He snapped back to reality instantly, taking half a step back to create distance, his voice returning to its usual restrained formality.
“I’m just worried you might misjudge people and get hurt.”
“Anyway,” Si Yuan took a deep breath, “this time it’s not someone inappropriate, so don’t worry.”
Si Yuan wanted to put some distance between them to avoid further speculation from her family.
“Brother, if there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave now.”
Si Yuan turned sideways, brushing past him as she walked away.
The corridor returned to silence, with only a corner of the kraft paper bag protruding conspicuously from the trash bin.
Song Yan stared at it for a long time before finally bending down to pick it up.
The paper bag was heavier than he expected.
After a moment’s hesitation, he opened it.
Inside was a dark green-covered diary with slightly worn edges, along with several photographs.
The top one showed sixteen-year-old Si Yuan and seventeen-year-old him, a photo taken together at an amusement park.
In the picture, Si Yuan was smiling with crescent-shaped eyes, while he had his arm around her shoulder, his expression uncharacteristically soft and genuine.
“Just throwing it away like this?”
He murmured to himself, his thumb unconsciously stroking Si Yuan’s face in the photograph.
On the back of the photo was a faded line of small handwriting: “For my brother, my favorite day. — Si Yuan”
A sudden tightness gripped Song Yan’s chest.
He flipped through the diary, finding many sticky notes and ticket stubs tucked inside—all from movies and exhibitions they had attended together.
The last entry was dated one month before that incident was exposed, with only one line:
“I’ve decided to stop liking you.”
The handwriting was slightly shaky, as if blurred by tears.
Lin Shuangyu’s laughter and Song’s Mother’s voice drifted up from downstairs.
Song Yan took a deep breath, hastily stuffing everything back into the paper bag.
“Ah Yan?” Lin Shuangyu’s voice called from below. “Are you up there? We should get going.”
Song Yan effortlessly adjusted his expression and descended the stairs. “Coming.”
Si Yuan stood in a corner of the living room, helping Song’s Mother arrange the tea set.
Song Yan placed the paper bag in an inconspicuous corner without looking at her.
“Xiao Yuan,” Song’s Mother suddenly said, “at the end of the month, our family is hosting a charity banquet. Remember to bring your boyfriend.”
Si Yuan’s fingers slipped, causing the teacup to clink sharply against the saucer.
She looked up, meeting Song’s Mother’s gaze.
As expected, she still didn’t trust her. It seemed she wouldn’t rest until she saw this so-called “boyfriend” for herself.
“Alright, Mom, I understand.”
TY Design Company.
It was Si Yuan’s first day at work.
Her colleagues in the design department were relatively friendly, especially a young man named Chen Mo, who even took the initiative to show her around.
Si Yuan expressed appropriate gratitude, though she still struggled with social interactions.
In the break room, a few female colleagues were whispering excitedly.
“I heard the group’s new CEO is visiting today!”
“I’ve heard about him—they say he’s young, accomplished, and single!”
“Even though TY is top-tier domestically, in the grand scheme, we’re just a small subsidiary of the group!”
“Who would’ve thought a CEO would be right among us!”
Si Yuan smiled along but didn’t pay much attention, still preoccupied with finding a “fake boyfriend” for the end of the month.
During her lunch break, she slipped into the stairwell and called Zhou Xiaoxiao.
Zhou Xiaoxiao was practically her only connection in the country.
Working in an entertainment company, finding an actor shouldn’t be too difficult for her.
She lowered her voice and asked, “Hey, Xiaoxiao, have you found someone?”
Zhou Xiaoxiao’s excited voice came through the phone: “Leave it to me! He’s six feet tall with long legs, incredibly handsome, works in investment banking—absolutely fits your ‘finance elite’ persona. Tonight at seven, Lanwan Coffee. Remember to dress nicely—”
Just as Si Yuan was about to respond, a “click” suddenly sounded behind her—the sound of a lighter being lit.
“Going on a date?”
A deep male voice came from behind, tinged with a familiar teasing tone.
Si Yuan froze, her phone nearly slipping from her hand.
She slowly turned around. In the shadows of the stairwell, a tall figure leaned against the wall, a lit cigarette held between slender fingers.
As the smoke curled, the man’s features gradually became clearer.
A sharp jawline, slightly upturned peach blossom eyes, standing tall and straight.
Jiang Wang… What was he doing here?
Jiang Wang chuckled softly and took a step forward. The stairwell light finally illuminated his face completely.
“I’m quite surprised too,” he said, tilting his head to exhale a smoke ring before his gaze fell on the ID badge hanging from her chest. “So you’re among this batch of new hires. What a coincidence.”
Si Yuan’s mind finally connected the dots.
Jiang Wang must be the mysterious “new group CEO” her colleagues had been talking about.
Instinctively, she took half a step back, her back pressing against the cold wall.
On the phone, Zhou Xiaoxiao’s voice continued: “Hey? Xiao Yuan? Why aren’t you saying anything? His name is Ding Yuan—I sent his photo to your WeChat—”
Suddenly, Jiang Wang reached out, his slender fingers deftly plucking the phone from her hand.
He spoke into the receiver, “She knows,” then decisively ended the call in one smooth motion.
“What are you doing—” Si Yuan reached to grab it back, but he easily evaded her.
Jiang Wang held the phone high, looking down at her with a faint, elusive smile curling at his lips. He leaned in closer: “After dating someone who’s six-three, can you still be interested in someone who’s six feet? Your standards are slipping.”
The tips of Si Yuan’s ears instantly burned.
Was he even more shameless than before?
Always bringing up those old matters.
“What we had… doesn’t count as dating,” she turned her face away, struggling to maintain composure. “And how did you know…”
He narrowed his eyes with slight annoyance: “Your brother called me last night.”
Jiang Wang straightened up and raised an eyebrow: “Song Yan said you’re bringing a ‘boyfriend’ to the family dinner and asked me to come along to help vet him.” He squinted, “I didn’t expect it’d be my little neighbor telling lies?”
Si Yuan felt as if struck by lightning.
“Since when are you two so close?”
Jiang Wang smiled meaningfully and explained leisurely: “University alumni.” He flicked the ash from his cigarette. “Back then, you left without a word—slept with me and ran off, disappearing abroad. When I couldn’t find you, I eventually learned Song Yan was your brother…”
Maybe it was her imagination, but Si Yuan thought she detected a hint of resentment in Jiang Wang’s words.
But Jiang Wang and resentment had never been remotely connected.
“That’s not important,” she said stiffly, changing the subject. “About today’s matter, I hope President Jiang will pretend he didn’t hear anything. Don’t tell my brother.”
“President Jiang?” Jiang Wang raised an eyebrow, finding the address grating. “You never called me that before. Why so distant now?”
Si Yuan thought of their past and trembled, lowering her gaze.
She had always called him Jiang Wang.
Except… during certain times, in certain places.
He would pressure her into calling him those unspeakable terms of endearment.
“I… I forgot.”
Before her words fully faded, Jiang Wang suddenly extinguished his cigarette and braced one hand against the wall beside her ear, trapping her within that confined space.
“It’s alright if you forgot. I have a better proposal.”
His faint scent of black licorice mixed with tobacco enveloped her, making Si Yuan’s heartbeat accelerate uncontrollably.
“What?”
“Rather than finding some unreliable stranger,” he lowered his head, his thin lips nearly brushing her earlobe, “why not let me be this boyfriend.”
Si Yuan jerked her head up, meeting his profound gaze directly.
Within those eyes flickered emotions she couldn’t decipher—seemingly mischievous appraisal, yet also something more complex… anticipation?
“No!” she blurted out. “You know my brother, this is too—”
“Too perfect, isn’t it?” Jiang Wang interrupted. “Finance elite, based in London, even your mother couldn’t find fault.” He suddenly chuckled lightly. “Or is my charm too overwhelming? Are you afraid you might… develop real feelings?”
His provocation was too obvious, but Si Yuan had to admit Jiang Wang was indeed the best candidate.
Only…
“Our family is nothing compared to the Jiang family. I can’t afford to mess with you.”
Jiang Wang’s eyes darkened slightly: “Is that so?”
He smiled, his gaze intensifying with an authoritative air that required no anger: “But when you were eighteen, you were the one who provoked me first.”
“When you were eighteen, you were the one who provoked me first.”
This sentence acted like a key, clicking open the memories buried deep within Si Yuan.