"A promise made is a promise kept," Lin Chuan nodded earnestly.

"Heehee..." Zhou Rui chuckled with a giggle.

"Alright, work's done for the day, I'll take you home to rest," Lin Chuan said.

Zhou Rui originally wanted to refuse, but the thought of Lin Chuan personally taking her home made her agree without any hesitation. She hurriedly packed up her things and then glanced at her watch, exclaiming, "Ah, is it already midnight?"

"Of course!" Lin Chuan nodded and said, "Look at you, so engrossed in work that you've lost track of time, right?"

"Hehe..." Zhou Rui giggled again.

Excitedly, Zhou Rui clung to Lin Chuan's arm as they walked downstairs together.

When they went down, Li Qiang and the others were still sleeping. Zhou Rui couldn't help but scold, "A bunch of idiots, not even aware when someone comes in."

"Ah? Who... who came in?" Li Qiang startled, almost tumbling off his chair.

Everyone scrambled to their feet, and when they saw Lin Chuan, they were all stunned.

"Brother Chuan, when did you get here?" Li Qiang rubbed his eyes.

"Hmph, just as well it's Lin Chuan. If a pervert had gotten into my office, I'd be doomed!" Zhou Rui glared at them and scolded, "You're so useless."

"If it were a pervert, he'd probably be beaten to death with your high heels!" Li Qiang shrank his neck in fear.

"You... you're talking nonsense, am I that violent?" Zhou Rui promptly took off her high heels.

The crowd recoiled in fear, taking a few steps back.

Zhou Rui quickly realized that something was amiss and hastily put her high heels back on, then giggled, "Lin Chuan, I... I'm not usually like this, and besides, I was just scaring them. Actually, I... I'm very gentle."

While speaking, Zhou Rui coquettishly adopted a demure woman's posture, clinging to Lin Chuan's arm and acting coyly.

Li Qiang and the others watched, dumbfounded and tongue-tied.

"My dear mother!" Li Qiang's eyes widened in shock, saying, "Am I blind and hallucinating, or... am I dreaming?"

"Brother Qiang, is this... is this really Mr. Zhou?" The rest of them were also astonished.

Lin Chuan couldn't help but laugh. Annoyed and embarrassed Zhou Rui shouted, "You better scurry back to sleep and stop bothering me here."

"Yes, yes, yes!" Upon hearing this, Li Qiang and the rest bolted away in fright.

Zhou Rui watched them flee and immediately reverted to her ladylike demeanor. Holding Lin Chuan's arm, she said, "Let's go, we're heading back."

"Yeah!" Lin Chuan nodded.

Truth be told, how could Lin Chuan not understand Zhou Rui? That girl had always been mischievous and bold since childhood. Most boys really couldn't hold a candle to her. Back in the day, Zhou Kai, Lu Dapao, and Huang Bo—who hadn't been bullied by her? Despite her small size, she was incredibly cunning and sprite-like. Even as a snotty-nosed child, she was like a whirlwind of a girl.

In the midnight sky, there hung a crescent moon, and the stars were brilliantly scattered across the heavens—a truly delightful sight.

"Wow, such a beautiful night sky," Zhou Rui chuckled.

"Indeed!" Lin Chuan agreed, adding, "Nowadays, it's quite rare to see such a night sky beneath the bustle of the city."

"Lin Chuan, can we go to a place?" Zhou Rui asked curiously.

"Where do you want to go?" Lin Chuan inquired.

"A place we often went to when we were kids!" Zhou Rui looked up at Lin Chuan, and beneath the stars, her two black eyes shone like bright, dazzling stars, radiating charm.

"Are you talking about that lake?" Lin Chuan asked.

"Yes!" Zhou Rui nodded.

"Let's go!" Suddenly, Lin Chuan was overwhelmed by a wave of childlike eagerness.

He immediately grabbed Zhou Rui and sprinted alongside the Changlin Factory compound wall, down a small path through the woods, running about a kilometer before soon entering an expanse of fields on the city's outskirts. The area had many city dwellers tilling the land, cultivating a variety of fruits and vegetables.

It wasn't like this in the past.

Back when Changlin Factory moved here from the mountains, behind it lay vast tracts of fine farmland and vegetable patches. In the midst of these lands, there was a clear small lake, with a gently flowing stream coming through the woods toward the lake.

However, as time went on, the surrounding farmlands dwindled, and most of the lands were claimed by developers or the government. These became construction sites for residential buildings, and Lin Chuan's memories gradually faded away.

Standing atop the field ridge, they gazed in the distance at the placid lake that, under the night sky, resembled a vast mirror adorned with countless twinkling starry reflections, dazzling and enchanting...

"It's so beautiful," Zhou Rui couldn't help but exclaim.

"Indeed." Lin Chuan was also attracted by the natural beauty, and moreover, in today's society, it is very rare to see such a beautiful, peaceful lake in the city. Looking at the lake, Lin Chuan suddenly thought of the Water God.

The two walked slowly towards the lake. Standing by the lake, the lake reflected the entire vast starry sky, making it even more stunningly beautiful.

Early April, the third month of the lunar calendar.

It was the beginning of spring, warm yet still cold. The weather was warm during the day, but at night, the cold wind was piercing to the bone.

Zhou Rui was only wearing a very thin jacket, and a gust of cold wind made her shiver uncontrollably.

Lin Chuan walked over, gently embraced her, and said softly, "Shall we go back if it's cold?"

"I'm not cold with you here." Zhou Rui rested her head on Lin Chuan's chest and shook her head gently, stubbornly.

"Silly girl," Lin Chuan laughed.

"You haven't called me that in a long time," Zhou Rui pouted with her red lips, "That's what you used to call me when we were kids."

"Haha..." Lin Chuan immediately burst into laugher.

"Lin Chuan, do you remember you saving me here when we were kids?" Zhou Rui looked up at Lin Chuan, their eyes met, sparking a flash of fire. Zhou Rui even slowly closed her eyes, seemingly anticipating a kiss from Lin Chuan lowering his head.

"I remember!" Lin Chuan quickly turned his head away.

Zhou Rui immediately looked up and realized Lin Chuan had diverted his gaze. She felt annoyed and, of course, more so disappointed. She did not expect that Lin Chuan would be completely uninterested in her. Zhou Rui was most confident not in her memory, intelligence, or education, but in her proud face and figure. No matter where she went, her face and figure were top-notch, and abroad, many boys were crazy about her. Even after returning to China, some outstanding young men on the business scene showed her affection, but she always looked down upon them.

Today was the first day she ever doubted her face and figure.

If her face and figure were really that outstanding, then why was Lin Chuan always indifferent? Zhou Rui felt a faint sadness and a gentle sense of sorrow. She sniffled and said, "Back then, I fell into the water by accident, Zhou Kai and the others were so scared they ran away, but only you had the courage to jump in and push me up. If you had run away like Zhou Kai and the others, I might never have made it to today."

"That's all in the past," Lin Chuan smiled and said, "Who would have thought that the snotty, silly girl from back then would have turned into such a statuesque young lady now."

"Yes. The silly girl became a beautiful lady." Zhou Rui hugged Lin Chuan and whispered, "But I will always be your silly girl."

Confession.

It was a blatant confession. For Zhou Rui, and indeed for any beautiful girl, it was impossible for them to make the first move to confess. Such girls always had a bunch of outstanding young men chasing them. If you don't take the initiative, someone else will. Thus, but for these kinds of girls, they are usually in a position to pick and choose.

For Zhou Rui to confess in such a roundabout way, it was very rare.

"It's getting cold, let's go back," Lin Chuan spoke.

"No!" Zhou Rui shook her head, "I just want to hold you like this, don't let go."

A second tentative confession.

Lin Chuan understood, but he didn't know how to respond. He really didn't know what to say. Zhou Rui was a nice girl, but unfortunately, he already had a girlfriend; otherwise, he wouldn't mind considering Zhou Rui. Since he was already taken, why provoke others? In the end, he might lose both the melon and the sesame seed.

The two stood quietly by the lakeside, watching a few willow trees not far from the lake dancing in the wind. They swayed gently, like a young girl bathing on the shore, her long hair blowing in the breeze.

"Xiao Rui, we should head back," Lin Chuan said.

Zhou Rui bit her lip, looked up at Lin Chuan, and said, "Lin Chuan, are you a fool or an idiot? Can't you understand the meaning in my words at all?"

"I..." Lin Chuan showed a bitter smile and said, "What do you want me to do?"

"What do you think you should do?" Zhou Rui looked at Lin Chuan annoyed.

"I, I don't know what to do either!" Lin Chuan shook his head.

"Forget it, I don't want to spend any more time with you, a blockhead, admiring the willows and enjoying the breeze." Zhou Rui, frustrated, turned around and dashed towards the direction of the grove.

Lin Chuan watched Zhou Rui run off into the distance, not knowing what to do. Now Lin Chuan could only feign ignorance, pretending he knew nothing.

It was only after Zhou Rui disappeared into the grove that Lin Chuan quickly followed.

Who would have expected that as soon as he dashed into the woods, Zhou Rui's screams could be heard.

"Not good," Lin Chuan exclaimed in alarm.

Upon hearing the cry of alarm, Lin Chuan hurried over with all his might, but by the time he arrived in the woods, Zhou Rui had disappeared, and the taillights of a car had vanished without a trace. There seemed to be a shoe lying in the forest.

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