Chapter 2642: South City Tonight Has Rain 04

Italy, four o'clock in the afternoon.

Xie Linzhou and the team members finished today's work and returned to their apartment in Milan city area.

Days of overcast rain had passed; today the rain stopped, and even though it was still overcast, it still made Xie Linzhou feel much more relaxed.

He took off his coat and heard his phone notification—it was a message from Jin Chen.

Xie Linzhou opened the video and first saw Jin Chen's hand shaking a shaker cup—his hand was handsome, with long fingers, the veins and tendons on the back of his hand clearly visible, full of strength, the lines of his forearm taut, revealing a hint of hidden tension.

Xie Linzhou couldn't help watching the video several times, inexplicably feeling a bit dry-mouthed, he licked his slightly dry lips.

At the end of the video, the camera focused on the finished drink.

Zhouzhou: Very nice.

Soon, Jin Chen's reply came back.

Jin Chen: It's called Rainy Night Lighthouse.

Jin Chen: Zhouzhou, think of a dedication for this drink.

Xie Linzhou looked at the words on the screen, then opened the video again—the drink's color and name were both quite special.

Zhouzhou: Wait a moment.

Zhouzhou: Can I have a friend recreate this drink? I want to try.

Jin Chen: Sure.

He went downstairs to the open bar in the living room.

An Yu from the team was sitting there reading a book; this girl usually loved tinkering with these things, the small bar was also set up by her, and her bartending skills were quite good for an amateur.

"An Yu, help me out." Xie Linzhou handed over his phone, "Take a look at this—can you recreate it?"

An Yu curiously took the phone and opened the video, unable to help exclaiming, "Wow, this person's bartending skills are awesome! Boss, who is this?"

She lifted her head to look at Xie Linzhou.

Xie Linzhou's ears felt warm, "... He's my boyfriend."

"Oh~" Xiang Wenqing, sitting in a swivel chair nearby, rolled over laughing and joined in the teasing.

An Yu laughed and patted her chest, "Got it, got it, leave it to me! Let me take a look…"

She carefully studied the steps in the video and compared them to Jin Chen's written recipe, "Hmm, I have all the base liquors I need right here—I'll give it a try!"

An Yu, after all not a professional bartender, tried making a cup; its color resembled the video's about eighty to ninety percent, "Boss, I can only roughly recreate it, the taste might differ a bit, please bear with me."

Xie Linzhou took the recreated Rainy Night Lighthouse and thanked her.

He rarely drank alcohol, and took a small sip.

On the palate, elderflower liqueur brought a sweet freshness, followed by a slight acidity from lime, then the cold fragrance of violet emerged, finally dispersed by the dense fizz, leaving a refreshing aftertaste.

Like a beam of light breaking through the mist on a cold, rainy day.

Truly fitting its name, Rainy Night Lighthouse.

Xie Linzhou doesn't often drink, but he was amazed and looked forward to tasting the drink Jin Chen mixed himself.

But looking at the beautiful purple liquid in the cup, he still felt somewhat troubled and picked up his phone.

Zhouzhou: I still haven't thought of a dedication.

Jin Chen's reply came quickly.

Jin Chen: No rush, after all it's only made for you.

Xie Linzhou looked at those words, blinked in surprise, then glanced at the wine glass in his hand.

Zhouzhou: Won't you serve it to customers?

This time, Jin Chen sent a voice message.

Xie Linzhou opened it, held the phone to his ear, and Jin Chen's distinctive voice—tinged with a hint of laziness and clarity—spoke through the earpiece, as if sounding right beside his ear: "No. This is your drinks menu, the first one."

Xie Linzhou listened to the voice message again; his lips, moistened by the drink, had a faint pink tint, and suddenly the sour lime he'd tasted turned into threads of sweetness, spreading from the tip of his tongue to his heart.

He felt he might be a little drunk; otherwise, how could he feel his body light as if walking on clouds?

{Villain Heartthrob Value +5, total 35! }

Tonight there were more guests than usual, and Jin Chen didn't start his late shift until midnight.

The noise gradually faded; he changed back into his regular clothes, walked toward the underground parking garage, and only then had a moment to take out his phone.

The screen lit up, showing several unread messages from Xie Linzhou and a few voice notes.

Jin Chen sat in the driver's seat, went through them one by one, and opened those voice messages.

Through the earphones came Xie Linzhou's voice, softer and more pliable than usual, as if soaked in alcohol.

He chatted on about today's trivial work matters, complaining about the attitude of the engineering team's supervisor—how perfunctory and hard to deal with—his tone helpless.

There were also murmurs, as if talking to himself.

"……Autumn in Italy seems to have more sunny days than in South City, but I still want to go back to South City."

Jin Chen listened to them one by one; the neon lights outside the window flashed across his profile, and after the last voice message finished playing, he curled the corner of his mouth, paused his fingertip on the screen for a moment, and dialed the phone.

The phone rang for a long time, but no one answered.

The mechanical alert tone sounded clear in the quiet carriage.

Jin Chen didn't keep calling, put his phone on the passenger seat, started the car, and merged into the endless flow of vehicles on South City's midnight streets.

Autumn deepened, the night wind brought a chill, sweeping up withered yellow leaves that slapped against the car windows.

At a red light, he stopped; Jin Chen watched the light and shadow flit past outside the window, and the phone on the passenger seat finally rang.

It was Xie Linzhou calling back.

Jin Chen put on his earphones and pressed the answer button.

"Zhouzhou."

Jin Chen listened to the other side's silence for a few seconds, his low voice inexplicably tinged with teasing, "Are you drunk?"

"No." Xie Linzhou did not admit.

He shifted his posture and sank into the sofa, half-drawn architectural sketches scattered beside him, and said, "I just dozed off for a bit."

He took advantage of the fact that the other party couldn't see him over the phone but could hear his light laughter; Xie Linzhou's ears still turned red, and the faint flush on his face from alcohol deepened further.

The daze brought by the alcohol made the usual aloofness of the elite architect fade considerably, revealing a hint of softness underneath.