan loves mangoes! She grabs them first at every company gathering."

"She likes them but can't eat them because she’s allergic. Mangoes cause her to break out in hives, but she’s a glutton who occasionally sneaks some despite the risk."

Wen Zhan, dressed in a white coat with a white shirt underneath, looked as pristine as freshly fallen snow, his gaze sharp and cold. "As her boyfriend, I thought you would know this."

Qin Yu was at a loss for words. He glanced at Gu Shunuan, who was also looking a bit exasperated.

Wen Zhan continued, "As her boyfriend, you should know what she likes to eat, what she doesn’t, what she loves but can’t have, and what she hates but must eat."

Gu Shunuan and Qin Yu exchanged awkward glances, the atmosphere becoming somewhat tense.

Having said his piece, Wen Zhan didn’t linger. He gave Gu Shunuan a meaningful look before leaving.

Qin Yu stood at the door, watching Wen Zhan walk away before eagerly scurrying over to Gu Shunuan's bedside.

"Nuannuan, I don't think Wen Zhan is the scumbag you say he is. On the contrary, he seems to care about you quite a lot."

Gu Shunuan gritted her teeth in frustration. "Qin Yu, whose side are you on? Do you still want to make progress with that receptionist you like?"

Only then did Qin Yu obediently fall silent.

However, the next day, when Gu Shunuan called Qin Yu again, he didn't show up.

She tried to threaten him with the receptionist, but this time, he surprisingly stood his ground. "Nuannuan, I've realized that if I want happiness, I have to fight for it myself."

Gu Shunuan sighed and hung up the phone, feeling helpless.

Meanwhile, on the other end, after hanging up, Qin Yu looked up at Wen Zhan, who was sitting across from him, and smiled obsequiously.

"Bro, you weren't kidding, our company's receptionist really is your neighbor?"

Wen Zhan nodded. "So, as a favor in return, shouldn't you tell me about Gu Shunuan?"

Qin Yu nodded eagerly. "Of course!"

...

Poor Gu Shunuan had no idea that someone was digging into her past.

That night, she was drifting in and out of sleep on her hospital bed when she felt someone climb into bed beside her.

Startled, she was about to scream when the person wrapped their arms around her from behind and snuggled into her. A soft voice whispered, "It's me."

It was Wen Zhan. Gu Shunuan’s tense nerves relaxed, but she still pushed him away.

"Wen Zhan, enough is enough. We ended things a long time ago."

But Wen Zhan only held her tighter. "That’s just your wishful thinking. The breakup you mentioned was only your decision. I never agreed to it."

Despite her love for him, Gu Shunuan’s heart softened at his words. But something was still blocking her from fully embracing her feelings for Wen Zhan.

Sensing that she was about to push him away again, Wen Zhan leaned in close, his lips brushing against her ear.

"Nuannuan, I don’t want to break up with you. I didn’t then, I don’t now, and I won’t in the future. That day, when you saw me walking that girl back to her dorm...

"I really didn’t know you were waiting for me at the library. I was busy in the lab, and the message you sent me got deleted by that girl before I could see it.

"When I left the lab, it was raining, so I just walked her back. I never realized you were upset because of that."

Hearing the long-buried misunderstanding explained like this, Gu Shunuan was suddenly at a loss for how to react.

Should she break down in tears, or should she curl up in Wen Zhan’s arms and sob, apologizing for misunderstanding him?

She sat there, dazed, before finally responding with a faint, "Oh."

Wen Zhan nuzzled into the crook of her neck, his short hair brushing against her skin, sending a tingling sensation through her that made her stiffen.

"That time was so hectic with graduation, and then you suddenly told me we were breaking up and disappeared."

"Graduation, work, and the breakup—it all weighed on me so heavily I could barely breathe. I even thought about giving up on you, but in the end, I chose to stay in the city where you are."

"Today, I asked that girl about what happened back then. When she told me the truth, I felt such relief. So, it turns out you didn’t break up with me because you stopped loving me."

Gu Shunuan gave a small, bitter laugh. "So what? We’re broken up anyway."

"It’s not the same! If you didn’t love me anymore, no matter how hard I tried, you wouldn’t come back. But if it was just a misunderstanding, then we can clear it up and keep loving each other."

Gu Shunuan felt a lump in her throat, her eyes starting to well up.

She still loved him, loved him to death. Every time she woke in the middle of the night, it was him she thought of.

She was also relieved—so it was all just a misunderstanding, and he hadn’t stopped loving her after all.

But her pride got the best of her. Though she was deeply moved, she still put on a front, acting nonchalant.

"Who said I’m going to get back together with you?"

Wen Zhan chuckled softly, gently nudging her injured leg with his own. "You better get back together with me, or I’ll break your other leg too."

Gu Shunuan was speechless.

All the emotions she had just felt evaporated, and she mustered all her strength to push Wen Zhan off the bed.

"Get out!"