Chapter 4

Chapter 4

On a clear Saturday, Qin Song and Hu Heng took the high-speed rail to City B for a business trip to discuss a project.

Looking back many years later, Qin Song would realize that if he hadn’t stepped onto that train, his life wouldn’t have been turned upside down.

Unfortunately, no one can predict the future. That year, Qin Song was twenty-eight years old.

Full of energy and drive, he boarded the train with Hu Heng.

Qin Song had chosen business class seats. He preferred a relatively quiet environment. As soon as he got on, he drifted off to sleep-a habit since childhood, where the motion of cars or boats would always lull him into a heavy drowse.

He wasn’t sure how many stops had passed, but the train had already traveled from the north into the south. Qin Song woke up for no apparent reason. He stared blankly for three seconds before realizing he had been awakened by the rhythmic click-clack of high heels.

A girl in high heels walked slowly past him from behind and sat down diagonally in front of him, bringing a waft of perfume with her. He couldn’t tell if it was a necklace or a bracelet, but as she passed, Qin Song heard a faint tinkling sound.

Rubbing his bleary eyes, his mind was filled with the image of the legs that had just walked by.

*Southern girls are so pale,* he muttered to himself. *So fair and delicate.*

Since he was already awake and had nothing to do, he found that from his angle, he could just see half of the girl’s shoulder and a portion of her hair.

After the Southern Girl sat down, she pulled out a makeup bag and took out various bottles and jars that Qin Song didn’t recognize. She began dabbing and smearing things onto her face.

He Qian never used such things, so Qin Song had rarely seen a woman apply makeup. He was quite curious about the process, so he began to peek out of curiosity.

The Southern Girl first applied various creams, then used a sponge to pat her face, then took out some brushes to draw and paint, and finally held up a small mirror to examine her face from different angles.

As she turned the mirror, it reflected Qin Song’s curious gaze.

The Southern Girl suddenly turned her head and looked straight at him.

Qin Song’s heart tightened, and he quickly closed his eyes to pretend he was asleep.

After two seconds, he guiltily opened his eyes again, only to meet the Southern Girl’s gaze once more.

Qin Song stared back at her awkwardly for a couple of seconds. Feeling like a thief caught in the act, he was suddenly at a loss, his whole body stiff with discomfort.

To his surprise, the Southern Girl suddenly burst out laughing, her eyes fixed on him as she giggled.

Qin Song scratched his head and started laughing too.

The Southern Girl withdrew her gaze and went back to scrutinizing her face.

Qin Song felt as if a tiny hand had lightly tickled his heart. Her eyes were so large, her hair so silky, and when she smiled, she revealed two little canines. She was breathtakingly beautiful. However, it looked like she had applied too much blush; her cheeks were as red as a monkey’s bottom.

Qin Song glanced sideways at Hu Heng. Hu Heng was sleeping like a pig, head tilted back and mouth wide open. He had completely missed the interesting scene that had just unfolded.

Qin Song stole another couple of glances toward the Southern Girl, his heart beginning to thumping wildly.

Two stops later, the Southern Girl began packing up the bottles and jars on her tray table-she was likely approaching her destination.

Qin Song couldn’t sit still. He shifted his legs slightly and glanced at Hu Heng again. The man was still asleep, his head tilted in a different direction, but his mouth was still wide open.

Qin Song rolled his eyes.

The Southern Girl stood up to leave, clutching her bag. Qin Song noticed two red marks on her snowy-white thighs from sitting for so long.

As she passed him, Qin Song looked up abruptly. Just as he was about to speak, the Southern Girl leaned down and pressed something into his hand. Then, with a sway of her hips, she walked toward the exit.

Qin Song looked down at his palm. It was a folded paper napkin. His hand trembled, and the napkin fell to his feet. He quickly scooped it up and unfolded it with fumbling fingers. Inside was a phone number written in eyeliner, followed by a crooked heart drawn in lipstick.

Qin Song practically bounced out of his seat with excitement. He reached out and gave Hu Heng a hard smack. Hu Heng let out a snore that sounded like a pig’s grunt, forced his eyes open, and shouted:

“Are we at the station?”