The final stretch of the path to the summit required walking, and during that entire time, Zhang Qiran didn’t say a word to Song Zhehan. Throughout the rest of the recording for the day, Zhang continued to do what he was best at—avoiding.

Anything related to Song Zhehan, any topics that could lead to a conversation, Zhang dodged. And if he couldn’t avoid it, he would stay silent, pretending to be mute.

Song Zhehan realized that maybe he had gone a little too far, teasing Zhang until he was visibly upset. Still, Song Zhehan didn’t regret it.

After nine years, …