Tu Ming found Lumi quite refreshing, the way she could be so impulsive with people, changing them on a whim, showing a rather irresponsible attitude towards relationships. But since it didn’t concern him much, he didn’t say much.

After finishing the last bit of his meal, he got up to pay the bill, pointing at Lumi: “That one’s together.”

“No, no, no,” Lumi waved her hand: “That’s not how it’s done. Nowadays, dating is all about going Dutch, especially since we’re not familiar with each other.” Lumi didn’t hold back when she wanted to annoy Tu Ming, aiming to provoke him with her sharp remarks.

When paying the bill, she bought a bottle of iced cola, twisting it open and gulping it down, finishing it with a comfortable burp, showing an attitude of enjoying her drink regardless of what others thought.

Tu Ming was determined to match her, thinking that it was both spicy and cold in the morning, which was quite foolish.

Fortunately, Lumi had an iron stomach, so occasionally indulging like this was no big deal. The two of them went to the set one after the other, ignoring each other.

Lumi was still upset, thinking resentfully, “Just you wait, Mr. Tu Ming! She had a childish mentality; the more Tu Ming disliked her, the more she wanted to compete, not bothering to think about why she was competing with Tu Ming in the first place.

Tu Ming had already explained the situation to Lumi clearly, breaking it down and making sure she understood. He had also heard Lumi say that she knew when to retreat. But when he saw Lumi again, she was the same as ever, not feeling embarrassed about the kiss at all. Her directness and assertiveness remained.

She wasn’t embarrassed, but Tu Ming was.

When discussing work with her, he would stand a meter away, finish talking, and leave without any unnecessary words, giving off the impression of a noble gentleman.

Lumi couldn’t figure it out. When strolling with Shang Zhi Tao, she pointed at him from afar: “Isn’t he weird? He was so much more at home before! He even walked the birds without any issues. But a kiss from me and he’s all upset. I don’t get it.”

Shang Zhi Tao didn’t understand either, could only shake his head: “I don’t have much experience either, I don’t know what he’s thinking.”

“Hmph!” Lumi pretended to be angry: “Who cares about him anyway! He’s so indecisive and not straightforward!”

“I’m not playing with him anymore! It’s no fun!” Lumi bit hard on an ice pop, viciously, as if she were taking her anger out on Tu Ming through the ice pop, wanting to devour him. Lumi was full of tricks; she ate her ice pop while pondering Tu Ming’s character. To be sure, he had principles and was indeed tough, but he also had a weakness, and that was his soft heart.

The last scene in Yangshuo was a night shoot. It had rained all day, and the air was humid. By midnight, it was chillingly cold.

Everyone was struggling on the set, their eyes bloodshot from exhaustion.

Lumi was so tired she kept tearing up, and her eyes were a bit inflamed, itchy and painful. She stood aside to apply eye drops. After applying them, she tilted her head slightly to let them absorb, and Tu Ming and Wang Jiexing passed by. Wang Jiexing called out to her: “Lumi! What are you doing?”

Lumi opened her eyes to look at him, her eyes wet and watery, with the eye drops flowing down like tears. The two men were stunned.

Wang Jiexing had grown up in the same alley with Lumi. As a child, he had been beaten by Lumi and followed her around asking for candy. He had never seen the big sister cry; of course, Tu Ming had never seen it either.

“What’s wrong?” Wang Jiexing asked her: “Who bullied you?”

Lumi, feeling aggrieved and sniffling, actually squeezed out a crocodile tear: “I’m sad.” She stopped halfway through her sentence, unable to continue the lie, and simply shut her mouth, giving Tu Ming a resentful look.

Tu Ming carefully considered whether he had spoken too harshly yesterday or had a bad attitude. He concluded that his tone was indeed not good, but he felt he had already been very restrained. If it were someone else, he would have already dismissed her.

“I have something else to do, shall we talk later, Mr. Wang?” Tu Ming came out, and Lumi was somewhat familiar with Wang Jiexing.

“Sure. Will, you go ahead, I’ll chat with Lumi for a bit.”

The two watched Tu Ming walk away, and Wang Jiexing walked up to Lumi, asking her: “Why are you crying?”

“Crying? It’s just eye drops!” Lumi took out a tissue to wipe her eyes.

“Brother, I thought someone bullied you. I was just about to ask who it was and prepare to take them on!”

“You can’t even beat me, how are you going to take on anyone?”

“True.”

Wang Jiexing was no longer that Mr. Wang; in front of Lumi, he shed his official demeanor and was still the childhood friend who had played together since they were bare-bottomed kids.

He leaned against the railing, took out an e-cigarette, and took a puff: “Why pretend not to know each other? If you know someone, you know them. Are you trying to avoid suspicion or something?”

“Pretending not to know you is mainly to avoid having to talk to you more…” Lumi was really infuriating, but Wang Jiexing was used to it and didn’t dare to make a sound, afraid that her temper would flare up and she might hit him, which was entirely possible.

But he was quite curious: “What was that look you gave Will just now? Do you two have something going on?”

“None of your business!”

“Speak nicely, tell me what’s going on. Maybe I can give you some advice.”

“I like him.”

“And? That’s it?”

“That’s it.”

“He doesn’t like you back?”

“He doesn’t.”

Wang Jiexing took a couple of puffs of his e-cigarette: “That guy must be blind. If I were him, I would have married you the moment I saw you.”

“But I wouldn’t like you. The hickey on your neck hasn’t faded yet! You’re too messy!”

“That was a misunderstanding.” Wang Jiexing covered his neck: “I did it myself.”

“Do it again now?”

After saying that, Lumi punched him and walked away.

Tu Ming saw the two of them standing there talking from a distance, and the final punch Lumi gave Wang Jiexing seemed somewhat intimate. She really did change her affections quickly.

The long night shoot was exhausting, with constant adjustments on the set. Lumi finished her part and sat aside, with only a thin coat over her, which didn’t help much against the cold, making her shiver.

Wang Jiexing wasn’t doing much better. He didn’t know where he got a blanket from, but at this point, he didn’t care about avoiding suspicion. He sat next to Lumi, spreading the blanket over both their legs, which helped a little.

“You’re not leaving after work, have you been kicked in the head by a donkey?” Wang Jiexing found it strange. He knew Lumi’s past behavior well.

If she heard there was hard work to be done, she would run faster than a rabbit. Today, however, she was sitting there enduring the night.

Lumi didn’t want to admit that she was playing the victim, so she waved her hand and said, “You’re just too enlightened to understand me! Do you know anything about standing strong and striving for success? Your head is the one that’s been kicked by a donkey!”

After saying that, she snatched the blanket and threw it at him: “Go away, go away, stay away from me. I’m training my physique here, don’t corrupt me with your sweet talk!”

Wang Jiexing knew she never spoke seriously, so he took the blanket and left, wondering what game Lumi was playing.

Lumi was shivering from the cold, thinking to herself, “Tu Ming, you bastard, why don’t you turn around and look at me!” But she couldn’t hold on any longer, so she told Shang Zhi Tao, “Ask Will what his plans are for tomorrow.”

“Aren’t we all flying back tomorrow?” Shang Zhi Tao replied, then realized something was off and turned to look at Lumi, who was pitifully cold. He understood that his friend was playing the victim card!

Tu Ming, who knew how to take care of himself, was sitting there wearing a thin fleece-lined jacket. Shang Zhi Tao patted him and deliberately moved to the side, allowing Tu Ming to see Lumi when he turned around.

“What is it?”

“Any other work arrangements for tomorrow? Do we need to change our flights?”

Tu Ming saw Lumi curled up in the chair, like a cold bird, shivering, and told Shang Zhi Tao, “No. You’ve worked hard all night; sleep in tomorrow and leave when you wake up naturally.”

“Alright, thank you, Will.”

“You’re welcome.”

Tu Ming turned away, pretending not to notice Lumi’s pitiful appearance, worried that she might catch a cold. He sighed, got up, and walked over to her, asking, “Are you done with your part?”

“Yes, I’m done.” Lumi was a bit listless, genuinely cold.

“Go back and sleep. We’ll change the flight to the afternoon tomorrow. Rest at home when you arrive.”

“No need to go to the company?”

“No need.”

“That’s not like you…”

“If you want to go, you can take the early flight.” Tu Ming interrupted her.

“No, no, I don’t want to go.” Lumi stood up, hugging her shoulders as she walked, looking smaller and more pitiful than usual.

Tu Ming glanced at Wang Jiexing, who was wrapping himself tightly in the blanket and turning away. He thought to himself that he shouldn’t ruin Lumi’s plan, or else she might cause trouble for him.

Seeing that Wang Jiexing had no intention of turning around, Tu Ming felt that Lumi’s attempt to change her affections wasn’t going well. He quickly took off his jacket and walked a few steps to drape it over her.

Lumi turned around, pretending to be surprised, looking at him. The little bird in her heart chirped, it seemed she was on the right track.

“Go back.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Can you walk me out? The path is too dark, I’m scared.” Lumi pouted, looking a bit pitiful, determined to play the victim card to the end.

This time, Tu Ming finally fell for it, all because of Lumi’s tearful and sorrowful glance, which made him feel that he had been too harsh with his words to a girl.

No matter how rough around the edges, she was still a woman, and he shouldn’t have said those things, as if she were unloved by others. So, he nodded: “Let’s go.”

He walked beside Lumi, and Lumi’s little scheme was quietly at work. She wanted to lean closer to him, letting their clothes brush against each other, hoping the warmth would transfer.

On that dark path, how wonderful it would be if they could hug, kiss, and say some inappropriate words! Her mind was full of mischievous ideas. But just as she was about to take a step closer to him, she suddenly woke up, thinking, “No, no, no, this won’t do. This will only push him away.”

She needed to take it slow.

Zhang Xiao described Lumi’s state as such: “She’s using all her dirty tricks to drag a man down. Is it worth it? Can’t she find a suitable man elsewhere? Why bother with a divorced man!”

But Lumi was determined to persist.

She pulled her legs in, resisting the urge to speak, pretending to be indifferent.

Tu Ming walked her to the door and looked out at the empty street: “Let me take you to the hotel. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

“That would be troubling you.” Lumi pursed her lips. The night was dark and mysterious, and the surroundings were quiet. When Tu Ming wasn’t looking, the corners of her eyes showed a hint of a smile, which she suppressed.

“Why were you crying just now? Was it because you were upset at work? You can tell me, we can find a solution.” Tu Ming finally broke the silence.

Lumi still didn’t speak, afraid that she would burst into laughter if she opened her mouth. As Lu Qing would say, “My daughter, too mischievous.”

Who couldn’t pretend to be serious? If she couldn’t keep it up for a day, couldn’t she at least do it for an hour, a moment?

“Or, was it because of last night’s incident?”

“Exactly!” You’ve finally gotten to the point. Lumi stopped and looked at him, both angry and flirtatious: “Is that how you talk to people? Under the beautiful moonlight, with a man and a woman alone, you gave me that look, and I thought too much. Was that wrong? Was it not consensual? Why did you get so upset!” Lumi was truly grateful that her eyes were inflamed; at that moment, they were red, making her look like she was about to cry.

Tu Ming didn’t have much experience arguing with women or engaging in heated debates. At that moment, he was still trying to reason with her.

“First, there was no ‘you’; second, there was no ‘consensual’; and lastly, I wasn’t upset.”

“You weren’t upset? You were speaking so loudly last night!”

“…”

“You say you weren’t, but I felt like you were.”

“It’s pointless to talk about this now. If it affected your mood, I apologize. But let me clarify my thoughts: The physical contact that happened at your house, I admit I shouldn’t have let it happen from the beginning. It won’t happen again. I don’t have romantic feelings for you, and I’m not in the mood for such things. If you still want to be a good colleague, don’t do anything out of line. Otherwise, you should consider resigning.”

“Is that clear?” Tu Ming asked her.

“So we can’t even be friends?”

“I’m not used to being friends with the opposite sex.”

“Alright then.” Lumi nodded seriously: “I was wrong to have those thoughts about you last night. I’ll be more careful in the future.”

“There’s one more thing I need to remind you of. I know you have a personal relationship with Wang Jiexing. Be mindful of your boundaries. You know how complex the workplace can be, and not everyone will keep their words to themselves. It could add unnecessary obstacles to your work.” Tu Ming laid it all out, even though he had noticed that Lumi and Wang Jiexing had pretended not to be familiar with each other during the first day’s banquet.

But when Lumi cried, Wang Jiexing showed his true feelings, and that level of concern was far beyond what one would show to an unfamiliar partner or even a regular friend.

“We’re not too close, we’ve known each other for over twenty years. We played together since we were in diapers, and I got beaten up a lot as a kid.” Lumi didn’t hide anything, even adding some exaggeration: “He’s quite reliable, worth trusting.”

“That’s good to hear.”

“Childhood sweethearts, inseparable since we were young, promised to each other since birth.” Lumi added: “If it weren’t for us not playing enough, maybe we’d already have two kids by now!”

Seeing that Tu Ming was only focused on walking and not speaking, she continued: “We have an agreement, if I’m not married by thirty, he’ll marry me. He has one quality I really like, and that’s spoiling me. From childhood to adulthood, we’ve never had a serious argument. Unlike you, who lectures me at every turn.”

“Oh, that’s not right, you’re the boss, you’re right to lecture me.” Lumi retracted her sharp words at the last moment, having had enough of her verbal indulgence.

The two of them arrived at the entrance of Lumi’s inn. Lumi took off the jacket and handed it to Tu Ming: “You should put this on, you’re freezing like a grandson.” Her nagging and sudden comment about freezing like a grandson completely ruined the serious atmosphere from before.

Tu Ming suddenly laughed. He had heard similar phrases countless times, but none as vividly as Lumi’s. Her colloquialisms and choice of words were steeped in the daily life of the alleyways, sometimes sounding rough but always lively. They say the girls from the alleyways are not to be trifled with, and since meeting Lumi, Tu Ming had come to fully believe that.

Tu Ming put on his jacket and said to her, “You’ve worked hard these past few days. I appreciate your dedication and professionalism. Keep up the good work.”

“Thank you. I’ll switch with someone else next time. If it weren’t for Flora coming, I wouldn’t have made it.” With that, she turned and went upstairs.

Tu Ming was used to her way of speaking and didn’t intend to argue with her. As he turned around, the fragrance from the collar finally reached his nostrils, a warm and intense scent that he wasn’t used to. He hesitated between taking off the jacket or keeping it on, but in the end, he didn’t take it off. Freezing like a grandson, why bother taking it off!