The weather suddenly changed at dusk; soon dark clouds covered the sun, casting a gloomy shadow over the entire city of Yucheng.
At the Qin family villa, the servants braved the cool breeze to collect laundry, check doors, windows, and plants, bustling about inside and out, each one rushing about as if racing against time.
At that time, Qin Jia was holed up in her room watching a TV series. The doors and windows were tightly closed, and the curtains were drawn. She was completely unaware that the weather had changed and had no idea what was happening outside.
She sat at her desk taking notes, with the TV series "Perfect Lovers" playing on her computer.
In the drama, the male and female leads are both urban elites. On Valentine's Day, they accidentally share a table at a revolving restaurant, and their romance quietly blossoms. Later, the female lead's company relocates, and coincidentally, it's in the same office building as the male lead's company. Gradually, the two grow closer and eventually become lovers.
This drama aired exclusively on Raspberry Channel five years ago and was the top-rated show of the year. The male and female leads won Best Actor and Best Actress awards respectively for their performances, and they eventually got together.
The drama has a total of twenty episodes. Qin Jia is watching the eighth episode. The female lead is about to have her birthday, and the male lead wants to give her a gift, but he doesn't know what to give. So he subtly tries to find out what the female lead likes and secretly prepares a surprise.
The video was playing right at the part where the male protagonist was buying a gift when there was a knock on the door.
Qin Jia pressed pause and looked towards the door.
The door was pushed open, and Butler Sun leaned in, pointing towards the window. "Miss, it's about to rain. Let me check the window for you."
Qin Jia nodded and picked up her phone to check the weather forecast. It was sunny when she went out at noon, but now there was a heavy rain orange alert.
Butler Sun drew back the curtains and checked each window. Qin Jia looked out the window past him; dark, heavy clouds drifted across the sky, creating a strong sense of oppression.
Just as she was about to look away, a purple lightning bolt suddenly streaked across the sky, followed by a thunderclap that boomed loudly, startling Steward Sun standing by the window.
Butler Sun composed himself, quickly drew the curtains, and clutched his chest, his face still pale. He looked at her immediately and asked, "Miss, were you frightened?"
Qin Jia replied calmly, "No."
She's not afraid of lightning or thunder. Those two things pale in comparison to a tiger.
However, there is one problem: you can't climb trees here on rainy days, because this body is afraid of being struck by lightning.
Butler Sun slowly walked towards the door, reminding her before leaving, "Young Master and Madam are not here. If you are afraid tonight, you can ask Aju to come and keep you company."
Qin Jia: "Okay, I understand."
After seeing Butler Sun off, Qin Jia continued watching the drama. A few minutes later, she finished watching episode eight, picked up a pen, and began writing furiously, recording the key points of the romance in this episode.
After finishing writing, Qin Jia flipped through the tips in her notebook. She found that the content was very similar to the "rules of dating" for couples online, only the scenarios were more specific. @Unlimited great articles, all at Jinjiang Literature City
Qin Jia planned to follow suit and try to finish these tasks so that Lu Tingzhou would understand that she was not the ideal partner in his mind.
As she was thinking, her phone on the table suddenly vibrated. She picked it up and glanced at it; it was a message from Lu Tingzhou.
Lu Tingzhou sent his height, weight, and chest circumference. Qin Jia, recalling what happened in the car that afternoon, sighed helplessly and replied: t [Received.]
A moment later, she added: "By the way, how much did your shirt cost?"
L: Around 30,000.
Qin Jia pursed her lips and typed a reply: [Okay, I'll buy it and return it to you tomorrow.]
L: No rush.
L: Where should we go on our date tomorrow?
Tomorrow? Qin Jia looked up at the calendar. Tomorrow is Friday. Lu Tingzhou has to work during the day, so they can only date in the evening. She has to be home before nine o'clock, which means they can only have a meal together and take a walk at most.
Qin Jia held her phone, her eyes glancing at the text on her notebook. After a moment's thought, she replied: "[How about we pick a restaurant near your company and have a meal together?]"
Lu Tingzhou readily agreed and shared a few restaurants with her. She chose one based on the food and ratings, then added: "No need to book the whole place."
There was a clear pause on the other end: "Hmm."
Then he asked, "By the way, what's the name of that show you were talking about in the car this afternoon?"
Qin Jia Luna: The Perfect Lover.
Qin Jia Luna: I just finished watching episode 8.
L: Can I watch it with you?
Qin Jia Luna: Watch it together? We're not together, how can we watch it together?
L: Video apps can create online shared rooms; look for them on the user profile page.
Upon hearing this, Qin Jia gripped the mouse and located the function Lu Tingzhou had mentioned.
She sent him the platform name and account ID, and a few minutes later, they successfully added each other as friends and entered the same movie-sharing room.
The shared room has a voice chat function. Qin Jia plugged in his headphones and turned on his microphone: "Which episode should I start watching from?"
As soon as the words were spoken, a clear, melodious male voice rang in my ears: "Episode 9."
Qin Jia was taken aback. "Then the first eight episodes..." He didn't know the content of the earlier episodes. Would he be able to understand them?
"I can read the synopsis." A swallowing sound came from the earpiece, like someone drinking water. After a while, he continued, "Or, can you tell me the story?"
Qin Jia turned to the first page of the notebook, cleared her throat, and said while recalling, "I'll give it a try."
Outside the window, lightning flashed and thunder roared, and the wind and rain lashed against the glass, creating a series of loud noises.
In the warmly lit room, Qin Jia recounted the contents of the first eight episodes of the TV series to Lu Tingzhou.
Time slipped away unnoticed. Ten minutes later, she took a sip of water to moisten her throat and said softly, "That's about it for the first eight episodes. Did you understand?"
"You explained it very clearly." He chuckled softly, his tone languid and gentle. "Teacher Qin."
Qin Jia was suddenly startled, feeling a strange itch in her heart, as if tickled by a feather. She took off her headphones, sat down in a chair, and quietly listened to the sound of rain outside.
The sound of rain pattering, the rumble of thunder, and countless ambient sounds intertwined, yet they couldn't dispel the gentle male voice lingering in my mind.
She took a sip of water, glanced at the real-time messages on her computer screen, and silently put on her headphones.
I was a little thirsty just now.
She paused, then asked, "Continue watching?"
Lu Tingzhou hummed in agreement. Upon hearing this, Qin Jia clicked on episode nine of "Perfect Lovers." The program automatically skipped the intro and started playing the main episode directly.
The story picks up where episode eight left off, with the male and female leads having a candlelight dinner together at the revolving restaurant where they first met, surrounded by a beautiful cityscape at night. They chat as they eat, sharing recent interesting or troublesome events.
As the dinner party drew to a close and most of the guests had left, a waiter pushed a cake and roses over, while someone played a romantic violin tune nearby.
The male protagonist lights the candles on the cake, gazing lovingly at the female protagonist, and wishes her a happy birthday. The restaurant lights are turned off, the candlelight illuminating their table. The female protagonist blows out the candles, closes her eyes, and makes a wish, hoping they can always be together.
After dinner, the female lead, holding roses, went downstairs with the male lead. The male lead drove her home, and on the way, the female lead was immersed in sweetness, constantly smiling foolishly.
Seeing this, Qin Jia couldn't help but frown and mutter to herself, "Didn't the male lead prepare a gift? Why isn't he giving it to him? Is he going to misunderstand again?"
Romantic background music played in the video. Lu Tingzhou replied gently, "Later, when the male lead takes the female lead home, he probably won't leave when he gets to her apartment building. He'll have the female lead invite him up for a bit, and then give her a gift."
As he predicted, the plot unfolded exactly as he had described. Qin Jia blinked and asked in surprise, "Lu Tingzhou, did you watch this show beforehand?"
"No." He said casually, "Screenwriters usually don't write plots for nothing. If there's no further development, and the male lead gives a gift at the restaurant, then this part ends."
Qin Jia stretched and adjusted his posture. "So what will happen next..."
Before she could finish speaking, a strange sound rang in her ears. She looked at the screen, and the scene shifted to the bedroom. The screen was dark, and the female lead was sitting on the male lead's lap, the two of them embracing and kissing, completely absorbed in each other.
Qin Jia stared at the screen, blushing at the ambiguous moans coming from her headphones. She covered her face with her hand, then secretly peeked through her fingers to continue watching.
The male protagonist reached out and peeled off the female protagonist's outer garment. At that moment, the faint moonlight shone in from the window, outlining the silhouettes of the two of them.
Off-screen, Qin Jia unconsciously held her breath, extremely curious about what would happen next.
The next second, the screen suddenly skipped frames, cutting directly to the next morning.
Qin Jia was taken aback, then asked in confusion, "Lu Tingzhou, did you speed up the progress bar?"
Lu Tingzhou was silent for two seconds. "No, it might not have been filmed, or it might have been deleted."
Upon hearing this, Qin Jia's curiosity was completely piqued.
She held the microphone, lost in thought: "Lu Tingzhou, you're experienced, can you deduce what was cut?"
Another silence followed.
After a long pause, Lu Tingzhou spoke awkwardly: "Qin Jia, I have no experience in this area."
"I...can't deduce it."
Qin Jia cupped her face in her hands and said regretfully, "Since you don't know either, then forget it and keep watching."
Lu Tingzhou: "...Hmm."
The two watched two and a half episodes together when the alarm clock in the room rang. Qin Jia reached out and turned it off, yawned, and said, "I need to take a shower."
There was a moment of silence in my ears. "Go."
Qin Jia hummed in agreement and was about to leave the room when a sound came through her earphones again.
"Has the rain stopped where you are?" he suddenly asked.
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Qin Jia took off her headphones and listened carefully to the sounds outside the window. The thunder had completely disappeared, the wind had subsided, leaving only the patter of rain, which had lessened considerably.
She picked up her phone and checked the live weather forecast. The thunderstorms were completely over.
"Lu Tingzhou…"
She called his name, but the words caught in her throat, "Are you...?"
"Um?"
What do you want to say?
She wondered: Did he think she was afraid of thunder, so he spent these few hours with her on purpose?
There was silence on the other end of the network; he was waiting for her reply. She didn't speak, and he didn't log off; he just waited.
In that instant, Qin Jia felt that she didn't need to dig deeper; the answer was obvious.
She lowered her head, her slender, pale fingers lightly twirling the phone cord. After a long silence, she finally spoke: "I just wanted to ask you if you remember where we're going on our date tomorrow?"
"Of course I remember." @Unlimited great articles, all at Jinjiang Literature City
"Revolving restaurant, candlelight dinner."
"Just like in the TV series."
Qin Jia pursed her lips. "It's different."
"First, tomorrow isn't my birthday. Second, you won't give me a ring."
"Furthermore, and most importantly…"
Lu Tingzhou chuckled softly, his voice extremely low, as if casting a spell on her ear: "What?"
Qin Jia picked up her cup, took a sip of water, and said in a serious tone, "The biggest difference is that I won't invite you to my house, nor will I let you stay overnight."
"It is indeed different." Lu Tingzhou paused for a moment, then said gently, "Go ahead and get busy, see you tomorrow."
"Okay, see you tomorrow." Qin Jia said, taking off her headphones and leaving the shared room.
She got up from her seat, walked to the window, and drew back the curtains to look at the view in the yard.
Under the gray sky, the emerald green locust tree stood tall and straight, while the swing next to it swayed gently in the wind, with a few vines falling off and the swing about to fall.
The sound of wind and rain reached her ears, followed by the words the man had spoken. Qin Jia lowered her eyes and silently recited the Heart-Cleansing Mantra in her heart again and again.
After a long while, my heart finally calmed down.
She drew the curtains, turned and walked inside, a wildly imaginative idea suddenly popping into her head:
If everyone in this world has a corresponding animal attribute, then Lu Tingzhou's soul must contain a nine-tailed red fox.
The kind who specializes in seducing women.
Fortunately, she had strong willpower.