The setting sun left only a red glow at the line where sky and earth met.

A faint moonlight emerged, the sky slowly dyed a deep blue.

Shen Wanyu stood at the Observatory, following the script as she gazed at the sky, reciting the history of Xingnan's astronomy program.

The male lead, Jiang Linyuan, just nodded.

"Alright, the last scene is the male lead disappearing at the school gate. Let's pick it up again tomorrow."

Jiang Linyuan plopped down onto the ground without a care for his image.

It wasn't tiring, but standing? How could it beat sitting?

Shen Wanyu lowered her head, twisting her ankle. It looked like walking for nearly a day had exhausted the Department Head too.

"Department Head, do you want to sit down too?"

Jiang Linyuan patted the ground beside him.

"No, too dirty."

Shen Wanyu held her bag and looked down at him:

"The ground is covered in dust. Only people who don't care about hygiene would sit directly on it."

"I'm washing my pants tonight anyway, so dirty's no big deal."

Jiang Linyuan said carelessly.

"Going to see Su Muzhi all filthy?"

Shen Wanyu looked down at Jiang Linyuan, sitting cross-legged, and asked.

"Xiao Su already knew I was a country bumpkin long ago. Dirty's fine."

The Department Head looks down on country bumpkins too.

What's wrong with being a country bumpkin! A country bumpkin like me has a thriving family, knows how to understand, and learns from out-of-town culture - like how the pipes in Qilu are very distinctive.

I like it a lot.

"Jiang Linyuan, I don't want to look at you anymore."

Shen Wanyu turned her back to him, leaving only the back of her head.

Aiya! This Department Head, I bet you're like Huluwa hanging on the wall - really acting like a boss!

Jiang Linyuan slapped his pants clean and stood up:

"Then, Department Head, are you planning to stay here alone watching the stars?"

"No, let's go."

Shen Wanyu glanced at his pants, then pulled a pack of tissues from her bag:

"Walking next to you with pants full of dust is too embarrassing."

"These are black pants. No one can even tell."

Jiang Linyuan took the tissues and wiped off the dust.

What the hell did the Department Head even pack in her bag?

A treasure chest?

The two of them exited the Observatory and started heading back.

Coming up was all uphill, a real struggle. Going back was downhill - if you walked fast, you'd never be able to stop.

"Department Head, want me to hold onto you? The slope is this steep. A wrong step could be dangerous."

Jiang Linyuan looked at Shen Wanyu beside him and asked.

"Seems like you're ready to break up with Su Muzhi."

Shen Wanyu didn't reach out, just gave a faint smile.

"If the Department Head is shy, I could just hold your bag instead. Safety first."

"Is that so? Or are you the one afraid of falling?"

Shen Wanyu said as if to herself, holding one strap of her crossbody bag and swinging it in front of Jiang Linyuan.

"Yeah, yeah. If I fall, the Department Head would definitely be heartbroken, so I'm scared."

Jiang Linyuan babbled nonsense as he grabbed the strap too.

"Why would I be heartbroken?"

"Because I'm the Department Head's precious little darling."

"I only know that a child is flesh from the mother's body."

"Department Head, are you implying..."

"Shut up."

The two of them tugged on the same strap and walked slowly down the slope without hurry.

At the intersection, the streetlight cast a dim glow. A stray cat suddenly dashed out, meowing wildly.

"In heat, that cat?"

Jiang Linyuan looked at the black cat by the grass edge, puzzled.

Aren't all campus cats neutered? How did an outsider get in?

"Still better than humans."

Shen Wanyu glanced at the black cat, then looked away.

"Department Head, are you saying you're in heat too?"

"Slap!"

The bag's strap was yanked hard.

Shen Wanyu stared at Jiang Linyuan with icy eyes:

"You're the one in heat."

"At least I wouldn't meow like that cat, right?"

"Right now, aren't you?"

"Where the hell am I meowing?"

"Most of the time, whatever you're saying in my ear counts."

Shen Wanyu turned her profile to Jiang Linyuan.

"Calling me cute?"

"Is it that I'm cute."

Shen Wanyu's tone was flat, as if stating a fact.

"So, you being in heat over me is totally understandable."

"Average Confidence Department Head! Consider yourself cringed into the ground."

No wonder the Department Head and Xiao Su used to get along - they're the same when it comes to being self-absorbed.

Not that I'm much better.

Still, if the Department Head meowed like a cat... yeah, that'd still be cute.

"Department Head, about your cuteness - practice makes perfect. Why don't you try meowing once?"

Jiang Linyuan aligned knowledge with action, boldly experimenting!

"Asleep already? You even have a habit of sleep-talking?"

Shen Wanyu looked at him in surprise.

"Meow! Meow! Meow!"

The stray cat by the roadside, as if annoyed by their voices, lifted its tail high and slowly crept toward them.

"Ape-man, chase it away."

Shen Wanyu shook the bag strap, which also shook Jiang Linyuan's hand.

"Department Head, Guoguo told me you hate cats?"

Jiang Linyuan stared at the black cat closing in, wondering what the hell was wrong with it.

Still, stray cats - it's always hard to predict their movements.

"Guoguo is a kid. Kids lie."

Shen Wanyu didn't blink, her voice calm.

I think it's the Department Head who's the liar!

Jiang Linyuan watched the black cat, then suddenly stomped a step forward and yelled "Ha!" The black cat got spooked and bolted away.

Its screeching cry tore through the night sky.

"As expected of an ape-man."

Shen Wanyu, satisfied to see the black cat gone, nodded approvingly.

"Department Head, do you hate cats or are you afraid of them?"

Jiang Linyuan countered.

"Deputy Minister Jiang, are you saying you'd be willing to fight a wild cat with sharp claws that might even carry diseases?"

"...Fight?"

"Struggle."

Shen Wanyu quietly corrected herself, clearly really hating cats.

Words like "fight" came out.

"Was the Department Head scratched by a cat as a kid? You hate them that much?"

Jiang Linyuan asked casually.

Shen Wanyu said nothing.

Jiang Linyuan glanced back at her:

"Department Head, did you actually get scratched by a cat?"

"...It was a sneak attack."

Shen Wanyu turned her face away.

Haha, a baby Department Head bullied by a cat - that's hilarious.

The worst I ever had was getting bullied by geese in the village as a kid.

Jiang Linyuan chuckled and pressed on:

"It wasn't the cat Xiao Su left with you, was it?"

"...Childhood memories are fuzzy."

The Department Head is bullshitting again. Note it down: Department Head is scared of cats. I'll fake a "hajime" to scare her later.

A Hajime Fish being afraid of Hajime Cats - makes total sense.

Not joyous over gains, not sorrowful over losses - the Department Head still can't reach that level.

I'm way better than her on that!

Even if I can't do "no gains joy," I can still be "no loss sorrow"!

"Department Head, why are you gripping the strap so hard?"

"This bag - I'm throwing it away when I get back."