Hearing Chen Zhuo’s answer, Lin Wu involuntarily held her breath for a moment.
Chen Zhuo lowered his lashes and gazed at her. Under the bright white overhead light, a faint glimmer of anticipation seemed to flow through his deep pupils.
For a while, neither of them spoke again.
Chen Zhuo didn’t press Lin Wu for an answer, and Lin Wu… suddenly didn’t know how to reply.
The two options—go or not go—that used to be so easy to choose now felt strangely difficult for her in this moment.
While Lin Wu was hesitating, a stranger’s voice came from the side: “Excuse me, could you move aside for a second?”
The two of them snapped back to reality and quickly shifted to the side, making space.
In that brief pause, Lin Wu finally found her voice again. “I feel like eating Japanese food tonight.”
Home was a very private place—Lin Wu felt it wasn’t appropriate. She still didn’t have any intention of going to Chen Zhuo’s place right now.
What they had right now was already somewhat beyond the boundaries they had originally agreed on.
Chen Zhuo: “Hm?”
Lin Wu turned her head to look at him, her eyes flickering slightly. “How about that Japanese restaurant near the hotel apartment, President Chen? What do you think?”
They had been there once before—Chen Zhuo would remember.
“…” Chen Zhuo had guessed she would refuse, but when he actually received her firm rejection, he still couldn’t avoid the faint sense of disappointment that rose inside him.
He gave a small, self-deprecating smile and glanced at the items in her shopping cart. “Do you need to go back and put things away first?”
Lin Wu thought for a few seconds. “Doesn’t that place have a fridge too?”
The fridge in the hotel apartment was quite large—more than enough to hold everything in Lin Wu’s cart.
Chen Zhuo was a little surprised she would answer that way. He lifted his gaze slightly. “Still want the yogurt?”
Lin Wu turned her head to look at the yogurt he had recommended earlier, then nodded. “Yes. I want to try it.”
Chen Zhuo reached out and took the yogurt Lin Wu wanted to try.
The two of them pushed their shopping carts together to the self-checkout counter.
While paying, Chen Zhuo glanced at the dazzling array of items on the nearby shelf and asked the person beside him in a low voice, “Want to try other flavors?”
“?”
Lin Wu froze for a second. When she followed his line of sight, her face flushed red instantly. “You…”
Chen Zhuo raised an eyebrow, the corner of his mouth holding a faint smile. “Hm?”
“…Up to you,” Lin Wu quickly stepped aside, looking as if she absolutely refused to be complicit with him.
Noticing her childish reaction, Chen Zhuo silently curved his lips, then very calmly picked up two boxes labeled “ultra-thin” from the shelf.
Because of Chen Zhuo’s action, Lin Wu’s face was still red when they finished paying and left the supermarket.
Once they got in the car, Chen Zhuo casually glanced toward the passenger seat and let out a soft laugh. “Lawyer Lin.”
Lin Wu shot him a somewhat speechless glare, raised her hand to tug at her seatbelt, and—afraid he would say something she couldn’t handle—hurriedly said, “President Chen, please don’t waste time in the parking lot. I’m hungry. If we’re any later, the Japanese restaurant will close.”
In fact, the Japanese restaurant didn’t stop accepting customers until nine o’clock at night.
Hearing her words, Chen Zhuo nodded with mock seriousness, started the engine, and said meaningfully, “You’re right. We shouldn’t waste time here.”
Lin Wu: “…”
That wasn’t what she meant.
Chen Zhuo drove straight to the Japanese restaurant. He knew the head chef there and had called ahead to reserve a table.
The restaurant was beautifully decorated—the door curtains and lanterns had a very distinctive style. The first time Lin Wu came here, she had been drawn by the ambiance. Every time she saw it, her mood lifted.
The two entered one after the other and sat down. Lin Wu didn’t stand on ceremony with Chen Zhuo. With the mindset of trying to bankrupt him, she ordered quite a few expensive dishes.
After ordering, she looked at Chen Zhuo. “See if you want to add anything else?”
“No need,” Chen Zhuo said. “This is enough.”
He knew Lin Wu’s appetite—she couldn’t eat that much.
Lin Wu raised an eyebrow, slowly gave an “oh,” and handed the menu to the server. “Thank you.”
They sat quietly waiting.
Soon, the plum wine Lin Wu had ordered arrived.
She picked it up and took a sip. Chen Zhuo asked, “How is it?”
“Good.”
Chen Zhuo lifted his eyes, took a sip from the glass beside him as well, and said in a low, slow voice, “I think it’s not as good as brandy.”
Lin Wu: “…”
Pretending she hadn’t caught the implication in Chen Zhuo’s words, Lin Wu replied very seriously, “You get what you pay for.”
The brandy they used to drink at the bar was much more expensive than tonight’s plum wine.
Chen Zhuo hadn’t expected Lin Wu to come up with such a smooth dodge. He pressed down the urge to smile, nodded, and said, “Lawyer Lin is a sensible person.”
Lin Wu decided not to talk to Chen Zhuo anymore.
Fortunately, the food she ordered soon arrived.
Having skipped lunch, Lin Wu was genuinely starving.
She lowered her head and ate heartily.
Chen Zhuo occasionally reminded her, “Eat slowly.”
After filling her stomach a bit and catching her breath, Lin Wu replied, “I know.”
The meal didn’t last very long.
After all, the real goal for tonight wasn’t dinner.
Once they finished eating, the two got back in the car and headed to the nearby hotel apartment.
While riding the elevator up, Lin Wu stared at the constantly jumping floor numbers and belatedly realized—had she been a little too impulsive tonight?
Today was Saturday, not Friday—the day they had agreed to meet and sleep together.
But before she could think further, the elevator doors opened.
Chen Zhuo glanced at her. Lin Wu stepped out first. By this point, there was no need for her to overthink anymore.
It wasn’t good to exercise right after eating. After entering the apartment, Lin Wu was just about to go to the balcony for some fresh air when Chen Zhuo’s phone suddenly rang.
“You go take the call,” Lin Wu said, looking at the vegetables and fruits he had placed on the kitchen island. “I’ll put things in the fridge.”
Chen Zhuo acknowledged, “You can leave them. I’ll put them away later.”
As he spoke, he walked toward the balcony.
The items were easy to organize. Lin Wu used to do this kind of thing often. Even though she did it less now, the muscle memory was still there.
After tidying up the fridge, Lin Wu stuffed the pile of snacks she had bought into the nearby cabinet.
By the time everything was done, Chen Zhuo’s call still hadn’t ended.
Lin Wu glanced toward the balcony. Through the floor-to-ceiling glass door, she could only see Chen Zhuo’s tall, blurred silhouette from behind. He had already taken off his coat and was now wearing only a simple stand-collar casual shirt that outlined his straight, broad shoulders.
Unconsciously, Lin Wu looked a little longer.
It wasn’t until Chen Zhuo sensed something and turned his head to look at her through the glass that she startled and quickly looked away. She pointed toward the bedroom to signal: I’m going to shower first.
Chen Zhuo nodded at her.
When Lin Wu finished washing up and came out, Chen Zhuo’s call had already ended.
He was sitting on the sofa. The light and shadows fell across his body, making the contours of his side profile even more three-dimensional and profound.
Hearing movement, he lifted his eyelids and looked toward her. A fleeting spark flashed through his deep, pool-like eyes.
For a split second, Lin Wu had the illusion that he had been waiting for her a very long time.
Chen Zhuo’s eyes were exceptionally beautiful—black and white sharply defined, clear and bright, sharp yet deep.
Most of the time, those beautiful eyes showed no obvious emotion. Only in rare moments could Lin Wu catch the surging storm hidden inside them.
“…”
Like right now.
Lin Wu opened her somewhat dazed eyes and looked at the man leaning over her, kissing her. His lashes were slightly lowered, his gaze locked tightly on her as he relentlessly hooked her tongue and entangled it.
He kissed too fiercely, too deeply. Lin Wu’s heartbeat accelerated, even swallowing became difficult.
A long while passed.
His kisses moved elsewhere. For some inexplicable reason, Lin Wu felt that tonight’s Chen Zhuo was a little off.
Before she could open her mouth to ask, the tie of her bathrobe was pulled open by him. The robe was tossed to the foot of the bed. Their naked bodies pressed together. Chen Zhuo’s long-fingered hands—which Lin Wu had always particularly liked—ignited fire across her skin, moving from top to bottom in slow, deliberate progression, giving her a different kind of pleasure.
In her dazed haze, she heard the sound of packaging being torn open.
Then Chen Zhuo took her hand, his voice hoarse and low as he called her name, “Lin Wu…”
Under his “coercion,” Lin Wu had no choice but to put the “tool of the crime” on him.
At the same time, Chen Zhuo wickedly lifted her from the bed and carried her to the window.
Outside, a light drizzle had started at some point. Pressed against the window, Lin Wu experienced the rare sensation of “ice and fire at once.”
The sound of rain covered the rhythmic impacts and the fragmented, intermittent moans of pleasure in the room.
Because of Chen Zhuo’s excessive behavior, Lin Wu even lost control and shed a few tears.
When it ended, Lin Wu’s voice was hoarse, and her limbs had no strength left.
The instigator, on the other hand, was still full of energy. He carried Lin Wu into the bathroom to wash up, and while doing so, called the front desk to arrange for someone to come clean the room.
After the cleanup, the two came out of the bathroom.
Once they lay back down, before closing her eyes to sleep, Lin Wu irritably opened her mouth and bit Chen Zhuo once.
Chen Zhuo winced in pain but wasn’t angry.
He gave a low laugh, lowered his gaze to look at the person in his arms, and asked softly, “One bite enough to vent your anger?”
Lin Wu shot him a glance.
Chen Zhuo paused for a moment, then suddenly said, “Lawyer Lin.”
Lin Wu closed her eyes, her lashes trembling slightly. “Go ahead, President Chen.”
Chen Zhuo raised his hand and gently stroked her soft hair, speaking in a low voice, “I have a sudden business trip abroad. I might not be back for half a month.”
Lin Wu’s eyes snapped open and looked at him.
Chen Zhuo was looking at her too.
After a few seconds of silent eye contact, Lin Wu blinked lightly. “Oh… then… have a safe trip.”
She suddenly found herself at a loss for words.
Hearing this, Chen Zhuo smiled faintly, lowered his head, and bit her lips once. His Adam’s apple rolled. “I’ll borrow Lawyer Lin’s good wishes.”
The next morning, when Lin Wu woke up, Chen Zhuo was no longer in the room.
She lay in bed for a while to gather herself, then slowly got up and went to the bathroom to wash up. She saw a sticky note Chen Zhuo had left on the mirror above the sink:
【Early flight. Heading out first. Car keys are on the shoe cabinet. Lawyer Lin can drive it if needed.】
Chen Zhuo’s handwriting was very beautiful—strong, vigorous, flowing smoothly, exuding a sense of casual elegance.
Lin Wu tore the note off. She was just about to crumple it and throw it in the trash when she noticed a sentence on the back:
【Remember to eat on time.】
Lin Wu froze, suddenly forgetting what she was supposed to do.
After a long moment, she took the note out of the bathroom and tucked it into the notebook she always carried with her.
After washing up, Lin Wu left the apartment.
Before leaving, she thought for a moment and decided not to drive Chen Zhuo’s car after all.
The news that Chen Zhuo was going abroad spread through Xianghe Law Firm on Monday.
The reason was simple: the firm’s front desk staff, finance team, and several young assistant lawyers were very interested in Chen Zhuo. They were also friendly with some employees at Fengxing, so any movement on Chen Zhuo’s side would reach them almost immediately.
“Hey, does that mean we won’t get to see the handsome President Chen for the next few days?” Lin Wu overheard Yu Xinzhi’s assistant lawyer sigh while she was in the pantry.
An administrative colleague nodded. “Yeah, I heard it’ll be half a month before he’s back.”
“Half a month? Why did he leave so suddenly?”
“No idea. Fengxing people didn’t say much. A lot of them only found out this morning too.”
“…”
Lin Wu listened and, for some reason, also felt that half a month seemed a little long.
That afternoon, after receiving the news, He Jiayun sent Lin Wu a consoling message: “How come Chen Zhuo is suddenly on a business trip?”
Lin Wu: “You need him for something?”
He Jiayun: “I was still planning to bet with you on whether he actually knows your birthday or not.”
Lin Wu reacted a beat late and replied: “Whether he knows or not, the person isn’t even in the country anymore. Don’t waste your energy on it.”
He Jiayun: “But this would be your first birthday together.”
Lin Wu: “…Reminder: we are not together.”
He Jiayun didn’t hesitate at all and immediately corrected herself: “This would be your first birthday as fuck buddies.”
Lin Wu: “…”
Seeing those words, she went momentarily speechless. With a helpless laugh, she sent her a string of ellipses: “I’m getting back to work.”
He Jiayun: “okok, see you Friday then.”
Lin Wu: “Okay.”
When you’re busy with something, time passes very quickly.
In the blink of an eye, Friday was almost here.
On Thursday night, Lin Wu still got off work at ten o’clock and went home.
After getting home and washing up, she received a message from Chen Zhuo asking if she had time to talk about the case.
They hadn’t been in contact for the past few days, so his sudden mention of discussing work caught Lin Wu a little off guard.
She glanced at her original work schedule and replied: “Sure, President Chen. I’m free on my end.”
Chen Zhuo: “Online?”
Lin Wu: “…Okay. Give me a few minutes.”
Chen Zhuo: “Mm.”
After quickly tidying herself up, Lin Wu went into the study.
She opened her computer and started their first video call.
When the call connected, Lin Wu lifted her eyes slightly and saw Chen Zhuo on the other side of the lens. His hair had been cut shorter, and he looked noticeably thinner than before he left the country.
Lin Wu paused for a second, then lowered her gaze and greeted him, “President Chen, I’m ready. Which aspect of the case would you like to discuss?”
Chen Zhuo gave a soft hum. “Just got home?”
Lin Wu hesitated and nodded.
They exchanged a few simple pleasantries first before getting into the actual work discussion.
Talking about work passed surprisingly quickly. Before they knew it, the clock had turned to the next day.
When the phone on Lin Wu’s desk rang, Chen Zhuo on the other end of the video call called her name. “Lin Wu.”
Lin Wu instinctively looked up at him. “What?”
The corners of Chen Zhuo’s mouth lifted slightly. His deep, lingering gaze settled on her, light and shadow seeming to dance in his eyes. His voice came out low and pleasing: “Happy birthday.”