Are We Moving Too Fast?

"Starting a business?"

Li Shihan felt a little disappointed, but she was even more surprised. "What are you planning to do?"

She did not know whether Zhou Feiyu had understood what she had just said, but no matter what, he would not be coming to Peng City for her. This blind date would probably end without going anywhere.

Although Li Shihan had not placed much hope in this blind date from the beginning, Zhou Feiyu struck her as steady, warmhearted, honest, and reliable, without any hidden schemes. He was undoubtedly a high-quality match.

Zhou Feiyu's unwillingness to come to Peng City for her naturally left her disappointed. What girl did not want to be pursued actively and passionately? It was a reflection of her own charm!

But she quickly calmed herself and began to grow curious about Zhou Feiyu's business venture.

Li Shihan pressed on, "Your salary is already very high compared to people back home. Why are you still taking the risk of starting a business? These past few years, physical stores have become harder and harder to run. E-commerce has driven so many of them out of business."

Zhou Feiyu smiled faintly. "Don't laugh at me when I say this, but I feel the time has come. Besides, if I don't go out and make something of myself, I'd feel like I was letting myself down. I'm still young, after all. And those physical stores you mentioned that e-commerce drove out of business? I don't think much of them at all. They're just distributors, one after another. E-commerce is merely moving stores online. The things they sell still have to be produced by real industries. Without actual production, what would they have to sell? My business venture is in manufacturing."

Li Shihan was even more astonished. She stared at him in surprise. "So you're planning to open a factory."

A different emotion suddenly flickered in her heart and eyes.

Anyone who could open a factory, even a tiny one with only a few employees, seemed extraordinary in the eyes of others. It meant they possessed formidable strength—financial resources, connections, and, more importantly, courage.

"Yes, but it's only just beginning. It doesn't amount to much yet."

Zhou Feiyu neither boasted nor acted humble. He merely said it casually, unwilling to discuss the matter too much before he had succeeded.

Then he changed the subject. "Do your two cousins both live with you in Peng City? What kind of work do they do?"

Knowing he did not want to say more, Li Shihan suppressed her curiosity and replied, "Yes, they both live with me. My older cousin, Li Shiyu, works in procurement at a company. My younger cousin, Li Shixin, is working in livestreaming now."

Zhou Feiyu asked curiously, "Livestreaming? Does she stream herself?"

Every so often, a different trend swept through society.

In the past, e-commerce had been the trend, creating countless legends of wealth. Later, mobile phones became the trend, giving rise to one phone empire after another. Now, livestreams and short videos were the trend, and who knew how many people were rushing toward it.

But in real life, livestreaming was still quite rare, enough to pique his curiosity.

Li Shihan shook her head. "No, she doesn't stream herself. She works behind the scenes in management, handling operations, promotion, and managing streamers."

"That's impressive!"

Zhou Feiyu praised her, then asked with interest, "What kind of streams does she mainly work with? Talent shows or something else?"

Li Shihan smiled. "She is quite impressive. She's only nineteen this year and graduated from vocational school, but she's been smart since childhood. She's bold, too, and she's good with words. Not talent streams—sales livestreams."

Zhou Feiyu smiled. "I'll have to take a good look someday."

He was not actually interested in livestreaming and had never paid attention to it, but livestreaming and the influencer economy were now society's trendsetters. Since someone around him worked in the industry, it would not hurt to look into it when he had time. It might come in handy someday.

For the first time in his life, Zhou Feiyu found himself able to chat casually with a girl without stopping, and there was no awkwardness between him and Li Shihan. Even when they briefly ran out of things to say, they quickly and tacitly shifted to other topics, continuing to share their thoughts.

At first, Zhou Feiyu thought it was because he had loosened up. But when they entered the theater and the movie began, he sat down and thought about it calmly, suddenly realizing that Li Shihan was very clever.

One phrase could describe Li Shihan: considerate and understanding.

Li Shihan was very good at taking care of his feelings. She did not press him about things he did not want to discuss, and she carried a warm smile that put people at ease. When he wanted to talk, she did not deliberately flatter him either. Instead, she listened and responded at just the right moments, ensuring he neither became smug nor felt disappointed.

On the enormous IMAX screen, the Hollywood effects blockbuster Ready Player One was playing. Deafening mechanical roars echoed throughout the theater as the male lead led the female lead through one peril after another. It was thrilling and exciting, filled with a fondness and love that made people envious.

"I'm going back tonight."

When the male and female leads left the virtual reality game and returned to reality, when everything had settled down again, Zhou Feiyu leaned to the right and moved close to Li Shihan, whispering softly.

Li Shihan's body stiffened. She froze for a moment, and even the hand holding popcorn paused. "Oh!" she answered, appearing very calm.

Zhou Feiyu felt a little disappointed as well. It was a normal reaction.

He sat upright again and continued watching the movie.

As everything continued and Zhou Feiyu began to immerse himself in the plot, the back of his right hand suddenly grew warm as a hand, warm and smooth as jade, rested on it.

Zhou Feiyu froze, then a powerful surge of joy flooded his heart. His face immediately broke into a smile. Instinctively, he turned his right hand over and tightly clasped that warm, jade-like hand.

The warm hand did not pull away. Instead, it obediently let his right hand hold it, their fingers interlacing.

Glancing sideways in the light of the screen, he saw that Li Shihan's face was faintly flushed. She sat completely still, staring at the movie screen without even blinking.

Clearly, making that move seemed to have used up all of Li Shihan's strength.

Zhou Feiyu's heart stirred. He could hear his own heart beating powerfully, and through that warm, jade-like hand, he could also feel Li Shihan's heartbeat. Their heartbeats seemed to have fallen into rhythm, beating together in perfect sync.

A faint fragrance drifted from Li Shihan to Zhou Feiyu's nose. An unprecedented feeling, one that made his heart feel open and refreshed, lingered between them.

Silence spoke louder than words!

Zhou Feiyu suddenly had a thought. Why not just stay in Peng City?

Time always passed quickly when one was immersed in beautiful feelings.

Click!

To Zhou Feiyu, it felt as if only an instant had passed before the movie ended. The theater lights came on, flooding the entire cinema with brightness as though it were daytime.

"I should go home."

Li Shihan abruptly stood up, wanting to leave first. Her left hand also tried to break free from Zhou Feiyu's right hand. She felt that she had acted on impulse just now; they had only known each other for two days.

"I'll walk you out."

Zhou Feiyu hurriedly stood up. His right hand, which had been about to let go, suddenly tightened again.

Yeah, that was just a natural reaction. Her "resistance" triggered my contrarian streak. It wasn't because I didn't want to let go.

That was what Zhou Feiyu told himself.

What happened next was somewhat beyond Zhou Feiyu's expectations. Li Shihan, whom he had thought would try to break free again, did not struggle anymore. After he tightened his grip, he gave her hand a pull, and she obediently let him lead her away. She followed behind him without saying a word, silently allowing him to guide her through the crowd.

They held hands tightly all the way out of the cinema and onto the street, looking exactly like a young couple in love.

"Zhou Feiyu, aren't we moving too fast?"

Li Shihan bit her lip and looked at Zhou Feiyu as she spoke softly.

"What?"

Zhou Feiyu smiled, about to speak.

A surprised voice came from behind them and interrupted him. "You're Zhou Feiyu? Why are you in Peng City?"