Chapter 375: Liu Zhimin: Am I prettier or is the senior prettier!

Inside the aircraft cabin.

Watching the plane climb to cruising altitude and hearing the "ding" of the seatbelt sign turning off, Liu Zhimin, who was wearing headphones, felt the light beside her blocked by someone shortly after.

Turning her head to look, she saw Lin Xiuyuan already standing in the aisle next to her seat, looking at her with a beaming smile.

"Yo, you really came?" Liu Zhimin took off one side of her headphones, a playful smile appearing on her face, though a flash of surprise was unavoidable in her eyes.

She had originally thought the words he said in the aisle earlier were mostly just Lin Xiuyuan's usual glib talk and joking; she hadn't expected him to actually come over.

"A gentleman's word is as good as a team of horses."

Lin Xiuyuan replied with a smile, while simultaneously gesturing with his eyes for Liu Zhimin to quickly adjust her seat.

Or do you think it is not good." This book is first published on Tiantiankan Novels -> ttk. tw, providing you with an error-free and non-disordered chapter reading experience.

"Be my guest."

Hearing this, Liu Zhimin generously raised her hand and took the initiative to scoot toward the window, making more room for him.

In the business class of a large wide-body passenger plane like the one they were sitting in, each seat was like a small private compartment, and the space was quite generous.

So Lin Xiuyuan didn't stand on ceremony and sat in sideways.

However, he didn't sit directly against Liu Zhimin; instead, he turned his body toward her, naturally bent one leg, and adjusted into a comfortable position.

Seeing this, Liu Zhimin also quickly adjusted her seat back to a more reclined angle, and finally just laid it flat, crossing her legs to face Lin Xiuyuan.

In this way, the two formed a position of sitting opposite each other, with a little distance still between them.

This posture was actually quite relaxed; it maintained basic social distance without losing a sense of intimacy, and was more of a casual stance for friends chatting.

However, even this distance and posture, which did not overstep, still made Liu Zhimin's heart flutter slightly.

Looking at the man before her who had naturally occupied the space beside her, although a smile still hung on his face, a trace of seriousness flickered in the depths of his eyes.

A moment later, she tilted her head and said with a soft, curious laugh, "Xiuyuan, why do I find that this time we meet, your aggressiveness seems much stronger than before?"

"Oh? How so?" Lin Xiuyuan raised an eyebrow, looking as if he were willing to hear the details.

"Hmm—it's just a feeling."

Liu Zhimin opposite him rested her chin on one hand, while the fingers of her other hand tapped lightly on the armrest unconsciously. "Before, you mostly only dared to be so unscrupulous with your glib talk and ramble about everything under the sun when we were chatting online. The few times we met in reality, although you were quite good at making people happy, you would always restrain yourself just a little bit, right?"

As she spoke, she didn't forget to use her fingers to gesture a very, very small gap, fortunately, this was in Barcelona, and there were no Peninsula men around.

Otherwise, just because of this small gesture, she would have been bashed again.

After finishing the gesture, Liu Zhimin continued, "But this time, from just now in the aisle to sitting over here right now.

You seem to have become bolder; I don't know if I'm overthinking it."

A pair of bright eyes carried a smile, yet they stared straight at the Lin Xiuyuan before her without allowing him to dodge, as if wanting to find the answer on his face.

Only after carefully examining this face at such close range did Liu Zhimin seem to have other discoveries.

During their previous meetings, they were mostly in public places or with others around, so she rarely had the opportunity to observe Lin Xiuyuan at such close quarters.

So right now, Liu Zhimin suddenly discovered that Lin Xiuyuan's skin condition seemed even better than when she saw him at the beginning of the year; it wasn't the result of deliberate maintenance, but a kind of delicate texture that radiated a healthy glow.

His facial features and contours also seemed clearer and more resolute.

The sense of definition had become obvious, with a bit less of the softness from before and a bit more of the sharp angles of a mature man.

But contradictorily, this sense of maturity did not cover up the unique temperament he possessed.

When he smiled, the curve of his eyes and the smile at the corners of his mouth still carried a clean and sunny infectiousness belonging to a young man, without the slightest feeling of being greasy.

Simply put, he had become both more handsome and more masculine, yet the boyish quality remained.

Lin Xiuyuan, who had changed from sitting with one leg bent to sitting cross-legged, saw that Liu Zhimin kept staring at his face after finishing that sentence and didn't continue speaking.

He couldn't help but laugh, raised his hand to wave it in front of her eyes, and teased, "Hey, what are you looking at? Are you mesmerized? Didn't you just say I only know how to talk glibly? How come your expression is wrong in the blink of an eye? Don't tell me your 'lovestruck brain' is acting up again. Be careful, don't get fooled by me."

"Hmph~"

Liu Zhimin, whose train of thought was interrupted by someone, gave a light huff, blinked, and pulled the topic back.

"So, Xiuyuan~ you still haven't answered my previous question. What exactly is your relationship with that Xiaomin senior over there? She is a married woman, after all. It's one thing for you to joke around with me and be a bit glib in daily life, but don't really mess around in reality."

At this moment, there was a trace of serious warning in Liu Zhimin's words; after all, as an insider, she knew well how common such things were, but she still didn't want it to happen to her friend.

Lin Xiuyuan looked at her serious little expression and couldn't help but laugh.

Almost without thinking, he took the similar lines he had said to Park Hyomin not long ago and moved them over word for word, "What are you thinking about? We are just ordinary friends. We were originally with others, but we just separated for these two days. Don't let your imagination run wild."

After finishing, he changed the subject and looked at Liu Zhimin to turn the tables, "On the contrary, I've been seeing quite a lot of news about you online lately. All kinds of events, pictorials, and ambiguous gossip. How about it, are you still keeping single?"

"I'm angry now!" Upon hearing this, Liu Zhimin immediately pouted and deliberately put on a straight face to glare at Lin Xiuyuan.

But seeing the expression on his face that was clearly joking, she couldn't hold it in herself, and the next second she broke her defense and laughed. That feigned annoyance vanished in an instant, "That's enough out of you. Every time you use such annoying jokes to tease me, are you planning to desensitize me?"

"Alright, alright, my fault, I shouldn't have brought it up."

Discovering that Liu Zhimin had shot him a glare, Lin Xiuyuan immediately raised both hands in a gesture of surrender.

But his smile didn't diminish in the slightest, and he changed the subject to continue asking, "By the way, how many days can you actually stay in Dubai this time? Besides meeting up with friends, are there no other plans?"

"Counting everything, it should only be two or three days." Liu Zhimin sighed, her tone carrying the troubles of being a popular Idol.

"You know, it's almost the end of the year. For people in our profession, it's simply the beginning of a devilish schedule. All kinds of award ceremonies, music festivals, and year-end specials on TV stations—the schedule is packed tight. Being able to squeeze out these two days of vacation is already the result of me running away early."

"Mm, I understand, the end of the year is always the main event." Lin Xiuyuan nodded empathetically.

Although he wasn't an Idol, he knew well the level of busyness in the entertainment industry at the end of the year.

"Yeah~" Liu Zhimin nodded, then her eyes drifted to look at Lin Xiuyuan, and she added in a seemingly casual tone, "So, if you want to ask me out, you have to do it early. Any later, once I get completely busy, I'll really have to squeeze just to find time to eat and sleep. By then, if you want to ask me out, I'm afraid you'll have to wait in line until next year."

When she said this, that graceful body leaned forward slightly unconsciously, a sweet smile on her face, but a look of expectation flickering in her eyes.

The thoughts in her heart were almost written on her face.

The opportunity is rare, you decide what to do.

And Lin Xiuyuan was certainly no fool; almost the second after Liu Zhimin's voice fell, he heard the subtext of someone's words from that bright smile and the deliberately emphasized tone.

He just couldn't help but find it a bit funny, so he deliberately asked back, "Why? Didn't you already make plans with your friends? If I kidnap you, won't your sisters and best friends be angry?"

"Oh my, they've already been playing in Dubai for two days; they've probably finished most of the shopping and sightseeing they wanted to do." Liu Zhimin waved her hand, looking indifferent, "Anyway, one more of me isn't too many, and one less isn't too few. I'll just let them know."

However, there was a deeper thought that remained unspoken.

Compared to shopping and chatting with familiar sisters or repeating those leisure activities, Liu Zhimin was actually looking forward to walking around and exploring an unfamiliar city with the young man before her, who could always bring her novel feelings and a relaxed, pleasant atmosphere.

Especially during these few meetings with him, whether it was chatting online or brief offline contact, she felt a sense of indescribable comfort and happiness each time more than the last.

That feeling was different from being with friends; it was a little beauty belonging to the ambiguous and flirtatious phase.

But after she finished speaking, she keenly noticed a very brief hesitation flash across Lin Xiuyuan's face.

Although that hesitation was fleeting, as fast as if it were her own illusion, it still made Liu Zhimin's heart skip a beat.

Tilting her small head to one side, she asked with a hint of uncertainty in her clear eyes, "No, Xiuyuan, with that reaction of yours, don't tell me you really have a story with that senior over there."

Watching Liu Zhimin's little look of instant vigilance, Lin Xiuyuan found it amusing, and a helpless smile rose at the corners of his mouth.

He shook his head, "That's not it; I was just seriously thinking about another problem."

"What?"

"It's just that if I really wander the streets of Dubai with a popular Idol like you, and accidentally get photographed or cause some scandal, will your fanatical fans crawl through the internet cables and take me out?"

While speaking, Lin Xiuyuan made a throat-slitting gesture with an exaggerated expression.

This little humorous remark and gesture immediately dispelled the slight gloom that had just risen in Liu Zhimin's heart.

She let out a "Ha" and laughed, her eyes curving into crescent moons, and the previous tension and annoyance vanished instantly.

Then she smiled and chided, "You've said this many times during our online chats, always saying you want to experience what it's like to be hunted by my fans. Now that the opportunity seems to be right in front of you, why have you turned cowardly and started to get scared?"

"This isn't being cowardly; this is called cherishing a beautiful life." Lin Xiuyuan corrected her with a straight face, raising his eyebrows at her, "The world is so beautiful, and I haven't enjoyed the sunshine, beaches, delicious food, and a great beauty like you enough yet; I'm not ready to say goodbye to them so soon."

Then, seeing Liu Zhimin's expression of trying to hold back a laugh, he laughed too.

He then smacked his lips and continued, "But having said that, as you just mentioned, the opportunity is rare, and I seem to owe you a complete sunset. Since the time and place are so coincidental this time, it would be a bit unreasonable if I didn't pay off that debt."

"I thought you had forgotten long ago." Upon hearing this, Liu Zhimin's heartstrings seemed to be gently plucked; her gaze shifted, and there was more softness and anticipation in the look she gave Lin Xiuyuan.

She hadn't expected him to actually remember such a casual promise.

"How could I forget." Lin Xiuyuan shook his head, "It's just that I saw your schedule was always so full, even the time for online chatting was like playing guerrilla warfare, and the time zones didn't match. I was afraid that if I asked you out rashly, it would disturb your rest or put you in a difficult position, so I never dared to bring it up."

Hearing this, the little knot in Liu Zhimin's heart caused by his previous hesitation completely dissipated, replaced by a warmth from being cared about.

Thus, she made a move even more proactive than before.

Her body leaned slightly forward, narrowing the distance between the two of them that wasn't very far to begin with, and she looked at Lin Xiuyuan with a pair of bright, sparkling eyes, her voice becoming softer.

"Then it seems we are really fated this time; the time and place are both quite good, don't you think?"

With Liu Zhimin's forward-leaning movement, the neckline of her minimalist pure white off-shoulder top opened slightly, revealing her delicate collarbones and a patch of fair skin.

The hem of the top was a crop-top design, and because of her sitting posture and crossed legs, a small section of her slender, supple waist was visible, and her round navel was clearly in sight.

So Lin Xiuyuan's gaze followed her movement and naturally lingered on her small belly for a moment.

That passing glance was very frank and not lecherous, carrying a sense of appreciation, yet it also made Liu Zhimin clearly feel that heat.

Therefore, being used to such gazes, she not only didn't dodge or sit up straight, but instead met Lin Xiuyuan's eyes, the corners of her mouth curling into a brighter, even slightly seductive smile as she looked at him, "How is it? Am I better looking, or is that senior's figure better looking?"

Upon hearing this, the smile on Lin Xiuyuan's face deepened a bit, but he didn't answer this trap question directly.

He just glanced at her lightly, then suddenly pushed off the seat cushion with both hands and stood up nimbly.

He said concisely, "I'm off, see you after landing."

After speaking, without waiting for Liu Zhimin to react, he turned around and walked straight back toward the direction of his seat with his long legs.

Leaving Liu Zhimin alone, still maintaining her slightly forward-leaning posture, she blinked her eyes, watching that dashing departing back, and only came back to her senses a few seconds later.

"Coward."

She mouthed the word silently at the air, but the smile on her face grew larger and larger; finally, she shook her head with a smile and leaned back into her seat.

Recalling the conversation between the two just now, from her own initiative to his seriousness when mentioning the promise, and then to that final look that avoided answering but said everything without words, and his departure—

As she thought about it, the smile at the corners of her mouth couldn't be suppressed, and she imagined a series of subsequent developments, feeling very sweet.

However, as she smiled, her smile gradually faded, eventually settling into calmness.

After putting her earphones back on, she looked out at the boundless sea of clouds outside the window, and her whole person fell into a state of emptiness.

Her gaze was somewhat unfocused, not knowing what she was thinking about.