Chapter 3

After the two bid farewell, they each got into their cars. Lin Yue let Xu Kun leave first, watching as his car drove away, rolling down the window and leaning out to look back—the black Mustang lay quietly in the dim light.

Chen Luchuan was originally half-listening, but at this moment, he paused and asked, "What is it, what happened?"

Lin Yue made an 'OK' gesture and then asked, 'Are you joining the group?'

More than ten years have passed, and now Ding Luxi has completely transformed. If they were to meet on the street, Chen Luchuan would definitely not recognize her: she has a slender figure, wears light makeup, and there is a subtle air of aloofness in her brows and eyes, yet it is not off-putting, perhaps because she is so young and beautiful—people are generally very forgiving towards all things beautiful.

Lin Yue unconsciously tightened the stack of documents in her hand, wanting to smile along, but her facial muscles did not obey her commands. She was hesitating whether to go up and say hello when she saw the person put down the phone, slowly turn their head, their gaze wandering for a moment before landing directly on her.

There are already many similar games on the market, and it is difficult to come up with anything new. Mobile games that are based on the original work can generally pass as long as the planning is not too outrageous. After Lin Yue completed the PPT presentation, several supervisors played a trial version on their phones, discussed it, provided some suggestions, and quickly approved it.

You have overestimated me

Seeing that Lin Yue and several team members were so exhausted that they could no longer maintain their smiles, Dan Yi Feng waved his hand generously and said: "The New Year is approaching, so let's officially start the volume expansion after the holiday. Lin Yue, you go back and draft a schedule first"

Lin Yue sighed and said, "Not yet, I still need to ask."

Feng Rong let out a sound of surprise, "No way, could the young girl from the Ding family have such high standards?"

As the dishes were just served, Chen Luchuan suddenly noticed a shadow flickering beside him. He immediately raised his eyes and saw a figure in light brown gracefully departing, a silhouette that looked somewhat familiar. After observing for a few seconds, Chen Luchuan withdrew his gaze, a name flashing through his mind, and couldn't help but curve his lips into a smile, thinking that after returning to the country, he had unexpectedly formed the strongest connection with this person

She does not think highly of me

Have you prepared your main program?

Chen Luchuan let out a laugh, neither affirming nor denying.

Upon hearing these words, Chen Luchuan had a vague thought flash through his mind; however, by this time, the car had already arrived at the entrance of the community, so he did not dwell on it any further

I have asked him, Wang Peiyuan is available, let him be the lead artist. I need to prepare for my wedding at the beginning of the year, there are a lot of things to take care of, I really don't have the energy to work overtime

I am not urging you, I just think it would be good to start looking around, to find a girlfriend and take your time... By the way, do you still remember the Lin family who lived above us when you were in elementary school?

Feng Rong looked at him and asked, "So do you have a plan in mind for when to buy a house and when to get married?"

However, Feng Rong had no intention of relaxing her efforts regarding Chen Luchuan's lifelong affairs. She had just undergone surgery to remove a fibroma and was temporarily unable to exert herself, thus she could only spend her days idly at home. Since she had nothing to do anyway, she began to inquire from various sources about which families still had unmarried daughters, hoping to identify a few potential future daughters-in-law.

As the meeting adjourned, Lin Yue nearly collided with Chai Wei, who was coming out of the pantry.

How will you go back

Under the orange-yellow light, Chen Luchuan sat with his back turned, leaving her with a cold and hard silhouette. Opposite him sat a young woman with long brown hair. She wore a bright orange cashmere dress, with a cream-colored cotton coat draped over the back of her chair, propping her chin as she flipped through the menu. Her slender eyebrows were slightly furrowed, and this expression could hardly be described as pleasant, yet it possessed a captivating brilliance—after all, it was due to her youth, which allowed for both joy and displeasure.

Lin Yue nodded, indicating his understanding

Who looks down on whom

Lin Yue came to her senses, "I drove here," she pointed to the left, "the car is parked over there

Do not doubt it, a child at three is seen as an adult at ten; this girl is certainly not as honest as she appears on the surface

Is he not here yet

Chen Luchuan bent down to change his slippers, "I don't like it."

Can men and women be the same? It is not considered unusual for a man to remain unmarried until the age of thirty-five, but for a woman..." Feng Rong paused, "I always thought that girl from the Lin family was quite peculiar. She appears delicate and gentle, yet when she looks at you, her eyes are darting around, and I can't tell what kind of mischievous thoughts are running through her mind.

The person was leaning against the partition of the workstation, wearing a smoke-gray knitted sweater that revealed the collar of a white shirt. Under the light, their nose was prominent and their features were deep-set, giving them an overall appearance as refined and pure as jade

Why not go ask that doctor with a degree from the United States

After two weeks of working overtime, the DEMO of "Repairing the Sky" has been completed, with the review scheduled for Thursday afternoon. Before any game project is officially launched, a DEMO demonstrating the core gameplay must first be created. The game production can only officially commence once the DEMO has passed the review.

After settling the bill, Lin Yue put on her coat and followed Xu Kun outside. As they passed by Chen Luchuan's table, she kept her gaze straight ahead, pretending not to see. The waiter opened the door for the two of them, and outside, the cold wind was biting. Lin Yue secretly let out a sigh of relief, only then realizing that her palms were drenched in sweat

Upon arriving at the parking lot, Xu Kun stopped in his tracks and looked at Lin Yue, saying, "Be careful on your way back. If you have time, feel free to contact me"

That person tucked the phone away, raised a hand and waved casually, laughingly saying: "Lin Yue!"

The matter is still in its infancy; you are thinking too far ahead. Without waiting for Feng Rong to continue her entanglement, Chen Luchuan quickly changed the subject

Feng Rong was leaning sideways on the sofa watching television. Upon hearing the sound of the door opening, she immediately sat up, her gaze eager: "How is it?"

The waiter finished pouring the tea and left, while Lin Yue forced himself to redirect his attention back to the conversation at hand. However, after just a few exchanges, his gaze unconsciously drifted away again

Chen Luchuan was quite troubled by this matter. After persisting for a few days, he could no longer bear it and quickly accelerated the process of finding a new house, moving out before starting his new job. After moving, Chen Luchuan took Feng Rong to the hospital for a follow-up examination. Feng Rong's wound had healed very well, and feeling happy, she called the family maid to prepare a meal at Chen Luchuan's new residence

With a smile, Chai Wei said, "I've arrived," while raising her chin slightly towards the front.

When Chen Luchuan saw Ding Luxi, he recalled that many years ago he had met her once at a dinner gathering of the Chen and Ding families. At that time, Ding Luxi was just a little girl in the fourth grade of elementary school, with two ponytails, chubby and fair-skinned. When she smiled, two dimples appeared, and within just three minutes of meeting, she was already calling him "Brother Chuan, Brother Chuan".

After Lin Yue and Xu Kun had another meal together, He Shan felt that there seemed to be potential in this matter and spent her days trying to pry some information from Lin Yue. However, Lin Yue remained noncommittal, simply responding with "let's wait and see" as a way to brush her off. He Shan was exasperated, saying, "Do you like him or not? Can you give me a clear answer? With Xu Kun's qualifications, what more could you possibly nitpick about?"

Aside from this minor episode, the meal was rather dull. After it concluded, Chen Luchuan drove Ding Luxi back home. By the time he arrived home, it was nearly 9 o'clock

Lin Yue's back stiffened

As long as it is livable

As for the remaining half of the meal, Lin Yue naturally ate with a distracted mind. The so-called conversation requires a back-and-forth exchange, a call and response; if one person is left to perform a monologue, the atmosphere inevitably becomes awkward. Although Xu Kun tried to find many topics to discuss, managing to keep the situation somewhat bearable, by the end, the little enthusiasm and patience that had initially existed gradually wore away.

Chen Luchuan said, "I am also twenty-eight years old and not married"

The so-called new residence refers to a rented two-bedroom apartment in a newly developed property that has only opened in recent years. However, the location is not ideal, and sales have been quite average. The apartment is far from the subway line and is a twenty-minute drive from the office. Feng Rong shook her head repeatedly as she looked around, saying, "How could one choose such a place? There isn't even a large supermarket nearby."

Xu Kun nodded, "I will also stop there, let's go together."

Xu Kun was somewhat surprised, paused for a few seconds, and took out his phone to exchange WeChat accounts with her

I do not appreciate your words; our family's circumstances are not lacking, in what way are we unable to match the Ding family?

Lin Yuexin knew that she was not being overly picky, yet she could not clearly articulate what was on her mind. Fortunately, the new project kept her so busy that she hardly had time to catch her breath, leaving her with no energy to worry about anything else

Lin Yue was taken aback and immediately followed her gaze.

"Lin Liming's daughter, who is the same age as you, is twenty-eight years old and still unmarried." The words clearly contained a hint of disdain

Chen Luchuan felt quite helpless, "Let's talk about it once the work stabilizes."

I earned the house myself, so you do not need to worry

Chai Wei immediately stepped aside, steadied herself, and asked with a smile, "How is it?"

I was just about to discuss this matter with you. Once your father returns from Beijing, we can discuss and consider buying you a house.

Chai Wei laughed softly in her ear, saying: "I really got engaged too early. Had I known that the company would bring in someone like this, I wouldn't have rushed."

Lin Yue naturally understood the underlying implication of Xu Kun's words, which suggested that he thought she was not interested in him. The several "warmers" stuck to her back were now fully effective, causing her body to feel a wave of heat, while her cheeks were frozen and stiff from the cold wind. Her thoughts were caught in a struggle between the cold and the heat, and in just a few seconds, several ideas flashed through her mind, but ultimately, reason prevailed. She thought that one should always leave a way out, so she smiled and asked, "Do you use WeChat? I caught a cold today and am feeling a bit low on energy. If you are free next week, I would like to invite you to dinner."

Lin Yue let out a long breath; this time, he truly did not have to work overtime anymore

Now, Ding Luxi no longer calls him "Chuan Ge"; she only addressed him as "Mr. Chen" in a lukewarm manner when they met, and thereafter she was reluctant to speak—this attitude clearly indicated that her presence at this meal was akin to being forced into a situation. Chen Luchuan, on the other hand, breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that this outcome was certainly the best. The young girl is only twenty-two years old, a post-90s generation, and he is six years her senior. This age difference is not exaggerated, but it is enough to account for two generational gaps.

Lin Yue felt guilty and主动要求买单 after finishing the meal. Xu Kun stopped her hand and politely said, "I will take care of it"