It wasn't long before Xin Che entered the house, but the two of them still acted as if neither wanted to acknowledge the other. Xin Che deliberately provoked her, "It seems that message wasn't from you. Should I leave then?"
Susu already felt wronged in her heart, and she mumbled in a low voice, "Don't go. This is your house; if anyone should leave, it's me."
Xin Che refused to back down, "You leave right now."
Susu was stunned, and tears involuntarily rolled down her cheeks.
Xin Che, however, was relentless, "Why are you crying? You sent me a message to trick me into coming home quickly to appease you." After a pause, he couldn't bear it any longer, and his tone softened, "Stop crying. I'll appease you later. Let's discuss the important matter first—do you want to take a few days off to lie low? Your department manager was here just now, and he said he has no problem with it."
"I don't want to take leave," Susu knew that if she took leave on Monday, it would be equivalent to announcing to the whole world that she had made a mistake. But besides Chen Ming, she didn't feel anyone else had the right to criticize her. She could feel guilty towards Ji Xiaoran, but that didn't mean she was obligated to give up her freedom to pursue love for a stranger.
Xin Che looked troubled, "If this escalates, I'll be the one bearing the consequences. I'm suggesting you take leave because I want her to feel like her anger has been vented and she can calm down. Ji Xiaoran's position isn't low either; if this continues to escalate, she won't have a good outcome either. In this circle, publicly confronting an ex-boyfriend is seen as a lack of etiquette. If she accepts a house and then causes trouble, people will think she lacks a sense of contract. I'm planning to find a friend to talk to her and see what else she wants from me."
"You want to appease her now, but this morning you said you wanted me to marry you?"
"I hadn't considered everything thoroughly at that time."
Susu thought to herself that perhaps in the morning, it wasn't that he hadn't considered things thoroughly, but rather that he intentionally made a promise to stabilize her first, and then had her stabilize Chen Ming. This man's thoughts were sometimes so deep that she couldn't quite grasp them—was he always treating her like a puppet on strings to be manipulated?
Susu looked at him sitting on the sofa, his face etched with exhaustion, and felt heartache for him, having been on edge all day dealing with the situation. Even though she was unwilling in her heart, she didn't want to confront him at this moment. She leaned closer, wrapped her arms around his neck, and pressed her warm lips to his ear, murmuring softly, "How do you want me to appease you?"
Susu's tenderness and understanding struck Xin Che in the softest part of his heart. His heart warmed, and he leaned down, pampering her with more effort than usual.
As the Monday morning meeting was about to end, Xin Che's tone remained steady, "I'll take up just one more minute of your time. Regarding my personal affairs, you've probably heard some rumors. If anyone asks, please unify your response—my romantic relationship with Cheng Susu from the Compliance Department has already been declared to the HR department, and there is no violation. My personal emotional matters are unrelated to my work. Thank you, everyone. You may all get back to your work."
Susu did not go to work, taking two days of leave as Xin Che requested. In the Afternoon, she received a message from Xin Che: "Ji Xiaoran has deleted her Moments."
Around nine o'clock in the Evening, when Xin Che arrived home, Susu saw that he had relaxed considerably, but he said, "I still feel like Ji Xiaoran has a lot of resentment suppressed in her heart. I'm afraid this was just for her own dignity, and she's letting me off the hook for now."
After Xin Che took a shower, Susu was sitting by the bed reading, waiting for him. He got into bed as usual and rested his head on her lap. Susu reached out a hand to rub his head. Smelling her scent, he felt much more at ease and fell asleep shortly after.
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