At that time, Old Master Pei had given Su Yi a set of materials about Jiang Zhi so that she could keep her identity secret from Pei Yanli.
The documents included Jiang Zhi’s upbringing and family photos. Old Master Pei was afraid Pei Yanli would ask too many questions, so from the very beginning, Su Yi approached him using Jiang Zhi’s identity.
Only, three years had passed.
Many memories had already become blurry. She could no longer remember what the person in that family photo looked like, and even Jiang Zhi’s face had faded from her memory.
“My younger sister is Jiang Yuanyuan,” the man beside the old woman quickly said while supporting her.
So it wasn’t her.
The tension in her chest eased—just now, she had almost thought… that Pei Yanli still couldn’t forget Jiang Zhi.
Suddenly, her phone rang from her pocket. She picked it up and saw it was a call from Nian Nian, so she quickly stepped aside and answered.
“Baby, do you miss Mommy? Mommy will be back soon!”
Cheng Wu took the phone. “Nian Nian, when are you coming back?”
“Soon.”
“The child isn’t even three months old yet. You must be very careful with everything you do…”
When Pei Yanli came out, he saw Su Yi standing there under the dim moonlight. The pale glow fell on her, as if she were wrapped in a layer of soft light.
She seemed to be on the phone.
He loosened his tie and realized his shadow was quietly moving closer to hers.
Under the moonlight, their shadows overlapped, forming the shape of an embrace—intimate and ambiguous.
“Mommy will be able to hug and kiss you soon…”
On the other end of the call, a child’s excited voice came through. Su Yi smiled faintly. She suddenly turned around and bumped into the man’s unwithdrawn gaze, startled.
“President Pei.”
Under the clear moonlight, the slap mark on his face was especially obvious.
“Your face…”
Clearly unwilling to explain it, Pei Yanli simply opened the car door in silence, signaling her to get in.
Inside the car, the atmosphere was suffocating. The sound of the engine broke the silence of the cemetery but brought no warmth at all.
From the corner of her eye, Su Yi glanced at him. She tugged at her clothes, forcing herself not to speak.
She was about to leave here soon. She shouldn’t complicate things or think about unnecessary things.
She and Pei Yanli were never from the same world.
Now, it was time for everything to end completely.
After all, “she” had long been dead.
After driving for a while, the car remained quiet. Suddenly, Su Yi broke the silence.
“President Pei… I have something to tell you. I want to resign.”
The man paused, his expression darkening. “Reason.”
“My… my daughter is sick. I need to go home and take care of her.”
The sound of tires splashing through a puddle drowned out his response.
His Adam’s apple moved several times before he finally spoke. “If it’s about salary…”
“It’s not about money,” Su Yi explained. “My daughter is only one and a half years old. I can’t leave her alone in the hospital. I want to stay with her. I probably won’t be working for a while. My husband also doesn’t allow me to…”
At the mention of her husband, Pei Yanli averted his gaze from her face. “Hand over your work to Chen Chi.”
“Thank you, President Pei.”
For some reason, after he said that, the car suddenly sped up.
At that moment, a flash of lightning split the sky.
A sudden downpour crashed down. Rain as large as beans pelted the windows, instantly turning the mountain road into a blurred curtain of water.
The wipers moved frantically as visibility dropped sharply.
Su Yi gripped her seatbelt tightly, one hand instinctively protecting her lower abdomen. A growing sense of unease filled her chest.
“President Pei, the rain is too heavy. Please slow down…” she couldn’t help but say.
“Mm,” he responded, lips pressed tightly together, eyes fixed on the winding mountain road ahead.
The speed wasn’t high, but the road had become extremely dangerous under the rain.
Suddenly, a dull “bang” sounded. The car jerked violently, then the engine gave a weak groan before dying completely.
The car had broken down, stranded at a curve on a remote mountain road.
Frowning, Pei Yanli tried restarting it several times, but there was no response.
Outside, heavy rain poured down into the pitch-black night. Only the headlights barely carved out a small, hazy circle of light.
At night, in a place like this, it was dangerous—especially in this kind of weather.
Thinking of recent news about landslides in the mountains, Pei Yanli unbuckled his seatbelt and said decisively, “This place could collapse at any time. Get out first.”
Su Yi looked at the torrential rain and steep slope outside, her heart tightening.
She was also afraid of dying.
As she opened the door, she heard him on the phone, seemingly calling for help.
She closed the door and stepped out. Her high heels sank into the muddy ground—but after only two steps, her foot suddenly slipped!
“Ah!”
Her cry was swallowed by the rain.
A sharp pain shot through her right ankle. She lost balance and fell to one side.
Cold rain instantly soaked her hair and clothes. She was in a miserable state, but had no time to care.
Suddenly, a strong arm caught her in time. Realizing who it was, she instinctively tried to pull away.
“Why are you hiding?” Pei Yanli’s low voice cut through the rain.
Hearing this, Su Yi sucked in a sharp breath from the pain. “President Pei… I’m wet. I’ll get your clothes wet too.”
She gave a weak excuse. Whether he believed it or not, she didn’t know. She tried to take a step forward, but sharp pain shot through her entire body, spreading like needles.
She couldn’t walk at all—especially in her ten-centimeter heels.
In the end, she could only sit on a nearby rock, waiting for help.
Suddenly, Pei Yanli’s hand gripped her ankle. She flinched in pain, her back hitting the wet rock behind her.
“President Pei, you—”
He knelt on one knee in the muddy water. His suit pants were instantly soaked dark. His finger pressed against her swollen ankle bone.
“Don’t move.”
Su Yi’s breathing froze in the rain.
His fingertips felt like burning metal as they brushed over her swollen ankle. Rainwater dripped from his cuffs onto her calf, creating a sensation that was both hot and cold. For a moment, she could only stare at him blankly.
A wave of pain hit again, and she instinctively cried out, trying to pull away.
“It hurts…”
Her voice was soft and slightly delicate, causing his gaze to darken.
For a brief moment, he thought of Jiang Zhi.
She was also so delicate—just a little bit of pain, and she would call out.
He lifted his eyes, forcing himself out of the thought, and said coldly while holding her ankle, “Bear with it.”
Rainwater dripped from his lashes onto her knee. That sentence made her think of the first time three years ago—he had said the same thing then.
Instantly, her ears burned.
She turned her head away, but couldn’t stop her chaotic heartbeat.
What was she even thinking?
Seeing her restrained expression, he lightened his grip, his fingertips brushing her skin more gently.
“Try moving it.”