Butterfly tattoo

Xi Ai glanced at Chu Yiqi and said, "Are you praising her or insulting me?"

Chu Yiqi turned his head to look at Xi Ai and said, "How could that be? Thank you, Best Actress, but please don't write HighE anymore."

"Okay."

Xi Ai suddenly remembered that a long time ago Anna had secretly told her that someone had sung a song that Xi Ai had written in class.

However, Annas's original words were not so pleasant to hear: "There was a particularly interesting student who actually sang something you wrote."

Xi Ai immediately knew that Anna was referring to Chu Yiqi. So, unusually, she didn't object to Anna's insults and just listened. And, unusually, she was quite amiable during the meeting that day.

Su Luojian glanced back and forth between the two of them "casually," unaware of what had happened, before steer the conversation back to the main topic.

After chatting for a while about the arrangements for the next few days, Su Luojian asked, "Perhaps you'd like to broadcast a little longer this afternoon? After all, today is the first day."

"I don't really want to."

Without hesitation, Chu Yiqi spoke almost simultaneously with Xi Ai: "Stay away from the life of a fan."

"Okay." Su Luojian didn't insist and said, "Then you can make your own arrangements. The surveillance cameras will record it, and it will be edited later."

Su Luojian didn't take on any other artists; from the beginning, she only managed For 8. Sometimes she was quite free. For example, right now, Su Luojian picked up her phone and chatted with Professor Fang with a smile, asking Professor Fang to pick her up after work, even if it wasn't on his way.

She called out to Xi Ai alone, and Xi Ai seemed to know what she wanted to ask, showing no surprise whatsoever. She only looked away when Chu Yiqi stood up and walked into the room.

"You'll terminate the contract then, right?"

"Hmm—that's actually called not renewing the contract when it expires." Xi Ai nodded, looked up at Su Luojian, and said, "Would you be willing to switch jobs then?"

Su Luo was speechless, but also found it funny: "I will report you to Mu Jinxian for stealing his employees."

"Go ahead, go ahead."

Xi Ai opened her phone, stood up to make coffee, and said, "I'll probably retire from the industry then, who knows?"

She was ultimately going to take over the company. Although she had handed over overseas affairs to Xi Yuchuan long ago, it had been quite tiring to manage both things over the past few years. Su Luojian had no objections; she just needed to confirm something.

"Okay, then let's not tell them yet? There's still plenty of time."

Xi Ai nodded, then saw Su Luojian pick up her phone to make a call, so she took her laptop and went to the balcony.

Not long after Xi Ai left, Chu Yiqi came out. He didn't ask Su Luojian about Xi Ai's plan to retire from the entertainment industry, but pretended that he hadn't heard it.

Su Luojian glanced at her while talking on the phone; these words were indeed deliberately said by her for Chu Yiqi to hear.

Su Luojian was aware of Chu Yiqi's concerns about her family situation, but she couldn't say anything directly. She could only hint to Chu Yiqi that some things were better resolved as soon as possible.

After all, if Chu Yiqi keeps pushing Xi Ai away, once Xi Ai really retires from the entertainment industry, the two of them may hardly have any contact anymore.

Chu Yiqi pursed her lips and looked at the person on the balcony.

Xi Ai, with her earphones in place and her sleeves folded twice, kept her fingertips resting on her coffee cup. The person opposite her said something, and Xi Ai tapped the cup, but only frowned slightly, saying, "Forget it, really, is it that hard to improve your skills? Just hand it in then."

Xi Ai held her phone, tapped the screen a few times, and finally placed her fingers on the keyboard.

How's the acquisition of GA going?

Xi Ai took a sip of coffee and noticed the glass door being pushed open, so she looked up.

It was Chu Yiqi.

The afternoon in late summer was still a little stuffy.

So Chu Yiqi noticed early on that Xi Ai had unbuttoned the first button, her collarbone faintly visible inside her shirt.

What Chu Yiqi noticed was Xi Ai's butterfly tattoo, which had been repeatedly criticized. The beautiful and eye-catching red was blended into the silk shirt.

The photographer's particularly favored eyes lifted up, carrying the summer breeze, and looked at Chu Yiqi.

Chu Yiqi composed himself, put down his cup without changing his expression, and replaced Xi Ai's coffee. Xi Ai didn't say anything, quietly watching Chu Yiqi, her smile carrying no unspoken message.

"Sister Luo said that she won't allow workaholics to drink too much coffee."

Chu Yiqi looked down at Xi Ai, using some excuses to justify his actions.

She was always like this towards Xi Ai, perhaps because of her initial prejudice and later unspoken affection, which made her always conflicted.

So, even though he clearly cared and was extremely concerned, he always needed a bunch of excuses to take a step forward and tentatively reach out—but things changed a lot after he got together with Xi Ai.

Now it has returned to its original form once again.

Xi Ai glanced at the lemon and passion fruit in the glass, and her smile became noticeably brighter.

Su Luojian usually turns a blind eye to Xi Ai's behavior, as long as she doesn't go to the hospital for glucose drips like before.

Chu Yiqi, on the other hand, had long enjoyed keeping an eye on Xi Ai, gradually correcting her bad habits that she herself hadn't even realized she had. For example, the coffee that had been removed from Xi Ai's office, and how she used to always video chat during mealtimes no matter how tired she was…

Who exactly is behind this decision to prevent us from drinking coffee?

Of course, it's Teacher Chu Yiqi.

"Thank you, Teacher Chu." Xi Ai accepted it well and was quite pleased.

Many people call Chu Yiqi "Teacher Chu," but for some reason, perhaps because the actress has such good delivery of lines, Chu Yiqi feels that every time Xi Ai says this title, it carries a roundabout and ambiguous connotation.

Chu Yiqi had already changed her clothes, her hair falling neatly over one shoulder, a lotus-colored ribbon running through her braid. She wore a lotus-colored Song Dynasty dress, which had a beautiful drape and accentuated her slender waist. She took a step forward, but then paused, reminding her, "It'll be quite sunny here later, so I suggest you sit on the right."

"Okay." Xi Ai stood up and moved to a different spot.

Chu Yiqi suddenly noticed Xi Ai's earphones, which had been hidden by her hair, and realized that Xi Ai might still be on the phone. She quickly slipped away, closing the glass door behind her, thus shutting out a glimpse of summer.

Xi Ai finally remembered her poor assistant: "When Qingshan's auction items are announced later, send a copy to the old man and Xi Yuchuan and ask them about it."

After a while, Xi Ai replied with a final "Mm" and hung up the phone. Just then, she saw Chu Yiqi come out carrying his cello, and Xi Ai watched him leave.

For some reason, Chu Yiqi seemed to be able to sense Xi Ai's gaze, and didn't dare to look at the balcony for even a second.

He glanced at Xi Ai before going up the stairs.

Xi Ai just then buttoned up her shirt again.

Maybe it's time for a meeting.

Chu Yiqi thought aimlessly that Xi Ai's meetings were actually quite interesting. One afternoon, Xi Ai and Chu Yiqi were watching a movie under a wool blanket when, halfway through, Xi Ai suddenly stood up in a hurry and ran to the bedroom to find her laptop.

Chu Yiqi was confused, so she paused the TV and slowly made a pair of slippers. She didn't care whether they were hers or Xi Ai's, since they looked the same anyway. However, Xi Ai had insisted on sewing an ugly velvet bow on Chu Yiqi's slippers. Although the bow itself was quite pretty and the colors matched, Xi Ai seemed to be born unsuitable for handicrafts, and she sewed it crookedly.

So naturally, Chu Yiqi now enjoys forcing Xi Ai to give him her slippers from time to time.

Xi Ai found the laptop and, too lazy to come out again, called out in a drawn-out tone while waiting for it to boot up: "Chu Yiqi—"

"What's wrong—" Chu Yiqi asked, stepping on his shoes as he watched Xi Ai lie down on the bed without hesitation.

Xi Ai waited until Chu Yiqi walked in before reaching out to pull her, gently swaying her back and forth. Chu Yiqi let her be and even considerately entered the password. Xi Ai was waiting there. She smiled and pulled Chu Yiqi down with a tug, then they wrapped themselves up together and got into bed.

Chu Yiqi adapted to the darkness quickly, so he stared intently at Xi Ai, his fingertips landing on her collarbone, pressing against the tattoo. Xi Ai held the blanket with one hand and placed the other behind Chu Yiqi's head. After Chu Yiqi bit herself, she kissed Chu Yiqi's forehead.

"Wasn't there supposed to be a meeting today?"

Xi Ai paused for a moment, then admitted, "Actually, I misread the time. There's still half an hour left."

Chu Yiqi almost laughed, and then actually did it. Xi Ai held back again and again, but finally gave up and smiled as she kissed Chu Yiqi.

Later, during the meeting, the two went to the dining table, where Chu Yiqi sat opposite Xi Ai and would occasionally hook her foot.

Xi Ai had no choice but to accept all the videos she made this time. Then, she secretly reached out and grabbed Chu Yiqi's wrist, making them intertwine their fingers, and then pressed him to the side.

A silent threat was thus made, but it did not completely subdue Chu Yiqi.

Chu Yiqi's mind wandered, and she couldn't help but reminisce about the past. She looked at plums to quench her thirst, and then unconsciously played a melody—a song that she and Xi Ai had completed together back then.

After realizing what had happened, Chu Yiqi shook his head, as if mocking himself, and laughed silently for a while.

On the other hand, Xi Ai was clearly in a good mood during the meeting, which she attributed to the fact that late summer is the perfect time to drink fruit tea and that coffee should be consumed in moderation.

After a short while, there wasn't much important left to do, so Xi Ai took a phone call while looking at the auction items.

"That won't work. If I really call her, she probably won't answer."

There was a moment of silence on the other end, followed by a burst of laughter that assaulted Xi Ai's ears: "Oh, I forgot, you two haven't made up yet."

"You're deliberately bringing up the topic you don't want to discuss, aren't you, Nadia?"

"Okay, I'll call her."

After hanging up the phone, Xi Ai slowly walked to the living room and wandered around.

A moment later, Chu Yiqi came downstairs with his phone. Xi Ai also picked up her phone and pretended to be busy scrolling through it.

She took a sip of tea; it had a slight sour taste. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Chu Yiqi's gaze shift and linger on her for a moment before finally asking, "Who are the people here?"

"Just the few of us usually... and then Xi Ai."

Chu Yiqi curled her fingertips slightly: "Okay."

Sisley looked up at this moment, feigning ignorance, and asked, "Nadia?"

"Shall we go together then? I'll drive."

"Hmm." Chu Yiqi didn't dwell on why it wasn't Xi Ai who asked him. "What gift are you going to give?"

"Yes, I want to, but I'm not sure what to send."

Chu Yiqi was about to ask something when he caught a glimpse of Yu Nianxi and Meng Yike returning from outside, holding a selfie stick, and he stopped talking.

Xi Ai pursed her lips and didn't say anything.

Miss Xi could only take a breath, then took out her phone and started typing with one hand.

Good afternoon, Qiqi!

Xi Ai and Chu Yiqi stood together, looking up one after the other, which made Yu Nianxi suddenly feel a little guilty.

The comments section seemed indifferent to whether Yu Nianxi lived or died.

[XiXi, it seems you've interrupted xql's reunion~]

[XiXi: I know, honey, but I can't take it back now.]

Yu Nianxi had no choice but to bite the bullet and put on a cute and innocent face, creating a way out for herself: "So now perhaps we can ask Miss if she would be willing to record a live-action segment of a fan fiction?"

Xi Ai glanced at Chu Yiqi, who happened to turn around and look at her, but Xi Ai avoided his gaze first: "Maybe it won't work."

Chu Yiqi pursed her lips and turned to look at the camera, ignoring the message that had just popped up from the young lady next to her. She didn't let Xi Ai's words fall flat, saying, "Is there anything in what you've written that you can say in public?"

Just moments before, Xi Ai had been staring at Chu Yiqi's wrist with a slightly unconscious frown after looking away. Upon hearing this, she chuckled softly, her voice not loud, but it resonated right next to Chu Yiqi's ears.

Chu Yiqi's eyelashes trembled, like the delicate fluttering of a butterfly's wings.