Ban Xia said, “It’s Lin Yujing. She’s a rising star in the entertainment industry, and everyone calls her that.”
Lin Jianxi thought, what a novel nickname. She picked up her phone beside her and opened Weibo.
“Little Flower Lin is being heavily criticized by netizens. They say she speaks without thinking and dares to say anything. Her fans have flooded your comment section.”
Ji Banxia rolled her eyes. “What comments? That’s clearly cyberbullying against an ordinary person, okay?”
Lin Jianxi’s Weibo page was filled with 99+ notifications. She clicked on the first post, where the comments outnumbered the likes. Scrolling down, she didn’t see any abusive remarks.
Ban Xia continued, “The incident of Little Flower Lin’s fans attacking you on Weibo has made it to the trending topics. Afraid of implicating Little Flower Lin, they deleted all the abusive comments targeting you.”
Tong Man picked up a mouthful of green peppers and stuffed them into her mouth, saying indignantly, “Her fans have such sharp tongues. Those comments were practically cyberbullying. There are even screenshots in the trending topics.”
“Boss, don’t look at them.” Ji Banxia was worried that Lin Jianxi might click into the trending topics to see the screenshots. She feared Lin Jianxi would be hurt by those vile comments.
A faint smile tugged at the corner of Lin Jianxi’s lips. She put down her phone, picked up her chopsticks, and served them more food. “Hurry up and eat. I don’t have the time to bother with those comments.”
Tong Man grumbled, “I think they’re just taking advantage of the fact that you don’t understand the entertainment industry. If a celebrity in the entertainment industry were insulted like this, they’d have already sent lawyer’s letters to sue, okay!”
Lin Jianxi was quite laid-back. As long as she didn’t look, she wouldn’t know others were criticizing her.
She didn’t use Weibo and didn’t even want to download it. She only did so because it was necessary for running her shop. At the time, she didn’t even want to create a personal account.
“Little Flower Lin has been affected by this incident. She delayed the filming schedule of the crew,” Tong Man said, giving Lin Jianxi a thumbs-up. “Well done, boss.”
“If it weren’t for this incident, we wouldn’t have known Little Flower Lin was this kind of person. It helped me see her true colors. I won’t watch her dramas anymore.”
Ban Xia added, “If you don’t watch, I won’t either.”
Lin Jianxi suppressed a laugh. “Well, if neither of you are watching, then I won’t either.”
They knew Lin Yujing was Lin Jianxi’s cousin and that the two didn’t get along.
They weren’t fans of celebrities, so naturally, they sided with their boss. When it came to fans cyberbullying an ordinary person, anyone with eyes would stand on Lin Jianxi’s side.
In the evening, Ji Banxia and Tong Man bid farewell to Lin Jianxi and left work. Before leaving, they reminded her to finish work early and go home.
Lin Jianxi agreed and buried herself in her work again. As the only one making cheongsams in the shop, she couldn’t manage without working overtime. Sometimes, she didn’t leave until after ten o’clock.
Lin Jianxi worked so intently that she lost track of time. It wasn’t until her stomach protested that she stopped what she was doing and glanced at her phone on the table.
The lock screen showed 7:08 p.m. Lin Jianxi put down her phone, stretched, and massaged her sore neck. Then, she packed her things and left the workshop.
Just as Lin Jianxi stepped out of the cheongsam shop, her phone in her bag suddenly vibrated. She took it out and saw a string of numbers she was all too familiar with.
Her eyelashes lowered slightly as the bright streetlight cast a shadow beneath her long, curled lashes. She pressed the answer button.
Jiang Xu’s deep, magnetic voice came through the receiver. “Lin Jianxi, I’m waiting for you in the parking spot.”
Lin Jianxi’s knuckles turned white as she gripped the phone. Just as she was about to speak, the voice on the other end interrupted her.
“Come quickly.” Jiang Xu hung up after speaking.
Lin Jianxi stared at the call log in silence for a few seconds. She put away her phone and turned a corner along the bluestone path. In the distance, she saw a tall, straight-backed man leaning against a white Mercedes-Benz.
The man wore a white shirt. The bright streetlight spilled over him, casting a hazy halo around his figure. In his hand, he held a bouquet of red roses.
Lin Jianxi’s heartbeat instantly faltered.
Flowers? Was Jiang Xu giving her flowers?
Had the sun risen from the west? This utterly unromantic man was actually giving her flowers?
Lin Jianxi shook her head and curled her lips into a self-mocking smile. Don’t get ahead of yourself, Lin Jianxi.
The flowers were probably from the crew’s dinner gathering. How could Jiang Xu possibly give her flowers? He hadn’t even given her any on their wedding anniversary—would he really give her flowers on Children’s Day?
Thinking of their wedding anniversary, a pang of bitterness welled up in Lin Jianxi’s heart. After pausing for a moment, she pushed aside her thoughts and walked slowly toward him.
Hearing footsteps, Jiang Xu turned his head to look. Lin Jianxi wore a dark green cheongsam, her long hair casually pinned up at the back, walking toward him with graceful steps.
Lin Jianxi pursed her red lips as she approached Jiang Xu. Just as she stopped in front of him, the man suddenly held out the flowers.
“Lin Jianxi, Happy Children’s Day.”
Lin Jianxi’s heart skipped a beat. So these flowers really were for her? Not from the crew dinner? She instinctively glanced toward the western sky.
Jiang Xu furrowed his brow slightly. “What are you looking at?”
Lin Jianxi turned to meet his eyes. “I’m checking if the sun rose from the west.”
Jiang Xu’s lips twitched. A gentle voice sounded beside his ear. “Forgot it’s nighttime. I’ll check tomorrow if the sun rises from the west.”
Jiang Xu felt somewhat speechless. He raised the flowers in front of her, lowering his eyelids slightly to look at her. Under the streetlight, the woman’s fair, delicate skin glowed with a moist luster.
Suppressing the strange feeling in her heart, Lin Jianxi lifted her gaze to meet the man’s eyes. “Are you out of your mind?”
Jiang Xu was taken aback for a moment, pursing his lips without speaking.
The two stood there in a stalemate. The parking lot was quiet at night, filled only with the faint chirping of insects. Suddenly, Lin Jianxi’s stomach let out a low growl.
Lin Jianxi lowered her head in embarrassment. A few seconds later, she calmly raised her head, silently repeating three times in her mind, “As long as I’m not embarrassed, the embarrassment belongs to someone else.”
A faint smile tugged at the corner of Jiang Xu’s lips. He opened the passenger door, grabbed her wrist, and motioned for her to get in. “Let’s go eat.”
Lin Jianxi was ushered into the passenger seat. He then placed the vibrant, dewy bouquet of roses in her arms, closed the door, and walked around the front of the car to the driver’s seat.
Jiang Xu started the engine and glanced sideways at the woman in the passenger seat. “What do you want to eat?”
“Anything.” Lin Jianxi snapped back to reality, pulling the seatbelt across and fastening it. A faint, delicate fragrance lingered around her nose—clearly from the roses in her arms.
Lin Jianxi lowered her gaze to the flowers in her lap. They were fresh, simply wrapped, and looked vividly radiant. Unable to resist, she leaned down to take a gentle sniff.
Hearing her response, Jiang Xu frowned slightly, his deep gaze fixed straight ahead. “Lin Jianxi, don’t work so late from now on. Go home and eat on time.”
Lin Jianxi was slightly stunned, almost thinking she had misheard. He had never said such things to her before, nor had he ever bought her flowers. He had changed so much.
Not hearing her reply, Jiang Xu frowned and looked toward the woman in the passenger seat. “Lin Jianxi?”
Lin Jianxi snapped back to attention and responded with an “Mm.”
Jiang Xu’s narrow eyes darkened slightly. He chose a nearby pig stomach chicken restaurant named “Man Xiang Yi,” parked the car, and glanced at the woman beside him. “Lin Jianxi, get out.”
Lin Jianxi gathered her thoughts, unbuckled her seatbelt, and stepped out of the car. After getting out, she followed Jiang Xu into the restaurant.
The restaurant was packed at this hour. Jiang Xu requested a private room, and the dishes were served quickly.
Sitting across from Jiang Xu, Lin Jianxi gazed at the pot of richly colored pig stomach chicken soup on the table. She swallowed hard, and her stomach let out a low, rumbling growl.