Embrace

"Now, she should be able to sleep peacefully, right…"

Midnight.

Lu Qing, dragging his exhausted body, arrived at the entrance of Unit C in Tianhe Platinum Apartments.

"Meow~!"

Big Orange Cat immediately approached, leading a group of little followers to welcome him.

No matter if it was day or night, whenever Lu Qing returned home, Big Orange Cat would always be waiting here. As a result, Lu Qing's journey upstairs was always slow—

He would spend a few minutes playing with the cats, providing them with some emotional comfort, and he never grew tired of it.

"Haha, why aren't you all asleep yet?"

Lu Qing stopped, bent down, and reached out his hand.

Big Orange Cat affectionately leaned in, showing none of the wariness or distance it had earlier when a certain girl was present. It was clear favoritism.

Nearby, the window was opened by Uncle Ge:

"Little Lu, why are you back so late today?"

"Ah, I had a dinner gathering, so it took some time. Uncle Ge, aren't you resting yet?"

Lu Qing rubbed Big Orange Cat's chin, gently combing its fur with his fingers, as if playing a soft melody on a piano.

Big Orange Cat was thoroughly enjoying it, and the little followers behind it were also curious, wanting to join in.

"Ah, rest? What rest? This neighborhood looks good on the surface, but there are always outsiders trying to sneak in and cause trouble. Just the other night, I saw a young girl, braving the heavy rain, force open the main gate and sneak into our Unit C. She hasn't left much since then, and of course, the surveillance cameras didn't catch her face clearly.

And just now, your neighbor next door was asking me if you were the one feeding Big Orange Cat. I didn't say much, because who knows if she's interested in you or what. It's not my place to say."

Uncle Ge took a puff of his Furongwang cigarette, his old eyes fixed on the slowly burning ember, generously sharing this information.

"Ah?"

Hearing this, Lu Qing thought to himself that based on Uncle Ge's description, the latter could only be Bai Xing.

After all, the unit to his left was empty, and the only neighbor he ever saw on the right was the young girl.

She might have remembered him mentioning feeding the cats and came to ask about it.

No big deal.

But… something felt off…

The first girl Uncle Ge mentioned seemed to be Su Ling??

Braving the rain, sneaking into a heavily guarded neighborhood, alone, caught on camera but with an unclear face.

This kind of move might be a bit difficult for Tang Hua, but if it was Su Ling from that day, she might have been able to pull it off.

Yes, very likely.

Lu Qing thought this as he patted Big Orange Cat's head.

Then he reached out, picked up the cat water bowl from the grass, and got up to enter the building, deciding to chat a bit more with Uncle Ge.

"Uncle Ge, what did she say?"

He walked to the small utility room on the right side of the entrance, where the cleaning lady kept her tools. Next to a row of mops and brooms, he turned on the faucet and rinsed the cat bowl under the running water.

While preparing fresh water, he continued the casual conversation.

"She didn't say much, just seemed really troubled. The girl didn't want to go upstairs and lingered here. She wanted to talk to Big Orange Cat, but the cat ignored her, which made her pretty upset. She even cried before getting on the elevator."

"……"

"Kids these days, why are they so prone to crying?"

Uncle Ge took a final drag of his cigarette, then stubbed it out in an empty tuna can on the windowsill.

He patted the dust off his clothes, turned around, and walked back into the surveillance room with his hands behind his back.

"Thanks, Uncle Ge."

Lu Qing was deep in thought.

…

He had successfully gathered "new intel" and now understood Bai Xing's true state.

"Looks like that pack of cigarettes was worth it."

Lu Qing returned the cat bowl to its place, refilled it with Baisui Mountain mineral water from the windowsill, and then tapped Big Orange Cat's nose before finally heading toward the elevator, satisfied.

It would take over two minutes for the elevator to reach the 19th floor.

Standing in the slowly ascending elevator, Lu Qing's mind wandered in a numb state, pondering his next move.

—Bai Xing's grandmother would enter the treatment phase next weekend, and she would need someone to accompany her.

—At that time, the girl would definitely go to the hospital, staying by her side during the initial days, even skipping school.

—This Friday is the premiere day.

—A preview video needs to be prepared before the premiere.

Tang Hua had already sent it to him, so he couldn't sleep tonight.

Before bed, he needed to write the script and use the account Tang Hua provided to edit and upload the video.

"Ah… I probably won't be able to close my eyes before 3 AM."

Lu Qing sighed softly, planning his next steps.

"Tomorrow is Thursday, the last day to finalize the premiere plan and go over the details with Bai Xing. But I don't know if she'll be able to recover quickly after today and adjust her emotions to the best state."

The text message he sent earlier hadn't been answered.

But Uncle Ge said she cried in front of the elevator.

That meant she had a strong emotional reaction after seeing the message.

So, was he right?

Her current situation was indeed tough.

Lu Qing strategized, constantly reviewing the situation:

"She's lacking 'cash flow,' only spending without any extra income."

This meant she had no choice but to pin all her hopes on the upcoming VTB premiere this Friday.

Living like this…

"The pressure must be immense, right…?"

Lu Qing sighed inwardly.

He could empathize, trying his best to understand the girl.

He felt for her, knowing how hard it must be.

"Today, I met Tang Hua. On the surface, everything was cordial, but she must have been hit hard too."

After all, Tang Hua's existence itself was like a bug.

Her qualities seemed like glitches, impossible to combine into a perfect individual in reality.

It was as if she herself was the "prototype" from the underground city.

Even if she were to represent the "Amethyst-Eyed Succubus," there would be no issues at all.

"Sigh, if I see Bai Xing again, I'll try to fulfill an even more excessive request for her."

Lu Qing murmured to himself,

murmured to himself,

as the elevator doors slowly opened on the 19th floor.

"Really?"

At the entrance.

The girl stood there, holding her phone, waiting.

Her frail body bore the traces of tears.

It seemed she had been waiting for a long time.

"…Bai Xing."

Lu Qing stepped out of the elevator.

"Have you been waiting for me?"

"Yes."

The girl averted her gaze, looking lonely as she stared at the night sky over the complex to the left of the hallway.

The starlight was breathtakingly beautiful.

But in the chilly autumn breeze, the cold wind made her long hair flutter behind her.

Lu Qing watched her silently.

"Did you get the thing?"

"Yes."

"Not sleeping, not going home… do you have something to say to me?"

"Yes."

"What is it?"

He walked up to her, looking down at her adorable face, which was a head shorter than his.

"I want a reward."

Bai Xing pursed her lips, no longer caring about anything else.

"Huh?"

Lu Qing was slightly taken aback, glancing over her shoulder toward the full-view monitor at his door, 1901.

He instinctively wanted to assess something.

"Wait, what's that?"

In his line of sight, the monitor seemed to be covered by a thin layer of foam-like substance.

"???"

Bai Xing smiled shyly, awkwardly explaining, "I thought it was in the way, so I sprayed some graffiti over it. If you mind, Senior, I'll pay you back when I have the money."

"……"

Wow.

Lu Qing was at a loss for words.

He wanted to say something but stopped.

Then, after some thought,

he stopped again.

"Alright. So, what's the reward?"

"You said it yourself, something a bit excessive is fine, right?"

"……"

Lu Qing's heart tightened, replying with some uncertainty, "Well, in theory, yes. But don't go too far…"

"Senior."

"Ah…"

Suddenly,

the girl stood on her tiptoes, bringing her tear-streaked face close to his:

"Can you hug me… with the same gentleness you use when hugging Su Ling?"

……

……