Father Su shot Su Mianmian a mildly reproachful look.
“What are you standing there for? You could at least pour your brother-in-law some tea.”
“Oh.” A blush spread across Su Mianmian’s cheeks. She obediently stood up, topped off Gu Yizhou’s teacup, then placed it respectfully beside him.
“Brother-in-law, have some tea.”
Her voice was soft and sweet, still half-asleep. Gu Yizhou suddenly thought of the little kitten at the old residence.
……
At dinner, Su Yang was clearly distracted. She ate while keeping her eyes fixed on the phone beside her.
Mother Su kept giving her pointed looks.
“Yangyang, serve Yizhou some food. Don’t just focus on eating.”
“Oh.” Su Yang had just picked up the serving chopsticks when her phone suddenly rang.
She glanced nervously at the caller ID and stood up before anyone could stop her.
“Sorry, I need to take this.”
“Young lady, can’t it wait until after dinner?”
Mother Su called after her with a frown. Then, embarrassed, she put a piece of sweet-and-sour pork rib on Gu Yizhou’s plate.
“She’s always in such a rush. When she marries into the Gu family, you’ll have to be patient with her.”
Gu Yizhou’s expression gave nothing away.
“Everyone has a different personality. I think she’s fine just the way she is.”
It was a perfectly reasonable answer, but Su Mianmian heard in it the depth of Gu Yizhou’s love for her older sister.
She silently bit her chopsticks. What a pity. He liked her sister so much, yet he had no idea that her sister already had someone else in her heart.
Dinner was over, but Su Yang still hadn’t come downstairs.
Mother Su was on the verge of losing her temper, so Su Mianmian offered to go upstairs and check on her.
As she reached Su Yang’s door, she unexpectedly heard muffled sobbing from inside.
“Do you really have to leave?”
“I told you I didn’t agree to getting engaged to him. Can’t you wait a little longer?”
“I don’t know what to do, but we’ll find a way.”
“Afeng, let me think about it some more, okay?”
“Hello? Afeng? Afeng!”
Su Yang’s voice broke, and a dull thud sounded from inside.
Su Mianmian was just about to push the door open and see what had happened when steady footsteps sounded on the stairs.
A moment later, Gu Yizhou’s tall figure appeared at the end of the corridor.
When he saw Su Mianmian staring at him without blinking, he said calmly, “I heard a noise just now. Your mother asked me to come up and check.”
“Oh, it was me. I accidentally fell just now.”
Su Mianmian knew her sister was in a terrible state. There was no way she could let Gu Yizhou into her room right now.
“You fell? Are you all right?”
Gu Yizhou gave her a searching look. His eyes behind his glasses were like radar; it seemed nothing could escape him.
Su Mianmian nervously waved a hand. “I’m fine. There’s carpet, so it didn’t hurt.”
Gu Yizhou nodded and continued toward her. In her haste, Su Mianmian forgot all about manners and hurried over to block his way.
“Brother-in-law, my sister got her clothes dirty, so she’s changing right now.”
In other words, he couldn’t go in.
She’d thought someone as polite and self-controlled as Gu Yizhou would understand. Instead, he only paused briefly.
“Then I’ll wait here. I have something to discuss with her.”
Su Mianmian nearly burst into tears. Even if changing took five minutes at most, it wouldn’t be enough. From the way her sister had sounded on the phone, she might not be able to pull herself together for ten minutes.
Her mind raced. Then suddenly, an idea came to her.
“Brother-in-law, would you like to see my cat?”
“Your cat?”
Su Mianmian nodded and looked at Gu Yizhou with earnest, doe-like eyes.
“He’s a Ragdoll. He’s really beautiful. Come see for yourself.”
Gu Yizhou looked at her for two seconds. Just as Su Mianmian was wondering what she’d do if he refused, he parted his lips.
“Sure. Let’s go have a look.”
Su Mianmian breathed a sigh of relief and nervously led Gu Yizhou up to the third floor.
When she opened the door, the Ragdoll, with its snow-white fur and beautiful icy-blue eyes, was lounging comfortably on the windowsill, gazing out. A breeze stirred its white coat like waves, making for a lovely, soothing sight.
The tension in Su Mianmian eased at once. She turned back with a proud smile.
“See? I didn’t lie. Tangtang really is beautiful.”
Gu Yizhou stood with one hand in his pocket, showing little reaction.
“Tangtang? Is she a girl?”
Su Mianmian went over to pet the cat.
“No, he’s a boy.”
Gu Yizhou’s thick brows lifted slightly.
Su Mianmian smiled. “My sister named him Marshmallow at first. I thought that sounded more like a girl’s name, so I compromised.”
Gu Yizhou understood. His gaze fell on the unusually shaped cat tree nearby.
Su Mianmian watched him for a moment, then asked tentatively, “Brother-in-law, do you like my sister a lot?”
At that, Gu Yizhou’s long, narrow eyes slowly met hers from behind his glasses.
“What makes you say that?”
Perhaps it was because his presence was so imposing. Just standing there quietly, he made people feel an air of authority.
Su Mianmian didn’t dare meet his eyes and quietly looked away.
“It’s just… a feeling.”
A flicker passed through Gu Yizhou’s eyes. He turned back to fiddle with the cat tree. His fingers were long and clean, like smooth, translucent white jade.
“She’s my future wife.”
Because she was his future wife, that was why he liked her?
Su Mianmian was taken aback. She remembered how Gu Yizhou had said at dinner that Su Yang’s personality was fine. She’d even thought for a while that he was deeply in love with her sister.
Phew…
That was good, too.
If Gu Yizhou didn’t like her sister all that much, perhaps it would be easier for her sister to break off the engagement.
At the thought, Su Mianmian suddenly felt much more at ease.
She showed Gu Yizhou the various toys she’d bought for Tangtang. Only when Mother Su called them downstairs for dessert did she feel she’d successfully completed her mission.
Gu Yizhou didn’t stay for dinner. He spent a little while downstairs, then made an excuse and left.
Su Yang’s eyes were swollen from crying. She didn’t come down to see him off, and Father Su and Mother Su gave her a thorough scolding.
That evening, Su Mianmian slipped quietly into Su Yang’s room.
Su Yang was wearing a white nightdress and sitting on the bay window, her gaze adrift. She looked like a doll without a soul.
Su Mianmian’s heart ached. She carried a cup of warm milk over to her.
“Sis, you didn’t eat dinner. Have some milk to tide you over.”
“Mm,” Su Yang murmured. “Just leave it there. I’ll drink it later.”
Su Mianmian sat beside her and, just as she used to when they were children, took Su Yang’s hand.
“Sis, do you not want to marry Gu Yizhou?”
Su Yang’s eyes shifted. The corner of her mouth lifted in an unnatural smile.
“What nonsense. What would a kid like you know?”
Su Mianmian pouted. “I’m twenty. I’m only five years younger than you.”
Su Yang let out a laugh, and at last a little warmth returned to her eyes.
“You’re still younger. You’ll always be younger than me.”
Su Mianmian leaned affectionately against her sister’s shoulder.
“Sis, I had a fight with Tang Yunzheng.”
Su Yang frowned. “Did that brat bully you?”
Su Mianmian shook her head.
“No. He got a girlfriend. He said he’s always thought of me as his childhood sweetheart.”
Su Yang understood at once. She glanced at Su Mianmian, saw that she seemed to be holding up all right, then clenched her fists until they cracked.
“That little punk! Just wait. I’ll go tear him to pieces tomorrow!”
Su Mianmian couldn’t help laughing. Su Yang had always protected her like this, ever since they were children, without a second thought.
“Sis, why don’t you break off the engagement? I asked around for you today. Gu Yizhou doesn’t have to marry you, either. Since neither of you likes the other, forcing yourselves together will only make you both miserable. Better to cut your losses now. At worst, Mom and Dad will scold you.”
At her words, Su Yang stiffened.
“Mianmian, do you… know something?”
Su Mianmian neither confirmed nor denied it.
“Sis, just trust me. Go after what you want. Don’t worry so much.”
……
The three-day break passed in a flash.
When Su Mianmian returned to campus, she ran straight into Tang Yunzheng at the school gate.
He wore a gray sweatshirt with matching sweatpants, and looked trendy and full of youthful energy.
When he saw Su Mianmian, he tossed away the cigarette butt in his hand.
“Didn’t I tell you we’d go back to school together? Why did you leave without me?”
Tang Yunzheng had indeed messaged Su Mianmian the day before, asking her to return to school with him, but she’d only glanced at the message and deleted it.
“I had something to do, so I left early.”
Tang Yunzheng had thought he’d made up with Su Mianmian last time, but seeing how coolly she treated him today, he grew annoyed. When had this woman become so hard to placate?
He raked a hand through his hair, his voice tinged with grievance.
“Are you still mad? You accepted my gift.”
Su Mianmian took the gift box out of her bag and shoved it into Tang Yunzheng’s hands.
“I didn’t want to accept it. You forced it on me. I’m giving it back now.”
Tang Yunzheng stared at the two boxes in his hands, looking confused.
“No, that’s not what I meant.”
Su Mianmian ignored him and walked straight into the school. Tang Yunzheng grabbed her and shoved the gift box back into her hands.
“Su Mianmian, are you going to keep this up forever? Once I’ve given a gift, I don’t take it back. If you really don’t want it, then throw it away!”