A Friend I've Loved for a Long Time - Chapter 7

The path up the mountain wasn’t as difficult as imagined, and there was a gazebo every few hundred meters.

Since Yun Zhi traveled year-round, her stamina was quite good; climbing wasn’t hard for her. Her main concern was whether Yu Mingxia could handle it. Every few steps, Yun Zhi would turn to ask if she was okay.

When she asked for the fifth time, Yu Mingxia didn’t say she was “fine” as she had before. Instead, she stopped, glanced at the summit—which was still quite a distance away—and replied, “If I said I wasn’t, would you leave me behind or support me as we walk?”

“Huh?” Yun Zhi froze for a second, then answered with a smile, “I’d support you and walk together, of course.”

Yu Mingxia blinked. Her previously straight posture suddenly slumped as she took a deep, weary breath. “Then please help me.”

As she spoke, she raised her arm toward Yun Zhi.

Yun Zhi dazed for a moment before taking hold of her arm. She looked up slightly; Yu Mingxia was a few centimeters taller than her, likely at least 173cm, but her expression looked much weaker than before.

“Were you really afraid I’d leave you behind?”

Yu Mingxia pursed her lips and said nothing. To Yun Zhi, this silence was a confession.

“Why would I leave you? We’re an alliance—the Stood-Up Alliance,” Yun Zhi reminded her, punctuating each word.

The reason Yun Zhi checked in so often was that her experience with outdoor photography gave her high endurance. In the past, when she traveled with friends, they would constantly tell her to slow down because they couldn’t keep up. The only one who could manage her pace was Jiang Yan’an, who had studied ballet since childhood.

She was worried she was unconsciously walking too fast and that Yu Mingxia was struggling but too polite to speak up.

It wasn’t that Yun Zhi looked down on Yu Mingxia; it was just that she looked gentle and quiet, like a delicate flower in a greenhouse. She seemed like Nan Qiao’s type—the type of person meant to hold a paintbrush, not a hiking stick.

Thinking of this, Yun Zhi realized she still didn’t know what Yu Mingxia did for a living.

Meanwhile, Yu Mingxia’s gaze lingered on the slender, fair fingers gripping her arm. The corners of her mouth curved up ever so slightly.

“Thank you.”

Yun Zhi didn’t hear her clearly. Following the sound, she turned her gaze toward her, catching Yu Mingxia just as her smile faded.

Was she… happy?

Yun Zhi figured she had guessed right: she had been walking too fast, and Yu Mingxia was too embarrassed to say she couldn’t keep up.

Looking closer, Yun Zhi realized that many people who were ahead of them earlier had now been left far behind. It was obvious how fast they had been moving. Yu Mingxia had followed her pace for so long without a single word of complaint.

She’s so strong.

Feeling guilty, Yun Zhi tightened her grip on Yu Mingxia’s arm and slowed her pace significantly.

Though she didn’t know exactly what Yun Zhi was thinking, Yu Mingxia saw that the misunderstanding had yielded a good result. She didn’t explain herself and simply leaned into the support.

The mountain air was filled with the sounds of birds and insects, the rhythmic chirping of cicadas being the loudest.

“I was actually looking around for hand sanitizer earlier,” Yun Zhi said, breaking the quiet atmosphere between them.

“Do you need some?” Yu Mingxia asked, confused.

Yun Zhi shook her head. “No, I just thought you might have a thing about germs and that I had offended you.”

Yu Mingxia smiled. Thinking back to the earlier contact, her wrist suddenly felt hot again. She came up with an excuse: “I just don’t have much contact with people. But actually, when you grabbed me just now…”

As she spoke, she decided to finish with the truth. “I was very happy.”

Yun Zhi’s eyes widened slightly, surprised by Yu Mingxia’s sudden bluntness.

“I don’t have many friends, so I was very happy to meet you again.”

The loneliness and sincerity in Yu Mingxia’s eyes left Yun Zhi momentarily stunned. The “gap” in this woman’s personality was immense; it was going to take her a long time to process it.

What kind of gentle, lonely beauty is this?

How could a beauty like her not have friends?

Yun Zhi’s lack of response made Yu Mingxia’s heart sink. She pressed her lips together, her palms sweating from nervousness. Her heart was beating so violently it felt like it might burst from her chest.

This was the closest she had been to Yun Zhi in all these years.

Every second felt like an eternity. Yu Mingxia didn’t dare look into her eyes, fearing rejection—even if all she wanted was to be her friend.

“I’m very happy too. I was thinking before that if we met again, we might become friends. I didn’t expect to see you today,” Yun Zhi said, her lips curving into a smile. Her hand moved from Yu Mingxia’s arm down to her wrist. “Let me lead you the rest of the way.”

Yu Mingxia looked down at Yun Zhi. The woman’s eyes were full of joy and warmth, no longer distant or cold.

She thought back to an old memory from high school.

It was summer, and it was her turn to clean the basketball gym. Some students were hiding inside to escape the heat. Hearing voices from a distance, Yu Mingxia had walked in, driven by some inexplicable impulse.

She heard a conversation:

“Yun Zhi, don’t you want math tutoring? My seatmate Yu Mingxia is rank one in our year. If you hire her, your grades will definitely skyrocket.”

The speaker was Zhu Qingmeng, who had briefly been her seatmate.

“Who? You’re just introducing anyone to Yun Zhi. Does she even have experience?” The person rebutting was Nan Qiao, Yun Zhi’s best friend.

“It’s Yu Mingxia. You don’t know her?”

“Who? Should I know her?” Yun Zhi’s voice had been cool and indifferent as she stated a fact: “I’m not lacking for tutors.”

“Meeting people never hurts. More friends, more paths.”

“No need.”

Perhaps because she had been so insecure back then, she had heard “disgust” in those simple words. In her mind, their few encounters were significant, but to Yun Zhi, they were likely never given a second thought.

And there was no reason they should have been. They were worlds apart.

The half-eaten popsicle Yun Zhi had once tossed into the trash reminded Yu Mingxia of the love letter she had seen thrown away. She felt just as pathetic as that letter.

When Yun Zhi had passed by her back then, Yu Mingxia had helplessly turned to watch her walk away. Yun Zhi was kind to everyone, but those cold words were something she had never heard her say to anyone else.

Even though Yun Zhi was just stating facts, Yu Mingxia kept searching for excuses to fill the void. Maybe she was just in a bad mood. Or perhaps… I really did something bad to make her hate me.

In university, she tried to book a photoshoot with Yun Zhi, but after she submitted her name for the reservation, she was politely declined. When they met in the suburbs and she gave her name, she was prepared to be hated again. But to her surprise, Yun Zhi didn’t remember her name at all.

Perhaps that was a good thing. At least this time, Yun Zhi was the one who spoke to her first.

“Now… do we count as friends?”

Yu Mingxia fell silent for a long time before looking up at her.

Yun Zhi smiled and nodded. “Of course.”