Chapter 54: A Fateful Turn

After delivering a few more orders, Mo Qiu sensed that the tension between her and Bai Chen remained unresolved.

Each time they arrived at a customer’s address, he would instruct Mo Qiu to wait in the vehicle while he took the delivery and hurried inside, only to emerge moments later.

Mo Qiu’s backside had remained glued to the scooter’s seat for over half an hour; Bai Chen wouldn’t initiate conversation unless she spoke first.

‘It feels as though I’ve become nothing more than an ornament for this scooter.’

By the time they reached the next delivery address, Bai Chen had already dashed off with the order before Mo Qiu could even utter a word.

Mo Qiu dismounted the scooter, leaned against a nearby wall, and fell into deep contemplation.

The setting sun, nearing its descent behind the mountains, elongated the girl’s shadow.

‘No, if things continue like this, they won’t just fail to improve; they might even spiral into something far worse.’

‘The fracturing of emotions often begins with a cold war, where both parties grow increasingly indifferent, widening the chasm between them. Before long, an intimate relationship can devolve into one of mere passing strangers.’

‘No, this absolutely cannot happen!’

Mo Qiu pondered her next move until Bai Chen’s figure reappeared, at which point she noticed the fine beads of sweat on his forehead.

The weather hadn’t yet cooled, and Bai Chen, having worked up such a sweat delivering food, must have been terribly hot.

“Let’s go, we have one last delivery,” Bai Chen uttered as he passed her.

“Wait.”

Mo Qiu called out, halting him, then spun around and ran in the opposite direction.

Just as Bai Chen’s brow furrowed in confusion, Mo Qiu returned, clutching a bottle of soda. Fresh from the freezer, the plastic bottle was still beaded with condensation.

“Bai Chen, you must be really hot.”

Mo Qiu offered him the soda.

“This is for you.”

Her words rang true; after a strenuous afternoon of deliveries, Bai Chen’s throat was parched. Since Mo Qiu was offering the drink, he accepted it without a second thought, only to pause, surprised, as he twisted open the cap.

‘The cap twisted open without much force?’

A sudden realization struck Bai Chen, and he cautiously inquired, “Mo Qiu, you haven’t drunk from this, have you?”

The girl was silent for a moment before parting her crimson lips to say, “No.”

‘That’s good.’ Bai Chen breathed a sigh of relief, then gulped down the soda in large mouthfuls.

As she watched his Adam’s apple bob, Mo Qiu’s dim eyes remained placid, though she subtly pursed her lips, a lingering taste of soda on her tongue.

‘Bai Chen is that particular about soda I might have drunk from?’

‘If I had told the truth, he probably wouldn’t have accepted it. Does he truly dislike me that much?’

After draining most of the bottle, Bai Chen let out a deep breath, the gloom on his face visibly dissipating.

‘It’s rare to receive something ‘normal’ from Mo Qiu.’

‘If Mo Qiu had drunk from it, Bai Chen would have been too embarrassed to take it. No matter how parched he was, he couldn’t take someone else’s drink.’

‘Should I thank her?’

Bai Chen glanced at Mo Qiu; her perpetually aloof expression made her incredibly difficult to approach. Compounding this, his earlier tone had been rather harsh, making it even harder for him to speak now.

‘Perhaps I should wait a bit; work is the priority.’

“Let’s go, the next one is our last job for today,” Bai Chen said, his tone noticeably lighter, as he swiftly mounted the scooter.

The final delivery was located in the old district of Fengling City, a somewhat distant journey. However, Bai Chen, drawing on his extensive experience as a delivery driver, had long since mapped out the city’s routes, knowing precisely which shortcuts would lead him swiftly to his destination.

No sooner had Bai Chen cut the engine upon reaching the customer’s address than Mo Qiu spoke.

“Bai Chen, may I come with you?”

“No need, this is the last one; just wait here,” Bai Chen replied, simultaneously removing his helmet. “I’ll take you home afterward.”

Bai Chen’s tone remained resolute, clearly unwilling to let her accompany him.

‘Could a single bottle of soda truly not sway him?’ Mo Qiu could only watch as he departed.

Unlike the towering skyscrapers of the city center, the old district’s buildings and roads exuded a profound sense of history.

Mo Qiu squatted beneath an ancient tree, observing the drifting leaves, and couldn’t help but murmur:

‘Is today already coming to an end?’

‘Initially, I only wanted to buy a set of clothes Bai Chen liked, to win his favor, but so much has happened since then that the direction of things is no longer within my control.’

‘I knew the plan wouldn’t be entirely smooth, but I never imagined there would be so many obstacles.’

‘Not only has there been no progress, but have things actually regressed?’

‘This won’t do. Even if progress isn’t swift, Mo Qiu cannot stand to see a month of her efforts wasted like this.’

‘I need to devise a more drastic method to make Bai Chen pay more attention to me.’

Mo Qiu stood up, rolled up her sleeve, revealing a fair, slender arm. Gazing at her delicate skin, she shook her head.

‘Any self-inflicted wounds would be too easily suspected; if Bai Chen discovered them, it would only complicate matters further.’

‘Mo Qiu needed a suitable proxy, someone to stand in her stead. Perhaps a robber or a hooligan. But with so few residents in this old district, where could she possibly find such a person?’

As Mo Qiu paced in a circle, she suddenly whipped her head around, looking elsewhere, her eyes widening slightly.

“You are…?”

****

To be frank, Bai Chen had always disliked delivering to the old district.

The residential buildings there rarely had elevators, meaning whenever a customer lived on a higher floor, he had to rely on his own two legs to climb all the way up.

This time was no exception; the customer resided on the eighth floor, and by the time Bai Chen stopped at the door, his legs felt like jelly.

After steadying his breathing, Bai Chen dialed the number.

“Hello, your delivery has arrived.”

Moments later, the rusty iron gate before him creaked open, revealing an elderly man with white hair.

“You’ve worked hard, young man,” the old man said, his kind eyes crinkling into a pleasant smile. “I’ve always wanted to try your cakes, but it’s too far for me to go.”

“No problem at all; it’s good that you’re supporting our business.”

Bai Chen returned the smile, and after exchanging a few pleasantries with the old man, he prepared to leave.

“Wait, young man,” the old man called out, stopping him. “You seem to have something on your mind.”

“Ah, do I?” Bai Chen quickly touched his face.

“Yes, your complexion is clearly not good.” The old man, with years of experience, surmised this instantly from Bai Chen’s somewhat lifeless eyes.

“Ahaha, you’ve caught me out.”

“It’s nothing. You’re still young, lad. Whatever you encounter, be bold and go for it.”

The old man patted his shoulder, his withered hand surprisingly strong.

“Life is still so long; don’t bottle everything up inside, or you’ll only hurt yourself.”

Bai Chen paused, startled. Why did those words sound so familiar?

The old man’s pat on his shoulder seemed to inject a peculiar strength into him, instantly dispelling the dark clouds within his heart.

‘I think I once said something similar to Mo Qiu; I never imagined that now…’

Suddenly, the image of the young girl flashed through Bai Chen’s mind. Indeed, many unfortunate things had befallen her today.

She remained beneath a shroud of dark clouds, drenched by the cold rain, her clothes clinging to her, her hair plastered to her face. No one reached out to her solitary figure, no one to lead her away from that storm-ridden place.

Bai Chen involuntarily closed his eyes, murmuring to himself, ‘What am I doing?’

‘After all this, why am I still hesitating? Why am I still avoiding her? Isn’t this entirely contrary to my initial intentions?’

A feeling of sudden clarity washed over him, immensely comforting. A bright smile bloomed on Bai Chen’s lips. “Thank you for your guidance, old sir.”

“Be careful on your way, young man.”

Bidding farewell to the old man, Bai Chen quickly descended the stairs, now filled with renewed vigor, completely oblivious to any physical fatigue.

‘Was it because the deliveries were finally done? No, he simply wanted to return to the young girl’s side as quickly as possible.’

Rushing out of the courtyard, Bai Chen didn’t find the person he wished to see by the scooter.

He looked around, but her figure was nowhere in sight.

Bai Chen approached with a grim expression, sniffing the air.

What he stepped on was the cat-ear headband Mo Qiu had worn all day; one of its ears was now crushed and damaged from a powerful impact.

Beside the damaged headband, Bai Chen spotted specks of glaring crimson.

‘Something has happened!’