Chapter 29 Holding Tight

"Okay...okay...Ayan, thank you for your trouble." Jiang's mother's voice was choked with emotion and relief, but then she urgently instructed, "Whatever you do, don't let her touch the steering wheel. That girl always gets into accidents when she drives. Last time she crashed into someone's luxury car. I don't know if it's because the driving instructor you found for her back then wasn't very skilled..."

"Mom, I know. I'm hanging up." Jiang Yining was afraid that her mother would reveal some more "dark history," so she quickly pressed the hang-up button.

The world is finally quiet.

Jiang Yining held the still-warm phone and let out a long sigh of relief. However, when she looked up and saw more than a dozen pairs of eyes in the private room—shock, elation, inquiry, disbelief, and indescribable complex emotions—all eyes were fixed on her like spotlights.

Jiang Yining belatedly realized something. She looked at the phone in her hand that belonged to Xie Shiyan, then at her still half-leaning in his arms, and at the familiar and unfamiliar faces around her. A wave of embarrassment and social anxiety washed over her instantly, and she wished she could disappear on the spot.

Xie Shiyan noticed Jiang Yining's embarrassment and slowly but firmly tightened his arms around her waist. The force carried a sense of confirmation, almost greedy, of something lost and then regained.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil churning in his chest. When he looked up again, the turmoil in his eyes had been forcibly suppressed. He glanced at his still petrified partner, his voice regaining its usual composure, but with a barely perceptible hoarseness:

"Mr. Wang, Mr. Yang, Mr. Xia, I apologize for interrupting you all. It's a personal matter. Let's continue."

Household matters.

These two words resonated deeply with everyone, clearly defining a boundary. Jiang Yining's case was his family matter.

He pulled Jiang Yining, who was still confused and extremely embarrassed, to his seat. There were no extra chairs, so he had her sit on the armrest of his large armchair.

Then, with an undeniable forcefulness, he used his warm, large palm to tightly and firmly envelop Jiang Yining's cold, trembling little hand under the table.

His palms were calloused, dry and strong, trembling slightly. Jiang Yining sat stiffly like a frightened little quail, not daring to move.

She could clearly feel the scalding heat and slight trembling from Xie Shiyan's palm, which surged through her body like an electric current. She lowered her head, her ears turning almost blood red, and could only let him hold her hand.

The negotiations seemed to have resumed, with President Wang stammering as he tried to pick up where they left off. Zhou Yanzhe and Lu Jingshen also tried to remain calm as they flipped through the documents, but their eyes kept involuntarily glancing at Jiang Yining, who was seated at the head of the table.

Xie Shiyan seemed to be listening attentively, nodding occasionally and asking one or two key questions. But only Jiang Yining, who was sitting right next to him, could feel the tension in his body, the heaviness of his breath, and the increasingly tight grip on his hand, as if he were afraid that she would disappear if he let go.

Xiao Xiao leaned against Lu Jingshen's chest, staring intently at Jiang Yining, tears streaming silently down her face. She had so many questions she wanted to ask, and she wanted to rush over and hug her dearest friend whom she had just regained.

But at this moment, she could only hold Lu Jingshen's hand tightly, her eyes greedily tracing her friend's outline.

Ankexia silently picked up the fallen wine glass, and the waiter quickly cleaned the carpet. She sat back down, her face still pale, her eyes looking towards the head of the table with a complicated expression.

As Xie Shiyan tightly gripped that hand, the layer of frost that had never melted around him visibly melted and shattered the moment he touched the girl…

Jiang Yining sat obediently, like a delicate porcelain doll. She dared not look at anyone, her gaze fixed on Xie Shiyan's hard jawline and his slightly bobbing Adam's apple.

The air around her nose was filled with the crisp scent of agarwood and a faint, slightly sour aroma of lemon candy. She habitually and secretly touched his warm palm with her fingertips.

For a fleeting moment, Xie Shiyan's voice paused almost imperceptibly. He gripped her hand tightly, so forcefully that Jiang Yining nearly cried out in pain.

But he immediately relaxed slightly, his fingertips gently and restrainedly caressing the back of her cool hand with a soothing touch.

Xie Shiyan's deep and clear voice echoed in the meeting room, each word carrying undeniable weight. Jiang Yining sat obediently beside him, but her gaze couldn't help but drift towards Xiao Xiao and Shen Nian'an not far away.

From the moment she entered, the two men's eyes were fixed on her, their eyes swirling with a complex mix of shock, elation, and disbelief.

Jiang Yining smiled reassuringly at them, revealing a faint smile that seemed to say, "It's me, don't panic."

Xiao Xiao blinked hard, while Shen Nian'an gripped the edge of the tablecloth tightly. Both of them tried to smile back, but their smiles still carried lingering fear and tears.

Xie Shiyan was looking down at a supplementary contract clause that had been handed to him, his brows furrowed slightly, and the lines of his profile looked somewhat cold and hard under the overhead light.

Jiang Yining gently tugged at his neatly ironed suit cuffs, her voice soft and gentle, carrying a hint of cautious request:

"Brother Shiyan, I... I'd like to go sit with Xiao Xiao and the others for a while, is that alright?"