Seeing it was Qu Bai, Gu Yan immediately stood up to leave, but Qu Bai grabbed her wrist.
Gu Yan’s face instantly darkened. “Qu Bai, aren’t you afraid he’ll break your dog paws?”
Qu Bai chuckled as he stood up, still not releasing her hand. “No wonder Qu Xiao would go to such lengths to have you. Beautiful, but with quite the temper.”
Gu Yan suddenly laughed. “Qu Bai, if you don’t let go right now, don’t blame me for being rude.”
Qu Bai shrugged. “No need to be so defensive. I just want to have a simple chat with you.”
Gu Yan glared coldly at him. “I’m not in the habit of holding hands while talking.”
Qu Bai looked somewhat helpless. “If I let go, you’ll run away. How am I supposed to talk then?”
Gu Yan directly sat back down. “Let go. What exactly do you want to talk about? Or are you following me?”
Qu Bai released her hand with a light laugh. “You’re overthinking it. I just happened to be meeting someone here to sign a contract when I saw you. Besides, this coffee shop is right below The Qu Corporation. Shouldn’t I be asking if you’re following me?”
Gu Yan cursed him as mentally ill. She had chosen this location because she wanted to have lunch with Qu Xiao.
Qu Bai propped his chin on his hand and looked at her. “Gu Yan, I’m curious what charm you possess that makes him so determined to have you. Other than being somewhat good-looking, I really can’t see where your appeal lies. And if we’re talking about charm, you can’t even compare to Lin Feifei.”
Gu Yan replied bluntly, “None of your damn business.”
Qu Bai suddenly burst out laughing. He was beginning to doubt Qu Xiao’s judgment.
Gu Yan couldn’t be bothered with him and directly picked up her bag and left.
Watching her retreating figure, the smile on Qu Bai’s face grew brighter and brighter.
Just as he was about to stand up, he saw Liang Yueran push the door open and walk in.
She quickly approached Qu Bai, looking confused as she confirmed it was indeed table 12. Why was Qu Bai here? Where was that crazy woman Gu Yan?
“What are you doing here?” Liang Yueran asked irritably.
Qu Bai looked at her with a smile. “Why can’t I be here?”
Liang Yueran cursed “bad luck” and walked away directly, calling Gu Yan on her phone as she left.
Watching Liang Yueran’s retreating figure, Qu Bai also stood up and left.
In Qu Xiao’s office.
Liang Yueran looked angrily at Gu Yan. “Gu Yan, are you out of your mind? You arranged to meet me at the coffee shop, but you were nowhere to be seen, leaving me to run into that unlucky bastard Qu Bai.”
Gu Yan looked at her apologetically. “Sorry, I forgot.”
Liang Yueran snorted. “I don’t care. Unless you buy me several bags, I won’t forgive you.”
Qu Xiao put down his pen. “I’ll buy them for you.”
Hearing this, Liang Yueran instantly became excited. “I’ll choose them myself.”
Only after Qu Xiao nodded did she leave.
Looking at the exhausted Gu Yan, Qu Xiao pulled her onto his lap and began massaging her temples. “Are you very tired?”
Gu Yan leaned against his chest and nodded. “A little.”
Qu Xiao gently patted her back. “I’ll send some people from the company to Gu Corporation to help you.”
Gu Yan shook her head in his embrace. “No need. Dad and I can manage. I just met with the former company manager, and she’s willing to come back. You’ve already helped us so much. I can handle the rest.”
Qu Xiao didn’t speak further, only gently patting her back.
Soon he felt the person in his arms had fallen into deep sleep. Carrying her to the bed in the inner restroom, he tucked her in properly. Just as he was about to leave, he heard Gu Yan murmur drowsily:
“Uncle Qu, I want to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with you. I want to be by your side.”
Qu Xiao halted his steps, a faint smile appearing on his face as he leaned down to place a kiss on her cheek.
After leaving the restroom, Qu Xiao sat at his desk and made a call to Yu Yang.
Soon Yu Yang entered the office and asked, “Sir?”
Qu Xiao nodded. “Select some elite personnel from the company – they must be our people. Have them apply for positions at the Gu Corporation, but don’t let them reveal I sent them.”
Yu Yang nodded and left.
Qu Xiao returned to handling documents, but when he saw Qu Bai’s file, his brows furrowed.
By the time Gu Yan woke up, it was already past five in the afternoon.
Emerging from the restroom, she found Qu Xiao wasn’t in the office. She walked to his desk, left a note, then left The Qu Corporation.
Just as she got in her car, planning to drive to the Gu Corporation to pick up her father, her phone rang from her bag.
Seeing it was Qi Yan calling, she quickly answered.
“Yan Yan.”
Qi Yan’s tired voice came through the phone. “Xiao Yan, are you free? Can you pick me up from the airport? I don’t want to go home.”
“Okay.”
After hanging up, Gu Yan called her father to tell him to go home by himself later, then drove toward the airport.
Qi Yan was three years older than her. Their parents had a good relationship and were neighbors, so the two girls had always been close.
She could guess why Qi Yan had returned. Qi Yan had once said that if she ever came back to China, it would mean she had a new boyfriend and had forgotten Tang Qingru.
But thinking of Tang Qingru, Gu Yan sighed. She didn’t know if Qi Yan could truly forget him.
Back then, Qi Yan had pursued Tang Qingru for a whole year. Gu Yan didn’t know exactly what had happened between them – she only knew there was a period when Qi Yan told her that Tang Qingru liked her too. But then for some unknown reason, Qi Yan went abroad and stayed for three years.
When Gu Yan arrived at the airport, she saw Qi Yan standing by the roadside in a long coat with just one small suitcase.
After parking, Gu Yan rushed over and gave her a big hug. “So you finally remember to come back! I thought you’d stay abroad forever.”
Qi Yan chuckled. “Well, fallen leaves return to their roots – of course I had to come back.”
Gu Yan pinched her waist hard. “Don’t use idioms if you don’t know how to use them properly.”
Qi Yan kissed her cheek. “Yes, yes, let’s get in the car first. I’m so hungry – I want hot pot.”
Once in the car, Qi Yan asked how Gu Yan had been these past three years.
Hearing that the Gu family had gone bankrupt but was recently recovering, Qi Yan frowned.
“Xiao Yan, why didn’t you tell me?”
Gu Yan smiled at her. “There wasn’t time. It only went bankrupt two months ago, and now we’re rebuilding.”
Seeing Qi Yan’s angry expression, Gu Yan was about to comfort her when her phone rang.
Seeing the caller ID showed “Uncle Qu,” Qi Yan quickly leaned in to listen.
As soon as the call connected, Qu Xiao’s magnetic voice came through: “Shall I pick you up for dinner?”
Gu Yan glanced at Qi Yan and said, “Uncle Qu, Yan Yan has returned to the country. I came to pick her up, so I might not be able to have dinner with you.”
After hearing this, Qu Xiao replied, “It’s fine, go have dinner with her. I’ll transfer some money to you.”
He paused, then couldn’t resist asking, “Will you… be coming back tonight?”
Qi Yan stared at Gu Yan in confusion.
Coming back?
Back where?
To his place?
Then they…
“I’ll be back,” Gu Yan replied with a smile.
On the other end, Qu Xiao was in high spirits. “Alright, be careful on the road. I’ll wait for you.”
After hanging up, Gu Yan restarted the car. Qi Yan fixed her gaze on her and asked, “Tell me, is this ‘Uncle Qu’ of yours Qu Xiao? I remember you didn’t like him before. What’s going on? Spill the beans.”
Gu Yan briefly explained the situation, and Qi Yan immediately scolded, “I told you back then that Xu Tao and Qin Yao were no good, but you argued with me about it. Now you see for yourself, don’t you?”
Gu Yan quickly admitted her mistake and asked where Qi Yan wanted to go for hot pot.
After a moment’s thought, Qi Yan said calmly, “Let’s go to the one near our high school gate. It’s been a long time since I’ve tasted that familiar flavor.”
Gu Yan couldn’t help but glance at Qi Yan, who had turned to look out the window. Was she craving the familiar taste, or hoping to run into a familiar face there?
Gu Yan didn’t ask, instead chatting idly with her along the way.
Soon, they passed by Third High School and noticed it was unusually quiet.
It suddenly occurred to Gu Yan that it was Saturday. She began to worry whether they might actually run into someone they knew.
The hot pot restaurant was diagonally across from the school. They parked, went upstairs, and found a window seat.
After ordering, Qi Yan couldn’t help but sigh, “It’s amazing how this place hasn’t changed at all.”
Gu Yan nodded in agreement. “Yeah, everything is just like it used to be.”
The food arrived quickly. Since Gu Yan was driving, they skipped the alcohol.
As they ate, tears began to fall from Qi Yan’s eyes.
Gu Yan moved to sit beside her, handing her a tissue. “What’s wrong?”
Qi Yan shook her head. “It’s nothing. The spice is just a bit too much for me to handle.”
Gu Yan didn’t press further, quietly shifting the conversation to memories from their childhood.
Qi Yan shared stories about getting into fights abroad, and soon both of them were laughing.
They spent nearly two hours over the hot pot meal, until Qu Xiao called for the second time to ask if he should pick her up.
Qi Yan rolled her eyes dramatically. “Anyone would think I’m trying to steal you away from him. Two calls already!”
Gu Yan felt a little embarrassed. “He’s just worried about me driving after drinking, so he called to check if I need a ride.”
Qi Yan snorted. “Don’t go back to his place tonight. Come home with me instead. You two aren’t even married—what’s the point of putting yourself at a disadvantage like that?”
Gu Yan looked at her hesitantly before asking, “Um, did I mention earlier that we’ve already registered our marriage?”
Qi Yan shook her head instinctively. “No.”
When the words sank in, she stared wide-eyed. “You got married?!”
She nearly shouted it, drawing stares from nearby tables. Gu Yan quickly covered her mouth. “For heaven’s sake, could you keep it down?”
Qi Yan directly pulled her hand away, “Well, well, Gu Yan! You didn’t tell me when the Gu family was in trouble, and you didn’t even tell me when you got your marriage certificate. Do you still consider me your sister or not?”
Gu Yan quickly apologized to her.
Qi Yan snorted, “I don’t care. I want to go see that Qu Xiao of yours.”
She had heard of Qu Xiao but had never met him. She was determined to see if he was worthy of Gu Yan, and not some scoundrel like Xu Tao.
Just as the two picked up their bags to pay the bill, Qi Yan was still scolding Gu Yan.
At that moment, a voice suddenly rang out.
“Teacher Tang, over here.”