Chapter 4: The Final Date
The weather forecast had predicted rain tonight, but the twilight sky was unusually clear. Lin Mo stood at the base of his apartment building, staring at the message Su Yuqing had sent:"Make sure to come tonight—I have a surprise for you."
All the doubts he had accumulated over the past few days seemed to fade momentarily. The setting sun stretched his shadow long across the pavement, pointing toward the corner café where they'd first met.
At precisely 7 PM, Su Yuqing arrived. She was dressed exquisitely tonight in a soft lavender dress, her scar just barely visible behind her ear. Most striking of all was the butterfly-shaped moonstone brooch pinned to her chest, its soft glow shimmering in the evening light.
"Have you been waiting long?" she asked with a gentle smile, her tone carrying a faint hint of apology.
"Just got here," Lin Mo replied, his eyes drawn to the antique watch on her wrist, its hands once again perfectly aligned with the hour.
Tonight, Su Yuqing was especially affectionate. She took his arm and led him through familiar streets, revisiting places that held their memories together: the bookstore they frequented, her favorite dessert shop, the cinema where they had their first date... It felt like a nostalgic tour through their shared past.
"I want to take you somewhere special tonight," she said with an air of mystery.
They arrived at the city's tallest revolving restaurant. Through the floor-to-ceiling windows, the entire city sparkled beneath them. A server escorted them to a reserved table, where a bouquet of pure white roses awaited.
"Remember? This was the kind of spot where we first met," Su Yuqing said with a wistful smile. "It was raining that day, and the gallery was nearly empty. You were the only visitor who stopped to admire Morning on the Lake."
Lin Mo noticed the flicker in her eyes when she mentioned the painting. But the warmth of the evening was too precious to disrupt.
The dinner was exquisite, and Su Yuqing even remembered his preferences for every dish. She was unusually talkative, reminiscing about countless moments, but always skillfully avoiding any mention of recent events at the gallery.
"Lin Mo," she said, her tone turning serious as dinner neared its end, "thank you—for everything."
There was a certain finality in her voice, a note of farewell that made Lin Mo's chest tighten. But before he could respond, she pulled a cylindrical case from her bag.
"I have something for you."
Lin Mo carefully unrolled the contents—a pencil-drawn self-portrait. It depicted Su Yuqing seated by a window in her studio, sunlight gracing her profile. Even the scar behind her ear was rendered with exquisite detail. Most strikingly, the butterfly brooch was sketched with painstaking precision, each line alive with realism.
"It's beautiful," Lin Mo said sincerely.
"I'm glad you like it," she replied softly. "Actually, I had one more thing for you..."
Her words trailed off as her phone rang. The caller ID made her face turn serious.
"Sorry, I need to take this," she said.
Lin Mo watched her step out onto the balcony, speaking in that unfamiliar language again. Through the glass, he saw her tense posture as her fingers tapped rhythmically against the railing, the cadence oddly matching the ticking of her wristwatch.
When she returned, her demeanor had changed. She hurriedly settled the bill and insisted on walking Lin Mo home herself.
"Tonight was perfect," she said when they reached his building. She hugged him tightly, her embrace lingering as if imprinting the moment in her memory.
"Let me walk you back," Lin Mo offered.
"There's no need," Su Yuqing shook her head. "I have plans with a friend."
He watched her figure retreat into the night, an inexplicable unease settling over him. He jogged after her, but all he caught was the tail end of a black sedan turning the corner. Through the window, he thought he glimpsed the mysterious man in black once more.
At home, Lin Mo examined the portrait more closely. Something felt off. The signature in the corner read "S.Y.Q"—not Su Yuqing's usual way of signing her work. Flipping it over, he found faint ink markings that formed a string of numbers:"0808-1924-M-R7"
What did it mean? The number "1924" immediately reminded him of the gallery's catalog codes. Could it all be connected? As he pondered, his phone buzzed with a text from an unknown number:
"If you truly care for her, stop digging."
Lin Mo clenched the phone tightly. Far from dissuading him, the warning only strengthened his resolve. Turning back to the portrait, he scanned the butterfly brooch drawn with meticulous detail. Under the bright light of his desk lamp, he noticed something unusual in its design—a tiny QR code hidden within the etchings.
Scanning it with his phone, he uncovered a string of encrypted text. But before he could decipher it, his phone abruptly shut off. When it restarted, the data was gone.
That night, Lin Mo lay sleepless, replaying every strange occurrence in his mind: the gallery's secrets, Su Yuqing's odd behavior, the man in black, the subtle warnings... Every clue seemed to point toward a larger truth he couldn't yet grasp.
Meanwhile, Su Yuqing stood in a secret meeting room, the glow of Morning on the Lake displayed on a large screen. Across the table, Gu Yun sat with a solemn expression.
"It's scheduled for tomorrow at dawn," Gu Yun said. "Everything is in place."
"And Lin Mo?" Su Yuqing hesitated.
"Stick to the plan," Gu Yun replied firmly. "We can't afford any mistakes now."
Su Yuqing removed her brooch and placed it on a scanner, revealing a string of codes on the screen. The man in black took the brooch and carefully extracted a microchip hidden within.
"This is the final authentication key," he said. "Once activated, there's no turning back."
Su Yuqing gazed out the window at the moonless night. She knew that after tomorrow, everything would change. Lin Mo, and the moments they had shared, would become part of a past she had no choice but to leave behind.
Back in his apartment, Lin Mo pieced together all the information he'd gathered: surveillance footage, Su Yuqing's movements, mysterious phone calls... Rearranging the data revealed a shocking pattern, one that brought him closer to the truth.
As the city slumbered, the gallery's security monitor flickered. No one noticed the small red light blinking at the edge of Morning on the Lake's frame—a subtle signal that the game was about to begin.
This night would not be a quiet one.