Burn Out - Chapter 64

The two of them stood a few steps apart, locking eyes. Tonight, the crowd at Zhuoyue Plaza was sparse, with everyone flocking to the basement-level supermarket for the discounts. As a result, the nearby beverage shops were quite quiet, with scattered lighting and a gentle breeze.

Why was he here, and why did he appear so forceful?

Ji Ting had a vague idea but didn’t ask. Instead, she maintained eye contact for a moment and softly asked, “Do you want some coffee?”

Tan Yucheng’s knuckles were still white with tension. He raised an eyebrow and replied lazily, “Sure.”

Ji Ting gave a faint smile.

A security guard from Zhuoyue approached, puzzled and concerned. He looked over and then pointed at them, saying, “Hey, you can’t park here, sir. Please move your car…”

Tan Yucheng turned to look at him, gave a nod, and then got into the car. The security guard stood by the passenger side door, staring at the car with disbelief, “Isn’t this a car? How can it come up? It’s not stuck.”

Tan Yucheng gripped the steering wheel and steadily reversed the car.

Ji Ting watched him drive away, her eyes still carrying a hint of a smile, and then turned and entered the cafe. Under the guard’s watchful gaze, the black car smoothly exited the parking spot, backing up for a few seconds before speeding away like an arrow.

Ji Ting stepped into the cafe.

Xiao Zhou was placing a cup of coffee in front of Long Kong, explaining the new product to him. Long Kong listened attentively. Xiao Wan waved to Ji Ting from behind the counter, signaling her to hurry over, as several orders were currently stalled. Ji Ting walked behind the counter, pulled out an order slip, and asked, “Where is Zhang Yang?”

“He’s inside, but the croissants are gone.”

Ji Ting glanced at the “Busy” sign hanging in the bakery, then refocused her attention and began processing the orders.

In the midst of the hustle.

Tan Yucheng entered the cafe dressed in a black shirt and trousers, holding a phone. The overhead lighting cast a halo over him. Ji Ting looked up, locking eyes with him for a moment.

Tan Yucheng spoke lazily, “I’ll have an iced Americano.”

Ji Ting acknowledged with a nod.

Xiao Wan saw him and let out a soft exclamation, nudging Ji Ting’s arm. Ji Ting ignored it. Tan Yucheng walked over to a seat by the window. Xiao Zhou, noticing his arrival, made way. Long Kong looked a bit surprised but quickly smiled, “Brother Cheng.”

Tan Yucheng set his phone down and took a seat across from Long Kong, speaking casually, “Xu Xu said your company is gearing up for a Series C round of funding?”

Long Kong, who had been feeling somewhat down tonight, had his mood lifted a bit by Xiao Zhou’s perceptiveness. He was gradually recovering from his embarrassment. He had expected Tan Yucheng to address him directly, but instead, Tan Yucheng changed the topic, pulling him out of his slight awkwardness. Long Kong immediately responded, “Yes, his temper has been even worse lately. The companies he’s considering are practically trampling over his doorstep every day.”

“He’s avoiding people, and doesn’t want to be seen.”

Tan Yucheng leaned back in his chair and said, “Fuheng Holdings is planning to invest. Let Xu Xu know to focus on this company.”

“Fuheng?” Long Kong paused, then quickly realized, “Fu Linyuan? Fu Yan’s brother?”

Tan Yucheng confirmed with a nod.

He turned to Ji Ting and said, “Bring the tablet.”

Ji Ting was looking at the order slip. Hearing this, she looked up, met his gaze, and nodded. She wiped her hands, took the tablet out of the cabinet, unlocked it, and walked over to their table, placing it in front of Tan Yucheng. Tan Yucheng took it, his long fingers swiping the screen. The cover photo was of Ji Ting, wearing a white shirt and skirt, sitting in the sunlight with her slightly curled long hair cascading down. Her clear, smiling eyes and striking beauty stood out. Tan Yucheng’s eyes swept over the woman in the photo as he navigated the tablet, finding the “¹Qianliyan” app.

Long Kong leaned over to look.

Xiao Zhou brought the coffee, which Ji Ting took and placed next to Tan Yucheng’s hand.

Ji Ting and Xiao Zhou then returned to the counter.

Long Kong was completely detached from the confession incident, discussing the Series C financing with Tan Yucheng. After graduating, Long Kong joined Xu Xu’s struggling company. Initially, it was indeed a failing enterprise, with a rented old factory and just five people, a few shabby men huddled in the old factory, aiming to create a world-famous game.

Long Kong was one of the original members.

He held shares from the start, but as capital came in, his shares were diluted.

Tan Yucheng reminded Long Kong that he could increase his shares this time.

Long Kong hesitated for a second but then nodded.

Some of the original members would sell their shares in this round of financing, so Long Kong had the opportunity to take over. With Fuheng entering the scene, the future of the company was promising.

It was a good decision.

The two men continued their serious discussion.

Xiao Zhou, sitting next to Ji Ting, leaned closer and said, “Brother Tan Yucheng really commands the scene.”

Ji Ting didn’t respond.

She inadvertently noticed a WeChat message from Chen Fei on Xiao Zhou’s phone. Ji Ting raised an eyebrow, glanced at it for a few seconds, and then said to Xiao Zhou, “Chen Fei sent you a message.”

Xiao Zhou was momentarily taken aback, then immediately picked up her phone, giving a sheepish smile, “Hey, maybe he wants some coffee.”

She briefly checked the message and then closed it.

Ji Ting noticed her guilty demeanor and figured out what was going on.

Tan Yucheng’s appearance wasn’t a coincidence; someone must have tipped him off.

However, she glanced at the two men chatting and saw the atmosphere returning to its familiar warmth. Over the years, Tan Yucheng occasionally met with Long Kong in the cafe to discuss business. Sometimes Chen Fei or the irritable Xu Xu would be present. When friends gathered, the atmosphere was always warm.

Looking at Long Kong like this.

Ji Ting sighed with relief. Long Kong was a good person, and she didn’t want to hurt him, but she couldn’t truly accept him either. She didn’t take the initiative to reach out to Long Kong recently, thinking he might have forgotten about it or realized that their feelings were only those of friends. Until he showed up tonight, she felt a bit flustered.

But the same way, if she needed to reject him, she would do so.

Especially given the current situation with Tan Yucheng.

As the night deepened.

Ji Ting was in the lounge arranging rose petals. Long Kong called out to her from outside. Ji Ting stood up, opened the door, and peeked out. Tan Yucheng, with his sleeves rolled up and hands in his pockets, stood next to Long Kong. Long Kong, smiling, asked her, “Do you want to join us for a late-night snack?”

Ji Ting met Long Kong’s smiling eyes and also smiled slightly. “No, I’m still busy here. You guys go ahead and eat.”

Long Kong noticed that Ji Ting’s hands were still a bit dusty and nodded. “Alright then, close the store and get some rest.”

Ji Ting smiled and nodded.

Tan Yucheng looked at her and said, “The tablet is in the cabinet.”

Ji Ting replied with a sound of acknowledgment.

The two men turned and left.

After they left, Ji Ting went back to the lounge. After finishing with the rose petals and tidying up, Xiao Wan and the others cleaned up the area. Ji Ting signaled Xiao Wan and the others to close the store and sent them red envelopes to go out for a late-night snack.

As for Ji Ting, she went upstairs to her apartment.

In her small room, she worked on the rose petals, sitting cross-legged. Previously, the aromatherapy bags in Xiao Xi’s car were made by Ji Ting; she occasionally made such small items.

At this moment, a message arrived from a black profile.

Tan: Get the late-night snack.

Ji Ting was startled when the doorbell rang. Her palms were stained with rose petal juice. She stood up to open the door, and the delivery person handed her the late-night snack.

Ji Ting took it and closed the door, placing the food on the coffee table.

She sat cross-legged on the carpet, looking at the snack and thinking about his cold demeanor earlier that evening, which had then shifted to a sunnier mood. The undercarriage of his black car must have scraped the pavement, but he didn’t mention it.

In that brief moment, the car had really crashed into the kiosk position. Ji Ting leaned against the sofa, opened the snack, which was a private chef’s specialty porridge.

She had turned down Long Kong tonight.

A significant part of it was because she didn’t have feelings for him and didn’t want to get entangled with a friend again. But a small part of it was likely because of him.

Ji Ting leaned back.

Looking at the scattered lights and the ceiling.

Between her and him.

Could it begin?

What’s there to stop it?

Although there were many considerations, one can learn to be brave in life and remain courageous.

The scattered light turned into sparkling, diamond-like brilliance, clear and transparent.

Beep beep.

Her phone rang in the room.

Ji Ting got up and checked it.

Tan: Let’s have dinner together tomorrow night.

Ji Ting paused for a moment and replied: Okay.

At that moment, she noticed her nail polish had chipped off and looked less appealing, a bit worn.

The next afternoon, Ji Ting handed over the shop to Zhang Yang and went upstairs to find Lu Xingyao. Lu Xingyao was sitting at her station wearing glasses and disinfecting tools. When she saw Ji Ting, she smiled and said, “A rare visitor.”

Ji Ting smiled back and said, “I came to get my nail polish touched up.”

“Sure, have a seat. I’ll finish with this customer and be right with you.”

Ji Ting nodded and chose a seat. The salon was quite small, with a few tables and chairs arranged together, but it had a unique style. Lu Xingyao’s astrology chart was displayed at the checkout area. Ji Ting took out her phone and started scrolling while she waited. About five minutes later, Lu Xingyao washed her hands and came over to sit in front of her.

Ji Ting put away her phone and placed her hand on the table. Lu Xingyao took her hand, glanced at her, and smiled, “You seem to be in good spirits lately. Want me to take a look at your palm lines?”

Ji Ting laughed and said, “No need, just the nail polish touch-up is fine.”

“Oh, what color would you like?”

“Light pink.”

“OK.”

As Lu Xingyao worked, she said, “Light pink represents peach blossom…”

Ji Ting smiled but didn’t respond.

Meanwhile, at the luxury shopping mall, Tan Yucheng walked into one of the stores. Dressed in a black shirt and trousers with his collar slightly open, he entered, and the sales associate approached him.

Tan Yucheng glanced around and then took out his phone, showing the associate a specific item. The associate looked at it and said, “This is a limited edition new model, which requires special ordering. Is that alright with you, sir?”

Tan Yucheng glanced at her and replied, “Yes.”

The sales associate immediately brightened up and led him inside to select the item.

Before long, Tan Yucheng came out with a bag in hand, paid with his card, and left. With his sleeves rolled up, his well-defined arm muscles were visible as he carried the bag to another black car.

The car from last night was sent for repairs because its undercarriage was damaged.

The black car drove to Zhuoyue Building.

Tan Yucheng didn’t bring any gifts. He got out of the car first and walked towards Sunset cafe. When Xiao Zhou saw him, she immediately said, “Sister Ting is upstairs at the nail salon.”

Tan Yucheng raised his eyebrows.

Xiao Wan added, “The nail salon has a lot of handsome guys.”

Tan Yucheng shot a glance at Xiao Wan.

Xiao Wan grinned.

Xiao Zhou also laughed, and Tan Yucheng squinted, gave a light snort, and walked towards the stairs leading to the nail salon. The second floor had several offices, and the nail salon was quite prominent.

Its name was “Lushine Shop.”

As Tan Yucheng approached, he saw Ji Ting sitting there. She had her hair in loose curls today and wore a khaki off-shoulder dress paired with a thin black jacket. The jacket was removed, revealing one of her fair shoulders. She was having her nails done by a woman wearing glasses.

Seeing this, Tan Yucheng chose not to go in.

He casually leaned against the railing outside and took out his phone.

Lu Xingyao was finishing the last layer of polish for Ji Ting. She looked up and saw the handsome man leaning against the railing. She paused for a moment, instinctively looked at Ji Ting, and asked, “The man behind us, is he here for you?”

Ji Ting paused and turned to look.

Seeing Tan Yucheng’s relaxed posture, Ji Ting’s ears turned slightly red. She turned back and replied with a soft “Hmm.”

Lu Xingyao withdrew her gaze and continued applying polish, asking, “Is he the most difficult path for you?”

Ji Ting paused and asked, “How do you define difficulty?”

“It takes a long time,” Lu Xingyao said with a smile.

It is indeed quite long.

Ji Ting remained silent.

Soon, the last coat was applied. The pale pink color, reminiscent of peach blossoms, covered her nails beautifully, complementing her fair skin. As Ji Ting prepared to pay, Tan Yucheng entered and scanned the QR code with his phone. Lu Xingyao, seeing this, smiled and told Tan Yucheng the price. He paid and looked at Ji Ting. Ji Ting put on her jacket and walked towards him.

Tan Yucheng’s eyes swept over her outfit, and his Adam’s apple moved slightly as he walked out with her.

At the entrance, there was a Q-version palm reading chart. Tan Yucheng glanced up at it, and Ji Ting followed his gaze. She remembered his palm lines and said, “The owner of this place is famous for palm reading.”

Tan Yucheng raised an eyebrow and pressed the elevator button, replying, “Is that so?”

Ji Ting nodded.

The elevator descended, arriving at the underground parking lot. At his car, Tan Yucheng opened the passenger door. Ji Ting stood in front of him, thought for a moment, and said, “I’ve looked at your palm lines before.”

Tan Yucheng looked down at her, recalling the past, and asked, “What did you see?”

At that time, she only mentioned many peach blossoms.

But seeing her expression now, it was clear there was more than just peach blossoms.

Ji Ting motioned for him to open his hand.

Tan Yucheng let go of the car door and spread his hand.

Ji Ting looked truly beautiful today. Her dress was exceptionally lovely, making her skin appear very white, her collarbone like a pool of water, and her shoulders beautiful. She also carried a faint, fresh fragrance. As she looked at Tan Yucheng’s palm lines, particularly the broken and then rejoined heart line, she raised her gaze and said, “Here, the line was broken and then resumed. This is a heart line.”

Tan Yucheng’s eyes moved from her brows to his palm, focusing on the point where she indicated the line was broken.

After such a long time.

Tan Yucheng already knew what her unfinished words were. He looked up and locked eyes with her, “So? Did you think it was about Shu Xiao?”

Ji Ting nodded.

Tan Yucheng’s lips curled into a slight smile, and he asked, “Why isn’t it you and me?”

Ji Ting was taken aback.

Tan Yucheng glanced at the palm lines and said, “The break in the line is in the middle, which, by age, should be around twenty-eight. The resumption point is very close. Isn’t this you and me?”

He looked up.

Ji Ting was stunned.

This was such a ridiculous calculation and seemed somewhat misleading.

Tan Yucheng leaned slightly towards her and said, “So, we’ll get back together, right? Entering a new phase, right?”

“Ji Ting.”

He softly called her name.

¹”Qianliyan” (千里眼) translates to “Thousand Mile Eye” and typically refers to apps for monitoring, surveillance, or remote sensing. It provides detailed, possibly real-time, visual information or data over long distances.