Chapter 32 Thinking About Game Theory

The next day, it started to rain in Tongcheng. At first, it was a light drizzle, but later it became a continuous downpour. The rain extinguished the high temperatures of the past few days, and a cool breeze filled the air.

Lin Yu didn't sleep well last night, and when she woke up this morning, there was still a faint dark circle under her eyes.

When she woke up, she inevitably remembered everything that had happened the night before.

At the same time, she also received a message from Jiang Zi asking if she was free to come and film tomorrow.

Lin Yu naturally said she had time. Then Jiang Zi sent her the WeChat ID of the Hanfu shop owner. After a brief greeting, she sent Lin Yu an address and asked her to arrive before 10 a.m. the next day.

The next day, Lin Yu got up very early. The location sent by the other party was a studio near the city center, about forty minutes away from her home.

Lin Yu took the subway and arrived at the filming location fifteen minutes early.

To her surprise, Jiang Zi was also there. She was dressed casually in a simple T-shirt and jeans, wearing leopard-print glasses, and her hair was now long, straight, and smooth. At first glance, she looked like a senior from some school. It had been almost a month since they last met, and Lin Yu almost didn't recognize her when they met again today.

Jiang Zi tossed her long hair and gave her a confident wink, "Today I'm going for an intellectual look."

Lin Yu smiled and said, "Sister Jiang Zi is beautiful and can easily pull off any style."

Jiang Zi narrowed her eyes in satisfaction: "Your little mouth is as sweet as honey. Your boyfriend is so lucky."

Hearing this, Lin Yu let out a soft "ah" and was about to ask Jiang Zi how she knew about Cong Yi, but then she thought that it was probably from the WeChat Moments post she made last time.

As the two were talking, the shop owner and the photographer also came over. Unlike Jiang Zi, the Hanfu shop owner was a petite girl with low-layered shoulder-length short hair and a pair of huge silver hoop earrings. The photographer was a girl with a cool style of dress. When she walked towards them, Lin Yu noticed the spider lily tattoo on her collarbone at a glance.

"Lin Yu, right? Nice to meet you. I'm Cen Yu, and I'm also the owner of this Hanfu shop." Cen Yu greeted her with a smile, his gaze sweeping over Lin Yu from top to bottom. "Jiang Zi said she found me a model and guaranteed I'd be satisfied. I thought she was just bragging, but now it seems your image and temperament are indeed very suitable for our photoshoot today."

When Lin Yu heard her mention the shoot, she explained her situation beforehand, "As Sister Jiang Zi probably mentioned, I've never been a model, so I don't have any experience in this kind of shoot."

At this point, the photographer spoke up, "You don't need to worry about that. Our shoot is different from your usual magazine or art photos. You don't need to make any big expressions or do any weird poses. We will provide professional props. You just need to stand there, and I will take care of the rest."

Hearing this, Lin Yu felt relieved. After the conversation, Jiang Zi began to do her makeup. She had experience working at a department store counter and often did makeup for customers. In addition, she also made makeup tutorial videos on social media, so she was quite good at it.

The filming location was indoors, in a makeshift studio.

After the makeup and styling were finished, Cen Yu brought her a set of moon-white Hanfu and told her how to wear it.

The fabric of Hanfu is very light and thin, like a layer of light and soft gauze. Even if there are five or six layers, it does not feel heavy. After changing her clothes, Lin Yu came out of the dressing room. Hearing the noise, the others looked up at her. But when they saw Lin Yu's outfit, they all gasped. Jiang Zi even exclaimed "Wow!" in amazement.

The skirt of the Hanfu was a bit long, so Lin Yu could only lift it slightly to make it easier for her to walk. She looked around but couldn't see a mirror, so she didn't know what she would look like in Hanfu. She blinked blankly and looked at the three women sitting on the sofa opposite her. "It should be... okay."

Cen Yu's eyes lit up. She stood up and walked to Lin Yu's side. "It's more than just 'okay'." She bent her arm and rested her chin on it. "Do you know what you look like right now?"

"What?"

"AI modeling".

The photographer stood up as well. "The clothes are all changed. Now all that's left is the accessories. Let's start shooting once we're done."

The purpose of the photoshoot was mainly to highlight the Hanfu, as the accessories were not too complicated. Cen Yu tied a round jade pendant with dragon and phoenix patterns around her waist, with a long tassel on top. She had her hair styled in a simple bun today, and Jiang Zi put a pair of long tassel hairpins on each side of her bun, reaching down to her waist. Then she added a touch of vermilion to her forehead.

The prop used in the photoshoot was a light blue porcelain vase.

All she had to do was hold the porcelain vase and stand in the pose the photographer gave her.

Unlike Jiang Zi's striking and bright appearance and Cen Yu's delicate and petite features, Lin Yu has a cool and aloof look with fair skin. In addition, she is tall enough, and with this makeup and styling, she really does resemble the Jade-faced Guanyin. This is why Jiang Zi wanted to find her to be a model.

After finishing this outfit, she quickly changed into another one, this time a pink ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress). Her makeup and styling were also changed. Jiang Zi removed all her hairpins and hair buns, restyled her hair in a side braid, and changed her makeup to a more pretty and cute style.

The filming didn't end until evening. The sky outside the window gradually turned bluish-black. Cen Yu glanced at the time and realized it was time for dinner. So she suggested that everyone go to a nearby restaurant after the shoot. She said that everyone had worked hard all day and that it was her treat. She asked everyone where they wanted to go.

Jiang Zi, sitting on the sofa with her legs crossed, was the first to respond, "Sure, I'm actually hungry."

Cen Yu then asked Lin Yu and the photographer for their opinions. Seeing that they both agreed, she decided to have dinner at a nearby hot pot restaurant.

At the dinner table, Jiang Zi and Lin Yu sat together. Without the work atmosphere, everyone became exceptionally relaxed and chatted casually. Jiang Zi picked up a piece of shrimp paste and put it in her bowl, then turned to look at Lin Yu: "By the way, you'll be going back to Jiangcheng for school in a little over half a month, right?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Yu nodded. In the blink of an eye, it had been more than a month since she returned to Taiwan.

Jiang Zi took a sip of the plum juice on the table and sighed regretfully, "I don't know when we'll get together again." Then, remembering something, she asked again, "I haven't had a chance to ask about your boyfriend yet. Is he still in Tongcheng with you?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Yu's relaxed expression immediately tensed up. She nodded, and her hand holding the chopsticks paused.

Jiang Zi assumed that the young couple was still in the honeymoon phase and couldn't bear the pain of long-distance relationship, so she smiled and then said with an air of maturity, "Your relationship has really worried your brother."

"Why?" Lin Yu turned her head and stared at Jiang Zi.

"I heard it from Yan Yadong, that your brother has been in a bad mood lately, always with a dark face, and he doesn't even dare to hang around Zhou Ke anymore." Jiang Zi gave Lin Yu a meaningful look and continued, "In the end, it's all because of your boyfriend."

Not only Lin Yu noticed Zhou Ke's recent unusual behavior, but even his close friends noticed it. The root of all this was that she had asked Cong Yi to pretend to be her boyfriend.

The hot pot on the table was still bubbling away, and the steam rising into the air was rising in wisps. Lin Yu absentmindedly put a meat roll into her mouth.

The hot pot restaurant had a warm and inviting atmosphere, filled with delicious aromas. It was lunchtime and almost full. Outside, the rain was getting heavier. Through the glass windows, you could see passersby walking briskly across the street with umbrellas. Cars on the main road lined up in a red queue, their taillights flashing bright red. From a distance, it looked like a hazy red sea.

In the evening, Jiang Zi posted three photos on her WeChat Moments. Of course, the main subject of the photos was not herself, but Lin Yu, who was wearing Hanfu.

Zhou Ke doesn't usually browse his WeChat Moments much, but ever since Lin Yu posted a photo of herself and Cong Yi on Moments for the first time, he's developed the habit of checking Moments whenever he has free time.

He knew that Lin Yu had agreed to be a model for Jiang Zi's friend, but he didn't know that the shoot was today. He went to Yi County to meet a distributor. In fact, he should have gone there in person, but he had been in a lot of trouble lately and desperately wanted to find a place where Lin Yu wasn't around to calm down.

After that day, he lay in bed all night without sleeping. Two little voices kept fighting in his mind. One stood on the moral high ground and condemned his beastly behavior of falling in love with his sister. Not to mention that the two were six years apart, and that he had practically raised Lin Yu himself, how could he have such feelings for his sister? Moreover, she already had someone she liked.

Then another voice echoed in his mind: So what if she's his sister? They're not related by blood. Does he want to allow someone to take his sister away from him? So what if she has a boyfriend? Will anyone take better care of her than him? Will anyone love her more than him?

Zhou Ke lowered her eyes, staring straight at the person on the screen. She was wearing a light green Hanfu, standing sideways, with light makeup on her face and delicate eyebrows slightly turned inward. Her expression as she looked at the camera was cold and mournful, like a compassionate goddess.

After staring at it for a long time, the fingertip that had been hovering above the screen finally came down. Soon, a message popped up at the bottom of the screen indicating that the photo had been forwarded to a contact. Without hesitation, Zhou Ke clicked "save" in the bottom left corner and added all three photos to his album.

The rain outside the car window intensified, and a torrential downpour began. Two thunderclaps boomed in the distance, and the branches of trees on both sides of the street swayed violently in the wind.

My phone popped up with a weather forecast warning: be alert for thunderstorms and take precautions when traveling.

By the end of the hotpot meal, everyone's bellies were round and full. Seeing that the rain outside hadn't stopped and seemed to be getting heavier, Cen Yu offered to take them home. However, the road conditions were bad in this weather, and everyone lived in different directions, so they all declined. Jiang Zi had called Yan Yadong to pick them up in advance, and the photographer had called a car beforehand. After waiting for more than twenty minutes, a driver finally came to pick them up.

So the four of them picked up their bags and went home.

Lin Yu stood in front of the glass door of the jewelry flagship store on the first floor of the mall, looking at the screen showing that the order would take 57 minutes to process and secretly worried.

In the past, Zhou Ke would have come to pick her up long ago, but now that Zhou Ke is not in Tongcheng, she doesn't know how to find him.

Since returning from the hotel that day, her relationship with her brother had become unusually delicate. She accidentally caught her brother masturbating in the bathroom, which surprised and excited her. However, Zhou Ke went on a business trip afterwards, and they did not contact each other during that time. Zhou Ke, contrary to his usual behavior, did not send her a single message or make a phone call to check on her.

For two whole days, he seemed to have vanished. Lin Yu didn't know where he went or what he did; she only knew that he had left.

The rain in Tongcheng lasted for two days. Although it was midsummer, the temperature dropped considerably with the arrival of the rain. At this moment, a gust of wind blew, and I suddenly felt a slight chill on my arm.

"How much longer do we have to stand here?"

Just as Lin Yu was grieving, a clear and melodious voice suddenly fell from above, accompanied by an all-too-familiar aura. The wind and rain in front of her were completely blocked, and her vision was invaded by a dark figure.

Lin Yu suddenly raised her head and met a face she had been longing for day and night, and a pair of dark, deep eyes.

Never having imagined Zhou Ke would appear here without a word, Lin Yu felt her heart skip a beat the moment she saw him. Holding her breath, she stared at the person before her with teary eyes and murmured, "Brother..."

Zhou Ke stood in front of her with an umbrella, the long-handled umbrella firmly covering the two of them. Their eyes met, and he looked into her bright, pearly eyes, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly, his gaze darkening.

After the shoot ended, Lin Yu changed back into his own clothes, but his makeup was still on. He remembered the photo he had seen on Jiang Zi's WeChat Moments earlier that day, and then looked at Lin Yu again.

Her light-colored eyes were clear and bright, and her originally thick eyelashes were now curled with mascara. A light layer of eyeshadow covered her eyelids, adorned with a few glittery particles, like a shimmering galaxy. Her fair cheeks were covered with a natural light pink blush, and below them were overly full cherry lips, which were now a decadent red, probably because she had just eaten hot pot.

Seeing that he remained silent, Lin Yu broke the silence: "Brother, when did you get back? How did you know I was here?"

In his field of vision, he saw those moist lips opening and closing. Zhou Ke slowed his breathing, silently shifted his gaze, and said in a low, hoarse voice, "I just got back not long ago. I didn't see anyone at home, so I asked Yan Yadong and found out you were here."

"Oh." So that's how it is. Hearing the answer, Lin Yu responded softly, but at the same time, she wondered to herself why she couldn't just ask her directly instead of going through such a roundabout way.

Thinking of this, Lin Yu lowered her head, a fleeting look of loneliness in her eyes.

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Author's Note: Just popping in to say hi! [Facepalm and peeking]

The two locked chapters are still being revised; we'll try to release them tomorrow.

I will continue to update daily until the end.

Update time is set for 11 PM every night (ps: so be sure to check back on time [winking emoji])