Happy Birthday

May 19th, 11:30 PM.

Chen Zhi stared at the May 20th mark on his phone's calendar, a cold sweat instantly breaking out on his back.

Tomorrow was his birthday.

There were only twenty-four hours in a day.

Once the clock struck midnight, it would be May 20th. Pei Ningxue had obviously prepared something, so he needed to pacify her first. Li Zhiyi was probably holding something back as well. Lin Wanwan was in Hangzhou recording a variety show, but knowing her personality, she would definitely pull a surprise attack.

Chen Zhi pondered his schedule for the next day:

Midnight to 8:00 AM: Accompany Pei Ningxue, eat the breakfast she prepared, or whatever else.

8:00 AM to noon: Find a way to meet Li Zhiyi, accept her gift, and sweet-talk her a bit.

Fly to Hangzhou in the afternoon? No, there wouldn't be enough time. Then have Lin Wanwan fly to Beijing at night? Or maybe a video call?

The more Chen Zhi thought about it, the more his head throbbed.

There was no way in hell to fit all this in.

"Guo Yang," Chen Zhi sprang up from his bed, keeping his voice low.

Guo Yang was wearing headphones, watching a gaming livestream, and didn't hear him.

Chen Zhi just kicked his bedboard.

"Holy crap!" Guo Yang pulled off his headphones. "What are you doing?"

"I'm heading out. I probably won't be back tonight."

"Where are you going in the middle of the night?" Guo Yang checked his phone. "It's 11:40."

"To save the world."

Chen Zhi slipped on his shoes, grabbed his jacket, and rushed out.

"Psycho!" Guo Yang cursed at his back.

Chen Zhi had already disappeared at the end of the corridor.

While waiting for the elevator, he sent a WeChat message to Pei Ningxue: Asleep yet?

No reply.

He sent another to Lin Wanwan: What are you doing?

Also no reply.

He didn't dare message Li Zhiyi, afraid of blowing his cover, because she might actually agree to meet.

The elevator arrived. Chen Zhi stepped in and pressed the button for the first floor.

First stop, Wanliu House. Pei Ningxue was making the biggest fuss and had been preparing the longest, so he had to soothe her first.

Outside the campus, Chen Zhi hailed a taxi.

"Wanliu House, driver. Step on it."

The driver glanced at him through the rearview mirror. "Young man, heading there this late? Real estate is pretty expensive over there."

"Going to collect rent," Chen Zhi spouted nonsense.

The driver fell silent.

The car drove fast. There weren't many vehicles on the midnight streets of Beijing. The light from the streetlamps flashed across the car windows, flickering over Chen Zhi's face.

He pulled out his phone and checked the time again.

11:52 PM.

Eight minutes left.

...

Wanliu House, top-floor penthouse.

Chen Zhi unlocked the door with his fingerprint, and it opened with a soft click.

The living room lights were off. Only a sliver of warm yellow light spilled from the kitchen, and there was a faint smell of... flour in the air?

He took off his shoes at the entryway and tiptoed barefoot across the floor toward the kitchen.

The closer he got, the clearer the sounds became.

"Hiss—hot, hot, hot!"

It was Pei Ningxue's voice.

Then came the clinking of a spatula, the rushing sound of a running faucet, and... the sound of slurping noodles?

Chen Zhi leaned against the kitchen doorframe and peeked inside.

The kitchen counter was a complete mess.

Flour was scattered everywhere. A stainless steel basin held a small half-portion of unkneaded dough, and three or four lumps of failed dough were piled next to the trash can—some too hard and cracked, others too soft and slumped in a puddle.

A small fire burned on the stove, the pot bubbling and steaming.

Pei Ningxue had her back to him, wearing her dark gray apron. It was covered in white flour, as were her back, cuffs, and even her hair. She held chopsticks in her left hand and a strainer in her right, carefully scooping noodles out of the pot.

The noodles were placed into a white porcelain bowl.

On top rested a fried egg with slightly charred edges and a runny yolk.

Pei Ningxue put down the strainer, picked up a small bowl nearby, and added something to the noodles. Chen Zhi squinted; it looked like green onions and sesame oil.

She stared at the bowl of noodles for a few seconds and suddenly let out a low "yes."

It was then that Chen Zhi spoke up.

"What are you doing?"

"Ah—!"

Startled, Pei Ningxue spun around. Seeing Chen Zhi leaning against the doorframe, she breathed a sigh of relief, but her small face quickly turned cold.

"Why are you here?"

Chen Zhi didn't answer. He walked into the kitchen, his gaze sweeping over the messy counter before landing on Pei Ningxue's face.

A dab of batter stuck to her forehead, a bit of flour dusted the tip of her nose, and there seemed to be some on her eyelashes too. The apron strings were tied a bit tight, creating a crease at her waist.

"Today..." Chen Zhi intentionally dragged out the word.

Pei Ningxue's eyes flickered.

"What's today's date?" Chen Zhi asked.

"May 19th," Pei Ningxue looked away.

"Oh." Chen Zhi nodded. "And tomorrow?"

Pei Ningxue fell silent.

She stared at the bowl in her hands, at the terrible-looking longevity noodles, and at the slightly overcooked fried egg.

Ever since she heard Chen Zhi say, "I don't think I've ever had a proper birthday," she had been preparing.

A custom-made Patek Philippe watch, a limited-edition Montblanc pen, and this bowl of noodles.

All to give him a surprise, both materially and emotionally.

And the result?

He came early.

Like an uninvited guest, ruining all her plans.

"For this bowl of noodles," Pei Ningxue's voice trembled slightly, "I prepared for four whole days."

Pei Ningxue bit her lip.

"I originally wanted to bring this bowl of noodles to you first thing tomorrow morning. The candles were bought, the cake was ordered, and the gifts were express air-freighted back from Switzerland. I arranged everything, just so you—"

"And you didn't even say a word. You just ran over here in the middle of the night."

Pei Ningxue sniffled and turned her head away so Chen Zhi wouldn't see her expression.

"Where's the surprise now?"

"Good for you, barging in without even a heads-up. Everything I prepared is completely ruined by you."

Pei Ningxue turned around, her back to Chen Zhi.

Her shoulders trembled slightly.

Chen Zhi looked at her back, at the flour marks on her apron.

He stepped forward and hugged her from behind.

Pei Ningxue struggled for a moment. "Let go."

"I don't want to talk to you right now."

Chen Zhi wasn't about to let go; otherwise, he'd really be doomed.

"I'm sorry," he said. "It's my fault."

Pei Ningxue struggled twice more, but unable to break free, she simply stopped moving.

Chen Zhi turned her around, using his thumb to wipe away the tears at the corners of her eyes and the dab of batter on her forehead.

"The noodles are going to get cold."

Pei Ningxue looked away. "If they get cold, throw them out."

"I can't do that." Chen Zhi pulled out a chair and sat down, picking up the bowl of longevity noodles. "I have to taste them."

He picked up the chopsticks and grabbed a mouthful of noodles.

The noodles were a bit hard, and some parts were stuck together, but biting into them, he could taste the wheat aroma of the flour.

The broth was made from chicken soup, incredibly savory.

Chen Zhi ate bite by bite, eating very slowly.

Pei Ningxue just stood next to him, watching.

She watched Chen Zhi finish the noodles, finish the fried egg, and drink every last drop of the soup.

Then he put down the bowl and looked up.

"This is," Chen Zhi said, "the best bowl of noodles I have ever eaten in my life."

Pei Ningxue scoffed. "Liar. I tasted it myself. It's awful."

"I mean it." Chen Zhi was very serious. "It's better than any other noodles."

Pei Ningxue turned around and brought over two boxes from the corner of the kitchen counter: a dark blue velvet Patek Philippe watch box, and a black lacquered Montblanc pen box.

"For you." She pushed the boxes in front of Chen Zhi. "A birthday gift."

Chen Zhi opened the watch box.

Inside was a Patek Philippe with a platinum band. The dial was deep blue, like the midnight sky. Turning it over, a line of extremely fine text was engraved on the case back:

The words were tiny, laser-etched into the metal casing in Pei Ningxue's own handwriting.

"Every second is proof that I am thinking of you."

Chen Zhi's fingers gently brushed over the engraved letters.

"The other one is a fountain pen," she said. "Your handwriting is too ugly. If you use a better pen, maybe you can write a little nicer."

Chen Zhi opened the pen box and took out the Montblanc.

The barrel was made of deep sea-blue resin with a platinum clip, and the top of the cap was inlaid with the white six-pointed star emblem. At the base of the barrel, another line was laser-engraved:

C.Z—∞

"Infinity," Pei Ningxue explained. "It means... never mind, figure it out yourself."

The profound emotion in Chen Zhi's heart could no longer be described with words.

A few seconds passed.

"Exactly how much money did you spend?"

"None of your business."

"A custom-engraved Patek Philippe, you—"

"Chen Zhi," Pei Ningxue interrupted him. "When I give you something, you only need to say three words."

Chen Zhi looked up.

"Thank you."

"Wrong."

"...It's beautiful?"

Pei Ningxue shot him a cold glare.

Chen Zhi thought for a moment, then cupped Pei Ningxue's face and pressed a kiss to her lips.

"I love you, Pei Ningxue."

Pei Ningxue looked into his eyes and responded to his confession.

"Happy birthday, Chen Zhi."