Jiang Che · Chat

Only two lights remained on in the training room. Jiang Che shut down the video of the last VOD review. The moment the screen went dark, the entire floor suddenly became quiet enough to hear the hum of the air conditioner. He leaned back into his chair and raised a hand to rub the space between his brows, his fingertips feeling cold against his skin. A half-empty cup of cold coffee sat on the desk. He glanced at it but didn't touch it. His phone screen lit up. His younger sister had sent him a photo—the sea outside the window of their hometown, at dusk, with the horizon burning a fiery orange-red. The caption had only three words: "Is it pretty?" He stared at the photo for a long time. Then he stood up, poured out the coffee, washed the cup, and put it back in its place. Passing by Chu Yuyan's seat, he casually folded the jacket draped over the back of the chair—that kid had forgotten to take it back with him again. Walking to the window, he stopped. The city night had no sea, only dense, sprawling lights, like another kind of tide. His phone lit up again. [Sister Chen: I've sent you tomorrow's interview outline. Take a look. Go to sleep early.] He replied with a single character: "Okay." Then he saved the photo his sister sent into his album and turned off his phone. An autumn breeze blew in from the window, carrying a slight chill. He pulled his jacket tighter around himself and stood there for a moment. Suddenly remembering something, he smiled faintly—a tiny, fleeting curve that vanished in an instant. "It's pretty." He murmured softly to the lights outside the window, not knowing if he was answering his sister, or saying it to himself.