《Seventh Year of My Secret Love for You》


 CH 1.1

    [Wife, I have an impromptu meeting in the morning, and I can only return to Sucheng in the afternoon, around 3:30.]


    [Qi, are you asleep? ]


    [The meeting will start right away, and I won¡¯t be able to get back to you on time. ]


    Luo Qi¡¯s cell phone in her bag vibrated: Pei Shixiao had sent three messages in succession. But she had fallen asleep on the seat and didn¡¯t hear it.


    She participated in a business dinner last night, and it ended early in the morning. Then she woke up before dawn to catch the first high-speed train to Sucheng1. When she got to the carriage, she fell asleep listening to light music.


    It was an hour and a half later when Luo Qi woke up. Reading the first message, she still hasn¡¯t gotten used to the term ¡®wife¡¯. Through the many years of dating Pei Shixiao, she was used to him calling her by her name, and the number of times he called her ¡®wife¡¯ was very few.


    She looked up at the scrolling station reminder screen, and replied: [There are three more stops to Sucheng. I fell asleep. ]


    Pei Shixiao didn¡¯t reply to her after ten minutes; he might still be in a meeting.


    Luo Qi locked the phone, turned to look out the window.


    She and Pei Shixiao were both from Sucheng, and they made plans to return to Sucheng this weekend to finalize reservations for the wedding banquet. Their wedding was scheduled for mid-December.


    In reality, confirming the hotel reservations was just incidental; the trip is so they could meet up. From the beginning of the year, she and Pei Shixiao were in different places. She was in Beijing, and Pei Shixiao was in Shanghai. They were both busy during the period, and they hadn¡¯t seen each other for almost two months now.


    Near noon, Luo Qi arrived at the station.


    Her mother¡¯s call came in, asking if she has arrived at the station.


    ¡°Mom, I just got off the train, I haven¡¯t left the station yet.¡±


    ¡°Shixiao will pick you up at the station?¡±


    ¡°He has an impromptu meeting, so he will arrive in Sucheng later in the afternoon.¡±


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say earlier? Mom could have asked your uncle to pick you up at the station!¡±


    ¡°No need, it¡¯s very convenient to take a taxi.¡±


    Unfortunately, when she came back this time, both her parents were away on a business trip and were not in Sucheng. Luo Qi called for a taxi, but didn¡¯t go back to her home. Instead she gave the address of the matrimonial house as the destination.


    She brought two large suitcases, and the driver got out of the car to help carry them to the trunk.


    The matrimonial house is a large lake-view flat in one of the high-end real estate developments in Sucheng.


    Whether it¡¯s her or Pei Shixiao, there were not many opportunities to live in Sucheng, not necessarily half a year or even ten days, but Pei Shixiao said that all three cities must have their matrimonial house, and they must all be the best.


    Luo Qi knew all of Pei Shixiao¡¯s passwords and had memorized them by heart.


    When she arrived at the lake-view matrimonial house, Luo Qi directly entered the password to enter. It was the first time she came here after the house was furnished. Pei Shixiao had filmed a video for her before, and all the furniture was added according to her preferences.


    Luo Qi found new slippers from the shoe cabinet and put them on, and took out her mobile phone to report her safe arrival to Pei Shixiao.


    Half an hour later, Pei Shixiao¡¯s call came in.


    Luo Qi was sorting out the boxes. This time, she brought some daily necessities and clothes to their new house so she could use them when she returns to Sucheng. She put down the clothes in her hands and took the mobile phone to the viewing terrace to answer the call.


    ¡°The meeting just ended. Have you eaten lunch?¡± Pei Shixiao¡¯s deep voice came.


    ¡°Not yet, I¡¯ll order food after unpacking.¡± Luo Qi leaned on the railing, looking at the rippling lake, and suddenly changed her mind. ¡°Or we can go out to eat when you arrive. I¡¯m not hungry now.¡±


    There was a moment of silence on the phone.


    Pei Shixiao couldn¡¯t go out to eat with her. He apologized, ¡°Qi2, I can¡¯t go back this weekend, there¡¯s a problem with a project. I¡¯ll order food for you later.¡±


    Luo Qi asked in concern, ¡°Is the problem serious?¡±


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s a bit tricky.¡±


    If he couldn¡¯t come, it was impossible for Luo Qi not to be disappointed, but it was important to remediate the project. Pei Shixiao was now the executive partner of Huanheng Capital, and if even he felt that the problem was serious, then there must be serious complications in the project.


    Luo Qi understood him. ¡°You are busy, I will book a hotel by myself.¡±


    Pei Shixiao hesitated to speak. They agreed to go back to Sucheng to book a hotel for the wedding banquet, and then accompany her to try on the wedding dress, but he missed the appointment. In the past few years, he has never let her down.


    ¡°Sorry, Qi.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡±


    After a few seconds of pause, Pei Shixiao decided, ¡°I¡¯m going to stay up all night these few days, why don¡¯t you come to Shanghai? Come to the office and work overtime with me.¡±


    Without thinking twice, Luo Qi said, ¡°No, let¡¯s just make a later appointment. If I find the hotel satisfactory, I will go back to Beijing. You can visit me when the project is finished.¡±


    She would not go to his company¡ª it would only bother him when he¡¯s already stressed. If something went wrong with the project she herself was in charge of, she wouldn¡¯t be in the mood for a date.


    Put yourself in other people¡¯s shoes.


    Pei Shixiao chatted with her for another ten minutes, then hung up the phone to order food delivery for her.


    In the past, it was the secretary¡¯s job to order food delivery, but today he placed the order himself.


    After ordering some of Luo Qi¡¯s favorite dishes, Pei Shixiao leaned back in his chair and concentrated for a moment, then called the secretary and ordered the secretary to order a set of diamond jewelry for Luo Qi.


    An hour later, Luo Qi got the food delivery that Pei Shixiao ordered for her, plus a fruit platter.


    She took pictures while eating and sent them to Pei Shixiao. [The food in this restaurant tastes good.]


    Pei Shixiao replied, [Not been long since it opened; next time I¡¯ll go back to Sucheng to accompany you to eat. ]. He asked again, [When are you going to see the wedding banquet hall? ]


    Luo Qi replied, [This afternoon. ]


    Pei Shixiao pushed the business cards of the managers of several five-star hotels to Luo Qi. [You can book whichever style you like.]


    Luo Qi added these persons in charge one by one, and made an appointment to meet in the afternoon.


    The big boss behind these hotels is the same person, surnamed Zhao, who has been friends with Pei Shixiao¡¯s father for many years. Director Zhao also said that if the style of the banquet hall is not to her liking, he can rearrange it specially for her.


    If she was still the little princess from seven years ago, with her personality of pursuing perfection in everything, it was really possible to rearrange the wedding banquet hall according to her own aesthetics. Back then, she had both the money and the confidence to do it.


    But now, not anymore.


    At three o¡¯clock, Luo Qi arrived at the first hotel as scheduled, and the secretary of the general manager received her.


    Secretary Yang had guessed that Luo Qi must be a beautiful woman before meeting her. She has also seen many beauties. Nevertheless, the first time she saw Luo Qi, she was still amazed. She was tall and sexy, but her eyebrows were indifferent, and combined with her cool, fair skin ¡ª it inexplicably gave people a sense of distance.


    Approaching her, Secretary Yang introduced herself and led Luo Qi to the elevator.


    Luo Qi smiled. ¡°I have troubled you.¡±


    Secretary Yang smiled back. ¡°You¡¯re welcome.¡±


    She couldn¡¯t help but glance at Luo Qi again. She was good-looking, and her voice was magnetic and soft. She found herself wanting to talk to Lou Qi a little more.


    If she ever acts coquettish, who could bear it?


    She had heard a little about Luo Qi and Pei Shixiao, this young couple. She heard that the Pei family did not agree to the marriage at first and wanted Pei Shixiao to find a girl from the right family, but Pei Shixiao insisted on marrying only Luo Qi. Pei Shixiao¡¯s father and mother had no choice but to compromise.


    The wealth of the Pei family ranked among the top three in Sucheng, and Pei Shixiao¡¯s personal ability was also outstanding, and he was the object of admiration by many young ladies from notable families.


    Luo Qi¡¯s family used to be in good condition. Her parents were in business and owned two companies. However, her family¡¯s investment failed seven years ago and the company had to declare bankruptcy. Luo¡¯s father owed tens of millions of foreign debts¡ªit¡¯s not clear whether the debt has not all been paid off yet.


    The elevator reached the sixth floor; Luo Qi and Secretary Yang walked out one after the other.


    This hotel was newly built last year, and Lou Qi has never been here before. The banquet hall was designed without pillars, featuring marine colors, a bit dreamlike. It can accommodate sixty-six tables of guests at the same time.


    Seeing  it now, Luo Qi decided on the spot that the wedding banquet would be held here.


    After coming out of the hotel, she sent a message to tell Pei Shixiao in which hotel she booked the wedding banquet.


    Pei Shixiao responded quickly. [I¡¯ve already told my parents we booked this place¡ª you don¡¯t have to worry about other things. Are you going to try on the wedding dress? Or should I accompany you to try next month?]


    Luo Qi did not hesitate at all. [Next month.]


    Pei Shixiao promised, [No matter how busy I am then, I will accompany you to try on the wedding dress]. He apologized again for today¡¯s missed appointment, [I¡¯ll stay with you for a few more days after I¡¯m done with this project].


    Luo Qi replied, [You don¡¯t have to worry about it, work is important].


    She said it was nothing, but she couldn¡¯t help but regret in her heart, regretting that she had been looking forward to it for so long but still didn¡¯t see him face-to-face.


    1 Unlike other c-novels, this uses real city names like Beijing and Shanghai. From the novel¡¯s descriptions, Sucheng or ¡®Su city¡¯ could be Suzhou¡ªa prosperous city in Jiangsu, a coastal province in East China. It has gorgeous ancient-style, water-based architecture characterized by houses built along the river, connected by stone or wooden bridges.


    2 I¡¯m not sure why Pei Shixiao only calls her the one-syllable ¡®Qi.¡¯ It¡¯s quite disorienting.

 CH 1.2

    Luo Qi didn¡¯t go back to the matrimonial house, but took the subway back to her home.


    Unlike Pei Shixiao¡¯s high-end community, her family lived in an alley in the old town.


    The house in the alley was an old house left by her grandparents, which had been vacant for several years. Seven years ago, the family villa was seized, and her parents moved there¡ªwhere they have been living until now.


    Lou Qi walked across the stone bridge, then into the cramped alley. Their old house was not in a single family courtyard; there were three other families living within the same courtyard.


    Their neighbor, Grandma Qian, was sitting on the patio to enjoy the shade. When she saw Lou Qi come back, she went back inside her house and brought her two slices of watermelon.


    ¡°Your mother said you¡¯re coming back this weekend, but unfortunately they¡¯re busy and can¡¯t see you.¡± Grandma Qian had watched Luo Qi grow up. Luo Qi was not polite, took the watermelon, sat down on the low stool next to Grandma Qian and ate it, chatting for a while.


    ¡°Your mother said you¡¯re coming back to check out banquet halls for the wedding. Have you booked it?¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡± Luo Qi nodded and told Grandma Qian which hotel it was.


    When people get old, they can¡¯t help nagging, and so Grandma Qian said earnestly, ¡°Your grandma is gone, I have to say something in her stead. When you get married, it¡¯s better not to go back to work. Young couples can¡¯t live in two places forever. It¡¯s easy for something to go wrong.¡±


    Luo Qi replied seriously, ¡°I will go to Shanghai next year.¡±


    ¡°I heard from your mother that your boss is a good person, and she treats you well.¡± It¡¯s a pity to resign, but it¡¯s really not easy for the young couple to meet each other the way they are now. Grandma Qian sighed, at a loss.


    ¡°It¡¯s not resignation¡ª it¡¯s a transfer to another branch.¡± She was the assistant of Vice-Chairman Jiang Yueru, and she mentioned to Director Jiang1 before that she planned to transfer to another city after marriage.


    After five years of working by Director Jiang¡¯s side, she was ready to stand alone. Director Jiang promised her that she would transfer her to Shanghai to be in charge of Yuanwei Group Shanghai Branch.


    Director Jiang was the aunt of their big boss, Jiang Shenghe. Jiang Shenghe was mostly brought up by Director Jiang. They were not mother and son, but their relationship was stronger than that of mother and son. Director Jiang¡¯s promise to her was basically a certainty.


    After eating two slices of watermelon, Luo Qi went back to the house to clean up.


    The old house had two compact bedrooms. Her bedroom has been unoccupied for a long time, and the room was stuffy, so Luo Qi opened the window to ventilate it.


    The mobile phone on the table rang. Luo Qi thought it was Pei Shixiao calling, so she hurried over to pick it up and looked at the number. It was someone in charge of one of Yuanwei Group¡¯s business partners.


    After answering the phone, the two of them exchanged some polite words, and the other party asked her, ¡°Assistant Luo, how is Director Jiang Dong¡¯s surgery? Are things okay? I want to visit Director Jiang in the hospital tomorrow, and I need to trouble you to arrange it.¡±


    ¡°¡­.¡±


    Lou Qi was confused.


    Director Jiang was hospitalized?


    She was Jiang Yueru¡¯s assistant, but she didn¡¯t know that her boss had undergone an operation. It was a huge dereliction of duty.


    Even if she didn¡¯t know what was going on with Jiang Yueru, she wouldn¡¯t show a trace of surprise in front of outsiders. Luo Qi said calmly, ¡°You don¡¯t need to trouble yourself. I will arrange things and call you back.¡±


    After hanging up the phone, Luo Qi called Jiang Yueru¡¯s driver and asked. She found out that Jiang Yueru was hospitalized on Friday and had a cholecystectomy2. She was now in a stable condition and all indicators were normal.


    As for why he kept it from her, the driver explained, ¡°It wasn¡¯t my intention not to tell you, but Director Jiang expressed that this shouldn¡¯t affect your going back to Sucheng to try on your wedding dress and booking the wedding banquet.¡±


    Luo Qi couldn¡¯t express the feeling in her heart, ¡°I¡¯ll go back early tomorrow morning.¡±


    She cut off the call and immediately rebooked the return ticket.


    At noon the next day, Luo Qi returned to Beijing.


    Jiang Yueru¡¯s room was on the top floor of the VIP ward, and there were bodyguards at the entrance. Luo Qi recognized them as the bodyguards of their big boss, Jiang Shenghe.


    Thinking that Jiang Shenghe was also in the ward at the moment, Luo Qi felt apprehensive.


    In the entire Yuanwei Group, except for Jiang Yueru, no one can not be nervous when they are in front of Jiang Shenghe, especially when he stares at you without saying a word.


    In Jiang Shenghe¡¯s work team, everyone was at risk. Everyone in the President¡¯s office never dares to be distracted during work, let alone catch fish3.


    The advantage of being highly efficient was that there was no need to work overtime. The people in the President¡¯s office could have two or three weekends off in a month, and they could basically leave work at a normal time.


    She once even thought about whether to work in Jiang Shenghe¡¯s office.


    The bodyguard knew Luo Qi and let her go in directly.


    Lou Qi held the flowers and nodded her thanks.


    Not knowing if Jiang Yueru was asleep or not, she walked lightly to silence steps.


    The door of the ward was ajar and there was a weak complaint from inside, ¡°The good thing about being sick is that my ears are pure and peaceful. Your parents, especially your father, don¡¯t dare to talk to me these days. You don¡¯t even know that the day before my operation, your dad called me and asked me to urge you to settle down. It¡¯s annoying.¡±


    ¡°Next time he urges you, say that I haven¡¯t played enough, and I have to play for another two years.¡± There was a cynical smile clearly heard in his voice.


    ¡°You just want to piss him off,¡± she quipped. Then Jiang Yueru said meaningfully, ¡°You, what can you do if you continue to stay in this trap?¡±


    Luo Qi was confused about what to do: it was about the boss¡¯s privacy, and she couldn¡¯t continue to listen. She turned around and went back out for a while, then walked towards the door of the ward again with normal footsteps.


    Just as the chat in the room came to an end, Jiang Shenghe heard a voice outside the door.


    Lou Qi knocked lightly on the door.


    Jiang Shenghe saw Luo Qi¡¯s silhouette through the crack of the door, ¡°Come in.¡±


    Luo Qi pushed the door open, and the first thing she saw was Jiang Shenghe, who was sitting on the sofa with his legs crossed.


    Jiang Yueru turned her head slowly, ¡°It¡¯s a minor operation for me, it¡¯s not a problem. Tell me, you finally went home and now came back in a hurry, did you even have time to pick out the wedding dress?¡±


    Luo Qi smiled and lied, ¡°The wedding dress has been picked out, and the hotel is also booked.¡±


    After Jiang Yueru accepted her explanation, she was free to greet Jiang Shenghe, ¡°Chief Jiang.¡± Her eyes flickered past his face, his aura was overwhelming, and she didn¡¯t dare to look at him.


    Jiang Shenghe nodded. His gaze lingered between her eyebrows for two or three seconds, calmly, his eyes not moving away.


    ____________


    FOOTNOTES:


    1Vice-Chairman Jiang Yueru¡ªthe FL¡¯s current boss and ML¡¯s aunt¡ªis mostly referred throughout the text as ¡®Director Jiang¡¯


    2 Cholecystectomy: surgery to remove the gallbladder.


    3 Short for the idiom ¡°»ëË®ÃþÓ㡱 (literally: catching fish in muddy water), this term originally refers to the situation where people make profits out of chaotic conditions. Nowadays, the term is also used to refer to situations where people don¡¯t do their work well and loaf on the job.


    T/N: Would you rather I keep the idiom in and put an explanation in the footnotes¡ªlike this, or directly replace it an equivalent English phrase in the text?

 CH 2.1

    The big boss was here, and Luo Qi had to rehearse what to say in her head before speaking.


    She asked Jiang Yueru how to arrange the schedule when someone wanted to visit her in the hospital.


    Jiang Yueru didn¡¯t have the energy to be polite to those people from the business field. ¡°I¡¯ll be quiet for two days.¡±


    Luo Qi understood it well, ¡°You can rest at ease, and I will take care of other matters properly.¡± She put down the flowers she brought and stood by the hospital bed, waiting patiently for Jiang Yueru¡¯s other orders.


    Jiang Yueru couldn¡¯t go to the company in the foreseeable future. The doctor told her to rest for two months. It wasn¡¯t just because of the surgery¡ªshe has exhausted herself running the company all year round.


    She arranged Luo Qi¡¯s work for the next two weeks: the most important thing was a project in Sucheng.


    This project in Sucheng was one of the group¡¯s major undertakings in the next two years. Jiang Yueru originally wanted to wait until the contract was signed before undergoing surgery, but her body finally couldn¡¯t endure until then.


    With her current recovery status, she was unable to participate in the signing ceremony. If other high-level executives of the company were arranged to go there, the gravitas will not be enough. Only Jiang Sheng, as the big boss, could go in person to show their sincerity in the cooperation.


    So she told Luo Qi, ¡°We have decided to sign the contract on the 10th of next month, and there is no way to postpone it. Then you will accompany Mr. Jiang there.¡±


    Luo Qi replied, ¡°Okay.¡± Thinking of going on a business trip with Jiang Shenghe, she felt the psychological pressure increase inexplicably .


    Jiang Yueru ordered again, ¡°Before signing the contract, report the details of the project to Mr. Jiang.¡±


    Luo Qi was about to reply, when a voice giving an involuntary sense of oppression broke in, ¡°Assistant Luo, you go back to the company and prepare. Report to me at three o¡¯clock in the afternoon.¡±


    Luo Qi turned her face to look at Jiang Shenghe and replied, ¡°Okay, Mr. Jiang.¡±


    She didn¡¯t dare to look directly at Jiang Shenghe when she entered the ward earlier, and now she could see what he was wearing: dark gray athletic pants, black T-shirt, and sneakers. The muscle lines on the arms are clear and smooth, just right, and there seems to be sweat on the forehead. He should have just worked out. He had a narrow brow and eyes, and when he didn¡¯t smile, he had a cold expression.


    Luo Qi looked at him for a short moment, ¡°President Jiang, then I¡¯ll go back to the company first.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe nodded slightly.


    Luo Qi quickly retracted her gaze and turned around to face Jiang Yueru, her voice could not help turning gentle, ¡°Director Jiang, I will come to see you tonight. I will accompany you tonight and talk with you to relieve boredom.¡±


    Jiang Yueru slowly raised her hand and waved it¡ªalthough she had no strength, her sharp energy still remained. ¡°Don¡¯t come here.¡± She joked, ¡°You are all annoying, I don¡¯t want to see you. Everyone get out of my sight.¡±


    This ¡®everyone¡¯, aside from her, was probably complaining about Jiang Sheng.


    Luo Qi knew Jiang Yueru best, so she said, ¡°Then I¡¯ll come over after work tomorrow.¡± She especially emphasized,¡±Come here and report to you about work.¡±


    Jiang Yueru said with a smile, ¡°That¡¯s fine then.¡±


    Luo Qi said goodbye, gently closed the door and left.


    Jiang Shenghe stood up, planning to take a shower and change clothes to go to the company. The black T-shirt was drenched and stuck to his abdomen, and his well-proportioned abdominal muscles were faintly visible.


    In the VIP ward, simple exercise equipment was provided for the accompanying family members. Before Luo Qi came, while his aunt was asleep, he did a few sets of exercises. But before the exercise was over, his aunt woke up.


    Luo Qi arrived soon after and he didn¡¯t have time to change clothes.


    ¡°I¡¯ll still be here with you tonight,¡± Jiang Shenghe said as he walked towards the inner room.


    ¡°No, what are you supposed to do here? Go home.¡± The nephew stayed with her for two nights, and staying up late was too much for his health. Jiang Yueru looked at her nephew¡¯s back, ¡°In such a hurry to set up the meeting? It has to be today at three o¡¯clock?¡±1


    Jiang Shenghe stopped and turned around, ¡°I have meetings all day tomorrow, and I have a business trip the day after tomorrow.¡± Only this afternoon is free.


    And these, as the boss, he didn¡¯t need to explain to Assistant Luo Qi just now.


    Luo Qi went back to the office, found out all the information about the Sucheng project, went over the key points again, and memorized them by heart, so that Jiang Shenghe would not miss any important details due to her nervousness when he asked her about it later.


    While looking at the information, her younger cousin called.


    Luo Yu was as nasty as usual, ¡°Sister, do you miss me? How much?¡±


    ¡°Missed you for just a second.¡±


    ¡°Wow, you missed me for a thousand milliseconds, so much.¡±


    After speaking, both of them laughed.


    Done laughing, Luo Yu¡¯s voice became serious, ¡°Sister, what are you doing?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m at the company, working overtime.¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that you and brother-in-law would go back to Sucheng this weekend to finalize the hotel for the wedding banquet? Did you just work overtime and not go back?¡±


    ¡°I went back, the hotel is already booked.¡±


    Luo Qi temporarily put down the materials at hand, took the water glass to get some water, and told her cousin about the trip: that she went back by herself, and Pei Shixiao had no time to go back because of a problem with a project.


    Luo Yu was indignant, and snorted coldly, ¡°What problems with a project¡ªis it more important than your marriage? Which one in his company is not a talent? Without him there to oversee the project, will there be no way to remedy it, and the sky will fall down? Sister, don¡¯t try to be too  understanding of men¡¯s excuses in the future, he will neither be moved nor grateful!¡±


    Luo Qi smiled silently¡ªher cousin has always defended her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be angry.¡± She changed the subject, ¡°Why are you calling?¡±


    Luo Yu didn¡¯t want to embarrass her cousin, and tried to calm down, her voice became gentle, ¡°I fancy a new bag, but there are two colors. I think they are both very pretty and I can¡¯t make up my mind, so I¡¯ll send a picture to you later, and you choose the one you like.¡± As she spoke, she threatened, ¡°You have to choose one! This is the wedding present from that heartless guy and me¡ªif you don¡¯t choose, I¡¯ll buy both colors and give them to you.¡±


    ¡°Sister, I¡¯m hanging up now, and I will send you the picture immediately.¡±


    Luo Qi was about to speak, but Luo Yu had already cut off the call.


    The name of the heartless guy is Luo Xin. Luo Yu and Luo Xin are dragon and phoenix twins2, and Luo Xin is the older brother, but Luo Yu never calls him ¡®brother¡¯¡ªshe always calls him ¡®heartless¡¯.


    They are the children of the Luo third uncle¡¯s family. Since Luo Qi¡¯s father¡¯s company went bankrupt and owed tens of millions of debts, Luo Yu has been thinking of ways to give her bags and cosmetics every year. However, Luo Yu¡¯s salary is not high, and Luo Qi is reluctant to accept her generosity, so Luo would keep thinking of reasons to buy and mail it to her.


    Luo Yu always laughed and said, ¡®Sister, you are the assistant to Chairman Jiang, you have to pay attention to what you¡¯re using. I¡¯m naturally beautiful and don¡¯t need these.¡¯


    Luo Yu did send a picture of the bags; Luo Qi did not refuse this time, and chose the color she liked. She remembered all the gifts that Luo Yu bought her, and when Luo Yu got married, she would give her a big gift.


    At 2:50pm, Luo Qi, who has already changed into her work clothes, picked up her laptop and went to Jiang Shenghe¡¯s office with three file boxes in her arms.


    The front desk on-duty at the President¡¯s office let her in without registering.


    The whole floor was quiet, and the sound of Luo Qi¡¯s high-heeled shoes was very clear. There were only two people working overtime in the huge secretary¡¯s office area. She only knew Secretary Ju; she had no dealings with the other person before.


    She joined the Yuanwei Group six years ago, and Secretary Ju took her in for half a year as mentor. She privately called Secretary Ju ¡®Master¡¯.


    Secretary Ju raised her head upon hearing the sound.


    Luo Qi mouthed to her, ¡°Hello, Master.¡±


    Secretary Ju smiled and raised her chin at her, the two of them understanding each other.


    When Luo Qi approached, Secretary Ju stood up, instantly restored the seriousness that a secretary should have, and greeted her with a few polite greetings, ¡°President Jiang is inside.¡±


    Luo Qi walked over quickly without delay.


    Both doors of Jiang Shenghe¡¯s office were open, she freed her hand, and knocked symbolically on the door panel twice, ¡°President Jiang.¡±


    ¡°Come in.¡± Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t even lift his head.


    _________


    FOOTNOTES:


    1It¡¯s Sunday. They will be working overtime on a Sunday afternoon.


    2Dragon and phoenix twins. Fraternals twins, a boy and a girl. A very auspicious birth.

 CH 2.2

    Luo Qi walked to the desk and placed the laptop and file boxes1 on Jiang Shenghe¡¯s desk. He was looking at the documents, focused on work. He had changed into a white shirt and black trousers¡ªnot a trace of casualness could be found on him.


    Jiang Shenghe finally raised his head. ¡°Sit down¡±, he said, pointing to the chair in front of the table.


    Luo Qi opened the file boxes and placed several documents one by one within reach of Jiang Shenghe¡¯s right hand. She quickly stacked up the empty cases and placed them on the corner of the table before sitting down.


    Using the time when the laptop was booting up, she tried her best to adapt to Jiang Shenghe¡¯s strong aura and get into work mode as soon as possible.


    Today¡¯s work will run at least three or four hours, and the laptop battery may not be enough, so she brought a charging cable.


    Jiang Sheng caught a glimpse of the charging cable from the corner of his eyes and reached out, ¡°Give me the plug.¡±


    There is a built-in socket on the desk, but it¡¯s on Jiang Shenghe¡¯s side and Luo Qi couldn¡¯t reach it, so she handed over the charging cable plug, ¡°I will trouble you, Chief Jiang.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t respond, just plugged it in.


    Luo Qi opened a document and took a look at Jiang Shenghe. He hadn¡¯t read the paper document yet, so she waited patiently.


    After so many years, she once again sat across Jiang Shenghe¡¯s desk to report on her work. The last time this happened, they were in a foreign country, and she was still in college.


    In that year, her father¡¯s company went bankrupt, and her father owed a lot of foreign debts. They could no longer afford her tuition fees and living expenses abroad, so she could only support herself by working part-time. With the help of an alumnus, she was able to get an internship offer from Yuanwei Capital, which is also a company Jiang Shenghe holds majority shares in.


    The internship salary was quite considerable, and it was able to support her to a smooth graduation.


    The major shareholders of Yuanwei Capital have profound and complicated backgrounds. Among them is Jiang Shenghe¡¯s cousin. Luo Qi entered Yuanwei Capital as an intern in the project team headed by Jiang Shenghe¡¯s cousin.


    His cousin was a typical second-generation playboy, romantic in his bones, but this romantic side was directed solely to the outside world. He valued the team members, and took good care of her and the two other interns.


    She performed well during her internship and was given the opportunity to stay. In the last month of the internship, a project plan she made was approved by that Jiang cousin, and she presented the plan to Jiang Shenghe.


    Jiang Shenghe gave her five minutes to introduce the key points of the project plan face-to-face. It was the first time she had contact with Jiang Shenghe. Due to her nervousness and lack of work experience, she was dissatisfied with her own performance.


    After she finished introducing the main points, Jiang Shenghe opened the plan without saying a word. Frowning, he browsed the first page roughly and then closed it. ¡°Go back and do your work, and I will reply to you after reading it.¡±


    That¡¯s the longest sentence he ever said to her.


    After waiting for a month, she still hasn¡¯t received Jiang Shenghe¡¯s email.


    She did not stay at Yuanwei Capital to work, but instead returned to China a month later. Her father had fallen ill under the heavy blows of bankruptcy, and her mother accompanied him to Beijing to see a doctor. His condition was not optimistic and he needed surgery.


    Living under strained financial conditions, with the pressure of huge debts, his father became seriously ill, and his mother¡¯s health also collapsed. When she returned home, she took care of her parents while looking for a job.


    She took a chance and applied for a job at Yuanwei Capital¡¯s parent company¡ªYuanwei Group.


    She saw Jiang Shenghe again three years later, when he returned to China to take over Yuanwei Group. At that time she was already Jiang Yueru¡¯s assistant.


    She no longer had the hairstyle she had when she was in college, her makeup had become more mature, and she no longer used her English name. Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t seem to recognize her.


    After finishing her internship that final year in college, her internal email was taken back by the company. She didn¡¯t know if Jiang Shenghe ever replied to her or approved her project plan before the email was canceled.


    But these thoughts have long been meaningless¡­


    Luo Qi stopped her straying reminiscences and focused on looking at the documents on the computer screen.


    ¡°Will He Wancheng attend the signing day?¡± Jiang Shenghe asked, glancing at Luo Qi.


    Luo Qi entered the working state in seconds, ¡°Yes, Director He made it clear that he would attend the signing ceremony.¡±


    He Wancheng is the chairman of their project partner in Sucheng. He is from Sucheng himself. He¡¯s quite easy-going, friendly, and in his fifties¡ªabout the same age as Jiang Yueru.


    Luo Qi thought that the overtime work would be over in three or four hours, but it turned out that after three hours, the discussion was only halfway through. The light outside the window began to dim, and it was almost evening.


    During the three hours, Luo Qi only relaxed her focus for a few minutes when Jiang Shenghe answered his phone¡ªat all other times, she was tense and on her toes, not daring to be distracted.


    Jiang Shenghe looked at his watch; it was already past dinner time, so he called Secretary Ju. ¡°Order some takeaways, we¡¯ll have to work hard tonight.¡±


    Secretary Ju thought, it¡¯s really not hard at all. She and another colleague came here just to accompany them. They¡¯ve been sitting at their station watching dramas. It couldn¡¯t be considered overtime work at all, but there was still overtime pay.


    The boss had called her earlier in the afternoon, notified her to come to the company to work overtime. He also specifically said, ¡®You don¡¯t need to be busy. Luo Qi will come over and brief me on the project in Sucheng.¡¯


    So she informed another male colleague to come to the company to ¡®work overtime¡¯ together.


    Secretary Ju asked Luo Qi in a business-like tone, ¡°Assistant Luo, is there anything you should not eat?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t eat spicy food, but everything else is fine.¡± Luo Qi has a small appetite, ¡°Please make a special note when placing the order: my meals are all halved in size. Sorry for the trouble.¡±


    Secretary Ju smiled. ¡°No trouble at all.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe put down the documents in his hand and went to the restroom.


    The boss was not there, and Secretary Ju gave Luo Qi a special wink before going out.


    Luo Qi smiled and gave her one too.


    Secretary Ju¡¯s child is already in primary school, yet she is still as playful as before.


    When Jiang Shenghe came back from the bathroom, he saw that Luo Qi was still sitting upright at the table as when he left.


    ¡°Ten minutes break before we continue,¡± he said.


    Luo Qi has been used to this sitting posture since she became an assistant, and as a result, she wouldn¡¯t slouch casually even during breaks


    Jiang Shenghe sat down and picked up the glass to drink water. She didn¡¯t know what to say to the unfamiliar boss to avoid the awkward silence, so she decided to take her cup and pour herself some coffee in the pantry outside.


    She stood up and walked towards the door. Jiang Shenghe looked over and watched her back for a few seconds.


    When Luo Qi came back in with hot, freshly ground coffee, exactly ten minutes had passed, and the break had now ended.


    Jiang Shenghe understood what she was thinking from the beginning: so as to avoid having to talk to him, it was really hard for her to step back in.


    He was about to say ¡®Let¡¯s get started¡¯ when Luo Qi¡¯s phone buzzed and vibrated.


    Luo Qi put down her coffee cup and hurriedly picked up her cell phone. It was Pei Shixiao¡¯s call. She didn¡¯t answer it, simply hung up.


    Pei Shixiao thought she was angry, so then a message came in: [Why didn¡¯t you answer the phone? Have you had dinner yet? ]


    Luo Qi typed quickly: [Working overtime, in the boss¡¯s office. ]


    She flipped the mobile phone facing down on the table and picked up the mouse.


    A few seconds passed, and the phone vibrated again, but she didn¡¯t take a look at it anymore. She didn¡¯t need to look to know that it was Pei Shixiao texting her back¡ªit was nothing more than asking her to focus on work first, and then call him back when it was over.


    Jiang Shenghe glanced at her and didn¡¯t say anything.


    Instead he sent a message to his bodyguard on the web version of WeChat: [Call me now. No need to reply to this message.]


    He closed the dialog box, and the bodyguard¡¯s phone call immediately came in.


    Jiang Shenghe opened the drawer and searched for a pack of cigarettes. He rarely smokes; the cigarettes in the office are used to entertain friends.


    He said to Luo Qi, ¡°You read the documents first.¡± He took out his mobile phone and the pack of cigarettes and went out.


    Luo Qi didn¡¯t think much, thinking that the boss had an important call, and it was not convenient to answer it in front of her.


    At the end of the corridor outside the office, Jiang Shenghe picked up the call. ¡°It¡¯s all right,¡± he said¡ªand directly hung up.


    He opened the pack of cigarettes, took one out, put it in his mouth, and took it down again after a while.


    He only brought out the cigarettes but forgot to bring a lighter.


    Jiang Shenghe rubbed the cigarette in his hand twice, and threw it into the trash can next to him.


    Outside the window, it was already dark.


    No cigarettes, his hand inside his pockets, he looked out the window. He stayed in the corridor for a few minutes¡ªgiving Luo Qi time to reply to the message¡ªand then returned to the office.


    T/N: Throughout the story, we¡¯d get to see Jiang Shenghe¡¯s memories of this same ¡®past¡¯ and it would be completely different from how Luo Qi remembers it. It¡¯s not that Luo Qi is an Unreliable Narrator¡ªbut she was too caught up in the stress of her family¡¯s downfall, having to earn money, her parent¡¯s health, and her affections were already firmly set on another boy that she had no attention to spare for a new guy who popped into her life. She never saw all the things he did for her¡ªjust like she didn¡¯t see how considerate he was being just now in giving her time to attend to her personal phone call.


    ____________


    FOOTNOTE:


    1 For visual aid, the file boxes that Luo Qi are carrying are probably something like this

 CH 3.1

    Luo Qi had half a cup of coffee before Jiang Sheng came back.


    Perhaps because of the desk separating them, she couldn¡¯t detect the smell of cigarette smoke on his body. Just now, while he was out smoking, she had a few words with Pei Shixiao.


    ¡°Signing on June 10?¡±, Jiang Sheng confirmed the time.


    ¡°Yes.¡± Luo Qi added, ¡°On the afternoon of the tenth.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe casually threw the unused pack of cigarettes next to the computer and informed her in advance, ¡°Go to Sucheng on the 8th and return on the 11th.¡±


    Luo Qi didn¡¯t expect to come two days in advance and asked, ¡°How many people are going in total? I will arrange to book tickets and rooms.¡±


    ¡°No need. Let the Secretary Ju arrange it.¡± Jiang Shenghe picked up another document and opened it.


    His peripheral vision could see her laptop and the color of her clothes. He tilted his head, so his gaze only touched the files and the top of his  desk.


    Aroma of her cup of coffee was everywhere.


    Luo Qi cheered up and quickly returned to work.The food was delivered half an hour later, and Secretary Ju brought two meal boxes directly to the office. Luo Qi often talked about work with Jiang Yueru while eating, but now the person sitting across from her was replaced by Jiang Shenghe which she was not used to.


    Jiang Shenghe picked up the meal box, ¡°Go out to eat, don¡¯t mess up the documents.¡±


    Luo Qi was relieved¡ªthe four of them eating together would not be so oppressive.


    On the small conference table outside, Secretary Ju and another male colleague were sitting opposite each other. They were eating and chatting. Seeing them come out, Secretary Ju got up and set up the chairs.


    Luo Qi sat next to Secretary Ju, and Jiang Shenghe sat next to the male subordinate, still opposite her, face to face. He chatted with the two subordinates one after another. Most of the questions he asked, they answered cautiously.


    She ate quietly, without saying a word.


    Halfway through eating, Luo Qi put down her chopsticks to drink the soup. The lid of the soup bowl was tightly sealed and it was difficult to remove.


    Secretary Ju complained, ¡°Their takeaway meals are good, but the design of the soup bowl lid is really not friendly.¡± She often eats this and has experience in removing the lid. ¡°I¡¯ll help you.¡±


    ¡°No need.¡± Luo Qi tried to open it twice but failed. She didn¡¯t dare to use too much force for fear that the soup would spill out.


    Jiang Shenghe finally couldn¡¯t hold back and put down his chopsticks. ¡°Give it to me.¡±


    Luo Qi looked over, and his strong hand with slender fingers was already stretched out to her, just like when he was helping her plug in the charging cable before. His words were cold but not to be refused .


    ¡°Thank you, Chief Jiang.¡±


    But, after all, how could she command the big boss of the group? So she didn¡¯t hand it over.


    With great effort, she lifted the lid of the bowl and spilled some soup onto the back of her hand. Secretary Ju had quick eyes and quick hands, and took out a few paper towels to dry the back of her hand.


    The soup had splashed on her hand¡ªJiang Shenghe immediately touched his own soup bowl: it was warm but not hot.


    After making sure she wasn¡¯t scalded, he continued to eat as if nothing had happened.


    After a hasty work meal, overtime continued.


    They were busy until half past nine. When Luo Qi was about to go home, Jiang Yueru¡¯s driver was waiting downstairs to take her home. She got in the car, looked up, and saw that the lights on the president¡¯s office floor were still on.


    As the car drove into the night, Luo Qi leaned against the back of the seat and only then was she able to completely relax.


    Soon, the car was parked under her apartment building.


    This apartment was less than two kilometers away from the company. Pei Shixiao specially bought this apartment for the convenience of her commuting.


    Once back home, Luo Qi sent a message to Pei Shixiao: [Video in half an hour.]


    Throwing the phone on the bed, she grabbed some pajamas and took a shower.


    Not long after, the bathroom was filled with mist. She closed her eyes and lifted her face to the showerhead. Working with Jiang Shenghe for one night and she almost lost half her life.


    She hasn¡¯t recovered yet.


    Pei Shixiao¡¯s video invitation came in on time half an hour later. Luo Qi placed the phone on its stand so as not to delay her skin care. From the other side, he hadn¡¯t adjusted the camera angle well and only half of his profile was showing¡ªhis powerful jawline occupied the entire phone screen.


    Soon, his upper body appeared in the video, with the office in the background.


    Pei Shixiao adjusted the angle and saw Luo Qi clearly. He frowned, ¡°Why don¡¯t you blow dry your hair?¡±


    Luo Qi toweled her hair after taking a shower, but didn¡¯t dry it, and simply put a bath towel on her shoulders.


    ¡°I¡¯ll blow dry it later.¡± She picked a dollop of night cream from the bottle, and approached the phone screen with her finger, playfully scribbling on his face a few times in the air.


    Pei Shixiao smiled and watched her do her skin care routine with his chin propped up, ¡°Why were you working overtime at your boss¡¯ office today?¡±


    ¡°With Director Jiang¡¯s surgery, some work can only be done with the boss.¡± She didn¡¯t go into details about the project involving trade secrets, and instead asked ¡°Are you still staying at the company tonight?¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    Pei Shixiao panned the camera around on the table, ¡°So many materials left to read.¡±


    Luo Qi patted her face lightly, ¡°I worked overtime all night, I don¡¯t want to read if it¡¯s work related.¡±


    Pei Shixiao pointed the camera at himself, and Luo Qi stared at his hair, ¡°Even after a day, your hairstyle is not messed up at all.¡± The hair is meticulous.


    Not only the hairstyle, but also the cufflinks of his shirt are still in place.


    The man in front of her is very pleasing to the eye.


    Pei Shixiao explained briefly: ¡°Someone came to discuss cooperation this afternoon.¡±


    ¡°By the way,¡± Luo Qi told him, ¡°I¡¯m going to Sucheng on business on the 8th of next month, and I¡¯ll stay for four days.


    It¡¯s the end of May now and the 8th is not far.


    Pei Shixiao didn¡¯t say that he would go back that day; he can give her a surprise then.


    Before ending the video, he reminded, ¡°Blow dry your hair before going to bed.¡±


    ¡°I will.¡± Luo Qi waved to the phone, ¡°Good night.¡±


    Cut the video, go to the bathroom, blow dry her hair.


    Tomorrow is Black Monday again¡ªthe only thing worth looking forward to is the salary payment tomorrow.


    __________


    At 4:30 p.m. on Monday, the salary arrives.


    Luo Qi had just left a meeting, and the wages only stayed on the card for ten minutes warming up. She kept a few thousand yuan in small change, and transferred all the rest to her mother.


    The family still owes more than 11 million yuan in debt. In six years, she and her parents have repaid more than 20 million yuan in total. In the past, when she was rich, tens of millions was not considered a lot, but once she hit the bottom, thirty million became a huge sum of money, which once made her see no hope.


    Fortunately, her father cheered up after the operation, used his skills to buy shares in other companies, worked hard, and earned a decent income in the past two years.


    Her mother was an interior designer. In order to make more money, she kept taking jobs and working overtime day and night.


    Six years later, her parents looked more than ten years older. Gay hairs appeared one after another, so they could only rely on hair dyeing.


    A message came in on the mobile phone. Her mother didn¡¯t ask for all of her money, so she transferred 50,000 back to her.


    [Mom was paid for all the jobs she did recently; it¡¯s enough to pay off the debt for this month. From now on, you can save some money every month to buy yourself a few dresses that you like, and wear them beautifully on your wedding day.]


    The family wants face¡ªthey can¡¯t dress poorly when she gets married, and they can¡¯t let Pei Shixiao buy all the clothes. She owed her daughter too much but could not offer anything to make it up.


    Luo Qi transferred the money again. [Mom, you keep the money, I still have money in my card. I don¡¯t need to buy dresses¡ªDirector Jiang gave me two sets as wedding presents, both high-end.]


    Mother: [The gift is too expensive to accept. ]


    Luo Qi also thought it was too expensive, but Director Jiang had already paid for it when she told her, and asked her to choose the style.


    [I give back at work.]


    In the past few years, Director Jiang has taken good care of her, so she can only redouble her efforts at work¡ªthere is no other way to repay.

 CH 3.2

    Before it was time to get off work, Luo Qi left the company early to go to the hospital.


    The bodyguard on duty outside the door of the VIP ward today is not Jiang Yueru¡¯s bodyguard, so she doesn¡¯t know him.


    Luo Qi was about to introduce herself, but the bodyguard pushed open the glass door and invited her in.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± She wondered why she wasn¡¯t even asked who she was.


    The door of the ward was half open, and it was busier than yesterday.


    Luo Qi walked to the door, but before she had time to knock on the door, someone happened to come out of the ward with a familiar face¡ªhe was a junior of the Jiang family, and she had met him in Director Jiang¡¯s office.


    The man also knew her, nodded to her and said ¡®hello¡¯, then turned to the room and said, ¡°Assistant Luo is here.¡± The chatter and laughter in the ward stopped abruptly, and they all looked over at the same time.


    The six or seven young men and women inside were all juniors of the Jiang family.


    Luo Qi knew the big Jiang family very well. There were six brothers and sisters in Jiang Yueru¡¯s generation¡ªthree older brothers and two older sisters. Jiang Yueru was the youngest.


    The eldest brother was over eighty years old this year, while Jiang Yueru was not yet sixty, and the difference in age between the two siblings was over twenty years.


    In that era, marriages were generally early, and the eldest brother got married and had children when he reached the legal age of marriage, so Jiang Yueru and her eldest brother¡¯s son were about the same age.


    The difference in seniority is such that Jiang Yueru¡¯s son is about the same age as the eldest brother¡¯s grandson.


    Their big boss, Jiang Shenghe, is the son of Jiang Yueru¡¯s third brother¡¯s family.


    Seeing her coming, the juniors of the Jiang family stood up and said goodbye, saying that they would come to the hospital tomorrow and told their aunt to rest well.


    Jiang Yueru waved her hand, ¡°Don¡¯t bother, I¡¯m almost recovered.¡±


    As soon as they left, the ward became quiet.


    Jiang Yueru was leaning against the inclined bed¡ªher complexion was better than yesterday, and she was much more energetic. She pointed to a chair in front of the bed, and motioned to Luo Qi, ¡°Sit down and talk.¡±


    Luo Qi hung her bag on the back of the chair, ¡°There is no important work to report. Everything that needs to be reported has already been reported to Chief Jiang. I just came here to talk to you.¡±


    Unexpectedly, there were so many people from the Jiang family.


    Jiang Yueru asked in concern, ¡°Did you work late last night?¡±


    ¡°No, I went back on time.¡±


    ¡°Stop it, I don¡¯t believe it.¡±


    Luo Qi smiled. ¡°Really, how dare I lie to you.¡±


    ¡°You lie and I¡¯m supposed to believe? You think I don¡¯t know? You work overtime until midnight and say you¡¯re off work normally; work overtime through the night and say you¡¯re off work by nine o¡¯clock, isn¡¯t this your habit?¡± Jiang Yueru pointed to the fruit plate on the tea cabinet, ¡°Peel a kiwi.¡±


    Luo Qi washed her hands. The kiwi fruit was hard to peel, so she had to use a knife to do it.


    Jiang Yueru tells her, ¡°I plan to retire early, at the end of the year.¡±


    The fruit knife in Luo Qi¡¯s hand stopped. Jiang Yueru was a well-known workaholic, and the word ¡®retirement¡¯ seemed to never be related to her.


    She looked at Jiang Yueru in surprise, ¡°Why did you suddenly have this idea, Director Jiang?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not sudden¡ªI had this plan a long time ago. Age is not forgiving, and one can only accept it gracefully.¡± Jiang Yueru self-evaluated, ¡°I trained people in Yuanwei well. There are many elite talents: Li Rui, Xiaoju, and you, are considered to have achieved great success based on your merits and virtues.¡±


    Li Rui is in her early forties and is now the vice president of Yuanwei Group, a vigorous and resolute strong woman. Xiaoju is Jiang Shenghe¡¯s secretary, Luo Qi¡¯s ¡®master¡¯.


    And Lou Qi herself¡ªit wasn¡¯t lip service to call her an elite talent; she deserves it.


    Luo Qi peeled the kiwi fruit and handed it to Jiang Yueru.


    ¡°I can¡¯t eat it.¡± Jiang Yue raised her chin slightly, ¡°I asked you to cut it for you yourself to eat.¡±


    Luo Qi: ¡°¡­.¡±


    Anyway, it has been cut, so she has to eat it herself.


    The kiwi had just been placed in her mouth, before she had time to bite, when there were hurried footsteps at the door.


    Luo Qi raised her head, and the slender figure had already opened the door and entered.


    She took the kiwi away from her mouth, ¡°Older brother Jiang.¡±


    The person who came was Jiang Yueru¡¯s son, that is, Jiang Shenghe¡¯s cousin, one of the shareholders of Yuanwei Capital. He was head of the project team when she was an intern at Yuanwei Capital. The second generation, ancestor, playboy¡ªJiang Sixun.


    It was Jiang Sixun who recommended her project plan to Jiang Shenghe years ago.


    When Jiang Yueru was young, she and her husband had a bad relationship and ended up divorced. Her son followed her and changed his surname to Jiang.


    Jiang Sixun didn¡¯t like being controlled by his parents and he had been abroad all this time. He probably came back because Jiang Yueru was in the hospital.


    The men of the Jiang family, whether it was the few who came to visit Jiang Yueru just now, or Jiang Shenghe and Jiang Sixun, were all good looking, noble and handsome, each with their own characteristics.


    Jiang Sixun¡¯s usual dressing style can only be described as ¡®romantic¡¯, but today he actually wore a white shirt with the top button buttoned up, looking serious.


    Luo Qi wasn¡¯t used to it and stared for a second.


    Holding a dark, striped tie in his hand, Jiang Sixun closed the door of the ward and said to Luo Qi, ¡°Don¡¯t look at me; eat your fruit.¡±


    Luo Qi is no stranger to Jiang Sixun, otherwise it would be impossible to call Jiang Sixun ¡®older brother¡¯. Every time Jiang Sixun returned to China, he would treat her to dinner, learn about Jiang Yueru¡¯s recent situation, and then ask her to take care of Jiang Yueru¡¯s body and emotions.


    Jiang Sixun threw the tie on the bed and asked his mother, ¡°How do you feel this afternoon?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m okay.¡± Jiang Yueru looked at the tie on the bed, and then at her son, ¡°You look like a made up dog today¡ªwhere did you get the tie? Who bought you the clothes on your body? How was the blind date? Did they take a fancy to you?¡±


    A series of four questions were thrown.


    Jiang Sixun poured water to drink, unbuttoned his shirt with one hand, and breathed smoothly after freeing his neck. ¡°The tie and clothes were brought to me by third uncle, and he forced me to change into them, saying that my original shirt was airy, not serious enough, and would make me lose face.¡±


    As for the result of the blind date, ¡°I don¡¯t remember what that woman looks like, and I didn¡¯t even look at her.¡± After half an hour, they went back to their respective homes.


    On the first day after returning to China, he was taken on a blind date by his third uncle. His third uncle couldn¡¯t control Jiang Shenghe, so he used him to death instead, as he finally found someone he could reason with.


    Jiang Yueru teased, ¡°Your third uncle thinks you lack fatherly love, so bear with it.¡±


    Jiang Sixun was speechless and let out a ¡®Hah!¡¯


    Luo Qi ate the kiwi in silence, not participating in the conversation.


    She drank cold water, trying to get rid of the tiny seed that got stuck between teeth. She hadn¡¯t yet finished eating her kiwi, when someone opened the door of the ward again. There was still fruit in her mouth, so she hurriedly chewed a few times and swallowed.


    ¡°Chief Jiang.¡± She stood up abruptly, like a conditioned reflex.


    Jiang Shenghe nodded, ¡°Sit.¡±


    When he walked over to the hospital bed, the tie on the bed looked familiar.


    Jiang Sixun leaned against the window sill and said with a smile, ¡°I suffered for you today.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe looked sideways, ¡°What¡¯s the crime?¡±


    ¡°The crime of a blind date. Third uncle forced me to go.¡± He pointed to the bed, ¡°He also brought an outfit for me to wear.¡±


    No wonder Jiang Shenghe found the tie familiar¡ªit turned out to be a new one he had bought some time ago and had used only once.


    Walking to the tea cabinet, there are three or four fruit plates on it.


    In fact, he didn¡¯t want to eat it, but he forked a piece of watermelon anyway and put it in his mouth.


    Luo Qi saw that Jiang Shenghe was also eating fruit, and she was not so restrained anymore when eating kiwi fruit in front of the boss.


    Jiang Sixun was still standing by the window sill, drinking water leisurely. He looked away from the two of them, took out his mobile phone, and typed a line to send.


    Immediately, Jiang Shenghe¡¯s cell phone vibrated¡ªJiang Sixun had sent him a message: [All these years, you really never thought about snatching Luo Qi away? Don¡¯t tell me you have high morals twenty-four hours a day.]


    Jiang Shenghe stared at the message for a few seconds.


    He locked the screen phone, sent no reply.


    Of course he thought about it.


    More than once.

 CH 4.1

    Jiang Sixun found that ever since Jiang Shenghe stepped into the ward, Luo Qi talked less. He, of course, knew that she used to be afraid of Jiang Shenghe¡ªthe big boss.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go out and have a drink.¡± He gestured to Jiang Shenghe.


    Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t comment, just ate another small piece of watermelon.


    Jiang Sixun put down the water glass, ¡°Luo Qi, thank you for accompanying my mother.¡±


    Luo Qi smiled, ¡°See you next time. It¡¯s no trouble at all.¡±


    When Jiang Shenghe first entered the ward, she hoped that he would leave quickly. She felt uncomfortable that he was here.


    Nobody wants to see their boss after they get off work.


    Jiang Shenghe never imagined that, just a few steps away, the person he was thinking of was now slandering him in her mind.


    After eating the second piece of watermelon, he left the ward with Jiang Sixun.


    ¡°Where are we going?¡± Jiang Sixun asked.


    Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t care, ¡°Anywhere.¡±


    ¡°Would you like to go to a bar?¡± But then Jiang Sixun felt uncomfortable. ¡°My mother is still in the hospital, so we will be scolded for being unfilial if we go to a bar. Let¡¯s find a special home-cooked restaurant.¡±


    He said what he missed the most when he was abroad was not his family, but the stir-fried dishes from various places in China.


    ¡°You drive the car. You know the road better than me.¡± He handed the car key to Jiang Shenghe.


    Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t agree. ¡°Let the driver drive.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine to let the driver drive, but then one of us has to lie on the roof.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe then looked at the car key logo¡ªit was a sports car. ¡°Qin Moling¡¯s car?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Jiang Sixun didn¡¯t have a car in China, and every time he returned home, he either drove Jiang Shenghe¡¯s car or Qin Moling¡¯s car. He knew Qin Moling very well because of Jiang Shenghe.


    Qin Moling was Jiang Shenghe¡¯s classmate. They were in the same class from kindergarten to elementary school. They have thrown blame at each other since they were young. If one person caused trouble, the other would definitely be dragged into it as well.


    Qin Moling was also another major shareholder of Yuanwei Capital; in fact, one-third of Yuanwei Capital¡¯s funds come from him.


    On the way, Jiang Sixun located the address of a private restaurant and sent it to Qin Moling: [Let¡¯s go.]


    Once the message was sent out, he chatted with Jiang Shenghe. ¡°I heard that Qin Moling also had a blind date arranged for him by his family recently.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe stared at the signal light in front, ¡°You two can exchange ideas.¡±


    Jiang Sixun rubbed his chin, ignored his mocking tone and instead took his words at face value, ¡°I really have this plan.¡± He suddenly remembered, ¡°I asked you before, why didn¡¯t you reply?¡±


    Jiang Shenghe said casually, ¡°What?¡±


    Jiang Sixun patiently reminded him, ¡°I asked you earlier in the ward.¡±


    Did you ever think about snatching Luo Qi over?


    Jiang Shenghe returned the question, ¡°What do you think?¡±


    This tone clearly meant that he wanted to snatch.


    ¡°If you haven¡¯t thought about it, I would have encouraged you to grab her. Anyway, I don¡¯t have much sense of morality.¡±


    But if he has already thought about it, then just forget he mentioned it.


    As for why Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t grab her in the beginning, Jiang Sixun knew the reason without asking¡ªPei Shixiao never gave him the chance.


    If Pei Shixiao ever treated Luo Qi badly, and Luo Qi ends up unhappy, Jiang Shenghe will do everything possible to break up their little love. However, Pei Shixiao was completely devoted to Luo Qi, and he treated her impeccably.


    Jiang Shenghe probably only thought of stealing Lou Qi on days when he was made really unwilling and uncomfortable.


    It was only after Jiang Sixun returned to China this time that he learned that Luo Qi was already engaged, and the wedding date was set for December.


    ¡°What are your plans for next year?¡± he asked tentatively.


    Jiang Shenghe glanced at him, ¡°You afraid I won¡¯t be able to handle it? That won¡¯t happen.¡±


    Luo Qi will get married, and he was already mentally prepared. Based on the relationship between her and Pei Shixiao, getting married was just a matter of one day, sooner or later.


    Jiang Sixun made fun of himself, ¡°It¡¯s me who worries excessively.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe talked about his plan for next year, but it was not related to emotions. ¡°Yuanwei Medical has potential competitors emerging from the woodwork, and those companies are developing rapidly. Those who pose a threat to Yuanwei obviously cannot stay.¡±


    Yuanwei Medical Technology is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Yuanwei Group. Its core business is 3D printing, and it focuses on the fields of orthopedics and dentistry.


    Jiang Sixun agreed, ¡°Then buy them.¡±


    Not long after, the sports car parked in the courtyard of a private restaurant.


    Qin Moling was already in the private room. He had ordered two dishes and was eating slowly by himself.


    Jiang Sixun: ¡°¡­. Aren¡¯t you embarrassed? You start eating before everyone arrives?¡±


    Jiang Shenghe was already used to the behavior and simply dragged a chair to sit down.


    Qin Moling raised his eyelids, ¡°Why should I be embarrassed?¡± He played cards all night, didn¡¯t go to bed until six o¡¯clock in the morning, and slept until the afternoon. This was the first meal of the day.


    Jiang Shenghe picked up the tablet on the table to look at the menu. He hadn¡¯t come for some days, and this private restaurant has changed the menu and updated the dishes.


    Jiang Sixun didn¡¯t sit down, he went to the window and opened it to smoke.


    As soon as he got off the plane, his third uncle took him to a blind date. After the blind date, he rushed to the hospital. He didn¡¯t find a chance to smoke a cigarette all day long.


    After lighting a cigarette, he asked Qin Moling with great interest, ¡°I heard that you have a blind date this month?¡±


    Qin Moling, ¡°Which month did I not?¡±


    Jiang Sixun laughed.


    What Qin Moling said was not an exaggeration; his family never tired of arranging a meeting for him, but he didn¡¯t go even once, and he already forgot how many blind dates he¡¯s had.


    Marriage between well-matched families was just for profit, which was meaningless.


    After finishing a cigarette, Jiang Shenghe was still looking at the menu.


    Jiang Sixun frowned, ¡°Can you see gold on the menu?¡±


    Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t seem to hear or answer.


    Jiang Sixun slowly exhaled the last puff of smoke, put out the cigarette butt and walked over, glanced at the menu, and finally understood why Jiang Shenghe was interested in the menu, ¡°Is there a special dish from Suzhou?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Jiang Shenghe chose a few dishes, placed an order, and put down the tablet.


    Jiang Sixun sat down and stared at his cousin for a while, ¡°Take out some for Luo Qi?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not necessary.¡± Jiang Shenghe reminded Jiang Sixun so as to warn himself, ¡°She¡¯s getting married soon, so it¡¯s inappropriate to bother her. ¡°


    ¡°Okay, okay, this is enough then.¡± Only in the matter of Luo Qi, Jiang Sixun never joked. Jiang Shenghe said what he said, and he never contradicted.


    ¡­ ¡­


    After dinner, Jiang Shenghe returned directly to his residence from the restaurant. Tomorrow, he¡¯s going on a business trip abroad and had to get up early to catch the plane, so he didn¡¯t go to the hospital on purpose.


    But if Luo Qi hadn¡¯t been there, he might have gone to see his aunt again.


    ___________


    T/N: In case you¡¯ve been here for the last couple of weeks, please note that I changed the name of Luo Qi¡¯s hometown from ¡®Sucheng¡¯ to ¡®Suzhou¡¯. I¡¯m gonna go back and change previous chapters, so if you just recently started the story, you¡¯re fine. Also Suzhou is so pretty¡­


    While we all sit here and ache for Jiang Shenghe, let me shriek about my other boy Qin Moling. I actually read his story first [Marriage Before Love] and¡ªdon¡¯t let his love for race cars and all-night card playing in this chapter fool you¡ªhe is more in line with the ¡®domineering CEO¡¯ than our tragic Jiang Shenghe. It¡¯s only that he somehow managed to find the one woman he could not dominate as his wife. I was going to translate his story but then Jiang Shenghe stole my soul it¡¯s such a slooooow burn, so slow that I didn¡¯t even realize that Qin Moling was being an Unreliable Narrator and he actually liked the girl from the beginning¡ªhe was just a blockhead about love. Anyway, one day (¡ä ?£à?)

 CH 4.2

    Until June 7th, whether it was in the hospital ward or the company¡¯s high-level meeting, Luo Qi didn¡¯t meet Jiang Shenghe.


    During the period, Secretary Ju called her and asked her for her ID card information to book a high-speed rail ticket to Suzhou.


    Luo Qi asked, as a by the way, where the hotel was booked.


    According to Jiang Shenghe¡¯s instructions, Secretary Ju booked a five-star hotel in the center of Suzhou city. Everything in the urban area was good, but the traffic jams were considerable. The boss never liked to live in busy places when he was on a business trip. This time he made an exception: he said he wanted to meet a friend, and it was more convenient to live in the city center.


    When Luo Qi heard the address of the hotel, it was less than 500 meters away from the alley where her house was, so she had enough time to go home at night.


    Secretary Ju only knew that Luo Qi was from Suzhou, but she didn¡¯t know where her family lived.


    ¡°Is your home far from the hotel? The itinerary is not tight this time. If it¡¯s not too far, you can go home and stay overnight.¡±


    Luo Qi said, ¡°It¡¯s very close, only about a ten-minute walk. If there is no work dinner, I can be your guide and take you around.¡±


    Secretary Ju was not polite, ¡°Then I will definitely rely on you.¡±


    She added, ¡°There is no dinner on the night of the 8th¡ªit¡¯s Chief Jiang¡¯s private itinerary. As long as Chief Jiang has private arrangements, he will give us a holiday, so we don¡¯t have to follow him. In the evening, we two can go out shopping. After shopping, you can go home and stay over.¡±


    Luo Qi felt that it was not appropriate¡ªif she was on a business trip with Jiang Yueru, she could do a bit of personal matters, but it is her first time to go on a business trip with the big boss and it¡¯s still better to leave a good impression. ¡°I will go home and see my parents, but I won¡¯t stay at home; I¡¯ll go back to the hotel.¡±


    Secretary Ju told her to go home with peace of mind, Jiang Shenghe was only strict with them during working hours, and was more considerate of his subordinates after work, and always gave them half-a-day personal time off when they were on business trips like this. In fact, they would usually meet up with friends or visit scenic spots, and Jiang Shenghe never looked for them during this period.


    She talked about her own experience, ¡°I once went on a business trip to my hometown, and Chief Jiang offered to let me go home to accompany my parents. So you can go home with peace of mind and stay for one night and one more morning. You will only have work in the afternoon of the 9th. For that meeting, you just need to make sure to show up on time.¡±


    Luo Qi said gratefully, ¡°Thank you, Master.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not my credit, if you want to thank someone¡ªthank the boss, Chief Jiang,¡± Secretary Ju said. ¡°But I love to hear you call me ¡®Master¡¯. Anyway, I¡¯m busy, so goodbye.¡±


    They hung up the phone with a smile.


    Luo Qi then told her mother the good news: she¡¯ll be going to Suzhou City on the afternoon of the 8th and will go home in the evening and stay overnight.


    Her mother asked: [Is Shixiao free to come back? You have to choose the wedding dress as soon as possible. It will take three to four months to make it by hand. Try to get it done before November, so that there is still time to change it if it doesn¡¯t fit.]


    Luo Qi didn¡¯t ask Pei Shixiao; he has been working overtime every day recently, and every video call he was still in the office. [He shouldn¡¯t be free.]


    Mother: [Then mother will accompany you. You try it on and make a video for Shixiao to watch.]


    Luo Qi: [OK.]


    Her mother did not forget to remind: [Remember to put an umbrella in your bag before you come back; the rains this year might come early.]


    Luo Qi: [There is always an umbrella in the bag.]


    Without noticing it, half of this year has already passed, and it was the rainy season again. At this time of the year, the old houses in the alleys will return to damp and emit a faint, musty smell.


    Her father always tried to find ways to dehumidify, but the old house was next to the river, and the river would rise up during summer, so the effect of dehumidification was not at all obvious.


    After getting engaged to Pei Shixiao at the beginning of this year, her mother specially told her not to bring Pei Shixiao home for dinner for six or seven months, for fear that he might not be used to the damp smell.


    _______


    On the eighth day, the sky in Beijing was clear.


    Luo Qi only brought a small suitcase and set off early to the train station. It was more convenient to take the high-speed rail to Sucheng than the plane, and the scenery along the road was not bad.


    When she arrived at the station, she pushed the suitcase to the business class waiting room.


    From a distance, she noticed the tall figure standing by the door of the waiting room. Her attention was drawn, not because of the man¡¯s broad shoulders and long legs, but because of the inexplicable sense of psychological oppression that came from seeing the boss.


    Jiang Shenghe¡ªsunglasses on, arms folded¡ªwas on the phone.


    For some reason, he suddenly turned his face and looked in her direction.


    When other women passing by saw Jiang Shenghe, what they felt was the unconscious masculine aura coming from him, but Luo Qi didn¡¯t care to appreciate it¡ªshe¡¯s busy thinking that she actually arrived later than the boss!


    At this moment, Jiang Shenghe ended the call, and he lowered the phone from his ear.


    He didn¡¯t wait for her at the door on purpose, it¡¯s only that he received a call from home; there were several subordinates in the waiting room, and it was inconvenient to say some things in front of them.


    ¡°Chief Jiang,¡± Luo Qi greeted him.


    Jiang Shenghe nodded, ¡°Go in.¡±


    Secretary Ju sat with a few colleagues, chatting quietly. They saw her come in and waved to her.


    Luo Qi put her luggage next to the sofa and sat down next to Secretary Ju.


    Secretary Ju pointed to the flat shoes on her feet and winked at her.


    Luo Qi smiled, instantly understanding that it was convenient to go shopping in Suzhou wearing flat shoes.


    There were a total of five people on this trip, including Luo Qi, and they were all booked in the same carriage.


    When they got on the train, Secretary Ju and the others didn¡¯t sit according to the seat number on their respective tickets; instead they just casually found seats. Luo Qi was Jiang Yueru¡¯s person, and she was considered an outsider compared to them, so they were all very polite to her and left the two best independent seats to her and Jiang Shenghe.


    She didn¡¯t hurry and walked behind Jiang Shenghe, waiting for the boss to choose a seat first.


    Jiang Shenghe knew that Luo Qi often took this high-speed rail, and she had already seen the scenery along the way many times. She might not be interested in looking for a long period, and she might not necessarily look out the window at all during the trip, but he still left the seat on the side with a better view for Luo Qi to sit on, and picked the other side for himself.


    Luo Qi put away her suitcase, thinking about how to pass the time.


    This train was not an EMU1, and there is basically no privacy to speak off between the seats. No matter what she does, the boss sitting next to her would be able to see it clearly.


    She didn¡¯t intend to pretend to be actively busy with work in front of the boss¡ªthe boss would see through it in a glance¡ªso she simply took out a tablet to watch a movie.


    She put on the earphones and, almost out of habit, Luo Qi opened the movie that had already been viewed four times from the list of favorites.


    Today was the fifth time for her to watch.


    It¡¯s a niche movie. She was studying abroad when it was released, and Pei Shixiao accompanied her to the cinema to watch it twice, but he was not interested in it and just came purely to keep her company.


    Pei Shixiao seemed to have endless patience with her¡ªobviously he didn¡¯t like it, but he still offered to watch it with her again.


    As the high-speed rail left the city, the view became wider.


    Jiang Shenghe turned his head and saw Luo Qi taking pictures of the view outside the window. She took several shots a row then looked at the pictures taken. As if the shots were not satisfactory, the phone was pointed outside the window again.


    How long she took the pictures was how long he secretly watched her.


    ____________


    FOOTNOTE:


    1EMU trains business class would have seats like this. Luo is lamenting that she and Jiang Shenghe are seated on normal carriage seats and she can¡¯t hide. ??


    Apologies for missing all of the previous week¡¯s updates. I got sick, and then my internet provider had technical problems and I didn¡¯t have the patience to deal with how mind-numbingly slow it got.

 CH 5.1

    A message came in on the phone placed on the small table. His friend asked him: [What is your ETA? I will pick you up.]


    Jiang Shenghe slowly took his gaze away from Luo Qi and replied to his friend: [No need, there is a car. See you in the evening.]


    After responding to the message, Jiang Shenghe took off his sunglasses, exchanged it for a pair of thin-rimmed glasses, and connected his laptop to the power supply.


    In the seat next to him, Luo Qi stood up and quickly sat down again. But he didn¡¯t look there any more. He turned on the laptop to read his mail.


    Luo Qi settled in her seat, picked two of the photos she took just now and sent them to Pei Shixiao, telling him that she had already set off for Suzhou City.


    After half an hour, Pei Shixiao came back with only one sentence: [Not bad, there¡¯s been progress in the camera technology.]


    He didn¡¯t ask her where she was and what she was doing. Unlike before.


    She asked: [Just woke up from a nap?]


    Pei Shixiao: [I didn¡¯t sleep today, I was outside.]


    Luo Qi thought he had an appointment with someone. [Then you are busy.]


    Pei Shixiao: [Yeah, I¡¯ll call you tonight. ]


    Luo Qi stared at the phone thoughtfully, but did not reply. Instead she continued to  watch the movie.


    The ending song soon played¡ªmore than two hours have passed without her noticing it.


    After turning off the tablet, Luo Qi glanced to the right without thinking, and only when she saw the person sitting next to her did she remember that the boss¡¯ seat was in that direction! She was about to turn her head away, but it was too late¡ªJiang Shenghe was a step ahead of her, and turned his head to look over at her.


    The moment they looked at each other, Luo Qi felt slightly surprised. She had never seen Jiang Shenghe wearing glasses before, but she had heard the female colleagues in the company going on about it, saying how attractive and solemn the boss looked when wearing glasses.


    She only felt that Jiang Shenghe who was wearing glasses had no warmth in his eyes, and looked even more unapproachable than usual.


    In order to alleviate the embarrassment of suddenly meeting each other¡¯s eyes, Jiang Shenghe did not look away, but instead allowed himself to look his fill, and first broke the silence. ¡°Why were you calling me? I didn¡¯t hear clearly just now.¡±


    Luo Qi: ¡°¡­¡±


    At this time, she, of course, couldn¡¯t say to the boss: I didn¡¯t call you.


    Outwardly calm, she followed his lead and said, ¡°It¡¯s a private matter. The hotel we are booked in is not far from my home. I want to go home tonight, and I wanted to report the matter to you in advance.¡±


    Over the years, what Jiang Shenghe disliked the most was how she called him ¡®you¡¯ every time, but he couldn¡¯t find a good reason for her not to refer to him that way1.


    ¡°Tonight and tomorrow morning are your free time. You don¡¯t need to report if it doesn¡¯t affect your work.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Chief Jiang.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t answer anymore, and his eyes fell back on the laptop screen.


    Luo Qi waited for the boss to turn away, then hurriedly looked away herself. Reminder! The boss is sitting on the right, so don¡¯t turn your face that way!


    The weather along the way changed from clear sky to cloudy, and it was cloudy and rainy by the time they arrived in Suzhou. The air was hot and humid. It has been raining for half a day, and it only stopped two hours ago.


    Whenever the wind blew, large drops of water got shaken off the trees.


    Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t take off his eyeglasses until he got off the train.


    Two vehicles came to pick them up from the station: a commercial van and an off-road vehicle.


    The driver of the off-road vehicle got out, handed the keys over to Jiang Shenghe, and sat in the passenger seat of the commercial van.


    Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t let anyone follow and drove away by himself.


    Secretary Ju watched the off-road vehicle drive away and said to Luo Qi, ¡°Chief Jiang has gone to see his friends, we are free now.¡±


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t he even bring a bodyguard?¡± Luo Qi asked casually.


    Secretary Ju was used to it. ¡°Every time we come to Suzhou, Chief Jiang goes to meet friends alone.¡± Even the bodyguards were dismissed. It should be to meet a very special friend, most likely a female friend.


    But of course, this was all her own speculation without any basis.


    She liked shopping on rainy days the most, so she asked Luo Qi, ¡°Where should we go shopping first?¡±


    Luo Qi planned the route for them. ¡°Let¡¯s go check in first, then go around my neighborhood. If you come to Suzhou and don¡¯t go downtown where I live, you have not really come to Suzhou City. The scenery during the day and during the night have their own characteristics. After shopping, we go to the food street to eat.¡±


    ¡°I listen to you, we can go wherever you say.¡±


    The two hit it off at once.


    After checking in at the hotel, Luo Qi found a strapless dress from the suitcase, changed out of the trousers and shirt she was wearing, and took out the compact mirror to touch up her makeup.


    Secretary Ju shared the same room as her, and when she came out of the bathroom, she had already finished her own makeup in there.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go through the waves.¡± Secretary Ju slung on her bag and went out of the room arm in arm with Luo Qi.


    ¡°Master, didn¡¯t you come to Suzhou on business before? Didn¡¯t you go shopping then?¡±


    ¡°No. We usually booked hotels in the new business district. It¡¯s the first time I¡¯m staying in the old downtown area.¡± In the past, Chief Jiang also gave them private time when he saw his friends, but she was the only woman in the work group. She didn¡¯t want to run around so far, so she stayed in a hotel room either watching dramas or doing video calls with her son.


    Coming out of the hotel, the road outside was bustling with life.


    Except for the few days during Chinese New Year, Suzhou City was vibrant and crowded all year round, especially during the peak tourist season.


    The two chatted, and they talked about Jiang Shenghe.


    ¡°Master, you work with Chief Jiang every day. Is there a lot of pressure?¡±


    ¡°A lot.¡± Secretary Ju smiled. ¡°Never seen me so rebellious? It¡¯s all from working for Chief Jiang. Who made the salary so high? No matter how much the pressure is, you will bear  it. But to be honest, Chief Jiang is the best among the bosses. Just like now, we can go shopping to our heart¡¯s content.¡±


    While chatting, they walked to the riverside trail near Luo Qi¡¯s house.


    The landscape lights have just been turned on, with a blend of green and dark yellow, embellishing both sides of the small river.


    Luo Qi pointed somewhere ahead of them. ¡°After crossing this stone bridge, my house is in that alley, and the house right by the river is my house.¡±


    Secretary Ju looked at the white-walled and blue-tiled houses with envy. She was from the north, and she has longed for the poetic and picturesque misty rain in Jiangnan since she was a child¡ªespecially this kind of house built near the water, where the river scenery can be seen through the windows.


    ¡°When you get married, I¡¯ll go to your house to play. When I was a child, I dreamed of living in this kind of house.¡±


    ¡°This house is suitable for travel check-in. But it¡¯s really frustrating to actually live in. You may not be able to stand it if you live here for two days. The humidity is high, and the furniture is particularly prone to rust and mold. The cabinets and tables all have to be raised above water level. When the weather cools down, then you come to my house for a few days.¡±


    Luo Qi took out her mobile phone, ¡°This place is beautiful for taking pictures¡ªyou stand over there, and I¡¯ll take pictures for you.¡±


    The two took pictures while strolling. After a round of playing, it¡¯s almost half past eight.


    ___________


    FOOTNOTE:


    1There is no way to convey this in English but Luo Qi uses very respectful speech whenever she talks to Jiang Shenghe and uses a formal ¡®you¡¯. This is, of course, appropriate for a boss-employee relationship but it draws a clear line between them and is very alienating. Our poor Jiang Shenghe wants to be called informally so they could feel closer.

 CH 5.2

    At this time, at the gate of a high school located three kilometers away, Jiang Shenghe has parked his car by the side of the road¡ª he has been waiting for more than an hour now.


    Ten minutes later, a man in a white shirt came out of the school. There were two spots of chalk dust on his dark pants.


    Jiang Shenghe lowered the car window and mocked the person walking by. ¡°Even if you paint your body with chalk dust, it can¡¯t prove how good your teaching is.¡±


    Lu Baisheng got on the co-pilot seat and pulled the seat belt on, ¡°Both you and Qin Moling have such bad mouths¡ªhow did you not get beaten to death by your homeroom teacher back then.¡±


    Jiang Sheng smiled, ¡°As a teacher, how can you talk like this?¡± He started the car.


    As soon as he merged into the traffic flow, the car was blocked and they couldn¡¯t move.


    Jiang Shenghe leaned on the car window with his left hand, holding the steering wheel with the other, and turned his head to look at Lu Baisheng, ¡°Isn¡¯t it self-study period during the evenings? Why are you still in class? Taking up the students¡¯ self-study time to test English? Don¡¯t the students want to scold you?¡±


    Lu Baisheng gave him a look. ¡°¡­. If you come to Suzhou again in the future, don¡¯t look for me, I want to live a few more years.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe laughed out loud.


    Lu Baisheng took out a wet tissue, bent down and wiped the chalk dust off his trouser legs, ¡°Why did you come to Suzhou suddenly?¡±


    Jiang Shenghe looked out the window with his forehead propped up, turned around, and said, ¡°To sign a contract for my aunt.¡±


    ¡°How is your aunt?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s okay, but she can¡¯t be tired anymore.¡±


    Lu Baisheng threw the wet tissue into the trash bin of the car, and when he turned around, he saw Jiang Shenghe¡¯s glasses on the bridge of his nose. He felt something was wrong just now, ¡°What kind of glasses are you wearing?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t see clearly when I drive at night without wearing glasses.¡± Jiang Shenghe asked Lu Baisheng if he was free the night after tomorrow, ¡°I will sign a contract with He Wancheng Corporation the day after tomorrow, and we¡¯ll have dinner to celebrate that evening. You can join me.¡±


    ¡°And what am I supposed to do there?¡±


    ¡°Luo Qi will be there too.¡±


    The car suddenly fell silent.


    Lu Baisheng looked at Jiang Shenghe, unable to talk about it.


    Jiang Shenghe broke the silence, ¡°I will introduce you to each other then. Luo Qi will go to Shanghai next year, but she will definitely return to Suzhou in a few years. The Pei family is difficult to deal with, so she may not be able to handle it by herself.¡±


    There was another few seconds of silence between them .


    ¡°It is impossible for me not to be married for the rest of my life. After I get married, I will have someone to take care of, and thinking about her is not suitable. You and sister-in-law should be able to get along with her. Then she will have two more sincere friends in Suzhou.¡±


    ¡°My friend¡­.¡±


    Lu Baisheng was older than Jiang Shenghe and has settled in Suzhou for many years now, only taking his son back to Beijing for a few days during winter and summer vacations. Lu Baisheng¡¯s wife was a native of Suzhou. At the beginning of their relationship, he gave up a lot for his wife. His company was turned over to be managed by a professional team, and he came to Suzhou to become a high school English teacher.


    Lu Baisheng readily agreed, ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll go.¡±


    Now that Luo Qi has been mentioned, he asked in passing, ¡°Have you paid off the money owed by Luo Qi¡¯s family?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    Upon learning that Luo Qi was getting married this year, he no longer paid attention to her and her family¡¯s affairs.


    Too much meddling on his part was not good for her.


    Lu Baisheng offered, ¡°If Luo Qi¡¯s parents still need my help in private, just tell me.¡±


    ¡°No need. From now on, her family¡¯s affairs are Pei Shixiao¡¯s concern. I just want to introduce you to Luo Qi. You don¡¯t need to tell me how you get along in the future.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe changed the topic. ¡°Where do we eat?¡±


    ¡°I invite you to a barbecue. The stall set up by my student is at the night market.¡±


    ¡°How old is your student coming out to set up a stall?¡±


    ¡°The first batch of students I ever taught have already graduated from university. The barbecue stall in the night market was set up by him and his classmates in college while they were still in school. Yes, business is booming, and now it¡¯s no longer a side job. I often go to his barbecue stand.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe nodded and said, ¡°Being a teacher is not bad.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not bad.¡± Lu Baisheng joked, ¡°How about you come to Suzhou, too, to become a teacher. You¡¯re pretty good in math¡ªteach mathematics in the third-year intensive class.¡±


    ¡°You moved to Suzhou because your wife is here.¡±


    There was a pause for a few seconds.


    Jiang Shenghe looked at the windshield of the car, half-smiling. ¡°What will I do in Suzhou? See her full of children and grandchildren?¡±


    Lu Baisheng was choked and speechless.


    Jiang Shenghe smiled lightly, and asked, ¡°How do I get there?¡±


    Lu Baisheng pointed to the front, ¡°Turn left, and turn in when you see the parking lot. It¡¯s not easy to park at the night market, so we have to walk over.¡±


    After parking the car, the two headed over on foot.


    Today was Saturday; there were many cars and people. The night market was so crowded that it was difficult to move.


    The barbecue stand of Lu Baisheng¡¯s student was famous far and wide, and there was a long queue in front of the stand.


    The student¡¯s sharp eyes saw him in the crowd, and he shouted enthusiastically from afar, ¡°Teacher Lu! Is your order still the same?¡±


    Lu Baisheng didn¡¯t answer immediately, and asked Jiang Shenghe what he wanted to eat.


    ¡°The guest follows the host.¡±


    ¡°The usual, double servings!¡±


    There was still a while in the queue, so Lu Baisheng asked for cigarettes and a lighter from the student, and went to the smoking area, bringing Jiang Shenghe with him.


    Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t have a lighter when he wanted to smoke last time, so he finally did it today.


    Lu Baisheng just accompanied Jiang Shenghe to smoke, took a few symbolic puffs, and went to a nearby store to buy beer. Remembering that Jiang Shenghe was going to drive, he replaced Jiang Shenghe¡¯s beer with a few cans of carbonated drinks.


    When they returned to the barbecue booth, there were already available tables.


    The student turned his face and said, ¡°Teacher Lu, I¡¯ll grill it for you right away.¡±


    ¡°No rush.¡± ??Lu Baisheng cleared the table.


    ¡­¡­


    Luo Qi and Secretary Ju were also queuing up to wait for their barbecue. Suddenly, Secretary Ju nudged her elbow and with a low voice said, ¡°Chief Jiang is here too. He¡¯s also eating barbecue! I don¡¯t know if he saw us.¡±


    Luo Qi didn¡¯t dare to look around. ¡°Which direction?¡±


    ¡°Front right, the second table.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s so close, he should have seen us.¡±


    The boss was just a few meters away, so they couldn¡¯t pretend not to see him. Secretary Ju had no choice but to look over openly. Jiang Shenghe had indeed seen them, but only just now.


    She left Luo Qi in line and hurried over by herself, ¡°Chief Jiang, what a coincidence.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe nodded, ¡°Shopping with Assistant Luo?¡±


    ¡°Well, we¡¯ve been wandering here and there, and heard that this barbecue stall is delicious. We came to give it a try.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s eat together then,¡± he said to Secretary Ju.


    Luo Qi has ordered their barbecue and now came to say ¡®hello¡¯ to Jiang Shenghe.


    Just now Jiang Shenghe almost didn¡¯t dare to recognize Luo Qi. He usually saw her at work. She was either wearing work clothes or professional attire. It was the first time he saw her wearing a dress like tonight¡¯s.


    He introduced Secretary Ju and Luo Qi to Lu Baisheng.


    Finally, introduced Lu Baisheng to the two of them, ¡°My friend from childhood, Lu Baisheng. He works as a teacher in Suzhou No. 1 Middle School, teaching English.¡±


    Not only Luo Qi, but even Secretary Ju was flattered that the boss actually introduced his friend to them so formally.


    After exchanging greetings, they all sat down.


    Luo Qi and Jiang Shenghe ended up sitting opposite each other, both speechless.


    In contrast, Secretary Ju and Lu Baisheng were having a good chat. They both have kids, and the topic of children instantly brought them closer.


    Jiang Shenghe opened a can of drink and pushed it to Secretary Ju.


    ¡°Thank you, Mr. Jiang.¡± Secretary Ju was focused on chatting with Lu Baisheng just now, and didn¡¯t think things through¡ªbothering the boss to open the drink for her.


    He, on the other hand, was completely indifferent.


    There were still a few cans left unopened in front of the boss, so she quickly stretched out her hand, ¡°Chief Jiang, I¡¯ll do it.¡±


    Luo Qi also stretched out her hand, intending to help.


    Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t let them. ¡°You don¡¯t have to be so cautious when you talk. I don¡¯t have many rules when I¡¯m off work.¡± As he said that, he opened a second can and put it in front of Luo Qi.

 CH 6.1

    ¡°Thank you, Mr. Jiang.¡± Luo Qi¡¯s gaze stayed on Jiang Shenghe¡¯s face for less than a second.


    Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t respond, took a soda can for himself, pinched the body of the can with one hand, clasped the tab with his fingers, pulled hard, and the drink opened. The pull ring was on his index finger, but he didn¡¯t throw it away. He picked up the drink and took a sip.


    Suddenly he remembered something and looked around.


    There were straws on the side table, especially prepared by the owner of the barbecue stall for customers to drink bottled soda. Jiang Shenghe leaned over, stretched out his long arm, took a few straws and put them on their table.


    He doesn¡¯t need it himself; just let them take it for themselves.


    Secretary Ju took one. Drinking from the can directly to her mouth, it¡¯s very easy to leak and be messy. She always just raised her head and drank directly when in front of her family¡ªshe was not that particular. But she was not familiar with Teacher Lu, and besides, there was the big boss next to her. That would be too inelegant.


    Luo Qi also peeled off a straw and poked it into her can.


    The folding table at the barbecue booth was half narrower than the desk in Jiang Shenghe¡¯s office, and the straight-line distance between Luo Qi and the boss was at most fifty or sixty centimeters. They have never sat so close before.


    She drank her drink with her head down, and reminded herself not to look up if she wanted things to be okay. If she looked up, her eyes might collide with the boss¡¯s gaze, and that would be too embarrassing.


    The two next to her chatted very well. They were talking about a special interest class their children were in. She couldn¡¯t get in the conversation, so she could only suck on the straw to pass the time.


    Jiang Shenghe had a panoramic view of all her little moves.


    The humid air was mixed with a faint scent of perfume, lingering around.


    He never paid attention to perfumes, and he didn¡¯t know what brand Luo Qi used.


    ¡°Mr. Lu, wait for another two minutes, and it will be grilled right away!¡± Lu Baisheng¡¯s student shouted from the side.


    ¡°No rush.¡±


    ??For Luo Qi, two or three minutes now was equivalent to two or three years.


    Every second was a torment.


    Jiang Shenghe felt her restraint. She was nervous and cramped when she sat across from him six years ago¡ªshe was still the same now.


    ¡°You live nearby?¡± As the boss, he took the initiative to find something to talk about.


    Luo Qi paused, and finally realized that the question was posed to her.


    It was impolite to answer with her head down; she let go of the straw she was biting on, and looked up at Jiang Shenghe, ¡°Well, it¡¯s not far from here.¡± She told him the approximate location of her home.


    When their eyes met, Jiang Shenghe saw the light in her eyes flowing like water, as if the prosperity and excitement of the whole night market street were reflected in her eyes, vibrant and full of life.


    Same as the people of her city.


    He pretended that he just learned where she lived, and tried to make the chat as easy as possible, ¡°I¡¯ve been there before, they¡¯re all old houses with Suzhou¡¯s distinct characteristics.¡±


    Luo Qi was thinking about how to respond to this conversation.


    She racked her brains to no avail, Jiang Shenghe asked again: ¡°What¡¯s it like living on the water?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m used to it and there¡¯s no special feeling, ¡°Luo Qi smiled and said,¡± There¡¯s a lot of moisture.¡±


    Question and answer, just as the atmosphere was beginning to show signs of harmony, Lu Baisheng¡¯s student brought a plate of grilled wings.


    ¡°Half of it is spicy, and the other half is not. You eat it first, and then I grill more for you,¡± he said.


    The chat between Jiang Shenghe and Luo Qi was interrupted, and he did not pick it up afterwards.


    Lu Baisheng kept Jiang Shenghe¡¯s request in mind: to get acquainted with Luo Qi, so that it would be convenient for him to take care of her in the future.


    ¡°Assistant Luo¡¯s house is not far from my wife¡¯s.¡± He said, ¡°My wife¡¯s home is in the alley at the east gate of No. 1 Middle School.¡±


    Luo Qi knew that area very well, ¡°I studied in No. 1 Middle School! I often went to that alley for lunch.¡±


    She and Lu Baisheng met for the first time, but they didn¡¯t feel any sense of alienation when they chatted, unlike her and Jiang Shenghe, who had known each other for so many years and still had to look forward and backward when speaking.


    ¡°There is a car repair shop in the alley, do you remember?¡± Lu Baisheng asked.


    ¡°Of course, I remember! Everyone in our school, who doesn¡¯t know the car repair shop? At that time, everyone in our class had a bicycle that broke down at one time or another, and went there to have it repaired.¡±


    The owner of the store was tall, slender, and handsome, but unfortunately he was deaf and mute. It was said that it was caused by a childhood illness.


    The boss has a daughter who was a few years younger than her. She and her classmates often saw her in the car repair shop. She was a beautiful little girl, but she couldn¡¯t speak. Her vocal cords were damaged in a car accident. Her mom also died in the same car accident.


    She didn¡¯t know how the little girl was doing now.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t been to the school since I graduated from high school. The car repair shop should still be there, right?¡±


    Lu Baisheng nodded, ¡°Yes. The boss is my wife¡¯s brother.¡±


    Luo Qi was so shocked that she couldn¡¯t speak.


    Secretary Ju didn¡¯t know the past of the owner of the auto repair shop, so it wasn¡¯t good to ask them face to face, and she only listened to them quietly.


    It took Luo Qi a few seconds to digest the news, ¡°You became a teacher in No. 1 Middle School just to take care of them?¡±


    ¡°Hmm. After my niece became mute, she closed herself up, and there was a psychological problem. My wife only has her brother and niece, just those two relatives. My niece is my wife¡¯s heart disease, so I came here to be a teacher, and later became her homeroom teacher.¡± He pointed to the student who was grilling, ¡°Same class with my niece¡ªthe first class of students I ever taught.¡±


    Luo Qi asked, concerned, ¡°What about the little girl now?¡±


    Lu Baisheng laughed. ¡°She¡¯s not a little girl anymore! She¡¯s already working.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Luo Qi sighed, ¡°It¡¯s already been almost ten years since I graduated from high school.¡±


    Lu Baisheng took out his phone and opened a QR code, ¡°Leave a contact information. My wife also works in Suzhou City. My niece and nephew-in-law come back for the New Year¡¯s holiday. Let¡¯s get together then sometime.¡±


    ¡°Okay. I still remember the little girl.¡± Luo Qi scanned the QR code and exchanged contact information.


    Lu Baisheng waited for Luo Qi to finish scanning, and then handed the mobile phone to Secretary Ju, ¡°If you encounter any problems in your child¡¯s education in the future, you can ask me online at any time.¡±


    Secretary Ju was very excited. ¡°Thank you, Teacher Lu.¡± Lu Baisheng was an Ivy League graduate and can be considered quite accomplished. She put down the grilled wings and got her phone from the bag.


    Lu Baisheng glanced at Jiang Shenghe next to him, his look meaning: I have completed the task you gave me.


    Jiang Shenghe clinked his drink with his beer, acknowledging his efforts, and drank half a can of soda in one go.


    Luo Qi and Secretary Ju only ate a little, and nursed their drinks waiting for the others to finish. The boss didn¡¯t say anything, so it¡¯s not good for them to leave directly.


    Jiang Shenghe confirmed that they didn¡¯t want to eat anymore, ¡°Go finish your shopping.¡±


    Now that they¡¯ve been granted pardon, Luo Qi and Secretary Ju said a few polite words and left quickly.


    When they got farther away, the two walked arm in arm again.


    Without them, Jiang Shenghe chatted with Lu Baisheng much more casually.


    Lu Baisheng asked the person next to him, ¡°Be honest, have you ever regretted it?¡±


    ¡°Regret what?¡±


    ¡°You have done so much, yet Luo Qi doesn¡¯t know anything.¡±


    ¡°Why would I want her to know what I do? It¡¯s my own business.¡±


    Jiang Sheng He got up and sat opposite Lu Baisheng, the space was now much less crowded.


    ¡°There is one thing that I shouldn¡¯t have done,¡± he finally said.


    Lu Baisheng opened another can of beer and looked at him, ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have introduced you to her now that she¡¯s about to get married.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, in the future, whether Luo Qi is doing well or not, I won¡¯t reveal a word to you.¡± Lu Baisheng clinked drinks with him, ¡°I don¡¯t need to go to the dinner tomorrow night anymore¡ªI already met Luo Qi tonight and we added each other¡¯s contact information.¡±


    Jiang Sheng He was silent for a while, ¡°Go. So she can be familiar with you.¡±


    What Lu Baisheng wanted to say was finally swallowed with beer.


    ¡°Okay, send me the hotel address.¡±

 CH 6.2

    The weather in Suzhou was uncertain, with occasional showers followed by bursts of sunshine, and now it¡¯s drizzling again.


    Luo Qi had just stepped onto the stone bridge when it started to rain. She walked down the bridge quickly, taking an umbrella from her bag while trotting.


    ¡°Mom, I¡¯m back,¡± she called into the house as soon as she entered the yard.


    Jiang Yifang opened the door, ¡°Come inside, did you get wet?¡±


    ¡°No. I have an umbrella.¡± Luo Qi shook the water off the umbrella and put it away.


    The air conditioner was turned on in the room, but a faint trail of dampness still hit her nose the moment she entered the door.


    Jiang Yifang gave her daughter slippers from the shoe cabinet and took her daughter¡¯s bag. ¡°What did you have for dinner? Mom cooked congee for you.¡±


    ¡°I had barbecue with my colleagues.¡±


    Luo Qi put her hands on her mother¡¯s shoulders, and leaned against her mother, walking to the sofa. ¡°What shampoo did you use? It smells so good.¡±


    ¡°Some samples I got when shopping.¡±


    ¡°When will Dad come back?¡±


    ¡°Your dad has been in Shanghai for the past few days, so I don¡¯t know when.¡±


    ¡°I video called Dad; he lost weight again, let him eat more.¡±


    ¡°I told him that but he doesn¡¯t listen, said he wanted to lose weight, said that he would look good in a suit when you get married.¡±


    Luo Qi smiled, ¡°Then I have to buy a new suit for Dad so he could be more handsome.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t buy. It¡¯s a waste of money, we have one at home.¡± Jiang Yifang hung up her daughter¡¯s bag, filled half a bowl of barley congee for her daughter, and put it directly on the coffee table.


    Luo Qi washed her hands and sat down.


    Jiang Yifang picked up the shawl on the sofa and put it on. Her shoulder has a chronic inflammation and she dared not let the air conditioner blow on her directly.


    She sat down next to her daughter but hesitated to speak several times.


    Luo Qi seemed to notice it and raised her head, ¡°Mom, what¡¯s the matter?¡±


    Jiang Yifang gathered the shawl on her shoulders and organized the words to say, ¡°I want to discuss with you where to get married from on your wedding day.¡±


    ¡°Of course it¡¯s at home.¡±


    ¡°The road here is narrow, and there is a bridge ahead, so the wedding car cannot enter the alley.¡±


    The closest place was to park at the entrance of the fresh flower shop, more than two hundred meters away from their home, too far away for the wedding car.


    In fact, this was really okay¡ªJiang Yifang was only sorry that the family home was small, and there would be so many people on the day of the wedding that they could not possibly squeeze inside.


    The relatives of Pei Shixiao¡¯s family are either wealthy or wealthier, and she was worried that they would feel neglected.


    ¡°That day, when Shixiao¡¯s family comes to pick up the bride¡­¡± Jiang Yifang blamed herself. ¡°The house is small and dilapidated, and mother is afraid that you will lose face.¡±


    ¡°Whether it¡¯s small or broken, it¡¯s my home.¡± Luo Qi comforted her mother and said, ¡°The scenery in the alley is so beautiful, and there is also a stone bridge. Grandma Qian once said that if you walk together over the stone bridge on the day of your wedding, you will have happiness for a lifetime.¡±


    Jiang Yifang raised her hand and rubbed her daughter¡¯s hair, ¡°Eat congee, don¡¯t let it cool down.¡±


    Luo Qi asked her mother not to worry about where to get married from anymore. It will be at home and not any other place.


    Jiang Yifang admitted, ¡°I was thinking of you marrying from your eldest uncle¡¯s house. Didn¡¯t their family buy two villas before, one to live in and one for investment, and that second one has been idle since. Your eldest aunt¡¯s suggestion was since the house is empty, we can move there first, saying that you will have face when you marry from there. After discussing it with your father, I also think it¡¯s okay. After the wedding is over, we will move back here.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m my father and my mother¡¯s daughter. What¡¯s with marrying from an outsider¡¯s house?¡±  Luo Qi took a spoonful of barley and put it in her mouth, lest she say some words that would only be hurtful.


    In fact, what the eldest aunt cared about was not Luo Qi¡¯s face, but to let the Pei family know how ¡®good¡¯ their family treated Luo Qi and marry her off as a daughter.


    Her eldest uncle¡¯s family business has dealings with Pei Shixiao¡¯s family. To be precise, the Pei family was the biggest customer of her eldest uncle¡¯s family.


    As soon as Luo Qi got engaged, the eldest uncle¡¯s family took orders from the Pei family under the banner of her and Pei Shixiao. They knew that Pei Shixiao¡¯s parents didn¡¯t like her, but for the sake of their business, they never cared about her side of things.


    At that time, why didn¡¯t they think that she also wanted some dignity and save some face in front of Pei Shixiao?


    Jiang Yifang was silent for a few seconds, knowing that her daughter had thought of something unpleasant.


    The matter has come to this point, and it was useless to blame the eldest uncle¡¯s family.


    She tried her best to reassure my daughter, ¡°Although some interests are mixed in, there is always family affection. When your eldest uncle was not yet married, he was reluctant to spend his salary and paid for your father and your third uncle to go to college. Your father has always been grateful to your eldest uncle. The relationship between brothers can¡¯t be explained in a few sentences.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s very good when people are young, but meaningless when they grow up.¡± Luo Qi felt disappointed, ¡°Don¡¯t talk about them anymore.¡±


    It won¡¯t matter if you don¡¯t mention some things, but once you mention them, it will just be troublesome.


    She buried herself in her congee, and her long hair fell down.


    Jiang Yifang pinned her daughter¡¯s hair behind her ears. The hair was so smooth, she couldn¡¯t pin it back. Standing up, she found a hair tie and simply tied her daughter¡¯s long hair in a ball on top of her head.


    Luo Qi shook her head, and the hair bun followed suit, wagging back and forth.


    Jiang Yifang smiled, ¡°Why are you still acting like a child, okay, okay, don¡¯t shake it anymore, let it go.¡±


    At this moment, there was a knock on the door.


    ¡°Little girl? Not asleep yet?¡±


    It was Grandma Qian, their neighbor.


    Luo Qi put down her spoon and hurried to open the door.


    Grandma Qian supported herself on the door frame, holding a fresh-keeping box full of yogurt in her hands, ¡°I have nothing to do, so I made yogurt by myself, and there are cherries in it. I know you¡¯ve loved cherries since you were young.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, grandma.¡± Luo Qi took it, and helped Grandma Qian into the house, ¡°I remember, I wanted to ask grandma something.¡±


    There were many mosquitoes outside, and Grandma Qian closed the door smoothly.


    ¡°Grandma, you told me that the stone bridge next to us is very spiritual, right?¡±


    Grandma Qian knew that Jiang Yifang had been anxious about her daughter¡¯s marriage, saying that the house was old and small, and that she owed her daughter better.


    She picked suitable words and said, ¡°That¡¯s true. The stone bridge will keep you safe, healthy, and happy. Our daughter walked over it on her wedding day, and everything was healthy, smooth, and rich in the future.¡±


    Luo Qi raised her chin, ¡°Mom, did you hear that?¡±


    Jiang Yifang felt much more at ease, and said with a smile, ¡°I heard it.¡±


    Putting down the yogurt, Luo Qi sent Grandma Qian back.


    The rain was light, and only traces of it were floating down¡ªno need to open an umbrella.


    After sending Grandma Qian back to the door of her own house, Luo Qi helped close the door from the outside.


    The courtyard was exceptionally quiet, and the sound of rain could be heard.


    Luo Qi stood in the yard for a few minutes before returning to the house.


    Jiang Yifang usually worked overtime every day until midnight. But her daughter was back, and she took tomorrow as a day off, ¡°Mom is sleepy, will go to bed now. You go to bed early, too. Mom will accompany you to try on the wedding dress tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Good night, Mom.¡± Luo Qi had already seen the dark circles under her mother¡¯s eyes.


    ¡­ ¡­


    After showering and drying her hair, Rocky went back to her room.


    The bedroom was small and simply furnished.


    A bed, a desk, and a wardrobe, no room for other furniture.


    Just as she lay down on the bed, the phone rang¡ªPei Shixiao on a voice call.


    Luo Qi answered while lying on her stomach, ¡°Are you done for the day?¡±


    ¡°Still busy, I¡¯m waiting to meet someone.¡±


    ¡°Ah? Did you make an appointment so late?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± he said. ¡°A very important person, someone I haven¡¯t seen for a long time.¡±


    Luo Qi had a premonition, but also felt it was impossible, ¡°Who are you seeing?¡±


    Pei Shixiao said with a smile, ¡°Guess. If you get it right, I¡¯ll hug you as a prize and spin you around twice.¡±


    Luo Qi suddenly sat up from the bed, ¡°You¡¯re here?¡±


    ¡°Yes. On the stone bridge.¡±

 CH 7.1

    Luo Qi found a thin-strap dress from the closet and put it on, stood in front of the mirror for a while, and combed her long, slightly messed up hair.


    She didn¡¯t know if her mother was already asleep or not, so she opened and closed the bedroom door carefully.


    As soon as she reached the front door, her mother¡¯s bedroom door opened.


    Jiang Yifang came out to go to the bathroom and saw her daughter changed into clothes for going out. ¡°Where are you going so late? It¡¯s not safe to go alone, mother will go with you.¡±


    ¡°No need. Pei Shixiao is at the entrance of the alley.¡±


    ¡°Shixiao is here?¡±


    ¡°En, he said it was a surprise for me.¡±


    The man had already arrived at their doorstep, there was no reason not to invite him in.


    Jiang Yifang went to tidy up the sofa, taking two steps for three, ¡°You let Shixiao sit at home, it¡¯s hot outside.¡±


    While quickly arranging the pillows on the sofa, she told her daughter, ¡°Try to stay outside for a quarter of an hour, buy me some time.¡±


    ¡°Mom, you don¡¯t need to tidy up deliberately, the house is clean enough.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not good.¡± Jiang Yifang stuffed the odds and ends on the coffee table into a drawer, ¡°Shixiao came back so late, I don¡¯t know if he¡¯s had dinner already. There¡¯s also food in the kitchen.¡±


    ¡°I will ask him if he wants to eat.¡±


    Luo Qi opened the door and went out. The cool drizzle was still coming down on the courtyard. She ran out without an umbrella.


    Pei Shixiao was standing by the stone bridge, waiting for her.


    The backlight put his face in shadow.


    Luo Qi braved the drizzle and trotted towards him.


    A scarlet light flickered in Pei Shixiao¡¯s fingertips. When he saw her coming, he put out his cigarette and hurried over, ¡°Be careful.¡± He held her against him with one hand. He reached into his car and brought out an umbrella. He wasn¡¯t used to holding an umbrella in such a light drizzle, so he only opened it over Luo Qi to protect her from the rain.


    ¡°It¡¯s raining, how could you come out without covering yourself.¡± He put his arms around her shoulders.


    Luo Qi said nothing, clasping her hands behind his back.


    Pei Shixiao lowered his head and pressed his lips against her hair.


    Once they met again, he found that he missed her, just like before.


    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you talking?¡± He gazed down at her.


    Luo Qi felt his presence, but not all the familiar feelings came back.


    She raised her head slightly, ¡°I suddenly feel that we don¡¯t know each other very well anymore.¡±


    ¡°Unfamiliar?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s just a feeling.¡±


    Pei Shixiao hugged her hard, ¡°Blame me, I¡¯ve been too busy these few months, so I haven¡¯t taken time to see you.¡±


    Luo Qi shook her head, ¡°I don¡¯t blame you. Things will be better next year.¡±


    She will go to Shanghai next year, and the distance between them will end. As long as the two of them don¡¯t go on business trips, they can see each other every day. It won¡¯t be like now, when it¡¯s very difficult to meet each other face to face.


    ¡°Have you had dinner yet?¡± Luo Qi asked.


    ¡°No. I¡¯ll go back for dinner later.¡±


    ¡°We still have food at home, come in and have some.¡±


    Pei Shixiao looked at his watch, and it was ten forty in the evening, ¡°No, it¡¯s so late. I¡¯ll disturb auntie¡¯s rest.¡±


    Luo Qi stood up in his arms, ¡°My mother is not asleep. There are still rice and vegetables at home¡ªlet me take you home to eat.¡±


    Pei Shixiao was not polite, ¡°Then I will try Auntie¡¯s cooking skills.¡±


    He smiled down at her and said, ¡°Finally, I can go in in a fair and honest way. It doesn¡¯t matter how late, I can still eat at your home. The first time I ate at your house, I was so nervous I couldn¡¯t eat much.¡±


    ¡°You still remember?¡±


    ¡°Of course, how could I forget.¡±


    Luo Qi also remembered that day, she had an impression of everything that happened back then. The first time Pei Shixiao went to their house for dinner was when she was eighteen years old. At that time, her father¡¯s company was in full swing and they still lived in a detached villa.


    Her parents held an eighteen-year-old coming-of-age ceremony for her, entertained relatives and friends, and that weekend, her parents held a small birthday party for her, inviting her classmates this time to come to their house to play.


    Pei Shixiao went to the same high school as her, one year older than her, and he was the star figure of their school, outstanding and dazzling. When she was in her third year of high school, he was already a college freshman studying abroad. She didn¡¯t know how he learned that she was going to hold a coming-of-age ceremony, but he bought a plane ticket and flew back from abroad secretly without telling his parents, just so he could be there when she celebrated her eighteenth birthday.


    After graduating from high school, she also went to study abroad, and Pei Shixiao¡¯s school was in a different state. In order to chase her, he flew to see her whenever he was free on weekends and holidays.


    At that time, he was young and enthusiastic, and his liking for her was straightforward and unbridled.


    Luo Qi put away her thoughts, ¡°Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll take you home for dinner.¡±


    Pei Shixiao gave her the umbrella and gestured for her to hold it up.


    Luo Qi took the umbrella, and was about to walk forward, but before she could take a step, Pei Shixiao bent down and picked her up, asking, ¡°You¡¯re saying you aren¡¯t familiar with me?¡±


    Luo Qi smiled at him, ¡°Very familiar.¡±


    She patted him, ¡°Let me down, the road is slippery.¡±


    Pei Shixiao didn¡¯t let her go, and carried her all the way to the courtyard.

 CH 7.2

    Luo Qi knocked on the door; she didn¡¯t bring a key with her.


    Jiang Yifang was in the kitchen, came over to open the door, and warmly invited Pei Shixiao to enter.


    Pei Shixiao has been to the old house a few times; the last time was when they first got engaged at the beginning of the year. At the time, the house was not so damp.


    Luo Qi helped her mother put the congee and vegetables on the table. Jiang Yifang chatted a few words, then gave the two children some space to be alone. She made some excuses and went back to the bedroom.


    Luo Qi propped her chin and sat at the dining table to accompany him.


    Pei Shixiao picked up a small dish with chopsticks and held it to her mouth, ¡°Take a bite.¡±


    Luo Qi shook her head, ¡°I¡¯ve brushed my teeth.¡±


    Pei Shixiao gave up and put it in his mouth.


    Luo Qi looked down at the spaghetti strap dress on her body. In the past, whatever dress she wore, Pei Shixiao would always compliment her when they met¡ªhe would compliment her despite having already seen her wearing the same clothes a hundred times.


    He didn¡¯t pay attention to what she was wearing tonight.


    ¡°What time are we going to try on the wedding dress tomorrow?¡± She looked at Pei Shixiao.


    Pei Shixiao was slightly taken aback. He had scooped up a spoonful of barley congee and now he put it back into the bowl.


    Luo Qi understood from his hesitant eyes that he didn¡¯t have time and that trying on wedding dresses was not in his itinerary.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if you¡¯re not free, my mother will accompany me.¡± The smile on her face faded a little, but she still gave him her understanding.


    Pei Shixiao took out his mobile phone and forwarded a copy of the itinerary sent to him by his secretary to Luo Qi¡¯s mailbox.


    ¡°It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to go with you.¡± It¡¯s the second time he¡¯s let her down in this matter. The words of explanation came to his lips but he couldn¡¯t say them.


    Luo Qi received the itinerary, which was for the next two weeks.


    At ten o¡¯clock tomorrow morning, he will attend a board meeting of a medical technology company. Their company invested in this medical technology company a few years ago, and he recently joined the board of directors.


    She exited the mailbox, ¡°Then you have to go back to Shanghai tonight?¡±


    ¡°En, I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t be able to meet the appointment with tomorrow morning¡¯s traffic.¡±


    Luo Qi put her hand on his wrist, having this nagging feeling that there was something different between them, but at the same time, it felt like nothing has changed at all. He was still the same as before, rushing back just to see her and spend an extra half hour with her.


    Pei Shixiao stayed until eleven o¡¯clock. Before leaving, he washed the dishes and chopsticks and put them in the disinfection cabinet.


    Luo Qi sent him to the door, ¡°Tell the driver to drive slowly.¡±


    Pei Shixiao took her in his arms and looked at her for a few seconds, ¡°Why don¡¯t you transfer to the Shanghai branch a few months in advance? Director Jiang will understand.¡±


    Luo Qi awkwardly said, ¡°I am handling several important projects, and Director Jiang has not yet recovered from her operation. How could I have the nerve to ask for a transfer at this juncture. If your assistant did this, wouldn¡¯t you be disappointed?¡±


    Pei Shixiao was silent for a while and nodded.


    Luo Qi wanted to send him to the stone bridge, but Pei Shixiao refused to let her go. He watched her go back inside her house and stayed until he heard her lock the door behind him. He picked up the umbrella by the door and left.


    ¡­ ¡­ Seventh year of my secret love for you, translated by Maela at whitemoonlighttranslations.com


    In the early hours of the morning, the rain started to fall again.


    It rained for a long time, and it lasted for several hours.


    Luo Qi woke up several times that night. She didn¡¯t sleep well, and just after five o¡¯clock, she woke up again.


    It was already daylight, so she simply got up and planned to take a walk along the river and buy breakfast for her mother.


    She gently pushed the door open, and found the living room lights turned on.


    Her mother was sitting at the dining table, working on the computer. There was no study at home, and the dining table was used by her parents when working overtime.


    ¡°Mom, awake so early?¡±


    ¡°I feel uncomfortable if I don¡¯t wake up early, unlike you young people who still want to go back to sleep.¡± In fact, Jiang Yifang had set the alarm and deliberately got up early to work overtime. She arranged for a meeting with a client at noon and she needs to finish the designs before then. She¡¯s accompanying Luo Qi later so she can only finish the work now.


    Luo Qi washed up, took the house keys and prepared to go out.


    ¡°Your eldest aunt may call you today,¡± Jiang Yifang called after her daughter.


    ¡°What does eldest aunt want from me?¡±


    ¡°I called her last night and declined her and your eldest uncle¡¯s kindness, saying that you will get married from home. Your aunt said that she would persuade you today. I have said everything I need to say, and I can¡¯t stop her from calling you. No matter what she says, just listen to it. Don¡¯t worry about it. Mom has decided: you will marry from your own home. ¡°


    Luo Qi reassured her mother that she knew how to refuse politely and would not ignore her father¡¯s feelings for her eldest uncle, ¡°Mom, go back to what you were doing, I¡¯m going out.¡±


    ¡°Wait,¡± Jiang Yifang called her daughter again. Some things could only be kept hidden for a while. Her daughter would know sooner or later, so it¡¯s better to tell her by herself.


    ¡°Your eldest uncle paid off the money owed by our family in one lump sum two days ago, and asked us to save money for the next half year for your dowry. He also said that the money owed to him, after you get married, let us just pay it back slowly. As for how much, there is no need to pay it back on a monthly basis, and their family is not in a hurry to use this money.¡±


    Luo Qi took a long time to exhale, and for a while, she didn¡¯t know what to say.


    In the beginning, the money owed by their family could not be repaid at once. Later, after coordination with many parties, the other party agreed that their family could pay it back on a monthly basis, but the interest rate would be higher.


    Now, there was finally no pressure to repay this amount every month. According to the current income of their family, they will be able to pay it off in four years at most. There was finally hope for a less stringent life.


    But now they suddenly owe the eldest uncle¡¯s family more than 10 million yuan. If the eldest uncle¡¯s family needed money urgently someday, where would they go to raise the 10 million yuan?


    Luo Qi only thought about these words in her heart, but didn¡¯t say them out loud.

 CH 7.3

    Luo Qi could understand the feelings of her parents. Over the years, her parents have been blaming themselves for dragging her life down. They always say that just when she should be enjoying life the most, she has to pay off her parents¡¯ debts every month.


    If the debt was repaid on time every month, it was true that there would be no money left to provide her with a dowry. This was her father¡¯s heart disease. Now that her eldest uncle has given her father a life-saving rope, her father would definitely not let it go.


    If it was not a last resort, her father would not accept eldest uncle¡¯s kindness.


    This was a great favor.


    And favors were the hardest to repay, and also the most deadly.


    Jiang Yifang breathed out softly, ¡°Your eldest uncle¡­sometimes he truly loves your dad and only wants to make your dad feel better.¡±


    ¡°I know.¡± Luo Qi walked over and hugged her mother, ¡°Mom, life will be easier in the future. I¡¯ll go and buy you breakfast.¡±


    There was a trail along the river. At just after five o¡¯clock in the morning, there were only a few people there, those who got up early to exercise.


    Luo Qi took a long-handled umbrella and walked aimlessly along the road.


    ¡­ ¡­


    In a hotel suite some five hundred meters away, Jiang Shenghe woke up from a dream. The voice saying the words ¡®Jiang Shenghe¡¯ was still ringing clearly in his head.


    Luo Qi was calling him.


    They ate barbecue together last night, so he had a similar dream in his sleep. In the dream, Luo Qi stood in front of the barbecue stall and turned to him, saying, ¡°Jiang Shenghe, what do you want to eat?¡°


    She said his name for the first time¡ªfinally it was no longer ¡®Chief Jiang¡¯.


    He was about to answer her when suddenly he woke up.


    If only the dream could have lasted five more seconds, he would have been able to reply to her in time.


    Jiang Shenghe touched his phone to check the time, it was 5:11.


    He has completely lost his sleepiness.


    After washing up, he found a set of sportswear from the suitcase, put it on, and went downstairs for a morning run.


    Almost instinctively, Jiang Shenghe chose the road that passed by Luo Qi¡¯s house.


    The air was humid, with a layer of water vapor floating on it.


    After running two laps, his back was soaked.


    Jiang Shenghe stopped and walked slowly. He went to a nearby convenience store to buy water.


    Coming out of the store with a bottle of water, he was stomping his feet, when he saw Luo Qi coming down the road, carrying breakfast, holding a small bunch of sunflowers in her arms¡ªabout five or six of them.


    It never occurred to him that he would run into her here so early in the morning.


    ¡­ ¡­


    Luo Qi hadn¡¯t seen the person in front of her yet¡ªshe was looking down at the sunflowers in her arms. She bought the flowers at a stall in the morning market, cheaper than they would cost in flower shops.


    Their home was too dull, and sunflowers in a vase could make the narrow and humid room feel more alive.


    After walking forward some ten meters, a figure in black appeared in her line of sight, tall and straight¡ªshe suddenly stopped.


    When she saw him, she was no less surprised than Jiang Shenghe.


    ¡°Good morning, Chief Jiang,¡± Luo Qi greeted him first as he approached.


    The boss has the habit of exercising. She learned this during that time in the hospital ward, when she saw him as she accompanied Director Jiang.


    And it was normal for him to choose this road for morning jogging.


    There were relatively few people here, and the scenery was much better than the other road.


    Jiang Shenghe drank half a bottle of water, and when he finished, he said, ¡°There¡¯s no work scheduled this morning, still got up so early?¡±


    Luo Qi chose her words carefully, thinking about how to respond.


    It was the first time she went on a business trip with Jiang Shenghe. Although Secretary Ju said that the boss never looked for them when he gave them free time off, she didn¡¯t want to make a misstep, just in case.


    Maybe the boss will think that she has nothing to do at home and would call her to attend a meeting ahead of schedule, while she was trying on the wedding dress¡ªshe would be very helpless to do anything at that time.


    So she said truthfully, ¡°I have to go out and do something in the morning, so I got up earlier.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe thought that she had an appointment with Secretary Ju to go shopping, so he said, ¡°The meeting will be held at two o¡¯clock in the afternoon, so you and Secretary Ju just need to arrive on time.¡±


    Luo Qi had to explain, ¡°It¡¯s not shopping with Secretary Ju. Secretary Ju will stay in the hotel this morning to deal with some work. It¡¯s my own private affairs. I just happen to have some free time in the morning, so I will go try on my wedding dress.¡± She sincerely thanked him, ¡°Thank you Chief Jiang for letting me take a half a day off. Otherwise, I would have to go back to Suzhou City again another time.¡±


    There was a moment of silence.


    Naturally, she¡¯s getting married and she needs to order a wedding dress. And he, of course, knew about this and was counting down to her wedding date every day.


    But knowing and listening to her say it were two very different things.


    Jiang Shenghe sought for calm and pretended not to know, ¡°When is the wedding date?¡±


    Luo Qi said the approximate time, ¡°Mid-December.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe nodded to show that he knew.


    No one wants her to be happy more than him, and he will do his best to keep her away from all unspoken rules in the workplace and not cause her any trouble.


    But he cannot express good wishes for her wedding without violating his own heart.


    He looked at her and only said, ¡°Congratulations.¡±

 CH 8.1

    Luo Qi thought of Secretary Ju¡¯s words, that among the bosses, Jiang Shenghe was considered the best.


    It was indeed so.


    His temperament was not at all comparable to that of ordinary people, and he was quite charismatic.


    ¡°Thank you, Chief Jiang.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t appropriate to talk more. Jiang Shenghe screwed on the cap of the water bottle, slightly pointed his chin towards her house, and said in a neutral voice, ¡°Go ahead.¡±


    ¡­¡­


    Luo Qi went home for breakfast.


    Jiang Yifang had already changed her clothes for going out. They had a simple meal, and the mother and daughter went out together.


    Yesterday, Luo Qi made an appointment with the store manager, and now Luo Qi and her mother arrived at the bridal shop ten minutes early. There were three wedding dresses designed this year that have not yet been displayed, so Luo Qi would choose from them first, and any style that she chooses would no longer be put on the shelves.


    Luo Qi took a fancy to the one on the left, and her mother said that any one of the three was good-looking.


    After trying it on, her mother took a video for her, and she took a few photos of herself in the mirror.


    She was a little bit regretful that Pei Shixiao wasn¡¯t around when she was trying on wedding dresses.


    Luo Qi sent him a photo, and then forwarded him the video sent by her mother: [Which one looks good on me?]


    ¡­ ¡­


    Pei Shixiao had just clicked on the video when someone came towards him. The figure got closer and closer, and the person didn¡¯t take the initiative to say hello to him until they stood directly in front of him.


    Pei Shixiao¡¯s secretary was beside him; seeing the person¡¯s pretentious appearance, the secretary looked disdainful, and went by the elevator first and waited for the boss.


    Cui Peng took a document from a folder she was holding and handed it to Pei Shixiao. Still without saying a word, she handed him the pen she brought.


    After watching half of the wedding dress video, Pei Shixiao locked the phone, looked up at Cui Peng, took the pen from her fingertips, and felt that something was wrong. His eyes fell on her face again: her eyes were swollen.


    She didn¡¯t wear makeup today¡ªshe looked better without makeup. She has an oval face and a soft chin. There was a small, light brown mole on her cheek which was not obvious when she wore makeup.


    With a gentle voice, he asked, ¡°What time did you sleep last night?¡±


    ¡°Three o¡¯clock,¡± Cui Peng answered.


    Pei Shixiao had just signed one of his names, and looked up at her again, ¡°Why did you go to bed so late? Didn¡¯t I tell you to go home earlier?¡±


    Cui Peng ignored him, and looked at the pen in his hand, ¡°I thought you would go back to the office to work overtime, so i stayed just in case you have questions about the project.¡±


    Pei Shixiao was silent for two or three seconds. He also looked at her for two or three seconds. ¡°I went back to Suzhou last night.¡±


    This time, Cui Peng was silent. She knew that he was going back to Suzhou City, but she still had hope, thinking that he would come to the office for a while after rushing back to Shanghai from Suzhou.


    Pei Shixiao held the pen tightly, signed his name, and closed the folder. ¡°If you are not sure whether I will return to the office in the future, send a message and ask me.¡±


    Cui Peng finally looked at him, and there was just the right amount of question in her round and black eyes. Her voice was soft, ¡°I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll disturb you, and you won¡¯t reply.¡±


    ¡°You won¡¯t disturb me. I¡¯ll reply to you when I see it.¡± Pei Shixiao gave her the document. He looked at his watch¡ªthere was still half an hour until the meeting time. ¡°I have a meeting.¡±


    The medical technology company was in the building next door, and it took less than ten minutes to get there. When he was in the elevator in the next building, Pei Shixiao remembered that he had only watched half of the video Luo Qi sent him.


    After watching it, he replied: [The second one is not bad. Which one do you like? ]


    Luo Qi waited twenty minutes at the bridal shop for news from Pei Shixiao. No matter how busy he was before, he would reply within seconds when he saw her messages. If there was a meeting, he would tell her in advance that he¡¯s unavailable.


    Today, after waiting so long, it turned out what she waited for was only those few words. He didn¡¯t praise how good she looked in the wedding dress. Even the store manager was amazed by how she looked, but his reaction was just this.


    Luo Qi waited for another minute, but he didn¡¯t send anything else.


    Luo told him: [I like the first one.]


    Pei Shixiao hardly thought about it: [Get them both, one for the wedding and the other for the wedding photos.]


    ¡­ ¡­


    She sent photos of the two wedding dresses to the designer, saying that she wanted to get both.


    What Luo Qi was wearing was just a sample dress, intended to be displayed in the window. Now that she has chosen it, it will be re-made for her and some details will be adjusted according to her preferences.


    Jiang Yifang saw her daughter¡¯s head bowed over her phone, typing¡ªit seemed that Pei Shixiao finally replied.


    ¡°What did Shixiao say?¡±


    ¡°To order both.¡±


    Either one of the wedding dresses was expensive enough. In the past, Jiang Yifang would not have blinked and directly ordered both of these for her daughter, but now there was nothing she could do.


    Fortunately, the son-in-law was generous and doted on her daughter.


    ¡­¡­


    Luo Qi shared a few photos of her in wedding dresses with her cousin: [How does it look?]


    Luo Yu sent a voice message. Jiang Yifang was sitting far away and still heard Luo Yu¡¯s excited shrieks, saying a long list of uncivilized words, followed by a not very serious, ¡°Such a hot figure, how does my cheap brother-in-law deserve you!¡±


    Luo Qi: ¡°¡­¡±


    Typing with both hands, Luo Qi sent: [My mother is here, keep your voice down.]


    Luo Yu was still excited: [I also want to keep my voice down, who made you look so good! You just read my texts.]


    She asked again: [Why is second aunt accompanying you to try on wedding dresses? What about brother-in-law?]


    Luo Qi sent: [He has a meeting this morning. He came to Suzhou last night, stayed for half an hour, then rushed back overnight.]


    Luo Yu typed a long paragraph, but thinking that her sister was so happy trying on the wedding dress, in the end she didn¡¯t send it and deleted it all.


    With a bitter taste in her mouth, she sent: [Brother-in-law is working really hard ah!]

 CH 8.2

    After ordering the wedding dress, Luo Qi went back to the hotel.


    The afternoon meeting would be held in the small meeting room of Jiang Shenghe¡¯s suite, and she was the last to arrive.


    Luo Qi rang the bell, and with almost no waiting, the door opened.


    The person standing by the door was Jiang Shenghe, a water glass in his hand. He wore a business shirt with the cuffs rolled up.


    His expression was indifferent, and after putting on his business attire, he gave people a sense of distance for no reason. What hint of casualness he had when he ran that morning has disappeared without a trace.


    Jiang Shenghe had come out of the meeting room to pour water when he heard the doorbell ring.


    ¡°Chief Jiang.¡±


    ¡°Come in, they¡¯re inside.¡± He kept holding the doorknob with his hand.


    Luo Qi turned sideways and cautiously passed in front of him.


    Jiang Shenghe closed the door and told her, ¡°The meeting room is on the right.¡±


    Luo Qi entered the living room and heard voices from the room on the right. Secretary Ju and another colleague from the president¡¯s office were discussing something.


    The presidential suite of this hotel was more luxurious than she had imagined. It had a dining room and a living room, and the floor-to-ceiling windows face the most distinctive, old houses in Sioux City. It seemed to be the best place to enjoy the night view of Suzhou.


    On the right was the conference room and on the left was the gym.


    ¡°There you are,¡± Secretary Ju winked at her.


    Luo Qi smiled, ¡°I¡¯m late.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not too late. It¡¯s only 1:40.¡±


    Luo Qi took out her notebook and plugged it in, and took out another stack of materials.


    Secretary Ju whispered to her, ¡°Boss He sent an electronic version of the contract to be signed tomorrow. Mr. Jiang has read it, and he is not satisfied with a few clauses.¡±


    Luo Qi asked, ¡°How do you plan to change it?¡±


    Secretary Ju shook her head; the boss hadn¡¯t said anything.


    The details of the contract have been grinding for more than a month, and she didn¡¯t know which ones in particular were Jiang Shenghe not satisfied with.


    ¡°You brought print out version too?¡± Jiang Shenghe said, stopping beside them.


    Luo Qi turned her head, ¡°Well, I noted some important information on it.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe picked it up, ¡°Lend it to me to read.¡±


    He has an electronic version, but his eyes hurt after staring at the computer for a long time.


    Luo Qi forgot about the masterpiece she had drawn on it when she was bored, and generously lent her copy to the boss.


    Jiang Shenghe took it and sat down at his seat. His laptop was on the other side of the conference table. Among all the seats, his seat was the farthest from Luo Qi¡¯s.


    The print out had more than a hundred pages, a thick stack, all scribbled with additional information.


    Luo Qi had worked carefully on it, and specially attached a simple table of contents for the material. It is clear at a glance which page the content you want to see is on, and the notes on the inner pages were neatly written.


    According to the table of contents, Jiang Shenghe turned to the page he wanted to see.


    When he saw the hand-drawn picture, he paused. In the blank space on the back of the page, she had drawn a simple figure of a man using a black pen. With a few strokes, she outlined the man¡¯s face. The hair was quite messy, and he wore a pair of sunglasses¡ªtwo lenses were painted black and shiny.


    There¡¯s an arrow next to it, and it said: Death stare from the boss! Danger!


    Jiang Shenghe: ¡°¡­¡±


    He tried to recall for a long time, but couldn¡¯t remember a moment when he was dissatisfied with her and gave her a death stare.


    What Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t know was that to Luo Qi, every time he looked at her, she felt it was a death stare.


    It had been so six years ago, and it still so now.


    ¡­ ¡­


    This simple drawing was sketched a week ago. At that time, Luo Qi was looking over the information. When she got to this page, she received a call from her cousin, who soon chattered on the phone, asking about her return to Suzhou in the coming days.


    Luo Qi, however, didn¡¯t have the same joy of going home. Thinking about going on a business trip with the big boss, she felt a bit of a headache, so the pen in her hand naturally drew such a picture.


    Jiang Shenghe looked at the figure: she painted the lenses of the glasses so black that the paper was almost smeared through, like she wanted to blur his eyes to death.


    The drawing didn¡¯t look like him at all.


    But it was definitely him.


    Jiang Shenghe raised his eyes slightly. She didn¡¯t hesitate at all when she lent it to him just now, and she probably wouldn¡¯t remember her masterpiece for a while.


    When she remembered, she would be sitting on pins and needles, embarrassed and annoyed with herself, and then she would worry about whether he had seen it or not.


    The few of them were still busy with their own business; Luo Qi and Secretary Ju got together to discuss the terms of the project in a low voice¡ªno one was looking his way.


    Jiang Shenghe took a picture of the ¡®artwork¡¯ with his mobile phone, then flipped the information to a certain page near the front and put it on the keyboard of his laptop.


    ¡°You guys discuss first, I¡¯ll make a call.¡± He took his mobile phone and went to the study.


    The study was inside the master bedroom and quite private. He closed the door.


    As soon as Jiang Shenghe left, they began talking normally, there was no need for them to keep their voices down anymore.


    When they were in the middle of discussion, Secretary Ju said, ¡°Didn¡¯t you research it? Look through the information again to make sure¡ª¡±


    ¡°Ahh! It¡¯s over!¡± Luo Qi suddenly exclaimed. She forgot all about her image, scrambled to get up from her seat, and bent over the table to grab the document on top of Jiang Shenghe¡¯s computer.


    Secretary Ju didn¡¯t understand what was going on, so she asked, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    The other colleague also looked at her.


    Luo Qi suddenly remembered the drawing, and after checking that Jiang Shenghe was not looking at that page, her heart finally went back inside her chest. Fortunately, Jiang Shenghe hadn¡¯t seen that masterpiece.


    She turned to the page of the drawn figure and held it up for Secretary Ju and the other colleague to see.


    Secretary Ju laughed, and joked, ¡°So handsome ah.¡±


    Luo Qi bumped her elbow into Secretary Ju¡¯s side, ¡°Keep your voice down.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, the soundproofing of the suite is good.¡± Secretary Ju pointed to the colleague sitting across them and told Luo Qi, ¡°He once did an impersonation of Chief Jiang, but then Chief Jiang suddenly showed up behind him. He almost died on the spot. That¡¯s nothing.¡±


    Everyone laughed.


    While Jiang Shenghe was answering the phone, Luo Qi pulled down the page where the figure was drawn, folded it casually, and stuffed it into the inner pocket of her laptop bag, then flipped the document to the page that Jiang Shenghe was looking at before, and put it back on top of the keyboard of his laptop.


    If Jiang Shenghe asked about that missing page, she¡¯ll just say that the printer might have skipped a page when printing.


    In the study room of the master bedroom, Jiang Shenghe was leaning on a chair and admiring Luo Qi¡¯s masterpiece.


    He edited the photos, placed himself next to the hand-drawn figure, and added: precious video data!


    Just after saving the edited photo, a call came in¡ªit¡¯s a Shanghai number that he hadn¡¯t contacted for a long time. This number was only for when he needed to do something for Luo Qi¡¯s family.


    Jiang Shenghe accepted the call and greeted the person on the line. He put a cigarette in his mouth. There was a lighter on the table, and he picked it up as well.


    The other party heard the sound of the lighter snapping, ¡°Didn¡¯t you not smoke much before?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Jiang Shenghe took a puff and said, ¡°I have smoked a few more recently, and I will quit in a few months. What about you? You still smoke?¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t I quit early? I¡¯m not like you young people, you still have a lot of capital to squander. At our age, our health is not good. Smoking makes us cough to the next day.¡±


    After chatting for a while, Jiang Shenghe asked the other party what trouble Luo Qi¡¯s family was encountering again.


    ¡°Remember the company that Luo Zhiqiu has invested in?¡±


    Luo Zhiqiu was Luo Qi¡¯s father. Jiang Shenghe asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±


    Luo Zhiqiu¡¯s company has been affected by the rise in raw material prices this year, and its revenue was not optimistic. Recently, he has been running orders in Shanghai and seeking people everywhere. Compared to major companies in the same industry, their company has no competitive advantage in product prices, and the second half of the year will not be easy for them.


    He just told Jiang Shenghe the situation truthfully; he never interfered with Jiang Shenghe¡¯s decision.


    Jiang Shenghe no longer paid attention to Luo Qi¡¯s family affairs, but now the other party specifically called him¡ªthe business situation facing Luo Zhiqiu¡¯s company should be very severe.


    ¡°I won¡¯t interfere in this matter. You know, in a few months, Luo Qi will be married.¡±


    ¡°Well, I heard.¡±


    ¡°I have to trouble you again, you can ask someone to disclose this news to Pei Shixiao, so that he takes care of it.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe pressed the remaining half of the cigarette in the ashtray, paused, and made an exception once again.


    ¡°If Pei Shixiao doesn¡¯t take care of it, I¡¯ll deal with the aftermath.¡±


    He couldn¡¯t ignore her.

 CH 9.1

    When Jiang Shenghe returned to the meeting room, he glanced at the documents on top of his laptop before sitting down¡ªthe documents had been moved. The ¡°T¡± key was not blocked before, but now the letter cannot be seen.


    He couldn¡¯t help chuckling inside. It seemed that she remembered her masterpiece after all.


    Putting the phone aside, Jiang Shenghe put on his gold-rimmed glasses again and continued to read the documents as if nothing had happened.


    The three of them were also pretending, all of them restraining themselves from looking at him.


    Everything in the conference room seemed to be normal.


    Jiang Shenghe flipped through a few pages of information, ¡°How is your discussion?¡±


    Secretary Ju looked at Luo Qi, ¡°Go ahead first.¡±


    Luo Qi was very familiar with this project and knew all the twists and turns. She could probably point out which items the boss was dissatisfied with, but she couldn¡¯t guess how the boss planned to adjust.


    ¡°My thoughts are not very mature.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe cast his eyes over Lu Qi, ¡°Tell me.¡±


    When he looked at her, he unconsciously thought of the picture she had drawn on the report. She drew the lenses of his sunglasses pitch black, and now he¡¯s wearing eyeglasses. Does she want to put a film over the lenses?


    Luo Qi and the boss looked at each other politely for two seconds, and then her gaze dropped to just below his eyes.


    Jiang Shenghe looked away at the appropriate time, looked at the report in his hand, and listened carefully to what she had to say.


    Luo Qi began her analysis. ¡°Because this project is in Suzhou, almost all aspects of the relationship were coordinated by the other party. Although our Yuanwei also contributed, but to be honest, some of the favors paid by Boss He in private are worth more than our Yuanwei¡¯s, so they want to fight for a better share of the profits. It¡¯s human nature to want to get a higher share. Since Chairman He wants to win two more points, we might as well be more generous and give him four points.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe raised his eyes suddenly, ¡°And then?¡±


    Luo Qi didn¡¯t have the extra energy to speculate on what the boss was thinking now, and instead focused on expressing her own thoughts. ¡°Yuanwei Medical, which is controlled by our group, has not yet penetrated the market in the south. Boss He naturally has considerable connections in this part of the country. If Yuanwei gives Boss He the profit he feels he deserves on this project, and possibly more, then when the time comes our Yuanwei Medical can open up the market in Suzhou City, and even the entire East China region, with the help of Boss He.¡±


    In this project, they give up a small interest to Boss He, and Yuanwei Medical earns it back and earns more besides.


    Boss He would not face a loss¡ªhe would simply exchange his network of resources for a future project for monetary benefits now.


    It¡¯s a win-win for both parties.


    Jiang Shenghe stared at Luo Qi, her thoughts coincided with his. She has been with his aunt for a long time, and her exposure was no longer limited to certain projects¡ªshe now considers the overall situation of Yuanwei Group.


    ¡°Yes, we¡¯ll do it according to what you said.¡±


    Luo Qi inexplicably thought of her plan six years ago. If there was ever a chance, she would like to ask how and where her plan was not suitable.


    But it¡¯s been such a long time, and Jiang Shenghe definitely doesn¡¯t remember it anymore.


    That plan could be said to be related to Yuanwei Medical and its future. Even if the plan was rejected, she still hoped that Yuanwei Medical would become the top in the industry.


    ¡­ ¡­


    After a while, the terms that needed to be changed were almost all discussed, and Jiang Shenghe asked them to rest for a while.


    ¡°There¡¯s coffee in the pantry,¡± he said.


    Luo Qi and Secretary Ju each poured a cup, and the colleague also poured a cup of black tea.


    Right now, Jiang Shenghe was not in the meeting room, and they were completely relaxed.


    After staring at the computer all afternoon, Secretary Ju now stood in front of the window and looked out. She could see Luo Qi¡¯s house from here, but the range of vision was not as good as that from the living room windows.


    Seeing someone taking ancient style photos by the stone bridge, she turned to chat with Luo Qi, ¡°Xiao Luo, have you taken wedding photos yet?¡±


    Luo Qi stirred her coffee, ¡°Not yet.


    ¡°It would be interesting to wear that kind of dress.¡± Secretary Ju pointed out the window. ¡°The neighborhood near your home is really the best place for pictorials.¡±


    Luo Qi also had this plan. She has thought about how many sets to shoot, the style of each set, and where to shoot. It¡¯s too hot right now, and she planned to wait until September when they get the marriage license to shoot photos.


    Secretary Ju sipped her coffee leisurely and leaned against the edge of the table, ¡°By the way, didn¡¯t you go to try on wedding dresses this morning? Did you take a picture?¡±


    ¡°I took some photos.¡±


    ¡°Show me! You must have looked gorgeous.¡± Secretary Ju put down her coffee cup, dragged the chair to Luo Qi¡¯s side, and sat next to her.


    They were looking at photos of Luo Qi in a wedding dress when Jiang Shenghe walked in.


    Their other colleague coughed twice to alert them, but they didn¡¯t notice.


    ¡°This one looks good, you look beautiful, like an immortal.¡±


    Luo Qi said, ¡°I like this one too.¡±


    When they looked up, Jiang Shenghe was already sitting opposite.


    Jiang Shenghe said casually, ¡°Online shopping?¡±


    Secretary Ju said truthfully, ¡°No, I was admiring Luo Qi¡¯s wedding dress.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe nodded, and for a few seconds, he suddenly didn¡¯t know what to do.


    He took off his glasses, wiped the lens casually.


    Before the break time was over, Secretary Ju and Luo Qi had another two-minute discussion in low voices on the style of the wedding dress and which studio to choose for the upcoming wedding photos.


    Jiang Shenghe kept on wiping his glasses.


    Finally, he clicked on his phone¡¯s photo album and looked at the hand-drawn figure. Outside of work, this was the only connection between him and her.

 CH 9.2

    The meeting didn¡¯t end until six o¡¯clock.


    Luo Qi sent a message to Pei Shixiao: [I¡¯m done with my meeting.]


    It was raining again outside. Luo Qi and Secretary Ju didn¡¯t go out to eat anymore and instead had the buffet at the hotel.


    After eating, they returned to the room they shared, but Pei Shixiao still hadn¡¯t replied yet.


    Luo Qi turned on the TV and found a movie to watch with Secretary Ju.


    Halfway through the film, Pei Shixiao finally replied: [Have you had dinner yet?]


    Luo Qi: [Already digested.]


    Pei Shixiao made a video call; Luo Qi plugged in her earphones and went to the bathroom. She leaned against the washstand and accepted the call.


    Pei Shixiao was in his office, making coffee. He could see that the place behind Luo Qi was not the bathroom in her house, ¡°Staying in a hotel tonight?¡±


    ¡°Mmm.¡± She was not very interested in answering and didn¡¯t talk much.


    Pei Shixiao stared at her face, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? You don¡¯t look happy.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve been in a meeting all afternoon, I don¡¯t want to talk.¡±


    ¡°Having a meeting with the big boss, you were focused the entire time¡ªit¡¯s normal to be tired. If you don¡¯t want to talk, then don¡¯t talk.¡± Pei Shixiao found the phone holder and stuck his phone on it, ¡°Just stay with me while I work overtime, so you don¡¯t need to talk. Tell me when you feel like talking.¡±


    But Luo Qi didn¡¯t feel tired from the meeting, and she couldn¡¯t tell why her heart felt exhausted.


    On the other side of the phone, Pei Shixiao was reviewing some information on his computer, turning his head to look at the phone screen from time to time. Seeing that she was still online, he would then go back to work with peace of mind.


    They often accompany each other to work overtime like this. A sense of both strangeness and familiarity rushed over Luo Qi.


    ¡°Qi, do you want to eat barbecue? I¡¯ll order you takeaway.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not hungry. I had buffet tonight.¡±


    On the video screen, Luo Qi could only see his profile. Suddenly, he raised his head and looked in the direction of the door. Someone might have come in, but she didn¡¯t hear the knock on the door¡ªmaybe the knock was not loud and it wasn¡¯t transmitted in the video. The next second, Pei Shixiao turned his head and said to her, ¡°Someone is here to report on work.¡±


    Luo Qi said, ¡°You¡¯re busy.¡±


    Pei Shixiao struggled for a few seconds¡ªreason prevailed, and he didn¡¯t cut off the video, ¡°Qi, you don¡¯t have to hang up, just wait two minutes while I sign something.¡±


    Later, Luo Qi heard an unfamiliar female voice say, ¡°Three copies in total.¡±


    Soon, Pei Shixiao signed and handed the documents back.


    Luo Qi heard the sound of high heels fading away. She didn¡¯t know many people in his company, and she wasn¡¯t used to asking him who came in just now, and even if she asked, she still wouldn¡¯t know who it was.


    But it was certain that that woman should be an executive, and that she was very familiar with Pei Shixiao, because she didn¡¯t address him as Chief Pei, and only said ¡°Three copies in total.¡±


    Pei Shixiao didn¡¯t shy away from it, didn¡¯t cut off the video, and Luo Qi didn¡¯t think too much about it.


    After accompanying him work overtime for an hour and a half, her mobile phone battery ran low and they ended the video.


    ¡­ ¡­


    The next morning, the contract was successfully signed.


    He Wancheng admired Jiang Shenghe¡¯s courage, and he liked to deal with straightforward people. Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t need to expressly ask for it. He Wancheng himself offered: if there was anything he could do for Yuanwei Medical, just ask.


    In the evening, He Wancheng hosted a banquet for them, and Lu Baisheng arrived on time.


    Jiang Shenghe was waiting for him in the lobby of the hotel, and the two went upstairs together.


    ¡°Did you tell the students that you¡¯re not at school tonight?¡±


    ¡°No. Let them think I¡¯m in the office.¡±


    ¡°What a cruel heart.¡±


    ¡°¡­¡± Lu Bai was speechless.


    Jiang Shenghe laughed¡ªone of his few pleasures in life was to make fun of Lu Baisheng.


    Lu Baisheng didn¡¯t care about him anymore, and asked, ¡°Luo Qi and Secretary Ju haven¡¯t arrived yet?¡±


    ¡°Already here, up in the private room.¡±


    Jiang Sheng especially waited for Lu Baisheng, and they went upstairs first.


    There was chatter and laughter in the private room. He Wancheng and his party were also already there and were chatting with Luo Qi.


    During the early stages of the project, He Wancheng had contacted Luo Qi several times. He was also from Suzhou, and sometimes he would speak a few words of Suzhou dialect during the chat, lending him an intangible degree of familiarity.


    The door of the private room was pushed open, and Jiang Shenghe entered, followed by Lu Baisheng.


    He Wancheng got up to greet him, and everyone sat down after talking.


    There was an empty seat next to Luo Qi, so Lu Baisheng sat down there.


    ¡°Mr. Lu, we meet again,¡± she greeted in a low voice.


    Lu Bosheng joked, ¡°You guys are working, I¡¯m just here for a meal.¡±


    When everyone arrived, the waiter began to pour the wine.


    Jiang Shenghe was talking to He Wancheng, when he suddenly turned around and asked Luo Qi, ¡°Assistant Luo, Director Jiang said you are allergic to alcohol, is that right?¡±


    After the words fell, Luo Qi, who was talking with Lu Baisheng, suddenly raised her head. She was not allergic to alcohol, but she could not drink a lot. If she drank too much, she will have a stomachache, and she can only get over it by taking an intravenous drip every time.

 CH 9.3

    The most taboo thing to say at the banquet table was that you are allergic to alcohol. To say that you couldn¡¯t drink, otherwise you will have stomach bleeding, was the most disappointing.


    She couldn¡¯t let Jiang Shenghe spoil Boss He¡¯s evening because of her. She smiled and responded to Jiang Shenghe, ¡°It¡¯s okay, I have to congratulate Boss He twice.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe tried to minimize Luo Qi¡¯s exposure to wine drinking, and now he can only stop her drinking wine in advance in the name of his aunt. He told the waiter, ¡°Pour Assistant Luo two small cups, and add a pinch of cherry juice.¡±


    He basically told everyone present that Luo Qi will only have two small cups tonight. The two small cups add up to only one or two drinks which, really, was almost like not drinking at all.


    Obviously Jiang Shenghe was a guest, but his tone was unbending.


    Tonight, He Wancheng was the host, and with a wave of his hand, he signaled the waiter to do as Jiang Shenghe said.


    He vaguely remembered that the last time he had dinner with Jiang Yueru, Jiang Yueru seemed to have said that Luo Qi could not drink. After a long time, the impression was already a bit blurred.


    But it didn¡¯t matter whether Luo Qi could drink or not¡ªsince Jiang Shenghe said so, He Wancheng had to give him face. What¡¯s more, Luo Qi¡¯s turnaround just now was also skillful, and she gave He Wancheng all the face that should be given to him.


    After the juice was squeezed, the waiter poured it for Luo Qi.


    Luo Qi never expected that Jiang Yueru would be so thoughtful, and that she would not forget to ask Jiang Shenghe to take care of her at the banquet table so that she won¡¯t get sick from drinking too much wine.


    In the years that she has been by Jiang Yueru¡¯s side, ever since Jiang Yueru learned that Luo Qi would go to the hospital after drinking too much, every time there was a banquet, unless it was really impossible to avoid the situation, Jiang Yueru tried her best not to let Luo Qi drink alcohol.


    Jiang Yueru took care of her in all the littlest details, and if asked to say how, Luo Qi wouldn¡¯t be able to finish talking about it for three days and three nights. Jiang Yueru was also the one who helped find a doctor who could perform surgery on her father.


    This was the reason why Luo Qi worked so hard but never claimed credit.


    ¡­ ¡­


    Over dinner, Luo Qi¡¯s wedding was brought up.


    The last time He Wancheng entertained Jiang Yueru, he heard that Luo Qi was engaged but the wedding date had not yet been set. He had a good impression of Luo Qi and toasted her, ¡°When will Xiao Luo hold a wedding? I hope to drink the wedding wine.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Boss He,¡± Luo Qi replied. ¡°The wedding is in December.¡±


    ¡°What does your boyfriend do? He¡¯s also from Suzhou City?¡±


    ¡°Yes, from Suzhou. He¡¯s a venture capitalist.¡±


    ¡°Is that so.¡±


    He Wancheng intended to end the conversation at this point and wasn¡¯t going to ask any more questions.


    Tonight, however, he invited am old friend to accompany him. Jiang Shenghe was sitting on He Wancheng¡¯s right and his friend was on his left.


    He Wancheng¡¯s friend¡¯s surname was Zhao. He stared at Luo Qi thoughtfully. He¡¯d been  feeling that he had heard the name ¡®Luo Qi¡¯ somewhere before, but he couldn¡¯t seem to remember where. Just now, he heard Luo Qi say that her boyfriend was a venture capitalist and things fell into place.


    ¡°Does Xiao Luo know Pei Shixiao?¡±


    Luo Qi looked over and smiled slightly. ¡°Coincidentally, he is my fiance. Director Zhao, do you know him?¡±


    ¡°Your wedding will be held in a hotel I invested in.¡±


    Ah. He turned out to be the same Director Zhao, the big boss behind the hotel she chose for their wedding banquet. The surname ¡®Zhao¡¯ was very common, so Luo Qi didn¡¯t think much about it before.


    Luo Qi stood up and offered a toast.


    Zhao Dong picked up the wine glass, ¡°Sit down, it¡¯s one from our own family, there are no outsiders.¡±


    He turned to He Wancheng and said, ¡°She¡¯s old Pei¡¯s future daughter-in-law.¡±


    The circle sitting at the very top of Suzhou¡¯s wealth was not that big. Several major groups have inextricably linked interests, and they all knew each other.


    He Wancheng filled a glass of wine and toasted Jiang Shenghe. ¡°Come to Suzhou again in the future; I¡¯ll call old Pei together¡ªmaybe there is a chance to cooperate.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe smiled but said nothing. The smile on his face was very weak.


    After clinking glasses, he drained his glass of wine dry.


    He had absolutely no interest in cooperating.


    ¡­ ¡­


    In the next few minutes, all the discussions on the table were related to Luo Qi and Pei Shixiao.


    Jiang Shenghe leaned back in his chair, sipping wine from time to time, not saying a word.


    He Wancheng ended the topic of Luo Qi¡¯s upcoming wedding in a timely manner. Jiang Shenghe was the important guest tonight, and the focus returned to him.


    ¡­ ¡­


    Secretary Ju noticed the boss¡¯s abnormality tonight.


    This abnormality was not because he took care of Luo Qi¡¯s wine consumption at the banquet table, but because the boss¡¯ mood was, somehow, not quite right. Secretary Ju has been with Jiang Shenghe for a long time and attending these celebrations with him was normal for her¡ªshe has never seen him have this kind of subtle emotion before in all previous dinners.


    Others won¡¯t easily detect it, but she was too familiar with the boss.


    This secret she discovered today, she could only allow to rot in her stomach.


    ¡­ ¡­


    Once the dinner was over, Luo Qi got into the elevator and finally had a chance to thank Jiang Shenghe. ¡°Thanks to Chief Jiang, I didn¡¯t have to drink tonight, so I don¡¯t need to go to the hospital for an IV infusion.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe said quietly, ¡°It¡¯s nothing. ¡°


    For tonight¡¯s matter, she should be more grateful to his aunt rather than him. He didn¡¯t want her to be trapped by any more favors. If she owed too many favors, she would inevitably lose her confidence and pride.


    So he added, ¡°You don¡¯t need to thank me. It¡¯s Director Jiang who¡¯s worried that you¡¯d need go to the hospital if you drink too much tonight, which would then affect your work tomorrow.¡±

 CH 10.1

    At the hotel entrance downstairs, two cars arrived.


    Jiang Shenghe and Lu Baisheng got into the first car, and the second car brought Luo Qi and the others back to the hotel.


    ¡°Mr. Jiang, where are you headed?¡± the driver asked.


    It was Lu Baisheng who answered first and deliberately said, ¡°Go back to school.¡± He pretended to glance at his watch, ¡°It¡¯s not too late for self-study, I¡¯ll go back and give them a unit test.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe had been resting his eyes holding his forehead with one hand, but hearing this, he was so angry that his alcohol was half gone. He opened his eyes and looked at Lu Baisheng askance, ¡°Be a good person, let your students go.¡±


    He told the driver, ¡°Take him home.¡±


    Lu Baisheng lives nearby, about 15 minutes by car. But it was raining today, the road was more congested than usual, and it took half an hour to get to his home.


    Before getting off the car, Lu Baisheng invited him, ¡°Come in and sit at home first?¡±


    Jiang Shenghe declined, ¡°Today is too late, next time.¡±


    Lu Baisheng felt that there would be no next time. After the project was signed, Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t need to come again. When Luo Qi got married, it was even less likely for him to come to Suzhou.


    ¡­ ¡­


    On the way back to the hotel, Jiang Shenghe¡¯s cell phone rang. It was the number of the elder in Shanghai. He should have solved the matter of Luo Qi¡¯s father¡¯s company for him.


    He answered the call, and the other party went straight to the topic, ¡°I have already found someone to disclose the news to Pei Shixiao. If he takes it to heart, Luo Zhiqiu¡¯s company still has hope of turning losses into profits.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe thanked him again, ¡°I¡¯m sorry to trouble you. I will make time to see you soon.¡±


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll wait for you to come and have a drink with me.¡± He asked, ¡°How are your father and your aunt doing?¡±


    ¡°My father, I don¡¯t know. My aunt is fine.¡±


    ¡°You ah. Are you going to fight with your father to the end?¡±


    Jiang Shenghe smiled and said nothing.


    It¡¯s not that he wants to fight with his father, it¡¯s that his father can¡¯t understand him. His father¡¯s desire to control was too strong, but he couldn¡¯t control him. Ever since he became an adult, there had been no peace between him and his father.


    ¡­¡­ translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com


    In the afternoon of the next day, they returned to Beijing.


    This time, they booked business class tickets in the smart EMU train, which provided good privacy between seats. In the carriage, Luo Qi closed the small seat partition, completely separating herself from other people in the carriage, and did not have to see Jiang Shenghe.


    One can open a small screen to watch dramas, but Luo Qi was not interested.She leaned back in the chair and stared out the window.


    She had a strange dream last night. In the dream, she was still in college and her family was not yet bankrupt. She no longer had to think about how to pay off the debt every day.


    She went to see Pei Shixiao at his university, but when she got to the gate of the school, she couldn¡¯t get through to him on the phone, and the person who answered the phone said she had called the wrong number. It¡¯s obviously Pei Shixiao¡¯s cell phone number, but the person on the other end of the phone was not him.


    Unable to get through the phone, she went to his apartment to look for him, but still couldn¡¯t find him.


    She had woken up from a dream with her heart pounding.


    Right now, there was a vibration in the bag, and Luo Qi took out her phone.


    Pei Shixiao asked her: [Already on the train?]


    [Um.]


    When she arrived at the station today, she didn¡¯t send a message to report to him, but he took the initiative to ask her.


    Pei Shixiao asked again: [Busy at work?]


    [No, I was thinking about a dream I had last night.]


    [What dream, do you still remember?]


    [I couldn¡¯t reach you in my dream.]


    Pei Shixiao sent two voices, the voices were gentle, comforting her.


    ¡°That¡¯s just a dream. It¡¯s impossible in reality.¡±


    ¡°I will answer your calls even during meetings, so you will never not be able to reach me.¡±


    Luo Qi ended the chat: [Yes. I¡¯m fine, you¡¯re busy, I¡¯ll go check some materials.]


    She turned on the tablet and logged into her mailbox.


    As soon as I clicked on the email, a message from my cousin came in: [Sister, I got the package, I sent it to your apartment address and you should be able to receive it by tomorrow.]


    Luo Qi: [I¡¯ll send you a picture when it arrives. Thank you, Yubao.]


    Luo Yu typed quickly: [Why are you being so polite ah, it¡¯s not like you don¡¯t know how much I love you (shy)]


    [Sister, anyway, no matter who doesn¡¯t love you anymore, I will never stop loving you.]


    Luo Qi was used to Luo Yu being so cheesy, so she gave her a head-patting emoji.


    Luo Yu sent another long paragraph: [I have good news for you, our company has a project in Beijing, and I took the initiative to apply for an in-resident position and got accepted. I will go to Beijing and visit you then. I am now a small supervisor and my salary will increase next month, and we will pay back the money together, so you don¡¯t have to save so much. It¡¯s summer, you have such a good figure, buy a few more beautiful dresses to wear, don¡¯t waste your good figure!]


    Luo Yu can always move her. How could she possibly ask Luo Yu to help pay back the money her family owed? [How long will it take for the Beijing project to end? I will transfer to Shanghai next year.]


    Luo Yu: [About two years. It¡¯s okay, isn¡¯t there still half a year left before you need to transfer? When they send me to Beijing, I will eat and drink at your place every day, and then sleep in your bed!]


    Luo Qi smiled. [I will kick you off the bed then.]


    Chatting with her cousin always improved Luo Qi¡¯s mood.


    ¡­ ¡­ translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com


    During the second half of the drive, Luo Qi turned her mobile phone to silent and focused on looking at the project information.


    It was already dark when they arrived at the station. They sorted themselves out, and Luo Qi and the boss will take the same car to get home.


    Jiang Shenghe¡¯s car pulled over. Luo Qi opened the passenger door and sat inside.


    Jiang Shenghe sat in the back seat. He glanced ahead at a diagonal several times. The car was dimly lit, and only her shadowy profile could be seen.


    On the sections of the road that were not shaded by trees, the light from the streetlamps flashed through the car windows and fell on her briefly.


    When this happened, the light inside the car was slightly brighter, and her profile became clearer.


    There was no need for him to ask her about the project in Suzhou anymore.


    He said, breaking the silence in the car, ¡°If there is any problem with the project, you can directly contact Secretary Ju.¡± Secretary Ju will then report to him.


    Luo Qi turned back to the boss, ¡°Okay, Chief Jiang.¡±


    For the meantime, she didn¡¯t need to contact Jiang Shenghe anymore, and Luo Qi felt relieved.

 CH 10.2

    After sending Luo Qi home, the car drove to Jiang Yueru¡¯s villa.


    Jiang Yueru was discharged from the hospital two days ago and was now resting at home.


    Jiang Shenghe had his own room in Jiang Yueru¡¯s house. When he was a child, he lived at his aunt¡¯s house almost every day. When he grew up, he often lived here to accompany his aunt.


    Her son, Jiang Sixun, has already returned to New York. Jiang Yueru was at home alone so Jiang Shenghe planned to stay tonight.


    People were busy preparing dinner in the kitchen, and his aunt was watching TV in the living room.


    Jiang Yueru turned off the TV upon seeing him, ¡°I was sure you would come.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe replied, ¡°How did you calculate that?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a secret, how can I just say it casually.¡±


    ¡°Then you can calculate for Jiang Sixun, when will he get married, and when will the rotten relationship be completely broken off.¡±


    ¡°¡­¡± How could she really have that ability? ¡°You just be mad at me then.¡±


    Jiang Sheng smiled and sat down next to his aunt, ¡°How are you today? Does the wound still hurt?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay. I¡¯m just getting older and my recovery is naturally slow.¡±


    Jiang Yueru talked about the business trip, ¡°This time you went to Suzhou, you showed too much favor. Be careful next time, don¡¯t let people see it.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe pretended not to understand, ¡°What favor did I do?¡±


    He picked up the remote control, turned on the TV, and started to watch, keeping his eyes on the screen.


    Jiang Yueru pointed it out. ¡°Two days at most is enough to sign a contract, and you took four days to go. Others won¡¯t know why, but can aunt not know your intentions? The last time Luo Qi went home, she heard that I had an operation and hurried back to Beijing¡ªshe didn¡¯t have time to stay at home with her parents, so you made it up to her on this trip.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t deny it. He simply didn¡¯t answer.


    ¡­ ¡­ translated by Maela @whitemoonlighttranslations.com


    For a long time after the trip, Luo Qi didn¡¯t have to meet Jiang Shenghe¡ªshe only needed to communicate with Secretary Ju at work.


    Jiang Yueru has been recuperating at home, and her workload has dropped significantly. Luo Qi basked in Director Jiang¡¯s recuperating light and also followed suit.


    It was the easiest three months she¡¯s had since she started working.


    During this period of time, the only time she and the big boss were in the same frame was in Lu Baisheng¡¯s circle of friends. Lu Baisheng would sometimes post photos of his son.


    Once, after liking it, she was about to leave a comment when she found that the boss had also liked it.


    As long as she leaves a comment, the boss will be able to see it.


    Without any hesitation, Luo Qi withdrew.


    ¡­ ¡­


    September neared and the day of obtaining the certificate was getting closer and closer.


    In the past few months, she and Pei Shixiao have only met twice. Pei Shixiao has a project overseas and spends almost half of his time abroad on business trips.


    Last month, she had two days off, and it happened that he was scheduled to return to China on that day. She went to Shanghai and didn¡¯t tell Pei Shixiao before she went, because she wanted to surprise him.


    When she arrived at his apartment, she sent him a message: [When you get off the plane, will you go to the company or go home? If you go to the company, try to come back for dinner as early as possible.]


    Pei Shixiao was stunned for a moment, and when he realized what happened, he immediately called to apologize to her. ¡°I haven¡¯t returned from my business trip yet. The itinerary has been changed so I have to stay here for a few more days. I was going to talk to you when I called tonight.¡±


    At that moment, Luo Qi couldn¡¯t tell what mood she was in. His travel plans had changed, and he didn¡¯t tell her immediately that he would come back on a later date.


    ¡°Qi, I¡¯m going to see you.¡±


    She didn¡¯t believe it.


    Because every time he said he would come to see her these past months, he ended up postponing it due to work reasons.


    She stayed in his apartment for one night and returned to Beijing the next morning. When she got off the bus and exited the station, she saw a familiar figure among the crowd at the station entrance.


    Pei Shixiao was busy handling matters on the other side of the world, but was waiting here to pick her up.


    He flew back from abroad overnight and took a plane for more than ten hours just to pick her up.


    The moment she saw him, she still felt that he was young and enthusiastic in his love for her.


    What the hell changed?


    What hasn¡¯t changed.


    ¡­ ¡­


    The alarm rang, and Lou Qi came back from her thoughts. It was August when Pei Shixiao met her at the station. He had taken her back to her apartment, then in the same evening, hurried back to the airport and flew back to continue dealing with the project. Today, they haven¡¯t seen each other for another month.


    After a few minutes, the alarm rang again: it was half past ten in the evening.


    She turned off the alarm, made a video call to her mother, and urged her to sleep.


    Jiang Yifang had just taken a shower and was about to go to bed, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, mom won¡¯t stay up late anymore, I said I would go to bed at 10:30, and I will definitely go to bed at 10:30.¡±


    ¡°By the way,¡± she asked her daughter, ¡°Where will you and Shi Xiao get the certificate? Are you coming back home to get it?¡±


    Luo Qi replied, ¡°I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll go back to Suzhou to get the certificate, and we¡¯ll take the wedding photos at the same time.¡±


    ¡°The wedding dress isn¡¯t ready yet,¡± her mother worried.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, we¡¯ll shoot a series of ancient styles first.¡±


    She chatted with her mother for a while more then asked her mother to sleep and hung up the phone.


    Luo Qi took a shower and dried her hair. The phone was still very quiet. Pei Shixiao might still be working overtime at the company and didn¡¯t make a video call.


    Lying on the bed, she sent a message to Pei Shixiao: [I¡¯m going to sleep first.]


    Pei Shixiao¡¯s call came in later, ¡°Going to bed so early today?¡±


    ¡°I stayed up late for the past few days and my dark circles have become too heavy. We will get our certificate soon, and then have to take wedding photos. I need to take better care of myself.¡±


    When she mentioned getting the certificate, Pei Shixiao¡¯s hand that was closing the door paused slightly, ¡°Don¡¯t you have two dates that you like?¡±


    ¡°Hmm.¡± One at the end of September and one in mid-October.


    In fact, they weren¡¯t very special days at all¡ªthey were just special to her. Those were the two times when Pei Shixiao inadvertently moved her when she was at the lowest point in her life, and she always remembered it in her heart. Of the two times, the one in September moved her the most, so she wanted to get the certificate on that day. Maybe Pei Shixiao himself didn¡¯t know why these two dates were so special to her, even surpassing every anniversary of theirs.


    Pei Shixiao said, ¡°Then we will get the certificate in October.¡±


    Luo Qi¡¯s fingertips were on the bedside switch, and it took half a second for her to turn it off. The room was suddenly dark, ¡°Didn¡¯t you say September before? Do you have something to do that day?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m on business again the day after tomorrow. The project is in California. At least three weeks, maybe a little longer. I¡¯m worried that I¡¯ll still be away at the end of September, and you¡¯ll have nothing to celebrate then.¡±


    It¡¯s better to get the certificate in October.


    He added, ¡°I won¡¯t be so busy next month.¡±


    ¡°Okay, then let¡¯s wait until you¡¯re not busy.¡±


    Pei Shixiao told her to go to bed early, said good night, and hung up the phone.


    He locked the door of his office, stood there for a while, and finally walked towards another office.


    The door of Cui Peng¡¯s office was open, and she was staring at the computer in a daze.


    ¡®Knock knock¡¯, Pei Shixiao tapped twice.


    Cui Peng raised her head and just looked at him silently with gentle eyes.


    Pei Shixiao urged her, ¡°Turn off the computer and go home.¡±


    Cui Peng is going to California with him this time, ¡°I¡¯m not done yet, I¡¯ll get familiar with the project information before the business trip.¡± She took the mouse, ¡°You go first.¡±


    Pei Shixiao was helpless, walked in and closed the door, and sat down beside her.


    She didn¡¯t want to read the project information at all, she just wanted him to spend more time with her. In front of him, she confidently opened the news website, but he didn¡¯t say anything when he saw it, and accompanied her to browse the news.

 CH 11.1

    In the third week of September, there was another alarm on Luo Qi¡¯s phone. In addition to urging her mother to sleep at 10:30 every evening, there was another alarm to remind Jiang Yueru to leave work at 3:30 in the afternoon.


    The phone on the table vibrated, and the alarm went off at 3:30 right on schedule.


    Luo Qi turned off the alarm, got up, and went to Jiang Yueru¡¯s office.


    This morning, Jiang Yueru didn¡¯t stay at home, and despite her family¡¯s dissuasion, she insisted on going to work in the company, setting herself a limit of six hours a day and asking Luo Qi to supervise her.


    Luo Qi knocked on the door, ¡°Director Jiang, it¡¯s time.¡±


    Jiang Yueru smiled, ¡°What¡¯s the rush, am I annoying?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not bothered. If you don¡¯t want to go back yet, I¡¯ll remind you every five minutes.¡± Luo Qi helped tidy up the documents on the table.


    Jiang Yueru turned off the computer. She wanted to let her nephew relax a little, otherwise she wouldn¡¯t be so desperate to help out.


    ¡°Xiao Luo, Yuanwei Medical intends to acquire a company in the same industry, you know this?¡±


    Luo Qi hadn¡¯t heard. Ever since Jiang Yueru¡¯s surgery, all matters related to Yuanwei Medical were handed over to Li Rui, the vice president. After the business was reassigned, Luo Qi no longer had the authority to ask any questions.


    ¡°It¡¯s under the charge of Vice-President Li now.¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter who is in charge,¡± Jiang Yueru said. ¡°In the past few months, I have been thinking about it when I have nothing to do at home. It is better to let you go to Yuanwei Medical instead of letting you go to the branch office. The branch offices are all Yuanwei¡¯s traditional businesses, and they don¡¯t break any new grounds. Unlike Yuanwei Medical, which focuses on 3D printing; this will be a major trend in medical care and has a bright future.¡±


    She added, ¡°Yuanwei Medical has research and development centers in both Shanghai and your Suzhou city. If you go there, you will be able to travel between the two places. You can take care of your little family and your parents. How nice that would be.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Director Jiang.¡± Luo Qi was quite familiar with the management and business teams of Yuanwei Medical, both of which were elites in the industry, ¡°If you parachute me in, ignoring seniority, the board of directors will definitely disagree, so don¡¯t bother. I¡¯ll head to the branch office. It¡¯s good to practice first, and when my ability is perfect, I will definitely take the initiative to fight for Yuanwei Medical.¡±


    Jiang Yueru put on her windbreaker, ¡°Let¡¯s talk about it later, it¡¯s not something to worry about for now. I¡¯ll go pick up my unfilial son, he¡¯ll be getting off the plane soon.¡±


    Jiang Yueru always called Jiang Sixun ¡®unfilial son¡¯ in front of her, saying such harsh words, but in fact Jiang Yueru was a very open-minded mother. She never interfered in her son¡¯s life and respected all of his thoughts and decisions.


    Not only for Jiang Sixun, but also for Jiang Shenghe.


    So the boss was closer to this aunt than to his own parents.


    Luo Qi smiled and said, ¡°Brother Jiang is coming back to see you again?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s not looking for me. He just wanted to eat some restaurant¡¯s stir fried vegetables again, and he came back under the guise of visiting me. Unfilial boy.¡± While cursing, Jiang Yueru laughed to herself.


    After turning off the lights in the office, the two went out.


    Jiang Yueru asked, showing concern, ¡°You¡¯re almost ready for the wedding, when will you two get the certificate?¡±


    ¡°Next month. Pei Shixiao will be on a business trip abroad and he won¡¯t be back until the end of the month.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll give you a few more days off then¡ªgo out and have fun after you get the certificate.¡± Jiang Yueru thought for a while, ¡°You haven¡¯t played outside this year, have you?¡±


    ¡°No.¡± She and Pei Shixiao were both busy, and meeting each other was a luxury by itself, let alone going out to play.


    ¡°Go out while you have free time.¡±


    When they arrived by the elevator, Jiang Yueru went in by herself. Luo Qi wanted to send her downstairs, but Jiang Yueru waved her hand, ¡°You¡¯re busy. The driver is downstairs, and it¡¯s not like I can¡¯t walk.¡±


    Luo Qi didn¡¯t return to her office until the elevator doors closed.


    She only needed to take one day off to get the certificate. Even if she had time off, Pei Shixiao was busier than her, and there was no time for them to travel before the wedding.


    This year¡¯s birthday, he couldn¡¯t celebrate it with her. It was already her birthday next week, and he would still be in California at that time.


    From the age of 18 to 28, he would be absent from her birthday for the first time.


    Luo Yu said that he would accompany her to celebrate her 28th birthday. Luo Yu has already come to Beijing. The company rented a house for her, and it wasn¡¯t far from Luo Qi¡¯s apartment¡ªless than ten minutes walk.


    Luo Yu visited her place every night, bringing homemade yogurt and various desserts she baked by herself. In the past, Luo Yu was very lazy and impatient, and asking her to work would mean killing her, but now Luo Yu loves baking and often cooks, her whole person has been transformed.


    Today, Luo Qi still got off work at a normal hour. After Jiang Dong¡¯s surgery, by extension, she also lived a luxurious life without needing to work overtime.


    Nothing much happened when she went home, and she spent some time cleaning the apartment.


    Just after seven o¡¯clock, the doorbell rang on time.

 CH 11.2

    ¡°Sister!¡± Luo Yu¡¯s voice came from outside the door.


    Luo Qi took off her apron and went to open the door.


    ¡°Guess what I brought you?¡±


    ¡°Are you making dessert again?¡±


    ¡°I have been poisoned by baking recently, and my hands itch if I don¡¯t do it for a day.¡±


    Luo Yu pushed her elbow against the door, and Luo Qi took the bag which contained meat floss bread and a small box of cranberry biscuits.


    ¡°You put the meat floss bread in the refrigerator for breakfast tomorrow.¡± Luo Yu took off her coat, threw it on the sofa, and sat on the carpet in front of the sofa, looking around the living room, ¡°It¡¯s so clean, have you cleaned it again?¡±


    ¡°Umm, I was feeling idle.¡±


    Luo Qi put the bread in the refrigerator and washed two apples. She¡¯s been trying to lose weight recently so that she will look good in her wedding dress.


    An apple was given to my cousin, then she also sat on the floor.


    The two leaned back against the sofa, chatting while eating.


    Luo Qi squeezed her cousin¡¯s arm, ¡°It seems kneading dough every day makes the flesh tighter.¡±


    Luo Yu was ticklish, so she smiled and pushed her cousin away, ¡°Don¡¯t touch me randomly ah. Sister, where are you going to eat on your birthday? I¡¯ll treat you.¡±


    Over the past few years, Luo Qi has learned how to cook, ¡°I¡¯ll just eat at home and buy some groceries and cook.¡±


    ¡°Okay, we¡¯ll do as you say. I¡¯ll cook. I¡¯ll bake the cake, too.¡±


    Luo Yu obeyed her cousin in everything, and there were only these small things she could do for her cousin. When she was a child, her family¡¯s conditions were average, and her parents had to raise her and her brother Luo Xin, these twins, which was very difficult.


    At that time, Luo Qi¡¯s family was well-off, and her second aunt would buy her and Luo Xin new clothes and all kinds of expensive toys every year, for birthdays and Chinese New Year.


    Her cousin also secretly saved half of the pocket money for her and Luo Xin.


    She remembered everything.


    ¡°If Heartless hadn¡¯t been busy recently, he would also like to come and celebrate with the two of us.¡±


    Luo Qi poked her on the forehead, ¡°Call him ¡®brother¡¯ from now on, don¡¯t keep calling him ¡®Heartless.¡¯ Luo Xin is already an adult, do you want him to lose face?¡±


    Luo Yu was not convinced. ¡°He is only a few minutes older than me, maybe I was the older sister, and he used his strength to push me aside in our mother¡¯s womb and ran out first.¡±


    Luo Qi: ¡°¡­¡±


    She really couldn¡¯t laugh or cry.


    She didn¡¯t know if every pair of dragon and phoenix twins grew up like them, bickering from a young age.


    At eight o¡¯clock, Luo Yu received a message from Luo Xin: [My visa was not issued.] It¡¯s inconvenient to call him back while at their cousin¡¯s place, so Luo Yu went back to her place early.


    When she got downstairs from the apartment, Luo Yu called Luo Xin.


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    Luo Xin: ¡°What else can happen, the visa was denied.¡±


    ¡°I just want to know what dogs and men are doing abroad! Why is it so difficult?! My sister has been with him for so many years and they¡¯re about to get married. How could he do this!¡± Luo Yu stood under the streetlight and couldn¡¯t walk another step. She suddenly had no strength.


    ¡°Luo Yu, don¡¯t be angry at me for a moment, what would I do even if I go to see them?¡±


    ¡°Take pictures of them and throw the evidence in their faces! I also have a reason to fight Cui Peng, see if I can¡¯t kill her! She has disgusted me in the circle of friends for so long. She¡¯s been deliberately provoking me to see if I¡¯ll tell my sister, I really can¡¯t swallow this!¡±


    Luo Xi said, ¡°When they return to the country, then I will take pictures for evidence. I don¡¯t believe I won¡¯t be able to.¡±


    He struggled again, ¡°But Luo Yu, have you thought this through? Our sister has been looking forward to this wedding for so long. Everyone knows that she is going to get married soon. After the photo is taken, will you tell our sister or not?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Her words were contradictory, ¡°I hope my sister is happy, but I don¡¯t want her and Pei Shixiao to stay together.¡±


    There was a long silence on the phone after that.


    ¡­ ¡­ Seventh Year of My Secret Love for You by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com


    Two days before her birthday, Luo Qi received a call from Jiang Sixun, asking her if she was free that night to have dinner together, saying that Vice President Li Rui would also be there.


    Luo Qi thought they were going to talk about business, so she agreed.


    When she arrived at the restaurant, Jiang Sixun and Li Rui were already waiting for her.


    Jiang Sixun¡¯s dressing style was the same as before¡ªtoday he was wearing a dazzling, rose red shirt.


    He himself was a walking hanger, and he could control any color. No matter how exaggerated the clothes were on him, they could be worn with seven points coquettishness and three points extravagance.


    The only ¡®normal¡¯ shirt colors in his wardrobe were black and dark blue, which were only worn for formal, business occasions. Too many women chased him when he wore black shirts, so if he didn¡¯t need to wear them, then he didn¡¯t wear them.


    Luo Qi approached and joked, ¡°This color is so festive ah.¡±


    ¡°I still have even more festive clothes, but I didn¡¯t dare to wear them, for fear of angering my third uncle.¡±


    Luo Qi was fortunate enough to have met the ¡®third uncle¡¯ that Jiang Sixun was talking about before, that is, Jiang Shenghe¡¯s father. She had fully felt the aura and prestige of someone who had been in the top position for a long time. Jiang Shenghe¡¯s father couldn¡¯t control him, so he aimed his sights on Jiang Sixun.


    Jiang Sixun casually pointed to the empty seat next to Li Rui and motioned for Luo Qi, ¡°Sit down.¡±


    Luo Qi and Li Rui were not very close; they have only held meetings together and discussed projects, and have had no personal contact at all.


    Unlike at work, Li Rui was very easy-going.


    ¡°Our Xiao Luo is getting more and more beautiful, and directly increasing Yuanwei¡¯s face value.¡±


    ¡°Sister Li¡¯s praise is undeserved¡ªit¡¯s Brother Jiang and Chief Jiang who adds who Yuanwei¡¯s appearance.¡± Luo Qi put down her bag and sat next to Li Rui.


    Just now, Jiang Sixun remembered that Luo Qi¡¯s birthday will be two days later, ¡°Let¡¯s celebrate your birthday early tonight.¡± He called the waiter to order a cake for her.


    Luo Qi stopped him, ¡°No, I have desserts at home, so no need to order anymore. The three of us won¡¯t be able to finish the cake you ordered.¡±


    Li Rui chimed in, ¡°Why shouldn¡¯t you have a birthday cake? Just order it. I want to eat it too. If we can¡¯t finish it, I¡¯ll take it home and my son can deal with it.¡±


    Jiang Sixun gave Li Rui the menu, ¡°Sister Li, order.¡±


    ¡°The birthday star should go first,¡± Li Rui handed the menu over to Luo Qi.


    Luo Qi didn¡¯t push it back and forth anymore, and ordered two dishes first.


    Not long after, the cake arrived.


    Jiang Sixun plugged in a candle and lit it.


    Li Rui put the crown that came with the cake on Luoqi¡¯s head, ¡°Whether it works or not, make a wish.¡±


    Luo Qi announced it bluntly, ¡°There is only one wish: to make a fortune.¡±


    With laughter around the table, she blew out the candles.

 CH 11.3

    Halfway through the meal, Luo Qi realized that Jiang Sixun¡¯s intention for inviting her to dinner was to let her and Li Rui get acquainted with each other in private.


    Jiang Yueru said before that she planned to let Luo Qi go to Yuanwei Medical, and Yuanwei Medical was under Li Rui.


    While eating, Jiang Sixun received a call.


    ¡°I saw your car.¡± On the other end of the phone, Jiang Shenghe was looking at a familiar sports car.


    Jiang Sixun was still driving Qin Moling¡¯s sports car tonight¡ªthe car and its license plate was so flamboyant that it was hard to ignore. The few restaurants they frequented were all run by friends in the same circle, so it was not surprising to come across each other.


    ¡°You also invited someone to have dinner here?¡± Jiang Sixun replied.


    ¡°I have an appointment with Qin Moling but he still has something to attend to.¡± Jiang Shenghe knew all of Jiang Sixun¡¯s friends in the country, and so he just planned to join them for dinner. ¡°Which private room are you in? I¡¯ll head over.¡±


    Jiang Sixun glanced at Luo Qi calmly and replied, ¡°It¡¯s in the hall, next to the window on the south side, you can see it when you come in.¡±


    He paused for two seconds deliberately and said, ¡°Sister Li and Luo Qi are both here.¡±


    Sure enough, after he finished speaking, the phone suddenly fell silent.


    After a while, Jiang Shenghe said, ¡°Understood.¡±


    Jiang Sixun put down his phone, ¡°You two, Chief Jiang is coming to eat with us.¡±


    The big boss came to join them halfway, and so Li Rui grumbled, ¡°Let people have a good meal ah.¡±


    Jiang Sixun echoed, ¡°He deliberately doesn¡¯t want us to have a good meal.¡±


    Luo Qi thought to herself, so it¡¯s not just her. Li Rui also felt pressured when she¡¯s with the boss, and she also didn¡¯t want to have dinner with the boss in her private time.


    Sensing someone approaching, Luo Qi raised her head and her gaze collided with the other person¡¯s eyes. Jiang Shenghe met her gaze without any avoidance.


    She couldn¡¯t stand the boss¡¯ cold look; she slightly lowered her gaze, and hurriedly stood up, ¡°Chief Jiang.¡±


    Li Rui was eating lamb chops. Although she didn¡¯t need to stand up to greet the boss, she couldn¡¯t continue eating when the boss arrived.


    She was ten years older than Jiang Shenghe, and while she could talk and laugh with Jiang Sixun, with Jiang Shenghe, she couldn¡¯t make jokes freely and her brain somehow always reminded her to have a sense of proportion.


    While cursing in her heart, she put down the half-eaten lamb chops and greeted him politely.


    Jiang Sixun looked at Luo Qi, ¡°We¡¯re not at the company, what are you doing standing up?¡±


    Jiang Shenghe gestured for Luo Qi to sit down and sat down opposite her.


    There was a flower cake on the table, less than a third had been eaten.


    Luo Qi¡¯s birthday has not come yet¡ªtoday was only the 19th, and her birthday was the 22nd¡ªbut there were two blown out candles numbered ¡®2¡¯ and ¡®8¡¯ on the corner of the table. This year Luo Qi was turning 28 years old: it should be that this cake was to celebrate her birthday in advance.


    Knowing that it was her birthday, but still pretending not to know anything, ¡°Whose birthday is it?¡±


    ¡°Luo Qi.¡±


    ¡°Our Xiao Luo.¡±


    ¡°Mine.¡±


    The three spoke in unison.


    Jiang Sixun asked nonchalantly, ¡°Want a piece?¡±


    Jiang Shenghe didn¡¯t comment but passed his plate over.


    It was the first time he would have Luo Qi¡¯s birthday cake.


    Jiang Sixun cut a large piece of cake, filling the whole plate, ¡°The food is almost gone, eaten by us¡ªyou should eat more cake to fill your stomach.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe: ¡°¡­¡±


    It was impossible for Luo Qi to let the boss eat their leftovers, so she asked the waiter to add two new dishes.


    Jiang Sixun poured him wine, ¡°What can Qin Moling be doing in the meantime? Is he on a blind date again?¡±


    ¡°No, the company has something to do. He doesn¡¯t need to go on blind dates for the meantime.¡±


    ¡°How come?¡±


    ¡°A while ago, he was stood up by a blind date. The family is feeling bad for him and isn¡¯t urging him to go for the time being.¡±


    ¡°¡­¡± Jiang Sixun gloated, ¡°It was him who stood up others in the past, and now finally comes sweet retribution. He deserves it.¡± He was particularly interested. ¡°Who dared to release his pigeons1, do you know her?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t not know her.¡± Jiang Sheng said softly, ¡°She¡¯s our primary school head teacher¡¯s daughter.¡±


    They were chatting about Qin Moling; Luo Qi and Li Rui didn¡¯t interrupt. Luo Qi knew Qin Moling: he¡¯s the boss¡¯ childhood friend, and she heard that they were elementary school classmates.


    After eating, Luo Qi put down her chopsticks and picked up her wine glass to hide her discomfort caused by the pressure of the boss¡¯ presence.


    She lowered her eyes, and as she sipped her wine, her gaze fell on the table. From the corner of her eye, she could still see Jiang Shenghe¡¯s sleeves and the black cufflinks reflecting cold light.


    Jiang Shenghe ate a few bites of the cake, held up a wine glass to Luo Qi¡ªheld much lower than Luo Qi¡¯s¡ªand lightly touched her wine glass with his. He looked at her and said, ¡°Happy birthday.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Chief Jiang.¡±


    There was not much wine left in Luo Qi¡¯s glass, so she drank it in one gulp.


    Jiang Shenghe drank his full glass of wine in one go.


    Jiang Sixun reached out his hand to pour him more wine, but Jiang Sheng blocked it with his hand, ¡°No more.¡± Tonight was Luo Qi¡¯s birthday dinner, and he had no plans to drink with anyone else.


    After eating, the waiter brought an after-dinner fruit; they chatted while eating, mostly it was Jiang Sixun talking.


    Jiang Shenghe occasionally echoed a few words; he went outside once with a cigarette during the period.


    When dinner was over, Jiang Sixun went to pay the bill.


    The front desk informed him that there was no need to settle: Jiang Shenghe has already signed for the bill.


    Seventh Year of My Secret Love For You by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com


    FOOTNOTE:


    1·Å¸ë×Ó f¨¤ng g¨¥zi or release pigeons. When someone releases your pigeons, it means you got stood up. I see this all the time in c-novels in the context of blind dates hahaha ??


    Why do they keep talking about this guy Qin Moling? Because his novel is running parallel to this one¡ªthe girl who stood him up is his FL. Jiang Shenghe¡¯s courtship of Luo Qi will intersect with Qin Moling wooing his ¡®arranged marriage¡¯ wife. Incidentally, Jiang Sixun also has his own novel¡ªbut I haven¡¯t read it yet (¡¨¡ä?£à)

 CH 12.1

    Luo Qi couldn¡¯t drive after drinking but didn¡¯t look for a substitute driver. Instead, after Jiang Sixun and the others left, she headed to a nearby station, planning to take the subway.


    ¡°Chief Jiang, Assistant Luo didn¡¯t drive.¡± The driver looked at Jiang Shenghe from the rearview mirror and asked the boss for instructions, ¡°Should I pull over?¡±


    Jiang Shenghe also saw Luo Qi walking on the sidewalk. The shadows of the trees were dancing on both sides of the road, and her face could not be clearly seen unless he looked carefully.


    Looking out the window, he replied to the driver in a quiet voice, ¡°No need.¡±


    The car sped by.


    Jiang Shenghe looked away.


    ¡°Go home,¡± he told the driver.


    No matter how busy he was, every month, Jiang Shenghe went home to see his mother¡ªprovided that his father was not there at the time.


    His father was too controlling, and he avoided encountering him as much as he could.


    The yard was deep and quiet, and Jiang Shenghe heard the faint sounds of the piano being played when he got out of the car.


    After entering the villa, the auntie told him that his mother was in the piano room.


    The piano room was soundproof, but the windows were open, and the sound of the piano he heard just now drifted from the open windows. His mother had been a professional pianist. Now she was a professor at the Conservatory of Music, hired after she retired.


    His mother was very self-disciplined. Even now, she insisted on practicing the piano for several hours every day and never slacked off.


    Jiang Shenghe knocked on the door and pushed it open.


    Liang Zhen was sitting in front of a black grand piano, wearing a royal blue satin dress, with her hair coiled up¡ªa picture of elegance and nobility.


    She gestured with her chin towards the stool next to the piano, motioning for her son to sit down. The sounds from the piano continued without stopping.


    She was almost done with the evening¡¯s practice, and was about to stop and go to sleep, but her youngest son came. She and this child had nothing to say to each other, so she could only play another piece.


    Sometimes she could still chat with the eldest son and the second son, but she couldn¡¯t talk to the youngest son at all. It could be said that half a sentence was too much1.


    The eldest son and the second son were born twins. The arrival of the younger son was an accident. She was not in good health at the time, and she was not allowed not to have him, so he was born.


    She was not a qualified mother. She was strict and impatient with her children, and spent all her time and effort on the music career that was her life.


    The eldest son and the second son had her parents to help take care of their upbringing in the beginning, so she hardly had to worry about it. But when her youngest son was born, her parents were already too old and couldn¡¯t keep up with his energy, so she had to leave him to the nanny.


    After Jiang Yueru got divorced, she took her youngest son home to play with Jiang Sixun.


    As far as she, the mother, was concerned, the three children were similar to being raised free-range, and to this day, they were not close to her.


    When this child was young, she had piano tours, and it was not uncommon for her not to see this child for several months. It was different back then¡ªnot like now when you could video call at any time. After a long time, this child stopped missing her, had become wary of her, and didn¡¯t even dare to act coquettishly in front of her.


    There was no communication, no keeping company. She had no desire to control this child, and this child had no dependence on her. Over time, the relationship between her and this child became polite and alienated.


    After so many years, they have long become accustomed to this way of getting along.


    The eldest son and second son have already married, and whenever they were free, the whole family would come to see her and have a meal with her. Only Jiang Shenghe¡¯s marriage had not yet been settled.


    Perhaps she bothered him whenever she urged him to go on a blind date, so Jiang Shenghe seldom ate at home and only came over at night to listen to her play the piano.


    The song was over.


    Liang Zhen smelled alcohol. ¡°Went drinking tonight?¡±


    ¡°Yeah. Someone had a birthday and we had a drink.¡± Jiang Shenghe stood up, ¡°Mom, you should go rest.¡±


    Liang Zhen also got up and sent her son out.


    Looking sideways at her son, ¡°Has your dad called you recently?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°Your dad is free to come back during the Mid-Autumn Festival, will you go home for dinner that day?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not necessarily in the country then,¡± Jiang Shenghe prevaricated. In the living room, he stopped his mother, ¡°Mom, go back upstairs; I¡¯ll go ahead.¡±


    ¡°Tell the driver to drive slowly.¡±


    Jiang Shenghe agreed and left quickly.


    Going home was like punching a card: sit for a few minutes, punch the card, and prove that you have been back.


    ¡­ ¡­


    In a blink of an eye, it was September 22nd: Luo Qi¡¯s birthday.


    The first thing she did when she opened her eyes, she turned on her phone and checked WeChat. Pei Shixiao still hasn¡¯t wished her a ¡®happy birthday¡¯.


    She stayed up and waited until the early morning, but she didn¡¯t receive his greetings.


    For the first time in 10 years, not only did he miss celebrating her birthday with her, but he didn¡¯t even send a greeting.


    FOOTNOTES:


    1The full idiomatic phrase is ¡®a thousand cups of wine are too few for a bosom friend, but half a sentence is too much if you don¡¯t share the same view.¡± It means when views are irreconcilable, it¡¯s a waste of breath to continue the discussion, so just keep silent. ??


    T/N: The Jiang family situation is so fascinating¡ªit¡¯s complex but not dog blood complicated.

 CH 12.2

    During the noon break, Luo Qi received a strange call from the staff of a jewelry store, saying that a Mr. Pei ordered a set of diamond jewelry for her, and it was designated to be delivered to Yuanwei Group at noon today.


    ¡°Sorry.¡± Luo Qi refused to sign for the receipt. ¡°You guys can go back.¡±


    The other party was stunned, ¡°Ms. Luo¡­¡±


    Luo Qi interrupted, ¡°I know you have procedures to follow, I will sign for you.¡±


    The other party hesitated to speak, but, after all, could not force the customer. ¡°Okay, sorry for the inconvenience.¡±


    Luo Qi refused to accept the gift, and the staff did not have Pei Shixiao¡¯s number, so he could only contact Pei Shixiao¡¯s secretary.


    Ten minutes later, Luo Qi received a video call invite from Pei Shixiao. She connected, but switched to a voice call, not wanting to see him.


    ¡°Qi, happy birthday. Why don¡¯t you want to accept my birthday present?¡±


    He finally greeted her ¡®happy birthday¡¯, twelve hours late.


    Ever since they got together, he and Luo Qi have always celebrated each other¡¯s birthdays together every year.


    On her twenty-eighth birthday, he forgot to send a message. If the jewelry store staff hadn¡¯t called his secretary, and the secretary called him about it, he would have completely forgotten that today was Luo Qi¡¯s birthday.


    He was in California, and although there was a time difference¡ªtime difference was not an excuse.


    Pei Shixiao lowered his voice, ¡°Qi, why don¡¯t you speak?¡±


    Luo Qi¡¯s voice was very light, ¡°I¡¯m busy.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s my fault. I¡¯ll go back and apologize to you in person.¡± As for why he forgot her birthday, Pei Shixiao couldn¡¯t explain it. No matter how busy he was, he shouldn¡¯t have forgotten.


    No matter how busy you were, there was always a minute or two to send a message.


    But he just forgot.


    If he hadn¡¯t ordered this set of jewelry as a birthday surprise ahead of time, he would have missed her twenty-eighth birthday completely.


    Pei Shixiao lowered his posture again, ¡°Take the gift, just punish me when I go back.¡±


    Luo Qi stared blankly at the computer screen. Picking the hotel for the wedding banquet at the end of May, the wedding dress selection in June¡ªhe happened to be absent every time because of something.


    It was her birthday today, but he actually started to play tricks, asking his secretary to order an expensive gift, but he himself didn¡¯t send any birthday wishes. He no longer had the sincerity and heart he used to have.


    They were originally supposed to get the marriage certificate at the end of September¡ªit was also postponed because of his business trip.


    No matter how stupid she was, she couldn¡¯t deceive herself forever. He was deliberately distancing himself from her.


    It should be that his family was still dissatisfied with her, and he has begun to waver. If he was no longer firm in his stance to be with her, then what was the point of her insisting on this wedding by herself.


    ¡°Qi? Say something.¡±


    ¡°This jewelry doesn¡¯t suit me.¡±


    ¡°You liked this series before, why isn¡¯t it suitable now?¡±


    She used to be a VIP customer of this jewelry brand. Later, her father¡¯s company went bankrupt, and she never visited the jewelry store again.


    Luo Qi was silent for a few seconds and made up an excuse for refusing. ¡°The design of that series signifies only one and eternal love. It is not suitable for you to send it to me.¡±


    ¡°Qi, do you know what you¡¯re saying!¡± Pei Shixiao was angry¡ªbut also feeling guilty.


    ¡°I¡¯m not wrong, I¡¯m not the only one.¡± Luo Qi smiled, the movement not reaching her eyes. ¡°I still have work to do.¡± How indecisive.


    Pei Shixiao got up from the bed and drank a large glass of cold water, gripping the glass tightly. Her words were a trap, and no matter how he explained, she would not be satisfied, so he could only avoid talking about it.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been too busy recently, so I¡¯ve neglected you¡ªblame me. The company is preparing to invest in a project in Beijing, and I¡¯ll be there in October. Then you can see me every day. From now on, we will stay in the same place.¡±


    Luo Qi didn¡¯t answer; she just said, ¡°We¡¯ll talk when you get back.¡± There was a time difference; it was noon for her and early morning for him. ¡°Go back to sleep, I¡¯m busy.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sleepy.¡± Pei Shixiao didn¡¯t want to hang up the phone. It was her birthday, and he was doing his best to make her happy now. ¡°When you get off work, we¡¯ll make a video call to celebrate your birthday.¡±


    ¡°No need. Luo Yu will be with me. Stop talking, Chief Jiang is looking for me.¡± Luo Qi ended the call.


    Pei Shixiao wanted to say something more, but she already cut the call.


    With the phone turned face side down on the table, she leaned back on the chair and sat quietly for more than an hour until a work call came in.


    On the other side of the ocean, Pei Shixiao didn¡¯t sleep well all night.


    At dawn, he sent a message to Luo Qi.


    Luo Qi was off work and on her way home.


    [Qi, I miss you.]


    Luo Qi¡¯s eyes instantly became hot, and she deleted the message without replying.


    Once the feelings became too strong, it might not be a good thing.


    ¡­ ¡­


    When she arrived downstairs of the apartment, Luo Qi took a deep breath and adjusted her state before going upstairs.


    Luo Yu had already prepared a birthday meal for her at home and even invited Luo Xinyun to eat it.


    When she got home, there was a big cake and a bouquet of flowers on the table. It was clear that the cake was not home made.


    Luo Yu was cooking in the kitchen, ¡°Sister, you¡¯re back!¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Luo Qi said briskly. ¡°Didn¡¯t you plan to bake me a cake?¡±


    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t mention it,¡± Luo Yu sighed. ¡°The plan got overturned. It¡¯s too late to do it over, so I could only buy you a spare one. I will definitely make you a double-layer cake next year.


    ¡°By the way, the bouquet of flowers was sent by my brother-in-law.¡±


    Luo Qi smiled and put the flowers in the living room. She didn¡¯t want to see them.


    Seventh Year of My Secret Love For You translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com


    T/N: Pei Shixiao forgot Luo Qi¡¯s birthday because, despite his panic now, she hasn¡¯t been on his mind for a long time now. Our girl deserves better.

 CH 12.3

    Seeing her younger cousin so happy about the flowers, Luo Yu seemed to be unaware of her brother-in-law¡¯s behavior.


    Luo Qi changed her clothes and went to help in the kitchen.


    After finishing the birthday meal, Luo Yu wiped her hands and called Luo Xin with her mobile phone, ¡°I don¡¯t know if Heartless is home.¡±


    Luo Qi rubbed her temple, ¡°How many times have I said, call him ¡®older brother¡¯, don¡¯t call him ¡®Heartless¡¯.¡±


    Luo Yu turned a deaf ear as always. The video call connected; Luo Xin was already  home from work. He ordered takeaway, bought a few cans of beer for himself, and celebrated Luo Qi¡¯s birthday with them.


    After lighting the candles on the cake, Luo Yu turned off the lights in the dining room, ¡°Sister, make a wish!¡±


    This was the second cake for her twenty-eighth birthday, and the second wish she made this year.


    Luo Qi still had the same wish as before: that she would make a fortune so that her parents could live a better life, and when the rainy season came again, she would not have to worry about the damp and mold in their old house.


    There was also a small wish: she hoped that no matter what happens, she would be happier.


    In this year¡¯s wish, there was no longer any mention of Pei Shixiao.


    Luo Yu sang the birthday song and made a wish of her own in her heart. Once the Mid-Autumn Festival was over, Luo Yu would look for Pei Shixiao, hoping to catch him, hoping that Pei Shixiao would turn around in time, and hoping that everything she suspected was just a lie.


    Wishes made, they started cutting the cake.


    Luo Xin, who could only stare at them eating cake, said ¡°Sister, are you going back to Suzhou for the Mid-Autumn Festival?¡±


    Luo Qi nodded, ¡°Will go back. I have three days off. I¡¯ll go back with Yu Bao. What about you?¡±


    Luo Xin works in Shanghai, very close to Suzhou City, ¡°Will go back too, I¡¯ll pick you two up at the station.¡±


    The talk soon touched on their childhood and this made the shared birthday meal very warm.


    Luo Yu stayed with Luo Qi until half past nine before leaving.


    Pei Shixiao sent her another message: [Qi, have you eaten the birthday cake yet?]


    [Done.] Luo Qi stared at the chat box for a few seconds, then typed slowly: [Thank you for the flowers.]


    Pei Shixiao was unsure of her tone.


    Luo Qi sent something again: [I¡¯m going to sleep.]


    Pei Shixiao looked at the time, it was not yet ten o¡¯clock in China, she had never gone to bed so early. She might still be angry at him, so she didn¡¯t want to talk to him very much.


    But at least she was willing to text him back.


    He said: [Good night. I love you.]


    Luo Qi deleted his last message.


    ¡­ ¡­


    On the morning of the Mid-Autumn Festival, Luo Qi and her cousin took the high-speed train back to Suzhou City.


    They sat in ordinary seats, and Luo Yu left Luo Qi the seat by the window.


    At this time, Jiang Shenghe was working overtime in the Yuanwei Building.


    Today was a holiday, and he was the only one in the entire president¡¯s office.


    Ten minutes ago, his mother called him and asked him if he was free to go home for dinner.


    He lied and said that he was on a business trip abroad and couldn¡¯t make it back for the reunion dinner.


    His father was at home; there was no need for him to go back.


    In recent months, he has been in no mood to listen to anyone nagging about his marriage.


    ¡­ ¡­ Seventh Year of My Secret Love For You translated by Maela @whitemoonlighttranslations.com


    In the evening, he received a call from Qin Moling.


    Qin Moling asked, ¡°Where are you?¡±


    ¡°Company.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll go to you.¡±


    ¡°Why are you going here? Didn¡¯t you go home?¡± Jiang Shenghe took out a cigarette pack from the drawer and put one into his mouth.


    ¡°When I go to your place, it¡¯s quiet and peaceful. Too many people at home and it¡¯s noisy.¡±


    Qin Moling didn¡¯t want to stay at home. A while back, his blind date stood him up, and his family kept laughing at him about it.


    Jiang Shenghe found the lighter and lit up a cigarette. ¡°You don¡¯t need to come here, just go to my aunt¡¯s house. I¡¯ll head over too.¡±


    Qin Moling had a very good relationship with Jiang Yueru since he was a child, and to him, she was the most trustworthy elder.


    Whenever he got in trouble in primary school, the teacher-in-charge would ask him to write a self-criticism which had to be signed by his parents. Every time he finished writing, Jiang Shenghe helped to bring home the self-criticism and asked Jiang Yueru to sign it for him.


    When Jiang Yueru learned that the two were coming for the Mid-Autumn Festival, she asked her cooking aunt to add a few more dishes.


    A table was set up in the yard, and they could enjoy the moon while eating.


    As the evening fell, the cars the two of them drove arrived in Jiang Yueru¡¯s villa one after the other.


    Jiang Yueru came out of the villa with a bottle of red wine.


    ¡°Aunt, let me open it,¡± Qin Moling took the wine and corkscrew from her.


    Jiang Yueru handed a wet towel to his nephew to wipe his hands with, ¡°It¡¯s rare for your father to spend the Mid-Autumn Festival at home. Aren¡¯t you deliberately angering him by not going home?¡±


    ¡°If I go home and say something that shouldn¡¯t be said, he would be even angrier. It¡¯s better not to go, then I can¡¯t anger him.¡±


    He paused.


    ¡°If I meet my dad after December 18th, then it¡¯s not impossible to go on a blind date according to his wishes.¡±


    Qin Moling looked up from opening the bottle of wine, ¡°What¡¯s so special about December 18?¡±


    ¡°No reason.¡± Jiang Shenghe casually wiped his hands, wrapping his fingers in the warm towel.


    Jiang Yueru silently glanced at her nephew.


    On December 17th, Luo Qi will have her wedding.

 CH 13.1

    Jiang Shenghe stayed at his aunt¡¯s house until nine o¡¯clock, admiring the moon in the yard with her and eating moon cakes. He and Qin Moling each drank two glasses of red wine and had wanted to drink more, but their aunt refused to let them, so they had to put away the wine.


    Everyone was not busy tonight, so Jiang Shenghe called a few friends over to play cards with him.


    On the way, Qin Moling suddenly remembered something and asked, ¡°What¡¯s so special about December 18?¡±


    Jiang Shenghe was looking out the window, chin resting on his hand. He answered without turning his head, ¡°It was a special day when you were beaten twice by our head teacher in the second grade.¡±


    Qin Moling: ¡°¡­.¡± He said lightly, ¡°You are sick.¡± With the effects of the red wine buzzing in his head, he closed his eyes and rested his mind, too lazy to talk to Jiang Shenghe.


    Jiang Shenghe only opened his eyes again when the car turned into his villa community.


    There was a car across the gate of his villa. Qin Moling thought that some friend was deliberately playing tricks and parked their car in front of the door to prevent Jiang Shenghe from entering.


    But after getting out of the car, intending to raise a ruckus, Qin Moling saw the license plate clearly: the car belonged to Jiang Shenghe¡¯s father.


    The rear window slowly lowered, and the person inside the car glared at him.


    ¡°Uncle Jiang, happy mid-Autumn Festival,¡± Qin Moling greeted in a friendly voice.


    Jiang¡¯s father cast a sideways glance at Qin Moling, ¡°Don¡¯t say things you don¡¯t mean, just say hello. You probably only know how to scold me in your heart.¡±


    Qin Moling was not angered by this provocation at all, and he only smiled to defend himself, ¡°¡­ Uncle Jiang, you wrong me.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t wrong you at all. Neither you nor Jiang Shenghe are good people.¡±


    Well, the more you talk, the more you¡¯ll get scolded.


    So Qin Moling stepped aside, keeping as far away from Jiang Shenghe as possible to avoid further association.


    Father Jiang didn¡¯t get out of the car, but his eyes were piercing, ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you are abroad? You came back with wings?¡±


    Jiang Shenghe lit a cigarette and said unhurriedly, ¡°I don¡¯t have any wings. I have practiced the method of teleportation in the past few months.¡±


    Father Jiang: ¡°¡­¡±


    Qin Moling laughed silently, still trying to be unobtrusive, thinking in his heart, well done.


    Father Jiang thought that this useless son was deliberately angering him, and he really couldn¡¯t suppress his anger. He only had time to eat a few meals at home in a year, and when he finally came back this time, this useless son actually said that he was going on a business trip abroad and had no time to go home.


    If going abroad, then just go abroad. Even if he didn¡¯t actually go abroad, he should at least restrain himself¡ªbut instead he blatantly asked in the Jiang family group chat who was free tonight to play cards at his home!


    Put anyone else in Father Jiang¡¯s place and see if they would not be angry.


    ¡°Jiang Shenghe, if you have the ability, go abroad and don¡¯t come back to China for the rest of your life! I¡¯ll admire you like Jiang Sixun! But since you still can¡¯t bear to leave the shade of this big tree at home, be honest when you¡¯re here! Don¡¯t be just using me without respecting me!¡±


    Jiang Shenghe took a puff from his cigarette, ¡°Don¡¯t overthink things, I really haven¡¯t made money in your name.¡±


    If it wasn¡¯t for Luo Qi, he wouldn¡¯t even have come back to China.


    ¡­ ¡­


    Suzhou City at this time.


    Every Mid-Autumn Festival, Luo Qi¡¯s family, as well as the third uncle¡¯s, all go to the eldest uncle¡¯s house for dinner. Luo Qi¡¯s wedding was approaching and nine out of ten sentences at the dinner table were about weddings.


    The eldest aunt asked someone to calculate the suitable date for receiving the certificate and urged Luo Qi to get theirs then.


    Luo Qi was exhausted from dealing with it all. After dinner, using the excuse to call Jiang Yueru to escape, she took her mobile phone and hid in the pavilion in the yard. There was finally some peace and quiet.


    [Qi, Happy Mid-Autumn Festival.] Pei Shixiao sent a message.


    Then he sent her a photo of him waiting at the Newark airport.


    [I¡¯ll go back to Shanghai first to finish up some work, then I¡¯ll go to Beijing to see you after the festival.]


    Luo Qi didn¡¯t reply. She set her phone to ¡®Do Not Disturb¡¯.


    ¡°Why are you hiding here? I¡¯ve been looking for you for a long time.¡±


    She heard her cousin¡¯s voice come from behind, and Luo Qi turned around sharply, ¡°Eldest brother.¡±


    A tall figure approached.


    Luo Yuli gave her a mooncake, ¡°Eat it while it¡¯s warm.¡±


    Luo Qi loved fresh baked mooncakes the most, but she had no appetite tonight. ¡°I¡¯m trying to lose weight. I can¡¯t finish one.¡±


    ¡°Eat as much as you can, then give me the rest.¡± Luo Yuli sat down at the other end of the bench.


    Luo Qi broke less than one-third of the mooncake and gave the rest to her cousin.


    In the eldest uncle¡¯s house, she was closest to this eldest cousin who protected her and Luo Yu the most when they were young. Now that they¡¯ve grown up, they were busy with their own matters so there were not many opportunities to get together anymore.


    When she handed the mooncake back to her cousin, she noticed that he was holding an opaque file envelope in his hand.


    Luo Yuli took the mooncake and stuffed the envelope into her hand, ¡°This is your wedding gift.¡±


    Luo Qi opened it and inside were a real estate certificate, an access control card, and a contract. The real estate certificate was in the name of her eldest cousin¡ªa small apartment of a little more than 30 square meters.


    Luo Yuli took a bite of the mooncake. He really disliked mooncake the most, but he nevertheless swallowed it, ¡°When you have the qualification to buy a house in Shanghai, the property will be transferred to your name.¡±


    Luo Qi put the access card back in and zipped up the file envelope.


    This wedding gift was too expensive for her to accept, ¡°Thank you, eldest brother.¡± She was truly touched, and the gratitude she felt in her heart was beyond words, ¡°You give me a nice bag, and I will accept it.¡±


    But not a house.


    To her eldest cousin, this apartment was a drop in the bucket. But for her, it would take two years of salary without paying for food, drinks, or any debt repayment. It was too expensive to give her as a wedding gift.


    She gently placed the file envelope back on her cousin¡¯s lap.


    Before giving the gift, Luo Yuli already anticipated that his cousin would refuse, ¡°I didn¡¯t get you a big house, I just gave you a place to stay.¡± He frowned and finally finished eating the mooncake he didn¡¯t like. ¡°No matter how good you and Pei Shixiao are, it¡¯s impossible not to quarrel after marriage. He bought the marriage house. Where will you go after a quarrel?¡±


    Luo Qi didn¡¯t speak and moved over to sit next to her eldest cousin, with her elbows on her knees and her chin resting on her hands, just like when she was a child. The full moon was in the sky, and in the bushes in the yard, the chirping of unknown insects stopped.


    ¡°As long as the second uncle and the second aunt are capable, it¡¯s not my turn to buy you a house,¡± he tells her.


    However, in reality, the second uncle was still struggling, and he couldn¡¯t even pay the down payment.


    Luo Yuli gave her the file bag again, ¡°Take it first, and return it to me when you have the money to buy a house.¡±


    Luo Qi shook her head, ¡°If it becomes really necessary, then I will just borrow a place to stay from you.¡±


    Luo Yuli knew that his cousin had strong self-esteem, ¡°I have prepared two sets, the same building, but on different floors. One set for you and one set for Luo Yu. You have a high salary, and in a few years you can afford even the best house, but Luo Yu can¡¯t. With her little salary, after deducting her own expenses, there is not much left, and if she wants to buy her own house, she can¡¯t afford the down payment even if she saves for ten years.¡±


    He persuaded in a roundabout way, ¡°If you don¡¯t accept it, Luo Yu will be even more embarrassed to accept it. Just treat this as doing something for her.¡±


    For Luo Yu, Luo Qi loosened her grip and took the file bag. ¡°I¡¯ll keep it for you first.¡±


    The truth was she no longer needed a house in Shanghai.


    Luo Yuli reminded her, ¡°Put those in the car later.¡±


    ¡°I will.¡±


    Luo Qi understood her eldest cousin¡¯s advice: this small apartment was a gift from her cousin without the knowledge of her eldest uncle and aunt.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to find Luo Yu.¡± Luo Yuli stood up and left with his customary long strides.


    T/N: I love Luo Yuli. He doesn¡¯t get much screen time, but when he does, he makes my heart squeal with delight. But that Qin Moling and Jiang Shenghe¡ªthey¡¯re like two troublemaker peas in the same unruly pod.


    A quick recap of Luo family relations. Luo Qi¡¯s dad¡¯s generation has 3 brothers. The eldest uncle is the wealthiest; he¡¯s married to eldest aunt (which nobody seems to like) and has a son, Luo Yuli. Luo Qi¡¯s father is the second. Third uncle is the dad of Luo Yu and her twin Luo Xin (a.k.a. Heartless).

 CH 13.2

    Luo Yu was, in fact, not in the living room. She had dragged Luo Xin to the balcony on the second floor to discuss countermeasures.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t we discuss it with eldest brother?¡± Lu Xin proposed.


    ¡°How can you say that!¡± Luo Yu glared at him.


    ¡°Why are you angry at me! Can¡¯t we even trust eldest brother?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not that we can¡¯t trust him¡ªI¡¯m worried what if eldest uncle and aunt find out.¡± Luo Yu muttered in a low voice, ¡°They only have money in their eyes.¡± Pei Shixiao was their biggest client; how could the eldest aunt allow others to stir up trouble against him? She would skin them alive.


    ¡°How can a man just change his mind like this? Pei Shixiao¡¯s heart is really cruel. After so many years of being together, he cheats on her right before marriage. If my sister knew that every time he broke an appointment with her, it was because of that woman, won¡¯t she be saddened to death?¡±


    Luo Xin kept silent, not knowing how to respond to Luo Yu.


    He wanted to smoke, but just as he took out the cigarette case, Luo Yu snatched it away.


    ¡°I¡¯m already this angry and you still want me to inhale second-hand smoke!¡± Luo Yu put the snatched cigarette in her mouth, ¡°Give me a lighter!¡±


    ¡°¡­ what are you doing?¡± Lu Xing asked, staring at his twin blankly.


    ¡°Smoking firsthand!¡±


    She needed to numb her nerves; but she had never smoked before, and she choked dreadfully after only two puffs. Luo Yu stubbed the cigarette out in a furious gesture, there was nowhere to vent the anger in her heart.


    ¡°Do you think it is possible that Pei Shixiao will take the initiative to break up with Cui Peng? If he breaks up with her, I will let it go. For the sake of my sister, I will forgive him this once.¡±


    Even as Luo Yu said it, she felt angered again.


    ¡°Do you think it is possible?¡± Lu Xin asked


    Luo Yu took a long breath. ¡°Cui Peng is such a bitch, and she has tricks, and Pei Shixiao is also cheap, so he won¡¯t be able to break it off easily.¡±


    Luo Xin looked at his younger sister, ¡°He didn¡¯t restrain himself before getting married. You expect Pei Shixiao to turn over a new leaf after marriage? I¡¯ll tell you something you won¡¯t like to hear: Cui Peng won¡¯t be the last one.¡±


    Luo Yu opened her mouth, but made no sound.


    Luo Xin resisted the need to smoke and instead took a piece of mooncake to eat, ¡°It¡¯s not like you don¡¯t know how Cui Peng is, she has such a character. She will never give up until she achieves her goal, and if she fails to achieve her goal, she will not stand by and allow others to live better than her. Even if you don¡¯t tell elder sister, Cui Peng will try every means to let her know, and then she will have to carry this for the rest of her life.¡±


    Luo Yu was rubbing the cigarette, breaking the thin paper, and the shredded tobacco fell all over her hand.


    The reason why she was able to discover her brother-in-law¡¯s affair was entirely due to Cui Peng.


    Since March of this year, Cui Peng had been posting to Moments every now and then, either pictures of gifts or meals. The captions of the photos were always ambiguous, designed to make people think.


    The photos were coded and secretive, but as if she was afraid that others would not be able to guess who the man was, so she always ¡®forgot¡¯ to hide some details.


    Cui Peng was an employee of Pei Shixiao¡¯s company. Pei Shixiao celebrated his birthday in March and invited Luo Yu and her twin Heartless to have fun. Many employees of Huanheng Capital were there and Cui Peng was among them.


    When Cui Peng learned that she was the younger cousin of Pei Shixiao¡¯s fianc¨¦e, she was very enthusiastic about her, even taking the initiative to add her on WeChat.


    Luo Yu didn¡¯t think much about it at the time, thinking that Cui Peng was the kind of person in the workplace who would wink and flatter.


    Thinking about it now, everything was premeditated. Cui Peng¡¯s postings in her circle of friends were probably visible to her alone, and she deliberately let her find out that something was wrong so she would tell her cousin.


    ¡°I¡¯ll go to Shanghai with you the day after tomorrow. Pei Shixiao came back early,¡± Luo Yu said.


    Lu Xing paused, ¡°Sister told you?¡±


    ¡°No. The green tea whore posted it on Moments.¡±


    Cui Peng took a selfie at Newark Airport, deliberately blurring the people around her when taking the photo, but the outline of that face was Pei Shixiao.


    ¡­ ¡­ Seventh Year of My Secret Love for you translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com


    On the last day of the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday, Luo Qi returned to Beijing.


    Luo Yu originally agreed to go back with her, but she got her ticket temporarily refunded.


    The eldest cousin had given her an apartment in Shanghai, and Luo Yu pretended that she couldn¡¯t wait to see the place. ¡°Sister, you know I¡¯m like this, and I can¡¯t wait for even one more minute.¡±


    The reason for accepting the house given by the eldest cousin was that if she didn¡¯t accept it, Luo Qi wouldn¡¯t accept it either. The house was expensive. She will stay there for a few years, and then return it to her eldest cousin.


    The joy of receiving the house was sorely diluted by Pei Shixiao¡¯s cheating. She couldn¡¯t imagine how painful it would be when her cousin found out that Pei Shixiao liked someone else.


    Until the high-speed train entered Shanghai, Luo Yu was still struggling whether to expose this matter. Once the veil was pierced, there would be no turning back.


    All of her cousin¡¯s happiness would be shattered.


    [Sister, think about what I should do. A college classmate of mine, I bumped into her boyfriend with another woman, do you think I should tell her? I am so worried.]


    Luo Qi replied: [If it was me, I would like someone to tell me. Cheating cannot be forgiven. Better to stop the loss early.]


    Not to talk about cheating, but Pei Shixiao was deliberately distancing himself from her, and Luo Qi couldn¡¯t stand it. For him, she could endure the contempt from his parents and all the difficulties they had made for her, but she could never tolerate his wanton trampling on her sincerity.


    Luo Yu: [I¡¯ll think about it again.]

 CH 13.3

    Luo Qi was too busy at work the next day. In the end, she forgot to ask Luo Yu how she had dealt with this matter and if her troubles had been resolved.


    At two o¡¯clock in the afternoon, the company¡¯s entire senior management had a meeting.


    Ten minutes before the appointed time, she and Jiang Yueru went to the conference room together. She heard that Jiang Shenghe was in the company these days and was going to attend the meeting today.


    In the conference room, Jiang Shenghe had come early and was already talking to the people next to him.


    ¡°Director Jiang.¡± Everyone greeted Jiang Yueru one after another.


    Jiang Shenghe was still sitting in the same posture as before and didn¡¯t deliberately turn his face away.


    Throughout the meeting, he stared at the projection screen and occasionally wrote down his points of interest in a notebook.


    At the meeting, Li Rui reported the acquisition of Ruipu Medical. ¡°In addition to Ruipu Medical, the potential strength of Dongbo Medical should not be underestimated. It may become our competitor in the future.¡±


    Hearing the name ¡®Dongbo Medical¡¯, Luo Qi slowly raised her head. She was familiar with the name: it was a medical technology company invested in by Pei Shixiao¡¯s company three years ago. Back in June, Pei Shixiao didn¡¯t have time to accompany her to try on the wedding dress, and he had to rush back to Shanghai for a meeting¡ªthat was to attend the board meeting of Dongbo Medical.


    The topic of Dongbo Medical was just mentioned in passing; Li Rui didn¡¯t talk about it in depth and the focus of the meeting returned to Ruipu Medical.


    The meeting lasted until 4:40pm. Luo Qi packed up her materials, taking her time like everyone else, waiting for the boss and several higher ups to leave first.


    Jiang Shenghe walked while chatting with Jiang Yueru. He walked out of the conference room without looking back.


    Secretary Ju followed behind the big boss, and she couldn¡¯t help but wonder if she had misunderstood the boss¡¯s interest in Luo Qi¡ªshe had the realization when they were on a business trip in Suzhou in June.


    From the beginning to the end of the meeting today, the boss didn¡¯t take a second look at where Luo Qi was sitting.


    It seemed like he didn¡¯t care about her after all.


    But then the boss never showed much emotion; no one could figure out what he was thinking, including her.


    Inside the elevator, just before leaving, Jiang Shenghe said to his aunt, ¡°I will go to your office at six o¡¯clock, and we can talk in detail then.¡±


    Jiang Yueru nodded, ¡°Okay.¡± They would discuss the company¡¯s plan for next year, and then talk about Luo Qi¡¯s transfer to Yuanwei Medical.


    It was set for 6pm because it was already after work hours by then and Luo Qi would not be there. These days, when her nephew came to look for her, he avoided Luo Qi, tried not to meet her and didn¡¯t bother her at all.


    ¡­ ¡­ translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com


    Luo Qi would have been able to get off work on time, but she received a call at five o¡¯clock. There was something wrong with the project in Suzhou, and it was particularly difficult to resolve.


    It took an hour before the phone call was finished.


    After turning off the computer, Luo Qi sent a message to Luo Yu: [What time will you leave work? Go to my place for dinner.]


    Luo Yu prepared a voice-reply. She had just pressed the voice button and hadn¡¯t yet had time to speak.


    ¡°Quick, Pei Shixiao¡¯s car is here!¡± Luo Xin said, nudging her.


    Luo Yu nudged him back, angry and panicking, ¡°You are so annoying! I was sending a message to elder sister!¡±


    She was going to cancel the voice message, but when Luo Xin jogged her arm, she had accidentally sent it out. What Luo Xin said was recorded. Luo Yu didn¡¯t know if their cousin had already clicked on the voice message, but she hurriedly withdrew it and sent another text message.


    [Sister, you don¡¯t have to wait for me, I¡¯m still in Shanghai.]


    The reply was sent in a hurry. She turned on the camera and aimed at the slowly approaching car.


    It¡¯s the first time she was catching someone having an affair. Luo Yu couldn¡¯t control her nerves and her hands couldn¡¯t help shaking.


    They were outside Cui Peng¡¯s house, but they had been waiting for Pei Shixiao¡¯s car. In her heart, Luo Yu would rather they waited for nothing, at least then she could numb her doubts and have a little fantasy that Pei Shixiao truly loved her sister and would not do anything out of line.


    However, all her hopes were now dashed.


    The car stopped and the two got out.


    Cui Peng walked around the front of the car, never taking her eyes off Pei Shixiao for a moment.


    If you looked closely, there were tears in her eyes.


    Luo Yu didn¡¯t dare and didn¡¯t want to watch the next scene, so she squinted her eyes and focused on recording the video.


    Across the armrest console, Luo Xin could clearly hear Luo Yu¡¯s breathing become more and more labored¡ªshe was clearly trying to restrain herself.


    He glanced out the window, Cui Peng¡¯s forehead was pressed against Pei Shixiao¡¯s chest, and Pei Shixiao was stroking her back.


    Unable to bear it any longer, Luo Xin uttered an obscenity, slamming the steering wheel with his hand. He pushed the door open, stepped out of the car, and headed straight towards Pei Shixiao.


    The ear-piercing ¡®di-di-di-¡¯ sound startled Luo Yu. The two people standing close together were also startled, and they both turned their faces to look over.


    ¡°What are you doing!¡± Cui Peng screamed.


    Luo Xin¡¯s fist had already greeted Pei Shixiao¡¯s face.