Precision calibration

Zhou Jianxing stared at the phone screen, his breathing a little unstable.

In the photo sent by Wen Lingyi, the antique writing machine looked like a sleeping golden work of art, with gears, springs, and a small doll holding a pen, all shining alluringly under the light.

Words also hold magic: "Master Zhou, excuse me. I was tidying up my study today and found this antique, a Swiss writing doll. I wanted to animate it, but unfortunately, it fell asleep. Are you familiar with this kind of sophisticated mechanical gadget? Would you be available to come and see it this afternoon?"

Wen Lingyi always finds reasons to get her close.

The complex mechanical structure in the photo attracted her soul like a magnet, and her previous determination was thrown out of the window.

Her fingers trembled slightly as she replied, "Okay, Mrs. Wen, I'm very interested in this kind of machinery. Is three o'clock in the afternoon available?"

The three words "Mrs. Wen" were the last thin wall she built for herself.

·

At three o'clock in the afternoon, in Wen Lingyi's study, the air was filled with the mixed scent of old books, leather and high-quality wood.

Wen Lingyi wore an ivory silk halter dress that outlined her smooth shoulder and neck lines, and a loose beige tulle cardigan on the outside. Her long hair was casually tied up, with a few strands of hair sticking to her slender neck.

"Welcome to my 'treasure cave'." Wen Lingyi's voice was filled with a lazy smile.

The study is spacious and bright, with a huge floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the lush garden.

On the spacious antique desk in the center, a nearly meter-tall writing machine took center stage. Under the deliberately dimmed spotlight, the brass and dark wood radiated an ancient and mysterious luster. Several thick mechanical atlases lay spread out beside it.

"That's it," Wen Lingyi approached, her fingertips lightly brushing against the cool brass casing, her eyes focused. "Look, how delicately these gears mesh, the power of the clockwork... it's like frozen time. Unfortunately, its time has stopped."

Her praise was so sincere and sophisticated that Zhou Jianxing also held his breath.

Zhou Jianxing sat down at the desk, needing to get very close to see the complex structure inside. Wen Lingyi pulled up a high-backed armchair and sat down a little behind her, her posture relaxed, like a student preparing for a lecture.

Maintenance began. The world seemed to shrink into the delicate jumble of gears and levers before me.

Zhou Jianxing took out a magnifying glass and carefully examined a tiny transmission chain.

Wen Lingyi leaned forward slightly, resting her elbows on her knees and supporting her chin, her eyes intently following Zhou Jianxing's every move and every choice of tool.

Her breath, warm and refreshing, brushed across Zhou Jianxing's exposed neck and sensitive earlobe. Wen Lingyi saw that the red mole behind her ear was almost bleeding.

Zhou Jianxing tightened his grip on the tool and felt the skin around his ear itchy, as if it had been gently scratched by a feather.

"Here?" Zhou Jianxing was carefully trying to move a small lever that was stuck at an awkward angle.

Wen Lingyi's fingertips suddenly tapped the air above the back of her hand, pointing to a smaller linkage rod next to it, "Is its movement connected to this...?" As she spoke, her neatly trimmed nails inadvertently brushed against the skin on the back of Zhou Jianxing's hand.

A tiny electric current rushed through Zhou Jianxing's throat, and he felt dry. "...Yes, yes."

Zhou Jianxing briefly explained the cause of the malfunction. Wen Lingyi nodded thoughtfully, her gaze shifting from the machine to Zhou Jianxing's tense profile. "It's crooked... You're so accurate. So, Master Zhou, how do we... straighten it out?"

The voice was low and soft, with a peculiar sense of rhythm.

The light was not enough. Zhou Jianxing needed to see a corner deep inside the machine.

"It's a little dark in here," she whispered.

Wen Lingyi naturally picked up the small high-intensity flashlight that had been prepared on the table.

She did not hand it to Zhou Jianxing, but leaned forward, her arms almost around Zhou Jianxing's shoulders. The distance between their bodies was instantly shortened to zero. The gauze cardigan brushed against Zhou Jianxing's arm, and the cool and refreshing fragrance of Wen Lingyi mixed with the air of books instantly enveloped Zhou Jianxing.

"Is this... bright enough?" Wen Lingyi's breath brushed clearly against Zhou Jianxing's ears.

Zhou Jianxing's whole body was stiff and he could only vaguely say "hmm".

Finally, he found the key problem: a small pin that fixed a part had worn out and come loose. Zhou Jianxing held his breath and used special pointed tweezers to try to push it back into place with great care.

The study was so quiet that the only sounds left were the two people's faint breathing, the faint sound of the tweezers touching metal, and... Wen Lingyi's occasional, very light, seemingly unconscious "hmm..." or "ah..." when she saw something subtle.

These tiny sounds were infinitely amplified in the extreme silence and concentration, and like small hammers, they hit Zhou Jianxing's extremely tense nerves one by one.

The most critical step is here. You need to use a small, very elastic "C-shaped retaining spring" to fit into a narrow groove and firmly fix the small pin that has just been reset.

This requires an extremely steady hand and precise strength.

Zhou Jianxing felt his palms sweating. He picked up the small metal ring with tweezers and carefully put it into the groove.

Just when it was about to get stuck in, the tip of the tweezers suddenly slipped, and the small spring was shot out like a slingshot, with a "ding" sound, and it bounced right into the gap between the finger joints of the little doll holding the quill pen on the typewriter.

Zhou Jianxing panicked and subconsciously stretched out his index finger to reach for it.

The fingertips could barely touch the edge of the retaining spring, but the space was too small and the fingertips were stuck tightly by the hard and cold brass joint edge, causing piercing pain with the slightest movement.

"Don't move!" Wen Lingyi's voice rang out immediately.

She quickly moved closer, almost pressing her entire chest against Zhou Jianxing's back. One hand firmly grasped Zhou Jianxing's trapped wrist with an unbreakable grip, while the other hand picked up the more delicate watch tweezers on the table.

"Relax, don't force it. Let me do it." Her soft voice was right next to Zhou Jianxing's ear, and her warm breath made her ears red.

Wen Lingyi's cheek was almost touching Zhou Jianxing's temple, and she stared intently at the extremely narrow gap. Her pleasant scent and warm body temperature were like an invisible net, tightly covering Zhou Jianxing. Zhou Jianxing could feel the mole behind his ear burning.

The pulse on the wrist that was being held was beating so wildly that it was about to break free from the skin.

With the cold tip of the tweezers in Wen Lingyi's hand, she explored, touched, and searched for the fulcrum of the retaining spring very carefully and slowly next to Zhou Jianxing's stuck fingertip.

Every tiny movement of the tweezers tip, every light touch of metal against metal, and even the occasional feel of the tweezers edge scraping across the skin of his fingertips, felt like an electric current, sending an intense sensation of stimulation throughout Zhou Jianxing's body.

The air was so thick that it was suffocating, and only the intertwined and somewhat rapid breathing of the two people roared in their ears.

Wen Lingyi's movements showed a calmness that seemed to be in control of everything, and a sense of oppression that Zhou Jianxing could not understand, but which made her feel weak all over.

In order to observe the position of the retaining spring more closely, Wen Lingyi moved his body closer to Zhou Jianxing, with his lips resting next to Zhou Jianxing's ear. The tiny airflow created by his breath was warm and moist, and it slowly penetrated into Zhou Jianxing's ear.

"Okay." Wen Lingyi finally clamped the spring and carefully took it out. As she spoke, her lips lightly brushed Zhou Jianxing's earlobe, and then she felt the person in her arms couldn't help but tremble.

Zhou Jianxing's ears seemed to still have the touch of Wen Lingyi's lip gloss, soft, moist and sticky. She thought that the ears that were kissed by Wen Lingyi must be sparkling.

Wen Lingyi gently freed Zhou Jianxing's fingers from the confinement of the copper joints.

She did not immediately let go of Zhou Jianxing's wrist, but lowered her head and looked at the clear red mark on her fingertips.

She gently rubbed the red mark with the tip of her thumb, slowly and soothingly.

Then, she looked up at Zhou Jianxing, her beautiful peach blossom eyes filled with springtime melting snow. She said in a low voice, "See, the feeling of being 'stuck'... is uncomfortable, isn't it?"

She paused, her gaze locked onto Zhou Jianxing's panicked eyes, "Be more careful next time."

Zhou Jianxing quickly pulled his hand back as if he was burned by fire. The red cloud burned from his ears to his cheeks and was still burning deeper.

In the end, she hurriedly completed the final installation steps almost by instinct, with her mind blank.

Wen Lingyi had stepped back, regaining an elegant distance, and watched Zhou Jianxing packing up his tools. "It seems it needs more careful care to fully come back to life. But thank you for your hard work today, Master Zhou. It's one step closer to waking up."

When Wen Lingyi turned the spring, the delicate little puppet's arm slowly rose up, and the quill pen fluently wrote a gorgeous cursive word "Enigma" on the white paper, Zhou Jianxing could no longer stay.

"Mrs. Wen, I have other work to do this afternoon, so I'll leave first!" Zhou Jianxing lowered his head and put all the messy repair tools on the table into the toolbox.

"Okay, Master Zhou. Welcome back next time." Wen Lingyi bent down to pick up a small screwdriver that Zhou Jianxing had dropped on the ground in a panic and handed it to Zhou Jianxing.

Her eyes couldn't help but fall on the place where her lips had just touched, which was still stained with her moist lip gloss. Combined with Zhou Jianxing's honey-like skin, it looked like bloody amber in the sunlight, or like fresh strawberries with dew.

"Okay...see you next time!" Zhou Jianxing took the screwdriver, which still carried the other person's body temperature, from Wen Lingyi's hand at a loss, and put it into the pocket of his work pants as if he had been scalded.

She turned and walked away, her back looking a little shaky.

Wen Lingyi walked to the floor-to-ceiling window and watched the tall figure hurriedly cross the sun-drenched garden and disappear into the depths of greenery.

He looked down at his thumb that had just stroked Zhou Jianxing's fingertips, and his fingertips unconsciously twisted it lightly, as if he could still feel the slight warmth of the skin and the pounding pulse underneath.

On the desk, the tiny C-shaped spring that she had taken out from between the puppet's fingers, which shone with a cold metallic luster, was gently flicked by her fingertips and began to rotate silently under the light.

"You're so shy, Master Zhou." She muttered to herself as she looked at Zhou Jianxing's departing back, the smile in her eyes deepening.

·

Zhou Jianxing almost rushed into the company gate, and even when she sat down at her workstation, her heart was still beating wildly in her chest, making her eardrums buzz.

She hurriedly unscrewed the cap of the mineral water bottle on the table, tilted her head back and took a few big gulps. The cold liquid slid down her throat, but it could not extinguish the raging fire on her face and in her heart.

"Wow, Engineer Zhou, you're blushing..." Engineer Li passed by with a stack of blueprints in his arms and stopped in surprise beside Zhou Jianxing's workstation. "Why do you look like you just came out of a sauna? The air conditioner in that upscale residential complex in Lanyue Bay is broken? That's not serious, is it?"

"Cough cough cough..." Zhou Jianxing choked on the water and started coughing violently, with water droplets dripping down his chin onto the front of his work clothes.

She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand in a panic, her eyes evasive, her voice a little distorted by coughing and guilt: "No, no! The air conditioning is fine! It's me... I was walking too fast on the way, and the sun was too strong! Yes, the sun was too strong!"

She fanned herself frantically with her hands, trying to hide the heat on her face.

Engineer Li looked at her suspiciously, his gaze lingering on her blood-red ear. Suddenly, as if he had discovered something new, he leaned closer and pointed at her right earlobe. "Hey? Engineer Zhou, what's that on your ear? Something shiny? Like... lubricant?"

Zhou Jianxing's mind buzzed. She subconsciously raised her hand to touch her right earlobe—the spot where Wen Lingyi's lips had carelessly brushed against her. The skin her fingertips touched was burning hot and sticky and moist.

Mrs. Wen’s lips… so soft and moist. The feeling of her warm breath brushing against her earlobe replayed in her mind with incredible clarity.

The slight tremor that almost made her soul leave her body at that time now swept through her whole body again.

Her fingertips paused there, and the tiny, shiny residue of lip gloss was like a secret seal, as if Mrs. Wen had left a mark on her body.

She was reluctant to wipe it off.

His fingertips gently caressed the wet spot, as if he could feel that softness and warmth again. His mind was filled with the cool fragrance of Mrs. Wen as she approached, her hoarse voice, and her moist, beautiful, and charming peach blossom eyes...

An unfamiliar, unnerving heat was coursing through her limbs.

However, the next second, when Mrs. Wen handed her the screwdriver, the image of the huge, perfectly cut diamond ring on that elegant white hand, reflecting a cold and brilliant fire in the summer sun, struck her mind with incredible clarity.

The light was so dazzling and so cold, like an invisible barrier, instantly pulling her back to reality from her brief dream.

That ring represents identity, distance, and a silent declaration.

Zhou Jianxing jerked her hand away, as if burned by the imaginary diamond's brilliance. She practically leaped to her feet, not daring to meet Li Gong's probing gaze. She mumbled, "Maybe I picked up something dirty on the way! I'll go wash it!"

Then he lowered his head and rushed towards the bathroom as if escaping.

After closing the bathroom door, the only sound in the small space was her rapid breathing.

She looked in the bright mirror above the sink and saw clearly her misty eyes and red ears, as well as the real, pale pink mark on her earlobe that shone with a tiny pearlescent luster - Mrs. Wen's lip gloss.

The slight reluctance and distraction she had felt at her workstation earlier were now replaced by a strong sense of shame and a sharp pain of clarity. She looked at herself in the mirror, her face flushed and her eyes frantic, and found herself ridiculous.

What is she thinking? Is she crazy?!

Zhou Jianxing felt deeply guilty and ashamed towards Mrs. Wen. She actually had a crush on her. She knew clearly that she shouldn't have such feelings towards Mrs. Wen.

Am I being too vulgar? Too obscene?!

Zhou Jianxing took a deep breath and pulled out a tissue from the tissue box next to him.

She did not use her fingertips to carefully feel the remaining soft touch, but bit her lower lip and wiped the shiny mark on her earlobe with a rough tissue with an almost self-abuse force.

One, two, three times... the rough tissue rubbed against the sensitive skin, causing a burning pain. The ears became even redder and even felt a stinging sensation as if the skin was broken.

But Zhou Jianxing didn't care at all, as if only this kind of pain could completely erase the previous moment of indulgence and unnecessary delusions.

Until in the mirror, the mark left by Wen Lingyi completely disappeared, leaving only a piece of ravaged, red skin.

She looked at her disheveled self in the mirror, and the panic in her eyes was replaced by a forced calmness and self-mockery.

Zhou Jianxing turned on the faucet and splashed cold water on her face repeatedly, trying to extinguish the last remaining flame in her heart. In the pocket of her overalls, the screwdriver that seemed to still carry Mrs. Wen's body temperature was now like a cold piece of iron, poking at her leg, silently reminding her of the chasm in reality.

After wiping the water droplets off his face, Zhou Jianxing faced the mirror, tried to calm his breathing, and straightened his back.

She pushed open the door and walked back into the real world filled with the smell of engine oil and the sound of metal colliding, as if the person who had just been distracted and fled in Mrs. Wen's study had never existed.

Only the red, slightly aching ear reminded her how much she had fantasized.