Chapter 121 He is so good at teasing, he must have seduced many people

A relaxed and cheerful atmosphere returned to the restoration room. The leaders chatted and laughed as they slowly moved toward the door. Secretary Su rushed to open it, holding it open with his hand.

Qin Tian followed at the back; the next group to be inspected was the appraisal team. She wanted to send a message to Yang Yuxin, asking him to prepare. But then Ming Yuanxing's words, "You never trusted them," echoed in her mind. He had always been right. After the inscription incident, she had seen the team members' abilities, but also her own shortcomings.

As she left the restoration room, her gaze fell on Tong Zhongyuan again. Whenever he was around, she would unconsciously look towards him. She had so much to say to him about the Jinhou Bell, about the gilded plate. But in this situation, all she could do was look at him. She withdrew her gaze and followed him.

Tong Zhongyuan hadn't taken his eyes off her since Qin Tian came in. Seeing her look back as she left, her eyes full of words, he couldn't help but follow her and gently took her hand. The moment she raised her eyes, he whispered, "I'll come to your house to see you tonight."

Qin Tian had been completely focused on the upcoming inspection, but he suddenly grabbed her hand and whispered, "I'll come to your house to see you." She was completely off guard, and her face suddenly flushed. She knew he didn't mean that, but her skin couldn't help but flush from her neck to her ears. She forgot to answer him and hurried to catch up with the main group, hoping Tong Zhongyuan didn't see anything.

Even after she turned the corner in the hallway and her footsteps faded, Tong Zhongyuan still stared in the direction she had left. His heart, now recovered from its illness, was beating fiercely in his chest. He'd been feeling this way every day lately, either feeling lost or deluded. Her every smile, every glance, every unfounded speculation dictated the rhythm of his heartbeat. He pressed the back of his hand against his burning face, deciding to go to the bathroom and wash before returning.

Song Suiyang opened her mouth wide and couldn't close it. Oh my God, what did she see! She wouldn't have been wrong about Tong Zhongyuan's look just now even if she was blinded. She never dreamed that one day she would see such an affectionate expression on Tong Zhongyuan's face. Now everything matched. He took the initiative to go to Qin Tian's house to help her get things; he injured his hand for Qin Tian's bronze coins; he disappeared with Qin Tian for three weeks; on her birthday lunch, his face was so ugly that it was indescribable. And he kept staying, from one month to four months, and now six months. Even Tong Zhongyuan was willing to accept her as an apprentice for Qin Tian's sake. Oh my God, how could the person in his heart be Tang Zhixu! Why did she only find out now!

After a while, Tong Zhongyuan returned and stood quietly in front of the Jinhou Bell, lost in thought. Song Suiyang stared at the cups of coffee on the restoration table. If she didn't drink them, they would get cold. Unable to wait any longer, she hesitantly reminded him, "Teacher Tong, what are you buying?"

Tong Zhongyuan seemed to wake up from a dream and handed the coffee to them. After a while, he seemed to remember something, said he had something to do in the afternoon, and left the museum in a hurry.

Song Suiyang sighed as he watched him leave. It turned out that Tong Zhongyuan's intelligence would also decrease when he fell in love.

At the end of the day, Qin Tian packed her bag and left the office. Today was another day of fighting. In the morning, she met with her supervisor. After the supervisor left, she expressed her gratitude to Yang Yuxin. In the afternoon, she sorted through the materials and went to Ming Yuanxing's office to report on the details of the Jin Hou Zhong incident.

An archaeological team from the Shanghai Museum discovered two small chime bells buried in the soil of a looted chamber in the Jinhou Tomb Complex. These chime bells are suspected to be part of a set of 14 purchased by the Shanghai Museum. They copied the inscriptions on the two bells and sent them back to the Shanghai Museum. Soil composition analysis would not be conducted until the archaeological team returned to the Shanghai Museum. But Qin Tian couldn't wait. She immediately deciphered the newly discovered inscriptions and found that they were indeed from the same text. This was irrefutable evidence, no less than a chemical analysis. Thus, the Western Zhou chime bells were confirmed to belong to the Jinhou Tomb Complex.

When reporter Fang left, he gave her a business card, hoping that she could spare time for an interview. She was quite interested in the Jin Hou Su Zhong and believed that this story could not only be written into an eye-catching news report, but also become excellent material for non-fiction writing.

After everything was settled, her best friend Huang Qian suddenly asked her out for dinner that evening. She was a doctor with a busy schedule, and usually Qin Tian accommodated her schedule. But tonight… Tong Zhongyuan had pulled her aside that morning, and with a single word, everything had been turbulent. He hadn't sent a single message all afternoon. He hadn't said when he'd come, or if he'd be having dinner. She found an excuse to decline Huang Qian's invitation and went to the supermarket to buy some prepared food and fruit. Passing by the drinks counter, she picked up a few decaffeinated milk and juice drinks.

It's getting dark early these days. It's only six o'clock, but it's already pitch black outside the window. Two plates of cooked food and two pairs of bowls and chopsticks sat on the table. Qin Tian lay on the sofa, music playing, boredly scrolling through her social media feed. It was a beautiful Friday night, and everyone was showing off their food, drinks, and fun, but she had postponed a date with her best friend because of Tong Zhongyuan's nonsensical remark, and was waiting for him at home with an empty stomach.

After another song, she couldn't hold back any longer and was about to send him a message when his dialog box lit up.

"Come to the kitchen window."

Her heart leaped uncontrollably. She climbed from the sofa and walked barefoot into the kitchen. From the window with a small balcony, she looked out at the building across the street. Each window, dim or bright, each beam of warm light represented a home. From the window facing hers, a beam of light floated in the darkness, piercing the night like a shining star.

The phone vibrated, another message.

"Did you see that?"

The light suddenly flickered. One, two, a short flash, three short flashes...

Qin Tian's hand touched her chest, where her heartbeat was trying to escape her control. Ignore him, don't be tempted by such a trick, and don't ask what the Morse code he was typing meant.

The phone continued to vibrate.

"How much longer?"

Another incoherent sentence. Even though she knew he was deliberately setting her up, she couldn't help but reply.

"How long?"

"How long will it take to get to me?"

Her fingers hovered over the screen, and she could feel the beating of her pulse even at her fingertips.

The dialog box was silent, and after a moment it showed that the other party was typing...

"Dinner is ready, come over here. I'm hungry."

Qin Tian absentmindedly walked out of the kitchen and mechanically packed several cooked dishes on the table. She picked up the cooked dishes and walked to the door, then turned back. She went to the bathroom to look in the mirror and tied her hair again. She looked left and right and loosened her braids again. With her hair down, her face looked smaller and whiter, and her eyes brighter and more energetic. In the mirror, her cheeks had a pink halo, as if all her worries were written on her face. She murmured and covered her face, don't do stupid things! It's just a meal, just a few words. She picked up the hairband and tied her hair again. After washing her face with cold water, she picked up the cooked food and walked out without looking back.

Tong Zhongyuan stood at his bedroom window. The building opposite was like a storybook, its rows of windows like stories, each one a protagonist in their own. He had eyes only for that small window. Outside, a small wrought iron flower stand held two small plants. In spring, the princess would open the window, and flowers would sway in the spring breeze. This was the story he could imagine, the only story he wanted to read.

The light in the small window went out. He looked away, walked to the kitchen, and examined it aimlessly. Then he went to the full-length mirror, rolled up his sleeves to his elbows, and unbuttoned two buttons at his collar. He looked at himself in the mirror, thought for a few seconds, and unbuttoned another button.

The doorbell rang, and my heartbeat involuntarily jumped up and down.