Tomorrow as Bright as Day – Chapter 37
Chapter 37
Oh, what a coincidence.
She ran into this hardworking, yet young and sexy daddy named Liang again!
The crystal chandelier in the hotel corridor spilled soft light downward. The overly heavy, elegant interior design gave off a faint sense of suffocation, as though the luxurious surroundings were tightly wrapped around her.
Or perhaps it was the gazes that focused on her were too intense.
Not only from someone familiar, but also from strangers, even foreigners.
Ming Xi blinked lightly. She and Liang Jiancheng had been crossing paths far too often lately, and now they bumped into each other in a situation like this. Neither showed much surprise.
Ming Xi, in particular, was too full of thoughts that she didn’t have time to be surprised.
She figured that both she and Liang Jiancheng must be here for work, so there was no need to act like acquaintances in front of the foreigners.
It would be better to pretend not to know each other… She decided to pretend not to know Daddy Liang.
Tilting her head downward then lifting it up again, Ming Xi regained her composure and refreshed calmness, as though the playful provocation that had flickered in her eyes earlier was merely an illusion.
Ouch! Handsome foreigner Ethan tugged at the belt of his bathrobe, impressed by this Chinese girl’s brilliant reaction. Her facial expression shifted in an instant—one moment she’d been teasing him, and the next all evidence vanished.
…What a shame. Still immersed in their earlier eye-contact chemistry, Ethan had originally planned to have a pleasant interaction with this girl who had suddenly appeared at his door. But tragically, the moment he pulled his robe back together, he’d been interrupted.
From inside the room, his father and his Chinese business partner walked out.
His father’s stern glare pierced him.
Byron (Liang Jiancheng) was a promising young foreign-trade businessman here that he had met through tennis. He played well and the two became acquainted after a satisfyingly intense match. Despite being similar in age, their race, region, and nationality were different, yet Ethan’s traditional father constantly compared the two of them. Last night he had scolded Ethan harshly for being good-for-nothing, leaving Ethan feeling utterly disgraced.
Still, Ethan admired Byron. Men often compared themselves to each other, but they weren’t even the same type. He had muscles; Byron had brains. There was no need for his father to praise one and trample the other. Wasn’t his muscle worth appreciation too?
Even the girl had been shocked by it just now.
Ming Xi: …
If she knew Ethan was thinking this way, she wouldn’t have been “shocked”, but would have praised him! And she’d have offered the most natural and enthusiastic praise!
Seeing Byron and his father come out, Ethan’s first reaction wasn’t to greet his father, but to Byron with a cheerful and relaxed greeting. He didn’t feel the slightest embarrassment about standing there in a robe. In fact, he even leaned casually against the doorframe with his arms crossed.
Mr. Mills, Ethan’s father, was a traditional German man who absolutely detested this kind of frivolous, brainless woman-chasing behavior. Even without knowing the full story, the scene before him already explained enough.
He shot Ethan another glare and told him in German to go inside and change.
Ethan raised his blue eyes, feeling so wronged. He pointed at Ming Xi and grumbled in Chinese, which his father couldn’t understand: “She’s… a female demon spirit.”
What… Ming Xi nearly lost her balance at the word “female demon spirit.” She snapped her gaze upward in shock, completely unsure how to respond.
He was the one who had intentionally exposed himself first. She had simply refused to be rattled!
“Excuse me, I’m in sales for…”
Ming Xi calmed herself down and introduced herself in English as a Longmao sales associate, handing over the two bags of clothes. She planned to finish her work and leave immediately.
Unexpectedly, the other party showed no reaction to the “female demon spirit” nickname. Ethan was about to speak another Chinese phrase—
But Ming Xi spoke faster, continuing in fluent English, “Mr. Mills, please sign for the delivery.”
Oh…
So she knocked on the wrong door.
Hearing her call him “Mr. Mills”, Ethan suddenly understood what had happened: the two bags of clothes were for his father, not him.
Ethan straightened with righteous dignity and replied in English to her request for a signature: “I’m so sorry, you’ve got the wrong person! I’m not the Mr. Mills you’re looking for.”
Ming Xi: …!
If earlier she had only felt small emotional ripples, realizing there was an actual work mistake made her feel genuine embarrassment.
Her first reaction was to pull the delivery slip from her pocket and check it. It clearly said “Scully Hotel, Room 1862.” She hadn’t made a mistake.
The only possibility was that Ding Xiao had mistyped the hotel room number on the delivery slip, causing her to knock on the wrong door.
If it was truly her mistake, she would have to apologize to the blue-eyed man…
For ringing the wrong doorbell and interrupting his shower.
In the workplace, the most important quality wasn’t ability—it was adaptability. Even feeling utterly humiliated, Ming Xi gently pressed her lips together and was preparing to apologize sincerely when—
A hand rested lightly and easily on her shoulder.
Liang Jiancheng’s hand was extremely polite, proper, and not in the least inappropriate. At the same time, the slight curve of his lips was perfectly measured—smooth, natural, without the slightest awkwardness. He guided her toward the actual Mr. Mills and said, in smooth, fluent Chinese: “Ming Xi, let me introduce you to Mr. Mills.”
Even though she had just been pretending not to know him, now that she was in trouble, he didn’t just stand by and watch coldly.
Liang Jiancheng had also watched for a while before deciding to step in. Once he realized that everything might really have been caused by Ming Xi accidentally pressing the wrong hotel doorbell, he intervened in this manner—
Not only introducing her to the real Mr. Mills but also made it clear that she was someone he knew.
Ming Xi quickly recovered as well. Under Liang Jiancheng’s calm and natural introduction, she handed the delivery slip to Mr. Mills and explained in English, “I’m sorry, my colleague must have written the wrong room number. I’m delivering this on her behalf. My name is Lamia. It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Mills.”
Thankfully, her spoken English was fairly fluent, allowing her to steady the uneasiness and nervousness brought on by the work mistake.
The hand Liang Jiancheng had placed on her shoulder was withdrawn at just the right moment. He neither overstated their relationship nor took advantage of the situation—there was nothing inappropriate at all.
Likewise, Ming Xi’s prompt explanation helped her resolve the awkwardness.
After hearing her explanation, Mr. Mills actually looked apologetic. He could not speak Chinese, so he explained in English: “My son Ethan and I changed rooms last night. I forgot to inform you—it was my mistake.”
So that was the reason. She hadn’t pressed the wrong doorbell after all. Ming Xi secretly let out a sigh of relief. In her mind, with how experienced Ding Xiao was, she shouldn’t have written the wrong room number.
It truly was a misunderstanding.
When dealing with people, Ming Xi had always been straightforward and unconcerned with small details. According to Mr. Mills, this blue-eyed young man in a bathrobe was his son Ethan.
Ming Xi’s lips curved slightly. She turned fully toward him, and without hesitation apologized politely: “I’m sorry. Even if it was a misunderstanding, I still disturbed your rest. Please accept my apology.”
Ethan: …
Oh my God! How could this woman act so well! Before his father and Byron appeared, she was so bold and charming, but how did she suddenly become reserved, cautious, and respectful?
She was practically a face-changing (魔女)!
Ethan almost blurted out the word “魔女” in English, but with his strict father present, he only mouthed the word silently.
Ming Xi’s English wasn’t good enough to tell from someone’s lip movements if they were insulting her, so she took it as Ethan complimenting her?
But Liang Jiancheng understood.
Still maintaining the posture of a friend, Liang Jiancheng continued to introduce them. But he wasn’t introducing Ethan to Ming Xi; he was introducing Ming Xi to Ethan. And not just a casual introduction like simply stating a name.
He spoke in English to Ethan, “What a coincidence! Lamia just started working at the mall this year. She’s not only a friend of mine, but also my father’s student. She’s very kind, generous, lovely, and smart, though she’s still young and shy. Ethan, if it’s convenient, why don’t you go back to your room and change first?”
Liang Jiancheng’s English was flawless, and he spoke slowly. Ming Xi understood every word clearly. Her ears instantly burned hot, a faint buzzing echoing in them.
Especially when she heard the words he used to praise her—generous, lovely, kind…
She could hardly believe her ears, staring blankly in surprise.
In truth…
She had done something wrong, too. She shouldn’t have argued with the customer. And indeed, being praised made women even more modest.
But Liang Jiancheng’s praise probably didn’t mean she was truly that good—it was more likely the instinct of a Chinese person defending another Chinese person. Ethan had basically called her a “female demon spirit,” so he was using all those nice words to redefine her character?
Ming Xi didn’t mind accepting compliments, but such excessive praise still made her genuinely embarrassed.
At heart, she was humble… and easily shy.
…
Whether Chinese or foreigner, everyone abided by the saying ““. Because of her acquaintance with Liang Jiancheng, Mr. Mills no longer considered her just an ordinary delivery girl.
“Mr. Mills,” Ming Xi addressed him politely.
After learning her surname, he didn’t call her by her English name—instead he addressed her as “Miss Ming”, which showed remarkable respect for someone in her position.
Clothes delivered to the door could be tried on before the customer signed. If they were unsuitable, they could be returned immediately.
Mr. Mills was satisfied with both suits. The only item that needed to be exchanged was a shirt. The color and style were correct, but the size was slightly too small.
Even before he tried it on, when Mr. Mills first put on the suit jacket, Ming Xi had already roughly noticed that the shirt Ding Xiao had chosen was a bit small.
Throughout the whole process, Liang Jiancheng stayed with them. He had originally stepped out planning to leave, but now he wasn’t in a hurry, even taking on the role of an additional sales assistant—
Giving his opinions and emotional support while Mr. Mills tried the suits.
For the shirt that was too small, Ming Xi said she could go back to the store and bring the correct size.
Mr. Mills smiled and said, “No rush. I’ll be staying in Haigang for a week. You can bring it tomorrow or the day after.”
Then he handed her a tip.
Ming Xi accepted it politely, a smile on her face.
This was already the second time Liang Jiancheng’s clients had tipped her. It really matched what she once told Boss He—they would earn big profits, and she would earn little ones.
But when would she get to earn big profits?
Life was full of opportunities—but one had to catch them.
Just as she was thinking about opportunities, one appeared.
As she was packing up to leave, Mr. Mills made a personal request. While it surprised Ming Xi, it was also a small one.
Perhaps he thought a young girl would be more familiar with local snack shops in Haigang.
“I wonder if you could help me with something. I have a business partner—also my neighbor—she’s a Chinese-American. She asked me to find a kind of crispy candy her daughter ate when she visited China as a child. I’ve asked many people, including Byron and hotel staff, but no one knows it. Since her daughter is about your age, Lamia, perhaps you ate it when you were young?”
Ming Xi thought, if even Liang Jiancheng and the hotel staff couldn’t get their hands on it, then she probably wouldn’t be able to either, but she was still willing to give it a try.
Ming Xi smiled and said, “I hope I’m lucky enough to have eaten that candy before.”
Mr. Mills walked over to the desk, opened his Sharp laptop, and pulled up a photo for her to see. At that time, even high-end laptops didn’t have very good resolution. Ming Xi leaned closer for a careful look. The crispy candy packaging in the photo looked extremely old—an oxblood-red paper box with just one character on it: “”.
No wonder Liang Jiancheng and the hotel staff couldn’t buy it; it turned out to be a Yunnan specialty… Unfortunately, she had never tasted or seen such crispy candy before.
“I know a place where you can buy specialty crispy candies from all over the country. I’ll try my best to find it for you. If I find it, I’ll bring it along with your shirt, Mr. Mills.”
Ming Xi smiled and readily agreed.
Doing this type of small, harmless favor that could help someone—if she could manage it, everyone would be happy; if not, it wouldn’t cause any trouble.
Seeing her take the initiative to handle this matter, Liang Jiancheng cast her a look.
Ming Xi returned a bright smile without hesitation.
In truth, she herself wasn’t sure why she agreed to help Mr. Mills with such a minor errand. Mr. Mills was simply Ding Xiao’s client, a foreign guest at that, and even if he returned in the future, it was unlikely he would ever become her customer.
But the wonderful thing about life was that we could never judge things by our current perspective. Life was full of unpredictability—who could have imagined that many years later, Mr. Mills would become a truly important major client of hers?
Liang Jiancheng intentionally waited for her, so she naturally left the hotel room with him, and they took the elevator down together.
A high-end hotel like Scully’s was filled mostly with foreign guests. While Ming Xi and Liang Jiancheng were in the elevator, besides the two of them, there was also a heavyset foreign man riding along. He was headed to the sixth-floor gym. He seemed to recognize Liang Jiancheng; the two of them exchanged a nod and a greeting.
Ming Xi joined in the politeness. When Liang Jiancheng nodded, she also gave the man a proper courteous nod.
Liang Jiancheng caught this out of the corner of his eye. His throat moved slightly, and the corners of his lips curved in a faint, pleased smile.
Ming Xi licked her lips, a slight conflict brewing within her. Even as the elevator doors opened, she was still debating whether or not to explain to Liang Jiancheng why Ethan had called her “female demon spirit.”
She hadn’t meant to act like a hoodlum with that foreigner. Even if he showed off his chest and flaunted himself at her, she had only stared because she felt awkward and didn’t want to… just give in…
But if she tried to explain, she would have to admit she had been staring at Ethan’s chest, which would probably make things worse.
Forget it, she wouldn’t explain.
It wasn’t like Liang Jiancheng was her boyfriend—he was just a friend. Even if she had stared at that foreigner’s body, so what? She had eyes. If her eyes naturally drifted for a couple seconds, that was normal. People are curious by nature.
And honestly, if the person who opened the hotel door wearing a bathrobe earlier had been Liang Jiancheng, she would’ve looked twice, too.
It wasn’t like she was the one being taken advantage of!
Ming Xi decided to escape. She lifted her hand, ready to say goodbye and thank him again for helping her out earlier. Liang Jiancheng stood squarely in front of her, but his clear, direct gaze was locked intentionally onto her.
With the two of them facing each other, he exuded a natural, lively warmth that belonged between friends.
Since she didn’t explain the “female demon spirit” comment, he brought it up himself.
“Ming Xi, don’t mind Ethan’s use of the word “female demon spirit”. I understand what he meant. He was trying to say you’re bright, striking, and eye-catching—someone very attractive. Using the phrase ‘female demon spirit’ as a metaphor is inappropriate of course, but it’s just a difference in cultural and linguistic understanding.”
Ming Xi: …
She was genuinely stunned speechless by Liang Jiancheng’s complete nonsense explanation!
When Liang Jiancheng praised her for being lovely, kind and generous, she could accept it shamelessly by putting away her feelings. Now that Liang Jiancheng had interpreted “female demon spirit” as bright and eye-catching, something captivating and alluring… Ming Xi was no longer embarrassed; she simply broke into laughter.
This was… too funny!
Could “female demon spirit” even be interpreted that way?
“Mr. Liang, if that’s how you interpret things, then I should compliment you too,” Ming Xi said with a laughing sparkle in her eyes.
Liang Jiancheng had one hand in his pocket, the other hanging naturally. Although he had a feeling he knew what was coming, he still asked, “What compliment?”
“I’d say you’re a male demon spirit as well!”
Ming Xi’s tone was respectful yet friendly, with a rare playful air that transcended her respect for Liang Jiancheng. At this moment, she grinned openly, radiating a warm and endearing aura.
Honestly, she wasn’t trying to charm Liang Jiancheng, but rather felt a pure joy welling up from the bottom of her heart.
This joy, uncontrollable and unavoidable, filling the space between them, real and vivid.
But pleasant teasing had its limits, and Ming Xi was also in a hurry to leave. If she delayed any longer, the boxed meals at the counter would go cold. Not clinging to the moment, she waved naturally to say goodbye.
“Mr. Liang, you, as a male demon spirit, have already been conquered. But I, a female demon spirit, plan to continue my evil ways for a few more years. When you’re ready to order your engagement suit, remember to buy it from me.”
Ming Xi’s final words were eloquent and clear, even managing to drum up business. If there had been a hint of flirtation earlier, her last line wiped it away completely.
She turned too quickly to see Liang Jiancheng’s gaze pause as he heard the words, “Mr. Liang, as a male demon spirit, have already been conquered,” and then he seemed dazed a moment. The corners of his lips curled down, as if an explanation was about to slip out of his mouth.
What explanation? He could only helplessly laugh at himself.
Liang Jiancheng seemed to be caught in a whirlpool of emotions—one moment sinking, the next clear-headed.
From the instant he unexpectedly saw her in the hotel corridor, to now as they parted in the lobby, something very distinct had formed in his heart.
Expectation.
Expectation for what?
Expectation for how they might meet next time.
After just a few short exchanges, the rationality, restraint, sense of boundaries, even moral discipline he prided himself on were all swept away by the joy blooming inside him.
Barely two minutes of joy, and he lost control.
Forget boundaries and rationality, both shattered effortlessly with a single blow.