Chapter 19
The afternoon sun was warm and inviting as Lin Xiaotang rode her electric delivery scooter back to the vicinity of "Corner Corner." She was in a good mood; the customer who had just placed an order was very satisfied with her newly developed mango mousse and had even given her a generous tip.
She parked her car and was about to cross the street to go back to the store when her gaze inadvertently swept towards the store entrance, and she suddenly stopped in her tracks.
Across the endless stream of traffic, she could clearly see Bai Sinian standing under a sycamore tree not far from her shop. In front of him stood a strange woman dressed in an elegant suit, exuding a capable and professional air.
The two appeared to be arguing.
Too far away, Lin Xiaotang couldn't hear the specifics, but she could see that the woman was very agitated. She even pointed excitedly towards the "corner" several times, her lips moving rapidly, her face showing undisguised anger and... a certain urgency.
Fu Baisinian's back appeared unusually tense. He stood in front of the woman, one hand seemingly trying to pull her back, but then stopping mid-air, his posture very low, more like a blockade and...pleading? Lin Xiaotang had almost never seen Fu Baisinian show such an expression. Even in his most painful and chaotic moments, he always carried an inherent pride and restraint. But now, even from a distance, she could feel the almost humble pleading and helplessness emanating from him.
The woman tried to bypass him and rush into the coffee shop again, but Persian quickly stepped aside to block her, saying something urgently. Finally, the woman abruptly shook off his hand that he was trying to soothe her, glared at him fiercely, then turned and cast a complex and sharp look at the "corner," before striding away angrily in her high heels.
Bai Sinian stood frozen in place, staring in the direction the woman had gone, his back filled with dejection and helplessness. He didn't even notice Lin Xiaotang standing blankly across the street.
Lin Xiaotang's heart sank. A strange sense of unease crept over her. She crossed the street, walked to Fu Sinian's side, and asked softly, "Fu Sinian? What's wrong? What was that just now...?"
Persian seemed to be startled awake by her voice, and turned around abruptly. Seeing it was her, a fleeting look of panic crossed his eyes, which he quickly suppressed. He forced a stiff smile and said in as light a tone as possible, "It's nothing. A client, a bit of a work-related disagreement, but it's been resolved."
"A client?" Lin Xiaotang frowned in confusion. What kind of client would be so excited as to rush into her coffee shop? Moreover, Bai Sinian's expression just now was definitely not that he was dealing with an ordinary "work disagreement".
"Hmm." Bai Sinian responded vaguely, clearly not wanting to talk more. He put his arm around her shoulder, trying to lead her into the store. "Back from delivering takeout? Are you tired?"
His evasiveness was so obvious that Lin Xiaotang's doubts grew stronger. She wanted to press him further when Xiao Wei's anxious voice suddenly rang out from inside the shop: "Xiaotang! Come back quickly! The coffee machine seems to be malfunctioning; it's completely stopped working!"
The shout interrupted their conversation. Lin Xiaotang had no choice but to suppress her doubts for the time being and quickly went into the store to deal with the unexpected situation.
Throughout the evening, Lin Xiaotang could sense that Bai Sinian was absent-minded. He sat in his usual spot, but his eyes were often vacant, and his fingers tapped unconsciously on the table, clearly preoccupied. Even Xiao Wei noticed his unusual behavior and secretly asked Lin Xiaotang, "What's wrong with Mr. Bai today? He seems distracted."
After closing time, the two walked side by side back to their apartment. A long silence followed, until Lin Xiaotang finally stopped, grabbed Fu Sinian's hand, and looked at him with concern: "Bai Sinian, tell me, what happened? You've been acting strange all evening. Was that... 'client' from this afternoon troublesome?"
Bai Sinian stopped and turned to face her. In the darkness, his expression was somewhat indistinct, but the struggle in his eyes was clearly visible. He took a deep breath, as if he had made a great decision, and said in a low and slow voice, "Xiaotang, I... I have to go on a business trip tomorrow."
"Business trip?" Lin Xiaotang was taken aback. "How long will you be gone?"
“About two weeks.” Bai Sinian avoided her gaze, his voice carrying a barely perceptible strain. “It’s a large overseas corporate acquisition case that we’ve been following up on. Now it’s reached a critical stage, and I have to go there in person to handle it.”
This explanation was reasonable; his job was unusual, and business trips were commonplace. But Lin Xiaotang always felt that something was off; his tone and his expression both conveyed an inexplicable strangeness.
"Just...work?" she asked tentatively.
Bai Sinian tightened his grip on her hand for a moment, then quickly released it. He looked up, gazing deeply into her eyes, his tone suddenly becoming unusually serious, even carrying a sense of desperation: "Yes, work. Just two weeks. Xiaotang, wait for me to come back. When I come back, everything... everything will be resolved. Definitely."
"Everything?" Lin Xiaotang felt a pang of anxiety at the decisiveness and unspoken heaviness in his words. "Bai Sinian, what exactly..."
“It’s nothing!” Bai Sinian interrupted her, emphasizing again, his tone even slightly hurried, “Really nothing. It’s just that I’m under a lot of work pressure. Don’t worry.”
He reached out and gently stroked her cheek, his fingertips slightly cool, his eyes as complex as a bottomless sea: "Wait for me to come back, okay?"
Seeing his clearly reluctant, even pleading, gaze, all of Lin Xiaotang's questions stuck in her throat. She suppressed the intense unease in her heart, telling herself that perhaps she was just overthinking things, and that he was simply under too much work pressure.
She finally nodded, forcing a reassuring smile for him: "Okay. Work is important, go ahead and do your work. I'll wait for you to come back."
Hearing her answer, Persian seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, yet also felt as if he had shouldered an even heavier burden. He gently pulled her into his arms, a tight embrace that almost made her breathless, as if he wanted to meld her into his very bones and carry her away with him.
"Wait for me," he whispered in her ear once more.
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