Chapter 21: Myself in the mirror

After the morning’s work ended, Lin Jianqing immediately went to the company restroom.

Speaking of work, the tasks assigned to him in the morning weren’t actually much. The colleagues at Lingqi Network were quite polite to him, even overly polite.

When Lin Jianqing sat at his desk processing documents, a few female colleagues nearby would occasionally peek at him from the corners of their eyes. His face, as if examining some novel object.

At first, Lin Jianqing thought he had done something wrong. Until a colleague passed by holding coffee and said with a smile:

“Student Lin, you look great today.”

Lin Jianqing’s fingers typing on the keyboard paused for a moment.

“Looking great” sounded like a compliment. But when those four words reached Lin Jianqing’s ears, they gave him an indescribable sense of unease.

After all, he was well aware that his so-called “great complexion” today was entirely because Shen Huaixue had pinned him down in the office and personally worked him over.

Thinking of this, Lin Jianqing almost couldn’t keep a straight face. He could only mutter a thank you and then continue pretending to work seriously.

Fortunately, the morning passed quickly.

After finishing the tasks in hand, Lin Jianqing double-checked his afternoon class schedule, glanced at the time, confirmed he still had enough time to rush back to school, and only then took the makeup remover Shen Huaixue had shoved at him in the morning and quickly headed to the restroom.

The company restroom was very clean, the bright mirror reflecting his face. Lin Jianqing stood before the mirror, looking at his much more refined reflection than usual, feeling a bit conflicted.

Shen Huaixue’s skills were indeed excellent. He didn’t want to admit it, but he had to. She didn’t put on exaggerated makeup, nor deliberately make him look strange.

On the contrary, after those things were applied to his face, it was as if they had gently pushed out certain details originally hidden in his skin and features.

His skin looked cleaner, the corners of his eyes softer, and his originally pale complexion from lack of sleep had been naturally touched up.

If Lin Jianqing himself didn’t know, he might even think the person in the mirror was naturally like that. That was the scariest part—he feared that one day he would actually get used to it.

Lin Jianqing took a deep breath, picked up the makeup remover cotton, and began to wipe off the stuff on his face little by little. His movements weren’t exactly skilled, but not entirely clumsy either.

After all, although Shen Huaixue had a sharp tongue in the morning, she taught him in detail. First around the eyes, then the cheeks. Then the color on his lips. When the last trace was wiped clean, the person in the mirror finally returned to his original appearance.

His complexion was a bit paler, and the fatigue under his eyes reappeared. But Lin Jianqing felt strangely at ease looking at it.

He put away the used items, then lowered his head to wash his face. The cold water splashing on his face cleared his muddled mind a little after the chaotic morning.

However, as soon as he came out of the restroom and hadn’t taken a few steps, he ran into Shen Huaixue at the corridor corner.

Shen Huaixue was holding a cup of coffee, seemingly on her way back to the office, or perhaps… waiting for him specifically?

She was still in her casual light-colored shirt, sleeves casually rolled up to her forearms, revealing a section of pale wrist.

Only she wasn’t wearing glasses on the bridge of her nose, and her long hair was loose behind her shoulders, making her appear less scholarly than in the morning, but with a more oppressive sharpness.

Lin Jianqing subconsciously stopped in his tracks, and Shen Huaixue also stopped.

The light in the corridor fell from behind her, stretching her shadow long. Lin Jianqing stood before her, suddenly realizing that their height difference was especially noticeable at this distance.

Shen Huaixue was half a head taller than him. Usually, when far apart, it wasn’t so intense, but now standing face to face, he had to slightly tilt his head up to see her face. And when Shen Huaixue looked at him, she naturally looked down.

That condescending perspective made Lin Jianqing very uncomfortable, as if he was being cornered into some invisible range by her.

Shen Huaixue’s gaze landed on his face, paused for a few seconds, and the corners of her lips slowly lifted.

“You removed the makeup?”

Lin Jianqing’s fingers holding the makeup remover bag tightened slightly.

“The morning work is over. I have class at school in the afternoon.”

“So full of yourself. Did I ask you for the reason?”

Lin Jianqing closed his eyes. Fine, fine, fine… Still the same familiar tone. The familiar punchable feeling.

Shen Huaixue took half a step forward. Lin Jianqing originally wanted to stay put, but his body honestly stepped back a little. Behind him was the corridor wall; he stopped after no more than two steps back.

Shen Huaixue stood before him, looking down at him. Because of the height difference, she didn’t even need to deliberately lean in to envelop him entirely in her line of sight.

When Lin Jianqing looked up at her, he could just see the clear, sharp curve of her jawline and the faint steam rising from the coffee cup in her hand.

This distance was a bit close, so close that Lin Jianqing could even smell the cold fragrance mixed with coffee from her.

Shen Huaixue looked at his clean face, as if admiring a canvas whose paint had just been washed off.

“You removed it quite fast. Remember to use a proper makeup remover next time, don’t just wash with water.”

“Isn’t that normal?”

“What’s normal about it?” Shen Huaixue raised an eyebrow. “I spent half the morning painting, and you wipe it off as soon as the morning ends. Student Lin, are you disrespecting my hard work?”

Lin Jianqing looked up at her, his tone trying to stay calm.

“President Shen, this is my face…”

Shen Huaixue slightly bent down, and their distance got even closer. Her shadow fell in front of Lin Jianqing, as if trying to press him entirely into the corner.

Lin Jianqing instinctively averted his gaze. This action clearly pleased Shen Huaixue, and she let out a laugh.

“When you looked in the mirror just now, didn’t you think you looked pretty good?”

The tips of Lin Jianqing’s ears heated up slightly.

“No.”

“Liar.”

“I didn’t.”

“If you really thought it didn’t look good, you wouldn’t have removed it so carefully,” Shen Huaixue said slowly. “Just now, didn’t you specifically check several times if you had wiped it clean?”

Lin Jianqing immediately looked up.

“How do you know?”

As soon as the words left his mouth, he regretted it. The smile at the corner of Shen Huaixue’s lips deepened.

“Guessed.”

Lin Jianqing was speechless. He felt that he might really not be suited to talk to Shen Huaixue. The more he said, the more mistakes he made.

Shen Huaixue looked at his choked expression and suddenly reached out as if to touch his face. Lin Jianqing almost instinctively dodged to the side.

Shen Huaixue’s hand stopped in midair, and the air was quiet for a moment, but she wasn’t angry. She simply withdrew her hand, gently shook her coffee cup, her tone still playful.

“What are you dodging? I was just checking if you removed it all.”

“I checked it myself.”

Hearing this, Shen Huaixue seemed to find it amusing and lowered her head slightly.

“Then stand up straight.”

Lin Jianqing was stunned.

“What?”

“Didn’t you say you’re closer to yourself than I am?” Shen Huaixue looked down at him, her tone lazy. “But how come I feel like even looking up is quite a struggle for you when you’re standing in front of me?”

Lin Jianqing’s expression instantly stiffened. He finally realized that Shen Huaixue was teasing him about the height difference.

“Shen Huaixue.”

“Hm?”

“You are really boring.”

“Not really,” Shen Huaixue said, looking at his reddening ear tips, clearly in a good mood. “At least teasing you isn’t boring.”

Lin Jianqing didn’t want to continue this topic. He raised his hand to check the time, trying to make his tone sound more serious.

“I still have class in the afternoon. If I don’t leave now, I’ll be late.”

Shen Huaixue finally sidestepped a little.

“Go ahead.”

Just as Lin Jianqing was about to walk past her, he heard her add slowly:

“Next time before you remove makeup, remember to take a photo and send it to me.”

Lin Jianqing’s steps paused.

“Why?”

“To check the homework.”

He should have known. Shen Huaixue was the type to never easily let go of any opportunity to mess with him. Lin Jianqing pressed his lips together and ultimately chose not to answer.