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Mid-June.
The summer blockbuster season hadn’t begun yet.
There weren’t many films showing in theaters at the moment. The most well-known were Overheard and Godzilla, along with a horror movie titled Midnight Hair. However, domestic horror films had long been regarded as low-quality by audiences, so few people bothered to watch them.
“What movie do you want to see?”
“Godzilla, I guess.”
Chen Qingqing quietly purchased the tickets on her phone. After a brief pause, she also added a cola and a serving of popcorn.
The two of them took the elevator to the top floor. After collecting the tickets, Chen Qingqing sent Xu Ye to the counter to pick up the cola and popcorn.
Xu Ye walked back over to her and asked, “You only got one?”
“Yeah.”
“You’re seriously stingy.”
Chen Qingqing shot Xu Ye a look as if he were an idiot and replied impatiently, “It’s for you. I don’t drink carbonated beverages, and I don’t eat junk food.”
“Yes, yes, you’re a celestial maiden, untouched by the mortal world.”
Chen Qingqing couldn’t be bothered to argue with him. The two waited outside for about five or six minutes, and once the theater started admitting, they went inside.
Chen Qingqing remembered clearly—her last trip to the movies had been three years ago, back when her Father and Mother were still together. That was also the last movie they watched as a family.
After that day, she never came to the cinema again.
Xu Ye munched on popcorn and sipped his cola. Noticing Chen Qingqing staring blankly at the screen, he nudged her, “Why are you spacing out? Didn’t you say you wanted to take a photo?”
Snapping out of it, Chen Qingqing took out her phone and snapped a picture of the big screen.
“What’s the point of taking that?”
“What should I take a photo of, then?”
“A selfie, obviously. Didn’t you want your Father and Mother to see it?”
Chen Qingqing hesitated.
Xu Ye said, “If you don’t want to take one, then forget it. I was working at the bar until midnight last night and didn’t get to sleep until the early morning. I was planning to catch up on sleep this afternoon, but somehow I got dragged out here by you. Honestly, I’ve already seen this movie—more than once, actually. Don’t think I’m thrilled to be sitting here keeping you company.”
He wasn’t lying. Although the film had only recently been released, Xu Ye had already seen it—more than once, in fact.
Seeing how indifferent he looked, Chen Qingqing switched her phone to the front-facing camera and held it between their seats.
Xu Ye leaned in without hesitation.
As he moved closer, Chen Qingqing instinctively pulled back a little.
“Come on, what are you afraid of? If you stay that far away, how’s the phone supposed to capture both of us?”
You couldn’t really blame Chen Qingqing.
She had never been in such close contact with anyone before. At this moment, she was actually very nervous, but still mustered the courage to lean her head into the frame. Just as their heads were about to touch, Xu Ye made a goofy face, and Chen Qingqing managed to squeeze out a smile before pressing the shutter.
Click.
After the photo was taken, Chen Qingqing immediately sat up straight.
Xu Ye also straightened up and began watching the movie obediently. But he already knew the plot by heart, and before long, drowsiness took over. He tilted his head and dozed off right there in the chair.
Chen Qingqing wasn’t particularly interested in this kind of movie either. After the group photo, her heart had been pounding nonstop. When she saw that Xu Ye had fallen asleep, she carefully took out her phone and looked at the picture they had just taken.
In the photo—
Their heads were side by side, perfectly balanced on either side of the frame. It looked… surprisingly harmonious.
When Chen Qingqing realized she had been staring at the photo for quite a while, she instinctively glanced at Xu Ye. Seeing that he was still asleep, she let out a quiet sigh of relief, then opened WeChat Moments and uploaded the photo.
She didn’t bother setting any privacy filters—mainly because she had very few contacts on WeChat. Aside from Wang Ruxue, the rest were basically just family members.
The moment the photo was posted, Chen Qingqing felt a surge of excitement.
At that moment, she could even imagine the expressions on her Father and Mother’s faces when they saw the photo… shock, surprise, confusion, anxiety.
Just as Chen Qingqing had expected—
The moment the post went up, Jiang Meilin saw it.
She anxiously tapped on the photo and zoomed in. The moment she saw the picture of Xu Ye and Chen Qingqing leaning their heads together, she immediately called Chen Qingqing.
“The number you have dialed is currently unavailable. Please try again later…”
“The number you have dialed is currently…”
Jiang Meilin was panicking.
She hurriedly called her assistant over.
“Xiaohui, get me the earliest high-speed train ticket back to Jiangzhou.”
“Madam Jiang, you still have a meeting scheduled for tomorrow aftern—”
“I’ll rush back for it tomorrow. Just get me the ticket. Now.”
“Yes, Madam.”
Meanwhile—
In his office at the bank, Chen Hansong had been staring at that same photo for a full ten minutes.
Chen Hansong knew his Daughter all too well. She had barely spoken since she was a child. Just as Xu Ye had said, she had grown up lacking affection, which made her like a hedgehog—guarded, defensive, and unwilling to let anyone get close. She never had any friends, let alone male ones.
Looking at the smile on his Daughter’s face in the photo—and at the “wild boar” next to her who had clearly taken advantage of the moment—
Chen Hansong’s heart shattered.
Who the hell was this idiotic brat, and where on earth had he come from?
Unable to sit still, Chen Hansong grabbed the documents Xu Ye had left at the bank and immediately dialed his number.
He didn’t call his Daughter because he knew for certain she wouldn’t answer.
Inside the cinema—
Just as the phone began to vibrate, Xu Ye was jolted awake. He quickly reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. Seeing an unmarked number on the screen, he was just about to answer.
Chen Qingqing, sitting beside him, ordered sharply, “Hang up!”
“Huh?”
“I said, hang up.”
Xu Ye did as she said and ended the call, then looked at her in confusion.
Chen Qingqing explained, “That was my dad’s number. From now on, if he calls you, don’t pick up.”
“How does your dad have my number?”
“What did you go to the bank for this afternoon?”
“To open an account,” Xu Ye answered, then froze as it clicked. “Your dad works at the bank?”
“He’s the branch manager,” Chen Qingqing said.
“Branch manager?!”
Xu Ye practically jumped up with excitement.
He had figured Chen Qingqing came from a well-off family, but he hadn’t expected her Father to be the manager of a bank.
It took Xu Ye a moment to calm down, then suddenly he burst into laughter again.
Chen Qingqing glanced at him, puzzled. “What are you laughing about?”
“I was just imagining… What if your dad asks to meet me alone and says, ‘I’ll give you a million yuan—just stay away from my Daughter’?”
Chen Qingqing turned her head away, trying not to laugh. “You wish.”
“Aren’t you going to ask if I’d take the deal?”
“So would you?”
“Of course! Not just a million— even if he gave me ten thousand, I’d do whatever he says.”
“Bastard!”
…