Chapter 28 The Distance Between Them

Chapter 28 The Distance Between Them

Ling Jue had been drinking more frequently lately, a change Qin Shuyi was quick to notice.

But whenever she asked, he would only say it was for work.

So Qin Shuyi stopped asking.

Respecting each other's boundaries was a basic rule between them.

After that night, both of them tacitly avoided restocking the drawer with those supplies.

Naturally, they also refrained from any further intimate exchanges.

Apart from his unusually high body temperature when he would slip into bed to hold her after she fell asleep each night, Ling Jue seemed to have lost all interest in that matter.

Without the nightly exhausting distractions, Qin Shuyi enjoyed some of the best sleep she’d had in a while.

However, these past few days at work, she couldn’t escape the relentless questioning from her colleagues.

Because of that bet, nearly everyone had lost miserably—except for Qin Shuyi, the only winner.

Upon learning that the handsome man was actually her mysterious boyfriend, they all accused her of being secretive and holding out on them.

Some even panicked, hugging her and pretending to cry, “Darling, you won’t suddenly quit to enjoy a life of luxury, will you?”

After all, it seemed unlikely that any rich wife would spend her days working with corpses.

The others looked over as well.

If Qin Shuyi really did marry into a wealthy family, that could totally happen.

It wasn’t that they didn’t want her to live a life of luxury, but losing such a beautiful, gentle, and highly skilled colleague was something they'd really miss.

Qin Shuyi shook her head helplessly, “Don’t worry, we’re not at that stage yet.”

Nor would she give up her job.

Her initial motivation to become an embalmer stemmed from her parents.

Qin Yuan, a peacekeeping police officer, and Zhou Yunhe, a Doctors Without Borders physician, both worked long-term in high-risk environments.

Once, as their daughter, Qin Shuyi got the chance to visit them abroad. Traveling with her was the mother of another female Doctors Without Borders doctor.

At the time, everyone believed their post was relatively safe. Qin Yuan and Zhou Yunhe hadn’t been home in a long while, and unable to resist their daughter’s wish to see their work environment, they reluctantly agreed.

No one expected that war would break out in a place that had always been peaceful.

Sudden explosions, piercing cries, shouts to retreat… a chaos of terrifying noise. In an instant, the beautiful world turned into ruins.

Pulled along by her parents, she ran through dust-filled streets and felt as if she were in hell.

Corpses, blood, and the wails of children were all she could see.

Her final memory of that chaotic journey was with planes bombing overhead: the elderly mother who had traveled with her, weeping as she searched for her daughter’s body.

She could no longer recognize her daughter, who was now unrecognizable.

Because of that incident, Qin Shuyi was never allowed to go there again.

But Qin Yuan and Zhou Yunhe started coming home to see her more often.

For a long time afterward, she often dreamed of that cheerful, straightforward female doctor with her bright smile.

But in the next moment, she would always transform into an anonymous corpse in the war.

Later, Qin Shuyi shifted from forensic medicine to become an embalmer skilled in restorative art.

There will always be people guarding the front lines. She had seen the smiles—bright and genuine—on the faces of the old and young because of their efforts.

Her parents had their own ideals and aspirations. She was proud of them and didn’t want them to halt their steps just because they had brought her into this world.

But the young Qin Shuyi also feared that one day, she might not even be able to identify the bodies of the two people closest to her in the world.

She had seen those mutilated bodies left trampled by the roadside. She believed that death should also be clean, dignified, and honorable—something that brings comfort and allows the living to reminisce.

Qin Yuan and Zhou Yunhe supported all of Qin Shuyi’s choices.

Every job has its own meaning. Moreover, they didn’t need their daughter to achieve conventional success or praise. Even if she accomplished nothing in her lifetime, they would happily provide for her.

Zhou Tinglan initially didn’t support the idea of such a pretty young girl doing this kind of work. She was angry that her sister and brother-in-law had led their niece astray.

But after hearing Qin Shuyi’s perspective, she had no choice but to relent.

Life is long. Qin Shuyi might regret it later, change her mind, or embark on a new career path. But at least until her parents finished their work and returned to settle in China, she would remain committed to this job.

She and Ling Jue were indeed two completely different people.

Qin Shuyi was obedient and gentle, yet her soul had always been free-spirited. Ling Jue was rebellious and unrestrained, yet he carried more societal expectations on his shoulders.

“Hey, Shuyi, isn’t that your boyfriend?”

To wrap up that playful bet, several colleagues decided to treat Qin Shuyi to an expensive dinner tonight.

Considering Ling Jue’s early departures and late returns these past few days, and that he likely wouldn’t be home for dinner tonight, Qin Shuyi agreed. However, since she had pulled a fast one on them earlier, she insisted on paying herself.

She hadn’t expected to run into Ling Jue and Tao Wangxi here.

When her colleague pointed toward the two figures being escorted by staff toward the elevator leading to the private rooms upstairs, Qin Shuyi looked up and met Ling Jue’s gaze as he turned at the sound.

On one side were Qin Shuyi and her colleagues, lively and noisy in the main hall. On the other were Ling Jue and Tao Wangxi, quiet and seemingly well-matched inside the elevator. The two sides faced each other across the distance, as if separated by an unbridgeable chasm.

Her colleague, who remembered the strikingly handsome Ling Jue vividly, blurted out upon seeing him, never expecting to recognize him in such an awkward situation.

The woman beside him looked every bit the dignified daughter of a wealthy family.

Was he here having dinner with her? Did Qin Shuyi know about it?

The colleague anxiously glanced at Qin Shuyi.

Inside the elevator, Ling Jue shifted his feet, but before he could speak, Tao Wangxi, who had pressed the floor button, closed the doors.

She had been speaking with the restaurant manager and hadn’t heard anyone call Qin Shuyi’s name. Now, she looked at Ling Jue in confusion, “Master Jue, what’s wrong?”

As the elevator doors slowly closed, Ling Jue in the end did not step out, and Qin Shuyi remained seated without rising.

In their separate spaces, both lowered their eyes, their expressions darkened.

Tao Wangxi didn't get an answer and didn't press further.

Watching the changing floor numbers on the display, she told herself not to rush—what Ling Jue needed wasn't a lover, but a companion, and she would be his final choice.

In the main hall, however, the atmosphere held a different kind of tension.

"Shuyi, are you going to follow them and ask?"

"Maybe he just didn't see you earlier."

"Having dinner together doesn't necessarily mean anything. It could be business or there might be other reasons. Just talk it out later to avoid misunderstandings."

No one really understood what was going on, but any further explanations felt forced. There was a vague sense that the ship they'd just boarded had already sunk.

Should she follow?

Qin Shuyi didn't know if such an action would be meaningful, or even appropriate.

Ling Jue was just playing around with her, while Tao Wangxi was the one he treated seriously and stood beside.

In the end, she had no hold over Ling Jue.

Her willfulness, her taken-for-granted demands on a lover—all relied solely on his willingness to indulge her and play along.

Just like his recent hot-and-cold, push-and-pull behavior. When he didn't offer explanations, she was left on the outside.

In the end, she just picked up her chopsticks. "It's fine, let's eat first."

Upstairs in the private room, the birthday party let out teasing whoops at the sight of the man and woman arriving together.

Amid the noisy clamor, Ling Jue put his hand in his pocket, touching the phone that had remained silent all along.

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