Qin Jia was discharged from the hospital on Monday.
Shen Yushu was away, so Qin Mo drove over to pick her up. Qin Jia sat in the passenger seat, slowly fastened her seatbelt, and seemed inexplicably reserved.
During her stay in the hospital, she spent a lot of time with the original owner's mother. Her younger brother, Qin Mo, came to visit her once and thoughtfully peeled a few apples for her.
Aside from that, they didn't talk much.
Before leaving the Misty Forest, Grandma Locust Tree warned her not to talk to men, as it would bring bad luck.
After arriving here, Qin Jia felt that there was some truth to this advice.
The first man she met in this world was the male protagonist, Lu Tingzhou. However, the system forced her to follow the plot, making her go to his room and do lewd things with him.
She resolutely refused.
Having dodged Lu Tingzhou, An Jun has arrived.
An Jun not only poisoned her, but also caused her hands to turn blue for several days.
And the security guard on the cruise ship, and the psychiatrist from yesterday—if she had reacted even a fraction slower to those two men, she would be locked up by now.
All signs indicate that Grandma Locust Tree was right; communicating with men does indeed carry risks.
Therefore, Qin Jia remained absolutely silent on the way back.
Halfway there, they came to a red light. Qin Mo stopped the car and turned to ask Qin Jia, who was sitting next to him.
"Sis, would you like to listen to some music?"
Qin Jia quickly avoided his gaze, shook her head, and her whole body was filled with resistance.
Upon seeing this, Qin Mo's smile gradually froze on his face.
At this moment, he suddenly understood his mother's feelings; being forgotten was indeed a painful experience.
Qin Mo never imagined that his sister would be afraid of him.
They grew up amidst constant bickering, once fighting tooth and nail for their parents' attention, but surprisingly, they united during their rebellious teenage years.
He had promised his sister that he would protect her and ensure she lived happily in this bizarre family. His sister also said she would fully support his dream of becoming an actor.
But now...
A piercing whistle blared in his ears, pulling Qin Mo back to reality.
By this time, the traffic light at the intersection had turned green, and he started the car again and quickly drove away from there.
The car turned into a quiet alley, at the end of which was a popular ice cream shop. There was a long queue outside the shop, and the crowd was chatting and laughing, making it very lively.
Qin Jia was drawn to the commotion outside. She looked at the various colored ice creams in the hands of passersby, and her cravings were successfully whetted.
She pursed her lips, her eyes practically glued to the screen.
I really want to eat it.
If only the car could stop.
Just then, the car came to a smooth stop. Qin Jia turned around and met Qin Mo's eyes, who smiled kindly at her. "Want some?"
Qin Jia nodded vigorously.
Qin Mo pointed outside, "Should I queue alone, or should we go together?"
Qin Jia wanted to choose a flavor, so she pointed to herself and then to him.
Qin Mo understood and parked the car on the side of the road. The two got out of the car, one on each side, and silently walked to the end of the line.
After queuing for about five minutes, the line moved forward only half a meter. At this moment, several photographers appeared out of nowhere, taking pictures everywhere with their cameras.
There are many street photographers in this area, and Qin Mo had heard about it, but didn't react much.
Suddenly, a female photographer walked over and said to him and Qin Jia, "You two look so well-matched, you even look like a married couple. May I take a picture of you?"
Qin Mo was instantly stunned. He was about to say that they were siblings, not lovers, when his sister, who had been silent the whole way, suddenly spoke up: "Is there a reward for taking pictures?"
The female photographer was clearly stunned. "A reward?"
Qin Mo turned his head and followed Qin Jia's gaze to see the koala charm on the photographer's bag.
He smiled knowingly and said, "If we cooperate with taking photos, could you give her your koala?"
The female photographer looked down, casually took off the charm from the canvas bag, and handed it to Qin Jia with a smile.
"sure."
These things cost a few dollars each, which is nothing compared to a beautiful photograph.
Qin Jia accepted the koala keychain, smiled at the female photographer, and said, "Thank you."
"You're such a nice person."
"You're welcome." The female photographer raised her camera. "Let's start shooting then."
The photographer asked them to have a lively conversation. Qin Mo knew that Qin Jia didn't want to talk to him, so he took the initiative to make amends: "Sister, we're family, blood is thicker than water. I have no ill intentions towards you, so you don't need to be afraid of me."
As the gentle words fell into her ears, Qin Jia looked up at Qin Mo and smiled at him.
Infected by the girl's bright smile, Qin Mo unconsciously curled up the corners of his lips as well.
With a click, the image freezes.
A dozen minutes later, it was their turn to choose ice cream.
Qin Mo pointed to the menu and asked Qin Jia, "Sis, what flavor do you want?"
Looking at the pictures and words on the menu, Qin Jia finally chose a combination of vanilla and matcha.
These two flavors look like they're closest to the taste of nature, and she wants to try them.
Qin Mo was taken aback. "Are you sure?"
Qin Jia nodded.
Qin Mo was momentarily stunned. He then ordered a strawberry and mango combo for himself, took out his phone, and scanned the QR code to pay.
In his memory, his sister hated everything related to matcha. What's wrong with her?
Did an illness change your preferences?
-
South of the city, the old Lu family residence.
In the antique-style study, Lu Fengnian put down his wolf-hair brush, looked at the man standing by the window, and coughed twice with great deliberation.
Lu Tingzhou turned around at the sound and walked towards the desk. "Dad, are you done drawing?"
Lu Fengnian smiled kindly, moved the paperweight off the Xuan paper, and stepped aside to make room for him. "I haven't painted for several years, so I'm a little rusty."
Lu Tingzhou stood in front of the table looking at the painting. The painting in front of him had an exquisite composition and skillful brushwork. It depicted a simple window scene with great meaning, showing extraordinary skill.
However, the person in this painting...
Lu Tingzhou looked up and asked his father, "Was I wearing this expression the whole time?"
The scenery is beautiful, but unfortunately, the person in the painting is too preoccupied, which ruins the overall relaxed atmosphere and makes the whole painting look strange and uncoordinated.
He thought his father was only depicting the scenery, but he didn't expect that his father would also include him in the painting.
"You should have reminded me," Lu Tingzhou said in a deep voice, "What a pity for such a fine painting."
Lu Fengnian smiled and gave a different opinion with his hands behind his back, "I think it's not bad. The reason you think this painting is bad is because I haven't finished it yet."
Lu Tingzhou raised an eyebrow, "Not finished drawing?"
Lu Fengnian smiled, walked closer to the desk, picked up his brush again, and began to sketch on the rice paper.
With just a few strokes, a beautiful figure appeared on the paper. In the picture, the man looked at the woman outside the window, and his originally deep sorrow was magically transformed into a affectionate gaze.
For a moment, the study was completely silent.
Lu Fengnian spoke up at the opportune moment: "Tingzhou, a perfect couple can save a painting. Our house is too quiet and it's time for a mistress of the house."
Lu Tingzhou paused for a moment, then looked at his father meaningfully, "You've found love again?"
Lu Fengnian frowned, speechless, and said, "What nonsense are you talking about, child? Although your mother and I are divorced, we have a great relationship!"
"What I mean is, now that you've established yourself in your career, it's time to think about starting a family."
"It's okay if you don't like the Luo family's daughter. There are so many good girls in the circle. It shouldn't be too difficult for you to pick one you like, right?"
Lu Tingzhou said calmly, "Dad, matters of the heart can't be rushed, so don't worry about it."
"At this stage, I just want to work hard and get the company listed on the stock exchange as soon as possible."
Lu Fengnian disagreed, "Our Lu family has a vast number of businesses, many of which are managed by professional managers, and they're all running smoothly, aren't they?"
"To be honest, given Zecheng's current scale, going public is only a matter of time."
"But Tingzhou, you're already twenty-seven this year. In a few more years, when you're thirty, even if the company is doing very well, you'll still be a bachelor."
"Think about it carefully, don't you find it terrifying?"
Lu Tingzhou: "I don't think so."
Lu Fengnian: "..."
The conversation reached a stalemate. Lu Fengnian thought for a moment and changed his approach to persuade Tingzhou to get married: "Tingzhou, it's not that your father wants to urge you. As someone who has been through it, I just want to remind you that you should act quickly when you meet a girl you like."
"Back then, if I had acted any later, your mother might have been stolen away by her first love. Some relationships, once missed, are gone forever."
"Don't keep people at arm's length all the time. If you don't give people a chance, even if all the outstanding girls in the world are chasing after you, you'll still be single."
Lu Tingzhou gave a perfunctory "hmm".
The phone rang, and Lu Fengnian's face lit up when he saw the caller ID. "Your mother is calling. I'll go out and take this call. Think about it carefully yourself."
In the study, Lu Tingzhou looked down at the painting on the table and couldn't help but think of Qin Jia.
I wonder how she is now?
Thinking it over, Lu Tingzhou picked up his phone from the table, unlocked it, and made a call to his secretary.
Ten minutes later, the secretary replied.
Lu Tingzhou opened Qin Jia's data report and flipped through the pages one by one.
His gaze lingered on the "Relationship Status" page, and he frowned slightly. He asked his secretary on the other end of the phone, "What does 'having romantic prospects' mean?"
"The literal meaning." The secretary paused for a few seconds. "I'll send you a post, and you'll understand when you see it."
The next second, a shared post appeared on Lu Tingzhou's WeChat chat page.
The post was titled "Discovering the Beauty in Life." He clicked on it and saw that the blogger had posted a set of street photos, which had already received 10,000 likes.
The photo that received the most likes was of a young couple smiling at each other.
Warm sunlight, dappled shadows, pretty faces, heartfelt smiles... all these beautiful elements are piled up in the photo, creating a warm and inviting atmosphere that makes you smile involuntarily.
The comments below are all saying "They're a perfect match", "So sweet", "A match made in heaven", and "It makes me smile like a proud aunt".
However, Lu Tingzhou couldn't laugh at all.
Because the woman in the photo had confessed her feelings to him just a few days ago, but after not seeing her for a few days, she seemed to have already moved on to someone else.
She fell in love with someone else so quickly?
"Mr. Lu, I've checked. It seems that Miss Qin's new boyfriend is the young master of the Qin Group."
"The jewelry design company where Miss Qin works happens to be one of the businesses under the Qin Group. I think she must be taken."
"You should still..."
Lu Tingzhou didn't listen any further and hung up the phone without saying a word.
A few minutes later, the secretary called again.
Lu Tingzhou was annoyed and didn't want to pay attention.
Lu Fengnian happened to come in, glanced at the caller ID, and answered the call for him.
"Mr. Lu, there's one more thing."
Lu Tingzhou picked up his phone and walked to the window, his tone indifferent, "Go ahead."
"The poisoning incident has been investigated. It was Miss Qin's boss who had malicious intentions and put an aphrodisiac in her drink."
Upon hearing this, Lu Tingzhou frowned even more deeply. "Have they caught the person?"
"He's been caught, at the police station." The secretary suddenly lowered his voice. "I heard that Madam Qin put pressure on them to handle this strictly by law and send him in."
Lu Tingzhou: "That's good."
"Is there anything else?"
"There's one last thing," the secretary cleared her throat and said earnestly, "Mr. Lu, I advise you to stay away from Miss Qin. There are countless good women in the world; there's no need to steal someone else's partner."
"..."
Lu Tingzhou paused for a moment, then said coldly, "Secretary Lin, do you think I have a lot of free time?"
"No, that's not what I meant," Secretary Lin stammered. "Mr. Lu, then, I'll hang up now."
Lu Tingzhou put away his phone expressionlessly, turned around, and walked out of the study.
Halfway there, his father called him back. Lu Fengnian tapped his phone and said, "There's a charity gala this Thursday. The Luo family's daughter will be there too. You..."
Lu Tingzhou: "I'm not going."
After saying that, he strode away and quickly disappeared around the corner.
Lu Fengnian silently framed the painting on his desk, sighed deeply, and said helplessly, "It seems that this marriage with the Luo family is completely out of the question."
-
That night, Lu Tingzhou tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep until four in the morning.
Whenever he closes his eyes, the scene of Qin Jia barging into his room that night flashes through his mind.
She blinked her amber eyes and asked him earnestly if he could give her a strawberry cake if she answered the question correctly.
He nodded in response.
Then, clutching the hem of her dress with both hands, as if gathering courage for a long time, she said nervously yet resolutely:
"I will be your wife five years from now."
She said this with a sincere look in her eyes, not at all like she was joking.
He was stunned.
By the time he came to his senses, she was already gone.
Looking back now, the cake wasn't poisoned. She went into his room not to save him, but to beg for help.
If only he had been a little more perceptive back then, and asked one more question, it would have been fine.
In that case, perhaps they...
A strange thought popped into Lu Tingzhou's mind, and he sat up abruptly, pinching his arm to clear his head.
For over twenty years, he had never been attracted to a woman, nor had he ever paid attention to one. But recently, for some reason, he had become unusually concerned about Qin Jia, and would often think of her, intentionally or unintentionally.
What exactly happened?
Unable to find an answer, Lu Tingzhou simply stopped thinking about it. He turned on the light, picked up the tablet computer from the cabinet, opened the proposals submitted by the planning department, and reviewed them one by one.
Two hours later, he put down his electronic pen, packaged the PPT file full of annotations, and threw it into the work group.
At that moment, drowsiness finally overcame him. Lu Tingzhou put the tablet back, turned off the light, lay down, and closed his eyes.
Meanwhile, in the gossip group of Zecheng Technology's planning department, another debate about just how abnormal their boss, Lu Tingzhou, really is has begun.