He still had to maintain a safe distance from her to protect his status as the successor of the Xing family and the family business.

She will continue to treat him as a good friend so as not to implicate him.

Yes, as long as she remains the fifth young lady of the Zhu family, and as long as he remains the eldest young master of the Xing family, their fates will not change.

If his feelings for her exceed the boundaries of friendship, then he will have to bear the pain he is experiencing today sooner or later.

Zhu Qianying knew all this, and Xing Bailun understood it all too well.

However, if matters of the heart could be controlled by reason, there wouldn't be so many lovesick men and women in this world.

...

Zhu Qianying arrived at the hospital more than half an hour later.

Not wanting to waste time, she only bought a basket of fruit and a bunch of lilies from a fruit shop near the hospital.

Following the room number given by Qi Xiao, they went up to the corridor, but Qi Xiao and the others were nowhere to be seen. Only a young man was sitting outside the ward. Upon seeing Zhu Qianying, he approached her and asked in a low voice, "Excuse me, are you Miss Zhu?"

Yes, that's me.

Zhu Qianying looked the man up and down, guessing that he was a professional nurse hired by the Xing family for Xing Bailun.

"Young Master Xing is inside, he's awake, you can go in!" The man gently pushed open the ward door, stepped aside, and let Zhu Qianying into the ward.

Zhu Qianying immediately spotted Xing Bailun lying on the hospital bed. "Aaron, are you feeling better now?"

Xing Bolun gave her a smirk, "It's alright, you won't die!"

Zhu Qianying's heart skipped a beat, but she smiled slightly at him, "Of course, who is our young master Xing? This little injury is nothing."

As far as she could see, apart from his leg being suspended in a cast, there were some abrasions on his face, but they weren't serious.

His complexion and mental state didn't seem too bad, which made Zhu Qianying's heart, which was hanging in mid-air, feel a little more at ease.

Xing Bailun gestured to Qi Xiao to help him lift the bed, and half-reclined, his gaze falling on Zhu Qianying's face, "Have you eaten yet?"

Even though he was injured like this, he was still worried about whether she had eaten.

"Yes, I ate. What about you? What did you have for dinner? A patient's meal?"

Zhu Qianying placed the fruit basket on the bedside table and took out two bunches of blackcurrants from it.

"I'll take it, you guys talk." Ling Chen took the blackcurrant from the side with one hand and pressed Zhu Qianying down into a chair next to the hospital bed with the other.

“My mom just left, and she brought some porridge over. I don’t understand why she made porridge for me, since I don’t have a stomach upset.”

Xing Bolun spoke in a teasing tone, his face also plastered with a smile.

But his smile always reminded Zhu Qianying of the phrase "forced smile".

As the culprit who forced him to put on a brave face, she had no right to expose him, so she could only smile and continue, "Then I'll prepare a Manchu Han Imperial Feast for you now?"

"What you prepared is fine, but we'll skip the takeout!"

Xing Bailun and the others knew that Zhu Qianying had inherited her mother's culinary skills. This was because the five of them would occasionally get together for a meal, sometimes at Xing Bailun's apartment, and Zhu Qianying would always be the one cooking.

"I'll make it for you when you're discharged from the hospital!" Zhu Qianying was always very kind to her friends, especially to Xing Bailun.

"Okay, for the sake of this meal, I've decided to cooperate fully with the doctor's treatment and try to be discharged from the hospital as soon as possible."

The group chatted and laughed as usual, with no one mentioning the reason for Xing Bailun's injury, nor did anyone mention Zhu Qianying's wedding photos.

The hospital has a time limit for visiting patients. At 10 o'clock, all visitors must leave. However, Zhu Qianying and Qi Xiao stayed until the nurse reminded them to leave.

Qi Xiao was responsible for taking Zhu Qianying home, but normally, this was Xing Bailun's job.

"How did the wedding photos go?"

It was only in the car that Qi Xiao dared to bring up the issue.

"It went very smoothly. Anyway, I just had to pose in different ways as the photographer asked. It wasn't difficult at all."

Many people say that taking wedding photos is physically demanding, but for an athletic person like Zhu Qianying, it was no challenge at all. Rather than saying she was exhausted, it would be more accurate to say she almost collapsed from hunger!

"The wedding date has been set?"

After the Yan family issued that statement, there was no further news, and Zhu Qianying only told Xing Bailun about it.

"Yes, Christmas."

Judging from Yan Shao's grand and ostentatious manner today, he probably doesn't mind letting people know the specific wedding date.

Qi Xiao turned to look at her. No wonder Xing Bailun was still not giving up. There was not a trace of joy about her becoming a bride.

"Has the wedding venue been decided?"

This stumped Zhu Qianying, who shook her head indifferently, "I don't know, probably not!"

She never asked Yan Shao about the wedding.

It was Young Master Yan who suggested looking at wedding dresses and arranging the wedding photos. As for where the wedding ceremony would be held, it wasn't really her business; her only responsibility was to attend.

Of course, you can't blame her for not being enthusiastic.

Come to think of it, when setting the wedding date, Young Master Yan didn't ask for her opinion.

She was told she could choose the wedding dress, but the final decision was made by Yan Shao.

Taking wedding photos? It was Yan Shao who decided on the location and the plan, without even bothering to ask for her opinion.

As for the wedding location, it was probably decided by Young Master Yan; her opinion was completely irrelevant.

Since it's not important, she naturally doesn't bother to think about it or care.

Her brain cells are very valuable; there's no need to waste them on such pointless things.

"Will you invite us then?"

Originally, there was no need to ask about this, given the close relationship between them.

But judging from Zhu Qianying's current indifference to marriage, Qi Xiao couldn't be sure.

Zhu Qianying looked up at him and said uncertainly, "I guess so..."

Given the Yan family's unparalleled status in L City, they should be able to invite all ten of the richest people.

At this time, Zhu Qianying had no idea that she also had the right to decide the guest list for the banquet, and simply assumed that the Yan family would handle this matter.

Furthermore, Young Master Yan had never asked her which relatives and friends she wanted to invite.

Anyway, when other people get married, whether they are the groom or the bride, they are bound to be busy for the last month or two before the wedding.

But apart from taking wedding photos, she has been quite relaxed so far. No wonder she still doesn't feel the slightest bit of reality that the wedding is about to take place.

Qi Xiao sighed, "Shadow, we're really worried about you."

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the four of them watched Zhu Qianying grow up. At first, each of them had other feelings for Zhu Qianying, but everyone could see Xing Bailun's thoughts, so they nipped those special feelings in the bud early on.

He treated her simply as a younger sister and a best friend.