Can following the rules be called rebirth?

Chapter 259, Section 257: The Oblivious Straight Man

"what?"

Zhou Mingyuan, with one hand on the steering wheel, glanced at the rearview mirror and said casually.

"I didn't buy this."

"It was given to me by Xiao Lizhi."

After a few seconds of pause, the man continued.

"As you know, she had a minor accident a few days ago, her car was rear-ended and had to be taken to the 4S shop for repairs."

"If you ask me, I'd say that people from the Cantonese region are just superstitious."

"She insisted on getting a good luck charm. To thank me for driving her to the law firm during this time, she brought me one too."

"They said it was for peace of mind."

The man's tone was relaxed, and his words sounded natural and reasonable.

"I see"

Gu Caiwei remained expressionless: "She is quite thoughtful, isn't she?"

The amulet was a gift from my best friend.

Li Zhi's name was like a pebble thrown into Gu Caiwei's seemingly calm heart, creating ripples in circles.

Sure enough it was her.

Gu Caiwei turned her head to the side, holding the brown teddy bear in both hands, her fingertips clenching as she moved her fingers back and forth on the plush sides of the doll.

She turned her gaze back to the amulet.

The striking bright red color hangs prominently on the rearview mirror in the center of the field of vision, with the tail of the wheat stalk swaying with inertia, making its presence very noticeable.

Why did Li Zhi give this as a gift?
Was it simply because she herself was traumatized by the accident, and in order to thank Zhou Mingyuan for acting as her driver, she also asked for one for him?

Based on her understanding of Li Zhi
It doesn't seem like something a best friend would do.

Of course, if it were Zhou Mingyuan, there would be a variety of sufficient reasons.

After all, they were both going to Nanhu Industrial Park on the way, and they were also very good friends. In fact, she got to know Zhou Mingyuan through her best friend.

Just a small gift to express gratitude, right?
Gu Caiwei shook her head, forcing herself not to think too much.

What was Li Zhi thinking when she was choosing a good luck charm?
What were your feelings when your best friend hung it in Zhou Mingyuan's car?
What was Zhou Mingyuan's reaction at that time?
He just accepted it with a smile?
Did they allow Li Zhi to place the amulet, an item with strong personal connotations and superstitious symbolism, in his private space?
Countless trivial questions swirled in her mind, with no way out.

Gu Caiwei rested her chin on her hand, her gaze fixed on the scenery rushing past the window.

She was even imagining things.

Imagine what your best friend would say to him when she puts on the amulet.

My mind was in a state of turmoil.

Gu Caiwei found herself unconsciously speculating about Li Zhi's intentions and analyzing Zhou Mingyuan's attitude.

I was actually a little annoyed.

That's right.

Although I really hate to admit it, I am indeed a little unhappy.

Li Zhi was aware of the traffic accident.

She even joked that her best friend was superstitious, mentioning that she had obtained a peace charm from somewhere and that she herself had teased her about it.

But she took it back and gave it to Zhou Mingyuan, but not to herself!

A little bit of strangeness, a little bit of concern, a little bit of feeling ignored, mixed together into a complex and indescribable emotion that quietly fermented in her heart.

The air inside the car seemed to have become a little thin, and the heater started to heat up.

Gu Caiwei remained calm and adjusted the direction of the air conditioner vents.

"Yes."

At this moment, Zhou Mingyuan was exactly like a clueless, straight man.

His attention seemed to be constantly focused on the road conditions as he spoke with a smile.

"She said hanging it up would bring good luck, so I just let her be. It doesn't really matter anyway."

Let her do whatever she wants.

What a fine "whatever" attitude!

It was mentioned so casually, as if it were nothing more than a trivial matter.

".Um."

Gu Caiwei responded softly, the corners of her lips maintaining an upward curve.

But the smile didn't really reach his eyes.

Are you superstitious?

"me."

Zhou Mingyuan casually said, "I have a lot of experience, or maybe a little bit, strictly speaking."

There is an old saying in our country: "It is better to believe that something exists than to believe that it does not."

"Ha, I didn't expect you to be so superstitious."

Gu Caiwei pouted, turned her head silently, and looked back at the road that stretched endlessly ahead.

That red hue still flickered in my peripheral vision, impossible to ignore.

Jiangcheng University of Finance and Economics is only a ten-minute drive from Optics Valley.

The cityscape outside the window rushed past, and the skyscrapers of Optics Valley gradually came into view.

The two chatted casually along the way, seemingly unaware of the silent storm raging within the person beside him.

He drove into the parking lot of Optics Valley World City, slowed down, and looked for a suitable parking space. The car came to a stop.

"Let's go, let's go, it feels so good to breathe in the fresh air."

Zhou Mingyuan unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the car door first.

The cold winter wind rushed in instantly, dissipating the warmth inside the car and calming Gu Caiwei down a bit.

She got off the car and stood on the right-hand side, waiting for Zhou Mingyuan to come around.

The man locked the car and walked to her side.

The two walked side by side toward the elevator.

Zhou Mingyuan was a little taller than her, so she had to tilt her head back slightly to see his eyes.

As she walked, Gu Caiwei couldn't help but turn her head away.

My gaze involuntarily drifted back to the distant Panamera.

Through the windshield, a faint red mark can still be seen hanging on the rearview mirror.

"Eh~"

"Don't you think this amulet is quite pretty?"

A soft, sweet voice drifted in the midday breeze.

"It looks alright, not too old-fashioned."

Zhou Mingyuan shrugged, his tone relaxed.

"Honestly, I can't accept a design like the scribbled characters from the 1980s."

"She just bought the lychee on a whim. I guess she thought it looked nice when she bought it, so she brought an extra one to repay the favor."

The man smiled broadly, displaying a typical, straightforward understanding.

"You know her, right? She's a new driver who crashed her car, so it's probably a bit scary. It's normal for her to start believing in these things."

It's just a matter of convenience.

I brought an extra person to repay the favor.

All are normal.

Zhou Mingyuan's choice of words was completely careless.

In other words, his understanding remained within the scope of friendship.

Regardless of whether Li Zhi had ulterior motives, in his mind, it was nothing more than a friend's casual act of care.

And superstitions that arise on a whim.

Zhou Mingyuan is such a straight man.
He clearly didn't think that much about it, nor did he give the amulet any special meaning.

His candor, even his joking tone, seemed to be stating a fact.

Well, everyone knows that.

This is the kind of silly yet endearing little thing that Li Zhi would do.

"."

Gu Caiwei didn't respond immediately, her cherry lips pursed.

Strangely, the unease in my heart did not dissipate.

In fact, if Zhou Mingyuan showed even the slightest discomfort or revealed anything else, she might have been able to clearly detect some kind of signal.

But he was so open and unconcerned.

This frankness, ironically, made him seem quite strange.

Some of the subtle speculations and calculations in one's mind are making a mountain out of a molehill.

How can you be so petty!

Her earlier cautious actions in the shadows, which the other party was completely unaware of, made her seem petty.

Gu Caiwei is too smart.

Even their reflection and understanding come much faster than others.

So this fact made her feel a little embarrassed and doubtful of herself.

Gu Caiwei gripped the corner of her coat tightly, glancing at Zhou Mingyuan's expression once more out of the corner of her eye.

That straight man is still the same.

Am I being too sensitive?
Did she really just casually take the lychee as a thank-you gift?

I've always scoffed at superstition, so I never prepared anything for myself.

Could it be that all of this is just my subconscious competitive instincts at work, and I'm over-interpreting my best friend's behavior?
Ahhhhhhhh.
Gu Caiwei raised her chin and took a deep breath of the slightly cool air.

But my intuition was loudly refuting me.

wrong!

Wake up!
not like this!
The struggle between reason and intuition made her even more confused.

She couldn't convince herself to fully believe Zhou Mingyuan's interpretation, nor could she be completely certain of her own guess.

This sense of uncertainty spread like fog, making her shake her head and clear her mind.

Forget it.

"Yeah, that makes sense."

A few seconds later, Gu Caiwei also started laughing.

"New drivers are more prone to stress."

(End of this chapter)