Chapter 1 01 Reunion So, that dream was a premonition...
"Ding-dong—"
The doorbell rang for three minutes, but no one answered the door, and there was no sound from inside the house.
Lin Xi didn't have the patience to wait any longer and opened the door directly with her fingerprint.
As soon as I stepped into the entryway, before the door behind me was even closed, I heard the sound of slippers sliding up from the second floor.
The footsteps were not as steady as Fu Qingli's usual footsteps; they sounded lighter.
Lin Xi looked up and met the woman's eyes, which seemed to be smiling but not smiling.
The woman on the second floor had a striking and elegant appearance, with her hair loose and slightly disheveled.
She leaned lazily against the glass railing on the second floor, her black men's shirt contrasting sharply with her snow-white skin.
Three buttons on her collar were undone, revealing her delicate collarbone, which, together with the green bamboo leaf embroidery on the neckline, created a beautiful scene.
Beneath the shirt hem, two shapely and slender legs, bare and strikingly white in the morning light.
The woman looked down at her with a satisfied expression on her face.
Early morning, Fu Qingli's shirt, a woman.
After a brief moment of mental blankness, Lin Xi recalled the text message Fu Qingli had sent her last night:
[Fu Qingli: Xiaoxi, I've been thinking lately that it's because I'm not strong enough that you've suffered so much. I want to follow my family's arrangements and go abroad.]
It turns out that really was a breakup text message.
He was still determined to be with the person he loved and return to the Fu family.
If you wanted to ask something before you came, there's no need to ask it now.
Lin Xi withdrew her gaze and turned to leave.
The weather in June is unpredictable; it was sunny when I arrived, but it started raining heavily when I went downstairs.
Okay! Fu Qingli, we're breaking up.
Lin Xi didn't bring an umbrella, so she walked into the rain after sending the message.
My cheeks were instantly wet, and I couldn't tell if the water on my face was tears or rain...
*
Lin Xi woke up in the humid and stuffy heat, only to find that the air conditioner had been turned off at some point, and the room temperature was uncomfortably high.
It's probably the similar physical sensations that trigger memories hidden in the subconscious.
She even dreamt of the scene from six years ago when she broke up with Fu Qingli.
No sunlight streamed into the room through the window.
In the darkness, she fumbled for her phone and glanced at the time: 3:09.
She turned the air conditioner back on, lay on her back on the bed, and stared at the ceiling whose color she couldn't discern.
The room temperature gradually became comfortable, and the heat subsided, but the pent-up emotions in my chest lingered, causing a dull ache in my heart.
She curled up on her side to suppress the spreading soreness and tried to fall asleep again.
But as soon as she closed her eyes, those past events became clear in her mind, painfully driving away her already fragile sleepiness.
After struggling for a long time, she could only give in to her emotions, opening her eyes wide to watch the dawn break outside the window and begin a new day.
On the subway during my commute, the side effects of sleep deprivation started to take effect, and I almost got off at the wrong station in a daze.
However, today is the first day of setup for the technology exhibition, and we need to communicate with the exhibitors about the setup details to ensure there are no mishaps.
After much hesitation, Lin Xi decided to disobey the doctor's advice and go to the venue's beverage area to order a coffee.
"Team Leader Lin."
Lin Xi had barely taken a couple of sips of her coffee when she heard someone calling her name.
Looking in the direction of the sound, I saw Zhao Mingyuan, the person in charge of Qingyuan Technology, waving at me from a distance.
She raised her hand in response.
As Zhao Mingyuan approached, Lin Xi's gaze was drawn to the little thing following at his feet.
A giant panda cub that only reaches a person's calf?
The cubs have smooth, black and white fur, and their round bodies sway as they move, making them look adorable.
If it weren't for its slightly stiff movements, Lin Xi would have almost thought that Zhao Mingyuan had brought a real panda.
But this was realistic enough, and Linxi, a lover of giant pandas, was completely captivated: "This is..."
Zhao Mingyuan knew how attention-grabbing Gun Gun was, so he wasn't surprised by Lin Xi's delighted expression. He proudly introduced it, "This is our boss's pet. It's called Gun Gun. It's a lifelike robot... an animal, but it can talk. He asked me to take it with him temporarily to test its performance in unfamiliar environments."
The rolling ball, which had stopped walking, changed from walking to standing, barely reaching Zhao Mingyuan's knees.
When the dark, grape-like eyes saw Lin Xi, they suddenly flashed with an unusual light: "Welcome home!"
Her voice was childlike and soft, like a freshly baked marshmallow, melting hearts the moment she opened her mouth.
Zhao Mingyuan exclaimed "Huh?" and quickly took out his phone to send a message, muttering to himself, "It was 'Hello' just now, how come it's 'Welcome Home' now? Is the backend system messed up? No way, such a basic error..."
Lin Xi didn't care about the system; her heart was completely melted by the adorable appearance of the bouncy creature, and she squatted down to reach out and touch it.
Zhao Mingyuan caught a glimpse of her action out of the corner of his eye and quickly spoke up to stop her: "Gun Gun doesn't like being touched, it will hiss..."
Before she could finish speaking, Gun Gun moved her chubby body and leaned over to nuzzle her head against Lin Xi's hand, which was suspended in mid-air.
The soft, cute voice rang out again: "Coffee can easily cause insomnia, and it can even trigger anxiety and palpitations while taking medication, so it's best to drink less of it~"
Although Lin Xi knew that Gun Gun was just following the programmed instructions, she still felt that there was a strange stubbornness hidden in Gun Gun's dark mechanical eyes, which made her feel guilty for being caught.
After a few seconds of stalemate, Lin Xi gave in, put the coffee on the table next to her, and readily agreed: "Then I won't drink it."
"Okay, Gun Gun is very happy~" It even added a cute tail sound effect to itself.
Zhao Mingyuan was so shocked that his eyes almost popped out of their sockets.
Despite its adorable appearance, the panda has been trained by its boss to be just as aloof as the owner. Even the company employees have never seen it act so cute.
If it weren't for testing, it wouldn't have gotten this close to me!
As he was silently complaining, someone quietly stood beside him, whose aura was so familiar that he knew who it was without even looking.
Looking at the glutton still clinging to Lin Xi's feet, Zhao Mingyuan broke out in a cold sweat and trembled: "Boss."
The eldest brother's affection for Gun Gun is comparable to Gun Gun's obsession with cleanliness. He takes care of Gun Gun himself every day, and they are not allowed to touch it much, let alone strangers.
As a result, less than ten minutes after I brought it out, a stranger petted it like a pet.
He knew he was doomed and hurriedly reached out to pull Lin Xi away.
As soon as he raised his hand, the boss blocked it.
Fu Qingli maintained her usual aloof expression, withdrew her hand without a word, and stood quietly beside him, listening to the childish banter between the man and the cat in front of her.
"Hello, is this your company's product?"
The lovely scene was suddenly interrupted by a deliberately coquettish voice.
Fu Qingli frowned, looked up, and glanced at the unfamiliar woman in front of her.
The woman, heavily made up and with a deliberately seductive smile, immediately handed him her phone when he looked up: "This panda is so cute, handsome. Could you add me on WeChat and tell me more about its features?"
As she spoke, her alluring eyes lingered on Fu Qingli's handsome face, her true intentions clearly ulterior.
Fu Qingli seemed oblivious, and impatiently withdrew her gaze: "Personal belongings, it's inconvenient!"
It's rare to meet such a high-quality man, and the woman, swaying her hips, tried to lean closer: "Then let's learn about your company's other products..."
Having been around Fu Qingli for years, Zhao Mingyuan was used to such advances and handled them with great ease.
As Fu Qingli stepped back, he immediately stepped between the two, holding a crumpled brochure in his hand, which he enthusiastically placed in the woman's hand: "I see you're in the same industry, right? What would you like to know? Welcome to the Qingyuan Science and Technology Exhibition Area after the exhibition. We look forward to your valuable suggestions!"
Lin Xi wasn't bothered by the sudden approach and was attentively listening to Gun Gun's explanation of sleep aids. That is, until the man's clear, deep voice rang out, overlapping with a familiar voice from deep within her memory.
She jolted suddenly, instinctively looking up and meeting the man's deep, dark eyes.
The man was thinner than I remembered, his features more defined, and his brows held a more mature air. His impeccably pressed black suit accentuated his aloof demeanor, exuding an imposing presence befitting a superior.
But his eyes no longer held tenderness; instead, they held a cold indifference.
So, that dream was a premonition.
A note from the author:
----------------------
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
