Chapter 177 Seduction? The Door Wasn't Closed Closed

Qin Shu said, "If you're free tonight..."

She paused, as if hesitating.

"I'll buy you a drink."

"Just at the bar downstairs, the atmosphere is decent."

Lin Chen looked at her.

Under the lights, her eyes were bright; it was hard to tell if it was anticipation or nervousness.

"Alright," he said.

Qin Shu smiled, her eyes curving like crescents.

"See you tomorrow then," she said.

"See you tomorrow."

The next afternoon, Lin Chen took a stroll around the casino and followed the same routine, activating the Ten-Second Prediction function.

He walked away with over nine million more in hand.

In the evening, he took a shower, changed into a clean T-shirt, and went downstairs.

The bar was on the first floor of the hotel, and the decor was quite tasteful.

When he entered, Qin Shu was already there,

sitting in a booth by the window with a drink in front of her.

She had changed her clothes into a white shirt paired with black wide-leg pants, and her hair was tied up,

revealing her slender neck.

Seeing him come in, Qin Shu raised her hand and waved.

"You're here?"

"Yeah." Lin Chen sat down across from her.

"Have you been waiting long?"

"I just arrived."

Qin Shu pushed the drink menu toward him.

"See what you'd like to drink."

Lin Chen casually ordered a whiskey.

Lin Chen noticed that Qin Shu's drink was almost finished.

It was a light-colored cocktail with half a slice of lemon clinging to the rim.

To break the awkwardness,

Lin Chen took the initiative to start a conversation:

"Which routes do you usually fly?"

Qin Shu: "Star City, Taipei, Tokyo, Seoul—back and forth."

"Sometimes I fly long-haul to Los Angeles or Vancouver; those are a bit more tiring."

"Do you like this profession?"

She thought about it and didn't answer immediately.

"I can't really say if I like it or not."

She said,

"I'm just used to it."

"When I first graduated, I didn't know what to do. The airline happened to come to my school to recruit, so I went."

"I've been doing it for three years and haven't thought about changing."

Qin Shu said, "Sometimes after a flight, my whole body is tense, and I can only relax once I'm back at the hotel."

She paused and looked down at the drink in her glass.

"When I encounter difficult people on the plane..."

"I don't dare to cry, I don't dare to hide, and I don't dare to get angry."

"I can only keep smiling, smiling all the time."

"Sometimes my face gets stiff from smiling, but I have to keep going."

Lin Chen didn't speak.

"So that day on the plane, when you stood up..."

She looked up at him.

"I actually really wanted to cry."

Her eyes were a bit red, but she was still smiling.

"It wasn't the kind of crying from being sad."

She said, "It was... I don't know how to put it."

"I just suddenly felt that someone really would help me."

Lin Chen looked at her.

"There will be."

Lin Chen said, "It's not just me."

Qin Shu shook her head.

"No."

She said,

"It's you."

The two of them were silent for a while.

The music in the bar was very soft, an old English song with a woman singing in a low voice.

"Lin Chen."

She suddenly called his name.

"Yeah?"

"Will you still be here tomorrow?"

She then added:

"I'm leaving tomorrow afternoon."

Lin Chen said,

She nodded and didn't say anything more.

The two of them chatted for a while; though they drank slowly, they talked quite a bit.

She asked him about life in Star City and what he usually liked to do.

He asked her where she had flown and what interesting things she had encountered.

After finishing their drinks, they went upstairs together.

It was very quiet in the elevator. She stood beside him, carrying a faint scent of alcohol and perfume.

When they reached the 8th floor, the doors opened.

They walked out one after the other, reaching the doors of rooms 802 and 803.

She stood at her own door, holding her key card, but didn't open it immediately.

Lin Chen also stood at his door, looking at her.

"Lin Chen."

She suddenly turned around.

"Yeah?"

She walked over and stood before him, looking up at him.

The light in the hallway was dim, but her eyes were very bright.

She pulled a key card out of her pocket.

The room number printed on the card was 803.

"The one next door..." her voice was very soft,

"is mine."

Lin Chen looked at her.

There was a light in her eyes, a hint of intoxication, and something else.

She gave a small smile, her eyes curving.

Without looking back, her long hair brushed over her shoulder as she reached out and pushed open the door to 803.

Her figure flickered as she stepped inside.

The moment his fingertips touched his own doorknob, his heart inexplicably skipped a beat.

She had deliberately left her door open by a crack, not closing it fully. In her heart, she both hoped he would understand

and feared her intentions were too obvious; her cheeks still held the burning sensation from when he had supported her earlier.

The door was actually not closed; it was just left slightly ajar,

like a seductive gaze.

Lin Chen froze in the hallway, the cool sensation from supporting her still lingering on his fingertips,

his gaze locked tightly onto that half-open door.

The faint scent of gardenia drifted out from inside, mixed with soft background music, intermittently scratching at his nerves.

He was completely dazed, his brain feeling as if it had been filled with paste,

and he muttered to himself:

"This... what does this mean?"

Just now downstairs, she had clearly blushed and pointed at 803, saying 'that one is mine'—

her tone was so soft, and now she didn't close the door?

"Does this mean... I can go in?"

Lin Chen scratched his head, and the little voices in his heart immediately broke into an uproar.

One little voice shouted with hands on its hips:

"Nonsense!"

"It's definitely intentional!"

"Think about it, she's had some drinks, sees how handsome you are, and she just can't help herself!"

"She's too shy to say it outright, so she left the door open on purpose, just waiting for you to take the initiative!"

Another little voice immediately retorted, its tone timid:

"Don't overthink it!"

"You've only met two or three times, how could it happen so fast?"

"Maybe she just forgot to close the door; after all, her mind isn't clear after drinking."

"If you go in and she turns around and accuses you of harassment, won't you be finished?"

The two thoughts brawled in his head, making Lin Chen's temples throb.

His feet felt like they were made of lead, unable to move,

yet his eyes couldn't help but peer toward the crack in the door. His heart felt both itchy and panicked, filled with both anticipation and the fear of stepping on a landmine.

Before he could reach a conclusion, the sound of a shower suddenly came from the room,

the water hitting the tiles so clearly he could hear it.

Lin Chen's eyes instantly lit up, his throat moved,

and the hesitation in his heart was instantly suppressed by more than half:

"Holy... Is she taking a shower?"

He slapped his thigh and instantly 'figured it out':

"It's definitely on purpose!"

"The bathroom in this room is right by the entrance. How could she not have seen the door was open when she walked back and forth?"

"And my silhouette standing stupidly at the door—she must have seen it!"

The previous conflict vanished instantly. Lin Chen straightened his back, his confidence surging:

"What is there to be afraid of!"

"I'm someone who's been reborn; could I really stumble over such a small thing?"

"Using the liquid courage from just now, charge!"

As soon as the thought landed, he subconsciously took the first step,

his toes lightly touching the floor, afraid of making even the slightest sound.

With the first step taken, the second followed naturally.

As the third step landed, he was already standing at the door.

He glanced left and right at the empty hallway, then slid in sideways.

He slipped into the room soundlessly and closed the door behind him with a 'click,' locking it tight.