Beijing Colors Lingering

He Zhenzhen leaned back on the sofa, pondered for a moment, then opened her phone and logged into a social media platform.

Immediately afterwards, her long, slender, fair fingers tapped the screen, and she posted a message—

[Urgent!!! My childhood friend has suddenly started pursuing me. Should I agree to be with him? When should I say yes?]

Not long after, He Zhenzhen's post sparked discussion among some netizens.

[OP, the most important question is, do you like your childhood sweetheart? If you do, just say yes! What are you hesitating about?]

[Yes, if you like your childhood sweetheart, you should accept his advances.]

[Do you really need to post a separate thread to ask us about this? Please, don't post every little thing online. We netizens are busy too, okay?]

If you like someone, just be together! What's there to hesitate about?

[Hehe, if your childhood sweetheart is tall and handsome, then say yes first, enjoy it first, and then we'll talk about the rest.]

[To the netizen upstairs, please watch your wording; this is not a no-man's-land.]

[OP, I have a question for you. What do you mean by "suddenly"? Why didn't he pursue you when he liked you before?]

He Zhenzhen noticed the comment, thought for a few seconds, and replied: "Because I've always considered him a friend, he said he didn't dare pursue me, afraid our relationship would become awkward in the end."

After seeing He Zhenzhen's comments, netizens began to discuss them one after another.

Oh, I see. I understand now.

If you like your childhood sweetheart, let him pursue you for a while before you agree to be with him. But don't agree too quickly!

[OP, you can't always believe everything a man says; it might just be an excuse.]

Could it be that his childhood sweetheart, after trying out various relationships, realized you're the most suitable person for marriage, and that's why he started pursuing you?

[A prodigal son returning home? If that's really the case, the original poster should think it over carefully.]

I think that's possible. The original poster could investigate their childhood friend's past romantic relationships.

……

He Zhenzhen browsed through the comments, her brows furrowing slightly. She had never heard of Qi Mingyuan having a girlfriend before; he certainly wasn't a reformed playboy.

He Zhenzhen browsed for a while before logging off the social media platform. She figured she should find Sui Sui and Yun Shu instead; asking them would be more reliable.

The next morning, before going to work, Qi Mingyuan still sent a bouquet of flowers to He Zhenzhen's house.

When He Zhenzhen woke up and came to the living room, the housekeeper told her about it.

She picked up the bouquet of flowers, and a fresh, delicate fragrance wafted towards her.

He Zhenzhen suddenly remembered the gift Qi Mingyuan had given her, and then quickly went to the garden.

The claws of the claw machine were already programmed, so He Zhenzhen quickly grabbed all the boxes from the machine and placed them on the crystal carriage.

After a long while, she opened all the boxes and glanced around. In addition to jewelry, there were various limited edition blind boxes, dolls, and ceramic dolls, all of which were her favorite IPs.

He Zhenzhen couldn't help but smile with delight, and two cute dimples appeared on her cheeks.

Qi Mingyuan knew her interests and hobbies very well, so he put a lot of thought into the gift he prepared.

He Zhenzhen was immediately in a good mood and instructed the housekeeper to move all these things to her study.

In the evening, Qi Mingyuan came to her house for dinner again.

He Zhenzhen looked at Qi Mingyuan, her eyes crinkling with a smile, and teased, "Why are you coming to my house for a free meal again?"

Qi Mingyuan explained earnestly, "I originally wanted to take you to a restaurant for dinner today, but I had an important meeting that came up at the last minute, and I didn't know when it would end, so I canceled the plan. But I wanted to see you and spend time with you, so I shamelessly came to your house for dinner."

As soon as she finished speaking, He Zhenzhen blushed slightly and muttered, "You didn't have to go into so much detail. I was just joking."

Seeing her adorable appearance, Qi Mingyuan couldn't help but reach out and gently stroke her fluffy head, saying softly, "How about we go to a restaurant for dinner tomorrow? I'll come pick you up."

He Zhenzhen nodded and softly hummed in agreement.

Qi Mingyuan tentatively took her hand, and seeing that she did not reject his actions, he carefully rubbed her delicate, snow-white fingers.

He Zhenzhen's ear tips gradually turned red. She withdrew her hand and casually said, "I'm hungry. Let's go eat first."

"Okay, I'm a little hungry too." Qi Mingyuan took her hand again and led her towards the restaurant.

He Zhenzhen pursed her lips, but ultimately did not break free from his hand, letting him lead her forward.

-

In the days that followed, Qi Mingyuan used every method he could think of to pursue He Zhenzhen. He could clearly feel that she was slowly falling for him, and he believed that the two of them would be together soon.

During her free time, He Zhenzhen met up with two close friends for a meal and told them everything about Qi Mingyuan's pursuit of her.

Shen Jinsui smiled with satisfaction after hearing this, and said meaningfully, "I think you two should have been together a long time ago."

“You two should even start by developing a campus romance,” Qiao Yunshu chimed in with a smile.

He Zhenzhen was a little confused when she heard this, staring at the two of them with puzzlement.

Shen Jinsui spoke slowly and deliberately: "We noticed a long time ago that you and Qi Mingyuan liked each other, but neither of you realized it, or perhaps Qi Mingyuan didn't dare to express his feelings to you too early."

Qiao Yunshu nodded slightly, "Sui Sui is right, but it's not too late for you two to be together now. In a few days, you can accept Qi Mingyuan's proposal."

He Zhenzhen pondered for a long time before nodding solemnly, "Okay, then I'll agree to be with him next week."

Hearing her plan, Shen Jinsui and Qiao Yunshu were both happy for her.

-

Qi Mingyuan would inform He Zhenzhen of his approximate time to leave work each day, as well as her work schedule for the next day.

By the following Friday, He Zhenzhen had dressed up carefully in her room and had her family driver take her to the Qi Group headquarters building.

He Zhenzhen felt a little nervous and shy as she thought about how she would soon officially agree to be with Qi Mingyuan.

Qi Mingyuan often brought He Zhenzhen to the Qi Group headquarters building, so she took the elevator directly to the top floor without any hindrance and then walked towards his office.

When Qi Mingyuan's assistant saw He Zhenzhen, he immediately bowed slightly and greeted her politely: "Ms. He, Mr. Qi is currently in his office."

He Zhenzhen stopped and looked at her assistant, smiling gently. "Okay, then I'll go find him directly."

The assistant nodded: "Okay, Ms. He. I'll prepare some snacks, desserts, and drinks for you now and bring them to your office right away."

"Okay, thank you." Every time He Zhenzhen came here, Qi Mingyuan would instruct his assistant to bring her food and various drinks and teas.

He Zhenzhen immediately headed towards the office, but stopped in her tracks just as she reached the door.

The office door was ajar, and faint sobbing could be heard coming from inside.

He Zhenzhen's expression froze instantly; it was clearly the sound of a girl crying.

He Zhenzhen peered inside and saw a girl sitting on the sofa, sobbing with her head down.

The next moment, the girl looked up at Qi Mingyuan again, her lips moving as if she were saying something, but she couldn't hear clearly.

Qi Mingyuan stood next to the girl, looking impatient.

He Zhenzhen knew all of Qi Mingyuan's female friends, but she had never met this girl before.

A few seconds later, He Zhenzhen saw the girl suddenly stand up.

Then, she cried and threw herself into Qi Mingyuan's arms.

He Zhenzhen noticed that Qi Mingyuan still had a rather displeased expression, but instead of pushing the girl away, he raised a hand and gently patted her back.