Who wants to be a male model after being reborn? I want to be a male god.

Chapter 373 The Galaxy is Still Far Away
The mist from the fountain drifted in the wind, forming tiny rainbows under the street lights.

Lan Qiu Sheng stared at the fleeting brilliant colors and felt his heart being gripped by an invisible hand.

Xu Wen's words were like a blunt knife, ruthlessly cutting the most vulnerable part of her heart.

"I know what you mean, but this isn't gratitude," she said finally, her voice steadier than she'd expected.

The wood texture of the park bench was palpable beneath her fingertips.

Lan Qiusheng looked down at his toes and recalled the warmth in Xu Wen's hands when he handed him the shirt on that day of the heavy rain.

"The first time we met was downstairs at my mother's house. You were wearing a washed-out shirt. You didn't even say a word at that time, but I remembered you at first sight." She raised her head, and the night wind blew her hair to her lips.

Xu Wen frowned slightly.

Even he himself didn't remember this detail.

"Later, when we were working together during military training, I noticed that your little finger would be slightly raised when you spun a pen, and you would habitually pull your hair when you were thinking." Lan Qiu Sheng continued, she raised her head, her thoughts completely immersed in memories.

The square dance music in the distance changed to slow folk songs, and the aunties' dance steps also became slow.

Lan Qiusheng's voice mixed in with the singing, as if he was telling a story that had nothing to do with himself.

"These have nothing to do with dependence. What I remember is never what you did to help me, but these details that no one cares about." She suddenly turned to Xu Wen, her eyes emitting dazzling light under the light of the street lamp.

Xu Wen's breathing stagnated slightly.

He recalled a rainy night in his previous life when Gu Xingruo walked towards him holding an umbrella.

The first thing he noticed was the plush pendant hanging from the handle of her umbrella.

The throbbing at that moment and the gratitude that followed mixed together and could no longer be distinguished from each other.

"People are attracted to people who are similar to them. We all have childhoods that are hard to look back on." Xu Wen said softly.

"So you think this is just a pair of injured puppies wanting to lick each other's wounds? What about Xia Ning? She has a happy family." Lan Qiu Sheng suddenly smiled, with a hint of stubbornness in the corners of his mouth.

When the fountain started again, a stream of water accidentally deviated from its track and splashed the tip of Lan Qiu Sheng's shoe.

She didn't move, letting the coolness seep through the canvas fabric.

"Feelings are never reasonable, but people have to be honest with themselves." Xu Wen looked at the lights behind the water curtain.

This sentence was like a key that suddenly opened the floodgates of Lan Qiu Sheng's memory.

She remembered the last time at the company, Xu Wen worked all night with everyone else. In the early morning, he fell asleep on the table, his eyelashes casting tiny shadows in the morning light.

At that moment she somehow moved closer, but stopped at the last centimeter.

"I'm so honest that even I'm scared," she said softly.

The night wind suddenly changed direction, carrying the smell of fireworks from the night market barbecue stall across the space between the two people.

Xu Wen looked at Lan Qiu Sheng's bangs blown by the wind, and remembered how she climbed 17 flights of stairs to deliver the report.

Water was dripping from the ends of her hair, but her eyes were burning with a fire that refused to admit defeat.

"Do you know what the funniest thing is? I don't even dare to fantasize too much." Lan Qiu Sheng suddenly stood up and patted the non-existent dust on her skirt.

She walked to the edge of the fountain, her voice mixed with the sound of water: "I can only imagine at best."

The following words were swallowed up by the roar of the fountain.

Xu Wen followed her and found that she was crying.

It was not hysterical crying, but quiet, almost stubborn tears.

Drops of water dripped from her chin, and it was hard to tell whether they were tears or mist from a fountain.

"What can you imagine at most?" he asked, his voice softening unconsciously.

Lan Qiu turned around abruptly, splashing water on her eyelashes: "Imagine you looking at me like this!"

Her voice finally broke down: "Like looking at an equal, a person who deserves love, not a poor creature who needs to be saved!"

The last sentence was particularly clear during the pause in the fountain.

Xu Wen stood there in a daze, as if he saw himself in his past life standing in front of Gu Hong.

The colored lights at the bottom of the fountain pool changed colors, casting the shadows of the two people on the ground, sometimes overlapping and sometimes separating.

Lan Qiu Sheng squatted down and ran his fingers across the wet tiles of the pool.

"When I was twelve, my father scratched me with a wine bottle, I didn't cry. The stitches were very painful, but I didn't cry either. But just now..." She stared at the broken light on the water.

She took a deep breath and continued, "Just now when you said 'people have to be honest with themselves', I suddenly wanted to cry."

Xu Wen squatted down beside her, the cuffs of his white shirt were wet by the mist.

He thought of the hideous scar on Lan Qiu Sheng's left arm, and her frighteningly calm tone when she talked about the past.

"You're braver than you think," he said calmly.

"Not enough, there are some things I still dare not tell you." Lan Qiu Sheng shook her head, and water drops fell from the ends of her hair.

The words sank like a stone into the pool between them.

Xu Wen looked at his reflection on the water being shattered by the ripples and did not ask any more questions.

Cheers came from the direction of the night market; someone won a prize in the shooting game.

Xu Wen thought of Yang Yiyao’s tarot cards and the inverted pattern on the “Reversed Lovers” card.

Some emotions are like the moon reflected in the water, seemingly within reach, but actually out of reach.

"I should go back. I have morning classes tomorrow." Lan Qiu Sheng suddenly stood up.

Xu Wen stood up and found that the hem of her skirt was wet and stuck to her knees.

He took off his coat and handed it over, but stopped in mid-air.

Lan Qiusheng saw through his hesitation, smiled bitterly and shook his head: "No need."

They walked out of the park one after another, and the street lights stretched their shadows very long.

When passing by the convenience store, Xu Wen stopped and said, "Wait for me."

He came out with a dry towel and a hot drink.

"Wipe it, you'll catch a cold." He handed the towel to Lan Qiu Sheng.

This simple gesture carries no ambiguity, it's like care between colleagues.

When Lan Qiu Sheng took the towel, his fingertips deliberately avoided his touch.

On the way back to the restaurant, the two of them tacitly kept half a step distance from each other.

Lan Qiusheng suddenly said: "I will not resign."

"I don't plan to ask you to resign." Xu Wen replied.

No matter what, it is impossible to let go of such a chosen worker.

"That's good, work is very important to me." She nodded.

This is the truth.

In Shining City, she is not a burden to anyone, nor is she someone who needs to be rescued, but an indispensable core member.

This sense of value is more precious than any sympathy.

The ginkgo leaves downstairs of the restaurant began to turn yellow, heralding the arrival of autumn.

Lan Qiusheng stopped in front of the steps and turned to face Xu Wen.

The street light shone from the side, giving her outline a golden edge.

"Thank you for listening to me. I never intended to say these words." Her tone returned to her usual calmness.

Xu Wen thought of the documents that were always neatly organized in her briefcase and her meticulous wording when she reported on her work.

This girl keeps all the chaos locked up inside and only shows a flawless appearance.

"Lan Qiusheng." He called her by her full name: "You will meet someone who truly appreciates you."

Not a savior, not a donor, but a companion who can see her full light.

"I know, but the stars are hiding tonight." She smiled, with tears in her eyes.

Xu Wen looked up; the city’s light pollution blocked out all the starlight.

But he suddenly remembered a night when he was working overtime. Lan Qiusheng pointed to the star map on the computer screen and said, "The belt of Orion is actually hundreds of light years apart. It only looks connected when viewed from Earth."

Some people are like those stars, seemingly close at hand, but actually separated by time and space that cannot be crossed. "Go back early." Xu Wen finally said only this sentence.

Lan Qiusheng nodded, turned and walked towards the restaurant.

Her back was straight, like a bamboo that refused to bend.

At the moment the glass door opened and closed, Xu Wen saw her raise her hand and wipe her face.

When I returned to the box, Yang Yiyao and Ding Yue had already left.

There was only cold food left on the table.

Xu Wen felt it was a bit of a pity, so he asked the waiter to pack up everything and take it back to the company as a midnight snack.

On the way back to the company, Xu Wen took a detour to the riverside.

The river flows silently in the night, and the lights on the opposite bank are reflected on the water like a colorful galaxy.

Xu Wen remembered what Lan Qiu Sheng said, "It would be nice if there were stars in the sky."

He suddenly realized that perhaps everyone was looking for his or her own starlight.

The phone vibrated. It was a video request from Gu Xingruo.

After Xu Wen answered the call, her bright smiling face appeared on the screen: "Guess where I am?"

The background is the starry sky by the sea, so bright that it seems unreal.

Gu Xingruo turned the camera to the night sky: "Look! The Milky Way!"

Those stars are so bright that you can touch them with your hand.

Xu Wen thought of Lan Qiu Sheng's tearful eyes and her sobs when she said, "I can only imagine at most."

Some distances are harder to cross than light years.

"It's beautiful." He said to Gu Xingruo, but he thought of another pair of eyes looking up at the starry sky.

At the same time, Lan Qiu Sheng stood on the balcony of the dormitory, looking at the gray sky above the city.

She held the cold hot drink in her hand and let the night breeze dry the tears on her face.

The phone screen lit up, and it was a message from Ding Yue: "How is it?"

Lan Qiu Sheng did not reply.

She opened the photo album, stared at the military training photo for a long time, and finally lightly clicked the delete key.

"Goodbye." She said to the night sky, to the photos, and to herself who dared not hope for more.

The ginkgo leaves downstairs of the dormitory building rustled, as if responding to her farewell.

When the sun rises tomorrow, she will still be the decisive Lan Qiu Sheng, an indispensable backbone of Shancheng, and Xu Wen's most capable assistant.

It's just that some unknown throbbing will be forever sealed in this starless night.

The Milky Way is still far away, but at least she once had the courage to look up at it.

When Xu Wen returned to the company building, he saw a familiar car in the parking lot.

He smiled helplessly.

It seems that someone witnessed the whole process.

Yang Yiyao also noticed Xu Wen's car. She opened the door, got out and stood next to her car.

"What a coincidence, we meet again." She said half-jokingly.

"Yeah, what a coincidence! If I followed someone all day, I would also say to him, 'What a coincidence'." Xu Wen complained.

Yang Yiyao always appears at every position precisely.

It went without saying that she had been hanging around him all day.

Yang Yiyao and Ding Yue said one of them happened to pass by; the other said he was out playing with friends.

But Xu Wen is not a fool, how could he believe it?

Everyone came here for Lan Qiusheng, and for the same reason.

"Is there nothing happening over there today? Senior sister is so free." Xu Wen continued to complain.

As he spoke he had already walked into the building.

Yang Yiyao also hurriedly followed.

"I knew you were going to come back. Do you think I was right?" she asked as if to take credit.

Xu Wen glanced at her and replied with only one word: "Sure."

Yang Yiyao felt that she now understood the man in front of her very well.

She didn't call or follow, but went directly to the company downstairs to wait for someone.

Not for anything else, just want to take a gamble.

Now it seems that she made the right bet.

After getting on the elevator, they finally had some space to themselves. She couldn't wait to ask, "So is this a regular part of your schedule?"

Xu Wen didn't understand and turned to look at him with a puzzled look.

"Every time a girl confesses to you, you have to reject them once, and then see if they will come after you. If they do, you can consider it again," Yang Yiyao explained.

After knowing her identity, Gu Xingruo shared the failed confession with her.

At that time, Xu Wen directly arranged the future for the two of them.

He felt that Gu Xingruo should go abroad and Xia Ning should see the better world outside.

Instead of wasting all your time on him.

What Xu Wen said was very good, but unfortunately the two girls didn't listen to him and both stayed.

When the two of them caught up with him again, he wavered.

Yang Yiyao just followed secretly. She hid in the middle of the square dancing aunties and watched the whole process of Lan Qiusheng's confession to Xu Wen.

The little girl burst into tears.

Xu Wen still said, "You deserve better."

Once or twice is just a coincidence.

This process happened three times in a row, and Yang Yiyao seriously suspected that Xu Wen did it on purpose.

Only those who keep moving forward after being rejected once can be his girlfriend.

Dog training?
Xu Wen was not surprised that Yang Yiyao was peeking.

This senior always appears in the right place at the right time.

With a "ding" sound, the elevator stopped.

Xu Wen walked forward without looking back, and said, "Do you believe me if I say this is a coincidence?"

Yang Yiyao complained in her heart about how this guy walked so fast and said, "I definitely don't believe it. How can there be so many coincidences?"

After hearing this, Xu Wen hit back on the spot: "I believed you when you came to block me downstairs of my company and told me it was a coincidence. Why don't you believe it when it comes to me?"

When the two walked into the office area, many people in the company were still working, so Yang Yiyao had no choice but to keep quiet for the time being.

Shancheng adopts a flexible working system.

Most people choose to stay up late instead of getting up early. Some people even come to work after lunch. The most people come at night.

Yang Yiyao followed Xu Wen into the office, and only when they reached a private space did she dare to continue the previous topic.

Just as she passed by the office area, she noticed two curious gazes.

One of them was someone she knew and whom she introduced to Xu Wen. His name was Jia Mingliang.

The other person seemed to be his roommate.

Now that she came to Xu Wen's office so late, Yang Yiyao felt that all the reputation she had accumulated when she was the chairman was ruined.

After seeing Xu Wen sit down, she sat down too.

Yang Yiyao asked in a joking tone: "What stage do you think we are at now?"

(End of this chapter)