Pure emotion error - Chapter 4

Chapter 4 Safety Boundaries

Lin Yiqiao was satisfied with the message he sent. He used phrases like “within three minutes” and “consequences at your own risk” to emphasize urgency and encourage a prompt reply.

This was a workplace trick he’d learned on Xiaohongshu (a Chinese social media platform).

Shortly after sending it, he saw the message status show “read” and stared at the chat box waiting for Yan Lu’s reply.

Two minutes and thirty-two seconds later, the other side sent a message.

Yan Lu: [You requested core data. Before authorizing it to you, I need to have an in-depth discussion with you.]

Lin Yiqiao (Mechanical Engineering Team): [I’ll send you the report.]

Yan Lu: [Your proposal is very bold. This project just raised Series A funding. Any changes to core technologies require extreme caution. You’d better explain it to me in person.]

Lin Yiqiao (Mechanical Engineering Team): [Okay, are you coming to the company?]

Yan Lu: [I haven’t had dinner yet.]

Lin Yiqiao (Mechanical Engineering Team): [Should I treat you?] Yan Lu: [I’ll come pick you up. Let’s go to that restaurant where we had lunch and chat.]

Lin Yiqiao (Mechanical Engineering Group): [Should I treat you?]

Yan Lu: [Yes, because it was my suggestion.]

Yan Lu: [If you really want to treat me, you can suggest it yourself next time.]

Lin Yiqiao (Mechanical Engineering Group): [Okay.]

Lin Yiqiao (Mechanical Engineering Group): [I don’t want to treat you.]

Lin Yiqiao waited in the office for over thirty minutes. Yan Lu messaged him to come to the basement. He slung his backpack over his shoulder, containing the report Cai Dong had given him, and went downstairs.

Stepping out of the elevator, he saw Yan Lu’s car already waiting outside the glass doors. Lin Yiqiao opened the passenger door and got in.

Yan Lu turned his head and smiled. “Hello, Lin Yiqiao.”

Lin Yiqiao replied expressionlessly, “Hello, Yan Lu.” He stared at Yan Lu’s face for a few seconds, then widened his eyes and murmured, “You still wear glasses? I thought you stopped.”

“I usually wear contact lenses,” Yan Lu started the car, “I just woke up and was too lazy to put them on.”

“Just woke up? Were you sleeping this afternoon?” Lin Yiqiao’s attention was immediately drawn. “Did you ask for leave?”

Yan Lu honestly replied, “No.”

Lin Yiqiao’s eyes widened even more, questioning, “Article 31 of the employee handbook states that leaving one’s post without approval for more than four hours during working hours is considered absenteeism.”

“Hmm,” Yan Lu nodded.

Lin Yiqiao added seriously, “It’ll cost you a day’s pay.”

“Okay,” Yan Lu smoothly drove the car out of the underground parking garage, glanced at Lin Yiqiao with a smile, accepting the punishment, “I know, I’ll talk to Tang Xiaoxiao tomorrow and have her deduct a day’s pay from me.”

Because it was rush hour, the traffic was much noisier than at noon.

Especially in congested areas, the unbearable honking of horns rose and fell.

This sudden burst of sharp sound hurt Lin Yiqiao, just as he had described to Jing Xin, “like a needle piercing my eardrums.”

He took out noise-canceling headphones from his backpack, put them on, closed his eyes, hoping to reach his destination quickly.

Yan Lu exited the main road at the next traffic light, turning the car into a quiet backstreet. The voice navigation kept telling him to turn around, so he turned it off.

Sensing the sudden decrease in ambient noise, Lin Yiqiao removed his headphones, opened his eyes to discern the scenery on either side of the road, and asked疑惑地问道, “Didn’t you say you were going to that restaurant for lunch? This isn’t the way.”

“It’s too congested over there,” Yan Lu said casually, “Let’s take a detour.”

Lin Yiqiao said “Oh,” his thumb unconsciously stroking the logo on the headphones.

Although the main road was congested, it wasn’t completely impassable. Lin Yiqiao judged that taking the detour would definitely be slower. However, he preferred the quietness of this road, so he cunningly didn’t point out Yan Lu’s mistake.

They arrived more than twenty minutes later than expected. Parking in the ground-level parking space in front of the restaurant, and turning off the engine, Yan Lu turned around to find Lin Yiqiao looking at him.

Lin Yiqiao’s face was expressionless, his gaze focused, seemingly probing. When their eyes met, Lin Yiqiao paused, but didn’t look away.

Yan Lu rested his arm on the center armrest, raising an eyebrow as he asked, “What are you looking at me for?”

Lin Yiqiao said seriously, “I’m thinking, do you look better with glasses or without them?”

“Then,” Yan Lu leaned closer, “do you think I look better with glasses or without them?”

Lin Yiqiao frowned slightly, seemingly struggling to decide. “The conclusion is, both are good.”

Yan Lu smiled: “Really?”

Lin Yiqiao suggested, “You can wear glasses on odd-numbered days and not on even-numbered days. That way, people who like to see you with glasses and people who like to see you without them can both see what they prefer.” “Looks like that.”

Yan Lu asked again, “So, what kind of me do you like?”

Lin Yiqiao repeated her conclusion, “Both are good.”

Yan Lu said, “This is a multiple-choice question.”

Lin Yiqiao frowned, troubled for a moment, “With glasses, I look the same as in high school, but without them, I’m still handsome.”

Yan Lu looked at Lin Yiqiao’s face with a half-smile: “I’m very ordinary-looking, where’s the handsomeness?”

Lin Yiqiao cited other people’s testimonies to strengthen her argument: “Wen Wei and the others all said you’re very handsome.”

“Did they tell you that?”

“No, I overheard them talking.” Lin Yiqiao said.

“Oh…” Yan Lu drawled, his eyes narrowing behind his glasses. “During work hours, instead of working properly, you’re eavesdropping on other people’s conversations?”

“I…I wasn’t eavesdropping!” Lin Yiqiao blushed, his face and ears turning red with embarrassment. “It’s just that my hearing is too good, and they often chat in the office.”

Yan Lu laughed, mercifully letting him off the hook, and unbuckled his seatbelt. “Okay, get out.”

Because they had booked so late, the restaurant only had one large private room for twenty people left. Lin Yiqiao felt the table was too huge, and the empty chairs around it looked strange, so they went to the rooftop outdoor booths.

Although there were other people talking nearby, the lush greenery acted as a screen separating the booths, creating a slightly noisy environment that Lin Yiqiao could tolerate.

They sat down facing each other. Lin Yiqiao took a report from his bag and handed it to Yan Lu: “This is the preliminary test report for the shape memory alloy material.”

Yan Lu took it, flipped through a couple of pages, and pointed to the charts on the page, saying, “The relationships between some of the data here are quite complex. Come sit down and look at it together so you can explain it to me.”

Lin Yiqiao paused. He didn’t like this. The other person’s body temperature and breathing would break down his personal boundaries, making him uncomfortable.

He glanced at Yan Lu; the other’s expression was serious, seemingly discussing business. He looked down at the report again; the curves and data definitely needed to be pointed out to be clear.

He silently took a breath, stood up, and sat down next to Yan Lu. His body was a little stiff, and he deliberately maintained some distance, but the soft sofa in the booth still brought them close together.

Yan Lu’s scent was even clearer than in the car.

Perhaps it was because Yan Lu, wearing glasses, felt familiar, but he didn’t feel too uncomfortable at this moment.

To see the small print on the paper more clearly, Lin Yiqiao leaned closer and pointed to the data, explaining to Yan Lu, “These are the test results of the material’s electrical properties during simulated knee joint movement.”

He was completely absorbed in the data, unaware that his hair was brushing against Yan Lu’s face, while Yan Lu could smell the scent of Lin Yiqiao’s shampoo with just a slight tilt of his head.

He’d been using this shampoo since high school, and it hadn’t changed at all.

Lin Yiqiao then reached out and gently touched the paper. “This curve represents the tiny voltage value generated when the material is subjected to dynamic stress and deformation.”

He still didn’t notice that his shoulder was now pressed against Yan Lu’s chest.

Yan Lu sat up straight, slightly increasing the distance between them, his Adam’s apple bobbing, and he gave a soft “Mmm.”

Lin Yiqiao, completely focused on the technology, obliviously continued to lean forward: “Under simulating maximum load and movement frequency of the knee joint, the resulting voltage peak is approximately in the range of a few to a dozen microvolts.” He looked up to see Yan Lu’s reaction, seeking an answer from him: “Do you think this level has a significant impact on bioelectrical signals?”

Lin Yiqiao’s eyes were wide and bright. His warm breath brushed lightly against Yan Lu’s chin. He looked completely unguarded.

Yan Lu saw himself reflected in his clear pupils.

“Lin Yiqiao,” Yan Lu looked into Lin Yiqiao’s eyes through his glasses, but didn’t answer the technical question, “your shampoo still smells the same.”