The city's central plaza was alive with flashing cameras, branded banners, and the hum of a hundred conversations, from guest, journalist, technicians and all the rest. Lin Group was sponsoring the "Innovation for Tomorrow" an event meant to showcase cutting-edge tech and community initiatives.
It was also Zhou Meili's first public appearance since her return.
Jiang Yue had done everything possible to stay on the outer edges of the crowd. She wasn't stupid, this was prime plotline territory, and she knew she had the survival odds of a soap bubble in a cactus garden right now.
Unfortunately, the system wasn't subtle.
[Event: Public Encounter Triggered.]
[Probability of Unwanted Attention: 98%.]
She groaned inwardly. Of course.
---
Zhou Meili was dazzling in person. Cameras followed her every step as she stood beside Li Zhenkai on the main stage, smiling warmly for the press. If Jiang Yue didn't know this was all part of a predestined plotline, she might have believed the picture perfect image.
Jiang Yue kept her eyes down, adjusting a display stand near the VR tech booth, pretending she didn't notice the way reporters whispered, Who's that next to the CEO? or Is that the girl from the scaffolding incident?
And then came… the drone.
At first, she thought it was part of the tech demo sleek, white, with a little camera eye that scanned the crowd. But the thing started dipping lower, circling her like a hawk. The camera lens zoomed in. Once. Twice.
Her stomach twisted.
[Warning. Object Lock Detected.]
The drone's rotors whirred louder as it followed her step for step. Every time she moved, it swooped to keep her in frame. She could almost feel it recording every pore of her face.
"Not today," she muttered, slipping between display booths. But the thing followed. Faster.
And then, it dropped low enough for her hair to flutter in the wind of its blades.
"OH, HELL NO!" she yelped, bolting.
---
She darted through the crowd, weaving past startled guests and photographers. People stared as the drone zipped after her, narrowly avoiding colliding with a champagne tray. Her heels clicked against the plaza tiles, heart racing.
Somewhere behind her, she heard a familiar deep voice, Li Zhenkai's but she didn't stop to look.
A side street appeared between two vendor stalls, and she dove into it, pushing open the glass door of a small boutique. The bell above jingled as she stumbled inside, panting.
The shopkeeper looked up from behind the counter, blinking. "Uh… can I help you?"
"Nope," Jiang Yue said, ducking behind a rack of dresses. "Just… browsing."
She peered between hangers, watching the street. The drone hovered outside for a moment like it was thinking, then zipped away.
She sagged against the clothing rack, relief flooding her.
---
The doorbell jingled again.
She turned, ready with some awkward excuse only to find Li Zhenkai stepping inside.
He was still in his tailored black suit from the event, the crisp white shirt collar open just enough to hint at the tension in his jaw. His eyes scanned the shop once, found her immediately, and locked on.
She straightened, caught between embarrassment and annoyance. "Uh… hi?"
He didn't lecture her. Didn't demand an explanation. He just walked up, closing the distance until she could smell faint cologne and the sharper edge of adrenaline still clinging to him.
"Stay with me today," he said quietly.
She blinked. "What?"
His gaze was steady, unreadable. "Just today."
Her heart thudded far too loudly for comfort. "Is this… because of the drone? Because I swear I wasn't—"
"It doesn't matter," he interrupted, his voice low. "The more you wander off, the more things happen. Stay with me. I'll handle it."
Jiang Yue hesitated. The logical part of her brain screamed that being glued to him all day was dangerous, this is how female leads get eaten alive by the plotline. But the other part the one remembering his arm around her waist during the scaffolding incident, couldn't seem to say no.
"Fine," she muttered. "But if something explodes near you, I'm blaming you."
A corner of his mouth twitched in a smile but it was gone before she could be sure.
---
The rest of the day passed in a surreal haze.
She shadowed him through the event, from the robotics demonstration to the eco-energy pavilion. Cameras caught them in the same frame more than once, her standing just behind him, his hand occasionally brushing the small of her back to guide her through crowds.
Zhou Meili noticed. Jiang Yue could feel the weight of the other woman's gaze from across the main hall. It was polite, perfectly masked, but there was a glint there,a tiny question, maybe even a challenge.
Tessa, who'd been floating between PR duties and keeping Jiang Yue alive, leaned in at one point and whispered, "Congrats. You've just made it onto the Love Interest Radar."
Jiang Yue groaned. "I hate my life."
Tessa grinned. "You love the drama."
---
By evening, the expo wound down. Li Zhenkai had stayed at her side the entire time, never once breaking his earlier statement. And as they stood near the plaza entrance, waiting for the company car, she found herself glancing up at him.
"Why today?" she asked.
His eyes met hers briefly before scanning the thinning crowd. "Because I don't like near-misses."
It wasn't much of an answer. But the way he said it made her chest feel weirdly… warm.
The car pulled up. He gestured for her to get in first.
And just before she ducked inside, she caught sight of Zhou Meili across the streetz standing under a streetlamp, watching them with a faint smile.
The system beeped again.
[Hostile Variable Detected.]
[The Curse Deepens.]
Jiang Yue swallowed hard.
She had a feeling this was just the beginning.