It fell from his fingertips

As soon as Tang Luoqing got home, Naitang meowed and jumped down from the cat tree, rushing to her side and rubbing her belly against her ankle.

Tang Luoqing bent down, picked up the cat, and rubbed its fluffy head. She then poured some cat food for Naitang and watched the little guy happily eat with its head down before turning and walking into the study.

On the desk were still those two seascape paintings from the third issue, which I always felt were a bit lacking. The paint blending was alright, and the brushstrokes seemed acceptable, but they just couldn't convey the tension that Tang Luoqing wanted.

She couldn't help but think that if Zhou Jinbai were by her side, he would probably be able to point out the problem at a glance.

The thought had barely crossed Tang Luoqing's mind when her phone rang again; it was Zhou Yanchen calling once more.

Tang Luoqing thought for a moment, then answered the phone.

"Why haven't you answered the phone for so long?"

Zhou Yanchen's voice carried a hint of impatience and a touch of grievance: "I called several times, I thought something had happened to you, it's good that you're alright."

Tang Luoqing opened her mouth, intending to blurt out that she had gotten a fever from being caught in the rain and that Zhou Jinbai had saved her, but when she glanced at the date on the calendar on her desk—the 13th—she hesitated.

There are still a few days until Su Leqi's birthday on the 17th.

Tang Luoqing was very curious to see how long Zhou Yanchen planned to keep it a secret, and what kind of attitude he planned to use to attend that "all-night" birthday party.

She leaned back in her chair, her voice a little hoarse: "It's nothing, I had a fever, slept all afternoon, and just woke up a little while ago."

"You have a fever? Is it serious, baby?"

Zhou Yanchen's voice immediately became tense, and he kept nagging, "Did you take your medicine? Did you take your temperature? It's all my fault for not being there for you..."

Tang Luoqing listened quietly.

In the past, she might have softened because of these words of concern, but at this moment, she couldn't help but hear Su Leqi's words from the riverside bar: "If he's happy, I'm happy."

Those delicious-looking dishes, those confident claims of "I learned them on purpose," are all lies wrapped in sugar.

Tang Luoqing took a deep breath and decided to give Zhou Yanchen one last chance to tell the truth.

"By the way, are you coming back this weekend?"

Tang Luoqing asked tentatively, and when she asked the question, her heart beat faster for no reason. She dared not think about Zhou Yanchen's answer.

Sure enough, Zhou Yanchen paused slightly on the other end of the phone, then chuckled naturally, "The weekend? I definitely can't go back. A manager from a high-end luxury brand is coming to Haicheng on Saturday, and I have to accompany him the whole time."

"I'm so sorry, baby. How about I come back to visit you next weekend?"

Tang Luoqing's heart sank little by little, a dull ache gripping her.

Before Zhou Yanchen could say anything more, Tang Luoqing hung up the phone.

Tang Luoqing sat there for an unknown amount of time before turning around to wash up.

When she lay back down on the bed, Naitang nestled into her arms and purred contentedly.

Tang Luoqing stroked Milk Candy's soft little belly, her mind replaying the events of the day.

That embrace in the pouring rain, the warm ginger soup, and his considerate care... Zhou Jinbai has helped her time and time again, and today he even saved her. She can't just casually say thank you.

She owed him far too many favors.

In a daze, Tang Luoqing remembered that when they were in Xinwei, Zhou Jinbai had mentioned that he wanted her to paint a picture for him.

perhaps……

Thinking of this, Tang Luoqing threw off the covers, got out of bed, went into the study, and turned on the desk lamp.

Warm yellow light fell on the blank drawing paper. Tang Luoqing held the paintbrush, closed her eyes, and slowly the image of that person appeared in her mind.

Is it Zhou Jinbai stirring coffee with his eyes downcast in the coffee shop? Is it Zhou Jinbai standing behind her in the art studio looking at her paintings? Is it the flamboyant and unrestrained Zhou Jinbai in the paintings from eight years ago? Or...?

Tang Luoqing took a deep breath, and the tip of her brush fell, the paint spreading out in varying shades on the canvas.

He painted all night long.

As the sky outside the window gradually turned a pale white, Tang Luoqing finally put down his pen.

She took two steps back and looked at the person on the drawing: the young man sat in front of the easel by the window, his face turned to the light, his fingers holding the paintbrush with distinct knuckles, his eyebrows and eyes still carrying a hint of immaturity, yet he had a kind of flamboyant spirit.

It is Zhou Jinbai, the twenty-year-old painter in Tang Luoqing's imagination.

For some unknown reason, Tang Luoqing picked up her phone and pulled out a picture of the sea that Zhou Jinbai had drawn eight years ago.

The surging waves in the painting, the scorching brushstrokes, slowly overlap with the profile of the young man in her painting.

My curiosity resurfaced.

She really wanted to see with her own eyes what Zhou Jinbai looked like when he picked up a paintbrush.

The painting was finished, but how to send it out became another problem.

Sending him is inappropriate, especially since he's Zhou Yanchen's brother and they're alone together.

Tang Luoqing felt really bad about not sending him off and just pretending to be deaf and dumb. After all, if it weren't for Zhou Jinbai, who knows what might have happened to her in yesterday's situation.

After much internal struggle, a wave of drowsiness washed over me.

Tang Luoqing carefully put the painting into her album, yawned, and walked back to her bedroom. She fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

When I woke up again, it was already past noon.

Tang Luoqing sat up, rubbed her eyes, and her mind cleared up considerably.

After washing up and changing into clean clothes, she stood in the entryway with her sketchbook in her arms, hesitating for a long time.

He took out his phone, opened his WeChat chat with Zhou Jinbai, and the last message was still the "Mm" he replied that night in Xinwei.

Tang Luoqing hovered her fingertip over the input box, typing and deleting repeatedly, unsure of what to say.

She wasn't sure if he was at the company, or if he wanted to see her.

Finally, Tang Luoqing simply turned off the screen, stuffed the phone back into her bag, and decided to make the long trip and try her luck.

Forty minutes later, Tang Luoqing stood at the entrance of the Zhou Group office building and looked up.

The embarrassment she felt the last time she came here was still fresh in her mind. She took a deep breath, hugged the drawing tube she was holding tightly, and stepped inside.

I thought I would have to register and wait like last time, and might even be turned away at the door. But as soon as I got to the front desk, the young woman there, a complete stranger, immediately stood up with a standard smile on her face: "Hello, Ms. Tang, I'll take you to the elevator."

Tang Luoqing was stunned and couldn't react for a moment.

Do we not need to check if there's an appointment this time?

But why do these receptionists seem to have been replaced?

Tang Luoqing suspected she had misremembered and followed the receptionist toward the elevator.

The elevator numbers jumped up and stopped at the top floor.

Assistant Shen was already waiting at the elevator. Seeing Tang Luoqing come out, he immediately greeted her with a smile: "Ms. Tang, you've arrived. President Zhou is in a short, impromptu meeting, it will probably take another ten minutes. Would you like to sit in his office for a while?"

"Wouldn't this be inappropriate?"

Tang Luoqing hesitated for a moment: "How about I wait in the reception area outside so as not to disturb his work?"

What puzzled her even more was how Assistant Shen knew which elevator she came out of.

"General Manager Zhou instructed that you can just go directly into the office and wait."

Assistant Shen stepped aside and gestured for him to sit, his tone extremely respectful: "Please sit down, let me pour you a glass of water."

Having said all that, Tang Luoqing had no choice but to nod her thanks and follow Assistant Shen into the president's office.

The office was larger than Tang Luoqing had imagined, decorated entirely in cool black, white, and gray tones, with a minimalist, aloof style that perfectly matched Zhou Jinbai's own temperament.

The floor-to-ceiling windows offer a superb view of the entire city, expansive yet imbued with a sense of aloofness that keeps strangers at bay.

Tang Luoqing sat on the sofa with her back straight and her hands on her knees, like a student waiting for the teacher to check her homework.

I was so nervous.

Assistant Shen poured water in, then went out again, closing the door behind him.

The office fell silent immediately.

Tang Luoqing sat for a while, unable to contain her curiosity, her gaze slowly sweeping across the entire office, from the books on the bookshelves to the floor ornaments in the corner, and finally, her eyes fell on a corner of the desk, where it looked like... a picture frame?

She stood up as if possessed and slowly walked over.

When Tang Luoqing saw the contents of the painting, her breath caught in her throat.

The painting depicts the old courtyard of a grandmother's house in the countryside. Under the cherry blossom tree, sunlight filters through the leaves, casting dappled shadows. On the crooked swing frame, a girl raises her cheerful and radiant smile.

The brushstrokes are immature and the composition is not perfect, but it exudes a clean and uncluttered feel from top to bottom.

This was the first artwork she painted that was sold to the public during a charity sale organized by her school when she graduated from university.

She remembers clearly that when the teacher said the painting was bought by an anonymous buyer, she was happy for a long time, feeling that her painting was finally recognized.

How could it be... here with Zhou Jinbai?

For a moment, Tang Luoqing's mind was in turmoil, with countless thoughts surfacing and making her restless.

"Looks like there are no more secrets."

A deep male voice suddenly sounded from behind, its tone calm and without a trace of panic.

Tang Luoqing was startled and turned around to see Zhou Jinbai walk in at some point.

The man was looking at her, his dark eyes revealing unfathomable emotions.

Tang Luoqing's heart pounded, and she swallowed hard. "So, you knew me back in college?"

Zhou Jinbai had already walked up to Tang Luoqing.

He was more than a head taller than Tang Luoqing, and when he stood beside her, a cool and refreshing aura enveloped her.

The man looked up, his gaze meeting her bewildered eyes, and said in a low voice, "Hmm."

Tang Luoqing's breath hitched.

So, when he said "earlier than the first time I went to the Zhou family's house" that night at Xinwei Coffee Shop, it wasn't just a casual remark.

it is true?

Tang Luoqing looked down at the old, unfinished painting in her hand, her fingertips tracing the edge of the frame.

In the sketchbook in her arms was a portrait of the young Zhou Jinbai, which she had spent the entire night painting.

She had come to express her gratitude and return the favor, but now she realized that she knew very little about this person.

He hid so much of his past that she didn't know about, some of which even involved her, all lying quietly in this office, in a place she couldn't see.

Tang Luoqing took a deep breath: "What were you like when you used to paint?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Jinbai's prominent Adam's apple bobbed: "You won't see the Zhou Jinbai of the past anymore."

"If you want to see Zhou Jinbai paint now, you can do so anytime."