♡ Chapter 7.1 ♡

Yu Xia worked on her drafts until around 1 AM. Lying on her bed with her head hanging off the edge, she stretched her neck while scrolling through her Moments. She noticed that Lu Yanzhou had liked her post an hour ago.

Seeing his avatar, Yu Xia’s tired brain immediately woke up. She recalled his words, which now seemed a lot more meaningful.

She tossed her phone aside, her eyes wide open. After a moment, she scrambled out of bed with her messy hair and quickly sent a message to Tang Yue.

Living in Winter: [I suspect Lu Yanzhou likes me.]

She had never mentioned Lu Yanzhou before.

So, Tang Yue asked: [Who is Lu Yanzhou?]

Living in Winter: [The handsome neighbor.]

Tang Yue sent a voice message, sounding half-hearted: [Oh, well, congratulations on being soulmates. I’ll be your bridesmaid when you get married.]

Living in Winter: […………]

Yu Xia ran her fingers through her hair and sat on the bed for a while, feeling a little unsure. She replied: [Who said we’re soulmates… I mostly just like his looks.]

Tang Yue: [That’s still liking him.]

Another voice message: [He’s so handsome, and if you’re both soulmates, just date! It’s not like you’ll lose out.]

Tang Yue was always eager to encourage others to get into relationships, but she couldn’t even confess to the person she’d been secretly in love with for years. Yu Xia ignored her and replied: [Your voice is making me sleepy. Go to bed quickly.]

Tang Yue had been about to sleep, but now she was wide awake. She immediately called Yu Xia: “You’ve got me wide awake now. Hurry up and tell me what happened with the handsome neighbor. If you don’t, I won’t be able to sleep.”

Yu Xia explained the situation and asked, “I didn’t misunderstand, did I?”

“Relating to what you said last time, I feel like…” Tang Yue paused. “He’s hinting that you should chase him?”

“……”

That hit the mark.

It was undeniable that it felt nice to be noticed by someone as handsome as Lu Yanzhou, but in addition to happiness, Yu Xia also felt strangely anxious. These two emotions mixed together were enough to keep her tossing and turning and unable to sleep.

Tang Yue added: “I haven’t met him yet, but based on your description, I’m pretty sure he’s exactly your type. But don’t rush, you’ve only known each other a few days. Get to know each other better before making any big decisions.”

“I’m not in a rush.” Yu Xia thought she was being quite rational. “I’m just a little nervous, maybe because he’s so mature and gives off a relaxed and confident vibe. It’s different from my past relationships.”

Tang Yue sounded cautious: “I hope he’s not a player or a heartbreaker.”

“……”

Yu Xia had only been in two relationships. The first was in high school, and it had been pure and innocent, while the second had been with a scumbag. She didn’t have much experience judging what kind of person Lu Yanzhou was. Although her intuition told her he was a good guy, intuition wasn’t always right.

Tang Yue’s words hit her like a cool mint candy in the middle of a midnight storm, refreshing her mind. Yu Xia took a deep breath. “I’m completely calm now. Let’s go to sleep, babe.”

She managed to stay calm until the next afternoon.

She had worked diligently all day and, around 5 PM, got up to stretch and grabbed a cup of yogurt from the fridge to drink on the sofa. Afterward, she composed herself and sent Lu Yanzhou a message, asking what time he would be getting off work.

A few minutes later, Lu Yanzhou replied: [I’ll be off at 6, and I’ll be downstairs in about twenty minutes.]

Yu Xia was about to reply when her phone vibrated.

L: [Do you want to take the car or walk?]

Was he offering to pick her up?

She didn’t hesitate: [Take the car!]

In the other office, Lu Yanzhou looked at his phone and chuckled, “She’s so lazy!”

He knew the nature of a comic artist’s job—long hours at the desk, staying up late to meet deadlines, and poor physical health overall.

Yu Xia was probably in even worse shape.

After exchanging messages with Lu Yanzhou, Yu Xia started changing her clothes and doing her makeup. Once she was ready, she waited about ten minutes before Lu Yanzhou sent a message telling her to come downstairs.

She grabbed her bag and headed down. It was already dusk, and the streetlights hadn’t come on yet. Lu Yanzhou, dressed in a black suit similar to the one he wore yesterday, stood tall beside a flower bed. At this hour, with people walking by, he stood out even more.

He seemed to sense something and turned to look in her direction.

Yu Xia paused in her steps, suddenly reminded that their positions now were the same as when she had hugged the wrong person that night. Her heart raced uncontrollably as she thought back to that moment when she had rushed over and hugged him. Taking a deep breath, she slowly walked toward him.

She glanced around but didn’t see his car.

Standing in front of him, she looked up calmly. “Where’s the car?”

Wasn’t it agreed that they would drive?

She was 163 cm tall, and with his height towering over hers by more than 20 cm, she wore a pair of high heels to give herself a little extra height.

Lu Yanzhou looked at her shoes, his eyes narrowing slightly. “Can’t walk? You can go back and change your shoes.”

She wasn’t a beginner at walking in heels. The 6-7 cm heels weren’t that high. Yu Xia exaggerated a little: “No need, I can climb mountains in heels. I’m not scared of a ten-minute walk.”

Lu Yanzhou curved his lips into a smile and turned to walk ahead. “Let’s go then.”

Yu Xia hummed in response, muttering as she followed, “Then why did you ask whether I wanted to take a car or walk?”

“I was just asking casually.”

“…”

Yu Xia felt he did it on purpose, but she had no proof.

When they reached the entrance of the neighborhood, Lu Yanzhou received a phone call. Yu Xia couldn’t help but feel relieved. If it weren’t for this timely call, the fifteen-minute walk would’ve left her racking her brain for something to talk about. Walking side by side, she listened to Lu Yanzhou on the phone. His voice was deep and pleasant, but he was speaking in professional terms that she couldn’t understand.

Since several nearby neighborhoods were close to each other, with heavy foot traffic, the developers had built a small commercial area a few years ago. There were many places to eat, most of which didn’t focus on big brands. It was convenient to wander around. It was mealtime, and the area was already bustling with crowds.

As they walked, Yu Xia noticed that walking beside Lu Yanzhou seemed to attract a lot of attention. Aside from attending comic cons, she had never been stared at by so many people.

She thought to herself that this man must be quite popular with the ladies.

When they reached the restaurant, Lu Yanzhou finished his call. He hung up, looked down at Yu Xia, and said, “Sorry, I had to take care of something at work.”

Yu Xia smiled at him. “It’s fine. Work is important.”

There was already a line outside the restaurant. Since Yu Xia had made a reservation, they went straight inside. Their table was by the window, with a good view of the lively scene outside.

She handed the menu to Lu Yanzhou and let him order.

“You order,” Lu Yanzhou said, pushing the menu back to her.

Yu Xia didn’t insist. As she flipped through the menu, she asked him if there was anything he couldn’t eat. Lu Yanzhou took off his jacket and placed it on the chair. He glanced at her. “I don’t like sweet food.”

“Seems like most men don’t like sweet things. How about fish?” Yu Xia muttered, lifting her head. She suddenly stopped mid-sentence, unable to finish the word “fish.”

Lu Yanzhou was casually unbuttoning his shirt as he looked out the window. He had undone the second button, revealing a clean, sharp Adam’s apple and a strong jawline. Hearing her words, he turned back and met her gaze directly. “That works.”

Yu Xia’s calm demeanor suddenly crumbled, and her heart began to race.

At that moment, she was completely caught off guard.

It was a feeling she had never experienced before.

Just last night, she had been questioning the truth of Lu Yanzhou’s attraction to her. Now, she suddenly believed in the existence of this instant attraction.

Lu Yanzhou’s appearance and demeanor were simply her ideal type! He easily made her heart flutter.

She dared not meet his eyes again, lowering her head in a panic and quickly checking the menu. After a moment, she handed the menu back to Lu Yanzhou. “Do you want to add anything?”

Lu Yanzhou glanced at the menu, and then handed it to the waiter. “That’s it.”

Yu Xia took a sip of her tea, trying to calm her nerves. “Do you get a lot of girls coming up to talk to you when you’re walking on the street?”

Lu Yanzhou leaned back casually in his chair and looked at her. “Why do you ask?”

He didn’t answer directly. Yu Xia prompted him, “When we were walking earlier, a lot of girls turned around to look at you.”

“And then? Did anyone come up to talk to me?”

“…I was right next to you. They probably thought I was your girlfriend, so who would dare approach?” Yu Xia felt he was doing this on purpose.

Lu Yanzhou’s gaze remained steady on her, a faint smile curling at the corner of his lips. “When you’re not next to me, very few people approach me either.”

“Why?” She didn’t believe him.

Lu Yanzhou paused, then asked her in return, “If you met someone you really liked on the street, would you go up and ask for their WeChat?”

“…” Yu Xia was caught off guard.

She wouldn’t.

For a girl, it really did take a lot of courage.

Lu Yanzhou raised an eyebrow. “Anything else you want to ask?”

Yu Xia thought for a moment, still most curious about his job. She introduced herself first. “You’ve seen my Moments, so you probably know I’m a cartoonist. I mostly draw comics, and sometimes I take on commercial work.” She paused briefly, then added, “What do you do for a living?”

Based on her earlier behavior, Lu Yanzhou thought she might continue asking personal questions. He paused before answering. “AIGC^[1]AIGC, or AI-Generated Content, is content like text, images, or music created by artificial intelligence. Professionals in AIGC use AI tools to quickly produce creative work based on prompts, making … Continue reading.”

Yu Xia replied with an “Ah” in surprise. Lu Yanzhou assumed she didn’t understand and was about to explain when she said, “Oh,” with a somewhat complicated look in her eyes. “That’s impressive.”

Lu Yanzhou: “…”

Why did that compliment feel… sarcastic? Was that just his imagination?