Chapter 272: Previous Life
Thinking about this, Yun Shifei suddenly felt filled with energy again.
After finishing class, it was still early, so Yun Shifei thought about going to the library to read.
But unexpectedly, at the bottom of the stairs, she ran into someone who definitely shouldn’t be here.
Mu Chengzhu!
How long had it been since she last saw this person?
Ever since she started studying here, she hadn’t seen him again.
And so, when she suddenly glimpsed him standing beneath a tall tree opposite the teaching building, Yun Shifei was a little startled.
She even thought she was mistaken.
But Mu Chengzhu’s appearance wasn’t something easily confused—tall, elegant, and refined. Who else could it be but him?
Amid the crowd, he spotted her right away and gave her a distant smile.
The spot where he stood was covered in fallen leaves. The branches of the tree were already bare, with only a few lonely leaves still hanging on them. A gust of wind swept through, and those lonely leaves fell with it.
A few of them landed on him, brushing past his shoulder, and finally dropped to the ground.
Mu Chengzhu walked up and called out, "Shifei."
Yun Shifei’s roommates all stared at him curiously, then looked back at Yun Shifei.
To say nothing else, Yun Shifei’s luck with men was truly astonishing.
First, there was that young master from the Qin Family. Though he was awful, he was undeniably handsome.
And now another equally attractive man had appeared.
Ah, as expected, good-looking people are popular no matter where they go.
The roommates exchanged glances and simultaneously saw envy and jealousy in each other’s eyes.
Yun Shifei knew that Mu Chengzhu wouldn’t appear here for no reason. He must have something to say to her. So she told her roommates, "You all go ahead."
"Why are you here?"
Yun Shifei’s tone was cold, her expression indifferent, which caused a flicker of pain in Mu Chengzhu’s eyes.
Once, she didn’t treat him like this.
Back then, she liked him.
"Let’s find somewhere to sit. Maybe get a drink."
"No need. There’s nowhere decent around the campus anyway."
"I have something to tell you, Shifei. It’s related to a past life."
Hearing Mu Chengzhu bring up the term "past life," Yun Shifei’s eyes narrowed, and she looked at him in disbelief.
Mu Chengzhu nodded at her. "I remember everything."
Sitting in the coffee shop, Yun Shifei took a sip of her coffee—black coffee without anything added—and nearly spat it out. The bitterness was unbearable for someone who loved sweet things.
But only this bitter taste could suppress the turmoil in her heart at this moment.
She was truly afraid she might lose control.
"Maybe you should just have a glass of milk instead? This tastes awful." Mu Chengzhu suggested when he saw Yun Shifei’s sour expression after taking a sip.
"No need. I’ll stick with this."
Mu Chengzhu didn’t insist further.
The two sat street-side. The coffee shop was located right next to the university and had a decent flow of customers. By the time they arrived, there weren’t many seats left inside. For privacy while conversing, outside seating—spacious, unoccupied—became the better option.
"Actually, I only remembered two days ago," Mu Chengzhu said, "I told you before about this recurring dream I kept having. At the time, I thought it was just a dream. But then, I realized it wasn’t. It was my past life. So when you mentioned that what happened to you was a dream too... wasn’t that also your past life?"
Mu Chengzhu fixed his gaze entirely on Yun Shifei, causing her to feel increasingly uneasy.
But she knew Mu Chengzhu wasn’t lying.
Because he mentioned many details.
How she had liked him then, how everything in this life had turned out differently from their past one.
He even remembered how she had been falsely accused of being involved with Cheng Lie.
But those events never happened in this life.
He genuinely had memories of their past.
Yun Shifei couldn’t understand one thing—if Mu Chengzhu had memories of their past life, then why did he come to find her? Shouldn’t he be falling for Yun Sisi again, just like their past life?
"Why did you come find me?" Yun Shifei couldn’t help asking the question that had been troubling her. "You liked Yun Sisi so much in your past life."
The moment Yun Shifei acknowledged it, Mu Chengzhu exhaled heavily. Between them, there was now a shared secret.
"But I don’t like her in this life. Even with memories of the past, I still don’t like her." In this life, for some reason, he had inexplicably fallen for Yun Shifei instead.
Looking at the woman before him, the time apart had wrought changes in her—she had grown even more beautiful.
The once slightly naïve girl was now brighter and livelier. Her demeanor was tranquil, and even while wearing a simple white cotton jacket, her radiance was undeniable.
Mu Chengzhu’s gaze lingered on Yun Shifei.
He wanted to express what was in his heart, but in the end, he didn’t.
Because he knew Yun Shifei didn’t like him.
Her dislike for him was almost written all over her face.
Because in their past life, he had pushed her down the stairs.
Upon recalling his past, Mu Chengzhu felt utterly horrified.
He couldn’t believe he had done something so cruel.
No wonder Yun Shifei despised him so much in this life.
Yun Shifei was a little surprised when she heard what Mu Chengzhu said, but only a little.
She took another sip of coffee. It was so bitter, it seemed to seep into her heart.
In reality, even if she hadn’t been drinking this coffee, her heart would still be bitter.
The events of the last two days had left her completely shaken.
Seeing Yun Shifei silent, Mu Chengzhu realized she was still processing everything.
Truthfully, when he suddenly learned that the dreams he had been having were not merely dreams but past reality, he too had been stunned for two days.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have come looking for her now.
He would’ve immediately booked a flight and rushed to see her to confirm everything he remembered.
Watching Yun Shifei keep her head down and not say a word, Mu Chengzhu had no idea what she was thinking. But he knew there were things he needed to say now.
"Shifei, about our past life—I’m sorry. I truly don’t know why I was so infatuated with Yun Sisi and did those things that hurt you."
"You don’t need to apologize to me." Yun Shifei snapped out of her thoughts, set down her coffee, and stood up, looking at Mu Chengzhu. "The past life is in the past. I hope you’ll leave me alone in this life. Don’t bring it up again."
Leave me alone...
Mu Chengzhu’s chest ached sharply as Yun Shifei uttered those words.
So, in this life, there was no possibility that he could ever be with her.