Chapter 10

At Chu Yuefei’s birthday party, half of the guests were childhood friends from the old neighborhood, both men and women.

After dinner, the girls went off to play cards, while the men headed to the bar where Lin Sheng had invested.

There were over ten of them, and as soon as they entered and took their seats, the lively music in the bar suddenly quieted down. The MC’s strong voice echoed: “Okay! Welcome our boss, Mr. Lin, and his friends to Yeson Music Dream Factory! The boss says it’s 20% off all night for Chu’s birthday! Cool guys and spicy girls, let’s hear your screams~~~!”

An enthusiastic chorus of cheers and birthday wishes erupted throughout the bar. All eyes turned toward the group that had just entered, eager to find out who “Mr. Lin” was.

Though no one wore a name tag, most gazes fixed on one very tall man.

As eyes swept over him, his handsome demeanor struck straight to the soul.

Just after they sat down, someone remarked, “So flashy, Sheng, this really isn’t like you at all.”

Lin Sheng tapped his fingers against a brown glass with condensation dripping onto his nails. The drink was iced, and his calm voice was a refreshing contrast to the noisy bar atmosphere.

“This bar isn’t under my control — they set their own rules,” he said.

“That figures,” another replied.

A third voice chimed in, “If you want to be flashy tonight, just be flashy. It’s not every day it’s Xiao Fei’s birthday, right?”

Nowadays, many startups operated on a partnership model. Lin Sheng was the kind of man who earned his own money, came from a good family, and had plenty of disposable cash. Friends with entrepreneurial dreams often came to him for investment.

Besides his primary job as a doctor, Lin Sheng had casually invested in companies spanning various fields — medicine, shipping, catering — a wide range, but all just for fun. He didn’t get involved in management.

This was common among their circle of young people; Chu Yuefei, Chen Xia, and others were similar.

The group raised their glasses to celebrate Chu Yuefei, jovial and merry.

“Sheng, I thought you and Xiao Fei were the same age?” Xiao Yufeng asked.

Chu Yuefei clapped him on the shoulder. “Not bad memory, Little Hornet. Sheng’s just a month and a half older than me. He just celebrated recently, but you weren’t there.”

“Told you,” Xiao Yufeng sighed. “Time flies. I still remember us playing in the sandbox at the old compound as kids. A blink and now we’re all 27 or 28.”

Chen Xia swirled his drink, a cold-faced man who enjoyed a sharp remark. “Yeah. Only a year left before Sheng has to settle down and make his mark at 28.”

As he spoke, Lin Sheng’s fingers paused on the glass briefly before continuing.

“If you hadn’t reminded me, I almost forgot about that,” Chu Yuefei said to Lin Sheng. “Your old commander is still watching you, huh?”

Lin Sheng lowered his eyes. The dim red lights of the bar cast two rows of shadows from his lashes onto his face.

He lifted the glass to his eyes, watching the light tint the droplets a deep red, a careless smile tinged with coldness playing on his lips. “What do you think?”

Chu Yuefei and Chen Xia exchanged glances, sensing the topic was best left alone — partly out of respect for Lin’s old man, partly because such heavy matters didn’t fit the light-hearted night.

They drank a while longer, chatting casually.

Chu Yuefei settled back beside Lin Sheng, setting down his glass. “A Sheng, so many women like you. Why not pick one or two and tie the knot already? They all love you to death, and you don’t seem picky about marriage. When you’ve been dating long enough, closing the door and pulling up the covers is all that matters.”

Lin Sheng raised his eyes. “So, last time’s meeting ended with you as the persuader?”

They were distant relatives, after all.

Caught out, Chu Yuefei scratched his face sheepishly. “Ah, nothing escapes your sharp eyes.”

He lit a cigarette, inhaling deeply. “I can’t be blamed, Sheng. Your old man is so imposing — I dare not disobey his orders!”

“Don’t blame others for your own cowardice,” Lin Sheng said, reclining on the sofa, lazily flicking at his ring with slender fingers.

“Actually, the old commander has your best interests at heart, Sheng,” Chu Yuefei said. “There’s that saying… oh, yes: ‘Since ancient times, beauties have faced many hardships in love.’”

Before he could finish, Lin Sheng shot him a cold glance.

But Chu Yuefei didn’t hold back his teasing smile. “I wasn’t done. I meant, good-looking people have a hard time in love — guys and girls alike. Look at you, Sheng. You should be settling down by now, but you’re still single. The old commander is just eager for a great-grandchild.”

He glanced at Lin Sheng. “We’re adults now; we can’t just think about ourselves. We have to consider family too. The old man’s over seventy.”

Lin Sheng chuckled and tilted his chin. “With a talent for lines like that, why don’t you and Zhou Xiao join show business? Maybe you’d win Best Actor.”

Chu Yuefei was caught again, at a loss for words. That was exactly the message the Lin elder had sent him to pass on to Lin Sheng. “Alright, alright. I won’t say another word.”

Lin Sheng lazily lifted his glass.

Chu Yuefei clinked his cup against it and sighed, “You know, if I don’t complete this task, how am I supposed to report back to the old commander? I’m bound to get scolded.”

Lin Sheng smiled slightly, not bothering with him.

They’d grown up together, and among the group, Chu Yuefei knew Lin Sheng best.

The Lin family’s discipline was extremely strict. Without that, Lin Sheng’s personality wouldn’t be so dual-natured and extreme.

On one hand, refined and upright; on the other, sharp and cold.

In high school, he was an outstanding student, a true honor student, but also had a rebellious streak typical of troubled youths — very disobedient, but smart enough never to make serious mistakes. Later, he went abroad alone and grew up.

Now, his wings grown and maturity gained, the Lin family seemed to have eased up a bit, not as severe as before.

Lin Sheng glanced at his phone. The time was 10:34 p.m.

He heard the WeChat notification and casually opened it.

“Brother Lin, rest early! [fist bump]”

“(-w‘) Good night.”

The bar’s music was loud, the dance floor full of flirtatious youths. The nightlife of young people was in full swing.

Lin Sheng’s hoarse voice carried a hint of amusement: “Not so early, little sister.”

---

In June, early summer arrived, with a thunderstorm clearing to sunshine.

On rainy days, Milan Hospital was quiet, most medical staff off duty. Upstairs in the lounge room.

Lin Sheng leaned against the window frame, smoking. Silver-gray shirt, black pants — comfortable and neat as always. His suit jacket casually draped over the sofa in the reception room behind him.

Glancing back, he noticed cold medicine packets that had been there for almost two months on the coffee table. Carefully portioned doses, neatly arranged — prepared by that girl that night.

Yet he never took a single packet.

Because he didn’t like taking medicine in that form, the packets had just been forgotten.

Lin Sheng blew out smoke rings.

He hadn’t noticed when the girl stopped messaging him. Looking back, it seemed like a long time since they last contacted — long enough that he barely remembered her face.

He only recalled how, when she bent over to blow her hair dry, the snow-white curve of her neck and the gentle brows when she looked down. Quite pleasant to the eye.

A sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl — that kind of temperament was rare.

Lin Sheng took his time finishing the cigarette, then asked a nurse to clean the table and dispose of the cold medicine. It was useless to him anyway.

— She was a lovely girl, but that was all.

---

Summer had arrived, and the second year of high school was almost over.

Final exams were looming, and next semester would be the third year. The entire fifth class felt a subtle pressure from the teachers’ constant reminders that they must prepare for the college entrance exams, and the approaching finals.

Xu Xiyi went through her monotonous student life step by step, gradually pushing thoughts of Lin Sheng to the back of her mind.

She had no time for distractions.

Besides, her parents were planning to raise funds to start a new business, and she worried about that.

She both hoped for their comeback and the restoration of the family’s former glory, and feared they might go bankrupt again and sink deeper into debt. Life would be miserable.

But her father said, “Fortune favors the bold. We have to take the risk.”

As a mere “child,” she couldn’t argue. Whatever her parents said, she complied. Study when she was supposed to, go home when she had to, so they’d worry less about her — that was her contribution to the family.

After that brief encounter, Lin Sheng seemed to vanish completely from her world. Youthful man and young woman each continued on their own paths.

It wasn’t until summer break, scrolling through social media, that she happened upon a private post from Lin Sheng.

She was working a summer job at KFC.

It was just past two in the afternoon, and there were few customers.

Xu Xiyi had just finished clearing a batch of trays, resting in a corner seat under the air conditioning, next to a female college student also working the summer job — Xiao Tao.

“What are you looking at so intently?” Xiao Tao asked, playfully patting her shoulder. Xu Xiyi didn’t dodge, and Xiao Tao saw the photo on her phone, exclaiming, “Whoa! Handsome guy!”

Xu Xiyi glanced at the screen. In the photo, Lin Sheng wore a black-and-white ski jacket and windproof goggles, only the lower half of his face visible. “Come on, you can’t tell if he’s handsome when you can’t even see his whole face.”

Xiao Tao rolled her eyes. “Xiyi, you don’t think a man’s handsomeness is just about the face, do you?”

“Look at his figure.” Xu Xiyi pointed at the phone, then muttered “Wow.” “Is he a model? He even makes a ski jacket look good. The people next to him aren’t in the same league.”

Xu Xiyi blinked, reassessing Lin Sheng in the photo.

He hadn’t posted a caption, but the passersby were all foreigners, and the ski resort backdrop bore the English words “Alps.”

“Who is he? We should invite him to eat at our place,” Xiao Tao said, cupping her face. “I want to check him out up close!”

Xu Xiyi blinked again. “I guess he’s a… brother I know.”

A customer approached, and Xiao Tao was called to help.

With nothing to do for the moment, Xu Xiyi opened Lin Sheng’s WeChat. Their last contact was in May.

Months without seeing each other, her impression of Lin Sheng had settled on a handsome, gentle older brother figure.

Of course, he seemed not quite so warm inside — rather distant and hard to approach.

Leaning against the wall, resting her chin on her hand, she felt the coolness from the wall. She recalled when Lin Sheng helped her change the lock, and how he assisted her when she was sick — boiling water, finding medicine.

He was tall, bending to grasp her shoulder, speaking close to her ear.

His dark eyes sparkling, his breath carrying a faint fragrance.