The Chief's Midnight Melancholy

The massive black body of the Land Rover Defender OCTA traced a streak of light under the streetlamps of the old residential area, and then, accompanied by the low roar of its engine, disappeared into the end of the night.

Lin Qingyu stood in the shadows of the sycamore trees downstairs, only slowly withdrawing her gaze when even the red taillights were no longer visible.

She subconsciously reached out and touched her lower back.

A trace of warm touch still lingered there; it was the qi left by Su Bai, a domineering yet gentle mark from that man.

Just a few hours ago, she had been crying in despair over her soon-to-be-ruined career. But now, not only had her waist injury miraculously healed, but she had also completed that once-terrifying flying sky grand leap under the moonlight.

All of this felt like an unreal dream.

Boss...

Lin Qingyu murmured to herself, the corners of her mouth curling into an unprecedentedly soft smile.

At this moment, she had no idea that her shy, radiant appearance, even under these dim streetlamps, was breathtakingly beautiful.

...

On the third floor, in a slightly crowded three-bedroom shared apartment.

This was the place rented by several core members of the dance troupe. Although Su Bai had already generously booked a five-star hotel and the Qintai Grand Theatre, because the move was rushed and there were still many personal belongings left unpacked, Lin Qingyu chose to return here for one last night to pack up with her sisters.

Click.

Lin Qingyu took out her keys and opened the door.

The living room was brightly lit.

The girls who should have been packing their luggage were not busy at all. Instead, they were lined up neatly against the living room windowsill, craning their necks to look downstairs. With potato chips and cola in their hands, they looked just like a group of gossiping badgers.

Hearing the door open, several heads whipped around in unison.

Ah! Sister Qingyu is back!

The youngest and most lively, Little Ya, was the first to jump up. Not even bothering to put on her slippers, she dashed to the door barefoot and hugged Lin Qingyu's arm.

Sister Qingyu! Confess! Was it the boss who brought you back just now?!

Little Ya's eyes sparkled with gossip. We saw everything from the window! That massive black car! And the license plate! It's definitely the boss's Land Rover!

Y-yes... the boss brought me back.

Lin Qingyu blushed a little at this sudden interrogation and tried to cover it up while changing her shoes, It was just... on his way.

On his way?

Another girl named Ah Lan also leaned in with a wicked grin. The boss lives at the Ascott next to Jiangda University, which is in the complete opposite direction of our rundown neighborhood! You call that on his way?

If you ask me, this was a special escort!

And... Ah Lan circled Lin Qingyu like a detective, sniffing hard. Sister Qingyu, you have a scent on you.

What scent? Lin Qingyu was startled. Was it the smell of dust she picked up while walking around Jiangda? Or...

It's the scent of a man!

Ah Lan said with certainty, It's a very high-end cologne scent, mixed with a hint of crisp, pleasant men's body wash. Also... Sister Qingyu, why is your face so red? And your eyes are all watery... Tsk, tsk, tsk, did something indescribable happen in the car just now?

D-don't talk nonsense!

Lin Qingyu's face instantly turned completely red, like a ripe tomato. Nothing happened! It was just... the boss treated me to a meal, and then... we walked around Jiangda.

A meal? Walking around campus?!

The three girls in the room instantly exploded with excitement.

Oh my god! Isn't that a date?

And the most romantic kind of campus date at that! Sister Qingyu, you're amazing! You've already made your move?

Hurry, hurry! Tell us everything! Did the boss hold your hand? Did you kiss? Did he pin you against the wall?

Facing her sisters' rapid-fire questions, Lin Qingyu felt completely overwhelmed.

She took off her coat and hung it on the rack, wanting to escape back to her room. It's really not as complicated as you think... The boss just... saw that I've been too tired lately and took me out to relax. Plus... he also cured my waist injury.

Cured your waist injury?

Little Ya froze for a moment, then her gaze became even more suggestive. How did he cure it? Was it like... acupressure? A massage? Oh my, a lone man and a lone woman... That's a bit steamy.

Silly girl! What on earth is going on in that head of yours!

Lin Qingyu, embarrassed and annoyed, poked Little Ya's forehead. The boss is a decent man! He really knows traditional Chinese medicine! If you don't believe me, look. My waist doesn't hurt at all now. I just came upstairs in one breath without even panting.

Saying this, she even deliberately spun around to show off her flexible waist.

The girls looked at each other in dismay.

Although they knew the boss was incredibly resourceful, throwing away a fortune to buy the dance troupe, booking a grand theatre to clear out formaldehyde, and now even personally curing the principal dancer's waist injury...

Wasn't he a bit too omnipotent?

Sister Qingyu.

The quiet girl, Susu, who hadn't spoken much, suddenly opened her mouth. She pushed up the glasses on her nose, holding her phone with an expression that was both serious and somewhat excited.

Since the boss is so good to you, and even personally treated your injury... I think it's necessary for you to know the background of our new boss.

Background? Lin Qingyu was taken aback.

Yeah.

Susu held her phone up in front of Lin Qingyu. Just now, before you came back, we were so curious that we searched the words Jiangda Su Bai on TikTok and Weibo.

If we hadn't searched, we wouldn't have known, but once we did, it shocked us.

Susu swiped the screen. Sister Qingyu, look. Our boss is a god-like figure in Jiangcheng University, and even in the entire college student circle of Jiangcheng.

Lin Qingyu took the phone.

On the screen was a short video with over a million likes.

The background of the video seemed to be a basketball court.

In the shot, Su Bai was wearing simple sportswear and playing in a match.

Even through the screen, Lin Qingyu could feel the overwhelming aura of testosterone rushing at her.

It was a body possessing 150 points of physique, displaying ultimate aesthetic beauty in motion.

And in the comment section of the video, it was an endless stream of screaming:

Ahhh! This is God Su! That waist strength is incredible!

I want to have God Su's babies!

The person above, get in line! God Su belongs to our computer science department!

Looking at the video, Lin Qingyu's heartbeat involuntarily sped up.

So... he was this dazzling at school too?

That's nothing.

Susu swiped to the next video.

This was a video shot from a hidden angle, the background seeming to be at some event.

In the video, sitting next to Su Bai was a long-haired beauty in professional attire, radiating an extremely mature, boss-lady aura.

The two seemed to be talking in low voices. The way that beautiful woman looked at Su Bai, even through the mosaic-like pixelated quality, showed unhidden admiration and possessiveness.

"Who is this?" Lin Qingyu asked subconsciously.

"The comments say she's the most beautiful counselor at Jiang University, named Xia Lin."

Susu explained like an intelligence officer, "I heard she's a top-tier second-generation rich kid from Shanghai, the super wealthy kind. She's famously aloof at school and looks down on everyone, except for Su Bai... Hehe, everyone rumors that she's one of Su Bai's main girls."

"One of?" Lin Qingyu keenly caught that phrase.

"Yeah, one of."

Susu clicked open another photo.

In the photo, Su Bai was walking down the campus's cherry blossom avenue with a girl who had a ridiculously good figure. The girl was holding a cup of milk tea up to Su Bai's lips, smiling so broadly her eyes curved into crescents.

"This one is Zhou Jialu."

"And this one..."

Susu summarized, "Every single one of the female confidantes around him is goddess-level. There are mature beauties, cute girls, socialites, top scholars... It's like he's collected every type."

"And the craziest part is, these women don't seem to be tearing each other apart. Instead... they're all very harmonious?"

Listening to Susu's commentary and looking at the radiant faces on the phone screen, Lin Qingyu's previously heated mind felt like it had been splashed with a basin of cold water, instantly cooling down.

Earlier in the car, under the moonlight at Jiang University, she had momentarily thought she was special.

Because he had treated her injuries so gently.

Because he had so domineeringly called her "my principal dancer."

Because he had taken her to those places full of memories.

But now, looking at these videos and photos...

It turned out that as outstanding as he was, he was never short of outstanding women by his side.

Compared to them, what was she?

A down-and-out dancer who almost lost her job and was almost forced to accompany clients for drinks? An "old senior" with a body full of injuries, nearing the end of her career's golden age?

"Sister Qingyu? What's wrong?"

Seeing Lin Qingyu's face suddenly turn a bit pale, Little Ya shook her arm with some concern. "Don't be scared by this! Even though the boss has a lot of beauties around him, our Sister Qingyu isn't bad either!"

"Exactly, exactly!"

Ah Lan also quickly chimed in, "Sister Qingyu, you are the principal dancer of our province! With your figure and temperament, once you stand on stage, you're like a fairy descending to earth! Compared to that Xia Lin or Li Xingya, your aloof, artistic vibe is what really kills men!"

"Plus, since the boss is willing to spend so much money on you and even personally treat your injuries, it proves you are definitely special in his heart!"

"That's right! Sister Qingyu!"

Little Ya clenched her fists, speaking with righteous indignation. "Since the competition is so fierce, we have to stand tall! This isn't just for yourself, it's for our dance troupe too!"

"Think about it, if you can become the 'boss lady', even if just one of many 'boss ladies', wouldn't we be able to walk sideways in Jiangcheng from now on? Who would dare bully us?"

"So, Sister Qingyu, you have to take the initiative! Don't be shy! All the sisters in our troupe are your wingwomen!"

Listening to her sisters' encouraging words—which, although a bit utilitarian, were full of goodwill—Lin Qingyu felt a mix of complex emotions.

She smiled bitterly and returned the phone to Susu.

"Stop talking nonsense."

Lin Qingyu walked to the window and looked out at the pitch-black night. "Someone like the boss... is like a star in the sky. Stars always have many moons surrounding them."

"I... am just a firefly he casually saved."

Although she said that, her mind couldn't help but recall the words Su Bai had said to her under the moonlight:

—"Your waist, your legs, your dance... for the rest of your life, they can only belong to me."

That kind of possessiveness didn't seem fake.

Lin Qingyu reached up and touched her cheek, which was still a bit hot.

Even if she was just a "collector's item," as long as she could be cherished in the palm of his hand and treated so gently by him...

It seemed... it wouldn't be so bad.

Moreover...

Lin Qingyu turned around and looked at herself in the mirror. Although bare-faced, she still couldn't hide her natural beauty.

A small flame suddenly ignited in those previously somewhat confused eyes.

Xia Lin had money, Zhou Jialu was charming.

But I, Lin Qingyu, have these unmatched dancing skills and this body that, despite being injured, is still perfect.

Since the boss likes to watch me dance.

Then I will dance to the extreme.

Dance until he can never look away again.

Dance until I become the proudest, most irreplaceable white swan among that flock of beautiful birds.

"Alright, stop gossiping."

Lin Qingyu took a deep breath, her face returning to its usual calmness, but with an added, imperceptible firmness.

"Hurry up and pack your things. We have to wake up early tomorrow to move to the Qintai Grand Theater."

"The boss didn't spend all that money renting a venue for us just so we could act like eye candy and fight over jealousy. Starting tomorrow, everyone will practice for an extra two hours!"

"Ah? Extra practice again?!"

A chorus of wails instantly echoed in the room.

"Sister Qingyu, you're turning grief and anger into motivation, you're going to work us to death!"

"Cut the crap! If you don't want to be returned, then practice!"

Lin Qingyu scolded with a smile, turning and walking into her own bedroom.

The moment she closed the door, she leaned against it and let out a soft breath.

She took out her phone, opened WeChat, and clicked on the newly pinned chat with a white swan as the avatar.

Her finger hovered over the screen for a long time.

In the end, she didn't send a "good night" or "thank you," but instead sent a photo.

It was a photo of their shadows together that she had secretly taken outside the practice room of Jiang University's Art College earlier.

The two shadows overlapped under the streetlight, looking incredibly intimate.

The caption was very simple, just two words:

[Sweet dreams.]

After sending it, she pressed the phone to her chest, listening to her heart beating like a drum.

Su Bai.

Since you saved me, I'm going to stick with you.

No matter how many moons are around you, I will be that most special firefly.

Even if it means burning my life away, I will shine the brightest light for you.

...

Meanwhile.

On his way back to the Ascott, Su Bai's phone vibrated.

Holding the steering wheel with one hand, he picked it up to take a look.

Seeing that slightly blurry but highly atmospheric shadow photo, along with those two brief words, a satisfied smile curled the corners of his mouth.

He didn't reply with words, but casually sent back a "white swan patting head" sticker.

For a woman with Lin Qingyu's personality, too many sweet words weren't necessary.

She was very sensible and very strong.