Chapter 6 Drop—Vacation mode is on…

Jiang Nuanyu eventually went straight back to her residence.

Dinner time was almost over, and she hadn't even had her first proper meal of the day.

She was not only hungry, but also exhausted.

After ordering food by phone, she untied the hair tie and lay back on the bed.

The soft bed supported her tired body as she stared blankly at the ceiling.

Today, she saw it clearly: his eyelashes were long and straight.

When he was focused on treating his wound, his lips were slightly pursed and very red.

His movements were clean and efficient, yet he didn't hurt her at all.

And his palms were very warm...

Perhaps the air conditioning in the room was too cold, but as she thought about it, she felt the warmth he had once sent through her calves again.

Just as her thoughts were wandering aimlessly, the doorbell rang, pulling her out of her half-asleep state.

Her dinner has arrived.

The waiter placed the food on a small outdoor table, facing the beautiful view of the courtyard.

Jiang Nuanyu was extremely hungry, and riding a horse had also exhausted her energy. She ate everything she ordered, including boiled beef, asparagus and king oyster mushrooms, and a small portion of fruit, leaving not even the main course.

After the meal, she patted her stomach contentedly, intending to take a shower and go to bed to digest her food. Just as she got up, the doorbell rang again.

She wondered: At this hour, who could it be?

The door opened, and a uniformed staff member handed in a small paper bag: "Good evening, Ms. Jiang. This was sent by a gentleman."

Jiang Nuanyu took it with a puzzled look, and after a couple of seconds, she said to the other person, "Thank you."

The other person nodded politely and turned to leave.

Jiang Nuanyu slowly strolled back to her room carrying the paper bag. When she opened it, she found not only commonly used ointments and disinfectants, but also several waterproof patches.

She was stunned.

I rode a horse today, so I definitely need to take a shower. The wound is on my ankle, so it's inevitable that it will get wet.

She was worried about this matter, and the contents of this paper bag undoubtedly solved her problem.

The first thing that flashed through my mind was Liang Qi's name, but the next second I realized I was overthinking it.

But... who else could it be but him?

She didn't have Liang Qi's contact information and didn't know how to confirm or thank him.

She stared at the paper bag for a long time, feeling a mix of emotions.

·

After taking a shower, Jiang Nuanyu wrapped herself in a bath towel and nestled by the window, carefully peeling off the waterproof patch on her ankle.

The waterproof dressing worked well; there was no water seepage from the wound, only a little steam, which wasn't a big problem. She then sprayed some medicine on it.

After finishing all that, she looked at the small medicine packet on the table and couldn't help but wonder: Why did Liang Qi treat her like this?

He treated her wounds and had someone bring her medicine. She was touched, surprised, and happy.

However, such emotions are difficult to sustain for long.

Was it because of her confession?

Or is it his usual gentlemanly demeanor? Or his gentle instincts?

Or perhaps, because she was injured on Yun Jing's territory, he was only taking care of her out of politeness and a sense of responsibility.

She couldn't understand it.

The various thoughts in her mind were tangled together like threads, becoming more and more chaotic the more she pulled. As she turned her head, she caught a glimpse of her reflection in the floor-to-ceiling glass.

Her black hair was half-wet, her cheeks were flushed with moisture, her limbs were long and well-proportioned outside the bath towel, and her skin had a delicate and soft white glow.

Jiang Nuanyu is beautiful.

She herself was aware of this.

Looking at her reflection in the glass, and thinking about the question swirling in her mind, she felt inexplicably irritable and resistant, so she reached out and pulled the curtains to cover her reflection.

She felt a tightness in her chest, and suddenly, she thought of Ye Ji—her college classmate and best friend, and the only one who knew that she had once been attracted to Liang Qi.

It was past midnight, and she tentatively sent a message: "Are you asleep?"

Just a few seconds later, Ye Ji replied: "Not yet."

Ye Ji: "What are you doing?"

Jiang Nuanyu had just typed the word "I" when a video call popped up.

On the screen, Ye Ji had a face mask on and spoke somewhat unclearly: "Where are you? Aren't you home?"

Jiang Nuanyu lay on the bed, resting her chin on her hand, and said, "It's a team-building trip for the magazine at Menghe Island Resort."

"Dream Island?"

Ye Ji was stunned for a moment before teasing, "So extravagant? Your editor-in-chief quit?"

Jiang Nuanyu exclaimed excitedly, "The magazine's new sponsor! How about that, pretty impressive, right?"

"That's wonderful," Ye Ji sighed. "Unlike me, I toil in the fields every day, living a miserable life. Team building trips? I wouldn't even dare to dream of them!"

Ye Ji was also a journalism major. She was cheerful, quick-witted, and had a good image. After graduation, she joined the TV station and became a news anchor.

At this moment, she asked with a mischievous grin, "Why are you calling me in the middle of the night? You can't be missing me, can you?"

Jiang Nuanyu slowly began, "Do you remember... that man you saw at the Tangwan Club on Christmas Eve during your junior year of college?" Seeing Ye Ji's confused look, she quickly added, "At the entrance."

Two or three seconds later, Ye Ji suddenly slapped her thigh: "Oh!" Under the face mask, she raised an eyebrow, "Of course I remember, your proof of being heterosexual!"

"..."

Jiang Nuanyu pursed her lips speechlessly, too lazy to argue with her.

"Why bring him up all of a sudden?" Ye Ji asked.

Jiang Nuanyu lowered her voice and said mysteriously, "I ran into him again."

"Huh?" Ye Ji ripped off the face mask. "Jiang Nuanyu, you didn't... have a romantic encounter on Dream Island, did you?!"

"No!" Jiang Nuanyu quickly explained, "It happened at work."

"Work?" Ye Ji frowned and guessed, "Model? Or... a minor celebrity?"

“Neither.” Jiang Nuanyu said with particular seriousness, “He is the CEO of Yunjing, the head of the group that owns Menghe Island Resort.”

Ye Ji was stunned for a moment and didn't say anything.

"And I finally know his name." Jiang Nuanyu blushed slightly for some reason. "His name is Liang Qi."

Ye Ji seemed quite surprised: "Yun Jing's CEO... is named Liang Qi?"

Jiang Nuanyu found her question strange, blinked, and said, "Yes."

"Oh," Ye Ji responded, but he was clearly still thinking about something.

Jiang Nuanyu was preoccupied with her own thoughts and didn't pay much attention to her reaction.

A few seconds later, Ye Ji snapped out of his daze and gave her a knowing smile: "Oh my, vacation, beach, how far have you two gotten? You wouldn't have already—"

“No!” Jiang Nuanyu immediately interrupted her, “No, no! It’s just that…” She suddenly found it difficult to say.

"only?"

Jiang Nuanyu stammered, uttering one word at a time: "I think I... confessed to him."

Ye Ji stared wide-eyed, unable to utter a word.

On the other side of the screen, Jiang Nuanyu blinked, looking both obedient and apprehensive.

Ye Ji finally sighed helplessly, "You're really something."

“I know this was a bit impulsive, after all, he’s the client,” Jiang Nuanyu said, “but he…”

"I didn't reject you."

"..." Jiang Nuanyu didn't reply.

Liang Qi did not explicitly reject her confession; in fact, his subsequent actions could be interpreted as allowing the relationship to continue.

Ye Ji stared at her for a few seconds, then pressed the face mask back onto her face and snorted softly, "You're beautiful and have a good temperament, so he'd naturally be happy if you confessed to him. But for men like that, women are mostly just a diversion in life. I'm being blunt, so don't blame me for being a downer:"

You can't expect him to be completely devoted to one person.

“That’s prejudice,” Jiang Nuanyu retorted weakly.

“Even if it’s prejudice, then tell me, what’s the probability that I misunderstand him?” Ye Ji continued to discourage her, “It’s infinitely close to zero.”

"..." Jiang Nuanyu was speechless again by Ye Ji's words.

She really knew too little about Liang Qi. The interview the day before was just his relaxed working mode; he would probably be like that in front of any other person.

Seeing that she couldn't win the argument, Jiang Nuanyu started to act spoiled: "Why are you bringing this up?"

Ye Ji said, "These are all very real issues, why can't we bring them up?"

Jiang Nuanyu said in a low voice, "Can't you say something nice?"

“Okay, then I’ll tell you.” Ye Ji cooperated and said, “You’re twenty-five or twenty-six and your love life is still a blank. If you date him, he can give you the excitement, the sweetness and beauty of love. Even if you get hurt in the end, it’s not a loss. Hmm… it’s not a bad thing, right?”

"..." Jiang Nuanyu pouted, "This doesn't sound like a nice thing either."

Ye Ji added casually, "If you're ever crying, come find me. My door is always open for you."

"Ugh, I'm not talking to you anymore!" Jiang Nuanyu rolled over, lay on her back on the bed, and muttered sullenly, "I'm going to sleep."

Seeing that she was quite upset, Ye Ji toned it down and didn't want to provoke her further: "When are you coming back?"

Next Saturday.

"Okay. I'll make an appointment with you then."

"Oh. I've hung up."

After saying that, Jiang Nuanyu threw her phone onto the pillow, wrapped herself in the blanket, and went to sleep.

·

On the other side, Ye Ji hung up the video call, returned to the message list, and slowly swiped down with his thumb until that familiar profile picture appeared, at which point he stopped.

The note next to it has only one character: Yao.

In the dialog box, the timeline for the last message stopped five months ago.

Thinking of what Jiang Nuanyu had said about Yun Jing, she typed a string of words: "How's everything been lately?"

The cursor blinked at the end of the sentence. She stared at it quietly for a few seconds, her heart seemingly churning, yet also seemingly undisturbed.

She would never click send. She knew it.

It was all wishful thinking on his part; he didn't need her concern at all.

·

During the rest of her time on Dream Island, Jiang Nuanyu never saw Liang Qi again.

What she didn't know was that Liang Qi left the resort and returned to Beijing the day after their last meeting.

On the first day back to work after my vacation, a torrential downpour began early in the morning.

The raindrops pounded against the window, like a frenzied percussion symphony.

Jiang Nuanyu frowned, turned over, covered her head with the blanket, and continued to sleep. But a little while later, the alarm clock joined in the fun, suddenly ringing out amidst the sound of pouring rain.

She mentally prepared herself for half a minute before struggling to get out of bed.

I drew back the curtains, and through the messy watermarks on the glass, I could see that the sky outside was still a dull, leaden gray, with layers of dark clouds piled up.

Judging by the current situation, this rain isn't going to stop anytime soon.

Jiang Nuanyu yawned, stretched, and went into the bathroom to wash up.

She opened the ride-hailing app while brushing her teeth, and sure enough: it was peak time, and the expected waiting time was long.

Her apartment complex wasn't very close to the magazine office, and the subway wasn't very convenient either, so she had to rely on taxis to commute to work. But whenever it rained or snowed, hailing a taxi became extremely difficult, and even with a surcharge, it was still a matter of luck.

Despite the inconvenient commute, she was genuinely satisfied with the apartment. It was the first apartment she had seen since graduation, and she loved it at first sight, deciding on it without much hesitation.

The landlord is a young single woman who bought and renovated the house intending to live there herself. However, she was suddenly transferred to a job abroad and didn't want the carefully renovated house to be vacant, so she thought of renting it to someone who was meant to live there.

Jiang Nuanyu was the one the landlord had chosen.

The neighborhood is located in a new district slightly north of Beijing. Although it is not in the city center, the location is livable, with modern amenities and a good environment. Of course, the rent is not cheap.

Over the course of a year, Jiang Nuanyu's housing expenses amounted to six figures.

Her salary was enough to cover her expenses, but even after working for several years, Jiang's parents still found various excuses to give their daughter large red envelopes. These gifts, in turn, almost covered her most basic living and working costs in Beijing.

Jiang Nuanyu didn't exactly accept it gladly, but she certainly didn't feel much psychological burden. Firstly, accepting her parents' kindness would make her life more comfortable, and secondly, her parents wouldn't be affected by it, so why not?

There's no need to take the term "economic independence" too seriously.

She can be independent, and she can also accept her parents' wishes. There's no conflict between the two.

After washing up, Jiang Nuanyu queued up on the app half an hour in advance, barely managing to call a car at her usual departure time.

She walked to the entrance of the residential area in the rain, holding an umbrella; her shoes and trouser legs were already soaked.

The road conditions were poor on a rainy day, and the taxi kept stopping and starting along the way.

When I was about a quarter of the way from the company, my colleague Sun Ying called.

"Hello? Yingying."

On the other end of the line, there was the loud noise of tires rolling over the rain.

Sun Ying suppressed her anxiety and asked, "Nuanyu, where are you now?"

"I'm still on my way." Jiang Nuanyu glanced out the window. "I'll be at the magazine office in about ten minutes. What's up?"

"Could you do something to help out in this emergency?" Sun Ying said. "This rain came so suddenly that our planned outdoor shoot was changed to a studio shoot, and they're setting up the studio at the last minute. To make matters worse, my car got scratched on the way."

"Huh?" Jiang Nuanyu was slightly surprised. "It's not serious, is it?"

"It's not serious. It's just that the procedures are troublesome; I reckon it'll take at least an hour." Sun Ying said somewhat apologetically, "If you don't have anything urgent to do, could you go and keep an eye on things for me?"

Jiang Nuanyu thought for half a second and asked, "Should I go and keep an eye on things?"

“You don’t need to worry about the content. I’ve already discussed the shooting plan with the photography team in advance, and they know how to get there,” Sun Ying explained. “But this is the first time we’ve worked together, and with the last-minute change of location, I’m not entirely comfortable with the people on site. Just keep an eye on the location and make sure the relevant personnel are there. If anything happens, feel free to call me anytime.”

Jiang Nuanyu thought it was just a matter of procedure and didn't involve any details she wasn't sure about. She also wasn't in a hurry to do her own thing, so she agreed, "Okay, I'll go over."

"Thank you so much!" Sun Ying breathed a sigh of relief. "It's in booth number one."

"good."

After hanging up the phone, Jiang Nuanyu asked the driver to change routes and briefly explained the situation to He Anqi to avoid misunderstandings that she had been absent without reason.

The photography studio was in the direction of her house; she just turned around and drove there in no time.

When she arrived, the shed was bustling with activity.

The venue is almost set up, and the photography team is adjusting the lighting and testing the camera positions; the models and makeup team are also arriving one after another.

After confirming with the event manager that the time and procedures were all in order, Jiang Nuanyu stopped trying to make her presence known and simply sent the situation on-site to Sun Ying via WeChat with pictures and text.

During a break before the official shoot, several colleagues from the magazine gathered together for a chat.

Ding Qiaofeng sat back in the folding chair, glanced behind him, and lowered his voice: "I heard that today's photographer just returned from studying abroad."

“So what if you’ve studied abroad?” an assistant editor scoffed. “These days, anyone who’s spent a few days abroad can come back and say they’ve studied overseas. Photographers, in particular, love to brag about their global vision.”

“This one really seems to have some skills. Did you hear her accent?” Ding Qiaofeng said, then said in broken Cantonese, “She’s from Hong Kong.”

The assistant editor burst out laughing: "Don't try to imitate that, it won't taste right."

Jiang Nuanyu also glanced in the direction of the photographer, who was talking to the model.

Among the group, this photographer stood out as exceptionally tall. Dressed in overalls with ankle boots and a baseball cap, his hair was pulled straight down to his face, making him quite distinctive.

Jiang Nuanyu looked closely at the figure and felt a strange sense of familiarity, but she couldn't remember where she had seen it before.

A note from the author:

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