Lady

Sheng Qijing had never been to Norway before; this was his first time.

He knew when Ju Hui graduated, how many times she had moved, whether she lived in the city or the suburbs, and could even accurately stand at her door and ring the doorbell, but he had never done that before.

Even during the painful period when Ju Hui had no prospect of returning to China, he was still unwilling to come to this land.

The reason for this might be that he already felt pain towards this place, and rather than missing it, he resented Ju Hui who lived there.

Sheng Qijing, a pearl strung together with a lacking core, needs this unexplored land belonging to Juhui to bring him the unknown. The unknown can evoke imagination, and imagination is painful yet substantial; it can help him fill those days of longing and anticipation.

For example, Sheng Qijing might imagine that if he appeared here, Ju Hui would be extremely embarrassed and ask why he was here; he might discover that she also had a boyfriend here to help her with her physical needs; she might completely forget about him and not recognize him at all...

The moment you say it's a dream, the nightmare vanishes, and when you personally touch the unknown boundary, this place is no longer scary.

The questions that filled his life were about to be answered at this moment, at the northernmost point of the world.

Ju Hui recognized him. What would she say?

Her feigned composure after her initial shock made her seem anything but optimistic.

She still hasn't dared to reply to the messages he sent outside the Paris airport. It seems Ju Hui can't bring herself to leave Bian Jiaping and doesn't know what to do.

"President Sheng." Ju Hui walked over, the wind ruffling a strand of hair at her temple, and said with a slight smile, "Why didn't you tell me you were coming?"

-

The wind suddenly stopped.

The sky was still grayish-white, but it would clear up soon. Kan Yu told Jiang Yiying to hurry up and put on makeup so that they could take the cable car up to the top of the mountain to take pictures after lunch.

He checked the time; Ju Hui should be back by now, no matter how much she'd done shopping.

"I'm back."

"Come back..."

Wearing a brown and white cotton hat, Ju Hui was followed by a tall, dark-skinned man.

"It'll be dark in two hours. Let's take the cable car after we finish eating."

Ju Hui naturally took off her coat and pointed Sheng Qijing to the clothes rack. He was wearing a gray sweatshirt under his windbreaker.

"I just ran into the landlords at the farm. Eric invited us to dinner tomorrow and even booked a dog sled ride for us the day after tomorrow morning. We're so lucky, thanks to the retired husky he adopted at the camp."

As Ju Hui spoke, she walked to the kitchen to prepare a meal. Sheng Qijing followed behind, but she stopped him and told him to sit on the sofa and wait.

Kan Yu saw this and his eyes twitched as he met Sheng Qijing's gaze. He followed Ju Hui to the open kitchen next to the living room.

Ju Hui glanced at Kan Yu and shoved the freshly bought bok choy into his hand: "Wash it."

Kan Yu pinched the vegetable as if she were pinching Sheng Qijing's neck, her disgust undisguised in her tone, "What does President Sheng mean? Wasn't he in Paris? Why is he here?"

“I don’t know either,” Ju Hui said as she boiled water and lit the fire. “I met him by chance on the road. He was all alone and looked quite pitiful.”

"What's there to pity about him just because he's rich? Where's his hotel? Where's his luggage? If all else fails, he can just take his passport and go back. I don't want to eat with him—"

"Brother Qi Jing?"

The sound of Jiang Yiying coming downstairs came from behind.

Kan Yu turned around in shock and saw Jiang Yiying, who had finished her makeup, smiling and greeting Sheng Qijing. The other party took out a souvenir from Paris from the front pocket of her hoodie: a bottle of smelly perfume.

Jiang Yiying took it with both hands, carefully put it away, and started chatting with Sheng Qijing in varying voices.

At the dinner table, he even offered Ju Hui the seat next to him, his smile so genuine it was almost unbelievable, that Kan Yu, who was reminding her to put on makeup, felt her heart skip a beat.

As departure approached, Kan Yu kindly asked Ju Huisheng and Qi Jing to stay inside first, while he pulled Jiang Yiying to warm up the car ahead of them.

As soon as she got into the car, Kan Yu asked her, "What's going on? Why are you calling him Brother Qi Jing?"

"Oh, he's actually a very nice guy. He gave me his seat on the plane." Jiang Yiying fastened her co-pilot's seatbelt. "There happened to be a small patch of stratospheric clouds outside the window, clouds that looked like a rainbow had been splashed into a glass of water, so colorful, and he just lent it to me!"

Jiang Yiying opened her eyes wide, seeking confirmation. "He said he's pursuing Sister Ju Hui, and knowing we're Sister Ju Hui's family, he hopes to get her support. He even bought perfume for her... Oh, they're here."

Kan Yu remained expressionless, glancing back to see Sheng Qijing and Ju Hui walking towards him through the snow he had cleared.

Ju Hui's family?

Oh……

Kan Yu realized that he was the one who wanted to kick him out.

Ju Hui's personal studio currently consists of only Kan Yu and Ju Hui. Their relatively independent status after returning to China has indeed allowed them to choose a better place to stay, but it has also created some discord between them.

Although Ju Hui never mentioned leaving, Kan Yu didn't expect to rely on Ju Hui for a long-term meal ticket.

But at least for now, he needs her as a potential asset to build up his initial network of contacts so that he can open a second Mochen Gallery or curatorial company in China—he wants to go back to his old profession.

In the future, Kan Yu and Ju Hui are destined to go their separate ways, and he doesn't want Sheng Qijing to interfere and hasten this outcome because of his domineering CEO-like reason of "not wanting men around his girlfriend"...

He's not some male supporting character in a novel!

The cable car had just opened, and they didn't have to wait long before getting on and arriving at the station. Kan Yu, holding his tripod, smiled at Jiang Yiying's Fujifilm camera. His crampons gripped the snow firmly as he brought up the rear for the group, his eyes fixed on Sheng Qijing, who was reaching out to Ju Hui to pull her up.

Ju Hui grasped his hand, took a large step, and quickly let go.

Standing on the vast snow-covered mountainside, admiring the rose-colored sunset and city lights after the snowfall, it was as beautiful as the view from the glass window of Liuli's house, or the dreamcatcher hanging in a cubicle in Ruobei. The wind brushed against her cheeks and ears, and Ju Hui raised her hands and breathed warm air into her palms.

"Are you cold?" Ju Hui asked Sheng Qijing. "If you breathe like that a few times, the heat will stick to your face."

Sheng Qijing tried to imitate Ju Hui by blowing on the gloves, but he did it clumsily, only raising the gloves to his chin. He blew on them a few times blankly and said in confusion, "Nothing."

Ju Hui pulled Sheng Qijing up a few centimeters by the elbow, but accidentally used too much force and poked his hand into his nose.

Sheng Qijing laughed out loud, and Ju Hui couldn't help but laugh too, but the next second she dodged and ran away. For a moment, Ju Hui felt this scene had happened before; she knew clearly that the next second he would grab her arm from behind, stretch out his leg, and trip her—

After Ju Hui's arm was grabbed, she stopped in time and bumped into Sheng Qijing's arms, his right foot stopping behind Ju Hui's left ankle.

Ju Hui surrendered.

She avoided the fall thanks to a precognitive dream.

Her heart pounded like thunder. The familiarity of the dream was so real that Ju Hui almost forgot that when they were together, it was snowing the last snow in Jingdezhen, and when they parted, it was the height of summer.

“I didn’t expect you to actually be standing here, 7,000 kilometers away from China. It’s like I tricked you into coming here,” Ju Hui said, looking up. “It’s scary, it gives me goosebumps.”

Sheng Qijing released her arm. "What's so scary about this?"

"You only have the right to say such arrogant things when you're actually standing here! Who would believe you'd be here, without any family or friends? Next time you walk with your head down in Norway, I'm worried you might accidentally brush past your boss."

After saying that, Jiang Yiying waved to Ju Hui to come over and take a picture.

Ju Hui walked quickly closer and witnessed the setting sun disappear in an instant. With her back to Blues, she took a few photos against the wind.

At this moment, Kan Yu walked up to Sheng Qijing, who was alone, and asked him with a sidelong glance, "You probably don't have anywhere to stay tonight either, right? The guesthouse we booked only has three rooms. Why don't you sleep with me?"

That evening, the same problem stumped Ju Hui, who had been the head of the family all along.

After careful consideration, she decided that she would drive back to her home on the farm and stay there, while Sheng Qijing would sleep in her room. She would drive back to the guesthouse the next morning to pick them up and take them to the farm for their appointment.

“You’re going home and he’ll stay? I’m afraid he’ll sleepwalk into my room at night,” Kan Yu objected. “Absolutely not.”

“Don’t worry about him,” Ju Hui warned. “Kan Yu, next year’s salary and bonuses for you will all depend on President Sheng.”

Ju Hui smiled at her boss, Sheng Qijing.

The other party smiled apologetically and said, "Thank you for your help."

Kan Yu scoffed, and the Chinese meal that Sheng Qijing had treated him to taste bitter and unpalatable. But he still ate two large bowls of rice, stuffing his mouth full, and stopped talking.

The next morning.

As agreed, Ju Hui pushed open the door of the guesthouse. At this time, only Sheng Qijing was awake. She greeted him from afar at the dining table downstairs.

"It's sunny again today, we're very lucky."

Sheng Qijing hummed in agreement, saying without turning around, "It's good that I chose these days to come, since my Schengen visa is only valid for one week."

Only seven days?

Ju Hui noticed his unusual behavior due to his obvious lies.

She took off her coat, hung it up slowly, and walked into the kitchen with the breakfast ingredients. Following his words, she asked, "So you're leaving tomorrow?"

"I'm leaving tonight."

Ju Hui noticed Sheng Qijing's gaze out of the corner of her eye, as if waiting for her to ask something else.

Ju Hui remained silent, took out a small pot, and used the induction cooker to boil eggs, thus ending the conversation.

Not long after, Sheng Qijing said again, "I had a question I wanted to ask before I came here, but now I think I know the answer... Do you want to know what the question was?"

Ju Hui turned her head, smiled, and shook her head.

The house fell silent for a long time.

"Ju Hui," Sheng Qijing said, suppressing his resentment, "you've already made your choice so quickly. Are you going to leave me for Bian Jiaping?"

Ju Hui knew that Sheng Qijing would ask this question again, but she never expected to hear it in Tromsø.

She no longer acquiesced to silence, saying, "I don't want to make a choice. If you force me to choose, yes, I choose Brother Jiaping."

Ju Hui turned around; the water was still boiling. "Let's not talk about this now. I don't want your impression of Norway to worsen."

"So what if it's bad? You wouldn't have invited me anyway."

"Weren't you invited?" Ju Hui was about to speak when Kan Yushun came down the stairs from the second floor. He looked at Ju Hui with a questioning look, "Isn't President Sheng coming with us?"

The sound of boiling water on the stove, Ju Hui bustling around in the kitchen, Kan Yu appearing naturally in her pajamas—everything was as beautiful as a family portrait hanging in an old house.

Sheng Qijing felt like he was a homeless person who had been taken in overnight by a family of three.

With a sore throat, Sheng Qijing looked at Kan Yu, who was standing beside him, and said with a smile, "Together, of course together."

At lunchtime, Eric's retired husky sat quietly beside him, seemingly too old to bark anymore. But Eric said it wasn't because he was old, but because he used to bark in the middle of the night at the sled camp to trick his owner into thinking someone was stealing his dog, and he was poisoned and became mute.

Ju Hui let out a sound of surprise, feeling indignant at the dog's pitiful state. Just as she was about to pat the silly dog's head, it barked!

Startled, Ju Hui jumped back and ran away.

Ju Hui accidentally bumped into Sheng Qijing, who was eating next to her. His shoulders were tense, and Ju Hui thought she had bumped into a wall.

Eric, the real old dog, laughed heartily and treated Ju Hui to a stew feast at the mahogany house as an apology. After lunch, his gaze wandered back and forth between Ju Hui and Sheng Qijing.

Eric mentioned that there was a private little dock outside the house with beautiful scenery. He was just about to suggest that Ju Hui take Sheng Qijing there for a walk when Jiang Yiying heard the word "beautiful scenery" and stood up first, grabbed her camera and rushed out the door.

Kan Yu dressed and followed him out.

Why don't you take this friend to see your work?

Eric's wife, Sera, suddenly spoke. The couple spoke to Ju Hui in English, which Sheng Qijing heard clearly: "It's the little house next to the spruce tree. Go there."

It was only natural to bring the boss to see her work, even though it was a bit late.

The warehouse stands independently outside Ju Hui's small house. Its main structure is made of permeable wooden planks of varying widths, with moss and paint growing haphazardly, resembling the dilapidated little house in the Three Little Pigs story that could be burned down or blown away by the wind at any moment.

Ju Hui did not store all her works in the warehouse. Some of the less valuable works were left in this old warehouse, such as the one that Jing Kuan's teacher used as an example in class. Lying in the corner, it looked even cheaper.

Ju Hui stood at the door, blushing slightly. She rubbed her arms and said, "Stop looking, come sit at my place."

Fortunately, Ju Hui's house was not simple; most of the furniture and soft furnishings were covered with a layer of plastic film.

She anticipated that the journey would be long before she left.

However, Sheng Qijing frowned. The underfloor heating was sufficient, and the tenant had not yet vacated the premises after three months.

Ju Hui was busy boiling water and washing cups in the kitchen, treating him like an outsider, just like when he first arrived.

"If you want to sit, just flip up the plastic sheet and sit wherever you like..."

Ju Hui's voice was left far away on the first floor. Sheng Qijing wasn't so polite and had already toured most of her house.

The master bedroom, the bathroom, a secondary bedroom that is clearly occupied by a man, and a storage room...

At three o'clock in the afternoon, Sheng Qijing pushed open the door of the studio. It was as dark as if it had been raining for three months. At that moment, he also wanted to eat a bowl of mixed noodles from a residential building to cleanse his palate. He found the light switch on the wall and pressed it.

The lights suddenly turned on.

The small room was surrounded by a long computer desk, with bookshelves and desktops concealing documents and Norwegian language guides.

There are no windows here, but it seems to be the place where Ju Hui spends the most time.

He ventured deeper, uncertain, where the scent of Ju Hui lingered.

Perhaps because it was the first time observing this, details and corners were often seen more clearly. Sheng Qijing noticed a stack of white paper that had been forcibly stuffed between the books and documents.

Without thinking much, he opened the cabinet door, took out the paper, and examined it closely. The white paper was not actually pure white.

Sheng Qijing is nearsighted and can only see clearly when he gets close. The printer is also quite old, and the ink is almost gone.

It contained a report about Sheng Qijing.

He tapped his fingertips on the A4 sheets of paper, and one by one, the names of the editors appeared before him. He pulled out a screenshot of a webpage and examined it closely. It was the comments section of his first interview, filled with criticisms of Ju Hui and Mo Cun.

Childish memories resurfaced, but Sheng Qijing quickly flipped through them.

But on the next page, he was stunned; a familiar name appeared before his eyes—

Pines on the mountainside, abundant pillows.

They were written side by side on it.

Sheng Qijing stared at her handwriting when the door behind him opened.

Ju Hui held her water glass, her eyelashes fluttering with distrust.

She was afraid that Sheng Qijing would discover something, and he suddenly realized something because of Ju Hui's absent-mindedness.

"You know it was Bian Shansong who ruined your reputation."

Bian Shansong and Sheng Zhen framed Ju Hui, making her a victim of using a major disaster for marketing purposes.

She pursed her lips, hummed in agreement, and then reminded him, "And don't let your dad slip by."