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Lu Zhou’s cheek had a slight bulge; it was a hard fruit candy, sweet and sour, stimulating immediate saliva production upon entry.
Lu Zhou: “Home or work?”
“To the studio.”
He turned his head.
Shen Yihuan blinked. “What’s wrong?”
“Address.”
“Ah, oh!” She stuck out her tongue. “It’s the office building behind Jinlian Department Store.”
Shen Yihuan’s work was relatively flexible. Although they were theoretically required to be at work on time every weekday, it was a dead rule that no one truly followed. The studio boss was a woman in her early thirties who managed things very loosely. As long as they completed their tasks on time and diligently, she wouldn’t say anything.
So when she leisurely walked into the studio entrance without any guilt, she was startled to hear the receptionist call her to the boss’s office.
She thought about her work schedule; she hadn’t done anything wrong. Everything was completed on time.
“Boss Zhou,” she pushed open the office door.
“Where have you been?” Zhou Yishu said slowly, her arms crossed, her gaze sweeping over Shen Yihuan.
Shen Yihuan knew from her expression that she couldn’t hide it. She confessed, “I went to eat breakfast... I’m late, I’m sorry.”
Zhou Yishu waved her hand. “I’m not blaming you. I just saw Zhang Tongqi’s photos online and saw you too. You seem to get along very well with the artists you photograph, even arranging private meals.”
Shen Yihuan pursed her lips and smiled, not explaining further.
“Is the other person in the photo your boyfriend? He’s quite handsome.”
“Ah,” she opened her mouth, not denying it.
“But, well, in this company, one’s appearance should still be noted,” Zhou Yishu teased, pointing her index finger at Shen Yihuan’s neck.
Shen Yihuan froze. “No, it’s not, this is an allergy.”
“Oh...” Zhou Yishu looked very disappointed. “I was thinking, our studio’s most well-behaved girl with these ‘medals’... that would be too exciting.”
“...”
“Anyway, let’s talk business. We have a food photography project, right? You just went to that popular breakfast place this morning. Can it be included in our shooting content?”
“Yes,” Shen Yihuan straightened up a bit, saying earnestly, “Their food is very exquisite, with a strong traditional Chinese flavor. It would look great for a special feature.”
“Are you interested in shooting it?”
“Huh? Isn’t that led by the TV station?” Shen Yihuan asked.
“This shoot is on a tight schedule, and both sides are short-staffed. It needs to be carried out simultaneously in multiple locations.”
“Oh, okay, that’s fine. I’ll be in charge of that part. I’ll follow up with the production team now.”
After leaving the office, Shen Yihuan began contacting the production team. The hardships of those years weren’t in vain; she was skilled at negotiation, especially adept at using her strengths, softening her voice to make people reluctant to refuse or make things difficult for her.
In less than ten minutes, she had sorted out the shooting schedule for the upcoming period.
She took the ointment into the bathroom. Her allergy was almost gone; the swelling had subsided, and the color was much lighter, with only three or four marks remaining.
Her gaze paused, seeing a mark beneath her right earlobe that was different from the red allergy marks.
It was a deeper color.
And there were tiny, fine blood spots.
This was...
What Lu Zhou did yesterday.
Shen Yihuan’s cheeks flushed. She tugged at her collar, but it wouldn’t cover it. Finally, she let her hair down, pulling it forward over her chest, which was just enough to hide it.
Her filming work was all scheduled for later, leaving her free all day. So she let her thoughts wander. She hadn’t expected her relationship with Lu Zhou to suddenly ease so quickly.
Beyond surprise, there was addiction.
She was a very insecure person. Although Lu Zhou was always cold and rarely spoke in school, he somehow gave her a great sense of security.
Knowing the taste of sweetness, she craved it.
Cherry: My Ru!
Ruru Ball: What’s up, my Peach!
She lay on her desk, WeChatting Qiu Ruru.
Cherry: I stayed over at Lu Zhou’s house yesterday.
Cherry: Ahhhhhhhh!
Cherry: Military Bro is so handsome!!
Ruru Ball: ????? What did you guys do?! Spill the beans immediately!
Cherry: Get lost, we’re very innocent.
Ruru Ball: You two weren’t innocent years ago, damn it!
Cherry: We really just had a pure sleepover!
Ruru Ball: The word “sleepover” itself has nothing to do with innocence, damn it! Are you guys getting back together?
Cherry: I think so!
Cherry: I’m so happy!!
Ruru Ball, secretly messaging her under the pressure of her boss’s gaze, couldn’t help but smile when she saw Shen Yihuan’s reply.
It had been so long since she felt Shen Yihuan this obviously happy. She could feel it even through the screen.
For a period, Shen Yihuan’s mental state wasn’t very good. After that, she became a different person. Although she didn’t deliberately pretend when facing Qiu Ruru, she was still different; it felt like her whole being had sunk.
In her heart, Shen Yihuan should be like this now.
Carefree and full of bright smiles.
________________________________________
“Commander.”
Lu Zhou stood at the door of the military region commander’s office, in full military uniform, legs straight, fingers held tightly together, saluting to his eyebrow, then withdrawing his hand crisply, his middle finger aligned with his trouser seam.
The commander returned the salute, then gestured for him to enter.
“How was it? This vacation, did you see Commander Lu?”
“Yes, I did.”
“What date are you returning to Xinjiang?”
“The day after tomorrow.”
“Alright. This time, you’ll have a mission when you go back. A TV station will be going to Xinjiang to film a special feature. The higher-ups attach great importance to it. Xinjiang is your territory now, and I trust you with the security issues.”
Lu Zhou saluted again, looking straight ahead. “Yes, sir!”
Leaving the military camp, he lit a cigarette. As soon as he sat in the car, the window was tapped twice. He rolled it down.
Gu Minghui leaned against the car body, his white shirt casually unbuttoned for three buttons, and a pair of provocatively ripped jeans. He smelled strongly of alcohol, clearly just coming from some decadent gathering.
He raised an eyebrow. “What a coincidence, Class Monitor Lu.”
Lu Zhou unbuttoned the top button of his military shirt, took off his military cap, and looked at him. “What do you want?”
“Nothing, just came to say hello,” Gu Minghui whistled idly, squinting in the sunlight. “Heard you’re going back to Xinjiang the day after tomorrow?”
Lu Zhou narrowed his eyes slightly.
Of course, he wouldn’t be stupid enough to ask how Gu Minghui knew; this Young Master Gu could find out simply by checking his flight information.
“Does Cherry know?”
Cherry.
Gu Minghui exhaled a puff of smoke. “That girl’s quite foolish. She sees you’re back and comes trotting over, not even bothering to ask if you’re returning to Xinjiang. But she’s always been like that: wild, unrestrained, loves freedom. She’s just in it for fun. If you really tried to control her like before, I guarantee she’d hide faster than anyone.”
“What exactly are you trying to say?” Lu Zhou tilted his head.
“Just letting you know, when Cherry was at her lowest, I was there for her, not you. And I’m the one who can allow her freedom, not you.”
Lu Zhou’s expression remained normal, his gaze cold.
Gu Minghui’s smile didn’t change, only a faint clenching of his back teeth, then he suddenly laughed. “Just a friendly reminder.”
Back home, Lu Zhou neatly folded the scattered blankets on the bed and put them into the cabinet.
He smoked cigarette after cigarette, the ashtray emptying and filling again, until the entire bedroom was hazy with smoke, finally masking the faint, unique scent that Shen Yihuan had left behind.
He understood one thing clearly: whatever Gu Minghui said this afternoon, whether to provoke him or for some other reason, one thing was true: Shen Yihuan was inherently averse to being tied down; she loved freedom and being unconstrained.
What she had always liked was the distant and indulgent Lu Zhou, just like when they first met, and just like now.
Carefree. Even though he almost accidentally hurt her last night, she could still smile at him in the morning as if nothing had happened.
She was sure he wouldn’t and couldn’t truly harm her.
And Lu Zhou, he could only carefully hide this affection, unable to let her discover it.
When Shen Yihuan discovered his burning, almost pathological love, she would surely flee.
He suppressed his affection almost desperately, like a person floating at sea who sees driftwood but dares not reach for it.
________________________________________
He saw the girl in front of him, dressed loosely in a school uniform.
Her legs were parted, kneeling on his thighs.
Her cool, slender arms were wrapped around his neck, her fingers intertwined at the back of his neck, her hot breath enveloping him.
The girl leaned down, coming close to his ear, her voice clear. “Lu Zhou, do you like me?”
He was bewitched, and spoke his true feelings. “I do.”
“How much?” the girl chuckled in his ear.
“Enough to... want to tie you to my side forever.”
The girl raised an eyebrow, her voice soft. “You’re too greedy.”
He reached out to grasp, but his hand found only empty air.
Lu Zhou suddenly woke up, realizing he had fallen asleep on the sofa. He had barely slept all night.
The sky had already darkened.
He picked up his phone and saw a red circle on the WeChat icon.
—Cherry has requested to add you as a friend.
________________________________________
Shen Yihuan lay on the bed, hands clasped, eyes glued to her phone.
Accept, accept, accept!
One minute passed, three minutes passed, five minutes passed...
Buzz.
She quickly grabbed her phone.
—I have accepted your friend verification request. We can now begin chatting.
!
Shen Yihuan hugged her phone, rolling around on the bed with joy, her legs flailing.
Ah! Ah! Ah!
After venting, she sat cross-legged, contemplating how to send the first message to appear elegant, dignified, and charming.
But she couldn’t think of anything good to say, eventually settling on a reserved emoji.
Shen Yihuan found an emoji: a rough-faced, dark-skinned Zhang Fei.
With a tap of her index finger, she pressed send.
________________________________________
Lu Zhou’s lips were pressed into a straight line, unmoving for a long time, until ash fell onto his phone screen, and he suddenly snapped back to reality.
His knuckles were white, the light from the cigarette illuminating his taut jawline.
The caption on that Zhang Fei emoji read—
“Brother, are you there?”
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