A L*st at First Sight (Lily Futa) - Chapter 10

That day, after meeting a client, Liu Yuelan saw that it wasn’t too late yet and decided to drop by the shop to find Yu Qianlin on her way.

She pushed the door open. The wind chimes jingled for a while, but no one paid any attention. A group of people were crowded around the front desk, chattering noisily about something. It was very lively.

Liu Yuelan walked over curiously. Xiao C spotted her first and happily came over to greet her. “Sister Liu, you’re here!”

“Mm. What are you all doing?”

“We’re going on a team-building trip tomorrow — mountain climbing and watching the sunrise. Right now we’re discussing what activities to do and assigning people to bring things.”

Liu Yuelan understood. She glanced at the crowd in front but didn’t see Yu Qianlin. “Is your Master going?”

“Of course she is. Everyone’s going, and we can even bring family members.”

After chatting with someone on her phone for a few moments, Liu Yuelan looked up and smiled at him. “Then can I sign up?”

“You want to come too?” Xiao C asked first, then clapped his hands excitedly. “Yeah! We’ve never gone out together before. You even treated us to hotpot last time! Wait a second.”

He pushed through the crowd and said to Xiao Li, “Can we add one more person?”

Xiao Li tapped his head with her pen. “Get lost. A few days ago when I urged you to confirm the headcount you complained I was annoying. Now you want to add someone? Pay for it yourself.”

“That’s fine,” Liu Yuelan walked over from behind with a charming smile. “I’ll pay for myself.”

Xiao Li grabbed Xiao C and gave him another smack. “If it’s Miss Liu, just say so! Why beat around the bush!”

Xiao C held his head and begged for mercy. Xiao Li pushed him aside and immediately became enthusiastic toward Liu Yuelan. “Miss Liu, you don’t need to pay. We’ll treat you. Consider it this month’s membership benefit.”

“Is that okay? Will it be troublesome for you?”

“No, no. I’ll just book one more ticket and one more room.”

“Then thank you.”

At that moment, Yu Qianlin came out of the women’s changing room after changing her clothes. Seeing them still gathered and discussing, she didn’t join in and instead walked toward a man standing on the outskirts.

“Brother Wang, here’s the car key. You can drive tomorrow.”

Brother Wang looked confused as he was handed the keys. After listening to her, he quickly tried to give them back. “No need, no need. We can take the subway. If that doesn’t work, we can squeeze into someone else’s car.”

Yu Qianlin said patiently, “Your two kids aren’t little anymore. How can four people squeeze with others? Driving yourself is always more convenient. Have fun with your wife and kids tomorrow.” She handed the keys back to him again.

Brother Wang took them reluctantly. “Then what about you?”

“I’ll take a taxi.”

“You can ride in my car.”

Two voices spoke at the same time. Yu Qianlin turned around in surprise and only then realized Liu Yuelan was there too. She hadn’t noticed her earlier because she had been surrounded by the crowd.

Liu Yuelan walked over. “I’ll only have one person in my car tomorrow. You can ride with me.”

“What do you mean?” Yu Qianlin asked with a stiff face.

Xiao Li came over from the front desk. “Sister Lin, Miss Liu happened to stop by. She wants to join us for the team-building tomorrow. Since this month’s membership benefit hasn’t been given yet, I was just about to book her ticket.”

Yu Qianlin lowered her head and zipped up her jacket. “No need to book. I’m not going.”

With that, she put her hands in her jacket pockets and walked toward the door. Xiao Li glanced nervously at Liu Yuelan, whose smile had disappeared, not understanding why the two of them, who had been so harmonious last time, had suddenly become tense again.

Liu Yuelan forced a smile, told Xiao Li to wait for her message, and chased after her. She pushed the door open, looked around, and spotted Yu Qianlin’s figure at the intersection. The other woman was wearing a military-green jacket that stood out. Seeing that she was about to cross the road, she jogged after her.

The traffic light turned green. Yu Qianlin had just lifted her foot to take a step when someone grabbed her wrist and pulled her away.

She stumbled along as Liu Yuelan dragged her to the side. She shouted several times for her to let go, but it was useless. Trying to break free from her grip was also futile. Looking at the high heels on her feet, she couldn’t understand how she could still walk so fast. Then she looked at her slender arms and couldn’t understand why her strength had suddenly become so great.

Liu Yuelan finally stopped after dragging her to a deserted corner.

Once Yu Qianlin regained her freedom, she frowned and rubbed the spot that hurt.

Liu Yuelan suppressed her anger and asked in as calm a tone as possible, “Do you hate me that much?”

Yu Qianlin’s hand paused mid-rub. She lowered her eyes and put her hand back in her pocket.

“Speak.” Liu Yuelan crossed her arms, her tone rarely this stern.

Yu Qianlin had the illusion that she was scolding a subordinate. She kicked a stone on the ground impatiently. “No.”

“Then why is it that as soon as I say I’m going, you decide not to go? This is your company’s team-building. Even if there’s one person who shouldn’t go, it should be me.”

“I have something to do.”

Liu Yuelan fell silent. Yu Qianlin casually glanced at her and saw her drop her hands and lean against the wall. Her gaze drifted down to the dirty wall, then fixed on the hem of Liu Yuelan’s clean white skirt.

“Even after knowing you for so long, I still can’t see through you. You’re hot and cold toward people. The things you say are sometimes true, sometimes false. You clearly have nothing to do tomorrow, but because I want to go and you hate me, you simply decide not to go. We’re all adults. Isn’t it better to speak honestly?”

Yu Qianlin clenched her hands inside her pockets, then irritably ruffled her hair and repeated, “I don’t hate you.”

“Then why? I need a reason.” Liu Yuelan’s voice was full of helplessness and confusion.

“I’ll go tomorrow too. Happy now?”

Her tone was full of irritation and perfunctoriness. Hearing this, Liu Yuelan felt exhausted.

She had never considered herself a very patient person, especially disliking those who dragged things out or spoke ambiguously. Yet Yu Qianlin was so changeable and unpredictable. You never knew what mood she would be in the next day when facing you.

Only now did she realize that she had given all her patience to Yu Qianlin. If her ex-girlfriends saw this, they would be shocked.

Liu Yuelan lowered her head and rummaged for her keys in her bag. “I’ll drive you home and get familiar with the route. I’ll pick you up at eight tomorrow morning.”

“No need, I—”

The rest of her words were blocked by Liu Yuelan’s resolute back. Even a clay figure has three parts temper, not to mention Liu Yuelan, who had never been the type to compromise endlessly.

Yu Qianlin watched her determined steps and sensed the change in her mood. Her gaze fell on the white skirt, noticing several dirty marks on the back. It had indeed gotten dirty.

On the way back, the only sound in the car was the navigation voice. After Liu Yuelan dropped her off at the entrance of the apartment building, she said emotionlessly, “See you at eight tomorrow morning at the entrance of the compound,” then started the car and left without any reluctance.

Yu Qianlin sat on a bench by the roadside and knocked her forehead with her fist.

The next day, when Liu Yuelan arrived at the meeting point, she saw Yu Qianlin standing at the entrance with a backpack, wearing a baseball cap and the hood of a hoodie pulled up. As she got closer, she noticed white wired earphones in her ears.

The car stopped in front of her. Yu Qianlin opened the rear door and got in, placed her backpack to the side, pulled her cap lower, and started sleeping. Liu Yuelan looked at the rearview mirror, gripped the steering wheel tightly, waited a moment, and then started driving.

The team-building location was a mountain in the suburbs. They would climb during the day, stay at the hotel on the mountaintop at night, watch the sunrise the next day, and then visit the surrounding scenic spots.

The drive took over an hour. Yu Qianlin remained completely still the entire time. Halfway through, Liu Yuelan got bored driving and wanted to listen to some music. Seeing the person sleeping soundly in the rearview mirror, she ground her back teeth and withdrew her hand.

They finally reached the parking lot at the foot of the mountain. Unable to stand the oppressive atmosphere in the car any longer, Liu Yuelan got out and slammed the door heavily. She felt a sense of satisfaction when she saw the person in the back seat get startled awake.

She casually looked at the nearby scenery and gazed up at the tall mountain peak to pass the time. Before long, the shop staff arrived one after another. After greeting each other, when Xiao Li started counting heads, Yu Qianlin opened the car door, grabbed her bag, and got out.

“Master, why do you look so listless so early in the morning? Cheer up!” Xiao C fawningly ran over and started massaging her shoulders.

Yu Qianlin swatted his hand away. Xiao C chuckled and continued standing beside her, waving at Liu Yuelan across from them. Today Liu Yuelan had her hair in a ponytail, wore a simple T-shirt with ice sleeves, black sports pants, sneakers, and a sun hat. Even ordinary sporty attire looked charming on her, especially with that beautiful face.

Liu Yuelan forced a smile in response to his enthusiasm, then glanced at the expressionless person beside him and withdrew that tiny smile.

“Alright, everyone’s here. Look out for each other on the way. Okay, let’s go!”

Xiao Li raised her arm and shouted. Everyone started climbing with laughter and chatter. Xiao C sprinted ahead to the front. Liu Yuelan took her bag from the back seat, slung it on, and followed the group.

Yu Qianlin found Brother Wang, who was chatting with his wife. “Brother Wang, give me the car key. I’m not feeling well, so I’ll drive up.”

Brother Wang handed her the keys and asked worriedly, “Where do you feel unwell? Is it serious?”

“I didn’t sleep well and feel a bit dizzy. You guys have fun.” After saying that, Yu Qianlin walked toward her car.

Brother Wang didn’t notice anything major wrong with her and left with his family.

Most people on this team-building trip had brought family — either wives and kids or partners and friends. Xiao C was one of the few who came alone.

The others walked in pairs, enjoying the scenery as they climbed. Xiao C was full of energy and wanted to be the first to reach the summit, but he had run too hard at the beginning and used up too much strength. He held his waist and panted, sitting on a stone pillar beside the path. He turned back, wanting to look at the group behind him for a sense of satisfaction, and spotted Liu Yuelan only a few meters away.

She walked at a steady pace, breathing evenly, showing no sign of fatigue.

“Sister Liu, you have such good stamina?” Xiao C asked in surprise.

Liu Yuelan ignored him and continued climbing at her own pace. Before long, she was only a dozen steps away from him.

He felt even more admiration for Liu Yuelan in his heart. He stood up and looked down, seeing several colleagues behind. He was happy for a moment, then scratched his head in confusion. “Huh? Where’s my Master?”

Liu Yuelan’s steps paused. She wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand and also looked back, but didn’t see the person she was looking for.

“Weird. She used to climb really fast. I couldn’t even catch up to her. What’s wrong with her today?”

Liu Yuelan remembered how she had started sleeping as soon as she got in the car and how her steps had been a bit unsteady when she got out. She guessed many bad possibilities in her mind, her brows tightly furrowed.

When the people behind got closer, Xiao C cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, “Hey! Have you guys seen my Master?”

Liu Yuelan, who had been deep in thought, was startled by his shout. She gave him a helpless sideways glance.

Brother Wang heard and shouted back, “She drove up! She’s probably already near the summit by now!”

“Ah!” Xiao C’s jaw dropped. “No way! You can drive up the mountain? Master is cheating!”

Hearing this, Liu Yuelan instantly felt that her earlier worry for someone had been ridiculous. She bit her lip in anger and turned to continue climbing.

Seeing this, Xiao C stopped resting and quickly caught up. “Sister Liu, since I can’t compete with my Master this time, I’ll compete with you instead! Let’s see who reaches the summit first!”

He finished speaking while panting. When he looked up again, Liu Yuelan had already walked several meters ahead. He wailed and hurried after her.

When Liu Yuelan reached the summit, her cheeks were flushed and her neck was sweaty. She took out her water bottle from the side of her bag and took small sips until she finished half the bottle.

Holding the bottle, she walked to the railing. The scenic spot was well-developed. Many cars were parked along the road at the summit, and there were quite a few people. It was very lively.

She looked at the forest below and the blurred city in the distance, letting the cool mountain breeze blow for a while. Only then did she feel a little more relaxed.

The sweat that had flowed out carried away some of the depression in her heart.

“Sister Liu!” Xiao C ran over to her, covered in sweat. When he reached her, he bent over with his hands on his knees, panting. “You walk so fast. I couldn’t catch up at all.”

Liu Yuelan lifted the collar of his shirt. “Don’t bend over like that. Walk slowly and drink some water, sip by sip.”

“Oh.” Xiao C did as she said and looked down beside her. “Wow, so beautiful! The scenery on the mountain is great, and it’s so cool!”

“Mm.”

After waiting another ten minutes or so, Xiao Li and another group also arrived. While sending messages in the WeChat group, she said, “Everyone go get your room keys first. Those who want to rest can rest, those who want to move freely can do so. Lunch is on your own. Tonight we’ll have an outdoor barbecue!”

“Oh yeah!”

Liu Yuelan took out a wet wipe and wiped her forehead and the tip of her nose. She slung her bag on and followed the group to the hotel.

After Xiao Li reported the information at the front desk, the receptionist asked, “Is Yu Qianlin with your group? She has already booked a standard room.”

“Yes. She told me. Please arrange the remaining rooms for us.”

The front desk registered the rooms according to the groups they had divided themselves into. Soon everyone received their room keys and went to their rooms. Liu Yuelan was the last to go up. She took out her ID card. “One standard room.”

The receptionist took the ID. “Hello, do you have a reservation?”

“No.”

After going home angry the night before, she had told Xiao Li not to worry about her and gone to sleep, thinking she could book a room when she arrived the next day.

“Sorry, miss. All our rooms are fully booked. There are no vacancies left.”

Liu Yuelan’s expression froze for a few seconds. “Not even the cheapest ones?”

“I’m sorry, no. Several companies organized team-building trips today. The rooms were fully booked this morning.”

Xiao Li had been waiting on the side. Hearing this, she walked over and asked, “Miss Liu, you didn’t book yesterday?”

Liu Yuelan shook her head and pressed her lips together as she took back her ID. “I’ll ask at another place.”

“Hey, Miss Liu,” Xiao Li grabbed her arm. “When I booked, I only got double rooms. Everyone was assigned perfectly, but I didn’t arrange a roommate for Sister Lin. You can share a room with her.”

Liu Yuelan thought for a moment and shook her head. “No need.”

Xiao Li sighed, took out her phone, and prepared to call Yu Qianlin. “Miss Liu, although I don’t know what happened between you two yesterday, Sister Lin will definitely agree. Trust me.” By the time she finished speaking, she had already dialed the number and signaled Liu Yuelan with her eyes to wait a bit longer.

“Hello, Sister Lin. The hotel has no more rooms left. Miss Liu has nowhere to stay. Can she share a room with you?… Mm. Everyone else’s rooms are full. Only yours is left… Okay, I’ll tell her. Thank you!”

While speaking, Xiao Li gave Liu Yuelan an OK gesture. After hanging up, she quickly went to the front desk to explain the situation, helped Liu Yuelan register, and got her another room key.

“Let’s go, Miss Liu. We’re all on the third floor.”

Liu Yuelan walked silently from the stairs to the third floor before taking out her room card to check the room number. Xiao Li reached her room first. Liu Yuelan said goodbye to her and prepared to walk forward. Xiao Li hesitated for a moment but still called out to her, “Miss Liu, I don’t know if I should say this, but I feel like you’re a bit sad. Actually… from what I can see, Sister Lin really cares about you. I don’t know what happened between you two again, but I hope you can talk to her properly. Sister Lin… we all really like you.”

Liu Yuelan’s expression softened slightly. She nodded gently. “Thank you.”

Xiao Li smiled. “No need. Serving our members is what we should do. I’ll go in first. See you later.”

“Mm.”

Thinking about Xiao Li’s words, Liu Yuelan walked slowly forward. She stood at the door of the room, took a deep breath, and swiped the card to open the door.

The room wasn’t big. The two beds were very close to each other. She saw that the bed by the window had been slept in, with a bag on the headboard, so she placed her things on the other bed. Just as she unzipped her bag, there was movement from the bathroom.

Yu Qianlin’s face wasn’t even dry yet. She walked straight to her own bed, picked up her phone and cap, and turned to leave.

Liu Yuelan watched her swift actions with a cold face and an indifferent expression. She took out her laptop from her bag.

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Yu Qianlin: Is it possible that my unsteady steps when getting out of the car were just because I slept too long? Just a guess, not necessarily correct.