Why does something feel off

May 16th.

Four days until Chen Zhi's birthday.

But Chen Zhi himself was completely unaware of its importance, or rather, he didn't even realize his birthday was approaching.

He only knew one thing.

These three women were collectively losing their minds.

Since the day before yesterday, Pei Ningxue had been acting like a completely different person.

Although the old Pei Ningxue had a sharp tongue, she never hesitated to be clingy when she wanted to be.

But Chen Zhi had been subjected to the silent treatment by her for two days straight.

Even more bizarrely, Pei Ningxue's itinerary over the past two days had suddenly become extremely mysterious.

In the past, she would sync her whereabouts in the work group chat. Meetings, seeing investors, going to the bank—everything was traceable.

But now, massive blank spots had appeared on her schedule.

"Where did President Pei go this afternoon?" Chen Zhi grabbed Dai Damai and asked.

Dai Damai's expression was very subtle.

"President Pei said... she has personal arrangements."

"What personal arrangements?"

"She didn't say, and I didn't dare to ask," Dai Damai shrank his neck. "President Chen, why don't you ask her yourself?"

Chen Zhi had asked, of course.

Pei Ningxue replied with four words: "None of your business."

Chen Zhi stared at this message for a full thirty seconds, then silently locked his screen.

Forget it, I can't afford to provoke her.

...

May 17th.

Three days until Chen Zhi's birthday.

Lin Wanwan had also changed.

In the past, Lin Wanwan would send Chen Zhi at least twenty messages a day.

Waking up in the morning: "Good morning, hubby! Thinking of you again today!"

Lunchtime: "Hubby, guess what I ate today!"

Bedtime: "Good night, hubby! See you in my dreams! Mwah!"

The message density was so high that sometimes when Chen Zhi came out of a class, his unread messages would fill two whole screens.

But starting from the day before yesterday, the message volume took a nosedive.

Only three messages a day.

Not a single one more.

And the content had become extremely perfunctory.

[Hubby, I'm so busy today]

[Filming a variety show, talk later]

[Good night~]

No sticker bombardments.

No rapid-fire voice messages.

Even the "mua~" was omitted.

Chen Zhi took the initiative to make a video call, and it rang for a long time before she answered.

Lin Wanwan's face appeared on the screen. Her makeup was already removed, she was wearing pink pajamas, and her hair was draped loosely over her shoulders.

"Hubby!"

Her voice was still sweet, but Chen Zhi sharply caught a detail—

Lin Wanwan's background was not a hotel room.

Behind her was a wall with several handwritten notes taped to it, looking like lyrics or some kind of notes.

"Where are you?"

"At the hotel." Lin Wanwan quickly adjusted the angle of her phone, changing the background to a pure white wall. "Just finished filming the variety show, I'm exhausted."

"What was taped to the wall behind you just now?"

"Huh? What wall? Nothing, you must have seen wrong."

Lin Wanwan's eyes darted away for a second.

With Chen Zhi's combined life experience from two lifetimes, he knew all too well what that look meant.

She was lying.

"Wanwan."

"Yeah?"

"Are you doing something behind my back?"

"No!" Lin Wanwan's voice even changed pitch. "What could I possibly do behind your back! Stop overthinking!"

Then she rapidly said, "I'm sleepy hubby I'm going to bed first talk tomorrow bye love you," and hung up the video call.

Chen Zhi looked at the pitch-black screen, his heart starting to drum.

...

Hangzhou.

The moment Lin Wanwan hung up the video call, she threw her phone onto the bed, covered her face, and rolled around on the blanket three times.

"That was close, that was close, that was close! He almost saw it!"

What was taped to the wall behind her was the handwritten manuscript of the lyrics for that song.

Lin Wanwan sprang up from the blanket, ran to the wall, peeled off all the notes, and frantically stuffed them into the deepest part of her suitcase.

Then she picked up her phone and sent a message to Su Man.

[Sister Man!!! I almost blew my cover just now!!!]

[? What happened]

[He video called me! He saw the lyrics taped to my wall! He asked what they were!]

Su Man was silent for five seconds.

[What did you say?]

[I said there was nothing and he saw wrong]

[...Did he believe it?]

[He probably believed it, right? I hung up right after I said it...]

Su Man sent a facepalm sticker.

[Lin Wanwan, your lying skills are even worse than your makeup skills.]

Lin Wanwan pouted.

[But I wanted to talk to him...]

[Endure it.]

[But—]

[Endure it!]

Lin Wanwan collapsed onto the bed, hugged her pillow, and let out a wail.

She dug out the demo of that song, put on her earphones, and listened to it again.

When it reached the chorus, her lips unconsciously began to move along with it.

"You don't know that when you smile,

How chaotic my heartbeat gets...

If I could, I want to accompany you through every birthday,

From black hair to white..."

Singing the last line, Lin Wanwan's own eyes reddened first.

She muttered softly, "Chen Zhi, you big idiot, I've done so much for you, and you actually even forgot your own birthday."

...

May 18th.

Two days until Chen Zhi's birthday.

Chen Zhi officially panicked.

Because Li Zhiyi was acting off, too.

If Pei Ningxue was giving him the cold shoulder and Lin Wanwan was reducing contact, then Li Zhiyi's change was far more subtle—so subtle that if Chen Zhi wasn't sensitive enough, he almost wouldn't have noticed it.

Her message frequency hadn't changed; she still sent two or three a day as usual.

But her phrasing had changed.

In the past, Li Zhiyi's messaging style was like this:

[Today in class we learned the difference between an invitation to treat and an offer. It was so hard, but I memorized it. Have you eaten?]

Now it had become:

[I have a lot of classes today, it might not be very convenient tonight, you should rest early.]

Do you see the difference?

Previously, her messages always included Chen Zhi—"Have you eaten?", "Did you get to the dorm?", "It's cold today, dress warmly."

She wasn't just reporting on her life; she was weaving Chen Zhi into her every day.

But now, she was deliberately creating a sense of separation.

It was like she was stepping back.

When Chen Zhi noticed this change, he sat on a cafeteria stool, beginning to question his life.

"What exactly are you doing?" Guo Yang asked indistinctly from across the table.

"I'm analyzing."

"Analyzing what?"

"Analyzing whether I'm being cheated on."

"You, a guy who is three-timing, saying you're being cheated on? Do you know how punchable you sound right now?"

Chen Zhi ignored him and continued staring at his phone.

Pei Ningxue: whereabouts a mystery, schedule blank, attitude cold.

Lin Wanwan: messages plummeted, suspected of hiding something during a video call.

Li Zhiyi: subtle phrasing, deliberately keeping her distance.

Three people, all acting abnormally at the same time.

This was definitely not a coincidence.

Chen Zhi slammed his chopsticks onto the table.

"Guo Yang."

"Don't call me, I think you deserve it."

"Tell me, is there a possibility that the three of them actually found out?"

Guo Yang finally stopped chewing.

"You mean... those three girlfriends of yours?"

"Yes." Chen Zhi's expression was more serious than ever before. "Do you think it's possible that the three of them somehow found out I'm three-timing them, and now they're conspiring to subject me to some kind of... sanction?"

Guo Yang put down his chopsticks and looked at him seriously for three seconds.

Chen Zhi, I think your guess is very reasonable.

Really?

Really. Guo Yang nodded. And if I were any of those three, not only would I sanction you, I'd physically eliminate you. You better hurry up and write your will. I'll save your dorm bed until the end of the month.

Get lost.

Chen Zhi stuffed his phone back into his pocket, picked up his tray, and went to dump his leftovers.

He was no longer in the mood to eat.

The feeling of unease was just too strong.

He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but his intuition told him that something was happening, something everyone else knew about, leaving him completely in the dark.

...

At the same time.

Beijing, Wanliu Academy.

Pei Ningxue stood in the open kitchen. Arranged on the marble countertop in front of her were:

A bag of high-protein flour.

Two eggs.

A bowl of warm water.

A rolling pin.

A smartphone, its screen playing a tutorial video on How to Make Handmade Pulled Noodles.

And flour all over the floor.

Pei Ningxue's apron was covered in white powder, a dab of batter stuck to her forehead, and her sticky hands hovered in mid-air.

She stared at the shapeless blob of dough in front of her with a look of absolute despair.

This was her fourth attempt.

The first time, the dough was too hard; after kneading it for fifteen minutes until her hands nearly broke, she cut it open with a knife only to find dry flour inside.

The second time, she added too much water, and it turned straight into a puddle of mush.

The third time, she finally managed to knead it into a decent shape, but it broke several times when she tried to pull it.

Pei Ningxue took a deep breath, tossed the failed dough into the trash can, and started mixing again.

On the phone screen, the video blogger's hands moved fluidly over the dough to the tune of upbeat background music, while comments drifted by saying, So simple and I've learned it.

Pei Ningxue stared at the comments, her mouth twitching.

How was this simple?

Miss.

Lao Zhao's voice came from the living room.

The item you ordered just arrived.

Pei Ningxue didn't even look up. Leave it on the coffee table in the living room.

She kneaded the dough for a while longer, wiped her hands clean, and walked out of the kitchen.

On the coffee table lay a flat, rectangular package tightly wrapped in bubble wrap. Pei Ningxue tore open the packaging to reveal a deep blue velvet box inside.

She opened it.

Resting quietly in the box was a limited-edition Montblanc fountain pen.

The barrel was made of deep-sea blue resin, the clip was platinum, and the top of the cap was inlaid with the white six-pointed star emblem.

Turning to the bottom of the pen, there was a line of ultra-fine laser engraving:

C.Z

C.Z were Chen Zhi's initials.

Pei Ningxue always did things thoroughly.

The watch was the main gift—a custom Patek Philippe with an engraving on the back.

The fountain pen was the secondary gift. Chen Zhi's handwriting was an absolute mess, and she figured that using a good pen might help him write a little nicer.

The third item was the longevity noodles she was making herself.

If she could actually make them, that is.

Pei Ningxue glanced toward the kitchen at the fifth iteration of the dough currently resting, and pursed her lips.

She walked back into the kitchen, washed her hands, and rolled up her sleeves.

She resumed kneading the dough.

This time, her movements were much slower and more patient than before.

Because the expression on Chen Zhi's face when he said those words the other day floated into her mind.

I don't think I've ever had a proper birthday.

He had said it with a tone full of indifference.

But Pei Ningxue's emotional and intellectual intelligence were top-notch, so she heard the truth in it.

It wasn't indifference.

It was resignation.

Pei Ningxue's hands paused on the dough for a moment.

Then she took a deep breath and continued kneading.

Chen Zhi.

She muttered softly.

You better finish every last bite of these noodles.

...

May 19th.

One day left until Chen Zhi's birthday.

Beijing, Renmin University campus.

10:45 PM.

The library had already closed. Li Zhiyi was hugging her books as she walked back to her dorm. Passing by the ginkgo tree, she stopped.

The phone in her pocket buzzed.

It was a message from Chen Zhi.

Zhiyi, have you been really busy these past few days? You don't seem very happy.

Looking at this message, a sudden wave of sourness welled up in Li Zhiyi's chest.

She wasn't unhappy.

She was too happy, so happy it was overflowing, but she couldn't let him see it.

She sat down on a bench, placed her backpack on her lap, and earnestly typed out a reply.

I'm not unhappy, just have a lot of homework lately.

After sending it, she took another look at the kraft paper envelope in the hidden compartment of her backpack.

The letter was still there.

The drawing was still there too.

But it wasn't finished yet.

She had redrawn the left eyebrow six times, and it still didn't look right. Chen Zhi's left eyebrow was slightly higher than his right, and she just couldn't capture that curve.

Li Zhiyi bit her lower lip and pulled a sharpened pencil from her pencil case.

She rested the paper on the hard cover of her textbook and, under the dim yellow glow of the streetlamp, tilted her head and touched up the eyebrow bit by bit.

She used her eraser to correct it again and again.

Until a long time later.

Li Zhiyi held it at a distance to look at it.

It still didn't look quite like him.

But it was better than yesterday.

Li Zhiyi carefully put the drawing back into the envelope and felt for another box at the very bottom of her backpack.

The box was deep blue; it was a new smartphone she had bought using her scholarship and the money she'd saved from two months of part-time work.

Chen Zhi gave her a lot of money every month, but money she earned herself held a different meaning.

A small slip of paper was stuck to the top of the phone box. On it, she had drawn a little sun with colored markers, and next to it were four words.

Be happy everyday.

Li Zhiyi tucked the box back in and zipped up her bag.

She looked up at the ginkgo tree above her head.

Tomorrow.

She said softly.

Tomorrow is May 20th.

When the time comes... he should be happy, right?

She thought for a moment.

He should be.

Li Zhiyi stood up, dusted off her skirt, put her backpack on properly, and walked toward her dorm.

After taking a few steps, she stopped again and looked back at the ginkgo tree.

Li Zhiyi, she told herself, you can do this.

Then she walked into the night.

...

Peking University, Room 404.

May 19th, 11:30 PM.

Chen Zhi lay on his bed and picked up his phone for the thirty-seventh time to check the date.

May 19th.

Tomorrow was May 20th.

He stared at the number on the calendar, and a thought suddenly flashed through his mind.

Wait.

May 20th?

He abruptly sat up.

May 20th...

Chen Zhi sat blankly on the bed, his brain working in overdrive.

May 20th.

What did this date mean?

Chen Zhi closed his eyes and thought back deeply.

Isn't that my birthday?

Chen Zhi's movements froze.

A lightbulb suddenly went off in his head. He finally understood why his three girlfriends had been giving him the cold shoulder lately.

They were preparing for his birthday.

A normal person might be thrilled, but his birthday wasn't split over three days. He only had one birthday, so how was he supposed to spend it with three girlfriends?

He felt like he was doomed.