Chapter 19
After Lin Zhiyan left, Lu Ze’s expression remained unchanged, but whenever he calculated that it was almost time for him to leave the laboratory, he would habitually order some soup. However, when he picked up his phone, he would suddenly realize that Lin Zhiyan was no longer at school.
Lu Ze was stunned for two seconds, then rubbed his temples and couldn’t help but laugh.
Ah, this thing called love…
In all his previous worlds, Lu Ze had never felt such a deep attachment to anyone.
He was clearly aware of his mission, and he knew that he was an outsider in this world. The people he had to face were either the targets he needed to face-slap, or the help he could use to face-slap.
There was no excessive interaction, nor would there be any deep communication, because he would have to leave eventually. Why bother leaving behind such deep ties in that world?
From the very beginning, it might have taken him ten or twenty years to complete a mission, but as he mastered more abilities, the time he spent in a world became shorter and shorter.
He would immerse himself in it quickly, and then leave the world just as quickly.
He had never been so completely immersed in a relationship as he was now.
Lu Ze had to admit that although this feeling was very unfamiliar, it was also very wonderful.
Especially when the other person was wholeheartedly devoted to you.
That sense of satisfaction was more gratifying than completing any number of face-slapping missions.
And a short separation was indeed enough to make one feel lost.
The courses in university were of little use to Lu Ze anymore. In the past, he had stayed at school every day, on the one hand, to conveniently accompany Lin Zhiyan, and on the other hand, he could also work remotely, without delaying either.
Now that Lin Zhiyan was not at school, there was naturally no need for Lu Ze to go there anymore. He simply stayed at the company all day, handling some trivial official business, and held a few meetings to arrange the company’s future development focus.
After so many worlds, Lu Ze had always understood how to make good use of people. Otherwise, if all the affairs were concentrated on him, as the company grew larger, he would be skinned alive even if he didn’t die.
In addition, he had the system’s monitoring, so he was not afraid of others playing any tricks.
And in the eyes of outsiders, this technology company called Rongze was developing at a rapid pace, gradually squeezing its way into the eyes of the major companies in the capital.
It was not to be underestimated.
At nine o’clock in the evening, the company’s employees had already left one after another. Lu Ze thought that the office was equipped with a lounge, and there were clothes and other things, so he didn’t plan to go back.
He picked up his phone and looked at it. The message Lin Zhiyan had sent him was still from three o’clock in the afternoon, when he had just gotten off the plane. He said with great surprise that it was snowing in City H.
Attached was a picture of a snow scene, which should have been taken by his senior sister. The young man was wearing a white down jacket with a scarf of the same color, and his whole person was almost integrated with the background.
The scarf covered half of his face, leaving only a pair of round, cat-like eyes, which were curved into crescents.
Lu Ze had replied to him at that time that it was very beautiful, but it was unclear whether he was talking about the snow scene or the person, or both.
Later, he repeatedly told him to wear more clothes, but Lin Zhiyan never replied.
The only hurried call he made was during a break for dinner, and he hung up after saying less than two sentences.
The participants were all big shots in the industry. Lin Zhiyan was like a sponge, greedily absorbing knowledge. In addition, with the professor’s arrangements, he was so busy that his feet barely touched the ground.
Of course, Lu Ze would not disturb him at this time, but he was always paying attention to his phone, waiting for his message.
At ten-thirty, the sound of a video call rang. Lu Ze’s hand on the keyboard paused. He picked up his phone and answered.
The young man’s face was displayed on the screen.
He seemed to have just taken a shower, and his hair was still wet, obediently sticking to his rosy cheeks. His soft eyes were looking at him, filled with sincere affection.
Neither of them spoke, just listening to each other’s long and drawn-out breathing, which seemed to be enough.
It was not until a long time later that Lin Zhiyan called out in a drawn-out voice, his voice soft and mushy, “Lu Ze…”
“Hmm?” Lu Ze replied.
Lin Zhiyan was lying on his side, his rosy cheeks buried in the pillow, his beautiful cat-like eyes slightly widened, his voice filled with grievance, “I miss you…”
Lu Ze’s heart softened. “I miss you too.”
He looked at Lin Zhiyan and asked in a gentle voice, “Have you been busy until now?”
Lin Zhiyan nodded and said slowly, “I was taken directly to the seminar venue after getting off the plane. It was supposed to end at six in the afternoon, but everyone was not satisfied. The organizer arranged for dinner, and we talked until ten before everyone was allowed to go back to the hotel.”
“I took a shower as soon as I came back, and then I immediately started a video call with you.”
Lu Ze asked again, “You didn’t eat dinner properly?”
The anxious way Lin Zhiyan had called him, it didn’t look like he could have eaten dinner in peace.
Lin Zhiyan was a little ashamed and explained in a small voice, “No one was in the mood to eat. We just had a few bites, and we were still talking at the dinner table.”
Lu Ze said, “Are you hungry?”
Lin Zhiyan wanted to shake his head, but after thinking about it, he nodded.
During this period, Lu Ze had brought him a late-night snack every night, and Lin Zhiyan had already gotten used to it. Now, not to mention a late-night snack, he hadn’t even eaten much for dinner. How could he not be hungry?
Knowledge was not food. It could fill his brain, but not his stomach.
Lu Ze said, “I’ve ordered you some takeout, a small bowl of porridge. It should be there soon. Eat a little, don’t eat too much. Drink a glass of milk before bed and have a good sleep.”
Lin Zhiyan’s eyes curved, and he obediently agreed.
Lu Ze asked again, “Are you tired today?”
Lin Zhiyan thought for a moment and said, “I’m quite tired, but I also learned a lot. There were many things I didn’t understand before, but I figured them out today. I also came into contact with a lot of more advanced and cutting-edge knowledge, so being tired is nothing.”
He was lying on the bed, his phone in front of him, his eyelashes fluttering, and he said in a small voice, “I just miss you a lot.”
Lu Ze smiled. “You’re so busy, and you still have time to think of me?”
Lin Zhiyan said, “I think of you whenever I have time.”
As he spoke, his eyes couldn’t help but droop. “There are still six days left.”
He was lying on his stomach, and the flesh on his cheeks was showing. Lu Ze poked it through the screen and also sighed, “There are still six days left.”
Lin Zhiyan looked at him and suddenly leaned forward, kissing him through the screen.
He said with a red face, “I want you to kiss me.”
Lu Ze’s voice was cheerful. “You just want me to kiss you?”
Lin Zhiyan knew what he was talking about. He hemmed and hawed for a long time before he said in a small voice, “The next time we meet…”
Lu Ze couldn’t help but laugh.
Lin Zhiyan thought with a red face, it was his inexperience last time. The next time, the next time it definitely won’t be like this.
A laugh escaped from Lu Ze’s throat. “That’s what Senior said.”
Lin Zhiyan was thin-skinned after all, and he was too embarrassed to talk about this topic with him anymore. Just then, the hotel doorbell rang. The takeout had arrived.
He jumped up quickly, took the takeout, and opened it. In addition to a small bowl of vegetable porridge, there was also a bottle of warm milk.
Lin Zhiyan brought the phone over and let Lu Ze watch him eat.
Lu Ze instructed, “Go to bed early after you finish eating. You have to get up early tomorrow morning. Pay attention to rest and don’t get too tired.”
While drinking the porridge, Lin Zhiyan looked up at him and noticed his background. “Are you still in the office?”
Lu Ze said, “I had some things to deal with, so I stayed until now.”
“How much is left?”
Lu Ze said, “Almost done, it’ll be done soon.”
Lin Zhiyan nodded and said, “Then you should go back early. Don’t be too late.”
Lu Ze loosened his tie and said slowly, “I’m not going back. There’s a lounge in the office, so I’ll just rest here for the night.”
He looked at Lin Zhiyan. “You’re not at home, so it’s boring to go back.”
Lin Zhiyan’s action of drinking the porridge paused. He was silent for a long time, then called out softly, “A Ze…”
Lu Ze looked at him.
Lin Zhiyan rarely called him this way. To him, it was more like a lover’s sweet nothings, intimate and private, not to be easily heard by outsiders.
Lin Zhiyan slowly looked up, his gaze sweet and soft. He held a spoon in his hand and unconsciously stirred the porridge in circles. The words he wanted to say were finally defeated by the heat in his ears, and his eyelashes trembled down.
His voice was small, filled with shyness and affection, and he said slowly, “Then in the future… I’ll try to go home every day, okay?”
Lu Ze’s heart trembled, and he didn’t speak for a moment.
He knew that Lin Zhiyan was introverted and shy by nature, and he was especially not good at expressing words of love. A “like” or “miss you” was already the limit.
But now, he had taken the initiative to say such words through a phone.
These words were no different from actively asking to live together.
After Lin Zhiyan had spoken, he was a little nervous and apprehensive. On the one hand, he felt that they had just gotten together not long ago, and actively proposing to live together would seem too frivolous and dissolute. On the other hand, he really couldn’t restrain the love and desire rising in his heart, and just wanted to firmly grasp every moment he could be with him.
After a long time, Lu Ze finally smiled. “Then I’ll have to set a curfew in the future.”
The tight corners of Lin Zhiyan’s lips finally relaxed a little. He asked, “Then what if I’m not home after the curfew?”
Lu Ze’s eyes were smiling. “Then I can only… go find Senior.”
.
At eleven o’clock, Lin Zhiyan went to bed under Lu Ze’s urging. He closed his eyes lightly and, listening to the subtle movements from the other end of the phone, finally slowly fell into a dream.
Lu Ze listened to the gradually stabilizing breathing on the other end and couldn’t help but smile lightly. He picked up his phone, but it was to open the flight tickets for a few days later.
He leaned back in his chair and looked at the time displayed on the phone screen, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.
.
Lin Zhiyan’s biological clock was almost stable at waking up at seven every day, even in the hotel these past few days. Therefore, every morning when Lin Zhiyan woke up in a daze, he would receive a timely call from Lu Ze, as well as a steaming hot breakfast.
Lin Zhiyan had come back a little late yesterday, so he was a little listless this morning. “A Ze…”
He shrank in the blanket, his voice muffled.
Lu Ze asked in a gentle voice, “Is there nothing to do today?”
Lin Zhiyan perked up. “Yes, there’s still a meeting in the morning, and then I’ll be free in the afternoon.”
More than half of the seminar was over, and all the various activities that were supposed to be held were almost done. The remaining two days were relatively relaxed, reserved for the participants to communicate with each other, and there were no other restrictions.
The professor was considerate of the fact that they had been busy for the past few days and were tired, so he gave them half a day off.
Lu Ze said, “Then get up and eat first. You can sleep in the afternoon when you come back.”
As Lu Ze spoke, his voice faintly carried a hint of a smile that was not very obvious. But Lin Zhiyan didn’t notice. After struggling for a moment, he finally got up.
The video was on the whole time. Lu Ze had already washed up and was dealing with work. He would glance at the phone from time to time and see Lin Zhiyan brushing his teeth and washing his face with half-closed eyes, and then forcing himself to eat, his cheeks puffing up, and occasionally saying a word. A short morning together could satisfy him for a whole day.
The two of them had been like this for the past few days.
Lu Ze said as if unintentionally, “When does it end at noon?”
“Eleven-thirty.” Lin Zhiyan counted on his fingers. “After it’s over, the afternoon is all mine.”
He curved his eyes. “Senior Sister said there are many local specialties here, both delicious and fun. I plan to buy some and walk around.”
Lu Ze hummed in agreement and said slowly, “There’s no hurry. Rest well before you go.”
Lin Zhiyan was clearly a little excited and hummed in agreement.
He then slowly talked about some other things, such as some of the famous big shots he had met here were actually very cute people in private; such as the temperature here was really low, and it was a good thing Lu Ze had told him to bring a down jacket before he came; and such as…
“I miss you again.” A proper separation could obviously make the affection stronger. Lin Zhiyan’s daily “I miss you” had gradually shed its shyness, and he was more direct in expressing his feelings to Lu Ze.
He calculated, “There are still two days left.”
Lu Ze looked at him, his eyes gentle.
Lin Zhiyan looked at him, the corners of his mouth curved. “I’ll be home soon.”
…
After a busy morning, a stage of the mission was finally temporarily over. The seniors who had come with him had also gained a lot, but they also couldn’t hide their fatigue.
The professor looked at them and couldn’t help but laugh. “You young people, your constitution is really not good. When I was young, I could stay up for several nights in a row and still be full of energy. Look at you now, all listless.”
The hotel was right next to the conference venue, a few minutes’ walk away. A postgraduate senior said with a cheeky smile, “We can’t help it. The weight of the knowledge we’ve acquired these past few days is too heavy, so much so that it’s pressing down on us and we can’t walk. We’ll reach a new level once we’ve digested it all.”
The professor held back his laughter. “Alright, alright, hurry back and rest and digest. Don’t let the weight of the knowledge crush you.”
The group laughed and slowly walked to the hotel.
There were quite a few people coming and going. Lin Zhiyan didn’t pay much attention at first, but his gaze couldn’t help but fall on a tall young man.
The man was wearing a long black down jacket, his figure tall and straight. He was wearing a black hat and a mask, which covered most of his face.
When Lin Zhiyan looked over, the man inadvertently turned his head to look into the distance. His side profile was covered by the mask, but you could still see his sharp and distinct features.
Lin Zhiyan’s heart suddenly moved. For some reason, he felt that this person looked very much like Lu Ze.
Then he couldn’t help but shake his head and thought with a bitter smile, how could Lu Ze be here?
He didn’t take this matter to heart and walked towards the hotel, but he suddenly paused as he crossed the threshold.
All sorts of thoughts flashed through his mind. As if he had realized something, he suddenly turned around and, as expected, saw that the man in the black down jacket had already turned around and was standing there, looking straight at him.
The edge of the hat pressed down on his hair, leaving a few disobedient strands sticking to his cheeks, blurring his features. But just the few parts that were exposed were enough for him to recognize him.
Lin Zhiyan’s heart was pounding. He walked up quickly, which then turned into a jog, and threw himself into the man’s arms:
“Lu Ze!”
Lu Ze opened his arms and held him tightly, letting out a muffled laugh.
