Chapter 38. I want to kiss her.

As one of the most important exhibitions in the global jewelry industry, the Macau Jewellery & Gem Fair is usually held concurrently in two venues. One is a high-end jewellery and design hall, which focuses on showcasing top-quality jewelry and high-value collectibles, while the other is geared towards the general public and commercial use, so that professional buyers and visitors can be divided according to their needs.

The setup of both venues was equally important, and Shang Shu was still worried about it. So she refused Song Lan's suggestion to also check on their behalf, and instead instructed someone to stay at the company to check on the unexplained accounts. She would personally check on the venues herself.

So for the next few days, Shang Shu stayed with Ji Songning, shuttling between the two venues, almost never having a moment to rest.

"Has the location of the central display case been decided? I hope it can stand out while ensuring a smooth visitor flow." Shang Shu walked to the center of the booth and examined it carefully.

“Yes, the booth faces the main aisle, ensuring it will be the visual center of attention. There’s at least 1.5 meters of aisle width on both sides, so it won’t affect the flow of traffic.” Ji Songning held up a tablet and showed Shang Shu the floor plan.

"Okay." Shang Shu looked at the blueprints, reviewed the general layout, then took a few steps forward to the display case and leaned closer. "Have you made any minor adjustments to the color temperature, brightness, and angle of the lights that I mentioned a couple of days ago?"

“Yes, the 6500K cool white LED lights, and the diffuser here, I personally oversaw their addition.” Ji Songning stood behind Shang Shu, holding a tablet, answering while secretly admiring the way she worked diligently.

In order not to embarrass herself in front of her senior, she did her best to demonstrate her professional skills, afraid of holding her senior back.

Shang Shu nodded slightly in agreement, then took out her phone to check the time. Before she knew it, she had been busy all morning, and it was almost lunchtime.

She said to Ji Songning, who was taking notes, "Thank you for your hard work. Let's call it a day for today."

Ji Songning smiled and tapped a few times on the tablet: "Okay, senior, would you like to have dinner together?"

"Okay," Shang Shu readily agreed.

After working together for a few days, she found that Ji Songning was straightforward, quick-witted, and professionally competent, making him a very comfortable partner to work with.

The two randomly chose a Cantonese restaurant near the museum.

"I heard from Director Ji that you studied at the University of Toronto before?" Shang Shu chatted casually with Ji Songning, who was sitting opposite her.

When asked the question, Ji Songning stopped flipping through the menu and her eyes sparkled: "Yes, I studied art history for my undergraduate degree and museology for my master's degree."

Shang Shu raised an eyebrow: "It sounds like it's specifically for a daughter to follow in her mother's footsteps."

Ji Songning readily admitted, "It was all planned by my mother, but I didn't expect that as I learned it, I would actually become quite interested in it."

"That's great. Is this your first time curating an exhibition?" Shang Shu picked up her cup and took a sip of water.

Ji Songning smiled and said, "I've done small-scale projects at school before, but this is the first time I've worked with a team of this size."

Shang Shu nodded: "It's remarkable that you've achieved this level for the first time."

"Senior, you've made me blush. I'm just trying not to hold you back." Ji Songning shook her head shyly, a rare occurrence for her.

Although she had grown accustomed to receiving compliments from people while living abroad for many years, she was still flattered to hear these words from her admired senior.

"No need to be so modest, let's order first." Shang Shu smiled, her eyes unconsciously glancing at the time on her phone.

After the two ordered their food, Ji Songning smiled and brought up the past again: "Back then, my senior left so quickly after graduation that I couldn't even find anyone to thank her."

She only learned from others that Shang Shu had gone to Aicheng long after she graduated.

Shang Shu subtly avoided the past: "Didn't I already receive your thank-you gift that day?"

Ji Songning smiled and asked with some curiosity, "Then why didn't you stay in Aicheng after graduation?"

Shang Shu touched the tip of her nose: "Maybe our magnetic fields are incompatible."

Gu Sui's image automatically appeared in her mind, and the thought of meeting him soon made her smile.

Ji Songning was amused by her answer: "Then I have to thank this magnetic field, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to meet my senior here."

Without much thought, Shang Shu casually asked, "And what about you? Are you back to gain experience, or are you planning to stay and develop your career in Macau?"

"Does Senior want me to stay?" Ji Songning asked softly.

Just then, the waiter brought over the dishes, his arm blocking the way between the two of them.

"What?" Shang Shu didn't hear clearly.

"Ah, I said I haven't thought about it yet." Ji Songning scratched his head, relieved that Shang Shu hadn't heard what he just said.

Shang Shu nodded calmly and said, "No rush."

The two ate their meal quietly for a while.

The stir-fried beef noodles were a bit oily, and Shang Shu put down her chopsticks after taking two bites, still glancing at the time on her phone from time to time.

Seeing that she kept checking the time, Ji Songning thought she was annoyed that she was eating too slowly, so she quickly ate a couple of bites, put down her chopsticks, and asked, "Senior, shall we go to Building B this afternoon? I personally oversaw the adjustment of the seating and lighting there."

Shang Shu picked up a napkin and wiped her hands: "Tomorrow, you've been busy for so many days, you should go back and get some rest. I have something to do later."

“Okay…” A hint of disappointment flashed in Ji Songning’s eyes.

She didn't know when it started, but she had come to enjoy being around her senior. Her senior was still so kind and beautiful. She cherished every second she spent with her senior, and even just standing behind her and watching quietly was a pleasure.

Shang Shu didn't notice Ji Songning's unusual behavior because she was preoccupied with picking up Gu Sui.

Gu Sui knew she had been busy these past few days and had specifically told her not to make the trip, but she still couldn't resist the urge to pick her up and was even willing to cancel her afternoon work for it.

After parting ways with Ji Songning, Shang Shu rushed to FBO. She insisted on arriving early and waited in her car for several hours.

She was so tired these past few days, running around and negotiating during the day, that she didn't even have time to dream at night. So, while waiting in the car, she unknowingly fell asleep.

The driver lowered the partition and whispered, "Miss, Miss Gu is coming out."

Shang Shu groggily opened her eyes and looked out the car window, only to see Gu Sui and Gu Xiangyi walking in this direction.

She quickly tidied her hair, got out of the car to greet him, and with Gu Xiangyi beside her, she was too embarrassed to be too obvious, so she had to suppress her almost running pace.

"Sister Shang Shu." Gu Xiangyi greeted Shang Shu with a smile, then walked towards the Gu family's car and said, "I'll go first, you two can chat for a while."

"Hmm." Shang Shu waved her hand at Gu Xiangyi a little embarrassedly, and then finally looked at Gu Sui openly.

Gu Sui wrapped his scarf around the little girl's neck, then took her hand and smiled, his eyes crinkling: "Come on, let's get in the car first. Be careful not to catch a cold since you just woke up."

Shang Shu smelled the pleasant scent of Gu Sui on the scarf, like cotton candy melting in hot cocoa—so fragrant, so warm, so sweet.

As she was being led forward, she asked, "How did you know I just woke up?"

She couldn't help but wonder if her hairstyle was wrong.

Gu Sui chuckled softly without saying a word. After getting into the car and closing the door, he gently pinched Shang Shu's cheek: "Because someone is a little kitten."

Upon hearing this, Shang Shu finally saw the red marks on her face from sleeping on the car window. Embarrassed, she quickly grabbed a scarf to cover them: "That was... so embarrassing..."

Thinking back to how she had greeted Gu Xiangyi so confidently with that face just moments before, she suddenly felt that the other woman's bright smile carried a different meaning.

Seeing the little girl's adorable appearance, Gu Sui smiled and gently pulled off the scarf, saying, "It's alright, you look good no matter what."

Upon hearing this, Shang Shu's already flushed face turned even redder. Like a boiled shrimp, she lowered her head and remained silent.

After looking forward to it for so long, I was at a loss for words when we finally met.

Looking at Shang Shu's slightly bluish lower eyelids, Gu Sui couldn't help but feel a little sorry for her. She gently rubbed Shang Shu's head and said softly, "Do you want to sleep a little longer? I'll wake you up when we get there."

Shang Shu gently shook her head; she couldn't bear to sleep.

Seeing that Gu Sui looked quite energetic, she asked, "Why do I look like the one who just got off the plane?"

Gu Sui couldn't help but chuckle: "Yes, our CEO Shang works much harder than I do."

Shang Shu lowered her head and twirled the soft tassels of her scarf with her fingers. In a good mood, she became more talkative: "This week has been really busy. Charity gala, engagement party, exhibition setup. I guess we'll be busy for a while before the opening this month. But thankfully, you..."

It's good that you're back.

Her fingers, which were holding the tassel, paused slightly, and the words stuck in her throat; she still couldn't quite bring herself to say them.

Shang Shu glanced at Gu Sui discreetly and saw him staring at her with a smile. She blinked and changed the subject: "You've been in Luncheng for a week, nothing unusual has happened?"

“Yes,” Gu Sui replied, pursing his lips. “It was raining in Aocheng that day, and someone was thinking of me.”

Shang Shu bit her lip, her ears starting to burn again.

“During the week I was there, it rained every day in Luncheng.”

Gu Sui reached out and tucked Shang Shu's curly hair, which was covering her face, behind her ear. Her cool fingertips brushed against the burning earlobe as she continued:

"Ah Shu, what I mean is, I miss you every day."

My heart was pounding so hard it felt like it was going to fly away.

Shang Shu felt that if there were a blood pressure monitor next to her right now, her blood pressure would be so high it would be about to explode, and she knew without a doubt that her ears would be as red as if they were about to bleed.

Before, she was always the one clinging to Gu Sui, saying she missed him and loved him. Now, how come it's all reversed?

Who taught her to be so alluring...?

Shang Shu's mind went blank again, and the strings of her reason snapped one after another, as if a huge megaphone had been turned on in her mind, clamoring for her to do something outrageous in response.

At that moment, she had only one thought:

I want to kiss her.

I really, really want to.

Shang Shu breathed softly, staring intently at Gu Sui's face so close to hers. Her eyelashes trembled uncontrollably, and she still tightly gripped the soft tassel in her hand. She felt the fingertips beside her ear move down to the back of her neck, and she did not resist.

Just as she was about to close her eyes due to loss of focus, the car braked suddenly, shattering this beautiful illusion.

"Excuse me, miss, an elderly person suddenly crossed the road." The driver lowered the partition to apologize.

Shang Shu quickly straightened her body, cleared her throat, and said calmly, "It's nothing."

She then awkwardly turned her head to the window, casually tossing aside the tassel she had been holding.

Gu Sui gazed at the ripe ear tips and curled his lips into a smile.

Just one step away.

She could sense Shang Shu's softening, and that was enough.