After they finished saying goodbye, a brief silence fell between them. On Zhou Yang’s end of the call, the background was noisy—every now and then there was a sharp bang, something like gunshots.

Su Hao was about to hang up. The atmosphere felt oddly like two people who had just reconciled after a fight—briefly awkward, slightly restrained.

Just then, Zhou Yang let out a low chuckle.
“Want to come over and hang out?”

“Where?” Su Hao asked almost reflexively. Her tone was calm, casual, like that between friends.

Zhou Yang glanced back toward where Xu Dian and the others were standing. The women beside them were all family members—wives. He smiled.
“A military technology firing range.”

Su Hao checked the time and shook her head. “No. I still have things to do.”

“Doing what?”

“Sending a message to Shen He.”

Zhou Yang ground his teeth slightly. “Oh. Alright, then. Go ahead.”

Su Hao smiled. “Okay. I’m hanging up.”

She ended the call first.

Zhou Yang stared at the disconnected screen. He pressed his foot hard against the metal railing, rocking it back and forth. One hand was in his pocket as his mind replayed her words—sending Shen He a message. His jaw tightened slightly. He opened WeChat, found Su Hao’s profile, and began typing.

After hanging up, Su Hao leaned back against the sofa and opened her chat with Shen He, continuing to type. She had already applied for a business trip to Dong City and didn’t plan on changing it again—switching back and forth would only be troublesome. President Zeng was patient, but still.

She sent the message. Almost immediately, a new notification popped up.

It was from Zhou Yang.

She instinctively wanted to ignore it, but after a brief pause, she tapped it open.

Zhou Yang: You’re not going to start avoiding me again, are you?

Su Hao was silent for a moment.

Su Hao: I’m not avoiding you.

Zhou Yang: Good. Much appreciated.

Seeing that, Su Hao smiled. Another message came in, and this time she didn’t reply to Zhou Yang, instead opening Shen He’s chat.

As expected, Shen He sounded disappointed.

Shen He: What? You’re going to Dong City? That’s so far. Dong City isn’t nearly as fun as Kyoto.

Su Hao: Can’t be helped.

Shen He: Alright then. Guess I’ll have to wait until next time I go over there to see you.

Su Hao: Mm.

Adult relationships were often complicated, mixed with too many practical concerns. It was impossible to keep them pure, impossible to be reckless. Long-distance connections were even harder to develop.

Su Hao put down her phone and picked up her notebook to read. Just before bed, she suddenly realized she hadn’t contacted her mother in two days. She sat up and called Cheng Ling. The call was quickly answered.

“Why aren’t you asleep yet?” Cheng Ling asked. “Don’t tell me you went out on a date?”

“No,” Su Hao replied. “I was just reading my work journal. I’m about to sleep.”

She could hear the probing tone in her mother’s voice.

“Oh… reading your work journal,” Cheng Ling said, clearly disappointed. “Alright then. I was just about to sleep too.”

Judging from her breathing and voice, her mother’s health seemed stable these past few days. Su Hao felt a little relieved.
“Okay. Good night, Mom.”

“Alright…” Cheng Ling paused, then added, “When you have time, go out on dates. Make more friends.”

“I know,” Su Hao laughed softly. “Good night.”

“Mm.”

They hung up. Su Hao pulled the blanket over herself. The air conditioner was on a timer. She drifted off to sleep.

Friday came quickly. As soon as work began, there was an all-hands meeting. Su Hao hurriedly finished her milk, grabbed her notebook, and went to the conference room. Most people were already there. She sat in the finance section and muted her phone.

“Su Hao.”
“Su Hao.”

Several people called her name. She looked up in confusion and saw Assistant Lu removing his glasses to wipe them—just as he glanced over.

Their eyes met.

The room burst into laughter.

Su Hao froze.

She realized they were joking about her and Assistant Lu. He froze too and hurriedly waved his hands to deny it—but before he could finish, everyone noticed Zhou Yang walking in while speaking quietly with President Zeng.

Zhou Yang casually swept his gaze over the laughing crowd, then gave Assistant Lu a silent look.

Assistant Lu immediately broke into a sweat.

Zhou Yang took his seat.

Su Hao could feel the women in the room growing excited—straightening their shirts, adjusting their hair. Zhou Yang sat at the front, leaning back in his chair, pen twirling between his fingers. Suddenly, his eyes locked onto hers.

The next second, resting his chin on his hand, he curved his lips at her slightly—seemingly casual.

Su Hao hesitated, then lowered her head.

The aggressive edge in his gaze was gone. She quietly let out a breath of relief.

The meeting soon began.

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