The faint glow of the computer screen reflected in Pei Xu’s glasses.
He slowly moved the mouse, the cursor hovering over the “Remote Connect” icon.
This was actually a very simple software.
During his university days, he was very interested in aerial photography drones.
However, at that time, the domestic civilian drone industry was still in its infancy, with technology far behind foreign countries and yet to develop.
Out of interest, and seeing the potential in this market, he gathered a few like-minded classmates and friends and began trying to use existing flight control platforms, camera modules, gimbal systems, etc., to create the first quadrotor drone.
This drone had no self-developed technology; it was entirely assembled using existing market technologies.
Both the obstacle avoidance system and remote control were very rudimentary, making it only a semi-finished product with many practical flaws.
However, it was the only drone he personally designed, wrote algorithms for, and selected materials to build.
Its main body was dark blue, paired with black quadrotors.
To avoid monotony, the dark blue fuselage was adorned with tiny, bright silver specks, like a brilliant Milky Way winding through a deep night sky.
Later, they applied this design to their independently developed and first-generation quadrotor drone, the “Nan X-1,” which became one of Xu Nan Drones’ most classic designs.
But in the original design, that abstract and conceptualized “Milky Way” was actually the initials of Qiao Nan’s name.
This drone, which was eliminated before it could be launched, was ultimately named “Sinan” by him and given to Qiao Nan as a souvenir.
Qiao Nan cherished this gift and always carefully kept it on the display shelf in his bedroom.
Because he worried that not using it for a long time would deplete the battery, he would even regularly charge and check it.
When he gave “Sinan” to Qiao Nan, he still hadn’t realized his feelings for Qiao Nan, nor had he ever thought of using it for anything.
He simply thought Qiao Nan might like it.
But everything changed after that kiss that pulled him into the abyss.
He deliberately tried to distance himself from him, yet couldn’t help wanting to see him.
Thus, this drone, given away long ago, found its purpose.
Pei Xu exhaled heavily, his finger lightly pressed the mouse, clicking “Remote Connect.”
The computer screen went black for a moment, then showed a blurry image, with the familiar bedroom furnishings appearing before him.
This drone’s technology was too old, and its camera module was far behind current ones.
The pixel count wasn’t high, and the network communication module couldn’t keep up with the times, so the transmitted image quality wasn’t clear, and the picture would occasionally freeze.
Limited by the camera’s rotation angle, only a 160-degree area in front was visible.
Pei Xu released the mouse and leaned back into his chair, his gaze fixed on the static surveillance image—Qiao Nan should still be at school at this time, so the bedroom was naturally empty.
Sweeping over the familiar furnishings, Pei Xu’s lips curved slightly—though it was his bedroom, most of the items belonged to Qiao Nan.
After watching for a moment, he took a deep breath, as if finally making a decision, and once again manipulated the mouse, closing the software.
He right-clicked, and the mouse arrow moved down the menu list, stopping on the “Delete” option.
Doctor Chen’s advice wasn’t wrong.
However, Pei Xu paused for a long time, yet he couldn’t bring himself to make the decision.
A faint voice inside him said, Since you’ll leave him sooner or later, why not leave yourself a memento?
You just want to see him; you won’t do anything else.
His finger rested on the left mouse button, lingering for a long time, but he couldn’t press it down.
***
The final exam marked the start of summer vacation.
It was now the last day of June.
Relieved from final exams, Qiao Nan eagerly drove to the pet hospital to pick up Qiao Xiaobai.
After more than half a month of treatment, Qiao Xiaobai’s fractured hind leg had almost completely healed.
After the cast was removed, it could walk normally again.
Its previously terrible skin condition had also cleared up, and a thin, short layer of white fluff had grown on its healthy pink skin.
When Qiao Nan arrived, a nurse was leading it for a walk on the green belt outside the hospital entrance.
From afar, it recognized Qiao Nan’s car, barked twice, wagged its tail, and vigorously pulled the small nurse who was trying to hold it back, rushing towards Qiao Nan’s car.
Qiao Nan parked and got out, and it enthusiastically jumped onto him.
Holding it up by its armpits, Qiao Nan gasped, “You’ve gotten heavy again.”
Qiao Xiaobai wasn’t picky and ate a lot, successfully turning itself from skin and bones into a solid chunk in just over half a month.
The doctor said it wasn’t even a year old yet, and with proper nutrition, it could still grow quite a bit.
Qiao Nan put it down, patted its head to tell it to behave, and then followed the nurse to complete the discharge procedures.
Once the procedures were done, Qiao Nan could take it home.
“No need to rush back yet,” Qiao Nan checked the time; it was 5:40 PM, almost time for his brother to get off work.
It was perfect to pick him up.
He hadn’t seen his brother in ages, having been working nonstop for a month.
***
“Sit tight, we’re going to pick up your godfather from work.”
Pushing Qiao Xiaobai’s eagerly nudging head, Qiao Nan started the car and pressed the accelerator, driving towards Xu Nan Technology.
After finishing the regular meeting, Pei Xu returned to his office.
As he approached the door, he faintly heard a familiar voice from inside.
He paused slightly, then pushed open the office door.
He saw Qiao Nan curled up in the sofa, holding his phone, playing a game with voice chat on.
From the chat in the voice channel, it seemed Qian Chuan and Xiao Rang were on the other side.
Qiao Xiaobai, who had gained a lot of weight, was lying at his feet, his tail sweeping back and forth on the floor.
Seeing Pei Xu enter, he quickly got up, trotted to Pei Xu’s side, and nudged Pei Xu’s hand with his wet nose.
He recognized Pei Xu.
Qiao Nan heard the movement and, amidst his busy game, managed to glance up, “Meeting’s over? Wait till I finish this round.”
Pei Xu casually patted Qiao Xiaobai’s head, closed the door behind him, his eyes never leaving Qiao Nan.
If his gaze could weave a net, Qiao Nan would surely be ensnared within it by now.
Qiao Nan’s attention was entirely on his phone; he didn’t notice Pei Xu’s unusual behavior.
Pei Xu remained still, his gaze greedily devouring him.
After a long moment, as if unable to bear the longing any longer, he eagerly stepped forward, only to stop half a step from Qiao Nan.
He lowered his head slightly, looking at him, his tone gentle and calm, betraying no unusual emotion, “Exams finished?”
This was, of course, a rhetorical question.
Old K had long since sent him Qiao Nan’s class schedule and exam arrangements; he knew Qiao Nan’s itinerary like the back of his hand.
The sound of victory came from the phone.
Qiao Nan said, “My brother’s back, not playing anymore,” and exited the game.
“Finished the exams,” he put down his phone and stretched widely, unable to hide his excitement, “I’m on summer vacation! Are you working overtime today? Shall we have dinner together?”
“No.”
Actually, he was supposed to work overtime.
Today was Friday, and Xu Nan was releasing a new product this Sunday.
For the new product launch, everyone had been working overtime for half a month already.
Moreover, Doctor Chen had emphasized many times that he should try to minimize contact and maintain distance, as time could dilute the craving.
But he hadn’t seen Qiao Nan for too long; he simply couldn’t resist such an invitation.
The desire in his heart had not been diluted by time; instead, it grew richer and more intense.
Qiao Nan’s scent, Qiao Nan’s voice, everything about Qiao Nan appearing before him was an ultimate temptation.
Compromising with his inner desires was a matter of an instant.
“What do you want to eat?”
“Hotpot!”
Qiao Nan stood up, leading Qiao Xiaobai, “That place on Luonan Road, then.”
“Okay,” Pei Xu agreed, “Wait for me at the front desk. I need to brief Zhao Bo on something.”
Qiao Nan led Qiao Xiaobai downstairs, while Pei Xu made an internal call, handing over the remaining tasks to Zhao Bo.
Since Qiao Xiaobai couldn’t enter the mall, they first drove him back to the Qiao residence before heading to MixC International Plaza on Luonan Road.
It was busy on Friday, and the hotpot restaurant Qiao Nan chose was a famous popular one.
Qiao Nan had reserved a spot in advance via a mini-program.
After arriving, they waited a few minutes before being led in by a waiter.
The hotpot base and dishes were quickly served. Pei Xu, while blanching meat for him, chatted with him, “Any plans for summer vacation? Uncle Qiao messaged me a couple of days ago, still hoping you’d use the summer to intern at the company. If you don’t want to go to the branch company in the capital, you can just join the head office in Nanjiang. Uncle Qiao will arrange someone to help you get familiar with things.”
Qiao Shi’an only had this one son, so he naturally still hoped his son would take over the family business.
“I’m not going,” Qiao Nan stuffed a beef tendon ball into his mouth, hissing from the heat, and mumbled indistinctly, “I already have plans for summer vacation. Old Li said he might take us to Guizhou North for a sketching trip this summer.”
In fact, fine arts majors organized outdoor sketching trips every semester, some led by teachers, others spontaneously by students.
However, in their freshman and sophomore years, they were still building foundations, so they mostly stayed within the province and surrounding areas.
Now that their basic skills were well-practiced, and they would be juniors next semester, Old Li said it was about time they saw the outside world.
Coincidentally, he also took on a project related to a Miao village, so he planned to take them to Guizhou North during the summer vacation.
Pei Xu’s movements paused: “Is it settled? How long will it be?”
“It should be settled. The exact time depends on Old Li’s arrangements. If it’s short, then half a month; if long, about a month,” Qiao Nan said.
“But what about Uncle Qiao…?”
“You help me talk to my dad,” Qiao Nan diligently put a slice of beef in his bowl, looking at him with watery eyes, full of pleading, “If I go to him, he’ll definitely scold me again. He’s too difficult to communicate with; only you can persuade him.”
Back when Qiao Nan wanted to study oil painting at the art academy, Qiao Shi’an was vehemently opposed.
According to him, the only majors Qiao Nan could choose were management, finance, or law.
Later, it was Pei Xu who intervened and made him change his mind.
Pei Xu tugged at the corner of his mouth, barely suppressing the rising impatience in his chest, and responded hoarsely, “Okay.”
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