Chapter 62: A Thorough Transformation

What have I missed this time?

Feng Shiqi stopped unwrapping the gift, perhaps because of the name, which immediately made her eyes widen.

He Peiru picked up a cushion from the side and hugged it tightly to her chest. Only after she had completely relaxed did she tell them, "Gu Zhaoqian just messaged me downstairs saying he wants to see me."

Feng Shiqi couldn't care less about maintaining her composure at this point and pressed on, "So you went to see him just now?"

She nodded and said softly, "Tonight is Christmas Eve, after all. It's not right to leave him downstairs alone."

"Okay, you're right."

Despite her surprise, Feng Shiqi understood perfectly well what constituted an appropriate approach.

"He did this..." Everyone couldn't help but ponder. Fang Xiaoxin guessed, "Could it be that he regretted it?"

Because He Peiru had limited information to share, she could only express her thoughts according to her own ideas.

She nodded.

Fang Xiaoxin leaned closer and asked, "So what are your thoughts?"

He Peiru let out a heavy sigh and replied, "We'll see."

These three seemingly simple words actually contained so much of her emotion towards Gu Zhaoqian.

It's impossible to explain in just a few words.

At this moment, He Peiru just wanted to put aside this heavy topic and tried her best to smile, saying, "Let's have our Christmas Eve, we'll talk about his matter later!"

"good!"

The two responded in unison.

He Peiru began to unwrap her gift, but Gu Zhaoqian's presence inevitably distracted her. Although she knew she shouldn't be too affected, she repeated the simple action of pulling open the ribbon on the box several times.

Both of them noticed her unusual attitude. After exchanging a glance, Feng Shiqi sat down next to her, took her hand, and said, "No matter what, I will support what you've done, Aru."

“Me too! Me too!” Fang Xiaoxin raised her hand in agreement. “Aru must base her actions on her own feelings. As for other things, there’s no need to force yourself.”

He Peiru simply wanted to express her gratitude to them for traveling all the way to England and for being there for her at this crucial time.

Otherwise, if she were to face these things alone, she might get stuck in a rut again.

Over the next few days, He Peiru tried her best to stop thinking about Gu Zhaoqian and enjoyed her holiday in England with them.

Perhaps it's because the pleasant life goes by so quickly that the last two days of the year have arrived in the blink of an eye.

Even though they were reluctant to part with Ho Pui-yu, they should still make time to spend with their families during this long holiday, so they all planned to go back to Hong Kong to celebrate the New Year.

Once the decision was made, He Peiru immediately bought them plane tickets back to Hong Kong and, after everything was ready, took them to the airport to leave.

Seeing them off at the airport wasn't as heavy-hearted as she had imagined; instead, she hoped they would return in the best possible condition.

The three stood in front of the security checkpoint, unable to show any reluctance to part. It was Feng Shiqi who broke the silence: "We can come to London to see you again during the holidays."

“That’s right!” Fang Xiaoxin continued, “If you don’t have any other plans for New Year’s Eve, I can video chat with you.”

With just a few words, He Peiru's inner turmoil was smoothed out, and a faint smile appeared on her face as she replied, "Then it's settled!"

This agreement would make it less unbearable for her when she felt that life was boring and dull.

He Peiru only turned and left the airport after seeing the plane take off.

Hopefully, when we meet again, those incidents won't affect us anymore.

As soon as she got back to her apartment, she received a message from Cherry.

Cherry: [Aru, have you made any plans for New Year's Eve? If not, would you like to come over and celebrate with me?]

Cherry: [There will be a fireworks show on the Thames on New Year's Eve. I plan to take my yacht there and we can also have a party.]

Cherry's detailed explanation clearly indicated that she genuinely wanted to invite her to participate.

She knew that the view from the apartment might be better, but the level of excitement was naturally completely different from the party Cherry organized.

If she were to watch the dazzling fireworks alone in her empty home, the mere thought of it would inevitably fill her with a sense of loneliness.

So He Peiru accepted Cherry's invitation without hesitation and made sure to prepare a New Year's gift for her.

She decided to give Sophia a holiday on this important occasion, since Sophia, with her social skills, had already made many friends from her hometown.

Since it was a party among friends, He Peiru's outfit didn't need to be too complicated. Considering that it was an outdoor river, it was even more important to take good care of herself and stay warm.

She ultimately chose a thick fur coat.

An hour before New Year's Eve, He Peiru arrived at the yacht's mooring location based on the location Cherry had given her. Once aboard, she found several people already sitting together chatting, and most of them were familiar faces.

After greeting everyone, she joined in effortlessly.

No matter where you are, people are still most interested in gossip.

Moreover, those present all had close ties with Hong Kong, though they might have been a bit behind in getting all sorts of information. Ho Pui-yu had some recollection of the names being discussed.

“By the way! I’ve heard that the Gu family and the Jiang family have a very good relationship,” one of the girls, who was about the same age as He Peiru, said. “Perhaps Aru knows why Gu Zhaoqian came to England?”

Being suddenly called out, and hearing Gu Zhaoqian's name, made her freeze instantly, almost unable to move.

She let out a soft breath, determined not to say another word: "He seems to be here on a business trip."

"It seems Aru isn't quite sure either." The other person looked somewhat regretful. "I wonder what kind of person this unattainable beauty would like?"

Although she didn't say the second half of the sentence to any specific person, it still made He Peiru extremely nervous, and she didn't dare to respond at all.

Fortunately, time passed quickly amidst these conversations. With less than ten minutes until the fireworks show was about to begin, Cherry told them to find a spot they liked and then pulled her to the best view from the yacht.

Cherry smiled at her and asked, "Am I your best friend in England?"

He Peiru nodded vigorously and replied, "That's right!"

She felt that the magnetic field between people was really amazing. They had only exchanged contact information because she was a member of the Wu family, but they never expected to become good friends.

He Peiru's thoughts were disrupted by the deafening countdown, and then she watched the fireworks bloom in the sky, and for a moment she felt a sense of unreality.

Only when both sides of the riverbank quieted down did she truly feel like she was back in reality.

Cherry arranged for a driver to take her back to her apartment.

He Peiru stepped out of the elevator and found a small, beautifully packaged parcel in the entryway.

Since Sophia was given a day off, and given her usual habits, this package was unlikely to be hers.

Although she didn't have to worry about anything of unknown origin while living here, she still didn't dare to open it easily just to be on the safe side.

He Peiru didn't bother to change her shoes and looked down to see if there were any words left on the package.

Sure enough, her name was written on it without even looking closely.

Unlike last time, this time it wasn't a printed shipping document; instead, it was written directly in pen: "He Peiru (recipient)".

The handwriting was familiar again, but the step of identifying who left the package was omitted.

Gu Zhaoqian knew her address in the UK very well, so it was perfectly normal for him to be able to leave it there directly.

only……

Another gift for her?

He Peiru didn't care what was inside; she could just return it along with the Christmas presents later.

She was about to take it inside, intending to put it in the closet like the previous package, when her phone rang with a new message notification.

Gu Zhaoqian: [Sophia said you weren't all home, so I left your New Year's gift in the entryway.]

It was just their first contact after Christmas Eve, and this time it was Gu Zhaoqian who took the initiative.

According to the man, he probably hadn't been gone long.

He Peiru couldn't help but feel relieved that she hadn't run into him on her way back.

She pondered for a moment, then quickly typed a string of text on the screen.

He Peiru: [You really don't need to send me any more gifts.]

However, Gu Zhaoqian did not reply at all, as if this had become his current method of dealing with the relationship between the two.

Faced with his unyielding attitude, He Peiru was at a loss.

She couldn't just leave the package in the entryway; if it disappeared one day, she knew it would make the whole situation even more difficult to resolve.

He Peiru also told Feng Shiqi and Fang Xiaoxin about this, and the two had different reactions.

Fang Xiaoxin: [Was he really just in England on a business trip? I have a feeling he actually came for you.]

Feng Shiqi: [Gu Zhaoqian's transformation is so thorough. Just the fact that he specifically came to see you on Christmas Eve shows that he has indeed given your relationship a lot of thought.]

Their angles made He Peiru's heart tremble.

These days she has been running away from this reality, and even Gu Zhaoqian is avoiding it. She knows she should face these problems, but she feels she is not ready yet.

Perhaps it's time for her to set a deadline for herself, so that when the time truly comes, she won't feel too rushed.

Ho Pui-yu: [Let's wait until we get back to Hong Kong to talk about it.]

This phrase seemed to have become a safe word, and could also indirectly alleviate her anxiety.

As time passed, He Peiru's life seemed to return to normal.

Before we knew it, it was Lunar New Year. On New Year's Eve, snowflakes began to fall outside, an experience you would never have in Hong Kong.

On this day when everyone is reunited, Cherry invited He Peiru to the Wu family for New Year's Eve dinner, but she declined without hesitation.

Although she knew the Wu family didn't care, she still felt uncomfortable and thought it would be better to stay in the apartment with Sophia.

To He Peiru's surprise, Gu Zhaoqian, who had disappeared from her life for more than a month, would reappear on this day.

This time, he still didn't show up, but instead had one of his employees deliver a gift box to her.

Unlike the usual packages, which were tightly sealed, she opened the lid and saw a red evening gown inside.

The small card inside still bore her familiar handwriting. After glancing at the contents briefly, she immediately put it back in its original place.

She didn't want to care too much yet.

Just then.

Jiang Yici called her on FaceTime, and when she answered, she saw her uncle, her parents-in-law, and her in-laws on the other side of the screen.

They maintained regular contact. After a brief exchange of pleasantries, He Peiru heard Zheng Wanqiao say, "I wonder how Ah Qian's new project in the UK is progressing? I forgot to ask him if he went back to Hong Kong for the Lunar New Year."

Fortunately, she had anticipated that her family would most likely mention Gu Zhaoqian, so when she heard the man's name, her mood didn't fluctuate too much, and she could calmly ask, "The new project in England?"

“Didn’t he tell you? I thought you two had met.” Jiang Yici continued the conversation, still sounding a little confused. “He’s developing a new project in the UK, and he’s been there for the last two or three months.”