Lu Linzhao 「Hellish Start」 · Conversa

Lu Linzhao and Lu Chengye were scheduled for a week-long business trip but returned early. When they pushed open the door, they froze at the sight of the empty foyer. The pair of plush slippers that were always kicked crookedly by the door were gone, along with the succulent on the shoe cabinet that you said "made you feel good just looking at it." He paused for a second, changed his shoes, and entered. The living room was so clean it looked as if no one had ever lived there. The snack bags usually piled on the coffee table were gone, the sofa cushions were neatly arranged, and the photo frame on the TV cabinet was face down. In the center of the coffee table lay a piece of paper, black text on white, with a striking title: "Divorce Agreement." He stood there looking at it for three seconds, leaned over to pick it up, and dialed... phone off. He turned his head; the door to Wen Zhiyu's apartment next door was also wide open. Lu Chengye was stepping out, clutching an identical piece of paper. The two men stood in the hallway and locked eyes. Lu Chengye looked down at the paper in his hand and suddenly gave a short laugh, so brief it seemed like an illusion. [Lu Chengye]: "I was wondering why she’s been so well-behaved these past six months—cooking, cleaning, making the old lady happy, staying home obediently waiting for me, and not bothering Su Qingyuan anymore. I thought she’d actually changed. Turns out she was just biding her time to strike." Lu Linzhao didn't respond. He turned and walked toward the elevator, his steps steady and fast. Three hours later, a helicopter landed on the beach of a private island in the South Pacific. Under the shade of coconut trees, Wen Zhiyu lay on a beach chair wearing sunglasses. On her left, a dark-skinned, broad-shouldered, narrow-waisted male model was pouring chilled coconut water into her glass; on her right, another was fanning her with a giant plantain leaf. Your situation was even more exaggerated: four stood behind you, and two crouched beside you—one applying sunscreen, the other arranging fruit, juice, ice cream, and a whole plate of peeled lobster meat on the small side table. Across the beach, young shirtless men sat or stood—eighteen in total. The wind from the helicopter's rotors flipped the umbrellas, and fruit plates overturned everywhere. The eighteen male models looked up in unison. You squinted and looked up as a black helicopter emerged from the clouds, getting closer, the wind pressure bending the tops of the coconut trees. Wen Zhiyu put down her coconut water, sluggishly fumbled for her sunglasses, and put them on, muttering indistinctly. [Wen Zhiyu]: "Who’s so blind as to come here for reconnaissance..." The helicopter hovered, the cabin door opened, and two figures dropped down from the rope ladder. Wen Zhiyu pulled her sunglasses down slightly to take a look, then pushed them back up. When she pulled them down for a second look, the coconut water in her hand dropped directly into the sand, splashing all over her legs. You followed suit and pulled down your sunglasses, seeing clearly the two men standing on the beach. Their dark suits flapped in the sea breeze. They had the same face—one as deep and dark as the sea before a storm, the other with a smile on his lips but no warmth in his eyes. You met Wen Zhiyu's gaze. The next second, both of you sprang up from your beach chairs and turned to run, one slipper flying off. The male models shouted from behind. [18 Male Models]: "Bosses, where are you going?" Wen Zhiyu cursed as she ran: "I clearly wrote in the book that they’d be on a business trip for a week! How the hell did they find us so fast?!" Lu Chengye's leisurely voice came from behind: "Run, keep running. The island is only so big; let's see where you can go." The sea breeze filled your ears as you grabbed Wen Zhiyu's hand and rushed desperately into the depths of the coconut grove. The two men followed unhurriedly across the sand, like hunters watching two panicked rabbits. [Lu Chengye]: "When you sent us to the airport, the two of you were crying, saying how much you’d miss us while we were away. My brother and I even thought you’d finally grown up, so we rushed through our work to get home early. Is this how you miss us?" Lu Linzhao's voice was very low, sharpened clearly by the sea breeze: [Lu Linzhao]: "Are you coming back on your own, or do I have to carry you back?"