Chapter 1

Late Spring — petals scattered like rain.

A rare, continuous drizzle painted a misty hue across the capital.

Beijing High-Speed Rail Station.

Shi Xia wore a black face mask and briskly pushed two suitcases ahead of her, walking fast.

Not far behind, a small boy huffed in frustration:
“Xia Xia! Slow down! I can’t keep up!”

Shi Xia sighed, glanced at the time, anxiety flaring. She was afraid they’d miss the train. But in the end, she slowed her pace and waited for little Shi Yan, his short legs pattering hurriedly to catch up.

Taking a deep breath, she crouched down to his level, trying her best to reason with him:
“Shi Xiao Yan, our train leaves at 9:50. It’s already 9:35. If we don’t hurry, we’ll miss it—and that means no trip.”

The little boy immediately scrunched up his face. “I don’t want that!”

Shi Xia stayed patient, though her speech quickened.
“Then it’s either I carry you, or Tang Guo carries you.”

Shi Yan frowned. “Why?”

Shi Xia inhaled sharply.
“Because you’re walking too slow.”

This little guy fancied himself all grown up now and hated being carried. Wherever they went, he insisted on walking by himself.

But come on—look at the time!

Lately, he’d hit that language stage where “Why?” seemed to be his favorite word. She wasn’t even sure where he was in terms of development anymore, but “Why” was clearly on repeat.

Seeing him still insisting on walking, Shi Xia finally lost her patience.
“Because you took forever to eat earlier and wasted so much time. If you keep standing here asking why, we’ll waste even more. Forget the trip—we’ll just go home!”

At four years old, Shi Yan had already learned how to read people’s moods. Realizing she was truly mad, he immediately gave in and hugged her leg.
“Okay, you can carry me.”

Shi Xia exhaled in defeat, handed the luggage to Tang Guo, picked Shi Yan up, and made her way to the security checkpoint.

Today was just not going smoothly.

Technically, they weren’t even late—they’d arrived thirty minutes early. Normally, that would be plenty of time to get through security and board.

But today? The station was conducting repeated, complicated checks. Not just scanning luggage, but matching IDs to faces—every single person.

Shi Xia wasn’t afraid of being recognized. With her level of fame? She wouldn’t mind a bit of unexpected clout from some candid fan photos. She’d love to trend on social media.

But this was just way too time-consuming!

Especially with a kid in tow—watching the child, managing the luggage, keeping track of IDs—it was exhausting.

Tang Guo tried to comfort her. “Xia Xia, honestly, Shi Yan’s already more well-behaved than most kids.”

Shi Xia let out a breath and gave the little guy a light tap on the back of the head with the ID she was holding. She didn’t respond aloud.

She was already regretting agreeing to this vacation.

When they reached the security gate and she saw Qin Lie standing there, she immediately regretted everything even more.

Oh no. Turns out… she was afraid of being recognized after all!

Especially—especially afraid that Shi Yan would be recognized by him.

Without hesitation, Shi Xia turned around, set Shi Yan on top of a suitcase, and quickly instructed him and Tang Guo:
“You two go ahead. I’ll come after.”

While she adjusted his little hat snugly on his head, she gave a firm warning:
“Wear it properly. Don’t take it off!”

Since he was old enough to understand, Shi Yan had been taught not to call her “Mom” in public—only “Xia Xia.”

Seeing her so serious now, he assumed maybe the paparazzi were nearby?

And since he’d just made her mad earlier, he figured now was a good time to redeem himself. So he obediently patted the suitcase handle and called out to Tang Guo:
“Come on, hurry! We’re gonna miss the train!”

Shi Xia subtly put some distance between herself and them, letting several people come between them in the queue. Everyone was rushing to get through, so no one paid her any attention.

Having already gone through multiple checks, the passengers were cooperative—handing over IDs without complaint, though a few grumbled:
“What’s the deal today? More checks? Now even firefighters are doing ID inspections? Seriously?”

Shi Xia heard them and silently agreed.
Yeah… this was a bit much.

Still grumbling inwardly, she couldn’t help but sneak glances at the man doing the checks.

Qin Lie.

He’d become a firefighter?

She was secretly relieved. If she hadn’t been quick and sharp-eyed earlier, she would’ve walked right into him!

Thank goodness.

“Routine check. Please cooperate. ID.”
Qin Lie’s voice was low and gravelly, magnetic and unmistakable.

Shi Xia’s ears suddenly felt itchy. She rubbed one and blinked a few times.

She’d been drawn to that voice since she was young. She thought that, after all these years, she’d have forgotten it—or at least grown immune. But no. Five years later, his voice had only gotten deeper, more alluring, and even harder to resist.

The line inched forward. There were three inspection points ahead, each staffed by two officers: left, center, and right.

Tang Guo and Shi Yan had gone through the left lane.

Shi Xia aimed for the far right—Qin Lie was in the center, and she wanted to avoid him.

But luck wasn’t on her side. She was small, light, and easily pushed by the crowd. Before she could react, she was funneled right into the center lane.

Right in front of him.

Qin Lie glanced up after letting someone through—and froze when his eyes met hers.

Two seconds later:
“ID, please.”

Shi Xia, trying to shift lanes, froze as well.
“….”

He glanced down at the ID she clutched, then took it and scanned it with his device.

“Is this your own ID?”

Shi Xia: “….”

She tugged down her mask and looked him straight in the eye.
“Yes, it’s mine.”

Qin Lie looked at her for a moment, then returned the ID and waved her through.
“Next.”

Shi Xia suddenly felt awkward. Relieved, but also… disappointed.

She lowered her eyes, pulled her mask back up, and wheeled her suitcase forward.

It was too noisy around her, so she didn’t hear him quietly say:
“…Mm.”

The rest of the walk was silent. Her good mood from earlier had completely vanished—like clouds rolling in.

Five years apart.
An unexpected encounter.

He… had probably forgotten her, hadn’t he?

Or if he did remember, maybe he just didn’t want anything to do with her anymore.

Behind her mask, Shi Xia puffed out her cheeks in frustration—annoyed at her heart for still reacting like this just from seeing him again.

After their round of checks, with no more trains boarding at the moment, Qin Lie’s team had a short break.

Wang Shuai nudged him with an elbow.
“Chief… that girl just now—she’s a celeb, isn’t she?”

Qin Lie took a sip of water, didn’t respond, and kept a neutral face.

Their team was a mix of police and firefighters due to an emergency citywide drill. With checkpoints at train stations, airports, bus terminals, and subways, there weren’t enough personnel, so departments had been teamed up temporarily.

A nearby police officer overheard.
“Wait, there was a celeb? Who was it?”

Wang Shuai lowered his voice.
“Shi Xia.”

“…Doesn’t ring a bell. She famous?”

“Eh… she’s mostly played supporting roles, I think. Not super popular.” Wang Shuai hesitated, then added, “But in person? Way prettier than on TV. Total knockout.”

Before he could finish, Qin Lie suddenly set down his water bottle.
“Break’s over. Back to work.”