Shine on Me

However, not having to work overtime was always a good thing.

After pondering for a couple of days, I completely set aside the issue and began to enjoy my newly relaxed work life again.

By December, the weather had gradually turned colder. As I wore more layers, the laundry piled up. So I often bundled my clothes together and took them to Yin Jie’s place to wash in her machine.

That day, I brought another bundle of clothes over, only to find Yin Jie sitting on the floor by the door, playing with her phone.

I was stunned. “Seriously? Didn’t you say you’d be here?”

Yin Jie patted her pants and stood up. “I am here! Hehe, I just forgot my keys and tricked you into coming to keep me company.”

“You forgot your keys again…”

I was speechless. Yin Jie was incredibly efficient and reliable at work, but in daily life, she was so careless it was hard to know what to say. Forgetting her keys had happened often even when we shared a dorm, and since moving here, this was already the second time I’d witnessed it.

“Is Yu Hua not here either?”

“She went to Kunshan to visit friends. No idea when she’ll be back. I just went to the dorm office for a spare key, but no one was there. So unlucky.”

I thought back—when I came up earlier, the dorm office staff still hadn’t been around. No choice then. I asked, “Is the window open?”

“It is, but Xiguang, are you going to climb through the window again? Don’t! It’s almost dark—it’s too dangerous. Let’s just wait for the dorm office staff to come back.”

“Who knows how long that’ll take.” I set my bundle of clothes on the ground. “It’ll be fine. It’s not like it’s the first time.”

Their dorm was on the second floor. The outer windowsill was a full meter wide and connected all the way around, looking from afar like a broad decorative trim. So walking along it wasn’t dangerous at all—just had to watch out for the trash people tossed down from above.

After knocking on several dorm doors with no answer, I finally found someone in the fifth one. I climbed out through their window and slowly made my way along the wall toward Yin Jie’s dorm. I was walking steadily, almost there, when suddenly I heard an exaggerated shriek from below.

Instinctively, I turned my head—and saw Lin Yusen’s tense face, along with the young, fashionably dressed woman beside him, looking horrified. Then my foot seemed to step on something slippery…

And so I fell off the windowsill.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye. Before my brain could even react, I crashed heavily onto a pine tree, then rolled off it toward the ground.

The moment I hit, I felt a hand barely catch me, but the sheer force still made my head knock against the ground, sending a dull, heavy pain through me.

After the world spun, I opened my eyes and found myself staring straight into a pair of frantic eyes—ones that held a trace of panic I’d never seen before.

Lin Yusen?

…

He quickly laid me flat, kneeling on one knee beside me. With one hand, he loosened my collar; with the other, he checked my pulse.

“Nie Xiguang!”

He called my name, his face pale and grave. Still dazed from the shock of the fall, I stared blankly at him.

“Don’t be afraid. Look at me. Can you hear me clearly?”

“Mm.”

“Answer me—what day is it today?”

“Sunday.”I thought I answered him, but I was also a bit confused, unsure if I had actually made any sound. A sudden wave of intense dizziness hit me, forcing me to close my eyes in discomfort.

But I felt my mind was still clear. I could hear the voices around me—Yin Jie and an unfamiliar woman’s panicked cries, Lin Yusen’s stern yet composed voice...

But what exactly was he saying?

Everything gradually faded away...

I woke up several times in between. Once, I seemed to be in an ambulance. I heard Lin Yusen on the phone, "...No obvious head trauma, no palpable scalp hematoma, vital signs stable, but there was a brief loss of consciousness... Yes, prepare for a head CT scan..."

Later, we arrived at the hospital... Honestly, I started feeling much better afterward, just incredibly drowsy. Yet, people kept waking me up repeatedly, and all I could see was a pale blue shirt swaying in front of me...

By the time I truly woke up, the sky was completely dark.

I opened my eyes, and the first thing I saw was still that pale blue shirt.

Under the dim light of the hospital room, Lin Yusen sat leaning back on the sofa by the window, eyes closed as if he had fallen asleep. His hair was slightly disheveled, his shirt wrinkled, completely devoid of his usual neat and composed demeanor.

He... was still here?

After lingering on him for a moment, I turned my head and scanned the room. When my gaze returned to Lin Yusen, I was startled. He had woken up at some point, staring at me silently, not saying a word.

I wanted to speak, but when I opened my mouth, no sound came out. My throat felt dry and sore.

He stood up, poured a glass of warm water, and walked over to me. Just as I tried to sit up, he had already lifted me and helped me drink.

His strong arm firmly encircled my shoulder, radiating warmth. I was practically leaning against his chest, his firm jaw right before my eyes. Our breaths mingled, the proximity making me uneasy. Feeling awkward, I quickly took a few sips.

"Thank you."

He laid me back down and silently set the glass aside.

I wasn’t dizzy at all now and felt perfectly fine. But seeing him so silent made me a little worried, and I couldn’t help asking, "Am I... okay?"

"What’s your name?" His voice, when he finally spoke, was unexpectedly hoarse.

"..." What kind of question was this? "Nie... Xiguang?"

"And me?"

"...Lin Yusen."

"I’m Sheng Xianmin’s grandson," he said abruptly, looking at me.

Sheng Xianmin? The chairman of Shengyuan Group?

I was puzzled. "...You never told me that before, did you?"

He paused.

"Good, you’re fully conscious." He straightened up, as if restraining himself, and averted his gaze, speaking in a deliberately calm tone. "You’re in good condition now. All the tests came back fine—just some minor external injuries, nothing serious. But it’s best to stay for observation. Yin Jie came with the ambulance, but I sent her home. She’ll come to take care of you tomorrow."

"Oh, she must have been terrified."

"Hah, she was terrified?"

This remark seemed to trigger something in him. He suddenly couldn’t maintain his composure anymore. "I’m truly astonished by Miss Nie’s kindness, thinking of others’ feelings at a time like this."I was startled by his sudden outburst, staring at him wide-eyed, speechless. It was just an offhand remark—why was he so angry?

"If you were really this kind-hearted, then why—"

He abruptly stopped, took a deep breath, and regained control of his emotions. Yet the sarcasm in his tone was too sharp; even someone as slow as me felt cut by his words.

"Considering how unlucky I’ve already been, could you at least try to rein in your prejudice against me? Be a little nicer!"

My eyes instantly grew hot. I hadn’t meant to appear so fragile, but being mocked while feeling this miserable suddenly made me feel so wronged.

Tears spilled out before I could stop them.

The room fell silent.

His agitated figure seemed to freeze instantly, rigidly standing by my hospital bed.

"Why are you crying? You’re unharmed—what’s there to cry about?" After a long pause, he spoke hoarsely under his breath.

So now I didn’t even have the right to cry?

"If it weren’t for your friend’s scream, I wouldn’t have fallen in the first place. You got me into this mess, and now you’re mocking me—can’t I even cry?"

"...Because of me?"

"If not you, then who?" How unlucky must I be to have met you!

I poured out all the grievances I’d been holding in. "First I trip, then get hit by parts, and inventory is exhausting, you know? Now I’ve even fallen from upstairs—"

"Nie Xiguang..."

He called my name softly.

Blinking through blurred vision, I wiped my tears roughly. "Lin Yusen, I have a question."

"Go ahead." Whether it was my imagination or not, his voice seemed gentler, yet still stiff with dissonance.

"What does it matter that I’m Nie Chengyuan’s daughter? There’s no feud between our families—why are you making things so hard for me?"

He stayed silent.

I almost doubted myself. "...Is there really a feud between our families?"

"The Sheng and Nie families have always collaborated seamlessly."

"Then why?"

"...I’d like to know why too."

He murmured these words, his face twisting into something like self-mockery, his eyes suddenly filled with exhaustion.

"Does it hurt? Nie Xiguang." His voice was low.

I nodded unconsciously.

"Hah. Me too."

I stared at him blankly, inexplicably feeling that he was in more pain than I was.

What was wrong with him? Wasn’t I the one accusing him? Why did it feel like I was the one hurting him instead?

I couldn’t help asking, "Are you... okay?"

His expression shifted, his gaze piercing straight through me, complex and inscrutable, as if searching for something. For a moment, I even thought he might reach out to touch my eyes.

"These words..."

His voice grew even softer, the words barely discernible. As our eyes met, mine must have been full of confusion. Remembering the tears still clinging to my lashes, I quickly wiped them away.

Slowly, he averted his gaze.

After a long while, he said, "Stop crying."

He stood silently by my bed for a while longer, then moved alone to the window.

He stood there for what felt like an eternity.

So long that he might as well have been a statue, unmoving. So long that the sky outside gradually brightened. So long that I grew drowsy again, my eyelids heavy.

"I won’t be like this anymore."The quiet room was suddenly filled with a low voice.

I blinked, almost thinking I was hearing things.

He turned around, his expression like the calm sea after a storm—all the gloom, irritability, and hidden pain had retreated beneath that tranquil gaze once more. Apart from the tired shadows under his eyes, he was as composed and steady as ever.

"I won’t treat you like that again. I promise."

He repeated the words, his tone resolute and firm. For some reason, it didn’t sound like he was speaking to me—more like he was making a vow to himself.

I stood there dumbly, unsure how to respond. He didn’t seem to expect an answer either. Picking up his coat from the sofa, he said, "Rest a little longer. I’ll get breakfast for you."

He had slipped back into his usual unhurried rhythm, while I remained utterly bewildered by this turn of events.