Васk аt hоmе, Ruan Sixiаn stооd in frоnt оf the mirror for а lоng time.
Hоw could hе nоt rеmеmbеr hеr?
Was her fаce that common?
Тhаt cоuldn’t be.
Аftеr thinking fоr а long timе withоut аn аnswеr, Ruan Siхian could оnlу cоnclude that Fu Мingyu was sо busy with cоuntlеss tаsks thаt his brаin wаs оverloаdеd, leаding tо еarlу-onsеt dеmentia. Shе dеcidеd to be kind to him.
Кind-hearted Ruаn Siхiаn deсided to go wоrk uр а sweаt. Тhеrе wаs nо frustratiоn thаt eхerсise cоuldn’t resоlvе. If it сouldn’t, thеn thе wоrkоut just wasn’t intense еnough.
The newly rеnted neighborhоod Ruan Siхian livеd in hаd a wеll-equipped gym, a perk provided by the property management for residents. It wasn’t open to the public, so it was never crowded. Today was her first time there, and only a few people were in the equipment area.
Seeing clean towels, bottled water, and personal trainers who minded their own business without pushing sales, Ruan Sixian felt her money was well spent.
The gym was quiet, with only occasional upbeat music drifting from the dance studio next door. Ruan Sixian followed the rhythm of the music as she gradually increased the hydraulic cylinder.
Until a man’s voice interrupted her.
“Hey, beautiful, can I add you on WeChat?”
First, a pair of running shoes came into view. Looking up, she saw a man around twenty-seven or twenty-eight smiling at her, not holding a phone.
The refusal in Ruan Sixian’s eyes was unmistakable, but the man just chuckled and reached out to pat the arm exerciser.
“Impressive. You really are a pilot. This arm strength isn’t something just anyone can match.”
Ruan Sixian raised an eyebrow.
Who are you?
The man turned to face Ruan Sixian and extended his hand. “Yan An. ‘Yan’ as in banquet, ‘An’ as in safety.”
Yan An?
Ruan Sixian glanced at him.
Even though he seemed carefree, most people wouldn’t dare flaunt that name so casually.
“Nice to meet you, Mr. Yan.” As she shook his hand, she asked, “How did you recognize me?”
“Well, I’ve seen your photo. I noticed you as soon as you came in and thought, what are the odds?”
Yan An leaned against the arm exerciser, looking relaxed.
He glanced at Ruan Sixian’s arm and added, “But seeing you use this pretty much confirmed it.”
“I see…”
Some people, despite wearing expensive clothes, naturally exude approachability. Yan An was clearly one of them. He seemed laid-back but carried no airs. Without realizing it, Ruan Sixian chatted with him about many things, learning that he also lived here, had just returned from the Northern Airlines headquarters today, and was taking a rare break to work out.
What Yan An didn’t mention was that he only stayed here occasionally.
But it didn’t matter. From now on, he’d be living here permanently.
Mentioning Northern Airlines, Yan An couldn’t resist taking a jab at Fu Mingyu. “What a shame you went to World Airlines and have to work under Fu Mingyu. That guy’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing—usually icy and quiet, but cross him and you’ll regret it. Be careful.”
Ruan Sixian smiled and said she would.
Seeing her relaxed demeanor, Yan An felt even more at ease. He sat down on the ab roller nearby and added, “See, I’m easy to get along with. If you came to Northern Airlines, we could work happily every day. Wouldn’t that be great?”
Yan An was mostly just talking big. As they chatted, the conversation shifted to Ruan Sixian herself.
“You used to work at Commercial Aircraft, right? What made you decide to become a pilot?”Ruan Sixian nodded. "Yes, I joined three years ago, just in time for the final deadline of the self-recruitment pilot program, so I thought I'd give it a try."
"That's pretty good. I know there were quite a few applicants from within Commercial Aviation, but very few were selected." Yan An stroked his chin, suddenly remembering something. "Oh, right, there's a dispatcher at our Northern Airlines who originally came from Commercial Aviation too. Seems like she was in the same batch as you at the flight academy."
"Yes, that's Si Xiaozhen. We know each other. We went to Commercial Aviation together, but later she didn't pass the flight academy assessment and switched to being a dispatcher."
"Well, being a dispatcher isn't bad either—ground captain, so to speak."
At this point, Yan An realized he might have taken up quite a bit of Ruan Sixian's time, so he stood up to leave. "Well, I'll let you get back to it. I have some things to attend to, so I'll head off now."
Ruan Sixian nodded and walked toward another piece of equipment.
Yan An turned back and added, "Oh, by the way, let's really add each other on WeChat. Even if we don't become colleagues, we can still be friends."
Having chatted a few times back and forth, Ruan Sixian naturally didn't refuse. She told him her phone number could be used to search for her WeChat, and Yan An left with a smile.
However, Yan An's chat with Ruan Sixian directly caused him to be late for his friends' gathering.
It wasn't a big deal, though—just friends hanging out, nothing serious. It just happened that several of them were free today.
In the top-floor private room of the Warner Manor in the western suburbs of Jiangcheng, only a single pale yellow ceiling lantern was lit, absorbing and dissipating most of the rising white smoke in the room. The specially designed carved screen served the same purpose, so although most of the men in the room held cigarettes, there was no choking smell.
Yan An pushed the door open, and the first thing he saw was a group of people playing cards. He spoke up, "I'm feeling lucky today. Let someone give me a seat."
Someone at the card table glanced up at him. "Late and still shameless? Get lost."
Yan An grinned lazily and walked around the screen to look for the bathroom.
A few people were sitting on the sofa there, both men and women, but Yan An immediately spotted Fu Mingyu sitting right in the middle.
"Well, well, the sun must be rising from the west today. Even the busy CEO Fu has shown up?"
Behind the screen, the lighting was dimmer. Fu Mingyu had a cigarette in his mouth and was leaning over to pick up a lighter from the table. Hearing this, he paused briefly, lifted his chin, and gave Yan An an indifferent glance.
At that moment, a woman beside him cleverly flicked the lighter, leaning forward to bring the flickering flame to Fu Mingyu.
Fu Mingyu glanced at her, his gaze as devoid of emotion as when he looked at Yan An.
The woman watched him nervously, her hand trembling slightly, causing the flame to waver.
In the end, he tilted his head, took a light inhale, and the cigarette tip glowed red. As he drew in the smoke, the glow gradually spread, growing brighter, as if illuminating his entire face.
It also lit up the woman's eyes, and a faint smile appeared on her face.
But the next moment, as Fu Mingyu exhaled a wisp of white smoke, he placed the cigarette beside the ashtray.
The cigarette slowly extinguished there.
Yan An came out of the bathroom and found a seat, conveniently next to Fu Mingyu.
He glanced at the woman beside Fu Mingyu. "Oh, CEO Fu's girlfriend?"
Fu Mingyu, with his back to the woman, shot Yan An a look.Yan An took a moment to process the situation, glancing at the woman twice before realizing Fu Mingyu was probably implying, "You think my taste is as low as yours, going for those plastic surgery faces?"
That was insulting. Yan An felt he had made some progress recently, after all.
Just then, Zhu Dong’s girlfriend, sitting by the mahjong table, pointed at Yan An and said, "Don’t talk nonsense. That’s my friend, just here to hang out today. By the way, let me introduce her—this is Xia Yiyi. You know her, right?"
As soon as she said that, a few people around them chuckled softly.
Who didn’t know Yan An was obsessed with internet celebrities? In their circle, no one knew more about the gossip among influencers than he did.
But Yan An ignored the teasing. The moment he heard the name "Xia Yiyi," he craned his neck to look over, scrutinizing her openly until Xia Yiyi grew visibly uncomfortable. Only then did Yan An snap out of it, coughing twice to cover his embarrassment.
He knew of her, sure—but why did she look so different from her photos?
Fu Mingyu, sitting beside him, noticed his shock and, surprisingly, smiled at him before getting up to watch the mahjong game.
That left Yan An sitting next to Xia Yiyi.
What the hell was that supposed to mean...
Yan An and Xia Yiyi exchanged a glance. She offered a friendly smile, but her gaze quickly drifted back to Fu Mingyu’s retreating figure.
Yan An sneered at Fu Mingyu’s back and walked over as well, standing next to him and leaning against Zhu Dong’s shoulder.
"Play the four of circles! Do you even know how to play mahjong? If not, get up and let me take over. Fu Mingyu, you want in? Or how about we go play a few rounds of pool?"
Fu Mingyu lit a cigarette, his tone as dismissive as ever. "Not interested."
"I think that girl over there seems pretty interested in you."
"Is that so?" Fu Mingyu replied, noticing Xia Yiyi and Zhu Dong’s girlfriend walking out arm in arm. Before leaving, Xia Yiyi glanced back at him.
Fu Mingyu pretended not to notice her gaze. Only after they left did he say, "I’d rather not have my name appear in entertainment news alongside some internet celebrity’s, only to get my family background dug up and dragged through the mud by fans after a breakup, then have my car keys confiscated by the old man at home."
Another round of laughter erupted at the mahjong table.
Yan An, long accustomed to Fu Mingyu’s sarcasm, sneered again and ignored him. Instead, he bent down and hooked an arm around Zhu Dong’s neck. "By the way, I recently met a female pilot. She’s absolutely stunning, I’m telling you—even prettier than those actresses. Can you believe she’s a pilot?"
Fu Mingyu’s eyes flickered slightly, his index finger bending slightly as he flicked off a bit of ash.
At the mention of a female pilot "prettier than actresses," the attention of the men at the mahjong table instantly shifted away from the rigid tiles.
"Really? Show us a photo."
Yan An pulled out his phone, his eyes brimming with pride. "Sure, let me check my social media. Seriously, I’m not exaggerating. If I could marry a female pilot, my old man would be so thrilled he’d probably kneel in the ancestral hall to thank our ancestors for their blessings."
Zhu Dong sorted his tiles and glanced at Yan An. "Not bad, moving fast. Yesterday, you almost got dragged onto trending searches by your ex, and today you’ve already got a female pilot’s contact. But she’s a woman who can fly planes—would she even look twice at you?"
Yan An raised an eyebrow, his fingers swiping quickly across his phone screen."Not necessarily. Oh, right, President Fu is truly impressive—he actually managed to snatch this person away from our North Airlines." As he spoke, he turned to look at Fu Mingyu. "President Fu, you've already taken my person, surely you won't stop them from pursuing love freely?"
Yan An just had a sharp tongue. Even though he knew he would only receive a cold, dismissive smile from Fu Mingyu, he still said it.
"That's hard to say."
Yan An pretended not to hear Fu Mingyu's words and continued scrolling through his phone. "Oh, there aren't any selfies on her Moments. Tsk, that's how real beauties are—they don't usually take photos."
The others laughed and jeered, already familiar with his antics. Wasn't this how he talked about every girlfriend?
Only Fu Mingyu remained expressionless, his gaze fixed on Yan An's phone screen.
He exited WeChat and searched through his email for a long time, finally finding the resume his assistant had sent him. He downloaded the first file, scrolled to the middle, opened the picture, and placed his phone in the middle of the card table.
"Take a look, take a look. Don't say I'm bluffing you."
Several pairs of eyes simultaneously focused on the phone. The room fell into an intense silence, the men's hormones accentuated by the haze of cigarette smoke.
In that fleeting moment of awe, Zhu Dong seized the initiative, snatching the phone. After a brief glance, he was about to zoom in on the photo with two fingers when his girlfriend walked in with Xia Yiyi.
Before anyone could speak, Zhu Dong, driven by a strong sense of self-preservation, tossed the phone aside and urged, "Play your cards, everyone! Are we still playing or not?"
Yan An rolled his eyes and reached for his phone, but the person across from him grabbed it first, raising an eyebrow at Fu Mingyu. "Aren't you going to take a look?"
Fu Mingyu, with one hand in his pocket, ignored him and turned toward the sofa.
The man chuckled, lowering his head to zoom in on the picture. After studying it for a while, he sighed, "Tsk, tsk, her aura is absolutely stunning, especially in that uniform... By the way, who here is into uniforms? Zhu Dong, aren't you going to take a closer look? I remember you're into uniforms."
With his girlfriend present, Zhu Dong shot him a sharp glare. "Don't talk nonsense! When have I ever been into uniforms?"
He then glanced toward Fu Mingyu, and the group followed his gaze, surrounded by deliberately suppressed laughter.
At the center of their attention, Fu Mingyu lowered his eyes, bent over, and extinguished his cigarette butt.
That night, Ruan Sixian lay in bed with a face mask on when she received a friend request.
No intention was stated, so Ruan Sixian could only guess who this person was based on their profile picture and name.
But who says women don't have a sixth sense? After just a moment, Ruan Sixian knew exactly who it was.
She sighed, and her long-dormant Moments finally had a new update.
[Why doesn’t the WeChat friend request system have a "Reject" option? It’s such a shame—you can’t let the other person see the word "Reject" glaring back at them. It would be even better if there were an option for "Never Accept Requests from This Person."]
Bai Yang, who happened to be scrolling through Moments, was the first to reply.
Bai Yang: Probably to protect the other person’s self-esteem. Just ignore people like that. 😁
Ruan Sixian nodded and replied: You make a good point. 👍 Looks like I wasn’t as thoughtful as you. WeChat is so considerate.
When Bai Yang saw this comment, he couldn’t hold back a laugh. His curiosity piqued, he wanted to continue the conversation, so much so that he didn’t even notice Fu Mingyu speaking to him from the side.Only when a cool gaze from beside him came over did Bai Yang sense something was off. He said awkwardly, "President Fu, what did you just say?"
The car was speeding along the highway, neon lights flickering outside the window. Fu Mingyu's eyebrows were slightly raised, already extremely impatient.
It could only be said that fortunately, he hadn't said anything important, and it was rare to see Bai Yang so distracted.
"What are you laughing at?"
Bai Yang touched his nose and said softly, "Nothing, just looking at that female pilot's social media. She's quite unique."
Thinking Fu Mingyu was just casually asking, Bai Yang casually replied, but unexpectedly, Fu Mingyu asked again, "What's going on?"
Bai Yang then handed his phone over for Fu Mingyu to take a look.
Just one glance.
Fu Mingyu's face visibly darkened.
"Is it funny?"
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