Dead silent.

The car was so quiet you could almost hear a fly buzzing; however, there didn't seem to be any flies this season.

Oh, it was the sound of Old Li humming a little tune while driving.

Yu Hao listened carefully and, for the first time ever, actually made out the lyrics—

“You are my lover, a woman like a rose. With your fiery lips, you send me into endless ecstasy in the midnight...”

...

Although the song suited Old Li's age, given the current situation, Yu Hao couldn't help but let her mind wander. Both shy and annoyed, her face flushed as red as the few scattered maple leaves outside the mountain. She simply turned her eyes away, ignoring Old Li's playful nature.

Then she happened to glance at her reflection in the rearview mirror, and her appearance was rather...indecent.

Her eyes were glistening and watery, her face was flushed, and her hair was a mess. She liked to trim her own hair regularly, always keeping it at chest length, and was used to tying it into a neat ponytail or coiling it into a loose bun at the back of her head.

She had been in a hurry this morning, so she had just casually twisted it twice and pinned it up.

When that man kissed her, one of his hands had gone straight through her hair from beside her ear. He didn't understand the concept of taking things slow at all. His large palm held the back of her head tightly as he fiercely sucked on her lips.

It was truly fierce. Even now, the edge of her lips still ached faintly. At the time, Yu Hao had subconsciously shrunk back into her seat. He had frowned impatiently, then simply leaned his whole body in, held her head firmly, and pressed her towards him, deepening the kiss without the slightest hesitation.

Yu Hao was caught off guard, all her words drowned in that fiery, lingering kiss.

Back in high school, he had wanted to kiss her. Yu Hao had imagined that his kiss would be a bit cautious and exploratory, perhaps as gentle as a light breeze, or just a peck. In her memory, he had always been that clean and pure boy.

Who would have thought that their first kiss would be a French kiss, and one with such skilled technique. Compared to him, Yu Hao was clumsy and helpless. When the tip of his tongue pushed in, it traced the slick inner wall of her lips to hook hers. Unexpectedly, it was cool to the touch. Yu Hao touched the back of his neck; it was burning hot. His whole body was hot, except for the tip of his tongue.

When it touched hers, it was as if a chrysalis was breaking out of its cocoon and leaping straight into a brilliant flame. Yu Hao's heart trembled. She grabbed the thin fabric of the t-shirt on his chest, her body limp as she leaned against the seat. The shivering sensation seemed to shoot from her toes to the top of her head, even her breathing became difficult.

Lu Huaizheng noticed she was running out of strength. He propped himself up with one hand on the seat, and the hand holding her head moved to pinch her chin. His lips and tongue withdrew, and he began to bite her lower lip instead, gently gnawing on it for a moment.

Then his lips moved down, stopping at her chin, where he gave it a light peck.

That was the end of it.

Thinking back, it still felt so improper. Yu Hao looked at herself in the mirror. Her lipstick had been smeared all over by him, with only a faint, shallow layer remaining on her lips. In the current sunlight, it looked exceptionally messy and disheveled.

And Old Li was there too. If he went back and gossiped with others, she wouldn't be able to leave her house for days...

Lu Huaizheng. Just thinking his name in her head now made her heart race...

By the time Yu Hao had retied her hair, the car had already driven steadily into the unit.

Blushing, Yu Hao unbuckled her seatbelt, eager to get out of the car. But unexpectedly, Old Li called out to her.

“Dr. Yu.”

Yu Hao turned back, bewildered.

“I, Old Li, have been driving in the military unit for nearly twenty years. I’ve seen it all. I've known Captain Lu for at least four or five years, if not eight or nine. Captain Lu is a good judge of character and knows how to use people. He knows what kind of person I am, so he didn't say anything to me. But I can tell, Dr. Yu, that you're a very conservative girl. Captain Lu is young and full of vigor, at that hot-blooded age, I understand. So, you don't have to worry about me going back and gossiping with them—” At this point, Old Li sighed. “For so many years, Captain Lu has never spoken a word about his relationships, so everyone especially loves to gossip about him. If I went back and told everyone about this, I reckon your life wouldn't be very peaceful from now on, Dr. Yu. It goes without saying, Captain Lu must feel the same way. I know him.”

Yu Hao looked at him, speechless.

She looked at Old Li and thought blankly, 'Are there people who are so upright and straightforward, who aren't duplicitous or phony, that as long as they treat others with sincerity, they can always gain some true friends?'

Back in high school, although she'd verbally dismiss them as his gang of bad friends, sometimes she was truly envious of the bond he had with them. They were always together in a group, before and after class, playing basketball, eating, playing games, playing pranks on teachers...If they were caught, they would push Lu Huaizheng forward.

Because of the good impression Jin Gang had of him, and his status as the captain of the school basketball team, whenever something happened, he was always the one responsible for joking around with the teachers to smooth things over.

Until one time, back when the two of them still weren't particularly close.

Yu Hao couldn't resist. She snuck out during Chinese class to smoke a cigarette in the bathroom. Lu Huaizheng saw her pass by the window and secretly slipped out the back door too.

As it turned out, Yu Hao was smoking in the bathroom and was spotted by Lu Huaizheng's homeroom teacher who happened to be passing by. The teacher first saw Lu Huaizheng at the doorway and walked over suspiciously. “What are you doing out here during class?”

Startled by the teacher's voice, Yu Hao immediately stubbed out the cigarette. But the sharp-eyed homeroom teacher noticed, rushed in to check, and found Yu Hao bent over, washing her hands.

Pale white smoke was still rising from the trash can.

“You were actually smoking in the bathroom!?” Lu Huaizheng's homeroom teacher couldn't believe it.

Yu Hao kept her head down, washing her hands without saying a word.

Then, Lu Huaizheng quietly raised his hand from the side. “I...was the one smoking.”

The homeroom teacher was even more incredulous, her voice shrieking, “Are you trying to tell me now that you were smoking in the girls' bathroom?”

“I...went into the wrong one.”

Lu Huaizheng said, looking down in embarrassment.

In reality, Lu Huaizheng didn't even know how to smoke back then. He was punished by having to write a two-thousand-word self-criticism and read it under the national flag on Monday. He only made one request, “Can we leave out the part about the girls' bathroom?”

It seemed to be because of that foolish earnestness that he was always surrounded by a group of good friends. It was like that before, and it was still like that now.

...

It was already a bit late when Lu Huaizheng arrived at the airport. Chen Rui stood anxiously at the boarding gate, looking around everywhere. He was as restless as an ant on a hot pan, pacing in circles. A cold, female voice mechanically repeated the boarding announcement...Finally, after the last call, amidst the splendid airport terminal and the tide of passing passengers, he saw a familiar figure heading over.

Lu Huaizheng was tall and strikingly handsome, so he was easy to spot. He was wearing a black baseball cap, the brim pulled low, covering half of his face, but Chen Rui still recognized him at a glance and waved his hand.

Lu Huaizheng saw him and quickened his pace. Chen Rui handed him a bag, and the two were escorted onto the plane by an attendant.

The two of them rarely flew on commercial airliners. During the flight, Chen Rui wanted to speak several times but held back. Seeing Lu Huaizheng resting with his eyes closed and a cold expression, he didn't dare to disturb him. But if their superior saw him like this later, he would definitely get a lecture.

“Captain Lu.” He finally spoke up.

Lu Huaizheng didn't open his eyes, just hummed in acknowledgment.

Chen Rui said, “Did you not look in the mirror before you left?”

“What?”

Lu Huaizheng slowly opened his eyes and turned to look at him.

After a few seconds of silence, Chen Rui pointed to the side of his own face and said, “Here. It looks like...a woman's lipstick. The flight attendant...tried to tell you several times just now.”

...

On his way here, Lu Huaizheng had actually felt that the stares he was getting today were a bit different than usual. He normally got a lot of looks when walking down the street, so he never paid them much mind.

It used to be mostly girls who stared, but today, even guys were looking. He should have realized it then.

Lu Huaizheng leaned against the bathroom wall with his arms crossed and chuckled, bowing his head. He had really lost his mind. After laughing, he straightened up, bent over to turn on the tap, washed his hands, and then faced the mirror, using his thumb to wipe the lipstick off his face, slow and unhurried.

When he returned to his seat with a wet face, neither of the two men had any tissues. Lu Huaizheng didn't mind, waiting for it to air dry. But then, a hand reached out from the side.

He froze for a moment, then turned to see the woman in the next seat handing him a tissue, saying with a smile, “Here, use this.”

Lu Huaizheng found the woman somewhat familiar but couldn't place her right away. He didn't take it, saying, “No, thanks.” After the woman took the tissue back, he suddenly remembered. Thinking about how awkward their last encounter at the hotel conference hall in Nanjing was, he didn't initiate a conversation.

But after a short while, she greeted him first. “What a coincidence. You're going back to Beijing too?”

Lu Huaizheng had always been a gentleman. He didn't expect her to greet him first, which made him feel a bit ungracious. He nodded, being extra polite, “Yes. Where’s your child?”

“My mom is with him.”

“And your husband?”

“...” The woman didn't answer, seeming to have nothing to say.

Lu Huaizheng gave an awkward smile and didn't press the matter.

The woman suddenly started trying to make small talk with him. Lu Huaizheng answered distractedly. Unexpectedly, the woman turned her head to look at him and said, her eyes burning with a strange expectation, “I have a feeling we'll meet again.”

Lu Huaizheng was perceptive. Realizing her intentions might not be entirely pure, he promptly stopped the conversation and didn't respond.

But then Du Wanyin extended an olive branch, “We've met twice now, it must be fate. How about we exchange phone numbers?”

It wasn't that he'd never been asked for his number by a girl before, but it was the first time for someone of Du Wanyin's caliber. Chen Rui, sitting next to him, even had an excited expression on his face. Lu Huaizheng's voice turned cold instantly. “I didn't bring my phone.”

He really hadn't brought it, and he didn't want to cause trouble for himself.

Du Wanyin looked at him with understanding. “Is it because I've been married?”

Lu Huaizheng looked at her.

Du Wanyin explained with a bitter smile, “My husband cheated on me. I came to Yunnan this time to catch him in the act, but I didn't want to make a scene, so I bought a last-minute ticket to fly back. I'm planning to get a divorce as soon as I get back.”

Lu Huaizheng coughed to cover his awkwardness.

Du Wanyin lowered her head.

Then she heard him speak in a cool, clear voice, “I have a girlfriend.” Even his gaze softened.

Du Wanyin was taken aback for a moment, then leaned back in her chair. “My apologies for bothering you.”

At a glance, Du Wanyin actually looked a bit like Yu Hao, but upon closer inspection, the differences were huge. Du Wanyin's features exuded the charm of a mature woman, while Yu Hao had the clean, unadulterated purity of a young girl.

When she looked at you, her eyes were earnest and pure. When he kissed her, she was completely clueless about romance, even afraid. When he held her and kissed her, her body trembled slightly, which further stimulated a man's desire to protect and conquer.

But to think, if he were to truly make her his own.

That scene...

Just thinking about it made Lu Huaizheng's heart tremble.

Chen Rui, however, leaned close to Lu Huaizheng's ear, covered his mouth, and whispered, “Captain Lu, is your girlfriend Dr. Yu?”

Lu Huaizheng crossed his arms and shot him a sidelong glance.

Chen Rui said with a grin, “I knew it was our Dr. Yu the moment I smelled that lipstick!” After saying that, he asked smugly, “What do you think? Am I sharp or what?”

“...”

The next second, Lu Huaizheng took off his baseball cap, gripped it by the brim, and started whacking Chen Rui on the head with it, hard and without holding back. With each whack, he said, “You like smelling lipstick, do you?!”

“Ah?!!”

“When we get back, I’ll buy you a whole case of lipstick so you can smell it to your heart's content!!”

Finally, he put the cap back on, adjusted it by the brim, and said,

“From now on, if there's a day when you can't smell what lipstick Dr. Yu is wearing, you'll run ten extra laps.”