Su Shaoqing’s mouth twitched once again, “Of course not! If she’s married and happy, then this is the best outcome for her.”
“You better say it like you mean it.”
Pei Jingxiu moved his eyes away from Su Shaoqing and looked out of the window, “There’s no point clinging onto things that are not yours. Since you have already given her up, you need to learn to let her go. I’m telling you this because I want you to move on.”
“Well, that’s very nice of you.” Su Shaoqing grinned, “I’ve moved on. I’m glad she’s happy. Even if she’s not, it’s none of my business anymore.” Su Shaoqing let out a sigh, “You don’t have to test me, Jingxiu. I can never be as cruel as you.”
Pei Jingxiu tilted his head and glanced at Su Shaoqing.
He’s still young, after all. That’s why he loses control of himself easily when he’s provoked. I’m not surprised. Pei Jingxiu was still holding the cigarette in his hand, “I didn’t tell Fu Chengyan about this. I guess he wouldn’t want her to be back either.”
Su Shaoqing put on a half-smile, “Then why did you tell me? I have nothing to do with her anymore since our relationship has ended.” Su Shaoqing took in a deep breath, “Well, at least I know now.”
Pei Jingxiu nodded, “What time is our dinner?”
“8 pm! We’ll go once they warmed up the place.”
“I’ll take a nap first then.” Pei Jingxiu gave Su Shaoqing a tap on his shoulder before going upstairs.
As he watched the back of Pei Jingxiu’s slender body getting further away, a poignant memory popped up in his mind and caused him to lose the smile on his face.
He turned around, looked out the window, just as how Pei Jingxiu did earlier and saw a sudden breeze blowing away some dried leaves that had just fallen from the tree.
This barren winter landscape reminded him of an incident that had happened in the courtyard many years ago. On that particular day, Su Shaoqing, who was still a teenager, skipped school and roamed around the city the whole day. As he was on his way home, he heard someone crying.
It was the voice of a child who was pleading for help as she was incapable of getting down from a tall tree.
He was not a nosey parker, but on that day, his inquisitive spirit led him to enter the courtyard of a stranger’s residence. He stood beneath the tree and saw a little girl trapped up there.
His memory of the little girl was clear. She was not pleasant-looking, and her face was all covered in tears and mucus that dripped from her nostrils. Just when Su Shaoqing was about the leave, the little girl shrieked even louder, “Please help me!”
Su Shaoqing later found out that the girl was Fu Chengyan’s paternal younger half-sister, whose existence the Fu family refused to acknowledge.
He rescued her from the tree, and because of his heroic act, this girl became his little loyal follower. She literally followed him wherever he went, until…
Su Shaoqing suddenly had a headache. He shut his eyes and pinched his brow ridge to relieve the pain. It had been years, but this memory remained fresh in his mind. He never had any feelings for her, but strange enough, at one point, when she had blood all over her body, he actually thought of marrying her.
No, I shouldn’t think about this anymore!
In a split second, Su Shaoqing opened his eyes, which were already welled with tears. He tilted his head down to see the long scar on the back of his hand and recalled what she said, “You and I shall never meet again, dead or alive!”
It was 8 pm. The night had just begun. The nightlife in Prosperous Dynasty had always been fun, but today was exceptionally vibrant. All because of the star of the night, Pei Jingxiu!
Besides Jiang City’s Big Four, Lin Group’s young master Lin Shen, Su Shaoqing’s cousin brother Su Bancheng, Zhan Yuming, and even Li Jing had also attended the dinner, making the event even livelier.
Shi Nuan and Fu Chengyan arrived last due to a traffic situation they encountered.
Su Shaoqing immediately poured two glasses of wine for them, “It’s Jingxiu’s welcome dinner, yet you two are late, so here’s your punishment. Finish it!”
The atmosphere quietened down out of a sudden, and everyone started focusing on the woman beside Fu Chengyan. All the guests was astounded when they heard Su Shaoqing called the woman Mrs. Fu.
How could no one know Fu Chengyan got married? He was one of the members of the famous Jiang City’s Big Four!
They began to study her from head to toe and were keen to know more about the woman standing beside Fu Chengyan.
Feeling uncomfortable, Shi Nuan could only put on an awkward smile. She picked up the two glasses of wine and gave one to Fu Chengyan, “I’m sorry, we’re late because of me. Please accept our apologies!”
Shi Nuan said it in a steady voice. Besides Su Shaoqing, Li Heng, and Pei Jingxiu, all the other guests looked at her not because she was exceptionally loud. They were just curious about this woman, whom Fu Chengyan had married.
Shi Nuan looked at the people around her and then turned her attention to Fu Chengyan, who gave her a nod of encouragement. That was all she needed to down the wine.
Everyone was taken aback by her swift action and could not turn their attention away from her. Su Shaoqing was quick to react to kill the awkward silence, “Since you’re late, you need to drink two glasses! Do you all agree with me?”
“Yes!” Lin Shen join the bandwagon, “When did you get married, Mr. Fu? How come we’re all not aware of it?” Lin Shen then looked at Shi Nuan, “And you are?”
“Hello, I’m Shi Nuan.” Shi Nuan came forth and introduced herself, “I’m Yan’s wife!”
Fu Chengyan smiled and guzzled down a glass of wine, “Let’s have three glasses as punishment. I’ll drink the other two on behalf of May!” Fu Chengyan said this to defend Shi Nuan. To Fu Chengyan, this was not just a punishment. He also wanted to take this opportunity to introduce his wife to this group.
But at the same time, the fact that Fu Chengyan had volunteered to drink on behalf of Shi Nuan was also his way of warning the rest to know their limits. This showed how important Shi Nuan was in his life.
“Come on. We’re supposed to celebrate Jingxiu tonight. Let’s focus on him, okay?” Li Heng squinted and looked at Shi Nuan, “What do you think?”
“Absolutely. Let’s drink at another time! Our treat!” Shi Nuan tapped on Fu Chengyan’s shoulder and took over the empty glass, “Come, let’s sit there!”
Fu Chengyan beamed at her, “Okay!”
“This is too much! We bachelors cannot stand this anymore!” Someone blurted out in a jealous tone.
Li Jing burst out laughing, “You only have yourself to blame for being single! I think he has tried not to display his affection overly in front of us. Am I right, Chengyan?”
Fu Chengyan’s eyes narrowed, “Jing is right. Oh well, you’ll eventually get used to it.”
After that, he put his hand on Shi Nuan’s waist as they sat down. He then picked some fresh fruits for her, “Have some fruits first.”
Shi Nuan smiled and pulled his sleeve, “Stop it……”
Even Shi Nuan noticed Fu Chengyan did this intentionally as if he wanted to flaunt their relationship in front of everyone.
Of course, Shi Nuan knew he did all this to make sure everyone knew who she was and would show her the respect she deserved. Besides the few who were close with Fu Chengyan, the others were obviously there to get in their good books. Fu Chengyan needed to make sure these people would also treat Shi Nuan the same.
His thoughts and actions had warmed Shi Nuan’s heart.
Fu Chengyan’s willingness to introduce her to his closest friends also showed that he was ready to make the relationship public, and if anything happened, he could be there for her.
“Why don’t you go talk to them?” Shi Nuan felt Fu Chengyan should mingle with them instead of staying by her side. Fu Chengyan squinted, “Nope. You’ll be alone and bored here.”
“I won’t!” Shi Nuan grinned, “The girl named Jing is very pretty. Who is she?”
“Li Heng’s younger sister, Li Jing. The person beside her is her fiancé, Zhan Yuming!” Fu Chengyan explained and gave her a slice of apple.
Shi Nuan nodded, “I see, so she’s Li Heng’s sister. No wonder they look alike!”
“Yup. Li Jing is a nice person, and you should befriend her. She’s very different from the other socialites, and I think you’ll like her personality!”
“Okay. Alright, alright. Go catch up with Jingxiu, and talk to them! I’ll talk to Li Jing!”
“Okay!”
Fu Chengyan squeezed her hand gently, “Text me if you’re bored. We’ll go home right away!”
“Sure!” Shi Nuan nodded and pushed him away, “They’re waiting for you, just go!” Shi Nuan felt awkward with how clingy he was today.
Shi Nuan heaved a sigh of relief when he finally left his seat.
She then used a stick to pick a piece of honeydew and put it into her mouth. Just when she was thinking of how to strike a conversation with Li Jing, Li Jing had already taken the initiative. Having two glasses of wine in her hands, Li Jing came over and gave one to Shi Nuan.
Shi Nuan, who was still chewing on the honeydew, was taken aback by Li Jing’s sudden approach.
Li Jing raised her brows and smiled, “Don’t worry, it’s just fruit wine. You’ll be fine!”
Shi Nuan responded with a nod and a grin, “Hello.”
