It fell from his fingertips

For a moment, the huge office fell silent.

Tang Luoqing stared blankly at Zhou Jinbai in front of her.

The man before me had refined features, deep and intense eyes, a high nose bridge, and sensual lips. Everything about him was exquisite, the most proud creation of the Creator.

But whether it was just his imagination or not, the ruthless and decisive look in the man's eyes disappeared completely when he mentioned "Zhou Jinbai, the painter." In his usually indifferent eyes, which were covered with a thin layer of ice, a certain emotion that had been dormant for many years surfaced.

It was a longing for the past and something deeply suppressed and hidden.

As Zhou Jinbai gazed at her, his usual indifference and aloofness vanished. The setting sun streamed in, casting its light into his eyes, like a bottomless pool of starlight, earnest and dazzling.

Zhou Jinbai stared straight into Tang Luoqing's eyes, without looking away.

The gaze was so intense and burning that, in an instant, the tips of Tang Luoqing's ears turned a light red.

She clutched the sketchbook in her arms, hastily averting her gaze, her breathing erratic, her voice betraying her barely concealed panic: "I... I was just curious..."

Before she finished speaking, Tang Luoqing took a deep breath, as if she had gathered all her strength, put down the painting on the table, opened the sketchbook in her arms, and handed one of the paintings to Zhou Jinbai.

Her eyelashes were lowered, her fingertips were curled, and her voice was filled with barely suppressed trepidation and restraint: "This is the painting I promised you at Xinwei. I don't know what you were like when you used to paint, so... I just painted it according to the scene I imagined. I hope you... won't hate it."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Jinbai lowered his eyes and took a painting from Tang Luoqing's hand.

The painting depicts a young man sitting in front of an easel by a window, with afternoon sunlight streaming in, scattering across his slightly lowered eyelashes and casting soft shadows on his lower eyelids.

The young man held the paintbrush with his well-defined knuckles, painting a vast blue sea. His jawline was sharp, and his eyes were focused and relaxed, revealing a pure and untainted passion untouched by the world.

From a purely aesthetic perspective, the painting's light and shadow are delicate and transparent, and its brushstrokes are gentle and tender. It not only depicts the youth's unruly spirit but also seems to be laying out that long-forgotten past before the viewer's eyes.

Zhou Jinbai's gaze traced the outline of the painting inch by inch, his knuckles curling and relaxing, his prominent Adam's apple slowly bobbing.

After a long silence, he finally spoke, his voice a few tones lower than usual, with a barely perceptible hoarseness: "Thank you, I don't dislike it, I like it very much."

Tang Luoqing's tense body relaxed slightly when she heard Zhou Jinbai's deep thanks.

After a moment, Tang Luoqing nodded, took a small step back, and said in an even more distant tone, "Then... I'll take my leave now."

As soon as she finished speaking, Tang Luoqing turned around to leave, but her wrist was suddenly grabbed by a warm hand.

The man's palms were slightly calloused, and the warm touch transmitted through his skin. The pressure wasn't heavy, but it made Tang Luoqing unable to move for a moment.

Before Tang Luoqing could react, Zhou Jinbai took a step forward and pulled her into his arms with a slight tightening of his grip.

Tang Luoqing's mind went blank for a moment.

My nose brushed against the man's crisp shirt, and a familiar, clean scent wafted towards me.

Perhaps she was too shocked, her eyes were open, and she couldn't even muster the thought of struggling. She felt the other person's rapid heartbeat in her chest, and Tang Luoqing's heartbeat skipped a beat.

The hug was so short it felt like an illusion. In just a few seconds, Zhou Jinbai let go, took a half-step back, and restored a safe distance between himself and Tang Luoqing.

The man's long eyelashes drooped, concealing the turbulent emotions in his eyes, and his voice carried an unusual loss of composure: "I'm sorry, seeing this painting made me a little flustered. I thought..."

After a slight pause, Zhou Jinbai's voice became even lower: "No one will remember Zhou Jinbai at twenty years old anymore."

Upon hearing this, Tang Luoqing was taken aback.

She hadn't recovered from the touch when she suddenly heard Zhou Jinbai's words. Her fingertips clenched tightly, and she didn't know what to say for a moment.

Offering words of comfort would be too inappropriate, while being overly polite would be too distant; a thousand thoughts were stuck in my throat, and I couldn't utter a single sound.

Before Tang Luoqing could come up with a response, Zhou Jinbai took a step back, pressed the internal phone on his desk, and his tone returned to its usual cold and composed manner: "See Miss Tang downstairs."

Just seconds later, a knock sounded at the door. After receiving permission, Assistant Shen pushed the door open and entered, making a "please" gesture to Tang Luoqing with a normal expression: "Miss Tang, this way please."

Tang Luoqing composed herself and walked towards the door.

Just as she was about to step out of the room, she glanced back and saw the man behind the desk, bathed in the light streaming in from the window, staring intently at the painting on the table.

The man's profile was obscured by light and shadow, making it impossible to discern his expression, yet it inexplicably exuded an air of melancholy.

A kind of desolation that few could imagine seeing in Zhou Jinbai.

Stepping out of the office building, Tang Luoqing withdrew her gaze, took a deep breath, but the tightness in her chest didn't dissipate much, and even a hint of hesitation arose: Should she not have painted this picture, should she not have rashly touched upon his past that he had hidden for so many years?

But then Tang Luoqing breathed a sigh of relief, suppressing the jumbled thoughts in her mind.

After all, Zhou Jinbai didn't say anything more, nor did he do anything that crossed the line.

As for that brief hug...

Generally speaking, anyone who sees their most cherished memories, long forgotten, being presented to them will be overwhelmed with emotion and lose their composure somewhat, which is not particularly meaningful.

Thinking this, Tang Luoqing took another deep breath, suppressed the inexplicable throbbing in her heart, and walked towards the roadside.

She hailed a taxi, gave them her driver's license address, leaned back in her seat, and gazed at the receding scenery outside the window, her thoughts wandering.

As the car drove further and further away, Zhou Jinbai remained seated in his top-floor office at the Zhou Group, his gaze fixed on the painting before him.

A moment later, he picked up the intercom and asked Assistant Shen to bring a picture frame. He then placed the painting on his desk, directly opposite his chair, next to the previous painting of a girl on a swing. With just a glance, he could clearly see himself at twenty, with only the painting in his eyes, and the girl's radiant smile.

·

When I got home from the driving school, it was completely dark.

Tang Luoqing first fed Naitang cat food, then cooked some frozen dumplings for herself. After eating, she started calculating how much savings she had.

Having graduated for just over a year, he had saved most of his salary. After deducting daily expenses, the rest was all saved for the 600,000 yuan that Zhou Yanchen had paid for his grandmother's medical expenses.

It seems that even if I get my driver's license, I'll have to postpone the idea of ​​buying a car for now.

Tang Luoqing composed herself and brought out the third batch of five paintings she had drawn earlier.

Aside from the three paintings that Tang Luoqing considered perfect, she couldn't see the problem with the other two.

Suddenly, the image of the vast lotus pond in Qinyuan Garden flashed through Tang Luoqing's mind, with the morning light shattering into stars on the water's surface. Tang Luoqing hesitated.

Or, how about we try to get in one more time?

After hesitating for a long time, Tang Luoqing opened the chat box with Lu Yu, typed a line of text, and sent it.

The other party replied quickly and agreed immediately.

Tang Luoqing breathed a sigh of relief.

The next day, under a clear sky, Tang Luoqing carried her sketchbook and walked towards Qinyuan Garden.

As I approached the entrance, I noticed a familiar car parked by the roadside.

It's Zhou Jinbai's car.

Tang Luoqing paused in her steps.

She knew very well that Zhou Jinbai could not possibly have come here for her sake. After all, their chance encounter at Qinyuan last time was a coincidence, and he seemed to have a deep relationship with Old Master Lu, so coming here to play chess was probably a regular thing for him.

Despite the logic, when she actually bumped into Zhou Jinbai's car, Tang Luoqing couldn't help but take a half step back.

Are we just going back like this?

Tang Luoqing was unwilling.

She had finally managed to arrange a visit to Qinyuan with Lu Yu. If she went back on her word and left, it would be very difficult to find inspiration there again next time.

Besides, she came here to paint, not to see Zhou Jinbai.

After much deliberation, Tang Luoqing steeled herself and rang the doorbell.

Lu Yu came down quickly, walked around the front yard, opened the door, and waved to Tang Luoqing with a smile: "My grandfather is playing chess with Jin Bai in the pavilion on the second floor. I'll take you over to say hello."

Tang Luoqing took a deep breath and politely replied, "Okay."

As they walked through the front yard, Lu Yu suddenly turned his head to look at the sketchbook in Tang Luoqing's arms and casually suggested, "By the way, have you been unsure about anything while painting lately? Jin Bai has a sharp eye, why don't you ask him to take a look at your work?"

Upon hearing this, Tang Luoqing tightened her grip on the sketchbook in her arms.

She forced herself to keep her heart pounding and suppressed her erratic breathing. After calming herself down, she finally said, "No, I don't want to trouble you, brother."

Lu Yu walked ahead, oblivious to the tension in Tang Luoqing's tone, and continued in a relaxed manner, "What's the trouble? Asking him to look at your paintings might actually be a big help to him. My grandfather often says that Jin Bai is too tense all the time, his whole heart is devoted to the company, and he doesn't even have time for himself, so he always asks him to come over to play chess, just to let him relax a bit."

Upon hearing this, Tang Luoqing was taken aback.

It turns out that the man who always appeared calm, composed, and unperturbed actually lived a life where every single day was a tension that was stretched to its limit.

For him, this tranquil garden was a place to breathe.

This was something Tang Luoqing had never imagined. She had always thought that even though Zhou Jinbai had given up his former glory and passion, he must feel a great sense of accomplishment now that he was in charge of such a large company. It would just be a different kind of gain. But she never expected...

As they spoke, the two of them reached the foot of the pavilion and, with perfect understanding, fell silent and walked up quietly.

The pavilion on the second floor overlooks the lotus pond. A chessboard sits on the stone table, with black and white pieces arranged in a staggered pattern. Tang Luoqing stepped forward, bowed slightly, and greeted them politely: "Hello, Grandpa Lu, hello, elder brother."

Grandpa Lu looked up and saw Tang Luoqing. He smiled, stroked his beard, and waved to her, "Have you drawn anything new lately? Let this old man take a look."

Tang Luoqing didn't expect that Old Master Lu would want to see her paintings as soon as he arrived, so she quickly stepped forward, opened the portfolio, and placed it in front of Old Master Lu.

Grandpa Lu picked up the drawings one by one and flipped through them. When he reached two of them, he pushed the sheets in front of Zhou Jinbai, his tone slightly probing: "Did you figure it out?"

Tang Luoqing's breath hitched.

Because those two paintings were the ones she had revised and redrawn, but still couldn't see the problems with, and she had even considered asking Zhou Jinbai for advice.