‘SEE YOU MORNING’ 155 Instinct 2

When he woke up on a new morning, the sweet memories from the movie the night before felt like something that could only exist in dreams in today’s world.

Lin Yuhui had simple life goals: go to work to earn money, live as long as he could, and offer whatever support his child might need along life’s journey.

Upon arriving at the office, he focused on his workstation, sat down and turned on his computer to get started. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Lila standing by the floor-to-ceiling window right across the desk in the front left area.

Lin Yuhui wanted nothing to do with any of them. For months, the women in the office had kept talking about looking for partners. He was the only single man around, yet Cerise went on blind dates with others after work. She never gave him a hint after he made his feelings clear. She was never truly searching for a partner; she just wanted every man around her to submit to her.

Lin Yuhui felt he had been led on. What was worse, she had also ruined any chance he might have had with other women. The thought of it filled him with annoyance.

“David doesn’t pay attention to Cerise anymore,” Lila gossiped, completely unaware of the whole story. She had no idea what Cerise was really like or what was going on.

“Out of sight, out of mind,” Stephanie replied. As someone with more life experience, she knew exactly what had happened.

It was past ten o’clock in the morning. The bright sun streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows and flooded the entire room. Dylan turned the air conditioner down to the lowest setting. He never adjusted it back to a milder temperature after the room cooled rapidly. He was overweight, or more accurately, troubled by excessive internal heat.

Lin Yuhui used to adjust the air conditioner for everyone. He suffered from poor cardiac blood supply and could not stand the cold, and the other female colleagues felt the same way. But now he refused to bother. Whenever the office grew chilly, he would step outside to warm himself up.

This area in Jiangzhe lies on the same latitude as Shanghai. The sun at half past ten in July and August blazed intensely, its light too harsh to look at directly.

There was a pump house on the west side of the office building, surrounded by open ground and paths. Lin Yuhui loved walking there, where he could stay undisturbed.

The scorching sun first raised the temperature of his body surface, with heat also spreading through the air above the ground. Oddly enough, the intense heat did not make him sweat. The stark temperature difference between inside and outside his body only made the cold in his limbs more noticeable.

While strolling here, he would often spot small animals: sparrows, turtle doves which were quite numerous in the area, as well as common magpies, crows and many stray cats.

After walking around the paths twice, he finally felt the cold inside his body chased away by the sunlight, and warmth spread all over him. He lingered a little longer in the sun. Cicadas chirped loudly in the bushes by the road, as if wailing through the sweltering summer days.

Lin Yuhui disagreed with the lifestyle of young people nowadays, who relied on heaters in winter and air conditioners in summer. He preferred to follow the rhythm of nature, embracing the heat of summer and enduring the cold of winter. He let his body respond naturally to the changes of seasons and live in harmony with their rules.

Gradually, a gentle warmth welled up from deep inside him as he walked. Sweat began to seep through his skin, seemingly driving out the lingering cold within.

Refreshed by the energy drawn from nature, Lin Yuhui headed back to the office and resumed his work.

The quarterly summary meeting was held in the afternoon. On his way to the conference room, Cerise walked through the glass door just ahead of him. She turned back and smiled, yet Lin Yuhui kept a straight face, unable to return the smile.

He could not understand why she bothered to smile at him. Were they supposed to be friendly colleagues? There was no need for that. Everyone came here simply to work and earn a living, with no real bond between them.

Entering the conference room, Lin Yuhui took the nearest vacant seat by the door. He always chose seats on the edges, disliking being surrounded by crowds.

After a while, he realized something was wrong. Almost all colleagues had arrived, but the boss was still absent. The seat to his left was empty, and further left sat the boss’s wife. He had accidentally taken the boss’s seat.

He noticed there were empty seats across the room. He wanted to move, but the projector was on and everyone was watching the screen. Crossing directly would block the view, so he decided to circle around the back of the room instead.

When he reached the far end of the conference room, he saw a group of young people messing around, smearing birthday cake all over each other’s faces.

They must have watched too many TV dramas and movies. It happened to be a colleague’s birthday that day, and the company had prepared a birthday cake for the occasion. Lin Yuhui frowned at their rude behavior. This was someone else’s birthday, and the cake was provided by the company. Such frivolous antics displeased him greatly. At the center of this little party was none other than Cerise, surrounded by a crowd of people.

He ignored their improper conduct and took one of the empty seats on the other side. Everyone present was given a slice of cake and a cup of milk tea. Lin Yuhui ate the cake but left the milk tea untouched, for he disliked drinks mixed with artificial flavorings.

As the meeting ended and he prepared to leave, the boss’s wife suddenly spoke up.

“David, tell us a joke.”

She was fond of the funny stories he posted on WeChat. Still, he pretended not to hear and walked away. He did not mean to snub her, but he was simply in no mood. He knew the couple had been trying to match up single employees in the company. He appreciated their kindness, but he would have to fulfill her request for a joke some other time. After all, telling jokes was also a chance for one to show themselves.

Back at the office, it was nearly time to get off work. The female colleagues across the way were chatting animatedly about trending gossip. Lin Yuhui just wanted peace and quiet and had no intention of joining them.

Lila talked excitedly about official media commenting on the celebrity, stressing a vulgar description with great emphasis.

Lin Yuhui could not hold back any longer. He noticed that Lila failed to realize how individual rights could be violated, including her own.

“Official media should not make such remarks about individuals. As an administrative organ, even if the person is guilty, public authorities have no right or power to insult a person’s dignity.”

He said this to remind the naive young woman to view society rationally and understand both the explicit and implicit rules that governed it.

Cerise clearly thought differently. Had his words challenged her influence? It seemed she craved more attention, for unfulfilled desires always stirred restlessness in people’s hearts.

Moments later, Cerise took Lila’s seat across from Dylan and spoke in a deliberately teasing tone.

“Dylan, want to grab dinner together tonight?”

“Huh? Are you eating here after work?” Dylan looked surprised, for she rarely dined in the staff canteen.

“Yeah, I’d like to eat here before leaving today.”

“Sure, let’s go then.”

Dylan never turned down anyone’s invitation.

Sitting nearby, Lin Yuhui saw right through Cerise’s intentions. He felt disgusted. Why would she choose such a vulgar married man to keep around and tarnish herself?