TPIL - 26

After eating and drinking to their hearts’ content, they headed to work. They also packed several thousand dollars’ worth of bubble tea for the office, asking the secretary to distribute it among the colleagues for them to take freely. The assistant came over and asked whether the regular meeting, which had been pushed to Saturday, should still be held. Qi Xiaochuan thought for a while and finally decided to reschedule: “Never mind. I’ve made an appointment at the craft store.”

Once the door was closed, the secretary, while clearing his inbox, remarked: “Even for you, if you want to do it, you can still achieve it. Look, you’ve made several friends and even picked up some hobbies.”

Let’s not mention the hobbies; the comments about people were truly perplexing. It felt as though he was about to hire someone to silence him. With an irritable attitude early in the morning, he snapped: “Who are you talking about?”

“Isn’t there that boy who called you before? The one surnamed Zhong who rides a motorcycle. And Su’s eldest son—his sister might look down on you, but at least her brother is willing to hang out with you. Lately, it seems like you two have gotten quite close.”

Qi Xiaochuan felt that his secretary had gone mad—it was imperative to replace him.

He went to Tian Tang Handicraft Store over the weekend. After signing in familiarly and retrieving his unfinished wool felting project from last time, he carefully picked out a few comfortable felting needles. Though he saw Luo Andi, he couldn’t interact with her as smoothly as before. The reason wasn’t anything extraordinary—it was simply human interference. Gao Jie had come over. Though she looked the part, she surprisingly wasn’t skilled at any handicrafts. When she met Qi Xiaochuan’s subtle gaze, whether out of guilt or something else, she unusually dropped her high-and-mighty demeanor, cleared her throat, and explained: “I love fashion. In the future, I’ll just need to know how to draw, and others can make things for me.”

“Hmph, it’s not that simple,” the one pouring cold water this time wasn’t Qi Xiaochuan but Zhong Shiwei, who was smiling devilishly while respectfully serving them tea. Such a split personality—it was a wonder he hadn’t developed dissociative identity disorder.

Gao Jie was sharp and intelligent, but ultimately, she was only putting up a front. She clearly understood these principles. For once, she fell silent, then said: “I’ll work hard.”

While they chatted idly, Qi Xiaochuan focused solely on poking the wool felt.

His mind wasn’t entirely free of distractions, especially when performing repetitive mechanical actions. Many thoughts uncontrollably flooded his mind. For instance, the boss who promised to arrange exclusive lessons for Luo Andi had tricked him. Or perhaps the company’s robotic vacuum cleaner’s sensors were broken. Or maybe the regional agent from Singapore disliked him—why else would he greet him with “Congratulations on your prosperity” upon meeting him. Shockingly, all the thoughts that came to mind had absolutely nothing to do with wool felting—so irrational it seemed like some kind of black magic.

He picked it up and took a look.

“You can’t rush wool felting; take your time,” Luo Andi appeared behind him without him noticing, leaning down with her hands on her knees, earnestly reminding him.

Qi Xiaochuan slowly leaned forward, subtly moving away from her impending touch: “Mm.”

He wanted to talk to her about something, but just as he was about to open his mouth, a middle school girl nearby cut in. Gao Jie said to Luo Andi: “Do you remember what we agreed on last time, Xiao An-ge?”

Sure enough, Luo Andi immediately shifted her attention to her: “Mm, it just so happens that I haven’t used my vacation days yet, and I’ve already arranged my visa.”

“What?” Qi Xiaochuan forcibly joined the conversation, holding the felting needle like a weapon in his hand: “Where are you going?”

Luo Andi smiled, her gaze drifting toward Gao Jie, clearly waiting for her cue. Gao Jie hesitated slightly but still confessed: “I’m going to see someone I like. In Canada. I’m a bit nervous, so I invited Xiao An-ge to come along.”

The phrase “someone I like” seemed to have appeared with increasing frequency recently. Qi Xiaochuan thought silently. He opposed this idea: “Can’t you go by yourself? Why must you drag her along?”

Gao Jie gave a faint smile, crossing her arms and lightly resting her chin on them, elegantly yet provocatively smirking: “What’s wrong? Do you want to go too?”

It was impossible to understand the logic of this girl’s connections. Qi Xiaochuan narrowed his eyes slightly, turning his provocation to maximum intensity: “Yes, I really want to go. Let’s see what kind of person Miss Gao has fallen head over heels for. While I’m at it, I’ll befriend him, use my experience to show him the ropes, and teach him not to invite trouble. Not all women in this world are troublesome princesses—”

“You wouldn’t dare!” Gao Jie’s usually composed image crumbled. Her face wasn’t as thick-skinned as his, and there was a significant age gap between them, making her inevitably fall into a disadvantage during verbal sparring.

Qi Xiaochuan casually applied for a visa, entrusting the secretary to handle the forms and materials. Unexpectedly, he obtained it without much thought.

In fact, Gao Jie didn’t object to him coming along. She was somewhat conflicted—if she got the chance to spend time alone with the boy she liked, bringing Luo Andi would feel like having a third wheel, but not bringing her would seem impolite since she explicitly invited her to join. However, if someone could accompany Luo Andi, everything would be resolved. On the day of departure, Gao Jie, who usually acted like a little adult, revealed a hint of childlike excitement.

The boy Gao Jie liked was practically her childhood sweetheart. Her father even joked with the boy’s father about “entrusting my daughter to your son.” She regarded him as her destined one. Her previous works at Tian Tang Handicraft Store were all intended as gifts for him, though, up to now, none were good enough to present.

Initially, the secretary was overjoyed at the news that his boss would be traveling abroad with acquaintances, even preparing to relax for a week. Who would have thought Qi Xiaochuan would nonchalantly toss him a self-made schedule, planning to stay in Toronto for less time than the flight duration, and even directly booking an appointment with Gao Feng’s company after returning? His intentions were as clear as Sima Zhao’s. The secretary had even gathered some travel guides to give him, but Qi Xiaochuan, engrossed in a thick stack of business documents, glanced at them while wearing a smile more enigmatic than the Mona Lisa’s: “Their company is changing its name and restructuring—how wonderful—”

With Luo Andi going on vacation, Qi Xiaochuan felt as though he were living in another era. Vaguely, he remembered that when they were young, the Luo family always traveled during holidays—sometimes to Greece, sometimes to Spain. Luo Andi’s mother loved the sea, so beaches were often their usual destinations. Now, Luo Andi, wearing a tan sun hat and a sundress, still seemed unchanged.

She smiled, lowering her head, then raised it again to ask: “How does it look? I bought it specially.”

The words stuck in his throat, unable to come out. Not wanting her to receive no response, he forced himself to speak: “Very...”

But the sentence was interrupted.

Gao Jie said: “It looks great. Once we get there, let’s go shopping at the mall.”

So this question wasn’t specifically directed at him.

When Gao Jie went to the restroom, Qi Xiaochuan finally asked Luo Andi alone: “Why exactly are you accompanying her? Surely it’s not just because you want to help, right?”

Luo Andi glanced around, quietly approaching him, covering her face with her hand, and whispered conspiratorially: “Because her dad said he’d reimburse me.” She then playfully grinned at him.

That’s what she said. He knew—though it was likely still due to Gao Jie asking for her help. Gao Jie was still a middle school student, inexperienced in matters of the heart, and highly self-regarding, treating any form of defeat as a catastrophe. In this situation, she was extremely anxious. Luo Andi probably thought it was just a small favor, so she decided to tag along.

But it wasn’t necessarily bad.

After the long flight, seeing Luo Andi’s joyful face as she stepped off the plane, Qi Xiaochuan couldn’t help but think:

“So are you going to meet your friend now?” Qi Xiaochuan didn’t hide his eagerness to send Gao Jie off, openly urging her: “Once you leave, we’ll drive around and explore.”

Perhaps due to the nervousness of meeting her beloved, Gao Jie didn’t detect the hidden meaning in his words and innocently replied: “He… when he’s on vacation, he often stays with relatives in Quebec. It takes an hour by plane. I’ll go pick him up later.”

“Is he French?”

“No. He only came here in middle school—he’s very good at drawing. I also chose to take visual arts at school because of him.”

Qi Xiaochuan had no concept of the vibrant international department campus life, so he avoided the topic altogether. On the other hand, Luo Andi hadn’t reached her blind spot yet, so she continued the conversation.

The first love of a middle school girl—whether she pursued someone relentlessly or not—had nothing to do with him. Perhaps the information on Qi Xiaochuan’s face was too obvious, as even Luo Andi glanced over at him.

She said: “Xiao Xiao doesn’t understand at all.”

At a crucial moment, facing a special person, he naturally had to try his best to pass the test. Unfortunately, he wasn’t good at pretending to be clueless, nor could he argue forcefully, so he remained silent.

Gao Jie nodded in agreement: “Exactly. He doesn’t understand teenage romance.”

Qi Xiaochuan suppressed his dissatisfaction but still couldn’t help complaining: “If I could understand, I’d be a full-time romance novelist on a fiction website right now, instead of working myself to death every day—”

But deep down, he finally realized where the strangeness lay. Years ago, the middle school girl who had a “person she liked”—in others’ eyes, Luo Andi had been in that role. Thinking about this, he ultimately relented and shut his mouth.

Not long after, Gao Jie excitedly dashed toward the distance. At the exit, a crowd emerged, all ordinary people with intact limbs and complete features, yet she unerringly rushed toward one figure, as if he were glowing. That glow raced toward the eyes watching it, unique and dazzling, illuminating the entire world of its specific target.

Gao Jie’s parents had arranged accommodations for her. After parting ways, it felt like things were just beginning. The workaholic started to realize how shortsighted his work-only plan was. He hurriedly sent a distress message to his secretary, who was in a different time zone, and began racking his brain for memories. Luo Andi was looking at fluffy keychains in the duty-free shop. Without warning, she turned back and showed him two, shaking them. She said: “They’re so cute. Let’s use them together, okay?” He froze for a long time before nodding silently, quickly averting his gaze to avoid bleeding to death.

Qi Xiaochuan and Luo Andi drove to visit the waterfall.

When the two of them were finally alone, Qi Xiaochuan realized he was more awkward than the middle school girl. He genuinely didn’t know what to say, while Luo Andi was absorbed in studying Google Maps. He actually wanted to talk to her about something, but he was at a loss for words and didn’t want to force it. Their conversation almost veered toward banalities like “Have you eaten?” “Didn’t we eat the plane meal together?” and “The weather is nice today.”

Qi Xiaochuan felt a strong sense of failure and consoled himself: It’s not his fault—it’s the rented car’s fault, the radio that could only tune into French channels, or even Toronto, Canada’s fault. There would surely be a suitable opportunity to talk later.

There definitely would be.

Suddenly, Luo Andi said: “After we watch the waterfall tonight, let’s sleep early.”

“Mm, okay,” he instinctively responded before realizing the oddity: “What?”

“They say the waterfall looks beautiful with the lights at night. I’m so excited. The accommodation I booked is a homestay. Since I didn’t want to bother Gao Jie too much, it’s not very luxurious. Is that okay?” Luo Andi’s smile was pure—so pure that Qi Xiaochuan wanted to strangle himself immediately to prevent his instincts from choosing between slamming the brakes or stepping on the gas.

He wavered uncertainly: “Mm, it’s fine…”

Luo Andi’s smile could make anyone with emotions feel guilty. She said: “We’ll stay together tonight.”