Time flew by to December. Guo Yu was still nurturing her pregnancy, Shangguan Chong was busy dealing with the Jin family’s counterattack, Guo Siwan was keeping a round-the-clock watch on Shen Wei, and Shangguan Xianxian and Shen Wei were performing their roles as the abandoned daughters of a wealthy family, living a life of quiet grace.
All was calm and peaceful in the Shangguan family.
Until the police arrived at the Shangguan Group and took away several high-level executives.
That day, every vase in the chairman’s office was utterly destroyed.
An obscure company in A-City went bankrupt, and its boss, along with most of the employees, ended up in jail. The incident wasn’t widely reported in the media, but the people of A-City still felt an inexplicable sense of apprehension during this time.
Meanwhile, another obscure company in A-City hired a new CEO. However, to avoid drawing attention, she was officially just an ordinary clerk.
This turmoil put some people on high alert, but no matter how hard they looked, they couldn’t find any information about the person behind it all. Everything seemed to be just a desperate coincidence—the money-laundering company’s computer had accidentally been infected with a virus, causing its files to be spread everywhere. A few experts happened to see them, and two of the bolder ones directly and anonymously handed the files over to the police.
It was all just a coincidence.
And yet, it wasn’t just a coincidence.
For instance, the seemingly ordinary virus that could breach the money-laundering company’s firewall was the meticulously designed creation of a genius hacker. And this genius hacker was currently in the contact list of the Shangguan family’s younger daughter, Shen Wei, listed as “Dior Buyer.”
The turmoil of the outside world couldn’t penetrate the school campus. Song Zhiqing was busy preparing for the year-end New Year’s gala. Since Gao Yiren happened to be home, Song Zhiqing asked her mother to help her evaluate the stage effects. Gao Yiren, in turn, pulled in a long list of professionals to give their input for her daughter. The scale of this operation was almost enough to rival a TV station’s evening gala.
In Ye Yuhuan’s eyes, however, it just seemed like Song Zhiqing had suddenly become mysterious and busy. She knew what Song Zhiqing was working on, but since she couldn’t help, she could only watch blankly as Song Zhiqing came and went. She hadn’t felt it a few days ago when she was busy dealing with the money-laundering company, but as soon as she had free time, she instantly became exceptionally idle.
As for the “Care for Lin Qi” campaign, Chen Guanhua’s case was wrapping up and just waiting for the court date. All the victims had been visited and offered support. For now, it seemed there wasn’t a second Chen Guanhua at Qinglin, so the campaign’s daily routine became simple and regular, returning to its original purpose of waiting and prevention.
That night, Ye Yuhuan was sitting in a private room at a restaurant. With her were the three core members of Sheng Jing, their CEO who came on board later, Wang Chengmei, and the couple, Shen Wei and Shangguan Xianxian.
The people from Sheng Jing had accepted Wang Chengmei as their CEO quite well. For one, they were technical staff and weren’t suited for making business decisions anyway; having someone else handle it was for the best. For another, the other party was offering far too much. If Ye Yuhuan’s investment had made them suspect she was some rich family’s foolish daughter playing at investing, then Shen Wei’s stake gave them the mistaken impression that they were about to be kept.
The three of them sat at the table, slightly ill at ease. They had gotten to know Wang Chengmei over this period and had a basic respect for each other’s abilities. But as for the three investors across from them, despite having met them several times, there was still an inexplicable sense of distance.
Frankly, they looked too young.
After the dishes were served, Zhao Xiwei finally couldn’t resist asking, “Are you all still in school?”
Since they would be spending a lot of time together in the future, there was no need to hide it. Ye Yuhuan nodded. “It should be pretty obvious from our faces.”
Zhao Xiwei took a deep breath and struggled to continue, “May I ask if it’s high school or university?”
Without the aid of lipstick and business suits, the three of them looked incredibly young, no matter how you looked at them.
Ye Yuhuan and Shen Wei exchanged a helpless glance before delivering the cruel truth. “High school.”
Clatter.
Four pairs of chopsticks fell to the floor.
Wasn’t there a feeling that they had wasted their lives?
Strictly speaking, Shen Wei and Ye Yuhuan, with their golden-finger cheats, could no longer be compared to their peers. Unfortunately, the others couldn’t possibly know this secret.
To prevent her subordinates’ confidence from taking too much of a blow, Shen Wei did her best to explain, “Although we’re very young, we’ve had different experiences from most people, so we’re doing things that might not seem to match our age.”
Wang Chengmei, the Mount Everest of emotional intelligence at the table, immediately chimed in, “It’s called blazing a trail for your future self, leaving them with nothing to do but enjoy the good life.”
The atmosphere in the room instantly relaxed. Tang Ke and Li Xiang quickly had the alcohol they had just ordered taken away. Although they hadn’t planned on letting the young girls drink, now that they knew they were underage, the very act of drinking in front of them felt a little awkward.
It was as if they were corrupting children.
The meal could be considered a pleasant one for all. After eating, the Sheng Jing team rushed back to work overtime. Their research had reached a critical stage, and they had been voluntarily burning the midnight oil every day recently. This dinner was, in part, a chance for them to relax.
Shangguan Xianxian and Shen Wei got into the Shangguan family car and looked at Ye Yuhuan outside. “Are you sure you don’t want us to give you a ride?”
Ye Yuhuan waved her hand. “I want to take a walk.”
Taking a walk alone in this cold weather?
Shen Wei sensed that Ye Yuhuan’s mood seemed a bit down. She hadn’t spoken much at the dinner table and had often seemed lost in thought. Although this was generally Ye Yuhuan’s way, it had never been this obvious before.
After parting with Ye Yuhuan, Shen Wei thought for a moment and sent a message to Song Zhiqing.
【Ye Yuhuan doesn’t seem to be in a good mood. She’s on XX Road right now. Do you want to come and see her?】
After sending it, Shen Wei tossed her phone aside, too lazy to deal with Song Zhiqing’s barrage of follow-up questions, which would undoubtedly be scoldings along the lines of “Why didn’t you take good care of my Ye Yuhuan?” She was sick of hearing it.
If you’re so capable, take care of her yourself. I can’t be bothered to wait on you two.
Shen Wei snuggled into Shangguan Xianxian’s arms, absorbing her lover’s warmth as she thought coldly.
Meanwhile, Song Zhiqing saw that Shen Wei wasn’t replying to her messages, and Ye Yuhuan wasn’t answering her phone either.
So she hastily apologized to the teacher who was helping her adjust her musical accompaniment, threw on her coat and hat, and rushed out the door.
The teacher watched Song Zhiqing’s departing figure in astonishment, unable to understand what could possibly make this usually diligent student drop what she was doing in the middle of it and leave in such a hurry.
Gao Yiren, sipping tea nearby, smiled faintly. “She’s probably gone to find the source of inspiration for her song.”
The teacher had a sudden realization and shook his head with a smile. Ah, youth.
Though she said she was taking a walk, Ye Yuhuan hadn’t gone far. When Song Zhiqing found her, she was sitting on a roadside bench, her cheek propped on her hand, watching the people walk by.
Unwittingly, the number of people passing by on the road gradually increased. They walked around and around, but Ye Yuhuan remained completely oblivious, staring ahead as if she could discern the truths of the universe from the way the crowd stirred the air.
Song Zhiqing slowly strolled over. The person in her sight had a face as fair as jade and snow, and a light sorrow always lingered in her eyes, making one want to both smooth it away and become a part of her melancholy.
What was Ye Yuhuan thinking about?
Is she thinking about me?
Lately, she and Ye Yuhuan had been busy with their own things. With final exams approaching, their studies were also becoming more intense. As a result, they seemed even more distant than before Song Zhiqing had realized she had fallen for Ye Yuhuan.
This outcome was half due to a strange combination of circumstances and half due to Song Zhiqing not knowing how to face Ye Yuhuan right now. After realizing that the person she loved seemed to only see her as a sister, Song Zhiqing had thought of many ways to drop hints, but she had rejected them all. She keenly sensed that Ye Yuhuan didn’t just rationally believe they were good friends; she was emotionally inclined to see them as good friends.
Just as Ye Yuhuan had said, she was very resistant to the idea of romance.
So, after much consideration and asking her mother for advice, Song Zhiqing decided to first melt the ice and snow around Ye Yuhuan before trying to embrace her. Otherwise, this person would always be worried about giving others frostbite, while ignoring the fact that she herself was standing in a world of ice and snow.
But, sigh, she really wanted to know what Ye Yuhuan was thinking right now.
Just as Song Zhiqing was about to reach her, Ye Yuhuan seemed to sense something and looked over. Those stagnant eyes immediately became lively, but her expression was still dazed. “What are you doing here?”
Song Zhiqing sat down beside her and said softly, “I came here for a walk.”
Ye Yuhuan pressed her lips together, quickly guessing the reason. “Did Shen Wei ask you to come?”
Song Zhiqing nodded, turning to adjust Ye Yuhuan’s slightly messy scarf. “She said you were in a bad mood.”
Ye Yuhuan lowered her head to make it easier for her, a hint of grievance unconsciously slipping into her tone. “I asked you to come to dinner with us today, but you didn’t agree.”
Song Zhiqing’s hands paused, and a wave of guilt washed over her. She just hadn’t wanted to be in the same place as Shangguan Xianxian and make Ye Yuhuan overthink things. It seemed her plan had backfired.
She didn’t want to suddenly declare that she disliked Shangguan Xianxian anymore. Combined with her recent behavior, that would be almost tantamount to a confession to Ye Yuhuan. So she could only explain, “It was your company’s event. It wasn’t convenient for me to attend. Besides, I wouldn’t have understood anything, and I don’t know anyone. It would have been too awkward.”
Ye Yuhuan had told her about Sheng Jing. After the initial surprise, Song Zhiqing had quickly accepted it. In her eyes, if it was Ye Yuhuan, it wouldn’t be surprising even if she suddenly saved the world.
It had to be said that certain rose-colored glasses were at play.
Ye Yuhuan let out a low “oh.” Song Zhiqing had already finished adjusting her scarf. They sat side by side on the bench. It had snowed a few days ago, but it had melted quickly, leaving behind even colder weather. Not far away, a couple walked past, holding hands and laughing. The girl kept trying to jump up and touch the boy’s head, while the boy teased her and made sure she didn’t fall. The two of them soon disappeared into the crowd.
The two of them sat in silence, not saying much, but Ye Yuhuan felt that strange sense of gloom suddenly dissipate. She returned to her familiar state of inner peace.
But it was different from before.
Before, she could find peace on her own. Now, she needed Song Zhiqing by her side.
Is it like this for friends, too?
Ye Yuhuan didn’t know.
I really should have made some friends before, she thought. Then I wouldn’t be so inexperienced now.
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