"Mu Yao... goodbye." The flames of the explosion consumed her, returning everything to darkness.
"No... that's not right. Mu Yao! Yaoyao!"
The woman on the bed snapped her eyes open in terror, her breath coming in ragged, violent gasps. She stared at the faded star decorations on the ceiling for a long time before finally raising her right hand to wipe the cold sweat from her forehead.
She lay there, reflecting on the dream—a dream so fantastical yet far too vivid—and eventually let out a bitter laugh. Perhaps it was time to see a psychologist again.
She picked up the alarm clock to check the time. Remembering it was the weekend, she was tempted to just stay in bed, but then the doorbell rang.
Que Tang frowned and climbed out of bed. After tidying herself up slightly, she hurried to open the door.
"Good morning. You haven't had breakfast yet, right? I made a bit too much, so I brought some over for you." The woman across from her waved the bag in her right hand.
"You..." Que Tang stared at her blankly.
"I'm your new neighbor from across the hall. My surname is Qi." Ms. Qi gave her a gentle smile. "Is it convenient for me to come in?"
Que Tang hurriedly stepped aside to let her in. It was only after the woman had entered that Que Tang realized how strange she was being. She had actually let a complete stranger into her home? She closed the door in silence. This Ms. Qi had already made herself at home, sitting at the long-unused dining table and laying out the food containers as if she were the owner of the house, gesturing for Que Tang to join her.
Que Tang nodded passively. She went to wash up and change before returning to take the chopsticks. Looking at the spread of dishes—which was as lavish as a full lunch—her chopsticks hovered in mid-air, unsure of where to start.
"Try this, the shrimp shumai. I kneaded the dough and let it ferment last night, then woke up early this morning to wrap them," Ms. Qi said solicitously, placing a dumpling into Que Tang's bowl.
"Ms. Qi... you really don't have to be so polite." Que Tang didn't know how to refuse and looked at her awkwardly.
"My name is Ruolan. 'Ruo' as in 'grass over right,' and 'Lan' as in 'turning the tide,'" Qi Ruolan said, her eyes sparkling with a smile as she gazed at her.
"I am Que Tang." She reached for a pen and paper to write it down for her. "Ms. Qi... I'm not the only resident on this floor. If you're making rounds, you might want to go early..." She tried to politely hint that it was time for her to leave.
"I've already visited the other residents, so don't worry about me. Hurry and eat while it's hot."
Que Tang blinked expressionlessly. She thought her tone hadn't carried any hint of concern... had it? Suddenly, she felt a warmth near her lips. Reflexively, she opened her mouth, and a shumai was popped inside. It was only after she started chewing that she realized she had been mindlessly fed. Her face flushed with embarrassment.
"Is it good?" Qi Ruolan watched her with a look of pure satisfaction.
"It's very good, but Ms. Qi..." Que Tang found this new neighbor incredibly strange. She was clearly a great beauty, yet her behavior was like that of a total eccentric. "Could you please not do that again? It's... quite embarrassing."
Qi Ruolan stared at her for a long moment, making Que Tang feel so unnerved she almost surrendered and told her she could keep feeding her if she wanted. Then, Qi Ruolan spoke slowly: "You... don't remember?"
Que Tang blinked, her confusion plain to see.
"Two months ago, you saved me. In the alley near Chonghua Girls' High School." Seeing that Que Tang still looked puzzled, Qi Ruolan let out a helpless sigh. "That day, I had just finished discussing a case with a client and accidentally drank too much. I didn't realize the other party had intentionally plied me with alcohol, intending to... anyway, if it weren't for you, I wouldn't be standing here now."
"I think... I remember something like that." Only a blurry memory remained in Que Tang's mind. "I'm just glad you're okay."
"I wanted to thank you then, but you left so quickly after giving your statement. The police wouldn't release your information because of privacy concerns. I thought I'd never have the chance to thank you, but I never expected we'd be fated to meet here." Qi Ruolan's eyes were filled with obvious joy.
"It was... nothing. I just hate that kind of thing." Que Tang's heart twinged. She lowered her head and began to bolt down the food in her bowl. After eating a few bites to show her appreciation, she began packing up the containers. "Thank you for breakfast today. It was nice meeting you."
Qi Ruolan understood that this was the other woman's limit. She nodded with a smile and didn't linger. Picking up her containers, she returned to her own home.
After closing the door, Que Tang leaned against it, the long dream surfacing in her mind once more. For a moment, she was almost brainwashed by the thought that "Mu Yao is still alive," but... Mu Yao was long dead. She had watched her be buried with her own eyes. How could she possibly be alive?
Que Tang couldn't help but let out a bitter smile, thinking she must be going mad.
When she went to work on Monday, the sales assistant from the next desk nudged her and whispered, "Que Tang, I heard the new CEO transferred from headquarters is arriving today. Apparently, she's a real beauty."
"Is that so? Another 'man-killer' to compete with you for attention," Que Tang replied indifferently.
The sales assistant curled her lip, wondering why she bothered talking to Que Tang. Only a cheerful girl like herself would be willing to spread joy to someone so stoic and impenetrable. However, her gossiping spirit was dampened, so she changed the subject. "I heard we're doing a play for the annual gala. Didn't you use to work in theater? Why don't you show your face on stage?"
"I quit because I was a bad actor. Are you trying to rub salt in my wounds?" Que Tang stared at her screen, checking data with a blank expression.
The sales assistant's smile froze. Fearing she would only make things worse, she decided to stop talking.
Que Tang quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
At noon, she followed her usual routine, taking her wallet to eat alone at a small restaurant outside. She knew this wasn't good—always living in her own world, not socializing with others, even her parents she hadn't seen in a long time.
But she truly couldn't bring herself to interact with anyone. Ever since Mu Yao died, she had been almost unable to communicate with others. She had even been forced to leave the theater troupe she loved because she couldn't express a character's emotions anymore.
Mu Yao's death had cast a massive shadow over her. Even though Mu Yao's parents had told her personally that it wasn't her fault, she couldn't let it go.
Because if she hadn't insisted on going to the theater troupe that day instead of picking up Mu Yao, Mu Yao wouldn't have been attacked by thugs after school and... died... like that.
"Is this seat taken?" a familiar voice asked in front of her.
Without looking up, Que Tang answered that it wasn't.
The other person let out a helpless chuckle. "Is this how you always eat? Just burying your head in your food alone?"
Que Tang paused and looked up, only to find her new neighbor from across the hall. "Ms... Qi."
"At least you didn't forget this time." Qi Ruolan nodded. She ordered two dishes from the waiting server, then turned back to pour a glass of water for Que Tang. "Do you come here for lunch every day?"
"Yes," Que Tang answered briefly. Feeling she was being too stiff, she added a few more words. "It's quite quiet here, and the prices are reasonable."
"What a coincidence. My company is nearby too. Can I come here to find you for lunch from now on?" Although Que Tang could tell it was more of a statement than a question, Qi Ruolan's gentle tone prevented it from feeling overbearing.
And so... she inexplicably nodded in agreement. Que Tang felt strange again; it seemed that whenever she encountered this woman, she would unconsciously agree to things.
"Thank you." Qi Ruolan smiled happily. "I've just started working around here and I'm not familiar with the area. It'll be great to have you around."
Que Tang nodded, thinking the other woman was just being polite. After finishing their meal, they walked out together, following the same path into the same building and up to the same floor.
As they stepped out of the elevator, Que Tang was still thinking about what a coincidence it was—living across from each other and working in the same vicinity—when she heard someone shout, "Good afternoon, President!"
She froze. Her department manager, who was usually an expert at enslaving his subordinates, was now looking behind her with a fawning, sycophantic smile. And behind her, there was only one person...
"Mm." Qi Ruolan's demeanor was different from the gentleness she showed Que Tang; she gave him a cold glance and ignored him. Just as she was about to call out to Que Tang, she saw the other woman bolt, walking away with large strides. She immediately understood that Que Tang didn't want to have any contact with her at the office. Qi Ruolan pulled back her smile and returned to her own office.
She knew what Que Tang was afraid of and what she was wary of, but now that the woman was right in front of her, she wasn't in a hurry. Besides, there was something more important to deal with: getting rid of *that* man.
Back at her desk, Que Tang's heart was still pounding. She hadn't expected her new neighbor to be the company's new CEO. She immediately resolved not to have any more contact with her.
"Que Tang, you actually rode the elevator with the new President! She's so beautiful, I'm so jealous." The sales assistant next to her had quickly received the latest gossip and was looking at her with envy.
"...She is beautiful, but there's nothing to be jealous of. You'll run into her if you take the elevator more often. Oh, by the way, the President seems to like that small restaurant in the next alley. If you go there tomorrow at noon, you might run into her." Que Tang sold out the information to her colleague without hesitation.
"Really? Then I'm eating there tomorrow!" The sales assistant joyfully decided to have a close encounter with the beautiful CEO. As a Yuri fan, she even began to fantasize about a "Domineering CEO Falls for Me" plot.
Even with Que Tang's poker face, she couldn't help but sigh as she slapped a tissue onto the desk next to the assistant. "You're drooling. Wipe it off." Seeing the assistant frantically wipe away non-existent drool, Que Tang felt a tiny bit better.
