Xing Yu sat quietly at his desk, working through the accounts.
His stern demeanor was tinged with a hint of weariness.
Without lifting his eyes, he said, “The act was yours to put on. It has nothing to do with me.”
He Lan let out a scoff, feeling like her good intentions had backfired. “Old Xing, that’s going too far! I was just trying to help, and now you’re shifting the blame onto me?”
His slender fingers flipped lightly through the documents as Xing Yu replied tersely, “She’s not buying it.”
He Lan couldn’t contain her impatience and launched at him with frustration, as if disappointed in his lack of progress.
“Then what is she buying? If you know her so well, why haven’t you won her over yet? If you like her, just pursue her openly! You’re a grown man—what’s with all this secret pining?”
Xing Yu closed the file, his brow furrowing. “Is it obvious?”
“What?”
“That I—” Xing Yu asked seriously, “Is it that obvious?”
He Lan raised a delicate finger to point at her own eye. “I’m not blind.”
Xing Yu fell silent, offering no response.
He Lan grabbed an apple from the desk, wiped it carelessly on her sleeve, and took a bite before laying out her argument.
“Old Xing, do you think I don’t know you? Since I’ve known you, I’ve never seen you this invested in any woman. Quietly renting her a place, recommending her for a job here—if you’re not interested in Lin Yan, I’ll eat my own shoe live on stream.”
Xing Yu didn’t deny it. He pulled out his cigarette case, took one out, and put it to his lips, saying calmly, “Stop stirring things up from now on. Some things can’t be rushed.”
He Lan chewed her apple and shook her head, dragging a chair over to sit across from him, nagging earnestly.
“Old Xing, you can’t afford to be careless. Lin Yan is beautiful and capable, and she’s spent years in the big city—her standards for men must be high. If you don’t move fast, someone else will. If it weren’t for the fact that you’re not getting any younger, I wouldn’t bother worrying about your love life.”
“Old Xing, you’ve got to step up! Men who play hard to get are what women want—when it’s time to be wild, you’ve got to go wild! Wild enough to carve your way into her heart!”
Xing Yu slowly exhaled a ring of smoke, a mysterious cunning veiling his eyes. “How do you know I’m not already wild?”
It was a statement, not a question.
He Lan was amused by his confident attitude and continued.
“You? A stuffy old cadre like you, wild? You wear the same style of clothes year-round, have almost no material desires, don’t know a thing about romance—all you do is drink tea or go fishing. Anyone who didn’t know better would think you’re from my grandpa’s generation.”
“Do you even know how to sweet-talk? Do you know how to flirt with a woman? You’ve got the face of a rugged bad boy, but inside, you’re as pure as an unborn child.”
“Brother Xing, want sister to send you a few videos to get you going? Crystal clear, uncensored—absolutely top-tier!”
Cigarette dangling from his lips, Xing Yu shot her a deadpan glare. “Want me to give you an award?”
“What award? The Most Thoughtful Bro Award?”
“The Nobel Prize for Nonstop Talking.”
He Lan found it pointless, tossed aside the half-eaten apple, and stood up with a yawn. “Fine, I’m wasting my breath on a brick wall. I’m out.”
“Mm.” Xing Yu leaned back in his chair. “Go watch your videos.”
“…” He Lan mouthed a single word at him: “Screw you.”
As she reached the door, He Lan paused and turned back.
“Oh, by the way, Old Xing, guess what I saw this morning?”
“Spit it out.”
He Lan raised her voice to provoke him. “I saw a hickey on Lin Yan’s neck—some man’s mark. If you keep sitting on your hands, she’s going to get snatched up by some wild guy!”
Back at the office, He Lan spotted Su Xin hunched over Lin Yan’s desk, whispering about who knows what.
Su Xin had just graduated, was young, and was famously the office’s biggest slacker.
He Lan cleared her throat. “Little Su, looks like you’re out of work? Want me to assign you a bit more?”
Even though He Lan was easygoing with them behind closed doors, she was still the boss.
Getting caught red-handed was still a bit awkward.
Su Xin shrank her neck with a flattering smile and scurried back to her own desk.
Seeing He Lan leave, Su Xin turned back and shot Lin Yan a look. “Lin Yan, it’s settled then!”
Lin Yan was swamped and had no time to deal with her.
It wasn’t until lunch break that Su Xin, that little chatterbox, pounced on her again.
“Let’s go, Lin Yan! My cousin’s already waiting downstairs!”
Lin Yan stared at her computer. “I’m really not going.”
Su Xin stomped her foot and started tugging at her with all her might. “Oh, just come for a quick meal—hurry up! If you don’t come, I’ll have my cousin come up here to get you!”
Lin Yan closed her eyes, annoyed.
But she figured the warm and simple Su Xin meant no harm, so she reluctantly agreed.
Downstairs, she didn’t see anyone else.
But she did spot Xing Yu standing by the neighboring entrance like a tall pine, chatting face-to-face with a man holding flowers. The two seemed familiar with each other.
“Cousin!” Su Xin suddenly called out in that direction. “Over here!”
As her voice fell, both Xing Yu and the man turned to look over.
Whether out of habit or some invisible pull of gazes, Lin Yan instinctively looked at Xing Yu.
As their eyes met, the man had already walked up to her and gracefully presented the bouquet of red roses in his hand.
“Hello, Lin Yan. I’m Su Mingjun, Xinxin’s cousin.”
Looking at the refined, courteous man before her, Lin Yan’s head was spinning. She responded flatly, “Mm, hello.”
Sensing the awkwardness in the air, Su Xin took the flowers from Lin Yan and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, guiding her toward the BMW parked by the roadside as she chatted.
“Come on, Sister Lin Yan, let’s go have hotpot! My cousin’s hotpot restaurant is doing great business—the flavor is the best in our county!”
Su Mingjun thoughtfully opened the passenger door for her, and Su Xin pushed her inside.
As she got in the car, she could clearly feel a sharp gaze piercing through her from behind.
Even after the car started moving, Lin Yan couldn’t help but glance at the rearview mirror.
In the mirror, that tall, slender figure stood rooted to the spot, his gaze following the car…
This hotpot meal left Lin Yan sitting on pins and needles.
Not to mention she couldn’t handle spicy food—just Su Mingjun’s enthusiastic advances alone were enough to put immense pressure on her.
After the meal, she politely declined Su Mingjun’s gestures of goodwill and left the hotpot restaurant first.
Su Xin chased after her, looking at her cautiously. “Sister Lin Yan, are you… upset?”
“Too spicy.” Lin Yan’s mouth was still numb.
Su Xin quickly ran to the corner store, bought a bottle of water, unscrewed it, and handed it to her. “Sister Lin Yan, why didn’t you say so earlier? I would’ve told my cousin to go easy on the spice.”
Lin Yan found a bench by the roadside and sat down. After a moment to recover, she told Su Xin, “Don’t set me up on blind dates anymore. I don’t want to be in a relationship.”
“Why?” Su Xin didn’t understand. “Sister Lin Yan, being in a relationship is great! If you meet the right person, they become your backbone! Then you wouldn’t have to work so hard.”
“My backbone has never been a man.” Lin Yan’s tone was calm but firm. “At my age, my confidence comes from a stable job, a good income, and a healthy body. Confidence is something you give yourself, so no one else can ever be my backbone.”
This independent, clear-headed declaration silenced Su Xin.
She turned her head to look at Lin Yan and suddenly understood why she worked so desperately hard every single day.
“But Sister Lin Yan, watching you at work, I feel like you work so hard.”
“Who among those struggling to get by in life isn’t tired?” Lin Yan looked at her. “Fate always uses painful moments to test how far people can go before they break. No one can predict how high their limit for bouncing back is. So even if it’s exhausting, you still have to keep living day after day.”
The discussion was too profound for Su Xin to grasp.
She patted Lin Yan’s shoulder, smiling brighter than the sun.
“Sister Lin Yan, people who see through life too clearly aren’t happy. Look at me—I live every day without a care in the world, and I’m so happy!”
“I don’t even want to work. This job is driving me to depression!”
Lin Yan hit the nail on the head. “If you work, you’ll be depressed. But if you don’t have a job, you’ll be anxious.”
Su Xin rubbed her nose and muttered, “I guess that’s true…”
As they chatted, Lin Yan’s phone buzzed.
She opened WeChat—it was Xing Yu.
[Was the hotpot good?]
Lin Yan glanced at it and didn’t plan to reply.
But then another message came through.
[Come over.]
Lin Yan froze and looked up.
There, across the street, was an SUV parked, with Xing Yu leaning lazily against it.
The moment their eyes met, a faint curve lifted the corner of his thin, indifferent lips…