Mutual affection

The trip to Singapore has been scheduled for next week, though it was confirmed on Saturday. It's set for next Tuesday, and Su Wenxie has been notified. The original intention was to take him away to relax, and Su Yao hasn't forgotten that purpose. In addition, she's been feeling lately that she should find an opportunity to talk to her younger brother, who seems to never grow up. Shang Jiuqi, who is a year or two older than her, has already developed a business sense, and even Xu Jingsi's younger brother, Xu Yangming, who is the same age, has his own ambitions. Her own brother isn't stupid, so why is there such a big difference?

But Su Yao seems to easily forget things that are secondary in her mind at times like this, such as her promise to An Chi to take him to school.

When An Chi made the call, Su Yao was on a plane bound for Singapore.

Another missed opportunity, as if it were a destined one, it always happens.

When An Chi heard Tang Pai tell him that Su was going to Singapore, his brows furrowed slightly for a moment, but quickly relaxed, making it impossible for anyone to see anything unusual about him. He simply turned and left, and as he got into the car, the sudden start of the engine ignited his anger once again.

She lied to him again. He clearly told her that school was starting soon, but...

Well, in Su Yao's eyes, he was indeed less important than his work.

An Chi is someone who knows how to comfort himself.

Landing in Singapore.

The white short-sleeved shirt was paired with a white shirt, black sunglasses, and a black hat.

Su looked back twice, then said with a worried expression, "Aren't you two going to die from the heat?"

Ge Jin looked down and then up again. "I'm dressed formally. I need to be serious when I do things."

Su Wenxie simply looked up and pointed to the bright sun in the sky: "It's very hot and sunny."

"Sigh, I think you're just experiencing 'symptoms.' You certainly won't die from the sun, but it's hard to guarantee you won't die from the heat." Her verbal attacks were as sharp as ever.

However, she wouldn't interfere too much with their thoughts. Ge Jin had his own professional ethics, while her younger brother had his own... sun protection standards.

She opened her phone and saw the messages and calls from An Chi, so she called back.

The voice on the other end was hoarse and muffled, like someone who had just woken up, still half asleep.

"Hello."

When does school start?

“This Thursday.” He didn’t expect Su Yao to definitely come back. Three days was not enough time for her to discuss this matter. He had asked around and found out that Su Yao might suffer a lot of losses if she didn’t handle this well. Moreover, she took Su Wenxie to relax. So, according to her personality, it would probably take her a long time to get this done.

Su Yao was momentarily stunned upon hearing the time. She truly hadn't expected An Chi to start school so early; it was only just beginning in August. She mentally calculated the time, and it hadn't actually taken long. However, a feeling of endless hours slowly crept over An Chi. He really shouldn't ask for anything more. Four years ago, his immaturity had led to this awkward situation, but what did his current predicament matter?

The only reply I received was "I understand".

Su calculated that time was indeed tight, and she was unsure of the other side's attitude. A hasty agreement now would not be responsible.

The moment An Chi heard the response, he felt his heart skip a beat. It wasn't excitement or annoyance; just hearing those words, he felt a resonance that was unique to them.

It was like a reassuring, soothing voice suddenly entering a long, empty, silent, and dimly lit space.

He chuckled to himself, the invisible telephone line connecting only a few scattered, jumbled sounds.

They were still traveling from the airport. Su thought that she really couldn't make that call after getting in the car, otherwise it would be easy to expose something in the cramped space.

When An Chi realized what had happened, she wasn't actually angry about the "rejection." She was just thinking that if she hadn't been so stubborn during those years abroad, would she have felt any better or had it less unbearable to hear a phone call like that every week... every month... every year?

Su gently reminded him, "Didn't you hear me?"

He snapped out of his daze and hummed in response.

Fearing she might not have heard him clearly, he answered again, "I heard you."

Su felt that An Chi was acting strangely and was uneasy. The call, which should have ended, was extended by a few more words because of her concern for An Chi who was far away: "Is there anything else?"

"Nothing much... Oh, right, there's one more thing."

"What's up?"

"Thinking about you."

He wanted to say "I love you," but it felt too frivolous. Just a while ago, he could joke around with Su Yao freely, but when it came to the word "love," it was even harder to say than those jokes. Even though he had prepared the words in his heart many times, it was still so hard to say them. Suddenly, he remembered a song - "I love you but I can't say it."

As he was thinking, he suddenly started humming the song softly, "Hmm hmm hmm hmm hmm hmm~"

Before Su could issue another "warning," Su laughed out loud upon hearing the melody, "With such a strong musical talent, remember to look me up if you're planning to enter the entertainment industry in the future."

An Chi realized this, gave a dry laugh, and heard the previously soft noise on her end suddenly turn into the sound of wind, "Ready to get in the car?"

"Hmm." Su Yao simply replied, without any intention of hanging up. She seemed to have forgotten her earlier thoughts, but his hum did indeed attract her attention. She was curious as to why An Chi was in such a good mood, even though she hadn't promised to go back to see him.

This time it was An Chi's turn to end it, "Then let's hang up, you can go do your work."

But after hearing her "okay," he waited for her to hang up.

Just like in this relationship, he always handed over the initiative to Su Yao, without threats or seduction, only pleading, always waiting for Su Yao's pity.

After Su hung up the phone, Ge Jin and Su Wenxie both saw it. Ge Jin wanted to say something, but he didn't speak. Su Wenxie, however, was unrestrained and asked, "Sis, are you really interested in this guy?"

In fact, Su Wenxie has always been well-mannered. Although he has always appeared to be a spoiled brat, he never neglects the proper manners. He just tends to speak his mind too bluntly, such as his initial disdain for An Chi. However, now that An Chi has changed so much since returning to the country, he is not such an ignorant person after all.

An Chi is now many times better than him, and he shouldn't look down on someone like him anymore.

Su thought about it carefully. In the past, she would have immediately refuted it, but given the recent events, she felt that she should seriously consider the matter. Perhaps there had been moments of attraction, but not enough for her to take genuine action.

In the past, she was unwilling to get caught up in such thoughts because it would affect her judgment on other matters. But if she couldn't make a decision about this matter, it would continue to affect her mind. So she was willing to face it or, as before, run away from it.

"It shouldn't be considered that I'm interested now." The carefully chosen words conveyed a sense of denial in Su Wenxie's eyes, but only Ge Jin understood the uncertainty in Su Yao's heart.

Dealing with matters in Singapore was neither particularly fast nor particularly slow.

After almost a full day of meetings, Su's attitude was clearly good, but that was all.

Su was getting annoyed by their passing the buck, but she still maintained her composure and always had a hidden agenda behind her smile.

Of the three people that evening, only Ge Jin remained calm and composed, while Su Yao collapsed onto the sofa from exhaustion, and Su Wenxie was also lying on the bed when she entered the room.

Su glanced at him. "Why do you look so tired?"

She clearly remembered that Su Wenxie had played all day.

"Yeah, it's been so long since I've been to Singapore. It's tiring to play all day, okay? And I'm going diving tomorrow, so I'll be even more tired."

Su listened to Su Wenxie's words, his lips twitched, and he didn't say anything. He instructed Ge Jin, who was still working, "Have you finished both tasks? Go again tomorrow and take another look. Book me a plane ticket tonight."

"It's almost done, and President Liu has already joined in. It's just that President Pei sent a message saying he's not playing along with you anymore," Ge Jin replied while checking the plane tickets.

When he heard about the plane ticket, he already knew what Su was going to do. He couldn't stop her, nor could he show any dissatisfaction. He had promised to separate his life and work, but how could a real person so easily separate the two? He just felt a mix of emotions and a sense of blockage in his heart.

Su sighed, "It seems Pei Zhixi is smarter; she saw through it so quickly."

“Emotions can numb you,” Ge Jin suddenly said, a statement that left everyone scratching their heads.

Su should know that he was describing Bai Lutong, since Bai Lutong wasn't stupid, and her words just now undoubtedly placed Bai Lutong in a relatively low position.

“I know, but don’t you think arrogance can also lead people into a blind vortex? Not everyone is loyal and righteous. Bai Lutong is not you. You shouldn’t make such a judgment so easily.” Su wanted to shut Ge Jin down directly. She knew Bai Lutong better than he did. Perhaps Ge Jin was a loyal and righteous person, but Bai Lutong was definitely not. His bones were filled with the ego of Bai Lining, and all his actions were part of his self-pity.

Some people say that Su shouldn't judge a person based on something that happened many years ago, because people change.

The ridiculous thing is that not everyone changes. Su needs to understand that in this world, some people will become better, and some will become worse.

Rather, it erased the hurt she had experienced before. No one should forgive her past pain on her behalf, including herself now.

Bai Lutong always thought that Su Yao wouldn't care about that "thing she couldn't control" anymore, but since she didn't choose to forgive back then, any words of indifference she says now are just empty talk.

After experiencing the "An Chi who truly couldn't control himself," Su Yao understood things very clearly. Only the person involved knew whether there were any hidden reasons for what happened back then. What she needed to do was not to understand those "hidden reasons," but to understand the harm she had suffered and then take revenge. That's what she thought, and that's what she did.

After realizing he had spoken out of turn, Ge Jin lowered his head and expressed his apology.

Su looked at him and said, "You don't need to be like that. You are a person who values ​​relationships and loyalty. It's right for you to think of others this way."

After everything had settled down, Ge Jincai left the suite and returned to his own room.