TPIL - 11

“How dare you ask that.” It was very likely that more than one person present was thinking the same thing.

Zhong Shiwei looked at Qi Xiaochuan, momentarily puzzled as to how insurance salesmen still casually made house calls these days, almost angrily wanting to throw a punch and chase him out. After all, Luo Andi was someone who was easily deceived.

Qi Xiaochuan allowed Zhong Shiwei to scrutinize him, fully exposing the obvious gap in age and social experience between them. He turned his head and pretended to step back, but was actually putting on an act when asking: “Introduce me?”

“This is my good friend, Shiwei. He’s a junior from my university, a year below me, and often comes over to play,” Luo Andi said gently, her tone akin to introducing two kindergarten children to each other. “...And this is Xiaoxiao.”

“‘Xiaoxiao’?” Being called by such an intimate nickname by a complete stranger was an awkward experience, and if it weren’t for Qi Xiaochuan’s thick skin, he would have gotten goosebumps. Zhong Shiwei approached menacingly, “So you’re Xiaoxiao?”

Qi Xiaochuan was forced to closely inspect Zhong Shiwei’s face. The young man appeared to be of Hui or Uyghur ethnicity, with a mixed-race appearance, although it would later be revealed after a few hours that he was actually of Russian descent, but that wasn’t known yet. All they knew was that the young man had pale skin and deep-set eyes, and if he dyed his hair platinum blonde and curled it, he could easily blend into a group of foreigners.

Zhong Shiwei paused for a long time before finally squeezing out a few words, giving the impression of having spent four hours bustling in the kitchen only to produce a takeout meal in a paper box commonly seen in American TV shows: “Andi often talks about you.”

When Qi Xiaochuan pressed him with “Talks about what?” Zhong Shiwei had already turned his head to recommend the fried sauce noodles in his hand to Luo Andi. “Didn’t you like them last time? I went out of my way to buy them.” Zhong Shiwei flashed a sudden, unforeseen cheerful smile at her.

Unfortunately, Luo Andi politely declined with her hands together, apologizing: “Sorry, Shiwei, I’ve just eaten. You go ahead.”

He had already taken out disposable chopsticks: “I bought two portions.”

A man shouldn’t relentlessly pursue a woman, as Zhong Shiwei was doing now. Qi Xiaochuan thought this to himself and couldn’t help but interject: “I’m still hungry, I want to eat.”

Under Zhong Shiwei’s glare, which seemed ready to splash sulfuric acid, Qi Xiaochuan comfortably took the disposable chopsticks and also grabbed the extra portion of fried sauce noodles.

“That’s great, this way nothing will go to waste,” Luo Andi said, completely oblivious to their invisible skirmish, cheerfully suggesting, “Fried sauce noodles should be paired with milk tea.” Qi Xiaochuan casually raised his eyes and asked, “Do we have any?” only to see that Luo Andi was already putting on her shoes at the door: “I’ll go buy some, be right back.”

“Wait!” “Don’t go.”

This time, the opinions of the two men finally aligned, but unfortunately, Luo Andi had already closed the door saying she would “pay the gas bill along the way.”

Who knows if she really intended to pay the gas bill? Luo Andi occasionally told lies too. “White lies,” as some might call them, though in Qi Xiaochuan’s view, they were more like gentleness.

The fried sauce noodles tasted wonderful, with chewy noodles, rich sauce, and plenty of side dishes.

However, Zhong Shiwei found it hard to swallow.

Who would want to eat fried sauce noodles with a strange man they just met, especially when it was clear the other party had another identity—”You’re pursuing Andi too, aren’t you?” he asked solemnly.

“What?” Qi Xiaochuan was eating heartily; he had the instinct to survive leisurely anytime, anywhere. With delicious food in front of him, even if the world were to end tomorrow, he’d finish eating first.

“Don’t pretend to be dumb, your face gives it away.” Zhong Shiwei raised an eyebrow, not sparing an ounce of his disdain, and said, “You don’t deserve her.”

That phrase again.

There was not the slightest change in the speed or amplitude of his chopstick usage as Qi Xiaochuan focused on filling his stomach. Suddenly, he remembered. A week ago, he had gone to visit his parents and ate dinner with them. His mother’s boneless chicken wing hotpot was very appetizing, but he ate little, helping wash the dishes before leaving.

He didn’t deserve her.

Those who said this chirped incessantly like cicadas emerging every summer from the sewers.

Qi Xiaochuan showed no expression, seemingly indifferent: “So what did she say about me before?”

“Huh? Are you listening to me? I said you...”

“Mm-hmm, heard you. I don’t deserve her. Answer my question.”

Zhong Shiwei answered suspiciously: “Well, she said you’re very smart, harsh to people, but a gentle person...”

“You made up that last part, didn’t you?”

“Would you give me money if I lied to you?”

Zhong Shiwei rolled his eyes, snorted, and was about to lower his head to eat.

Unexpectedly, the next second, Qi Xiaochuan pulled out some cash and calmly instructed, “Tell me more.”

When Luo Andi returned, she had no idea why they had nearly come to blows, fortunately without spilling the fried sauce noodles, otherwise, it would have been messy to clean up.

After finishing the sticky fried sauce noodles and taking a sip of refreshing chilled milk tea, before leaving, Qi Xiaochuan solemnly handed his business card to Luo Andi. “Call me if anything happens,” he said, hesitating for a moment whether to add “you can call even if nothing happens.”

Before making up his mind, Zhong Shiwei had already forcibly dragged him out.

They went downstairs together. Just as Qi Xiaochuan was about to take a step forward, Zhong Shiwei suddenly pushed him aside. He insisted on walking in front, as if that made him the winner, even ostentatiously breathing through his nose, leaving Qi Xiaochuan somewhat baffled. Watching Zhong Shiwei descend the stairs triumphantly immersed in his own world, Qi Xiaochuan nonchalantly walked up.

Qi Xiaochuan had parked his car downstairs, while Zhong Shiwei came on a motorcycle. There was no need and indeed no intention to acknowledge each other as they parted ways.

Starting the car, Qi Xiaochuan replied to a work message, when suddenly someone tapped on the car window. Looking out, it was Zhong Shiwei who had removed his helmet.

He said, “What are you showing off for, old man.”

Cursing, he strode away.

However, Qi Xiaochuan hadn’t heard a word because the window was closed, spending a second confused—could it be that he was asking for the money for that bowl of fried sauce noodles?

Afterward, it was a new round of day-and-night work.

Qi Xiaochuan, along with his secretary and a few colleagues, went to Australia. As supervisors, they endured unobstructed sun exposure during the opposite season. On the last day, several female subordinates were complaining, discussing going up from the hotel spa center to the meeting room, only to see their superior, whose skin remained impeccable, organizing documents.

“He’s a man, but shamelessly so.”

“Is throwing tantrums some kind of secret anti-aging technique?”

“Ah, if only the boss were a pretty face instead of a real person, and a man at that.”

While they were exaggerating their sighs, Qi Xiaochuan had already reached the door, leaning against the doorframe and saying, “Come in quickly for the meeting.”

After returning home post-meeting, the secretary yawned and rode with him in the chauffeured car, lazily tilting her head back and opening her mouth to the rearview mirror: “Discussing this project was no small feat.”

“Aren’t you going to ‘Paradise’ today?” Qi Xiaochuan asked out of the blue.

“Huh?” the secretary replied, “No, I’m too tired. Do you want to go?”

“I haven’t bought a class.”

“Just buy one. The package is great, you can spend half a day there. Making something and keeping a souvenir would be nice.”

Qi Xiaochuan always thought souvenirs were useless rituals, easily exploited by merchants to hype things up, specifically to deceive overly self-aware consumers into self-indulgence.

During his time abroad, he consistently had an assistant monitor incoming calls and promptly forward them to him. It was the same here.

The secretary noticed and thus asked, “Are you waiting for a call?”

“Mm-hmm, I gave my number to someone. Told her to call if anything happens, but I doubt she will.”

“Maybe she’s afraid of disturbing you?” the other party reasoned naturally using normal logic, “You must be busy; anyone who knows you knows that.”

Qi Xiaochuan rested his elbow on his knee, leisurely looking out the car window, and definitively responded: “No. That’s just how she is; she has no sense of bothering you. But if she really needs help, she won’t utter a word.”

“She seems very familiar.”

“Pretty familiar,” he rested his chin, unconsciously covering his lips, and said lightly, “I suppose she counts as familiar.”

Before entering high school, Luo Andi received an invitation to a private school reunion. Influenced by her twin brother, she had developed an interest in planetariums and telescopes, so she quickly accepted invitations to stargazing events. Of course, there were also other friends going, so she was invited to accompany them.

The villa was located in Xiangshan Forest Park. Without certain connections, forget entering the residential area—it was impossible to even stay overnight in the scenic zone.

Daytime activities included outdoor BBQs, singing and chatting by the stream.

Her good friend wanted to be alone with the boy she liked, so she asked Luo Andi to cover for them as they secretly rendezvoused.

It was then that Luo Andi got lost in the mountains.

Without a watch or phone, she had no concept of time and could only roughly guess that she stayed in the mountains for about five hours. It was completely dark by then, and since it was in the mountains, it got dark earlier than usual. She had heard before that Xiangshan had monkeys, and that day she saw them with her own eyes. Who knows, wild boars and other wildlife might exist too, but thankfully, there were no snakes this season.

Realizing she was lost, Luo Andi stopped moving blindly. However, as stars filled the sky, no one appeared for a long time. Her body was cold, and she hugged herself, spinning in place as ominous rustling sounds came from the bushes.

Luo Andi looked over.

Emerging from the darkness with a flashlight was Qi Xiaochuan.

He had been notified during a break. Luo Andi was missing. Since Luo Boss was out of town, employees from Luo Family Industries went together. Among them, Qi Xiaochuan’s father seized the opportunity to shove him into the car when he was distracted.

He would never forget that moment with Luo Andi, who, despite being in an abnormal body temperature state, first smiled upon being found. Her first words were: “My bag was snatched by monkeys—”

She remembered clearly too, how Qi Xiaochuan unexpectedly appeared, his rarely seen panicked face replying, “I’ll buy you another one.” Perhaps she looked so pitiful that he kept repeating, his voice much more flustered than usual: “I’ll buy you another one, buy many.”