I feel right at home in the world of the courtyard house.

Just after lunch, the steel rolling mill workers walked back in twos and threes. The main road of the factory was bustling with people. The clinking of lunch boxes and the sounds of laughter and joking were mixed together, creating a unique liveliness that is characteristic of large factories.

Li Jing'an deliberately slowed his pace, not returning to the guesthouse, but instead circling around to the floor where the switchboard room was located. He put his hands in his pockets, pretending to be taking a walk after dinner, and waited patiently.

Just a few minutes later, a sound came from the stairs, and Zhou Yufei came out carrying an enamel lunchbox. Her short hair, which was about to fall to her ears, swayed slightly in the wind. She still looked as neat and tidy as ever, with gentle eyes and light steps.

Li Jing'an immediately stepped forward, a gentle smile spreading across his face, his voice clear and slightly apologetic: "Comrade, please wait a moment."

Zhou Yufei stopped and turned to look at him. She paused for a moment, then recognized the man who had bumped into her at the dance last night. A polite smile appeared on her face: "Oh, it's you. Is there something you need?"

"There were a lot of people at the club yesterday, and I accidentally bumped into you. I've felt really bad about it ever since," Li Jing'an stopped in front of her, his gaze sincere, and looked her up and down. "I came here specifically to ask if you were hurt. I'm just glad you're alright."

"It's nothing, just a minor bump, it's nothing serious." Zhou Yufei said calmly, maintaining a safe distance, clearly not wanting to talk too much.

Li Jing'an, seemingly oblivious to her aloofness, chuckled and said, "I didn't know you worked in the switchboard room. What a coincidence. My name is Li Jing'an, and I'm the director of the factory's second guesthouse. I'm so sorry for the trouble I caused you last night." He proactively introduced himself and his name. "If you ever need anything in the future, just come find me on the third floor of the guesthouse. I'm always there."

Zhou Yufei had naturally heard of Li Jing'an. She had answered calls from him more than once while working at the switchboard, and had often overheard people talking about him. She knew that this Director Li had quite a bit of influence in the factory. She intended to say a few polite words and then leave, but before she could speak, another person came down the stairs—it was Xiao Su.

When Xiao Su looked up and saw Li Jing'an standing at the door, her face flushed red instantly, the blush spreading from her cheeks to her ears. She was convinced that Li Jing'an had come specifically to wait for her, and her steps became lighter.

She stepped forward, her voice barely audible: "Director Li... Director Li."

Li Jing'an turned to look at her and nodded slightly: "Xiao Su, did you just finish eating?"

This greeting conveniently gave Zhou Yufei an excuse to leave. She didn't want to get entangled with the director anyway, so she smiled and nodded to the two of them, "You two talk first, I'll go back now." After saying that, without waiting for Li Jing'an to respond, she turned around and left quickly. The hem of her maroon dress fluttered gently in the wind, and she was soon gone.

Li Jing'an's gaze followed the retreating figure until she turned the corner of the dormitory building and completely disappeared from sight. Only then did he slowly withdraw his gaze, the focused desire in his eyes vanishing in an instant. He turned his head, his tone casual: "I'm free anyway, want to go for a walk together?"

Xiao Su nodded quickly and followed beside him, walking slowly along the tree-lined path in the factory area. The fallen plane tree leaves of late autumn covered the ground, rustling underfoot. As they walked side by side, Xiao Su's heart was pounding, and she would steal glances at the man beside her every now and then.

After walking for a while, Xiao Su finally mustered up her courage and spoke softly, her tone tinged with curiosity: "Director Li, you...you and Comrade Zhou Yufei, have you known each other for a long time?"

"I don't really know her," Li Jing'an said, his hands in the pockets of his Zhongshan suit. "I accidentally bumped into her at the dance last night, and we just happened to run into each other today, so I came over to apologize." As he spoke, he casually turned his head and asked, "By the way, what does this Zhou Yufei's family do? What's her background?"

Xiao Su didn't think much of it, assuming it was just her boss casually asking about her colleague. She immediately spoke up without any guard, her tone tinged with envy: "She doesn't have any connections. Her parents work at that small factory in the west of the city with about a hundred employees. They're just ordinary workers, and their family's financial situation is very average. Her boyfriend, Chen Qing, has parents who work at the same factory, and the two families live in the same courtyard. They grew up together; they're childhood sweethearts."

She paused, then couldn't help but sigh, "Their relationship is so good, many people in the factory envy them. They've been close since childhood, and they were even assigned to the same place after graduation. It's truly rare."

Li Jing'an nodded slightly, then casually asked, "Is Zhou Yufei also a vocational school student?"

"No," Xiao Su shook her head, "She isn't, her boyfriend Chen Qing is."

Li Jing'an listened, a smile playing on his lips. No connections, just an ordinary working-class family, childhood sweetheart, from a tenement courtyard, and even her education wasn't particularly impressive.

Unconsciously, the two arrived at the entrance of the Second Guesthouse. The gray three-story building stood on the edge of the factory area, quiet and solemn. A wooden sign that read "Second Guesthouse of the Steel Rolling Mill" hung at the entrance, exuding a serious atmosphere.

Li Jing'an stopped and turned to look at the flustered Xiao Su beside him: "We're at the door. Come up and sit for a while. There's hot water in my office. Have a drink before you go."

Xiao Su blushed instantly, unsure of what to do with her hands and feet. She lowered her head, fidgeting with the hem of her clothes, and whispered her refusal, "No, I... I have to go back to work."

"It won't take more than a few minutes," Li Jing'an gently pulled her wrist, his grip light. "Come on, let's go upstairs and sit down."

He pulled Xiao Su along, half-pushing her, and they walked into the guesthouse. In the duty room on the first floor, the duty officer, Wang Caixia, was sitting at the table knitting. When she saw Li Jing'an leading a young woman upstairs, a hint of doubt flashed in her eyes, but she quickly lowered her head knowingly, pretending not to see anything. She kept turning the knitting needles in her hands, not daring to ask a single question.

Li Jing'an led Xiao Su straight up to the third floor, opened the door to his office, and let her in.

"Sit down, don't be shy." Li Jing'an closed the door, turned around and poured Xiao Su a cup of hot water, handing it to her.

Xiao Su held the warm enamel cup, sitting on the edge of the sofa, her body stiff and uneasy. She kept her head down, her fingers repeatedly rubbing the rim of the cup, not daring to even breathe loudly.

Looking at her timid and cowardly appearance, Li Jing'an's eyes flashed with impatience, but he still pretended to be gentle and sat down next to her. The sofa suddenly sank, startling Xiao Su so much that she almost spilled the water in her hand.

"What's there to be nervous about?" Li Jing'an chuckled. "It's just dating, I'm not going to eat you."

As soon as he finished speaking, he placed one of his hands directly on Xiao Su's leg. His rough palm, through the thin pants, was burning hot. Xiao Su trembled in fright and tried to move her leg away, reaching out to push his hand away, but Li Jing'an grabbed her wrist and held it firmly in his palm.

"What? You don't want to be my girlfriend?" Li Jing'an's face darkened, his tone was oppressive, and his gaze was fixed on her reddened eyes.

"No...that's not what I meant..." Xiao Su was so anxious she was almost crying. She quickly shook her head and explained, her voice trembling with tears.

"No, why are you dodging?" Li Jing'an snorted coldly, grabbed her waist with his other hand, pulled her tightly to his side, and lowered his head to kiss her lips.

"No! Director Li, no!" Xiao Su struggled desperately, pushing against his chest with both hands, her head constantly dodging, pleading repeatedly, tears streaming down her face.

She was weak to begin with, and her struggles were futile in Li Jing'an's eyes. But seeing her tearful and desperately resisting appearance, Li Jing'an's interest immediately waned.

After all, he still had some reservations about this young girl, and his grip loosened slightly for a moment.

In that brief moment of relaxation, Xiao Su suddenly pushed him away forcefully, scrambled to her feet from the sofa, opened the door without looking back, and ran out in a panic.

Li Jing'an sat on the sofa, watching her flee in panic, and twitched the corner of his mouth. She ran away, so what? Just a little Su; he hadn't taken her seriously anyway, merely a pastime for when he had nothing better to do. The one he truly cared about was someone else entirely.

Wang Caixia, downstairs, heard hurried footsteps coming from the stairwell. Looking up, she saw the young girl from before, pale-faced and frantic, running out of the guesthouse without even daring to say hello. Just as she looked down, she heard Li Jing'an's voice from the third floor, clearly calling her name: "Wang Caixia!"

Wang Caixia quickly put down the sweater, got up and hurried upstairs. When she reached the office door on the third floor, she gently knocked on the door.

"Come in."

She pushed open the door and went in, seeing Li Jing'an lounging lazily on the sofa.

Wang Caixia called out softly, "Brother Li."

Li Jing'an looked up at her and said, "Lock the door."

Wang Caixia immediately understood his meaning. Without saying a word, she turned around, closed the office door behind her, picked up the latch, and gently pressed it to lock the door securely.