Chapter 118 I'm truly impressed by you two...
The day I left New York was a bright, clear day. The sky was crystal clear, and the sunlight streamed down without reservation, dancing in tiny spots of light between the glass curtain walls.
Xia Zhiyao stood at the hotel entrance, one hand holding her suitcase, her head slightly tilted back, her eyes narrowed, reflecting the unreal blue sky.
"What are you thinking about again?" Zhou Yue walked over from the driver's side, his tone still warm from the recent conversation.
She turned her head and smiled: "I was thinking, the last time I walked through here, the sky was so dark it looked like it was going to collapse."
“Yes,” he looked up following her gaze, “it snowed heavily that night. I didn’t sleep all night, watching the snow gradually bury the streets.”
Xia Zhiyao's smile paused slightly, a mixture of calm and indescribable melancholy in her voice. "This time it's a sunny day," she said softly.
"That means what's past is past," he said gently.
On the way to the airport, New York City receded frame by frame outside the car window. The leaves in Central Park were all yellow, with layers of gold, brown, and orange-red. When the wind blew, the fallen leaves tumbled up and fell back down, making a soft rustling sound.
Sunlight filtered through the branches, casting dappled shadows on the ground that flickered with the speed of the car, like shattered amber.
Xia Zhiyao leaned against the car window, her elbows propped on the sill, gazing out the window. Suddenly, she smiled and said, "It's strange. When I came to New York before, I always felt that this place was like a dream, distant and unreal, as if it would shatter if I reached out. But now that I look at it..." She paused, "it's just a city."
Zhou Yue turned his head to look at her profile outlined by the sunlight: "That means you're awake."
"Now that you're awake, it's time to return to reality." Xia Zhiyao nodded, as if saying goodbye.
"Reality is fine too." His voice was calm, yet reassuring.
She turned her head, her gaze falling on his face. Their eyes met, and her smile held tenderness, tacit understanding, and a silent unspoken sentiment that they both understood.
Inside the airport, boarding announcements played repeatedly, a mix of English, Chinese, and Spanish echoing through the hall as people moved about and the sound of suitcases rolling filled the air, like the heartbeat of the city.
They stopped in front of the security checkpoint. Xia Zhiyao looked down at her boarding pass. The paper gleamed coldly under the light. The boarding gate, seat number, and departure time—those numbers suddenly seemed exceptionally concrete, as if reminding her of something irreversible.
She looked up, her tone as light as if in casual conversation: "You'll be busy with projects again when you go back this time, right?"
"I'll be busy," Zhou Yue nodded, paused, and then looked up, "but I'll definitely have time to spend with you."
She smiled, her lips and eyes curving upwards: "Then I'll wait for you."
The plane taxied slowly, the runway gleaming silvery in the afternoon sun, stretching straight to the horizon. The scenery outside the window began to rush past, the terminal building, ground vehicles, and planes on the tarmac all blurring into flowing colors, like a movie being rewound.
The Hudson River shimmered with a pale blue light in the distance, while the Manhattan skyline shrank to the size of a matchbox, its shadows elongated by the sunlight, like the edges of an old photograph, gently rolled up by time and slowly fading away.
"It's so nice to have a sunny day," she said softly, her voice carrying a sense of peace that comes from having shed a burden.
Zhou Yue turned to look at her, reached out and took her hand. Her hand was a little cold, but his palm was warm. He gently stroked her skin, and that moment of touch made him feel calm.
"Yes," he replied with a smile, "from now on, it will all be sunny days."
The plane landed at 6:30 a.m., just as dawn was breaking in Beijing, with a thin layer of mist hanging over the end of the runway.
"We're home." Zhou Yue's voice sounded from the side, hoarse from just waking up. He waved his hand in front of her eyes, his fingertips almost touching her nose.
Xia Zhiyao then opened her eyes, turned her head to look out the window, and couldn't help but smile: "It feels like we've only just adjusted to the time difference..."
“Yeah,” Zhou Yue stretched, his joints making a crisp “crack” sound, “Now we have to go back to the way we were.”
"Don't sleep during the day today." She rubbed her temples, her voice slightly nasal, "or you'll be in big trouble tonight."
"Can you do it?" He glanced at her, clearly doubtful.
"Sure," she yawned, squeezing out a few tears from the corner of her eye, which she casually wiped with the back of her hand, "through work."
"Just what I expected." Zhou Yue smiled as he unbuckled his seatbelt.
The two smiled at each other. Zhou Yue helped Xia Zhiyao take her carry-on suitcase. The moment they stepped out of the cabin, the cold wind of early winter in Beijing hit them in the face. It was dry, biting, and carried the ruggedness unique to the North.
Xia Zhiyao shuddered, her drowsiness mostly dispelled. The familiar broadcasts and the rumble of suitcase wheels filled the hall, creating a noisy sense of calm.
From the golden autumn in New York to the gray early winter in Beijing, from the fallen leaves on the Hudson River to the cold wind at the Capital Airport, everything feels so real and reassuring.
While waiting for her luggage, Xia Zhiyao leaned against the conveyor belt, took out her phone, and saw a row of red dots flashing. She didn't open it, but just stared at the time for a few seconds, then sighed softly, "It's only evening in New York..."
“Yeah, we’re completely in a mess.” Zhou Yue stood to the side, one hand in his pocket and the other holding a coffee, smiling helplessly.
"Let me guess, you might go straight to the company later?" She turned to look at him.
“Yes, I have a few meetings to attend to first.” He took a sip of coffee. “I guessed you did too.”
"Haha, I have a proposal to finalize this afternoon, so I have to go to the company this morning." Her gaze fell on the conveyor belt, where colorful boxes slid slowly by, the rhythm almost hypnotic. She paused, then added, "Tonight... whoever gets home first will cook dinner?"
"Of course." Zhou Yue answered quickly, almost without hesitation. He turned to her, his gaze meeting hers, and smiled faintly: "You can't not even say goodnight before going to sleep, can you?"
She turned her face away, pretending to be focused on the conveyor belt, but actually not wanting him to see the barely concealed heat on her face. Her ears were burning, and her heart was pounding. She didn't know how to respond, only muttering softly, "Why isn't my suitcase coming out yet..."
When Xia Zhiyao arrived at the company, Zheng Xiaotian was walking down the corridor with a cane. He was stunned when he saw Xia Zhiyao.
"Didn't you just get off the plane this morning? Aren't you going home to rest?"
Xia Zhiyao curved her lips into a smile, her voice husky with laughter: "If I fall asleep at home, I won't be able to adjust to the time difference. I slept for about ten hours on the plane, so my mind is still relatively clear. I came to the company to take a look. Zhou Yue is here too."
Zheng Xiaotian blinked, looking like he'd seen a ghost: "I'm really impressed by you two, you two are a match made in heaven as workaholics."
Xia Zhiyao was amused. She took off her coat and draped it over the back of her chair. She turned on her computer, and emails started popping up one after another.
From morning till night, time seemed to be divided into segments, filled with meetings, phone calls, and signatures. Zhou Yue hardly ever got up from his office. Numbers flashed on the screen, reports rolled on, and before he could even digest one wave of investment models, another wave came crashing down on him.
At four o'clock in the afternoon, he finally took a moment to massage his temples, leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes for a few seconds, his mind was a mess, the numbers were still spinning, but suddenly a thought flashed through his mind, "She's probably still busy right now."
He opened his eyes, staring at the ceiling light, his expression blank, only feeling a little tired. The light outside the window gradually dimmed, the orange-red glow of the setting sun sliding down the glass curtain wall of the building opposite.
Xia Zhiyao's situation wasn't much better. She had to hand over the work she had completed in New York, and she didn't even have time to drink water in between.
When she returned to her office, Lin Qianfan placed another stack of materials on her desk and said with a smile, "This is the new proposal for today."
When she sent the last email, she breathed a sigh of relief and looked down at the bottom right corner of the screen. It was past five o'clock.
She picked up her phone and sent Zhou Yue a message: "Looks like I should go home first." Then she turned off her computer, picked up her bag, her legs felt a little numb when she stood up, she swayed a bit, and pushed open the door to go out.
When Zhou Yue drove out of the company, it was already completely dark. Beijing's evening rush hour is always like this, with red taillights stretching endlessly. The navigation system was mechanically announcing directions, but he didn't listen to it at all.
The meeting from earlier that day was still replaying in her mind. The financial assessment needed to be recalculated, her subordinates were constantly pressuring her, and she had gone through countless PowerPoint presentations. After a period of frantic activity, Xia Zhiyao sent her a WeChat message: "Looks like I should go home first."
He looked at the words and smiled knowingly.
The car drove onto the main road. The night was as dark as ink, and the surroundings were filled with flowing light. As he drove, he silently calculated the time in his mind. She had probably just finished showering, maybe she was changing clothes, or maybe she was just leaning on the sofa, not thinking about anything.
As the car turned into the residential area, he leaned back in his seat as if all his strength had been released. Only then did he belatedly realize that he was really tired, but the tiredness was not entirely unpleasant; it was mixed with a strange sense of calm.
He knew that someone at home was waiting.
Xia Zhiyao was squatting in front of the dining table, unpacking the takeout boxes one by one. She had ordered a lot of side dishes and two large bowls of wontons. The table was not set out in a fancy way, but it made people feel at ease at first glance.
Hearing the door open, she turned to look at him and said with a smile, "You really do come back right on time."
Zhou Yue paused in changing his shoes, then chuckled and asked, "How did you know I wanted to eat wontons?"
“This is the only thing we didn’t get to eat in New York. Actually, I wanted to eat it too,” Xia Zhiyao said with a smile. “So I ordered it.”
Xia Zhiyao handed over the chopsticks, and their fingertips touched lightly for a moment. The cool touch passed quickly, and they separated as if nothing had happened.
"Are you done with your work today?" she asked while picking up some food.
"Barely. The investment is pressing, so I might have to go there again tomorrow afternoon." Zhou Yue picked up a piece of pickled pepper and preserved egg with his chopsticks.
"I'm fine, I guess I can have a quiet weekend."
Neither of them said anything more, as if they had tacitly accepted this situation. Being busy was their normal state. The steam from the wontons slowly rose between them, and for a moment, even time seemed to soften.
Xia Zhiyao was halfway through her meal when she suddenly looked up at him and asked, "Did you talk a lot today?"
Zhou Yue was taken aback for a moment, then chuckled: "How did you know?"
"Your voice is hoarse from talking so much." Her tone was soft, yet tinged with concern. "Didn't you notice?"
Zhou Yue looked at her, smiled, and said in a low, husky voice, "Now you can tell."
He looked at her and smiled, his gaze warm. Neither of them spoke again, only the crisp sound of chopsticks hitting the rim of the bowl could be heard.
When Zhou Yue came out after taking a shower, Xia Zhiyao was already lying in bed, completely buried in the blankets, her hair messily spread on the pillow, her eyes half-open, looking like she was about to fall asleep at any moment.
He walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed. Xia Zhiyao mumbled sleepily, "Don't move... I'm really going to fall asleep."
Zhou Yue smiled, said nothing, lifted the blanket and lay down. After a few seconds, he suddenly turned over and hugged her from behind.
Xia Zhiyao was taken aback by his sudden action, her voice still sleepy: "What else do you want to do?"
“I don’t have the energy to do anything else,” he said softly, his voice a little hoarse but with a hint of a smile. “I’ll just fall asleep after a hug.”
She was held in his arms, half helpless and half amused, and patted his arm: "Childish."
"I'm really sleepy."
"Then go to sleep and don't bother me."
He hummed in agreement, his breath falling on her neck, carrying a hint of warmth. Xia Zhiyao didn't move, only hearing his breathing gradually become steady.
The night was so quiet that only the sound of the wind outside the window could be heard. She closed her eyes, and a slight smile appeared on her lips. For a moment, she suddenly felt that this quiet moment was when she was truly "home".
The next morning, the doorbell rang for a while, but there was no response from inside.
Wei Ran stood at the door, carrying a lot of things. She rang the doorbell again and waited for more than ten seconds, but no one answered.
She frowned, took out her phone from her bag, and dialed Zhou Yue's number. It was temporarily unavailable; it must be in Do Not Disturb mode. She dialed again, but still no one answered.
Wei Ran stood at the door, a growing unease creeping into her heart. She had initially thought the young man, who had just returned from abroad the previous night, was probably catching up on sleep at home, but the doorbell rang three times without a single response…
Suddenly, she thought of something, and her palm tightened slightly. Could something have gone wrong? She hesitated for a few seconds, but still raised her hand and pressed that familiar string of numbers on the combination lock.
"Beep—" The door opened.
The room was quiet. Wei Ran put all his things on the cabinet by the door and walked over. He saw that Xia Zhiyao's door was open, the bed was neatly made, and the quilt was folded flat. Obviously, no one had slept there last night.
Wei Ran's heart skipped a beat. She stood there, stunned, her mind racing with images. Her gaze slowly turned to the master bedroom, where the door was closed and there was no sound.
She stood there, silent for several seconds, trying to keep her breathing steady. Should she knock? She asked herself inwardly.
Reason told her she should confirm, but a deeper intuition stopped her. Some things, once confirmed, can never be the same again.
She didn't move in the end. She turned around, walked to the sofa, and sat down. The living room was unusually quiet, with only the occasional sound of cars coming from outside the window in the distance.
Wei Ran looked up at the closed door, his expression calm, but his heart was filled with confusion, anxiety, loss, and a premonition he was unwilling to admit.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
