The blind boss's nanny

Lu Tingzhao finally couldn't help but chuckle softly.

"I like to call it Xiaoman. Every time I call it that, it feels like... you're still by my side."

Lin Xiaoman rolled her eyes silently.

The man paused, his voice lowering.

"Xiaoman, you won't let me get close, and you even said on the phone that you hate me... Besides sending you some money, how else can I care about you?"

This blunt, somewhat aggrieved accusation, coupled with his handsome face, instantly deflated Lin Xiaoman's arrogance. She opened her mouth, dryly trying to distance herself:

"...Thank you for your generosity, Chairman. But it really isn't necessary."

Lu Tingzhao, however, acted as if he hadn't heard, and naturally changed the subject:

"Xiaoman, you're back! Why didn't you tell me? Aunt Mei's been talking about you for ages, and A-Zhe was asking about you the other day. You have the weekend off, why don't you... go home and visit?"

He used the word "home" so naturally, as if the manor was still her rightful place.

Lin Xiaoman's heart trembled slightly because of his tone, which sounded like he was negotiating, and the concern in his words.

More importantly, he struck a chord with a secret thought that had been lurking in her heart.

After returning from abroad and completing that "farewell ceremony" about the past, Lin Xiaoman did feel an unprecedented sense of lightness. But along with it came an indescribable sense of emptiness.

It's like having emptied your old house and standing on ruins, looking around blankly, not knowing where to settle down next.

Alone, she returned to the old rural house where she had lived with her grandmother during her childhood. The place was overgrown with weeds, in ruins, and showed almost no trace of ever having been inhabited.

She went to the Sunshine House again, but the rusty door was locked. She climbed over the low wall and went inside, finding the old bed she had slept in years ago. She sat quietly on it for hours until dusk fell and darkness completely swallowed the empty room.

The power had long been cut off there, and it was deathly silent.

Her childhood, her adolescence, and her two former homes are now all deserted.

Deep inside, a voice kept calling out. She still had someone she cared about, someone she loved, in a brightly lit place.

At this moment, Lu Tingzhao extended the invitation so naturally.

Lin Xiaoman remained silent for only a few seconds before finally nodding slightly:

"...Okay. But I only have one day off."

On Saturday afternoon, Lin Xiaoman had just stepped out of the coffee shop when she spotted the black Maybach, understated yet undeniably prominent.

She walked quickly over and leaned down to knock on the passenger window.

The glass door slowly lowered, revealing Lu Tingzhao's sharply defined profile. He seemed to have been watching the doorway closely; he immediately turned to face her, a smile playing on his lips.

"Xiaoman, are you off work? Can we leave now?"

Lin Xiaoman nodded, her gaze sweeping across the car interior, only to find the driver's seat empty. She was somewhat surprised:

"Is your car... now driverless?"

"no."

Lu Tingzhao answered quickly, his tone calm and natural.

"The driver had an urgent family matter, so I told him to go home first."

He paused, then suggested in a matter-of-fact tone:

"You drive."

Lin Xiaoman opened the car door and got into the driver's seat. While fastening her seatbelt, she deliberately exposed his little scheme:

"When did the chairman become so 'considerate of his subordinates'? The driver abandoned his post, and you didn't even deduct his salary?"

She knew perfectly well that he had deliberately sent the driver away, afraid that she would change her mind at the last minute and refuse to go back to the manor with him.

Thinking of this, she preemptively gave herself a warning, her tone carrying a hint of caution:

"Let me make this clear first, I'm heading back to the city tonight. If you try anything funny again, I'm just taking this car!"

Upon hearing this, Lu Tingzhao was not annoyed at all; instead, he chuckled softly. He replied good-naturedly:

"Okay, as you wish."

Lin Xiaoman started the car and smoothly merged into the traffic. She adjusted the rearview mirror and said:

"I want to go back to my rented apartment first. I brought gifts for them, and they're at home."

"No need for that trouble."

Lu Tingzhao spoke calmly.

"Just give them a red envelope."

This is the mindset of his social class—straightforward and efficient.

Lin Xiaoman glanced at him speechlessly:

"This sounds weird... You only do this when elders give younger people lucky money, or when bosses give employees bonuses, right? This is a gift between friends."

Lu Tingzhao remained silent for a few seconds, but when he spoke again, it seemed to carry a deeper meaning:

"You'll gradually get used to this."

"What are you used to?"

Lin Xiaoman's heart skipped a beat, and she subconsciously pressed for an answer.

Lu Tingzhao did not say it outright, but turned his head towards the car window, leaving only a meaningful profile.

Lin Xiaoman, of course, did not listen to him. She turned the steering wheel and drove the car to the old-fashioned apartment building where she rented.

"Wait for me in the car for a moment, I'll go upstairs to get something, I'll be right back."

She said this while unbuckling her seatbelt.

Unexpectedly, Lu Tingzhao next to him also unbuckled his seatbelt with a "click," looking ready to get out of the car.

"I'll go with you."

Lin Xiaoman was getting a little impatient. Why was this man so troublesome? She said irritably:

"You can't see anything, my old building doesn't have an elevator, the hallways are cluttered with stuff and dark, so please don't make things worse for me, okay?"

As soon as she finished speaking, she felt the person next to her stop moving.

Lu Tingzhao was silent for a few seconds, then lowered his head slightly, lowered his voice, and said softly, with a deliberately restrained sense of loss:

"...Alright. Don't bother. I'll wait here."

A pang of pity and regret welled up in Lin Xiaoman's heart. Had she been too harsh? His eyesight was impaired; perhaps he only wanted to come along because he was afraid of being alone in an unfamiliar place…

She sighed inwardly and stretched out her arm to him:

"Hold on to my arm, stay close, and don't bump into anything. Don't blame me if you fall."

Lu Tingzhao's lips curved slightly, but he quickly regained his composure and reached out to grab her forearm.

His palms were warm, and his pressure was just right.

The two walked together towards the building entrance. The old stairwell was dimly lit and cluttered with residents' belongings. Lin Xiaoman carefully led him, muttering to herself:

"I really don't know why you insisted on following me..."

As she walked, she belatedly realized something and asked:

"By the way, why didn't you bring Yuanman with you today? Wouldn't it be more convenient to have it leading the way?"

Lu Tingzhao walked half a step to her side, and upon hearing this, calmly replied:

"Xiaoman, you'll take care of me, won't you?"

Lin Xiaoman was taken aback by his self-righteous tone of dependence and snorted coldly:

"Sir, please be realistic. We've already settled our financial accounts, okay? I have no obligation to take care of you now."