The next day——

In the second year of Wanyan (1861), January 2——

Edo, Koishikawa Kohinata Yanagi Town, Imperial Guard Hall——

"Brother Kondo, good morning."

"Oh! Good morning, Director-General."

Kondo yawned widely while greeting Souji who was walking towards him.

"The weather is very good today."

The Souji smiled and looked at the sky outside the window.

"Well, yes. The weather today is indeed very good, the sun is shining brightly, the sky is high and the air is refreshing. It is really a good day to go out and play... Hmm? Souji, what's wrong with your legs?"

"Huh? What's wrong with your legs?"

Kondo pointed at Souji's bottom plate.

"Huh? Didn't you notice it yourself? You are swaying and crooked when you walk. Are you injured somewhere?"

"Ah, this..." Souji subconsciously tightened his legs, blushing at a loss, "Well... this... this... I accidentally sprained my leg last night when I was practicing swordsmanship with Tachibana-kun.

…”

"Is your leg sprained?" Kondo opened his eyes wide and asked worriedly, "Hey, are you okay? Is the injury serious?"

"No, it's okay." Souji waved his hand in panic, "It's just a small sprain, it doesn't matter! It will heal in a few days, so don't worry!"

After speaking quickly, Souji lowered his head, raised his hands to cover his face, hiding his pretty face that was still red, and passed Kondo in three steps at a time.

Kondo stood there, staring blankly at Souji's retreating figure.

"What is this guy Souji doing...?"

He always felt that there was something strange about the general manager, but he couldn't pinpoint the specific strangeness.

"Forget it, never mind her."

Kondo has never been a person who likes to get into trouble. When he couldn't think of a reason, he gave up decisively, retracted his gaze from Souji's back in the distance, and continued to stride forward in the opposite direction to Souji.

…

…

at the same time--

The director-general said goodbye to Kondo, and while burying his head in the road, he took a big breath of "huhahaha" to smooth out his chaotic breathing.

"Huh...ha...huh...ha..."

The unique cold air in winter makes the general manager feel very comfortable.

My breathing gradually stabilized, my face cooled down rapidly, and my heart no longer beat so fast.

Just when Souji was about to return to his normal appearance, the sound of footsteps reached her ears.

The sound of footsteps came from directly in front of her.

The Souji raised his little head and glanced reflexively in front of him.

"Ah... ugh...!"

The general manager couldn't help but blurt out a strange cry.

Because the owner of this footstep...the person standing in front of her is Qingdeng.

"Tangerine, Orange, Tachibana-kun...!"

"Miss Okita..."

The moment he saw Souji, Qingto's expression became extremely unnatural.

After looking at the ceiling, floor and other insignificant places, he took the lead in saying hello to the director:

"Miss Okita, good morning."

"Well...good morning to you too..."

Souji's voice was as waxy as the expression she carved.

"..."

"..."

The two of them said nothing after a simple greeting...but there was no awkward atmosphere in this quiet environment.

Souji coyly played with his fingers, while raising his head timidly... Coincidentally, as if he had a telepathic connection, at almost the same time, Aomori also stopped scanning the ceiling and floor, and looked at Souji.

The two people's eyes were entangled in the air.

This look at each other lasted for about 3 seconds.

Three seconds later, the director hurriedly looked away as if he was running away, not daring to look at Qingteng again.

He lowered his head and fixed his gaze firmly on the small area in front of his toes.

However, the General Secretary did not "escape" for too long.

After only three breaths, she raised her beautiful eyes again and looked towards Qingdeng.

After realizing that Qingteng was still looking at her, the Souji was startled, his eyes wandering around uneasily, and he looked around.

But in the end, she took a determined breath, stopped dodging, stretched her gaze forward, and looked straight into Qingdeng's eyes.

In an instant, the corners of Souji's perfectly curved lips were slightly raised, and a charming blush gradually appeared on his lovely face.

The raised red lips, the misty red clouds...the two complemented each other, and a shy smile caught Qingdeng's eyes.

Seeing the general manager smiling at him, Qingden couldn't help but laugh too.

My little girlfriend, who is in the age of Huaichun, is flirting with her little boyfriend affectionately - this sentence is really apt to describe the eye contact between the two at this time.

…

…

Edo, a certain river embankment——

Light white clouds piled up on the distant mountains, and the cover of loose and thin clouds made the already not strong winter sunshine appear softer.

Walking on the path between the river and the embankment, Souji raised his head and looked at the sky, where the warm, golden sunlight was pouring down from the gaps in the clouds.

The gentle breeze blowing away the scent of "human civilization" makes this inaccessible river embankment even more interesting.

"What a comfortable wind..."

The Souji narrowed his eyes slightly and took a long, deep breath.

Perhaps because it is far away from the city and close to the river, the air here is very moist, refreshing and refreshing.

"Well, yes."

Qingdeng, who was walking side by side with the General Secretary, nodded in agreement.

The two of them walked slowly along the embankment towards the upper reaches of the river.

The wind passed by them, the clouds in the blue sky rolled or relaxed, and the sky became clearer and clearer.

The particles of light bathe the director with a peaceful smile on his face

"It feels...so incredible..."

"Um?"

"At this time yesterday, you and I were still very close friends, but today, we have become very close...lovers..."

Lover——The next moment he uttered this word, Souji seemed to be relieved and turned his overflowing emotions into a sound.

"Yeah, I can understand."

Qingdeng smiled and nodded.

"Oh? Can you understand it too?"

"Of course. Because I have almost the same feelings as you now. I also find it unbelievable. This feeling of 'friends turning into lovers overnight', I'm afraid it will take me a long time to fully adapt to it.

"

"Hahaha, it turns out you, Tachibana-kun, are just like me, very uncomfortable with the changes in our relationship."

The chief executive smiled brightly.

When she moved, she stretched out her left hand towards Qingden.

"Ji Jun, um... I, I want to hold hands with you, Coco, is that okay?"

Souji's voice became lower and lower as she spoke, and by the time the last syllable fell, her voice was as low as a mosquito's hum.

It was obviously still early, not even noon, but Qingden could already see the red sunset glow on the commander-in-chief's pretty face.

Qingto couldn't help but laugh at the shy look of the Souji. He chuckled and held out his right hand.
To be continued...