He Lindi was a photographer, and a popular one at that. Business trips were common for her; this was part of the reason they hadn’t met frequently before.
For He Lindi, business trips were the norm. Chi Shuo was already very used to it. She had even gotten used to the two months without seeing He Lindi. This trip to Beijing to photograph Song Qin was only for a week, yet Chi Shuo felt somewhat uncomfortable.
She had grown accustomed to the days spent with He Lindi, whether reading the notebook or going out to take photos together. It had become her habit.
The day after Christmas, Chi Shuo went upstairs to Xiyu as usual in the afternoon. Seeing He Lindi’s empty chair, she finally fully registered that He Lindi had already gone to Beijing.
The scene of them watching a horror movie and eating snacks together last night still lingered in her mind. Chi Shuo tightened her grip on the notebook He Lindi had left behind and sat down.
Q Ge saw her sit down and glanced at her several times. Chi Shuo pressed her lips together and asked, “Q Ge, is something wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“Just wanted to say, Little Teacher He is only gone for a week.”
Chi Shuo’s lips curved slightly. “I know.”
“So… you don’t need to look so sad.” Q Ge finally stated it directly. He could see the unhappiness written all over Chi Shuo’s face.
Chi Shuo paused. “Is it that obvious?”
Q Ge nodded frantically. Chi Shuo exhaled, smoothed the expression of disappointment that arose whenever she thought of He Lindi’s absence, and started reading the notebook again.
After a while, Chi Shuo couldn’t help asking, “Q Ge, do you know when Teacher He started keeping this notebook?”
Q Ge scratched his head and shook it. “Don’t know. I’ve never seen her use it. She was already somewhat famous when she joined the company, why would she need to record these basic knowledge points?”
Chi Shuo pressed her lips together again. “Okay, I understand.”
Chi Shuo suddenly felt that her third guess from last night wasn’t wrong—He Lindi might really like her.
When Chi Shuo first got this notebook, she felt it was very new. If it had been used for years, it would inevitably show signs of time, at least the cover and pages should have felt old.
But this notebook didn’t. The cover was very new, the handwriting looked as if it had just been written, and the photos pasted inside were even more telling—they were stuck firmly, showing no signs of peeling off, and the photos themselves looked freshly printed.
Putting it all together, Chi Shuo could be 100% certain that this notebook was specially prepared by He Lindi for her, because she was teaching her photography.
And the ultimate goal of teaching her photography was…
To spend more time with her.
Thinking of this, Chi Shuo’s mind started to spin. Many scenes flashed through her head: He Lindi taking pictures of her, He Lindi bringing her medicine when she knew she had period pain, He Lindi’s nervous expression when she got injured, He Lindi waiting for her at the complex gate with a birthday gift in the early hours of the morning…
There were too many such images, flooding Chi Shuo’s mind all at once, leaving her somewhat overwhelmed.
But… if He Lindi really liked her, when did it start? Chi Shuo couldn’t trace it, yet she wanted to know the answer.
But she couldn’t ask. She started worrying if her thoughts were just her own fantasy. Everyone knew He Lindi was a good person, always smiling at everyone, willing to help anyone in need.
Chi Shuo closed her eyes, rested her forehead on the notebook, her brow tightly furrowed, trying to assess the possibility of He Lindi liking her.
Then her thoughts drifted. She remembered the hug last night. After Chi Shuo invited her for a hug, He Lindi’s expression froze for a moment, but she didn’t refuse.
He Lindi gently placed the bag she was holding aside, then gave Chi Shuo a very light hug, so light that Chi Shuo felt it was ethereal, yet so ethereal that Chi Shuo was still savoring it now.
Chi Shuo let out a long breath, then sat up straight and closed the notebook.
Q Ge was preparing to leave with his DSLR. He paused upon seeing her action. “Done reading?”
“Mm.” Chi Shuo revealed a smile and nodded. “I think I’ll go back to my company to work. Without Teacher He, I feel I can’t learn much anyway.”
“Okay.”
Chi Shuo returned to Xinyue but felt restless. Finally, she took out her phone and typed a message to He Lindi, whom she hadn’t messaged yet today: 【Have you arrived in Beijing?】
Chi Shuo knew He Lindi’s main task this time was to photograph Song Qin’s activities for Mango TV’s New Year’s Eve concert. For popular young stars like them, not receiving invitations from major TV stations for New Year’s Eve would invite ridicule.
Ten minutes passed, then half an hour, and He Lindi still hadn’t replied. Chi Shuo lowered her eyelids, feeling perhaps she was being too hasty in seeking confirmation of He Lindi’s feelings.
There was still plenty of time. She could take it slowly, until she was sure her feeling wasn’t wrong.
At noon, in the break room.
Chi Shuo’s absentmindedness showed again. Zeng Guai couldn’t resist patting her shoulder. “Shuo Shuo, seriously? Really troubled by love lately?”
Chi Shuo returned to her senses. “Winter fatigue is real, though.”
Xia Zhou’s eyes still held scrutiny and suspicion. “No, something’s really off with you lately.”
Chi Shuo just smiled. “Where is it off? I’m still me, right?”
Xia Zhou was about to offer her analysis when she saw He Xiuqi approaching with a cup of hot water. She closed her mouth, not bringing up the topic again.
He Xiuqi indeed sat down at their table. He held his water cup to warm his hands and asked, “Xiao Chi Jie, do you guys have any plans for New Year’s Eve? Can I join?”
Chi Shuo shook her head. “No plans. The 31st is a Monday. We were supposed to have the New Year’s Day holiday, but didn’t the higher-ups announce it? As the event approaches, we have to work overtime, only getting the weekend off.”
“Work is hard, work is tiring.” Zeng Guai was listless; she was genuinely sleepy. After speaking, she simply slumped onto the coffee table.
He Xiuqi’s eyes remained bright, seemingly unwilling to give up. “We get off work early, it doesn’t affect anything.” He finally revealed his purpose. “We could also invite people from the company upstairs. Everyone could have a meal together.”
Chi Shuo stated bluntly, “He Lindi is on a business trip.”
“……” He Xiuqi instantly deflated. “Oh, I see…”
Xia Zhou, watching from the side, chuckled inwardly, a slight curve to her lips. “She’s a photographer, very busy at the end of the year.”
He Xiuqi’s head drooped even lower. “Ah, right.”
Chi Shuo didn’t say anything more. She looked at her phone and saw she had received a WeChat message. She immediately perked up slightly and opened it.
But it wasn’t from He Lindi; it was from Shen Qu. Chi Shuo sighed.
Shen Qu was reporting her progress discussing retirement with the company: 【The company only agreed to let me rest for two years. After two years, I still have to return to the entertainment industry. I signed a five-year contract with them, only three years have passed. If I can’t make up for those two years, it counts as breach of contract.】
Chi Shuo asked: 【Is the penalty high?】
【What do you think?】
Chi Shuo: 【……】
Chi Shuo didn’t know what else to say: 【Keep going.】
Shen Qu should have attended a TV station’s New Year’s Eve show too, but her current state wasn’t suitable. Besides, the film crew couldn’t spare her; otherwise, the wrap date would be delayed again.
After chatting with Shen Qu, Chi Shuo realized He Xiuqi had left at some point.
She was somewhat surprised. “He left just like that?”
Xia Zhou shrugged. “He originally came over just to ask about Didi. Now that he knows Didi can’t make it, what else would he do but leave?”
Chi Shuo nodded. “Makes sense.”
Chi Shuo glanced at Zeng Guai. “Zeng Guai, I was just chatting with your daughter. Want any exclusive news?”
Zeng Guai immediately perked up, looking at Chi Shuo. “Yes, yes.”
Chi Shuo pondered for a moment, leaned closer, and said, “Maybe announced in about a month…”
Before she could finish, Zeng Guai interrupted, “Announcing a relationship?”
Chi Shuo couldn’t resist. “Are you even a mama fan? Look at her current state, does she look like she can date?” After speaking, she started doubting her own words. “Though, this person is quite strong.”
“…Then what’s being announced?”
Chi Shuo lowered her voice slightly again. “Resting for two years.”
Zeng Guai was instantly shocked. “Holy crap, two years! A popular young actress resting for two years, fans will all leave. When she comes back, she won’t be able to get female lead roles. Even if she does, it might not make waves. Two years! The entertainment industry is so harsh on female stars. Two years later, everyone might have forgotten her.”
The more she spoke, the sadder she became. Chi Shuo had to comfort her, “She’s destined for fame, don’t worry.”
Xia Zhou beside her also looked somewhat worried. “Why choose to rest for two years? Because of the harassment incident?”
“…To recover.” Chi Shuo could only offer this answer, but she believed Xia Zhou and the others understood what kind of “illness” she meant.
Stars in the entertainment industry indeed appear glamorous on the surface, but behind the scenes, it’s not necessarily the case. Some choose extreme ways to de-stress, while others can’t manage that, letting the inner demons grow until they develop common mental illnesses like depression or bipolar disorder.
“Sigh.”
In the afternoon, He Lindi finally replied to Chi Shuo’s message: 【Busy these two days, might not reply promptly.】
Chi Shuo replied instantly: 【I know.】
He Lindi sent a picture over. It showed Beijing’s dim sky. Chi Shuo opened it and found a hidden detail—a line of small text hidden within the color of the dark clouds.
Chi Shuo zoomed in on the picture and clearly saw the words: Seven days until I return.
Chi Shuo’s lips unconsciously curved upwards. A fleeting thought flashed through her mind: This feels like a long-distance relationship.
Is it?
The thought of “long-distance relationship” made Chi Shuo’s heart race uncontrollably, but the joy on her face couldn’t be hidden. Anyone seeing her would think she was in a good mood.
Every day after that, He Lindi would send similar pictures, always in the format “x days until I return.” Sometimes it was a picture of a building, sometimes food.
The pictures changed, but the expressed meaning remained the same.
Winter continued. The weather forecast app showed temperatures dropping lower and lower, but Chi Shuo felt warmer than before.
Soon, it was the day before New Year’s Eve, December 30th.
Chi Shuo, Zeng Guai, and the others still made plans—a trip to the amusement park, for a slightly more exciting end to 2018.
But they didn’t announce it widely, afraid He Xiuqi would find out and record it in his little notebook. Though, thinking carefully, He Xiuqi probably didn’t care about them; he only ever cared about He Lindi.
Besides the three of them, Wang Rui, whose relationship with Chi Shuo had improved since the business trip, also joined.
It was the end of the year, and the amusement park was packed. Since New Year’s Day was also a holiday, every ride Chi Shuo and the others wanted to go on had long queues. They barely played much before the sky darkened.
Chi Shuo exclaimed exhaustedly, “For the next five years, I don’t want to come to an amusement park again. It’s torture. Why come to the amusement park when I could be sleeping in bed at home? I really might have something wrong with my head.”
The other three agreed, “You’re right.”
After having dinner together, they each got into cars heading home. Chi Shuo didn’t take a taxi; she boarded a bus.
It wasn’t crowded, and there were empty seats. Chi Shuo wearily sat down in the back row.
There was no one else back here. Chi Shuo opened the window slightly, let the wind blow in, then closed it again.
She messaged He Lindi again, sharing her daily life: 【Don’t want to go to the amusement park for the next few years. Picked the wrong day, too crowded, felt like I was going to be squashed flat.】
After sending it, she pressed back, not expecting He Lindi to reply instantly, because the TV station was likely rehearsing tonight, and He Lindi would be very busy.
But unexpectedly, just after she pressed back, He Lindi replied: 【What if I wanted you to go with me?】
This simple sentence and question mark made Chi Shuo’s face flush.
Through these past few days, Chi Shuo was absolutely certain: He Lindi liking her was a sure thing.
This wasn’t wishful thinking; it was a conclusion drawn from countless past details.
If she didn’t like her, would He Lindi wait until midnight to give her a birthday gift?
If she didn’t like her, would He Lindi specially prepare a photography study notebook?
If she didn’t like her, would He Lindi repeatedly use the word “only”?
If she didn’t like her…
There were too many examples to list; Chi Shuo had gone over them countless times in her mind.
She smiled silently to herself. He Lindi sent another picture.
This time it was a picture of a drink bottle. Chi Shuo habitually zoomed in to look, and sure enough, a line of text still lay hidden inside.
Only the sentence format had changed—Less than two days until I see Chi Shuo.
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