The roar of the car engine was incredibly piercing in the silent night.
Lu Yao loved tranquility; any noisy sound could make her frown, especially in an environment like this.
She knit her brows slightly and subconsciously looked toward the source of the sound. The car was speeding, and by the time Lu Yao looked up, she could only see the exhaust fumes left behind.
“In the middle of the night, such a coincidence?” Shen Qing also looked over, mentioning a point Lu Yao had overlooked.
Lu Yao was startled; it truly was a bit of a coincidence.
There were hardly any people here to begin with, and at this hour—just as Shen Qing had sent her back—someone else was driving away.
Neither of them had paid attention to their surroundings when they got out of the car. Although they felt it was coincidental, they didn’t pay it much mind.
Shen Qing continued, “You can consider what I said earlier a bit more.”
Lu Yao pursed her lips; she really couldn’t consider this matter.
“We’ll talk about it later. I’m going back in now, and you should head back early too.” Lu Yao’s voice was quite soft. A very ordinary sentence somehow sounded tender coming from her.
Shen Qing smiled. “This feels a bit like driving a secret crush home during our student days.”
Lu Yao: “…”
She didn’t quite understand Shen Qing’s line of thinking.
After urging her once more, Lu Yao didn’t waste any more time standing there and turned back to the entrance of the flower shop.
When one opens a shop for business, they naturally don’t care about their address being known. Since Shen Qing wasn’t leaving, Lu Yao let her watch, turning around to close the rolling shutter door without the slightest hesitation.
Returning to the second floor, Lu Yao turned on the light and habitually walked to the window to look out. That eye-catching pink-diamond car had already driven away.
Lu Yao breathed a sigh of relief and then drew the curtains.
She found her pajamas in the wardrobe and prepared to go to the bathroom for a shower. It was getting late, so she took a quick, perfunctory shower and came out. Walking to the bedside, she found that Chen Shi had sent her a message, asking if she had reached home.
Lu Yao frowned, agonizing for a long while over whether or not to delete him.
The social pleasantries were already over; there was no need for further contact between her and Chen Shi, and keeping him served no purpose. However, remembering that his uncle was her landlord, she wondered if deleting and blocking him would be seen as inappropriate?
It was such a hassle. Lu Yao put down her phone.
After thinking it over, she picked it up again and sent a perfunctory reply saying she had arrived home.
Lu Yao felt a bit discouraged, thinking herself truly too indecisive.
On second thought, she couldn’t exactly delete the person right now; it would be better to keep him and delete him secretly later.
Once she had made up her mind, Lu Yao finally breathed a sigh of relief and went to sleep peacefully.
“President Luo.”
Chen Shi stood outside the office and knocked on the door with the side of his hand, reminding the person inside that he had arrived.
Luo Yueming’s gaze shifted and landed on Chen Shi. Seeing his listless appearance, she frowned in great displeasure. “Did you go out drinking last night?”
Chen Shi was slightly taken aback. “I had a bit with some colleagues…”
Luo Yueming frowned again and withdrew her gaze. “Take this document to General Manager Shao.”
Chen Shi stepped forward to receive it.
He welcomed any opportunity to make an appearance in front of various managers.
In case another manager took a liking to him one day and transferred him to another position, he wouldn’t have to worry about how to stay at the head office.
President Luo was truly cold-hearted; no matter how he tried to please her, she had no intention of relenting.
“One more thing.” Luo Yueming called out to Chen Shi as he was about to leave the office. “Remember to delete Lu Yao’s contact information.”
Chen Shi: “…”
Last night, he had specifically invited someone out to resolve Luo Yueming’s emotional issues and had tried every means to please her. Yet the very next day, Luo Yueming didn’t intend to acknowledge it?
Luo Yueming’s tone was unfriendly: “Delete it.”
She was like a keg of gunpowder, ready to ignite at the slightest touch, even before Chen Shi could say anything.
“President Luo…” Chen Shi met Luo Yueming’s eyes and was forced to take out his phone. He deleted Lu Yao’s contact information right in front of her.
He didn’t know if there would be another chance to add her back later. Chen Shi felt frustrated.
“General Manager Shao’s side is short-staffed.” Only after seeing Chen Shi finish deleting did Luo Yueming soften her tone.
Only this way could everything be considered completely settled.
After Luo Yueming finished reminding Chen Shi, she didn’t plan to intervene further. If he performed poorly and was sent to a branch office, it would be his own fault.
After Chen Shi left the office with an excited expression, Luo Yueming leaned back against her chair.
Having not slept well for several nights in a row, her condition wasn’t much better than Chen Shi’s after a night of drinking; she was simply forcing herself to keep going.
Perhaps due to lack of sleep, Luo Yueming’s cold, hard expression never relaxed.
She looked out the window. There had been quite a lot of rain lately. Large raindrops smashed down fiercely from above, even battering against the transparent window panes, leaving marks that could never be wiped clean.
Luo Yueming felt a sliver of chill spreading from her fingertips to her wrists, crawling up her arms until it reached her chest.
She closed her eyes to feel it closely.
She unconsciously remembered some trivial matters from the past.
Lu Yao seemed to like rainy days very much.
It had been during a holiday, but Luo Yueming hadn’t planned to rest. She had brought her work home, intending to finish it in the study.
During that time, her water glass ran dry, so she brought the glass out to get more water.
That was when she found Lu Yao standing by the window, quietly looking outside.
“What are you looking at?” Luo Yueming interrupted her.
Lu Yao turned her head, her brow carrying her unique, gentle expression. She patiently answered Luo Yueming’s question: “I’m watching the rain.”
This person’s voice was always very soft, as if afraid of disturbing something.
And every time she finished speaking, she would shift her gaze away, as if she were afraid to look at Luo Yueming’s face.
Rain?
Luo Yueming looked out the window, not understanding what was so good about the rain.
It was just a common type of weather, like the changing of the seasons—cyclical and repetitive.
It wasn’t as if it were a scene that, once missed, would never be seen again.
Luo Yueming stood by the window with her for a while but still couldn’t understand. As if sensing her confusion, Lu Yao spoke up to explain: “Rainy days are very quiet.”
Quiet? Wouldn’t the sound of rain be considered noisy?
Lu Yao looked out the window. Outside were nothing but skyscrapers and scattered lights, with the sky covered by dark clouds. Yet, she was looking through these surfaces at something else.
“No one goes out on rainy days. It’s nice.”
Luo Yueming’s response had been to turn and return to the study, leaving her to continue watching alone.
In the office, Luo Yueming’s eyes drooped tiredly. She still didn’t understand why a person so afraid of the cold would like the rain.
Thinking of last night, Lu Yao had shown that same patient expression toward another person.
Would she also explain to that person why she liked the rain?
And then? Would that person understand?
Luo Yueming suddenly gripped the corner of the desk, cold sweat breaking out all over her body.
The scene before her began to blur and distort until she couldn’t see anything clearly. Heavy breathing echoed in the office. Separated by a wall, not a single employee outside noticed her physical distress.
She must be sick.
Even she could get sick.
Nonsense—she was human too, and humans get sick.
Luo Yueming rested her head on the desk. Minutes and seconds passed. Once the vision became clear again, Luo Yueming laughed out loud. She propped up her body, leaning against the back of the chair, laughing continuously.
At this moment, Luo Yueming’s heart was filled with indescribable emotions.
Invisibly, an airtight net had fallen over her.
“It’s raining; how troublesome.”
Lu Yao looked outside the shop once more. The pitter-patter of the rain showed no sign of stopping.
Lu Yao stood at the entrance of the flower shop.
The current flower shop finally looked the part: flower racks filled with fresh blooms, a complete set of tools, colorful wrapping paper, and ribbons scattered on the floor.
A pickup truck was parked outside the shop, its open bed convenient for receiving and delivering goods.
Unfortunately, when it rained, it wasn’t easy for her to drive out for deliveries.
So, things were a bit troublesome right now.
When Shen Qing said she wanted to order flowers, she wasn’t joking. She had generously transferred half of the deposit. If these flowers weren’t delivered, wouldn’t she be in breach of contract on her very first day?
Lu Yao looked troubled at the flowers prepared for the hotel, sighing in distress.
Currently, Shen Qing could be said to be the only customer in the shop. No matter how troublesome, she had to deliver them.
She moved all the flowers to the front passenger seat. After closing the door, she carefully got into the truck, afraid of crushing the delicate blossoms.
Since she hadn’t hired any staff yet, she had to deliver them personally, and the shop had to be temporarily closed.
Lu Yao fastened her seatbelt, her heart feeling an indescribable nervousness.
She wasn’t skilled at driving to begin with. In places like the outskirts where there were few cars, she was fine, but driving into the crowded city center made it truly difficult to guarantee a smooth journey throughout.
Back then, Luo Yueming had handed her the car keys, but she had only known how to put the keys in a drawer and take the bus when going out.
Lu Yao tapped her fingers on the steering wheel; regardless, she had to get on the road.
After preparing herself mentally, Lu Yao slowly stepped on the gas. A small pickup truck drove onto the road at a snail’s pace—slow, yet steadily moving forward.