Riding a weakly powered electric bicycle along a mountain path, darkness fell, and the winding road gradually became obscured. Li Haojun tried turning on the headlamp on the handlebars, but the equally weak light could only illuminate a few meters ahead.
After several twists and turns, crossing a few small hills, he finally reached a brightly lit residential area. A few streetlights illuminated the dilapidated red-brick apartment buildings, and there wasn't a soul in sight. Li Haojun entered an apartment building, and the dim stairwell lights cast his shadowy figure on the wall. He seemed to want to go home, but without a clear destination. He went back and forth up the stairs several times, losing count, until he realized he had reached the end of the stairs. The staircase on this side, which should still be going up, instead led down…
Opening his eyes, it was already broad daylight. Li Haojun realized he had just had a dream, a completely inexplicable one. He wanted to go to Qin Wenjing's room to see if she was up, but found she had already prepared breakfast. He really had gotten up late today.
Sitting across from her at the dining table, Qin Wenjing's hair was pulled up high, revealing her long neck. A strand of black hair spiraled down her forehead, and she wore small seashell earrings and a bright red halter-neck short dress. Was it distance that made the heart grow fonder? Or was it because they had missed intimacy this morning, and it felt like ages had passed? Li Haojun studied her for a long time.
Qin Wenjing held her bowl, eating porridge with a ceramic spoon, without saying a word. Occasionally, she would glance up at Li Haojun, then smile slightly before lowering her head to continue eating.
"Have you finished watching?" Qin Wenjing asked.
"Yes," Li Haojun happily started eating with both hands, but his eyes remained fixed on Qin Wenjing.
"Good news, bad news," which would you like to hear first? Qin Wenjing looked up at Li Haojun and said,
"Let me tell you the bad news first, then the good,"
Qin Wenjing chuckled and said, "Yesterday I received a notice from the company appointing you as the supervisor of the Elensburg factory. From now on, we might be separated when we go to different locations."
"Oh, and the good news?"
"Your salary will be paid in full, much higher than before when you were just sleeping."
"Okay, I'll buy you something delicious to make up for it."
"Hmph, I'm not a child," Qin Wenjing said, lowering her head to continue eating.
"When I'm not around, I think about what nice clothes I can buy you."
Qin Wenjing glanced at Li Haojun with a smile.
“Then I’ll work out hard while I can’t be with you, and I’ll make it up to you when I get back.”
“Get lost, you’re getting more and more irresponsible.” Qin Wenjing glared at Li Haojun, her eyes darting around.
“Seriously, today you’re going to clock in and take over the factory. The previous supervisor left a while ago. Today you need to activate your administrator status and receive visiting guests to tour the factory.”
“What kind of guests? Which company?”
“I don’t know the specifics, but you’ll get detailed instructions when you activate the system.”
Li Haojun thought for a moment and said, “Then I’ll call a taxi. It’s my first time there, I’m not familiar with the roads, and driving myself might not be safe. Besides, we only have one car, you can use it.”
“Okay,” Qin Wenjing replied, smiling knowingly.
After breakfast, Qin Wenjing prepared formal attire for Li Haojun, booked a taxi, and saw him off, but Li Haojun stopped her, halting at the small courtyard.
“No need to see me off,” Li Haojun said, putting his arm around Qin Wenjing’s waist. “Don’t worry, I’ll be back.” He then cupped her face in his hands and gently kissed her lips. Qin Wenjing smiled at Li Haojun, saying nothing.
Li Haojun said goodbye to Qin Wenjing and walked out of the courtyard. The taxi was already waiting. The morning sun shone brightly on the windshield of the flying taxi. The Seattle yellow taxis maintained their traditional yellow color, only now they were electric quadcopter drones. The body advertisements were still black, but much more aesthetically pleasing, with streamlined paint matching the fuselage lines.
Upon boarding the aircraft, a series of automatic visual and voice prompts were provided. After confirming the destination, accompanied by the high-frequency noise of the electric motor, the aircraft took off. The teardrop-shaped cockpit offered excellent visibility, seemingly a product of a sightseeing production line. As the altitude increased, Qin Wenjing could be seen waving goodbye in the courtyard. Li Haojun waved back, but as they moved further away, a trace of sadness flashed through his heart. Accustomed to being together every day, they had unknowingly become each other’s entire world.
The drone flew along its own commercial flight path, offering a bird's-eye view of the earth from this altitude. Gradually, Li Haojun felt the vastness of the open sky; how could a bird with wings not yearn for the blue sky? "A bright future" was a fitting description at this moment. Comparing his feelings now with before, Li Haojun realized the change in his emotions and couldn't help but reflect on the complexities of life.
The flight was fast, and soon they arrived. At the factory entrance, the layout was the same. This time, he went to the control room himself, used biometrics, and activated his administrator account. Looking at the various status reports and real-time monitoring data on the console, Li Haojun felt a surge of superior control. After a moment of reflection, he quickly got back to work, sending a message to Qin Wenjing to let her know he was safe, and then checking his logs and work plan. It turned out that today, representatives from the French fashion conglomerate "Glamorous Paris" were visiting. The two sides had been long-term strategic partners, and the other party was also an investor in the fashion, modeling, and beauty industries. The information showed that the visitor was a woman of French ethnicity, the manager of the West Coast Regional Development Department, mainly discussing regional development support issues. Looking at the situation, Li Haojun thought it best if she spoke English; otherwise, he'd have to use a real-time translation device. He quickly prepared some materials for the presentation. Time was running out, so Li Haojun went downstairs to the factory gate to wait for the guests.
The early summer morning sun felt warm on his skin. The factory was located in a quiet suburban area, and the breeze carried the fresh scent of grass and trees. Although he was waiting, Li Haojun didn't feel his time was being wasted. This sunbathing, this free oxygen bar, and even his salary—he couldn't be happier!
Perhaps he'd slept too long? Or had he been in the same environment for too long? Was that why he felt so refreshed today? Li Haojun pondered, and in his spare time, he couldn't help but wonder what Qin Wenjing was doing. Just as he was thinking of chatting with her, he suddenly saw a car approaching from afar. It was a black Lincoln Continental, long and wide, very American-style.
The car circled in front of Li Haojun, and then he saw that there was no driver; it was driverless. The vehicle slowly pulled up near the factory gate. Since there was no driver, to show gentlemanly manners, Li Haojun quickly stepped forward and gently opened the door. At that moment, a passenger was also getting off. Once the passenger was standing, Li Haojun introduced himself:
"Hello, I'm Ethan. You must be Ms. Martine?"
"Sophie, Martine, hello." The woman replied, shaking hands with Li Haojun as she removed her sunglasses and put them in her bag.
Sophie looked to be in her thirties, very well-maintained. She had long, wavy brown hair, a round face with a pointed chin, and soft features. She wore silver diamond-shaped earrings, had naturally long, thin eyebrows, a straight nose, and large, brown-green eyes. Her upper eyelids were curved and long, with the outer corners slightly lower than the inner corners, giving her a gentle and humble appearance.
"Welcome, please follow me," Li Haojun seemed to realize that his focus on the woman's appearance was somewhat abrupt, and quickly invited her into the factory. As he turned to lead the way, he glanced back to confirm that no one else was getting off the vehicle. Returning his gaze to Sophie, he saw her nodding and smiling, walking beside him.
"Thank you for coming all this way alone," Li Haojun said politely, leading the way.
"It's alright, from Tacoma Airport to here,"
"Oh, you've been on the road all morning." Li Haojun then led Sophie to the lounge, where a service robot brought coffee, tea, and snacks.
"Please sit down and rest for a bit. Don't be shy, help yourself," Li Haojun said courteously, seemingly inexplicably excited by the presence of this beautiful woman. Knowing she had come from afar, he thoughtfully explained,
"We just passed the clerk's office, the meeting room, and the factory control room. This is the break room. Go further ahead and turn right, and you'll find the restrooms, changing rooms, and showers. These are basically the facilities in the office building." Sophie smiled slightly, took a few sips of tea, and said, "Thank you for showing me around the factory today. I'm going to touch up my makeup, and we'll begin when I get back."
"You're welcome. There's plenty of time today, no need to rush. Please make yourself at home," Li Haojun said, opening the door, leading the way, and then returning to prepare the projector in his office and programming the factory robots.
A little while later, Sophie returned, and the two went to the meeting room. Li Haojun used the projector to introduce the factory's layout, briefly introducing the beauty industry's related products, production capacity, development status, and user feedback market research data. Sophie sat at the round table in the meeting room, leaning against the edge, her right arm resting on the table, her chin propped up, quietly absorbing the information. Her serene face, elegant figure, and focused expression added to her allure. As Li Haojun explained, he frequently glanced at Sophie—her eyes, her face, her figure. After a brief introduction, to avoid boredom, Li Haojun asked,
"Would you like to tour the production workshop?"
"Of course," Sophie readily agreed, somewhat unexpectedly to Li Haojun, as women generally weren't interested in mechanical, electronic, or chemical-related topics.
He brought her a safety helmet, helped her put it on, and said, "Please follow me this way." Entering the production workshop, a red carpet of non-slip mats greeted them, and robots lined both sides of the factory floor, forming a welcoming procession.
Sophie turned to look at Li Haojun. "WOW, very creative," she exclaimed, and before she could finish her compliment, she stepped inside.
Li Haojun pressed a remote control, and the robot speakers on both sides of the line began to play, with different robots playing different instrumental sections: brass, strings, woodwinds, and percussion. As the rapid brass notes began, Sophie immediately recognized it as Mendelssohn's Wedding March. She froze, her mouth agape, staring at Li Haojun, pointing at the robot band.
Li Haojun quickly gestured for her to proceed, saying, "May our company's cooperation last forever."
Sophie laughed heartily, then strode forward. Her trench coat was open, revealing a fitted white turtleneck blouse and a tight black business-style mini-skirt. Her waist, legs, and hips were perfectly proportioned, exuding femininity. Her gait was professional, her high heels gliding smoothly down the red carpet.
For lunch, Li Haojun simply treated Sophie to a local working meal in the break room. Sophie was cheerful, chatting about their work and lives. Fanfan only spoke briefly, as they weren't very familiar with each other. However, her brown-green eyes, long eyelashes, and the way her eyes sparkled when she spoke left a deep impression on Li Haojun.
At the end of the meeting, Sophie praised Li Haojun's creativity and gave him a polite kiss on the cheek as a farewell. Li Haojun, already impatient, immediately called a flying taxi to get home.
On the way, Li Haojun reflected on the day's events, his impromptu performance of the wedding march. He wondered if he had overexcited himself. Was he too socially awkward, hence his eagerness to perform when meeting a beautiful woman? Or was this just his nature? Or was this how relationships between men and women should be, and he was being too hard on himself?
He quickly arrived back at his beloved little house. In the yard, he saw Qin Wenjing sitting in front of the computer in the living room, still wearing that bright red short skirt.
Entering the living room, Qin Wenjing rose to greet Li Haojun upon his return. Li Haojun wrapped his arms around her waist, kissed her lips, and then gently pushed her onto the bedroom bed.
"What are you doing? In broad daylight! You're so annoying!" Qin Wenjing complained playfully, idly punching Li Haojun's shoulder.
...When everything calmed down, Qin Wenjing's cheeks were flushed. She buried her head in Li Haojun's chest, trying to calm her breathing.
Li Haojun looked at the woman in his arms, but his mind was filled with the image of another woman—her figure, her face, her brown-green eyes. Li Haojun didn't know if his efforts were for Qin Wenjing or for Su Fei, whether he was afraid of forgetting Qin Wenjing or wanted to forget Su Fei.
ns216.73.216.86da2
and then Add to home screen.