Because she had to wait to take the group photo, after giving out the popularity award, it was arranged for Qiao Jing Jing to sit in the guest area for a while. During that time, she remembered Yu Tu's coat, so she sneaked to the back row to help him grab his clothes, drawing some attention.
The sequence of events for this activity was quite long. By the time the group photo was done and Qiao Jing Jing went back, it was already after nine o'clock.
After sending away the accompanying staff member, she opened the door and looked inside. Yu Tu was the only person in the lounge. He was leaning back on the couch and seemed to be lost in thought.
Qiao Jing Jing pushed open the door and went in. Her footsteps were light and quick, so she appeared in front of him in a flash, which startled him back.
"Where is big sister Ling?"
Yu Tu looked up. Then his gaze fell on the clothes in her hand.
"She and Xiao Zhu seem to have gone to talk to the people from Honor of Kings. She said to have the driver take you back first." While saying this he stood up.
"Oh." Qiao Jing Jing handed him the clothes. "Your clothes."
"Thank you." He lowered his head to look at his coat. "Did you go and get it?"
"Yes. A group of people stared at me."
Qiao Jing Jing was a little thirsty and found a bottle of mineral spring water on the table. When she was about to unscrew it, she caught sight of Yu Tu. Turning her gaze, she handed it to him.
Yu Tu helped her unscrew it, and also handed her phone to her, "Your mobile phone."
"Oh." Qiao Jing Jing drank a mouthful of water and searched through the phone for the driver's phone number. "Then let's go back first."
Yu Tu lowered his eyes slightly. "We're not heading in the same direction. There is a subway station nearby. I'll go by myself."
"Don't." Qiao Jing Jing was speechless. "How are you going to go? The crowd outside has now dispersed, and there are long queues at all the exits. If you go out like this, you will be surrounded."
In the end, they left together, by the staff's arrangement, through a special passage.
The management company's car traveled along the quiet road at night.
The moment Qiao Jing Jing got into the car, she started to browse Weibo. She was interrupted earlier, and she felt that she had missed out on 100,000 compliments.
As expected, she was on hot search, with several hashtags such as "Qiao Jing Jing's fellow student", "Qiao Jing Jing Honor of Kings" and "Qiao Jing Jing Baili Shou Yue."
Although she felt that there would be more praises under the "Qiao Jing Jing Baili Shou Yue" hashtag, she still couldn't help but click on the "Qiao Jing Jing's fellow student" hashtag.
For the time being, there were not many commercial accounts used for marketing posting under this one. Most of the posters were KPL's or her fans.
#Qiao Jing Jing's fellow student#
Qiao Jing Jing's fellow student is already so handsome. Does that mean the attractiveness index of their senior high school class defies natural order? Handsome guy, come to the entertainment circle. With his attractiveness index, there is completely nothing to fear. His IQ so high and his game play also great. Maybe he will have more fans than Qiao Jing Jing.
Qiao Jing Jing:
"…"
I don't accept it, I don't believe it.
#Qiao Jing Jing's fellow student#
Jing Jing, your classmate is pretty good. IQ and attractiveness index have a guarantee. It'll be good for any future offspring. Quickly, go and date him, play games together and don't be a single dog. You ridiculed him for being old, but you forgot that you were his classmate and are the same age as him. He didn't retaliate verbally, so that means his temperament is very good.
Qiao Jing Jing:
"…"
Was this end-of-the-year marriage push? And these fans who loved and babied her like a mother were acting like a mother-in-law looking at the son-in-law, where the more she looks, the more she likes?
#Qiao Jing Jing's fellow student#
Zhuge Liang was simply too suave, ah ah, ah. He used the golden body very suavely. I am not a fan of Qiao Jing Jing, but I am announcing that I've become the fan of her classmate. He's an aerospace designer, and also in Shanghai. Then that should be the 8th Research Institute. I have a classmate working there. I'm going to go make some inquiries!
Qiao Jing Jing had been reading the first parts very happily. However, when she saw this post, her heart quivered and all her rationality came back instantly.
She thought for a moment, then went back to the trending page and took a screenshot. She drew a circle around "Qiao Jing Jing's fellow student" and sent it to big sister Ling through WeChat.
Jing Jing:
"Find a way to get rid of this trending. Be quick."
Jing Jing:
"Inform all the different commercial and marketing Weibo accounts that they are not to mention teacher Yu. If there are some that already have, delete the posts. Regardless of the cost."
Big sister Ling replied very quickly. "We didn't push this. It is trending naturally."
Jing Jing:
"I know. In any case, it doesn't matter what way you have to use, but just delete them quickly. I don't want Yu Tu to have too much attention."
Big sister Ling:
"Why? You already dragged him on stage."
Jing Jing:
"I didn't know he wanted to go back and do research."
Jing Jing:
"The entertainment circle is so complicated. It'll disturb him. Moreover, he can't be so high-profile in the research institute."
Jing Jing:
"Regardless of the cost, do you understand? Should be a lot of clicks today so the people at Honor of Kings may not necessarily be happy that we, as the guest, are upstaging them, the host."
She typed very fast and sent three messages in succession.
Big sister Ling:
"Understood. I'll go and deal with it right away. Hey, teacher Yu didn't tell you that he'll be going back to the research institute?"
Yup...
She only learned about it on the stage.
Qiao Jing Jing put away the phone and looked at Yu Tu. He was quietly looking out the car window, and from head to toe, he was enveloped in a kind of stillness.
It seemed that from the moment she returned to the backstage area, every part of Yu Tu had suddenly fallen into stillness. He was not behaving free and unconstrained like he had during the exhibition match, and also did not talk and smile naturally like he had when he was on the stage.
It was like… the expression he occasionally showed these past few days.
Suddenly, Qiao Jing Jing felt a little uneasy.
"How come School Is Starting I'm So Panicked did not come today?" Qiao Jing Jing clenched her phone and started to talk.
Yu Tu turned around. His voice was a bit deep and low. "He sometimes talks without thinking, so after much consideration, I decided it is better not to let him know who you are."
"Oh."
After a short period of time, Qiao Jing Jing asked,: "You just said on the stage that your occupation is aerospace engineer. Have you changed your mind and you intend to go back to the research institute?"
"Yes."
"When did you decide?"
"When I was in Xi'an," Yu Tu answered briefly.
"Oh." Qiao Jing Jing paused for a while.
"Then when are you going back to work?"
"Tomorrow."
So fast?
"Jing Jing."
"Ah?" Qiao Jing Jing tilted her head to the side and looked at him.
"I probably can't give you the birthday present."
Qiao Jing Jing blinked.
Yu Tu said, "I won't have time to play games in the future. I uninstalled the game just now."
His eyes had been looking elsewhere the whole time, but now turned to her. In light coming in from outside of the car, his expression was indistinct and bore a feeling that could not be described.
"So, I probably will never be able to give you the unique pentakill."
Qiao Jing Jing wanted to say that he had just given her the triple kill. A triple kill in a competition is much more awesome than an ordinary pentakill.
But she did not say it.
She actually had a kind of feeling that Yu Tu was saying good-bye to her. However, she quickly laughed at herself for thinking too much. He merely said that he would not be playing games in the future.
In that case, what would happen to them in the future?
No gaming, no daily interaction, no common topics to talk about. And then… they would become friends who occasionally greeted each other in WeChat?
As if they had spent a long vacation together, and now their vacation was over, so they had to go back to the previous tracks of their lives.
All of a sudden, an inexplicable sense of panic was aroused in Qiao Jing Jing's heart.
It seemed like it was not just a vacation that would be ending, but something else.
The two did not speak for a while. The silence in the car made a person's heart and mind feel in turmoil.
The artist management company's car drove past an intersection. Yu Tu started to talk. "I will get off at the subway station up front."
Qiao Jing Jing looked at him.
Yu Tu brought his gaze down slightly. "It's very convenient for me to go back from here."
"Big sister Ling asked us to have a late supper together to celebrate."
"I am not going since I still have to go to work tomorrow."
The car stopped near the entrance of the subway station. After Yu Tu said goodbye, he got off. The car started to move slowly.
Outside the car window, Yu Tu's figure was moving away. The driver began to speed up. No, Qiao Jing Jing thought, not like this. She did not know how it should be, but it could not be like this.
She abruptly felt impulsive and shouted, "Stop the car!"
The car stopped.
She pulled open the car door, got off the car, and gave chase.
"Yu Tu!"
Yu Tu halted his footsteps and turned back.
Qiao Jing Jing ran to face him, gasping for breath, but her eyes were bright as if they were lights. She looked at him, nervously and seriously asking, "Yu Tu, do you want to be together with me?"
You're so smart, so you must know, right? You must know how much I like you.
Yu Tu looked at her. Her eyes were warm and innocent, full of the things in this world that are most deserving to be cherished, just like the girl who had watched him attentively more than a decade ago.
He knew. He had always known. He had thought she would not say it aloud, and eventually they would drift apart. This was why he had let himself indulge in everything during this last part of his time off, indulge himself in fulfilling the promise of accompanying her to the completion of the exhibition match.
He had longed to linger in it, had been irrational.
Yu Tu little by little clenched his fist tightly, then started to talk. His voice was very calm and gentle. "Jing Jing, you belong to the dazzling world, whereas I belong to another world."
We were fortunate to journey together for a while, but we are destined to part ways.
He said: "We are not suitable for one another."