Graduation Day
17
After Hai City was completely unsealed, Lin Ju's school also received a notice.
The graduation ceremony for their class was held as usual.
This is quite exciting news. The students of this class are actually quite miserable. During their four years of college, almost half of the time they took online classes. They were often locked up and had no freedom at all.
Now we have finally made it to graduation. When we get together with our classmates, we all feel like we have shared the same hardships and come from the same background.
On the day Lin Ju graduated, Zhao Xingcan had already been in France for a month.
The Zhao Group also had a branch in France, and Zhao Xingcan actually spent most of his time abroad. His four-month stay in Hai City was already against regulations, so one could imagine how busy he would be once he was released.
If Zhao Xingcan was not around, Lin Ju didn't want to stay in the Peninsula Villa. The house was too big, she couldn't hear any sounds, and it was sometimes quite scary.
But she didn't go back to her small warehouse.
Last time she asked Zhao Xingcan to take her to get those things from the warehouse. Zhao Xingcan took a look around inside and then didn't allow her to come again.
They said the electrical wiring inside was not standard, and in the hot summer, it was easy to catch fire, and there were no fire-fighting facilities, making it very dangerous.
He acted quickly and found her a new location that same day. The oil paintings, sculptures, and various sundries in the warehouse were all shipped there overnight.
The next day, Zhao Xingcan took her there. The new address was only two streets away from the school, on the eighth floor of a building, an entire floor reserved for her.
Lin Ju was shocked by this act of burning money without regard for cost and asked Zhao Xingcan how much the monthly rent for this floor was. Zhao Xingcan said that it was free because the entire building belonged to the Zhao family.
Zhao Xingcan also arranged a separate room for her to live in.
Lin Ju put on her bachelor's gown, took a selfie and sent it to Zhao Xingcan.
How is it? Does it look good?
It was ten o'clock here, and it should be four o'clock in the morning in France. Lin Ju sent the message and waited for a while, but Zhao Xingcan didn't reply. He was probably still asleep.
She didn't pay any attention, but just then, her classmates called her over to take a photo. Lin Ju trotted over, and they put their arms around her and laughed at the camera.
At the graduation ceremony, her classmates took photos and then went to their parents' homes.
Lin Ju stood alone and watched for a while. Her grandmother had said she would come, but now that she was gone, no one would come to her graduation ceremony.
"Sister!" Xu Gaoyou's voice sounded from behind. Lin Ju turned around and a big boy with a childish look rushed over and hooked his arms around Lin Ju's shoulders.
Lin Ju was startled out of nowhere and stood there in a daze. After seeing Xu Gaoyou, she breathed a sigh of relief.
A boy of Xu Gaoyou's age was heartless, and the previous quarrels and cold wars seemed to have disappeared in his presence. He hooked his arm around Lin Ju, wagging his tail and barking like a dog she kept.
"Sister, surprise! I arrived in Hai City yesterday, but I deliberately didn't tell you, hehehehe."
Lin Ju looked at him helplessly. It was such a hot day, and she was soon sweating under his touch. She struggled to push him away, "It's so hot, come here, do your parents know?"
Xu Gaoyou corrected her, "Our father." He added, "Of course I know, otherwise where would I get the money to buy plane tickets and stay in a hotel? Hotels in Hai City are so expensive."
Lin Ju tilted her head to look at him, then stood on tiptoe and poked his head, "You've grown a bit taller."
"Really?" Xu Gaoyou was instantly delighted. He circled around Lin Ju and gestured on her head with his hands, "Sister, you are still so short!"
"Can you speak?" Lin Ju hit his arm. "Wait for me, I'll go return the clothes and then take you to dinner. What do you want to eat?"
"I want to eat hot pot!" Xu Gaoyou raised his arms and shouted.
Lin Ju returned the clothes and came out. Xu Gaoyou squatted in the shade of the tree like a mushroom.
It was too hot and she didn't want to go over, so she shouted from a distance.
Xu Gaoyou looked up and signed to her.
【Come and see, the ants are moving. 】
Lin Ju thought he was too childish, so she stood there and rolled her eyes.
【Whether you leave or not, I don’t care about you anymore. 】
Xu Gaoyou immediately stood up and trotted to her side. He was particularly careful and bumped her with his arm. Lin Ju was almost thrown away, but Xu Gaoyou hugged her tightly again and laughed.
Lin Ju was speechless, but the dog was nominally her younger brother, so she didn't care based on the principle that an older sister should take care of her pet dog brother.
The two people walked to the school gate arguingly, and a black car drove slowly and stopped in front of them.
Lin Ju stopped and the car door opened.
Under the bright sun, in the windless and cloudless sky, the light is dazzling.
She narrowed her eyes and looked at the person in front of her. Her consciousness was like a gap in a gear, which was suddenly filled. After a brief pause, it started to work again.
She called out "Zhao Xingcan" in surprise, then took a few steps forward and threw herself into the man's arms.
Zhao Xingcan opened his arms, hugged her waist, lifted her off the ground, and even rotated slightly half a circle, pressing her into his arms.
He glanced at the boy standing stiffly beside him, lowered his head and kissed Lin Ju's lips.
Lin Ju still had some sense left in her. She gently pushed Zhao Xingcan and whispered, "My brother is still here."
Zhao Xingcan hummed softly, but did not rush to let her go. Instead, he leaned in her ear and said, "My flight is tonight."
Lin Ju blinked, reacted, and subconsciously grabbed Zhao Xingcan's hand. She didn't want to separate from Zhao Xingcan, so she turned and looked at Xu Gaoyou.
Xu Gaoyou looked at Zhao Xingcan thoughtfully, then raised his hand to sign.
[Sister, are we still going to eat hotpot? ]
Lin Ju pursed her lips and stood up straight, but her waist was tight and Zhao Xingcan did not let go.
She simply leaned her back against Zhao Xingcan's arms, but as soon as she stretched out her hand, Zhao Xingcan pushed her down.
She heard Zhao Xingcan say behind her, "It's okay, I can wait for you to finish eating hot pot and pick you up."
Xu Gaoyou narrowed his eyes, the smile disappeared from his face, and his expression became a little cold.
Lin Ju's eyelashes were like a butterfly that had stayed on the petals for too long, now flapping its wings, and her heart and face were filled with the sweet pollen that had fallen.
She looked at Zhao Xingcan in surprise and asked, "Do you understand sign language?"
"It's been so long, and you still haven't figured it out. I'm not a good enough boyfriend." Zhao Xingcan touched her sweaty forehead. "You're sweating all over. Come on, I'll take you to the hot pot restaurant. I can rest in the car for a while."
Lin Ju knew that Zhao Xingcan didn't like hot pot, so she didn't force him.
She looked at Xu Gaoyou. Xu Gaoyou's face didn't look very good, but he had no reason to be angry. He could only nod slightly dully.
Zhao Xingcan came back in a hurry and didn't let the driver come with him. If he was the driver, Lin Ju would sit in the passenger seat and Xu Gaoyou would sit in the back seat.
After Xu Gaoyou got in, Lin Ju turned her head, winked gently and said, "It's a good deal for you to let Zhao Xingcan be your driver today."
Xu Gaoyou knew how powerful Zhao Xingcan was. He was a top figure in the most precious circle. Sitting in a car driven by such a person would shorten your life.
He thought to himself, glancing at the driver's seat out of the corner of his eye.
It was a red light and the car slowly stopped. Zhao Xingcan turned his head, as if he had completely forgotten that there was someone else in the back seat. He pinched Lin Ju's chin, leaned forward, and kissed her on the lips.
Xu Gaoyou's eyelids twitched. Then the car drove through six red lights on the way to the hot pot restaurant. Zhao Xingcan didn't know what was wrong with him. Every time he stopped, he would give Lin Ju a kiss.
Xu Gaoyou's eyelids could no longer twitch. He lowered his eyes, took out his mobile phone and started playing games.
After playing three games of King of Glory and losing all three, they finally arrived at the hot pot restaurant. As soon as the car stopped, Xu Gaoyou couldn't wait to open the door.
He walked to the door of the store and saw Lin Ju also got out of the car, but did not rush over. Instead, he went around to the other side and leaned on the car window, not knowing what he was talking about with Zhao Xingcan.
"Are you really not going to eat?" Lin Ju almost leaned half of his body into the car window.
Zhao Xingcan lifted her long hair and smoothed it behind her shoulders, then stroked her smooth cheeks up and down. "I'm a little tired and have no appetite. Text me when you're done eating."
"Okay then." Lin Ju suddenly hugged his neck, "I haven't kissed you enough, kiss you again." After saying that, she bit his lips.
Zhao Xingcan was stunned. He raised his hand and touched his bitten lip. When he opened his eyes, the girl had already run away. Her long hair, which had just been combed, was now scattered like seaweed.
He sat in the car and smiled.
Lin Ju's hot pot was destined to be tasteless.
After eating for about half an hour, Xu Gaoyou saw that she was absent-minded and felt bored. He wiped his mouth with a piece of paper, glanced at the phone she was holding tightly, and asked, "Did I look for you?"
Lin Ju shook her head, and Xu Gaoyou said, "Then go find him."
"Have you finished eating?" Lin Ju checked the time on his phone. "It's only been half an hour."
"I don't want to eat anymore." Xu Gaoyou lowered his eyes, looked at the boiling red hot pot soup, and said, "Sister, I'm sorry. I was wrong to say that before."
"What did you say?" Lin Ju raised her head slightly and gave him a bright smile, "I forgot about it a long time ago. How can a sister and a brother argue with each other?"
Xu Gaoyou was stunned for a few seconds before smiling, "That's right, you are my sister."
Lin Ju sent a message to Zhao Xingcan, and when she walked to the door, she saw the black car.
Xu Gaoyou didn't get on the car. He said his hotel was not far away and he could just walk there to help digest his food.
When Lin Ju got into the car, she saw pink and white roses on the passenger seat and she picked them up immediately.
After sitting down, she held the flower in her arms, lowered her head and sniffed deeply, "It smells so good."
Zhao Xingcan raised his hand to brush away the loose hair on her forehead. "Lin Ju, happy graduation."
Lin Ju's face was buried in the pink and white roses, making her the most beautiful of the flowers. Zhao Xingcan's eyes fell on her lips, and his fingers rubbed the corner of her mouth.
Lin Ju thought he was going to kiss her, so she tilted her head back slightly, only to hear him say with a smile, "Lin Ju, there's sesame on the corner of your mouth."
The snow-white face suddenly turned red, and the blush spread from the cheeks to the neck.
Zhao Xingcan guessed that Lin Ju's skin should also be flushed at this moment, like the petals of this pink and white rose.
The car was heading towards the Peninsula Villa. It was late at night and the layers of tree shadows covered the path. As the car passed by, birds in the forest chirped.
When Hai City was closed, this road was where she and Zhao Xingcan would take their daily walks after dinner. They would stroll under the dense forest, and when the weather warmed and the days lengthened, or when it rained a lot in spring, they would hold this umbrella and walk slowly.
During that time, it felt like I had entered retirement life early, with endless laziness and endless rest.
Now, after more than a month, Lin Ju came back and had the illusion that he was in another world.
It seemed as if the four months of being locked up with Zhao Xingcan was just a dream, and after waking up from the dream, Zhao Xingcan would return to his own world.
In that bizarre world where wealth and power that did not belong to her were paramount.
The car drove through the carved gate and stopped in the courtyard.
Lin Ju got out of the car holding the roses and went into the house. She found an empty vase and wanted to put the flowers in it first.
Zhao Xingcan couldn't wait any longer. He hugged her from behind, resting his chin on her shoulder. His body relaxed, and even his voice was filled with fatigue. "I have four hours left before I leave."
Lin Ju immediately put down the flowers, turned around, and looked at him eagerly, "So fast." She paused, "I thought you were bluffing when you said you were flying tonight."
Zhao Xingcan held her and took a step forward, pinched Lin Ju's waist, and carried her directly onto the table, using his right leg to push Lin Ju's legs apart.
Lin Ju's body was scented with the fragrance of roses. Zhao Xingcan lowered his head and couldn't help but move closer.
Lin Ju reached out and pushed him away, tilting her head, her earlobes flushed red, "Do I smell like hot pot?"
"No way? Let me smell it."
His fingers quietly lifted Lin Ju's collar.
The temperature in Hai City was very high today. Since they had to take graduation photos outdoors, Lin Ju, fearing the heat, wore a thin blue dress. The hem reached her knees, and the collar was a shirt-like collar, all three buttons undone. Her long hair was pulled back, leaving her neck like a pile of snow, tinted red and covered in bright red sucking marks.
Lin Ju sat at the table, her body trembling slightly.
She saw the large glass wall behind Zhao Xingcan. The moonlight penetrated the prismatic glass and fell on the bench, swaying slowly like a stream, just like the ups and downs of her emotions.
Zhao Xingcan's hand fell on her knees, and the hem of her skirt was gently lifted.
She couldn't help trembling again, and her hand pressed against Zhao Xingcan's hand.
Their eyes met, separated by an ambiguous atmosphere, the flowing moonlight, a table full of fallen petals, and the expectation of responsibility, commitment, and love.
Zhao Xingcan withdrew his hand, held Lin Ju's face and kissed her deeply.
He leaned over to Lin Ju's ear and said, "We don't have enough time tonight, so... I'll let you go."
Lin Ju tilted her head and looked at him in the moonlight.
She whispered to him, "Zhao Xingcan, do you love me?"
She originally had no expectation that Zhao Xingcan would say he loved her.
Just like she, never considered her future with Zhao Xingcan.
But Zhao Xingcan hugged her, kissed her and said, "Love, Lin Ju, I love you."
Lin Ju couldn't help laughing. She was not a fool, but at this moment, she wanted to make herself a fool with only love in her brain.
She had seen a saying on the Internet before: a heartless person should swallow a hundred needles.
At that time, she thought so too.
But now, she suddenly didn't think so.
She thought that if Zhao Xingcan didn't love her, everything he said was a lie.
She also couldn't bear to let him swallow the needle, because it would be so painful. If Zhao Xingcan's finger was pricked and the skin was broken, she would feel heartbroken for a long time.
For the next two hours, they cuddled on the sofa and watched a movie.
She randomly picked a romantic film, which was a bit boring. Lin Ju felt sleepy as she watched, but Zhao Xingcan didn't have much time left here, so she didn't want to use it to sleep. She endured the tiredness, opened her eyes wide, and forced herself to be more alert.
Halfway through the movie, Zhao Xingcan felt his shoulder sink. He turned his head and saw Lin Ju's face resting on his shoulder, her eyelashes trembling uneasily and her brows furrowed.
He gently raised his arm, put his arm around Lin Ju's shoulders, and carefully moved his body so that she could lie flat on the sofa.
Lin Ju murmured, but did not open his eyes and remained asleep.
Zhao Xingcan simply sat on the carpet next to the sofa, picked up the remote control and turned off the movie.
The only sound in the living room was the rustling of the air conditioner. Worried that Lin Ju might catch a cold sleeping there, he quietly got up and went upstairs to get a blanket. Coming down, he covered Lin Ju with it. Seeing that the water cup on the coffee table was empty, he worried that Lin Ju might wake up thirsty and want a drink, so he took the cup and filled it with water.
As soon as he sat down, thinking that Lin Ju would wake up early tomorrow morning and want breakfast, he went to the kitchen again, made a sandwich, and placed it in a conspicuous place. Sitting down again, he saw the roses scattered on the table. He stood up and went over to remove the thorns from the roses, placing them one by one in the vase.
When Lin Ju woke up, Zhao Xingcan had already left.
She pulled back the blanket, her mouth dry, and drank a few sips of water from the glass. She saw the roses already arranged on the table. She walked over, sniffed them, turned around, and saw the milk and sandwiches poured beside them.
A square piece of paper was pressed under a white porcelain square plate, with Zhao Xingcan's handwriting on it.
Wait for me to come back
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