Chapter 162: Timely Rain’s Assistance (Transition Chapter)

Chapter 162: A Timely Assist (Transition Chapter)

"This... is it really that serious?!"

"Yeah, if it's not absolutely necessary, it's better not to choose electroshock therapy."

Whether Qin Zhizhou was exaggerating or not, Lin Huaiqing still dismissed the idea. Anyway, keeping the memories wasn't so bad—it just meant having one more beautiful memory to hold onto.

"Thank you, Zhizhou. Thank you for telling me all this!" When Lin Huaiqing smiled, his eyes curved into crescent moons, giving off this gentle but steady warmth.

Qin Zhizhou, sitting across from him, was stunned for a second. It took him a minute to snap out of it.

How could anyone look that good when they smiled?

After dinner, Qin Zhizhou walked Lin Huaiqing back to his apartment building. It was still early, and Lin Huaiqing felt a little awkward just heading straight home.

So he said, trying to be polite, "Since we're already at my place, if you're not in a rush, do you wanna come up for a bit?"

To his surprise, the other guy agreed without missing a beat. "Sure! I'd love to."

He lived in the old part of the city, in a building from over thirty years ago with no elevator. His apartment was on the sixth floor, so every trip home meant hiking up the stairs.

Lin Huaiqing followed behind Qin Zhizhou as they climbed. From his angle looking up, Qin Zhizhou's body was seriously impressive.

Broad shoulders, narrow waist, and smooth muscle lines down his legs—clearly built for explosive power. And to top it off, he was wearing a suit that showed off his figure. Who was he trying to seduce, seriously?

Even though Qin Zhizhou had a desk job, his stamina was way better than Lin Huaiqing's, who'd done physical labor before.

He climbed all six floors without even getting winded, like it was flat ground.

Lin Huaiqing was gasping for air as he pulled out his keys and unlocked the door, revealing his modest 60-square-meter place to Qin Zhizhou.

Qin Zhizhou wasn't in the same league as him. A low-level employee like Lin Huaiqing could make 600,000 per mission, but a manager like Qin Zhizhou probably pulled in tens of millions a year.

Lin Huaiqing had no clue how the Time-Space Bureau made money, but he was sure Qin Zhizhou was secretly loaded.

He probably looked down on this little rental.

"Make yourself at home, Zhizhou. Let me grab you some water."

"Don't worry about it. And don't treat me like a guest."

Lin Huaiqing chuckled at that, thinking:

If I don't treat you like a guest, am I supposed to treat you like you own the place?

Even so, Lin Huaiqing grabbed an unopened bottle of water from the fridge and handed it to him. He never boiled water—he mostly drank bottled water. He didn't even have real cups in the place.

"Thanks."

Qin Zhizhou didn't care. He twisted off the cap, took a classy sip, set the bottle down, and casually looked around.

"Is this your place?"

"Yeah! Housing in City A is way too expensive. Even this dump costs 3,500 a month!"

"It's small, but it's got a nice vibe. Must feel really safe and cozy living here."

"Only someone like you—a rich person used to big houses—would call a small place 'cozy'!" Lin Huaiqing teased.

"So, how old are you anyway?" Qin Zhizhou had read his file and knew everything about him, but Lin Huaiqing didn't even know how old he was.

"28."

"Then you're older than me. I should call you 'big bro'! Can I call you Brother Qin from now on?"

Qin Zhizhou paused, like something had crossed his mind. His face got a little red, and he pursed his lips before saying:

"Brother Qin's fine, but maybe not at work. In private, it's okay."

Lin Huaiqing was even more puzzled by what Qin Zhizhou was thinking.

If he thought "Brother Qin" sounded too intimate for work and might make colleagues suspicious, wouldn't calling him "Zhizhou" be even more intimate?

As luck would have it, the two of them chatted pretty easily, even without much to talk about.

Maybe because Lin Huaiqing had come to City A alone—no parents, no friends, and no one to talk to day to day.

Now that he'd finally found someone to talk to, he couldn't stop. They talked all the way until 10 p.m.

Lin Huaiqing instinctively glanced out the window, and Qin Zhizhou seemed to read his mind, getting up to leave.

"It's getting late. You should get some rest. I'll head out."

"Okay! Come by again sometime!"

No sooner had they spoken than lightning flashed across the sky, and within seconds, rain started pouring down.

Lin Huaiqing quickly shut the windows.

Qin Zhizhou had walked back with him from the restaurant, leaving his car parked nearby. With rain this heavy, even an umbrella wouldn't help.

"This kind of rain usually comes and goes fast. Why don't you wait for it to stop before you leave?"

Qin Zhizhou looked at the rain, and from an angle Lin Huaiqing couldn't see, the corner of his mouth curled up.

"Guess that's the only option."

An hour later...

The rain showed no signs of letting up—if anything, it had gotten worse. Strong gusts of wind howled, making the trees and bushes along the street rustle loudly.

"Ding-dong!" Both their phones received a text message simultaneously:

[Weather Bureau Typhoon Alert] Hello! Typhoon "Hedon" will hit our city at 10 p.m. on the 21st. Please plan your work and daily activities accordingly. If you have travel plans, adjust them and avoid going out during the typhoon. Stay safe!

Well, this is...

"Maybe you should just stay the night. This rain doesn't look like it's stopping anytime soon."

"Are you sure it's not too much trouble?" Qin Zhizhou was secretly thrilled.

"No, not at all! I live alone anyway—what trouble would it be?"

Lin Huaiqing made sure all the doors and windows were shut tight and thoughtfully heated up water for Qin Zhizhou to shower.

When Qin Zhizhou came out of the shower, he had nothing to wear, so he had to put on the new bathrobe Lin Huaiqing had bought.

"Sorry, my clothes are all a bit small for you. Just wear this for now."

Qin Zhizhou's discarded clothes were already stuffed in the washing machine. There was no way he could wear them now.

Thinking about it, it wasn't just the clothes—even figuring out where to sleep tonight was going to be a pain.

"You'll have to crash with me tonight. The study's piled with the landlord's junk, and I haven't had a chance to clean it up yet..."

The landlord had rented the place to him at a discount, but the catch was the study was crammed with the landlord's stuff, making it completely uninhabitable.

When he first rented it, they'd agreed he'd live alone and wouldn't need the study, so he took the discount.

"Crash with you? Alright." Qin Zhizhou hesitated a little, but only he knew how stoked he actually was.

Lin Huaiqing's bed was a standard 1.8-meter double. He was used to sleeping alone, and suddenly having someone next to him felt kinda weird.

Besides, they'd only known each other for a few days? And now they were sharing a bed—it was truly absurd.

Lin Huaiqing couldn't sleep in the middle of the night and felt an inexplicable urge to chat. And lucky for him, there was a warm body right next to him. Naturally, he couldn't pass up the opportunity.

"Qin Ge, have you ever completed missions in the virtual world?"