Shen Suiwan turned her head to look at him.
His gaze was filled with heavy displeasure. He was blaming her for not giving Gu Xirou face.
It was not that he did not know her stomach was bad.
Not long ago, when her stomach hurt, he had even had someone bring her stomach medicine.
But now he was still making her drink the liquor Gu Xirou had handed her.
He did not care at all whether she would feel unwell. In his eyes, her health was far less important than Gu Xirou’s face.
Seeing that Gu Tingshen looked very much as though he would not let her off unless she drank, Shen Suiwan gave a self-mocking smile, took the glass from Gu Xirou’s hand, and drained it in one go.
“Is this all right now, President Gu?”
Shen Suiwan turned the mouth of the glass toward Gu Tingshen so he could clearly see that it was already empty.
Meeting her gaze, Gu Tingshen opened his mouth, but for a moment he did not know what to say.
Gu Xirou, on the other hand, laughed, the corners of her mouth curving with provocation and smugness. “Thank you, Secretary Shen, for giving me this face. I hope you’ll look after me from now on.”
Shen Suiwan ignored her, and Gu Xirou did not mind. Like a victor, she walked back and sat down beside Gu Tingshen.
Shen Suiwan, did you see that? The only person he cares about most is me.
She was still gloating inwardly, entirely unaware that at this moment Shen Suiwan could not even be bothered to think about any of this.
After drinking that glass of liquor, her stomach gradually began to hurt.
She knew her stomach was bad and had not planned to drink at all that evening. The glass her colleague had poured for her she had simply left in front of her without so much as touching it, but she had not expected Gu Xirou to come over and offer a toast.
That glass was not very high-proof, but to her fragile stomach as it was now, it was like poison.
Shen Suiwan endured it and reached into her bag for her medicine, but did not feel the pill box, and suddenly remembered that she had left the medicine at the company and not brought it along.
The stomach pain grew worse and worse. Seeing that her colleagues’ attention was entirely on Gu Tingshen and Gu Xirou, Shen Suiwan pressed her lips together, got up, and left the private room where the dinner was being held, planning to go buy some medicine at a nearby pharmacy.
Seeing her leave, Gu Tingshen instinctively stood up to follow her out, but Gu Xirou held him back.
“Brother, where are you going?” She spoke coquettishly in a voice only the two of them could hear. “You’re the only person here I know well. You have to stay with me the whole time.”
The sweet, coquettish voice made Gu Tingshen’s heart soften, and in the end he sat back down.
Shen Suiwan was surely unhappy about what had just happened, but it did not matter, he could coax her when they went back that night.
…
Shen Suiwan walked unsteadily down the corridor, her stomach churning, the pain so bad that she felt as though she was about to die.
Her vision even went a little dark. She reached a corner, and just as she turned it she suddenly bumped into someone.
“I’m terribly sorry, I…”
Before she could finish, another sharp pain came from her stomach, and she clutched it, barely able to straighten up.
“Are you all right?”
A cool, magnetic male voice, very pleasant to hear, but Shen Suiwan was in no mood to appreciate it now.
She forced herself to raise her head and apologized to him again. “Excuse me.”
Because she was so uncomfortable, she did not notice that when the man saw her face, something odd flashed in his eyes.
“Are you all right?”
The man realized she was very unwell and could barely stand steadily, so he politely and courteously took hold of her arm.
“I…”
Noticing that her hand kept clutching her stomach, the man asked, “Stomach pain?”
Shen Suiwan nodded, cold sweat beading on her forehead.
“Is there any stomach medicine you usually take?”
Shen Suiwan instinctively said the name of the stomach medicine she usually took. The man said nothing more and helped her over to an empty private room next door to sit down.
“Wait for me here.”
The sound of his footsteps gradually faded away.
Shen Suiwan’s head was still muddled and confused. Who was that man? And where was he going?
But in her heart she had an intuition that he meant no harm.
What was more, she kept feeling that he looked somewhat familiar.
Before long the man came back and pressed a cup of water and two tablets into her hands.
“Take these and you should feel much better.”
His voice was as cool as before, but it carried a faint trace of concern.
Shen Suiwan looked at the tablets, and they were indeed the kind she usually took, so she quickly swallowed them with the water.
The water was warm.
As it slid down her throat, it seemed to leave a trace of warmth in her heart as well.
This kind of medicine worked quickly, and not long after taking it Shen Suiwan felt the stomach pain begin to ease.
She raised her head and thanked the man. “Thank you. I’ve really put you to a lot of trouble.”
The man before her was tall and upright, his features excellent, and his whole bearing gave off the noble air of a man in a position of power.
“Don’t mention it.” He was calm and unhurried. “Miss Shen.”
“You know me?” Shen Suiwan’s face showed surprise.
But at that moment, she suddenly remembered who he was.
The second young master of the Huo family of the capital, Huo Yanxiu.
He was said to be a business prodigy of the sort that appears only once in a century. He had begun getting involved in company affairs before he was sixteen, and at twenty the old master of the Huo family had designated him as the next heir.
And now he had already formally taken over the Huo Group and become President Huo, whom everyone held in awe.
Six years ago, she had once seen him at a banquet.
She had always kept a low profile, and that was the only banquet she had ever attended.
Moreover, she had only glimpsed him from a distance, which was why she had not been able to remember him immediately just now.
She had never expected that the person who helped her today would be him.
“President Huo.” Shen Suiwan felt slightly awkward, but she could still hold herself steady, so her expression remained normal. “How is it that you’re in Hai City?”
Huo Yanxiu did not seem to mind that she had only just remembered him, and only said, “I came to discuss some business.”
He paused, then asked, “You’re unwell. Why are you here alone?”
Perhaps because the word “alone” stung Shen Suiwan, her eyes suddenly felt a little sore.
Back then, she had ignored her family’s objections and stayed in this city with Gu Tingshen after graduating.
She had wanted to prove to her family that she would be happy, but unexpectedly, in the end, she was still alone.
After a moment, she came back to herself and spoke. “I had a dinner with colleagues today, and my stomach began to hurt. I meant to come out and buy some medicine on my own, but I didn’t expect the pain to be more than I could bear. Thank you again, President Huo.”
Huo Yanxiu handed her the pill box in his hand and said without much emotion, “This medicine works quickly, but it only treats the symptoms, not the root cause. Since your stomach is bad, you ought to take proper care of it.”
For a moment, Shen Suiwan almost wondered whether he was showing concern for her.
But on reflection, they were not close, and the way he spoke really was indifferent.
It was probably just politeness.
“I know.” Shen Suiwan took the pill box, then took out her phone. “President Huo, I’ll transfer you the money for the medicine.”
“There’s no need.”
“The medicine was bought for me. I should give you the money.”
Although such a small sum really was insignificant to Huo Yanxiu, she did not like owing other people, and what should be paid had to be paid.
Huo Yanxiu was silent for a moment, then also took out his phone and tapped at the screen.
Shen Suiwan was about to ask him to open his WeChat payment code when she suddenly found that she had received a WeChat message.
It was from a contact she had never chatted with, who had sent a single space.
She immediately understood something and was very surprised. “This is your WeChat?”
“Mm.” Huo Yanxiu was expressionless.
Shen Suiwan was confused. When had she added Huo Yanxiu on WeChat? Even she herself could not remember.
But this was clearly not a good time to get to the bottom of it, so she did not ask further and only transferred the money for the medicine to Huo Yanxiu.
“Then… I’ll go back to my colleagues now.” Shen Suiwan smiled at him politely.
“Miss Shen.” Huo Yanxiu’s voice inexplicably took on a colder edge. “Is a group dinner more important than your health?”