spare key
The red light turned green, and Xie Dang stepped across the road without looking back.
Lin Jingshang followed behind him, keeping a distance of more than ten meters, watching the figure ahead. He quickened his pace and caught up, staying neither too close nor too far behind him, and together they entered the subway station.
While waiting for the train at the platform, the two people's eyes met inadvertently across the crowd.
Xie Dang looked at him, his face expressionless, and nodded slightly.
Lin Jingshang nodded, then looked down at the wet ground beneath his feet and smiled silently.
That day, Lin Jingshang discovered that a music app on his phone had inexplicably added a playlist called "Commuting Relaxation," created by a string of random characters. The songs in the playlist were all of a uniform style, consisting of gentle, melodious instrumental music.
He played a song that was indeed very suitable for escaping noise and calming the mind on a crowded subway during rush hour.
He took a screenshot and sent it to Xie Dang.
[Lin Jingshang]: Is the system starting to take a healing approach? (Attached image: playlist)
[BUG Partner]: This behavior is intended to improve the comfort of daily interactions. The playlist quality is acceptable and has been backed up.
Lin Jingshang couldn't help but laugh; it seemed Xie Dang had also received this gift.
He actually started listening to it during his commute, and he has to admit, the system's aesthetic sense was occasionally on point; the music did indeed help him relax.
A few days later, during a lunch break, Lin Jingshang went to the small terrace as usual.
Xie Dang arrived earlier than him today and was leaning back in his chair with his eyes closed, resting with a soft-looking thin blanket draped over his knees.
Lin Jingshang walked quietly and sat down in his usual chair.
The sun was shining brightly, and he was feeling a bit drowsy. Just as his eyelids started to droop, he heard a noise next to him.
Xie Dang woke up at some point. He picked up the thin blanket from his knees, folded it in half, and handed half of it over.
"It's windy," he said succinctly.
Lin Jingshang looked at the half blanket handed to him, hesitated for a moment, then took it and covered his legs with it.
The blanket was large; even folded in half and then cut in half again, it would still be enough to cover his knees. The wool was soft and fine. The two of them, each covered with the same blanket, fell into a deep sleep in the afternoon sun.
Lin Jingshang slept exceptionally soundly.
When he woke up, he found that Xie Dang was no longer beside him, and the blanket was still properly covering him. He picked up the blanket, folded it neatly, and put it back in the storage basket on the sofa in Xie Dang's office; it was obviously a new one.
From then on, this thin blanket became a staple on the small terrace, always appearing on their laps when the weather was slightly cool or windy.
The system didn't stop there; it later gave away some more items.
A pair of lavender eye masks, which are said to promote sleep, were shelved by Xie Dang on the grounds that their "light-blocking rate was not up to standard".
A small speaker that can play music in sync was used by Lin Jingshang to play rain sounds when he was working overtime.
These little gadgets don't cause any real harm, and some do indeed improve the quality of life a little bit.
Lin Jingshang and Xie Dang gradually got used to the system's gifts, which would pop up from time to time. Adhering to the principle of not wasting anything, they would pick and choose what they could use.
They operate like a company together, resisting external interference while occasionally taking advantage of others as part of the company benefits.
The relationship between the two became even closer and more inseparable.
When Lin Jingshang found a box of imported stomach medicine exactly the same as the one in Xie Dang's office in his office drawer one day, he was able to calmly accept it and quietly pour Xie Dang a glass of warm water the next time Xie Dang was working overtime and drinking coffee.
As the seasons change, the leaves of the sycamore trees outside the window begin to turn yellow and fall.
It was Saturday, and Lin Jingshang, unusually, didn't have to work overtime, so he slept until late morning. He put on his slippers and prepared to go downstairs to the supermarket to buy some groceries for brunch.
Just as I reached the entrance of the residential area, my phone rang. It was Xie Dang.
"Hello, Mr. Xie?"
"at home?"
"Yes, I'm just about to go out to buy something."
“I’m in the underground parking lot, section B, parking space 132.”
Lin Jingshang was taken aback: "You... in my apartment complex parking lot?"
It's Saturday morning.
"Okay," Xie Dang replied. "I came up to get something."
Lin Jingshang was a little confused, but he quickly turned around and walked back, taking the elevator down to the underground parking garage. Sure enough, in parking space 132 of section B, he saw that familiar black sedan.
Xie Dang rolled down the car window and handed over a heavy brown paper document bag.
"The industry white paper I mentioned last time, the paper version, has some data annotations that are not clear in the electronic version."
Lin Jingshang took the file bag, feeling a bit amused and exasperated.
The CEO is extremely busy, yet he personally drove over on Saturday just to deliver a document that requires a paper copy with annotations?
Isn't this level of dedication a bit excessive?
"Thank you, Mr. Xie. It's so kind of you to make this special trip," he said politely.
Xie Dang didn't reply, his gaze sweeping over the old T-shirt he was wearing, which had a cartoon cat printed on it, before he looked away.
"On the way."
Lin Jingshang: "..."
There don't seem to be any places near this neighborhood that would be convenient for the CEO to go through.
He was just about to make a polite gesture and ask if the other person wanted to come upstairs for a glass of water when Xie Dang spoke first: "Are you going to the supermarket?"
"Oh? Yes."
Xie Dang handed out a brand new silver key through the car window.
"Car keys, and a few boxes of documents in the trunk that need to be delivered to the warehouse in the west of the city. I have an international conference coming up and can't get away. I'll send the address to your phone, so please make the trip."
Lin Jingshang subconsciously took the keys, a little taken aback. Was this turn of events a bit too sudden? Was he being asked to drive this obviously expensive car to deliver documents?
"Uh, Mr. Xie, I haven't driven much since I got my driver's license..."
He tried to politely decline, mainly because he was afraid of scratching the luxury car.
“It’s an automatic, and it’s insured,” Xie Dang interrupted him. “After you’ve delivered the documents, drive the car back and park it properly. You can keep the keys for now.”
Before Lin Jingshang could say anything more, Xie Dang had already rolled up the car window, driven away from the parking space, and disappeared at the garage exit.
Lin Jingshang stood there, holding a file bag in his left hand and his car keys in his right, not coming back to his senses for a long time.
This action doesn't seem to fit Xie Dang's usual style at all.
He looked down at the key in his hand and the casual remark, "I'll leave it with you for now."
A vague thought quietly surfaced in my mind.
Is this considered trust, not the kind that's enforced by the system?
Lin Jingshang held the key, feeling a slight burning sensation in his palm. He took a deep breath and decided to go to the supermarket first, and then to the warehouse in the west of the city.
He got into the driver's seat, which was clearly set up according to Xie Dang's height and build. He adjusted it, and when he smelled the familiar scent inside the car, an idea uncontrollably surged into his mind.
Is sending materials just an excuse?
Perhaps not entirely.
But this spare key, temporarily stored with him, points to a future.
A future that may include shared spaces and mutual trust.
Lin Jingshang started the car, glanced at the file folder on the passenger seat, and let out a soft breath.
Okay, fine, I'll send you the materials.
Xie Dang's car had an unassuming appearance but excellent performance.
Lin Jingshang eventually drove it and successfully delivered the boxes of documents to the warehouse in the west of the city. On the way back, it was evening, and the setting sun dyed the sky orange-red.
He drove alone, weaving through the traffic. The car was quiet. He adjusted his posture, feeling somewhat uneasy, as if the space still retained the aura of the original owner, a strong presence.
While waiting at a red light, Lin Jingshang's gaze inadvertently swept over the glove compartment in front of the passenger seat.
He reached out and pressed the switch.
The storage box slid open silently, revealing a neatly organized interior containing only a few items: an unopened pack of tissues, a box of chewing gum, and a beautifully packaged pack of mints from Yihe.
The mints and the lemon candies in the glass jar on his desk are the same brand, just with different flavors.
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