A young woman, at nearly midnight, alone at her workplace, saw a tall, silent, dark figure watching her, and it seemed to have been staring at her for a long time.

Anyone would probably be scared in this situation, given that many news reports have confirmed that women alone at night are at high risk of encountering danger! Whether it was for money or for sex, Gu Qingqiu didn't want to bear the consequences.

Gu Qingqiu glanced at the elevator, which had only gone up to the eleventh or twelfth floor, and her first thought was—run!

So she immediately turned around and ran towards the stairwell. Unfortunately, the motion-sensor lights in the stairwell seemed to be broken, with only the words "Emergency Exit" flashing green, making the whole scene look even more eerie. Gu Qingqiu didn't have time to think about it, she could only run downstairs with all her might.

The tall, black figure heard Gu Qingqiu running in his direction as she ran downstairs, and soon after, he seemed to have also entered the stairwell and run downstairs.

"Don't run away! I mean you no harm!"

The man's voice was very familiar, and it was a very pleasant voice, deep and magnetic, with a gentle tone. However, his words "Don't run" were meant to tell Gu Qingqiu not to be afraid and not to run so fast, but to Gu Qingqiu, they meant "Where can you run to?"

When people are extremely nervous, their thinking becomes sluggish. Gu Qingqiu's fear deepened, and she ran even faster. However, she didn't know if it was because she was exhausted from working overtime too late or because her legs were numb from sitting for too long, but her legs suddenly gave way and she fell down the stairs, rolling down several steps.

Pain spread throughout her body, and tears welled up in Gu Qingqiu's eyes. Her first thought was—it's over! She's going to be caught!

But the pain was too intense, and she knew that even if she got up immediately, she wouldn't be able to run fast. The footsteps grew closer and closer, and then the man stopped in front of her.

Gu Qingqiu couldn't help but tremble, wondering what the man would do to her and how she should protect herself.

The man sighed helplessly and squatted down next to Gu Qingqiu: "Didn't I tell you not to run away? I'm not going to eat you. Where did you fall? Does it hurt?"

Gu Qingqiu finally realized, belatedly, that the man didn't seem to have any ill intentions towards her, and that voice... sounded somewhat familiar...

Thump—thump—thump—

Gu Qingqiu heard her own heart pounding. An absurd thought popped into her head, and she asked in a trembling voice, "Who...who are you..."

The man didn't answer, but Gu Qingqiu could hear his somewhat rapid breathing.

Gu Qingqiu's eyes had already adjusted to the darkness, and the green light illuminating the words "Emergency Passage" in the stairwell also provided some light. Gu Qingqiu could see the man's face clearly, as well as his tightly pursed lips, stiff jawline, and... sad eyes.

It's him? How could it be him? It really is him...

Countless thoughts flashed through her mind, and Gu Qingqiu actually felt like crying, and she actually cried out loud.

The man hadn't intended to speak again, but upon hearing Gu Qingqiu's sobs, he also began to cry. He roughly wiped away his tears with his hand, awkwardly apologizing, "I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'm sorry..."

He had so much to say, but at that moment he couldn't utter anything except "I'm sorry."

Gu Qingqiu cried with snot and tears streaming down her face, and the louder she cried, the sound echoing in the empty stairwell. Fortunately, there was no one else there, so she wouldn't embarrass herself in front of others.

The man finally couldn't hold back any longer. He carefully pulled Gu Qingqiu into his arms and gently patted her back to comfort her. "Don't cry. It hurts me when you cry."

Gu Qingqiu did not refuse the man's embrace, but instead wiped her tears and snot on the man's expensive-looking suit.

It took about half an hour for the two of them to calm down.

Gu Qingqiu's voice was still choked with sobs: "How did you get here?"

The man paused for a moment: "...I was just worried about you."

"What are you worried about? Are you worried I'll die from overwork?" Gu Qingqiu suddenly got angry at this thought: "You really are all-knowing! You even know when I work overtime? Have you been spying on me and following me all the time?"

Gu Qingqiu had only asked casually, but the man's suspicious silence took the matter to another level.

"...You actually followed and spied on me?" Gu Qingqiu stared wide-eyed at the man's profile as he turned his head, as if she wanted to stare a hole through his face.

"Let me take you home. It's too late, it's not safe for you to take a taxi home," the man tried to change the subject.

But Gu Qingqiu quickly found another loophole in the conversation: "Do you know where I live?"

"..." The man fell silent again. He bent down and picked up Gu Qingqiu in a princess carry, walking steadily down the stairs.

Gu Qingqiu grabbed his collar: "Why didn't you take the elevator?"

The man paused in his steps: "I just want to spend a little more time with you."

"If you take me home, wouldn't we be able to spend the whole night together?" Gu Qingqiu said.

The man seemed to lose his balance, and his arms went limp. Although he didn't throw Gu Qingqiu off, he managed to get her to hold him even tighter.

"...What did you say? You...are you serious?" The man seemed to stutter, his words becoming incoherent.

Gu Qingqiu chuckled: "What? You dared to create a fake system to fool me, but now you don't even dare to take me home?"

"...You knew all along?" The man asked in disbelief.

"Of course, I'm very smart!" Gu Qingqiu raised an eyebrow: "Actually, I was thinking about this while I was crying, and it took me a long time to figure things out. Your plan was indeed very successful; you almost really fooled me!"

"...Really?" The man chuckled dryly. "What are you talking about? I don't understand."

"Still playing dumb?" Gu Qingqiu bluntly voiced her suspicions: "You made that massage device, didn't you?"

"...It is indeed a product manufactured by our company," the man replied.

"Oh? That makes sense then." Gu Qingqiu's lips curved into a smile. "The massage device I received should be different from others', right?"

"Our products are all manufactured in a standardized manner..."

"Stop making excuses!"

"……oh."

Gu Qingqiu continued with satisfaction, "Or rather, my massage device does have a massage and relaxation function, but it also has a few more functions than other devices, right?"

"...Yes." Seeing that he could no longer hide it, the man had no choice but to admit it.

Gu Qingqiu pressed on: "So, did you use this device to access or extract my brainwaves? Or did you create an illusion for me? Or did you hypnotize me? You put those glasses on me, didn't you?"