Heart Flutter

Chapter 165

“Old Zhang.”

“Hm? What is it?” Zhang Miya quickly stepped forward at the sound of her name, ready to follow instructions.

“Can you help me with something?” Ji Yuqing’s gaze was fixed out the window, her voice low.

“Of course. If it’s something I can do, I’ll do it. Even if I can’t, I’ll give it my all. That’s what friends are for, right?”

“Go to my place and move my stuff out.”

Zhang Miya’s face instantly filled with shock. She stammered for a while before managing to get her words out. “Wait, Yuqing, come on—that’s not fair. You know Tang Yan’s still there. If I go, I’m definitely going to run into her. What am I supposed to say? You’re making me play the bad guy here.”

Ji Yuqing blinked and turned to look at her. Her face was calm. “If you don’t want to do it, I can ask someone else.”

“I do want to do it! When did I say I didn’t?” Zhang Miya gritted her teeth, stomped her foot, and agreed to the job.

Tang Yan sat alone on the cold floor, her phone nearly out of battery as she searched for every method possible to locate someone. But if Aunt Ji really didn’t want to be found, there was no way she could track her down. Tang Yan still couldn’t bring herself to accept that.

Just then, the sound of a large truck outside made her pause. It seemed to have stopped right at the front door. She listened carefully and heard the doorbell ring.

She jumped up and ran to the door in a flash, thinking maybe she had come back.

But standing outside were a few unfamiliar men in work uniforms.

“Who are you guys?”

“We’re here to move stuff.” They spoke plainly and started to head in, but Tang Yan blocked the doorway, her tone sharp. “Move what? Who told you to move anything?”

“I did.” Zhang Miya stepped off the truck, taking a deep breath.

“Aunt Zhang?” Tang Yan froze.

Zhang Miya walked over calmly. Tang Yan rushed to her like a drowning person grasping at a life preserver, grabbing her arm and pleading, “Aunt Zhang, you know where Aunt Ji is, don’t you? Please, tell me. Let me see her. Just once, please.”

Zhang Miya did feel bad. But being someone their age, she understood more clearly how painful and difficult it was for Ji Yuqing to make this decision. Yuqing had trusted her with this task, and she couldn’t let her down.

She gently pushed Tang Yan’s hand away and said, “She doesn’t want to see you.”

“Why? Why won’t she see me?” Tang Yan’s heart ached with every word. “Did I do something wrong? Did I mess up? I can change.”

“You didn’t do anything wrong. She just thinks… you two aren’t right for each other.” And with that, Zhang Miya walked past her and signaled the movers, “Start bringing the stuff in.”

Tang Yan stood frozen, watching the commotion unfold. Silent tears slipped down her cheeks.

“Wait!”

Everyone stopped, including Zhang Miya, who was about to go supervise the move.

Tang Yan lowered her head. No one could see her expression. “Tell them not to move anything. If things have to be moved, I’ll do it. The house isn’t even mine, after all.”

God knows how much it hurt to say that. But what could she do? The reality was right there in front of her, and she was powerless.

So, in front of everyone, Tang Yan began to pack up her own belongings. She didn’t have much—just enough to fill about two suitcases. Everything else belonged to Aunt Ji, or were things they had bought together. Couple’s items. She left them all behind.

As she packed, she felt completely numb. Like a soulless machine, repeating the same motions without thought or feeling.

At some point, Tang Huiyi had arrived. Without saying a word to Zhang Miya, she went straight inside and began helping Tang Yan pack. Tang Yan ignored her completely, treating her like air.

“I’ve already found you a place. You can move in right after this,” Tang Huiyi said.

Still, Tang Yan said nothing. She was like an empty shell, unable to speak or feel.

After the two of them left, Zhang Miya let out a long, deep sigh. One of the movers, confused, asked, “Should we keep going?”

“No. No need,” she said irritably, waving them off. “You can keep the pay. Just leave.”

The truck engine started up again, its sound fading into the distance until there was silence.

Zhang Miya sat in the living room for a while, then decided to head home.

…

“That’s everything that happened. Tang Yan’s moved out. Happy now?” Zhang Miya sighed helplessly.

Ji Yuqing felt like her heart was being torn apart. She stood up without a word and went back into her room.

Hands on her hips, Zhang Miya stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window. “This world… it’s just too damn hard.”

The place Tang Huiyi had found was a two-bedroom apartment facing south, full of light. But it felt like her daughter would never smile again. No matter how she tried to talk to her during the car ride, Tang Yan didn’t respond, her face blank.

“Yanyan, I know this hurts. But it hurts me too, seeing you like this. Just get through this rough patch, okay? Hang in there.”

Tang Yan turned her head away, not wanting to look at her mother, not wanting to speak.

“You don’t have to talk to me. But are you hungry? I’ll go make lunch.” Rolling up her sleeves, Tang Huiyi took the groceries she’d bought earlier and went into the kitchen.

Just then, Tang Yan got a call. It was from Sister Peiwen.

“Hello?”

“Tang Yan, where the hell are you? I’ve been ringing the bell forever and no one’s answering.”

“I moved out.”

“You what? What do you mean you moved out?” Peiwen immediately sensed something was wrong. “What happened between you two? One can’t be reached and the other sounds like this.”

Tang Yan choked up, the words coming out with difficulty. “We broke up.”

“What?!” Peiwen was stunned.

And then came the scolding. Peiwen tore into her from start to finish. She’d put in so much effort to get them together, and now all that was wasted. Of course she was angry.

“Tang Yan, I’m telling you now—if you don’t get her back, we’re done. I’m not being your friend anymore.” Then she hung up, furious.

Tang Yan took a deep breath and stared up at the ceiling. Get her back? As if it were that easy.

Meanwhile, Tang Huiyi called home. “Old Wang, something’s come up with Yanyan. I might not be back for a while. Have Mom come over and help watch the grandson, okay? Don’t worry. It’ll be fine. I’m making lunch now, gotta go.”

In the days that followed, Tang Yan barely left the house. Her life turned hazy and dull. With no appetite, she lost a noticeable amount of weight. Seeing this, Tang Huiyi’s heart ached. She made her all kinds of soups, switching up the recipes every day. But Tang Yan still ignored her. Though she allowed her mother to stay under the same roof, she treated her like she wasn’t even there. They barely exchanged any words.

But Tang Yan wasn’t just lying around doing nothing. She locked herself in her room and wrote code to pass the time. She even developed a small software app for fun. Since she didn’t promote it, she was the only registered user. Whenever she missed Aunt Ji too much, she’d write her thoughts in the app, recording their love story. It was the only way she could convince herself they were just temporarily apart—not really broken up.

Every night before bed, she’d scroll through Aunt Ji’s Moments and Weibo posts. They hadn’t been updated in over a month.

Still, she posted their love story on her own Weibo, day after day. Whether anyone saw it or not didn’t matter.

Until one day, she discovered—through some technical tricks—that Aunt Ji had visited her site. Tang Yan was beyond excited. It meant that she, too, had been watching.

Unable to hold back, Tang Yan messaged her through Weibo, then WeChat, then text, pouring out how much she missed her. But it was like throwing a stone into a lake—no reply came.

She sank back into despair.

Until, a week later, she saw something on Aunt Ji’s Moments.

It wasn’t good news.

That week, Aunt Ji’s mother had passed away.

At that moment, Tang Huiyi knocked on her door. “I’m heading out to buy groceries. Want anything?”

Tang Yan realized she couldn’t just sit around anymore. She had to do something. For the first time in what felt like forever, she spoke to her mother in a normal tone. “Can I have ribs? Is that okay?”

Tang Huiyi was overjoyed. “Of course! I’ll go get them right now. Just wait here.”

Tang Yan waited until she heard the front door open and close, then quickly changed clothes, wrapped a scarf around herself, grabbed her phone, and rushed out.

Meanwhile, Tang Huiyi walked happily to the nearby market, feeling hopeful. Maybe Yanyan was starting to recover.

But the further she walked, the more something didn’t feel right. She rushed through the shopping and hurried back.

Her instincts were right. Yanyan was gone. The house was empty. Her phone was gone too. All that was left behind was a computer—one that had barely been turned off in days.

Tang Yan had feared getting caught. The second she stepped outside, she flagged down a cab and jumped in, slamming the door.

“Driver, please go! Go now!”

“Where to, miss? I need an address.”

“Qingshan Sanatorium. Yes, take me to Qingshan Sanatorium.”

Something deep inside her said—she would find her there.