Chapter 9: The Second Encounter

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Internet café.
Faced with a reasonable request from a stranger, especially a beautiful woman, Han Ling naturally couldn’t pretend not to hear. He turned to look at the webpage she was browsing and saw it was a health professional job site.
This girl was a doctor.
“I want to register for the professional promotion exam, but I can’t get in,” the girl said.
Hearing this, Han Ling was somewhat surprised.
Impressive. Judging by her age, not much different from his own, she already qualified to take the professional promotion exam?
Chief physician was out of the question; it must be for associate chief physician.
Associate chief physician was also quite an achievement.
A thought crossed his mind, and Han Ling leaned closer to the girl’s side, operating the mouse to check the situation, occasionally chatting with her. Soon, he pinpointed the issue.
The captcha code was wrong.
The webpage’s captcha often used the confusingly similar letters “O” and “I” alongside the digits 0 and 1, causing repeated login failures.
With Han Ling’s intervention, the girl finally logged into the site successfully.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Upon entering the site, Han Ling casually glanced at the girl’s name: Xu Qinghe.
He was about to leave but didn’t move, continuing to pretend to browse the webpage while observing the girl beside him. Finding she had indeed registered successfully and hadn’t lied, he finally logged off and stood up.
As Han Ling prepared to leave, a blond youth to his right cast a disdainful look—as if thinking, such a golden opportunity might only come once in a lifetime, yet no phone number? At least get a QQ number!
You’re gay, aren’t you!
Other men were also surprised that Han Ling took no action—maybe… he already had a girlfriend? That loyal?
But what no one expected was that after seeing Han Ling leave, Xu Qinghe took the initiative and said, “Thanks for your help. It’s already noon; let me treat you to a meal?”
The blond youth was speechless.
Not the only one.
If injuring someone wasn’t illegal, they all wanted to throw Han Ling out of the internet café window right then and there to soothe their jealous hearts.
Han Ling paused, met the girl’s gaze, smiled, and said, “It was nothing, no need.”
Everyone: “????”
Solid proof—definitely gay.
Han Ling said no more and left, disappearing at the café entrance, leaving everyone sitting at their computers in disarray, including Xu Qinghe.
At that moment, Xu Qinghe looked in the direction Han Ling had gone, a hint of surprise flickering deep in her eyes. She seemed to have rarely, if ever, been ignored by a man, and stood there stunned for a long while.
“Um… miss, how about I treat you to a meal? There’s a new hotpot restaurant nearby, the taste is good.”
The first to react was the blond youth, thinking his chance had come. He left his seat and approached Xu Qinghe to invite her.
Xu Qinghe looked at him, their eyes met.
She said nothing, just quietly stared with a cool expression and indifferent gaze, making the blond youth feel deeply uncomfortable and ashamed.
Ten long seconds passed; the youth awkwardly turned away before the girl could refuse.

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Seeing the first brave one retreat, others gave up their thoughts, occasionally stealing glances for pleasure.
At the internet café entrance.
Han Ling got on his bike, ready to leave, and glanced at a gem-blue BMW X5 parked nearby. Through the windshield, he noticed feminine decorations inside.
It should be a woman’s car.
Han Ling rode away and, at the intersection, looked back to see Xu Qinghe exit the internet café and get into that BMW.
Nowadays, owning a BMW X5 meant having at least a million yuan in assets; surprisingly, this beautiful doctor was that well-off—her family must be quite wealthy.
Driving a million-yuan car yet coming to a rundown old district’s internet café—was that reasonable?
Han Ling thought it was quite unreasonable.
Of course, if he asked, she would surely have a reasonable explanation, but Han Ling wouldn’t ask; better to keep his distance and stay alert.
Having died in a past life, he now harbored a wary aversion to pretty girls, especially those who appeared under unnatural circumstances.
One must have self-awareness—don’t believe in good luck with romance, or when fortune turns to misfortune, regret will come too late.
A few days later, the job entry notice arrived: next Monday.
Today was Friday.
Han Ling received a call from Tong Feng, who said drinking would be strictly limited after starting the job, so it was best to enjoy a good drink this last weekend.
Han Ling gladly accepted the invitation, accompanied by classmates, reminiscing about their police academy days and looking forward to their future careers.
Everyone was impressed by Han Ling’s performance at the film studio, asking about details of the drills and what he had been thinking at the time.
Also, the deputy captain of the criminal investigation team, Wu Bin, asked whether Han Ling had planned to flee from the start—had he not seriously arranged the crime scene?
If he intended to run from the beginning, it meant he was deliberately toying with Zhang Yunhang and the others.
In response, Han Ling admitted that he had played a conspicuous role at the film studio but generally preferred to keep a low profile. He gave casual answers to avoid causing Zhang Yunhang’s group any displeasure.
The school beauty Lin Rong’s questions were unavoidable; Han Ling didn’t want to discuss and just brushed them off.
…
Saturday.
Han Ling went to the police academy to complete some paperwork. When leaving the office, he unexpectedly ran into an acquaintance, slowing his pace.
Lin Rong.
Throughout four years at the academy, Lin Rong’s status as school beauty was unchallenged, a testament to her high attractiveness. But compared to the female doctor he met at the internet café, Han Ling thought Lin Rong was slightly less striking.
Today, Lin Rong wore a white dress with a delicate square neckline that revealed slender collarbones. Due to her profession, her hair was tied up, highlighting her spirited aura.
Her figure wasn’t voluptuous but perfectly proportioned, with smooth lines and a slim waist. She was walking toward Han Ling on fair, shapely legs, accompanied by a female friend.
The friend was also good-looking, but standing next to the school beauty, the contrast was obvious.
Lin Rong had long noticed Han Ling and knew about his victory representing the blue team in the police drills. She now regretted the teasing promise she had made then.
Jokes are just jokes, but they can be awkward.
Han Ling was someone she never seriously considered—strictly speaking, she hadn’t considered anyone.
For Han Ling, she thought his only merit was persistence, more so than other suitors, and that was all.
Persistence could only win a faint touch of sympathy, not affection.

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As they drew closer, Lin Rong guessed Han Ling would surely ask about the promise made at the film studio and expect her to fulfill it. She had prepared her excuse.
“It was just a joke, no need to take it seriously.”
“Han...”
Lin Rong composed herself and was about to greet him, but saw Han Ling only briefly slow his step upon seeing her, then resumed his pace without stopping.
Their figures crossed paths; Han Ling smiled and nodded to her—a polite acknowledgment of a familiar schoolmate.
Lin Rong was stunned, looked back, but Han Ling had already disappeared around the hallway corner.
Her friend was also stunned and then puzzled: “Han Ling… did he take something wrong today? He used to want to talk with you for ages.”
Lin Rong repressed the faint smile on her lips, a flicker of confusion and shock in her eyes. Han Ling’s sudden aloofness made her feel uncomfortable.
After regaining composure, Lin Rong didn’t overthink it. He was destined to be a passing figure in her life; she just wondered why Han Ling’s attitude suddenly changed. She hadn’t done anything recently to upset him.
She hadn’t even explained that promise yet; playing hard to get would be too childish.
“Let’s go,” Lin Rong withdrew her gaze.
…
Sunday.
The next day was the first day on the job. Han Ling prepared everything he needed in advance and rode his bike to a supermarket to buy daily necessities.
There was no large mall near his rented apartment, so Han Ling went to a small department store about a five-minute ride away, passing three traffic lights.
The first two lights were green with no issues. At the third intersection, the light was red. Han Ling braked, putting one foot down, waiting for the green.
The intersection was small, traffic light, and a few non-motorized vehicles ran the red light after ensuring it was safe, leaving law-abiding citizens behind.
The red light counted down; soon the yellow flashed, then green replaced it.
Han Ling momentarily zoned out. Several electric bikes sped past him before he snapped back and pedaled forward.
At that moment, a vehicle approached from the left, turning right. Sensing danger, Han Ling turned sharply. The distance was too close; the two collided in the next instant.
Fortunately, both were moving slowly, only a light scrape; no one was hurt.
Nearby pedestrians glanced over but kept walking. Minor accidents had become common with the rise of private cars.
Han Ling backed his bike a little and felt the gem-blue SUV looked familiar—he’d seen that car at the internet café a few days ago.
Before he could check the license plate, the driver got out, walked around the front, and came to the accident site. Without inspecting the car, the driver immediately apologized.
“Sorry, sorry, I wasn’t paying attention... Hey? It’s you?” The girl’s eyes brightened after a moment’s surprise.
With the driver appearing, pedestrians slowed their pace; some who had crossed halfway backtracked.
A minor accident wouldn’t attract them, but a beautiful woman would, especially one with such stunning looks and figure.
Luxury car plus beauty—rare to see.
Seeing Xu Qinghe again, Han Ling was silent for a moment, then rode away, leaving behind a single sentence: “It’s okay, be more careful next time.”
His decisiveness left Xu Qinghe standing there in confusion, having prepared many opening lines.
The onlookers were also surprised at how quickly the young man left. Never mind that the BMW owner could claim compensation since it was her fault, with such looks and figure, wouldn’t he have some interest? Even a few words could be savored for days.