As for Pink-Hair, before Falling in Love, He Insisted That He Wasn't the Possessive Type - Chapter 17

The events of that day had concluded with both of them reaching a state of release.

Afterward, the two of them returned to their usual mode of interaction. Meanwhile, the final version of Yu Qingdu’s entry for the competition was ready.

Yu Qingdu sat in his office, looking at the finished pieces delivered by He Jinglan: a necklace, a bracelet, and a pair of earrings.

He picked up the necklace and examined it closely. For this theme, Yu Qingdu had used dark red, white, and silver as the primary colors. Looking at the way the colors blended now, a flash of satisfaction crossed his eyes.

There was a knock on the office door. Yu Qingdu said, “Come in,” and Shang Qingye pushed the door open and walked in.

“Are they here?”

Shang Qingye knew about Yu Qingdu’s participation in the competition. Seeing the accessories placed in the glass display case in front of Yu Qingdu, he raised an eyebrow and asked the question.

Yu Qingdu nodded. He beckoned Shang Qingye over and called out, “Come here.”

Hearing that tone, which sounded like he was training a dog, Shang Qingye curled his lip but walked over anyway.

As soon as he arrived, Yu Qingdu stood up, reached out a hand to touch Shang Qingye’s ear, and leaned in to inspect it. “When did you get your ears pierced?”

Feeling the tickle on his ear, Shang Qingye instinctively flinched away, but Yu Qingdu caught him. Hearing the question, Shang Qingye thought for a moment. “In middle school, I think. That was more than ten years ago.”

Yu Qingdu listened and touched the piercing with his finger. “How long has it been since you wore earrings?”

“Two or three months. I just took them out recently.”

Yu Qingdu nodded. The hole was not too tight yet; it could still be pushed open.

He turned around and took a black velvet box from his desk drawer. He opened it in front of Shang Qingye, revealing a pair of sterling silver earrings.

Yu Qingdu took them out, and Shang Qingye could see them more clearly now: they were a pair of star shaped silver studs.

Yu Qingdu placed the earrings in Shang Qingye’s hand, then picked up his phone and made a call. “Help me buy some alcohol pads.”

After hanging up, he looked at Shang Qingye and smiled. “Wait a moment.”

Shang Qingye had a general idea of what Yu Qingdu wanted to do. He raised an eyebrow and waited along with him.

Before long, there was another knock on the office door. Yu Qingdu told the person to enter.

“Boss, I bought the alcohol pads.”

Bu Qingyao was slightly out of breath as she handed a box of alcohol pads to Yu Qingdu.

Yu Qingdu took them and said warmly, “Thank you for your hard work. I have sent the money to you.”

Bu Qingyao shook her head quickly and spoke with righteous conviction. “It is my honor to share your burdens, Boss!”

Her momentum was so strong that one might think she was about to enlist in the army.

“Pfft.”

Shang Qingye let out a laugh. Seeing both of them look at him, he smirked and looked at Yu Qingdu. “This little assistant of yours is quite interesting.”

Bu Qingyao did not know what she had said wrong, so she could only give a couple of forced laughs.

“You can go back to your work now,” Yu Qingdu said.

Bu Qingyao nodded like a chick pecking at grain and felt a sigh of relief in her heart. Jobs were hard to find these days; she had to work hard to keep this one.

Once Bu Qingyao left, Yu Qingdu walked toward Shang Qingye. He placed the box of alcohol pads on the table, opened it, and took out a single packet. He tore it open and then looked at Shang Qingye.

Seeing Yu Qingdu look at him, Shang Qingye walked over leisurely.

Yu Qingdu’s perspective and angle were perfect. He took the alcohol pad out of the packaging, unfolded it, and gently wiped the area around Shang Qingye’s ear piercing.

After wiping it, he took out another pad and signaled for Shang Qingye to hand him one of the star earrings. Shang Qingye handed one over.

Yu Qingdu used the alcohol pad to gently wipe the tip of the earring, gripped the base of the star, and looked at Shang Qingye. “Tell me if it hurts.”

Shang Qingye nodded, signaling for him to go ahead.

Yu Qingdu held the earring and gently pushed it into the front of Shang Qingye’s earlobe. Feeling a slight resistance, he slowly followed the path and pushed it in a bit further.

Following that direction, he slowly twisted it until the earring was properly set.

Shang Qingye felt a slight sting in his ear, but it was bearable. He looked sideways at Yu Qingdu, who was focused on reopening the piercing. Yu Qingdu was very serious and completely absorbed. His eyelashes fluttered. They were long and thick like a dense dark forest. Their distance was so close that Shang Qingye could see the fine peach fuzz on Yu Qingdu’s face.

“Done.”

Yu Qingdu stepped back a few paces, pulled another alcohol pad from the box, tore it open, and asked Shang Qingye for the other earring. Just like before, he wiped the tip of the stud.

He followed the same steps and inserted the earring into Shang Qingye’s other ear.

After Yu Qingdu finished all this, he stepped back and looked at his masterpiece with appreciation in his eyes.

“Wear these for the next few days,” Yu Qingdu said to Shang Qingye.

“Your piercings are a bit tight, so they need to be kept open. I forgot about it earlier. Wear these for now, and in five days, we will take the photos of you wearing the jewelry for the competition.”

Listening to Yu Qingdu, Shang Qingye unconsciously reached up to touch the earring.

“Do not touch it.”

Yu Qingdu caught his hand. He looked into Shang Qingye’s eyes with a slight smile. “No matter how much you like these earrings, you cannot touch them now. No matter how clean your hands are, there are bacteria. Once this period has passed, you can touch them however you like.”

Shang Qingye caught the underlying meaning in Yu Qingdu’s words. He turned to look at him and raised an eyebrow. “Are these earrings a gift for me?”

“I bought them for you in the first place,” Yu Qingdu said with a beaming smile.

Shang Qingye’s lips parted slightly, but he said nothing.

“Alright, you can go back now. Call Bu Qingyao in for me.”

Shang Qingye nodded and, rare for him, said nothing as he walked straight out of the office.

A moment later, Bu Qingyao walked in. “Boss, you called for me?”

Yu Qingdu nodded. He pointed to the glass display case standing on his desk.

“Please help me put this on the still life table in the photography studio. This is the key to the studio. Once you have put it inside, lock the door and notify everyone in the studio that the photography room is not to be used for the next few days.”

Yu Qingdu handed the key to her.

Bu Qingyao listened intently, took the key, and nodded vigorously. “Okay, Boss.”

With that, she went to the desk and carefully lifted the glass case. It looked light and was indeed easy to carry. Bu Qingyao lifted it without much effort.

Watching Bu Qingyao leave, Yu Qingdu sat back in his office chair. It was now mid-February. In early March, he would be flying abroad for the competition. Thus, he opened his tablet and began to handle some work.

Before he knew it, Yu Qingdu had worked until evening. He took off his gold rimmed glasses, slowly lifted his head, and exhaled a breath of stale air while pressing his fingers against the bridge of his nose.

He picked up his phone and saw that two messages had been sent an hour ago.

Wen Chen: The countdown to my return to the country is one month.

Wen Chen: You better remember to come and pick me up.

Yu Qingdu slowly typed a reply: Fine, I got it.