“Eh.” In the quiet clinic room, Xu Yueliang softly responded.
She lifted her gaze from the booklet, her voice soft and fluffy. “No particular plans~”
“Mm.” Lin Qimian met her eyes, merely smiled without a word, and went back to her work.
Xu Yueliang watched her for a moment, not daring to disturb, then lowered her head to the booklet again.
Before, she had only been flipping through it to pass the time, admiring the pretty pictures. But now, after Lin Qimian’s question, looking at it again felt entirely different.
Is this a route I like? Is this a group tour I’d consider? With such a packed itinerary, is four days and three nights really enough?
At last, her gaze lingered on one page, staring at it for a long time.
The starry sky over the no-man’s-land—beautiful.
Lin Qimian finished the treatment, removed her gloves, and went to wash her hands.
Zhenzhen went to explain the precautions to the patient. Lin Qimian dried her hands and waited until the patient had left the clinic room before strolling over to Xu Yueliang’s side.
Xu Yueliang was still absorbed in the booklet. Lin Qimian stood behind her, glanced at it, and said, “Want to go to Qinghai?”
“Ah…” Xu Yueliang looked up in a fluster, her ear tips turning red. “It’s too far…”
Lin Qimian: “Are you getting the full holiday off?”
Xu Yueliang lowered her eyes, her fingertips flipping aimlessly through the pages. “Probably… probably not. We… tend to have overtime…”
“Mm.” Lin Qimian said, “Same here.”
She bent down, one hand propped on the desk, the other flipping through the pages. “With shifts, we’re lucky to get three or four days out of seven. Things like this, or this—anything too far—is out of the question.”
Xu Yueliang was almost enveloped in her presence. When Lin Qimian spoke, her voice brushed right against her ear, close enough to tickle.
She shrank back a little, unable to focus on the pages. Her gaze kept drifting to Lin Qimian’s slender, beautiful fingers.
“But we can adjust which days we take off, swap with colleagues. It’s pretty flexible.” Lin Qimian’s fingertip paused, and she turned her head to look at her. “So if you want to go somewhere for National Day, we could go together.”
“Ah…” Xu Yueliang met her eyes in a panic, her mouth moving before she blurted, “Sure.”
Lin Qimian paused. “Hm?”
“It’s fine.” Xu Yueliang nodded to herself, her palm slapping down on the page. “It’s a rare holiday, after all. Of course it’d be fun to go together.”
Lin Qimian looked at her. “So, where do you want to go?”
Xu Yueliang stared at the page, blinking repeatedly. “Yeah… where to go…”
Lin Qimian straightened up, smiling.
She shifted around, pulled out a chair, and sat down beside Xu Yueliang. With a flick of her fingers, she pulled a map from the drawer. “Actually, if it’s stargazing you want, we don’t have to go that far. We could drive ourselves, starting from here…”
She pointed it out for Xu Yueliang, her fingertip tracing upward. “Pass through H Province, to Xibai Mountain. High elevation there, low light pollution—the stars are gorgeous.
“It’s not a super famous scenic spot, so it won’t be too crowded during National Day. There are a few guesthouses at the base; we could book ahead.
“If you’re not afraid of a little exertion, we could pack tents and hike up, watch the sunset, the stars, and the sunrise from the peak.
“Plenty of good food along the way, and self-driving gives us freedom to stop wherever…”
Like a thoughtful salesperson, Lin Qimian painted a picture of the perfect trip.
When she finished, she tossed the decision back to Xu Yueliang—but it was hard to refuse.
“It depends on your schedule,” she said. “Three days would be plenty of fun; four lets us add more activities.”
Xu Yueliang pressed her lips together, her fingers fidgeting on the page. She’d agreed so quickly before, but now she hesitated.
“What’s wrong?” Lin Qimian asked. “Anything inconvenient?”
Xu Yueliang looked at her with self-reproach, whispering, “Doctor Lin… I don’t know how to drive…”
Lin Qimian blinked, never having imagined that was her worry.
“No problem,” she said. “I can drive, and I have a car. The day I picked up your name tag from you, that was my own car.”
Xu Yueliang: “But driving alone would be so tiring…”
Lin Qimian: “It’s not a long drive, and we can stop anytime. Not tiring at all.”
But Xu Yueliang didn’t see it that way. “Doctor Lin works so hard already, and you still have shifts over the holiday. Then going on a trip and driving the whole way yourself—that’s too much.”
She sounded so aggrieved, as if she were the one suffering.
Lin Qimian watched her furrowed brow soften into a complete mess.
Unable to hold back, she reached out and gently patted the top of Xu Yueliang’s head. “Worried about me?”
Xu Yueliang’s face exploded into red, her eyes misting over. She twisted a little but didn’t pull away from Lin Qimian.
She didn’t answer Lin Qimian’s question, deftly changing the subject instead. “Doctor Lin, you’re going out to relax, so a self-driving trip definitely means finding a partner who knows how to drive…”
“Done.” Lin Qimian didn’t press her. She sat up straight and grabbed her phone to message Huang Xiaoyi. “Then how about we find another driving buddy?”
Xu Yueliang blinked, peering at her phone.
It took only a few seconds—almost the instant Lin Qimian sent the message—for Huang Xiaoyi’s reply to pop up.
It was an explosive response: a single word followed by a barrage of exclamation points.
【YES!!!!!!!!!!!】
Lin Qimian set her phone down. “All set. Xiao Yi’s joining us. She can drive, and she’s pretty good behind the wheel.”
Xu Yueliang’s eyes sparkled.
Lin Qimian went on, “Xiao Yi and I will take turns driving. You handle the foodie itinerary, okay?”
Thrilled to have a job assigned, Xu Yueliang nodded eagerly like an excited puppy. “Okay!!!”
Lin Qimian added, “I’ll take care of the schedule and lodging. Of course, pipe up anytime if you have new ideas.”
Xu Yueliang beamed. “Okay!”
Then she piped up with a reminder. “We split the costs! Gas and tolls included!”
Lin Qimian laughed. “Deal.”
And just like that, the plan was locked in—smoother than anyone could have hoped.
A new patient arrived in the clinic room. Zhenzhen returned from brewing tea, and Lin Qimian got back to work. Meanwhile, Xu Yueliang clutched her phone, fingers flying across the keyboard in a flurry of activity, every bit the picture of someone suddenly swamped with tasks.
Her lips curved upward, though, betraying her buoyant mood.
Even Lin Qimian’s routine workday felt a touch more engaging because of it.
You Weiwei finished up her dental filling and wandered over to join Lin Qimian and Xu Yueliang. Spotting the travel brochure on the desk, she flipped through it with a wistful sigh. “Ahh, everyone else’s holidays are our peak season…”
Xu Yueliang gave the back of her hand a gentle pat, cleared her throat, and put on a show of nonchalance. “We… get holidays too. Ours are just a bit shorter.”
You Weiwei glanced at Lin Qimian. “Right, we get all the statutory ones…”
Lin Qimian turned away, hiding a smile.
The two waited until Lin Qimian clocked out, then the three of them headed out for lunch together.
With their daily chats lately—and having just nailed down a shared trip—Xu Yueliang was visibly more outgoing and chatty than before. She piled food onto Lin Qimian’s plate, refilled her drink, and rhapsodized endlessly about all the must-try eats in S City.
They lingered over the meal, chatting long after the plates were cleared, before finally parting ways with real reluctance.
But no sooner had Lin Qimian returned to the clinic than Xu Yueliang’s message pinged in, asking if she was free that weekend. She still wanted to make good on that dinner invitation from last time.
Clearly not counting today’s lunch toward it.
Lin Qimian had no intention of passing up more time together, but their last hangout had thrown off Xu Yueliang’s stream schedule, irking her fans. With the National Day holiday coming up and another delay in the cards, she couldn’t risk disrupting her work again this time.
-[This weekend I’ve got a conference to attend. Won’t be in S City.]
-[Haven’t forgotten about that meal. We can grab it anytime during the week.]
Xu Yueliang fired back almost immediately, brimming with excitement: “Okay!”
You Weiwei watched her type it out, waiting until the grin stretched nearly to her ears before asking, “So what’s got you in such a good mood today?”
Xu Yueliang hugged her phone to her chest but didn’t hold back. “I asked Doctor Lin to dinner. She said she’s busy this weekend but I can pick any time during the week.”
You Weiwei nodded. “Sounds perfect. Won’t mess with your weekend stream.”
Xu Yueliang agreed. “Yeah!”
You Weiwei pressed on. “You two have been getting along great lately. At lunch, I could barely get a word in edgewise.”
Xu Yueliang squirmed in her seat, burrowing deeper. “Heehee, it’s going pretty well.”
You Weiwei said abruptly, “You really like Lin Qimian, huh.”
Xu Yueliang’s eyes went wide.
You Weiwei exaggeratedly widened her own. “You worship the ground she walks on. The way you look at her—eyes all sparkly like laser beams…”
“Nooo…” Xu Yueliang mumbled, her cheeks flushing predictably red.
You Weiwei dropped her hands and turned serious. “But I still have to give you a heads-up.”
Xu Yueliang tilted her head. “Huh?”
You Weiwei advised, “Friendships sometimes need the same honesty and equality as romance. Don’t go lowering yourself, slapping a hot cheek against a cold butt. You’ll just end up hurt.”
Xu Yueliang blurted, “Doctor Lin’s butt… Ack! Doctor Lin isn’t cold at all. She’s really nice to me.”
You Weiwei said, “That’s how it looks right now, but like you said, that’s only because she’s such a nice person…”
Xu Yueliang sat up straight and leaned closer to You Weiwei. She couldn’t help but gloat, “She invited me on a self-driving road trip over National Day.”
You Weiwei: “????!!”
Xu Yueliang: “You’ve definitely got to attend the Starlight Activity over National Day, so I didn’t invite you~”
You Weiwei was practically vibrating with excitement. “Thanks a lot for not inviting me! Yeah, I do have to go to the Starlight Activity! You know how important it is! So you’re skipping it just to go have fun with her????”
Xu Yueliang looked down and fiddled with her fingers. “The Dance District doesn’t get much exposure at Starlight anyway. It’s not like it’s a big loss if I skip it…”
You Weiwei grabbed her shoulders and started shaking her wildly. “Xu Yueliang, snap out of it! Snap out of it! Who told you the Dance District doesn’t get exposure anymore? You’re number one in the Dance District! Number one! The opening performance will have viewers from the whole platform tuning in just to see you!!!”
Xu Yueliang was shaken until she was trembling all over, her honey-tea-brown locks swaying like spring water rippling across a lake.
You Weiwei zeroed in on her hair. “Why did you dye your hair this color?
“I didn’t notice at first, but now it feels off.
“It’s not because of Lin Qimian again, is it? That shallow golden blonde from your girl group days is your signature look, comrade!!! That’s the hair color that made you go viral! Change it up like this, and tons of people won’t even recognize you!!!”
“No…” Xu Yueliang shrank back a little and mumbled softly, “I’d just had it for so long that I wanted a change… Bleaching your hair hurts… and it can even cause cancer!”
She delivered that last line with total conviction.
You Weiwei: “…”
You Weiwei: “Okay, I get it. It’s definitely because of Lin Qimian.”
You Weiwei: “I only knew that female streamers who start dating never end up well, but I didn’t realize reuniting with an old classmate could turn into a femme fatale situation too. Lin Qimian, you’re something else…”
You Weiwei unloaded a torrent of words, and Xu Yueliang’s mouth opened and closed several times as she tried to interject, but she never got a word in edgewise.
It wasn’t until You Weiwei had vented everything and the car pulled up to the apartment complex that Xu Yueliang paid the fare. She hurried after her and grabbed You Weiwei’s sleeve.
“Weiwei, hear me out.” She blurted it out in a rush, then faltered, unsure where to even begin.
She looked up. Two towering buildings rose high, their vibrant walls stabbing straight into the sky.
Xu Yueliang curved her lips into a smile that looked a bit forced. “Weiwei, I only moved into this complex after I started climbing the charts at Orange.
“The rent’s pretty steep, but the environment’s great. Still, I’ve never dared tell anyone I know where I live.
“People outside our world don’t get what we do. They just call these two buildings the ‘influencer mansion,’ with that tone of voice…
“The better I do in the scene, the more money I make, the more I feel like the outside world has cast me aside.
“But I can’t escape it, because there’s no other place where someone like me—with zero real work experience—could earn this kind of money…”
“Sometimes I think I’ll be trapped in it forever. Even when I get old, when this face falls apart and I can’t stream anymore…”
Xu Yueliang blinked, then suddenly broke into a grin. This time, the smile reached her eyes, lighting them up in that dazzling way everyone loved.
“Until I met Doctor Lin.
“Until I took time off for her, skipped streams for her.
“Skipped the Starlight Awards for her, just to travel together.
“Suddenly, it felt like there was something new in my life. Maybe it’ll never truly be mine, but I got close to it. I seized it without holding back.”
“It’s been six years,” Xu Yueliang said on a long exhale, smiling as she went on. “Six years of streaming. And finally, I have a vacation of my own.”
