Gu Yuanting finished knitting the last row of the shoulder seam, carefully threading the yarn through and putting away the half-finished pink-and-white sweater with great care. Only then did he get out of the car.

What followed was another round of tedious yet quietly cutthroat busyness.

Once things settled down, Gu Yuanting sat alone in his office and video-called Su Yiran.

For the past few days, at this same time every day, he made sure to see Ranran once.

The call quickly connected, and Su Yiran appeared on screen. “Ting-ge.”

Every time Gu Yuanting saw him like this, his heart skipped a beat and he involuntarily held his breath.

“How was the tasting event today?” Gu Yuanting asked. He knew Yiting Desserts had held a tasting event today—an important step in Su Yiran’s development plans.

Thinking of the huge success today, Su Yiran brightened and happily told Ting-ge all about it.

Feeling his joy through the screen, Gu Yuanting also felt a soft warmth rise in his chest. “You did really well. Congratulations.”

Su Yiran beamed, his eyes curving into crescents, revealing the dimple on his right cheek. Gu Yuanting suddenly had the urge to poke it.

He’d wanted to do that for a long time.

Gu Yuanting reached out and touched the screen where the dimple was, imagining its soft, adorable feel.

Su Yiran noticed and asked in confusion, “Ting-ge, what are you doing?”

Gu Yuanting withdrew his hand. “Nothing.”

Then something occurred to him, and he frowned. “Did you sneak some sweets this morning?”

Su Yiran’s heart skipped a beat when he saw Ting-ge’s serious expression. His eyes darted to the side. “N-no… of course not.”

It was just that they’d prepared so many desserts for the event today, and they smelled so good. He couldn’t resist and had secretly eaten a small piece.

But how did Ting-ge know…?

Gu Yuanting frowned deeper. “Ranran.”

Su Yiran realized he’d been caught. He confessed sheepishly, “I only had a tiny piece—just this big.” He gestured with his fingers. “It’s nothing.”

“You already forgot how you had to go to the hospital just a few days ago because your toothache got so bad from eating too many sweets?” Gu Yuanting asked, his chest aching at the memory.

He was so far away in Country D, unable to keep an eye on Su Yiran. That only made him more determined to wrap things up here quickly and return.

Seeing Ting-ge’s expression, Su Yiran knew he had made him worry. He looked down, feeling guilty. “I’m sorry. I won’t make you worry again.”

Seeing him like that, Gu Yuanting’s heart softened. His tone gentled. “I’m not saying you can’t have sweets,” he paused, “but your teeth just recovered. It’s still too soon. Give it some time, okay, Ranran?”

Su Yiran nodded obediently. “Got it.”

Ting-ge was like a ghost or a god—he could tell everything even from overseas… Su Yiran now didn’t even dare to sneak sugar.

Then, reminded of his previous toothache, he suddenly remembered something.

“Oh, right. Do you remember that class reunion Qian Xiaoming invited us to? He messaged me a couple days ago—it’s scheduled for next weekend. Too bad you’re not here, so you can’t come with me.”

Gu Yuanting frowned instinctively. “You shouldn’t go either.” He didn’t want Su Yiran to have any ties to the original host’s past.

Su Yiran didn’t understand what he was thinking. “Why not? I already promised I’d go. It’s a chance to catch up with old classmates—I haven’t seen them in years.”

Gu Yuanting had no justifiable reason to stop him, so he said nothing more.

They chatted for another half hour before Su Yiran said goodnight and hung up to go to sleep.

After Su Yiran disappeared from the screen, Gu Yuanting stared at his phone for a while before tucking it into his coat.

Then he turned to his computer and, as he had for several nights now, continued working while occasionally checking in on Ranran through the surveillance feed.

—

The day of the class reunion arrived quickly.

Over the past week, Su Yiran’s shop had gone absolutely viral.

The Dirty Bun was a nationwide hit. People lined up every day just to try it. With its rising fame, not only local dessert lovers but tourists from out of town were coming to queue up.

The shop’s 100 daily-limited Dirty Buns sold out within two hours every day. This also boosted sales of the shop’s other desserts. Business was booming, and the reputation soared.

Su Yiran also renovated the shop’s multifunctional zone. Originally, it had a bookshelf so customers could read while enjoying desserts, but that wasn’t very popular.

Now, he turned the space into a little garden for growing flowers and vegetables.

His habit of growing vegetables inside the shop had previously sparked mixed reactions online, but after thinking it over, he decided to turn it into a quirky signature of the shop.

Every now and then, there would be a raffle online and in-store. Winners could adopt a flower pot or veggie plant, give it a name, and bury a small wish in the soil. When the flower or veggie matured, the shop would send it by air delivery to the winner’s home.

Though a single plant wasn’t worth much, the idea of growing a wish together with a living plant struck many as sweet and meaningful. A raffle held earlier this week had already received enthusiastic feedback.

As for livestreaming, Su Yiran had been too busy to stream daily and had to skip a few sessions. But his generous viewers were always understanding.

And with Yiting Desserts and the Dirty Bun trending online, his livestream channel saw a rocket-like surge in followers. Just yesterday, his follower count surpassed 5 million.

This was a historic record for the lifestyle category on Apple Live. The senior who had first recommended he try livestreaming called him in excitement to congratulate him—only to suddenly remember something urgent and hang up midway.

His career was going smoothly, and the next step was expanding the shop. Su Yiran was in a great mood these days. The only thing missing was Ting-ge by his side. Though they video-called every day, it just wasn’t the same.

Like today—Ting-ge couldn’t accompany him to the reunion.

The class reunion was scheduled for the evening at a five-star hotel.

He and Gu Yuanting had attended the same middle and high school. Although they had been split into different classes during their first year of high school due to stream divisions, most classmates had been together since middle school. Overall, the group had shared friendly bonds.

It had been years since Su Yiran saw many of them, so he was quite looking forward to it.

He followed the address Qian Xiaoming gave him and arrived at the hotel. The venue was on the 12th floor. As he stepped out of the elevator and looked around, unsure of the direction, he saw Qian Xiaoming walking toward him from the right corridor.

“You’re here!” Qian Xiaoming lit up. “I was just about to come get you. Come on, this way.” He glanced behind Su Yiran, puzzled. “Wait… didn’t Gu Yuanting come with you?”

“He’s on a business trip abroad,” Su Yiran replied. “Couldn’t make it.”

“Ah, understandable.” Qian Xiaoming nodded. “A few classmates couldn’t come either because of work.”

This reunion mainly gathered classmates who worked in City A. Most were high school classmates, along with some from their middle school class before the stream split. City A was the provincial capital with decent economic development and relatively high salaries, so many had chosen to stay and work here.

When Su Yiran entered the venue, many people were already seated around banquet tables. Upon seeing him, several turned their heads, and someone called out in surprise, “Su Yiran?!”

At that moment, a balding, middle-aged man stepped out from behind the stage and came up smiling. “Su Yiran! Long time no see. Welcome!”

Su Yiran didn’t recognize him and looked at Qian Xiaoming in confusion. But the stranger already grinned and said, “I’m Sun Xiaogang! Don’t you remember? Haha!”

Su Yiran: “…???”

He gave a polite, standard smile. “Oh, oh, Sun Xiaogang! Of course I remember—long time no see…”

He absolutely did not recognize him.

He recalled Sun Xiaogang had been their class monitor—maybe not particularly handsome, but clean-cut and cheerful, always helpful and well-liked.

And if Su Yiran wasn’t mistaken, Sun Xiaogang wasn’t even 25 yet… He couldn’t help sneaking a glance at Sun Xiaogang’s shiny bald head.

What on earth had he gone through all these years…?

Sun Xiaogang was aware of his hair issue. Laughing, he rubbed his bald crown. “Sigh, became a programmer after graduation. It’s brutal—up earlier than the roosters, sleep later than the dogs, endless late nights and overtime. Burned all my hair off. Not gonna lie, it’s been tough.”

His words resonated with many, and soon everyone began sharing complaints about receding hairlines due to work stress and chronic procrastination.

Su Yiran’s expression grew increasingly solemn as he occasionally nodded in agreement.

As time passed, more classmates arrived, and the atmosphere grew livelier.

Many classmates already knew that he and Gu Yuanting were married. “I knew it back then! You two were definitely going to end up together.”

Some didn’t know. “Wow, really? You guys were like the school’s golden duo. Never thought you’d actually end up together,” then after thinking about it, added, “But it makes sense. Unexpected yet totally logical.”

Qian Xiaoming had said something similar. Su Yiran hadn’t realized so many people thought that way. Was it that obvious? But back then, they hadn’t even officially gotten together yet.

Seeing Su Yiran’s dumbfounded expression, a female classmate laughed and said, “Back then I just talked to you a little more, and Gu Yuanting gave me a warning. I got so scared I cried!” Thinking back now, it felt silly—she had been so easily frightened.

Another girl chimed in immediately: “Same!”

“Me too…”

“Wait—you guys cried too?!”

…

Even Qian Xiaoming raised his hand sheepishly. The 6’0″ tall man looked pained. “Me too.”

Su Yiran: “…”

Gu Yuanting. What on earth did you do?

Author’s note:
[Gu Yuanting: Suddenly nervous.jpg]