Extra 5
Parallel World IF Line 4
The contract signing was complete, and Lin Xingzhu breathed a sigh of relief.
This collaboration with Chao Xing Technology1 was the first major project Lin Xingzhu had presided over since joining the company. Now that all processes were moving forward and the final, crucial step of signing the contract was also finished, Lin Xingzhu felt a little happy in her heart.
A few months ago, when she left the Qin family, she had also taken the opportunity to resign from her position at Qin’s. Fortunately, her academic qualifications and resume were both excellent, and she quickly succeeded in her application to her current company. With the success of the collaboration between the two companies this time, she could be considered to have firmly established her footing in the company.
After leaving the conference hall, the colleague who came with her could hardly hide her delight: “This time, my year-end bonus definitely won’t be small.”
Lin Xingzhu returned to her senses, somewhat amused: “It’s still a long way from the New Year.”
The colleague shrugged, “Director Lin, you don’t know. Last year, my year-end bonus wasn’t much, so I was hoping for some good luck to win a big prize at the annual meeting, which would also be a sum of money. As it turned out, good luck came, and I even won the first prize, but the result was…”
Lin Xingzhu was curious: “What was the result? Was the money very little?”
The colleague seemed to recall some nightmare, her expression a bit hard to put into words: “The result was that my first prize said I could have a solo photo with the Chairman of the Board2.”
This prize was simply too terrifying!
Lin Xingzhu: “…”
She suddenly understood her colleague a little and, suppressing a laugh, patted her on the shoulder.
The colleague said: “It was all because last year’s year-end bonus was too small that I pinned my hopes on the prize draw. This year, I definitely won’t be thinking about the prize draw. I don’t know which planner came up with such a rotten idea. Just thinking of the Chairman’s face gives me the creeps.”
After listening to her complaints, Lin Xingzhu couldn’t help but say, “Thank you for telling me. I will definitely pay attention at the end of the year.”
She definitely wouldn’t have itchy fingers3 and participate in the prize draw.
The colleague gave her a mournful look and was about to say something more when she was suddenly interrupted by a voice.
“Xingzhu-jie, Xingzhu-jie!”
Lin Xingzhu’s steps paused slightly. She stopped and turned to look at the woman who was jogging over from the elevator entrance.
He Yudong4 looked at Lin Xingzhu with sparkling eyes, “Why didn’t you tell me when you came over, ah.”
Lin Xingzhu suddenly felt a bit of a headache.
The colleague was very sharp-eyed. Seeing that the two seemed to be about to catch up, she thought herself very perceptive and said: “Director Lin, I’ll go outside and wait for you first.”
Lin Xingzhu nodded, and so the colleague left with a gossipy expression and cheerful steps.
Lin Xingzhu maintained her distance from He Yudong, “I came to discuss work with the relevant person in charge.”
The implied meaning was that she was here for official business.
In fact, even if it were a private matter, Lin Xingzhu asked herself and concluded she didn’t have much of a personal relationship with He Yudong.
He Yudong was the He family’s Second Miss. She had an older sister above her who held up the family business, so the family had raised her to be a bit exceptionally naive.
The Qin family and the He family were old acquaintances. Not only did they have business dealings, but the two families also had a good private relationship. Therefore, when Lin Xingzhu was still the Qin family’s Eldest Miss, she couldn’t say she was a stranger to He Yudong, but she couldn’t say she was familiar with her either.
But then one day, He Yudong confessed her feelings to Lin Xingzhu without any warning.
Even though Lin Xingzhu rejected her on the spot, He Yudong showed no sign of embarrassment at all. Every time she saw Lin Xingzhu, she was still incredibly enthusiastic and passionate.
He Yudong wasn’t embarrassed even after clearly hearing her implied meaning. With her pair of eyes sparkling as she stared at Lin Xingzhu’s face, she invited, “Then does Xingzhu-jie have time later? I’ll treat you to a meal.”
Lin Xingzhu shook her head and refused: “I still have to go back to the company.”
“Alright, then.” He Yudong was a little disappointed, but it wasn’t that she couldn’t understand.
Lin Xingzhu nodded at her, and after chatting for a few more sentences, she said her goodbyes and left.
He Yudong stood on the spot watching Lin Xingzhu leave, and only when her back had disappeared from sight did she mutter to herself: “So beautiful, ah…”
Only after returning to the company with her colleague did Lin Xingzhu find out that she had a celebration banquet in the evening.
She was taken aback for a moment, and only after seeing the smiling faces of her colleagues did she realize that this celebration banquet had probably been decided on before she had set out.
Lin Xingzhu said with a smile: “Okay, ah.”
After replying to her colleagues, Lin Xingzhu then lowered her head to send a message to Bai Xiying, who was at home.
【Lin Xingzhu: You don’t need to wait up for me specifically. There’s a colleague dinner party tonight, I will be back very late.】
Lin Xingzhu guessed that she would probably be pressured to drink a lot of alcohol tonight, and she didn’t know how late it would go on.
She didn’t know what had been going on recently, but Bai Xiying seemed to have made up her mind to be a Snail Girl5. The only difference from the Snail Girl in the fairy tale was that Bai Xiying would always wait specifically for Lin Xingzhu to come home to blatantly ask for credit after she finished her tasks.
On the first day, Lin Xingzhu told her she could hire an hourly worker.
In the following days, seeing how enthusiastic Bai Xiying was about playing the Snail Girl, she resignedly found herself slowly getting used to it.
【Bai Xiying: Okay oh.】
After receiving this reply, Lin Xingzhu felt a sudden sense of strangeness as she put her phone away.
Why did she keep feeling a sense of déjà vu as if she were reporting her schedule to her girlfriend…
This thought was too frightening. Lin Xingzhu shook her head, driving the inexplicable thought out of her mind.
Space Line
On the way to the dinner party, Lin Xingzhu made a special trip to buy a familiar cake and put it in the car before heading to the hotel her colleagues had booked long ago.
As expected, just as Lin Xingzhu had anticipated, throughout the dinner, she was frequently pulled over to be urged to drink and toasted. However, most of it was just lively fun among colleagues, and Lin Xingzhu was in a pretty good mood, so she also drank quite a bit.
Her alcohol tolerance was decent, but after a whole celebration banquet, she was still slightly drunk.
A large group of people left the private room in a vast and mighty procession. Just as they were discussing how to leave, several people came towards them in the long corridor.
He Yudong spotted the slightly flushed Lin Xingzhu in the very center at a glance. Her eyes lit up slightly, and she trotted over.
“Xingzhu-jie!”
It was such a coincidence today; she had actually run into Xingzhu-jie twice!
Lin Xingzhu’s thoughts were a bit fuzzy. She was also a little surprised to see her, but she still greeted her.
Seeing her state, He Yudong guessed that she had drunk a lot. Her eyes darted, and she volunteered to the people around them: “I see you’ve all drunk quite a lot. Why don’t I take Xingzhu-jie back? I know where her home is.”
One of the colleagues had just met He Yudong at noon and guessed that the two of them were probably very close, so she told the person next to her.
When the others heard this, they also thought it was just right. They were just worrying about whether to call a designated driver for Director Lin. Now there was a friend of Director Lin who also knew where she lived; this was too much of a coincidence.
Thus, He Yudong took on the task of sending Lin Xingzhu home.
The alcohol was going to her head. Lin Xingzhu hadn’t expected this alcohol to have such a strong kick. She held on to her rationality and said, “It’s the same if I call a designated driver.”
He Yudong refused with a grin: “Aiya, why bother calling a designated driver? It’s fine if I just take Xingzhu-jie back. Don’t worry, I won’t take advantage of you while you’re drunk!”
Lin Xingzhu: “…”
She smiled a little, “That’s not what I mean, but I’ll have to trouble you.”
And so, He Yudong sat in the driver’s seat.
Lin Xingzhu sat in the front passenger seat, leaning against the window, feeling drowsy.
He Yudong happened to glance at the cake placed in the back and was somewhat surprised: “Has Xingzhu-jie changed her tastes recently?”
Lin Xingzhu noticed her gaze, paused for a moment, and said: “No, I bought it for someone else.”
He Yudong didn’t think much of it. Seeing Lin Xingzhu’s unwell state, she didn’t dare to make another sound to disturb her.
Instead, it was Lin Xingzhu who thought of Bai Xiying. After some thought, she sent her a message.
When they arrived downstairs at the residential complex, Lin Xingzhu was already very sleepy.
She forced her eyelids open and said slowly, “Yudong, you can just drive away in my car first. You don’t need to see me up.”
He Yudong: “How dangerous for you to go up alone! Don’t worry, Xingzhu-jie, I’ll leave as soon as I’ve taken you up.”
She looked at Lin Xingzhu’s face, which was especially beautiful even when drunk, and patted her chest as she guaranteed it.
Lin Xingzhu shook her head, “It’s fine, someone is coming down to get me.”
As soon as Bai Xiying came out of the elevator and walked to the main entrance downstairs, she saw Lin Xingzhu and a cute-looking girl standing very close, looking particularly familiar with each other.
Under the light, her sharp eyes caught a glimpse of the light in the cute girl’s eyes as she looked at Lin Xingzhu.
Bai Xiying’s steps paused.
“Lin Xingzhu.” Bai Xiying stood where she was and called out to her from a distance.
Lin Xingzhu and He Yudong, who was beside her, both raised their heads to look at the person who had arrived.
The moonlight was brilliant. Under the night sky, Bai Xiying’s charm was not diminished in the slightest; for a moment, she was so beautiful she didn’t seem like a mortal.
Lin Xingzhu relaxed in her heart, and a bit of a relieved smile escaped the corners of her lips, “You’re here.”
Great, I can go up and sleep soon.
Bai Xiying’s lips curved, and she slowly walked over, very naturally standing on Lin Xingzhu’s other side, and then just as naturally supported her arm.
“Why did you drink so much?”
The gentle tone was mixed with a slightly intimate complaint, letting anyone who heard it know that the relationship between the two was far from simple6.
He Yudong had been stunned since she first saw Bai Xiying. She still hadn’t returned to her senses when she walked closer, so she didn’t even notice when the Lin Xingzhu she was supporting was deftly and naturally taken over by someone else.
It wasn’t until Bai Xiying spoke that He Yudong shuddered and instantly came back to her senses.
Oh my god, this young lady is too beautiful, right?
He Yudong’s cheeks were a little red with excitement.
She was so lost in the beauty that she couldn’t pull herself away, not even noticing Bai Xiying’s stealthy declaration of sovereignty.
“Xingzhu-jie was just too happy at the celebration banquet.”
Having come to her senses, He Yudong’s heart skipped a beat when she saw Bai Xiying’s pretty eyebrows furrow, and she quickly spoke up for Lin Xingzhu.
Bai Xiying raised her eyes to glance at her, “I know, but she still shouldn’t drink that much, ah. And to have to trouble you to bring her back.”
Once these words were spoken, the distinction between who was close and who was distant was immediately clear.7
He Yudong didn’t notice anything amiss at all; she just discovered that the young lady’s voice was also really nice to listen to.
It’s really, really nice to listen to, ah!
The young lady is beautiful, how is her voice also so nice!
Lin Xingzhu felt that something was off, but right now her brain was corroded by alcohol and she only wanted to sleep, so although she felt something was off, she didn’t think about it in detail.
Her legs were a little weak, and there was no need to be polite with Bai Xiying, so Lin Xingzhu leaned against her and rubbed her temples, trying her best to say in a warm voice, “Yudong, you should drive my car home first. My friend will take me up in a bit.”
He Yudong nodded reluctantly, her eyes still fixed on Bai Xiying, unwilling to look away.
How can Xingzhu-jie’s friend be so pretty? She completely hits all my aesthetic points!
Unfortunately, Bai Xiying was biased by her first impression, Seeing her like this, she thought He Yudong was looking at Lin Xingzhu again.
She tightened her arm, making Lin Xingzhu lean even more tightly against her.
From an outsider’s perspective, the two of them were truly very intimate.
He Yudong blushed, but still couldn’t resist speaking to Bai Xiying, “Young lady, can I add your contact information?”
Bai Xiying: “?”
Lin Xingzhu: “?”
The drunkenness seemed to have subsided a bit, yet it also seemed like it hadn’t.
Why did Lin Xingzhu vaguely remember that He Yudong had said the exact same thing the first time she met her all those years ago?
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