Chapter 13 Add me on WeChat?

She regretted it as soon as the words left her mouth.

It's perfectly normal for parents to accompany their children to experience things together, but this is a special banquet for the wealthy!

Qu He's gaze swept over Zhuang Bieyan's expensive three-piece suit, which seemed completely out of place here.

How could a young nobleman like him, whose every move is under public scrutiny, possibly be willing to get involved in mud?

Even Qian Zhaoye called pottery "dirty stuff" and "unpresentable," let alone Zhuang Bieyan.

Qu He chuckled to herself inwardly.

"Okay, thank you."

The deep voice made Qu He suddenly look up.

Zhuang Bieyan's hand was already on his glasses. He slowly took off his suit jacket, revealing his broad shoulders and narrow waist wrapped in a shirt.

He draped the suit jacket over his wrist, his slender fingers gently loosening the cuffs and slowly rolling them up to reveal his well-defined forearms.

Qu He could even see the slightly protruding blue veins on her arms.

She unconsciously held her breath.

But the faint scent of cedar slowly spread through the air with his movements, cunningly slipping into his nostrils.

Do you rich young masters slow down the whole time when you take off your coats?

"Miss Qu?"

Zhuang Bieyan's voice pulled him back to reality.

The hand she had been staring at was now suspended in mid-air, waiting for her to hand over the apron.

Qu He then realized what was happening.

"Feel sorry."

She hurriedly took the same adult apron as Zhuang Xi from the shelf.

But the moment she handed it to him, their fingertips touched.

That instantaneous touch felt like an electric current running down my spine.

Qu He quickly withdrew her hand, took his suit jacket, hung it on the rack, and hurried over to Zhuang Xi, squatting down beside him. Her voice was somewhat unnatural, "Come on, Xiao Xi, let me teach you..."

Even though the person behind her was several meters away, Qu He still heard a barely audible chuckle.

She felt a tingling sensation in the back of her neck and instinctively turned her head to look at Zhuang Bieyan's position.

He was slowly taking off his watch, but his gaze remained fixed on her.

Qu He quickly turned around, exhaled, and finally focused her attention on the mud in her hands.

When her palm touched the clay again, the long-lost touch made Qu He's nose tingle.

Memories of staying up all night working on my graduation project came flooding back.

She used to see giving up these things as the price of love and growth, but at this moment she truly understood that it was just the beginning of Qian Zhaoye gradually stripping away her self.

Someone who truly loves you would never bear to let you give up what you love...

"Teacher Qu, my mud has turned into a big pancake..."

Xiao Zhuangxi's innocent voice pulled her out of her memories.

Qu He looked at the clay that had spread out into a lump on the potter's wheel and couldn't help but chuckle.

"It's okay, the teacher will choose another center for you. This time we'll try again slowly..."

Xiao Zhuangxi studied very hard, but the clay just wouldn't cooperate in her hands. After several failures, she pouted so hard she almost reached the sky.

"It's okay, Xiaoxi has already done a great job..."

Qu He was busy comforting her, and just as she was about to help her with her hands wet, she saw that Zhuang Bieyan, who had been watching from the side, had naturally sat down on Zhuang Xi's small stool.

The man's long legs looked somewhat cramped in front of the low potter's wheel, and he was forced to bend and separate his legs.

The fabric of the trousers tightened instantly, creating several taut creases at the thighs.

Zhuang Bieyan took a new piece of clay and skillfully pressed it onto the potter's wheel. He wet it with water, turned the wheel, and with a little pressure from his palm and thumb, he successfully centered it.

In less than twenty seconds, a small bowl was formed.

Wow! Uncle is amazing!

Little Zhuangxi clapped and cheered beside him, his starry eyes filled with admiration.

Qu He was also stunned.

The basic actions of centering and throwing the potter's wheel may seem simple, but in reality, they require very precise control over the force and angle.

Even the most talented person rarely achieves this level on their first try.

As expected of a farewell banquet!

Xiao Zhuangxi watched as the small bowl on the potter's wheel bounced around several times. "Teacher Qu, isn't my uncle amazing!"

Qu He nodded and exclaimed sincerely, "I didn't expect President Zhuang to be so proficient in pottery."

Zhuang Bieyan, who was washing the clay off his fingers with water, looked up at her upon hearing this.

A faint smile played at the corners of his lips: "I know a little bit."

Water droplets slid down his well-defined fingers, spreading an invisible water stain on his black trousers.

His gaze moved down to Qu He's fingertips, which were covered in clay, and then slowly moved back up.

Their eyes met.

"Miss Qu is the same."

This sentence is like a small stone thrown into a calm lake.

It took Qu He a while to realize the meaning of his words.

Didn't you expect her to know pottery?

yes.

After all, in the eyes of outsiders, she was just Qian Zhaoye's rigid and boring secretary.

“I majored in ceramic art design in college,” she said.

His fingertips rubbed against the faint ring mark on his ring finger, intentionally or unintentionally.

Five years have passed, and this is the first time she has brought up her major on her own initiative, as if acknowledging that forgotten identity.

Qu He felt a lump in her throat and turned her head slightly away from her eyes.

That's why she missed Zhuang Bieyan. Her amber eyes showed no surprise, but rather...heartache.

"I see."

Zhuang Bieyan took out two tissues and slowly wiped the water droplets from his hands. When he looked up again, his eyes were calm as still water.

“If Ms. Qu had continued her studies in ceramics after graduating from university five years ago, I probably would have heard your name at the Basel Ceramic Fair, instead of at the Wochuang Forum.”

Three months ago at the Wochuang Forum, she spoke on behalf of Qian Zhaoye, who had gone to Singapore temporarily to discuss cooperation.

At that moment, Zhuang Bieyan sat quietly in the center of the first row below the stage.

No one expected someone like Zhuang Bieyan to attend the forum.

Quhe is no exception.

What was originally just an ordinary speech turned into a sweaty mess the moment she met Zhuang Bieyan's gaze.

It turns out that Zhuang Bieyan remembered her name at that time.

But right now, Qu He's mind is filled with the three words 'Basel'.

The word Zhuang Bieyan suddenly mentioned was like a needle piercing her already numb nerves.

That was the place she had always dreamed of going to.

Art Basel is the dream palace for every ceramic artist, and having one's work exhibited at Art Basel is undoubtedly the highest honor.

On the first day of university, she excitedly wrote "See you in Basel" on the freshman wish wall.

Qu He remembers that the sun was shining brightly that day, and her heart and eyes were full of dreams.

Instead of like it is now...

She shuttles between meeting rooms and office areas every day, and even her name has been simplified to 'Secretary Qu'.

The sunlight made her eyes sting a little. She forced a smile and said in a voice as soft as a feather, "President Zhuang thinks too highly of me."

Zhuang Bieyan's gaze swept around Heyuefang before slowly returning to Qu He's face.

"I'm really looking forward to it."

Four words.

It was very light, like a sigh.

It's heavy, like a promise.

Qu He once doubted that she had misheard.

Her fingertips trembled slightly as she looked up at him.

Zhuang Bieyan had put her glasses back on, regaining her initial aloofness and arrogance, while her amber eyes behind the lenses held emotions she couldn't decipher.

The sun is setting.

The shadows of the three people were stretched long and intertwined.

The afterglow wove a golden net in the air, and dust danced in the air, creating a dreamlike scene.

Time seemed to stand still at that moment, and Qu He seemed to see a blurry outline.

That's me at eighteen.

The one-hour ceramics experience came to a quick end.

Xiao Zhuangxi held the ceramic rabbit that Qu He had given her, and she couldn't put it down.

Qu He wrote the date and her name on a sticky note and stuck it next to the small bowl.

"Once the clay blanks are dry, they can be glazed and fired. You can pick them up yourself or have them delivered by courier."

Little Zhuangxi's eyes were full of anticipation as she tilted her head and asked, "When will Xi'er know that the little bowl is ready?"

Qu He patted the top of her head.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Zhuang Bieyan standing not far away, making a phone call. The man was turned to the side, his expression indifferent, and he did not notice their conversation.

He held the phone loosely with his fingers, while his other hand hooked around Zhuang Xi's pink strawberry bear backpack.

"The ceramics need to be fired twice and then glazed, which takes about a month. The shopkeeper will contact us once they're done..."

Qu He was halfway through her sentence when she realized that the shop's work machine should be with Si Yue.

Xiao Zhuangxi blinked her big eyes, "Then, Xi'er, can I add you on WeChat, Teacher Qu? Once the small bowl is cooked, send me a message and I'll have the driver come and pick it up."

"ah?"

Qu He was stunned for a moment, but quickly realized what was happening.

"Sure," she agreed softly, patting her head. "But does Xiaoxi already have a cell phone at such a young age?"

Xiao Zhuangxi shook his head like an adult, "No, no, no, Mom said children shouldn't play with their phones."

She said proudly, "But Xi'er has a Little Genius phone watch." She counted on her fingers, "Teacher Qu, you are the seventh adult in my watch."

Qu He: "Who are the six in front of us?"

As Xiao Zhuangxi recited the names, he pointed with his fingers, "Great-grandfather, grandfather, mother, uncle, aunt Yu, uncle Yu."

They're practically revealing all their assets.

Qu He was amused and took out her phone to scan the WeChat QR code.

Zhuang Bieyan ended the call at some point and walked towards them. His steps were slow, and the setting sun cast a long shadow over him.

Xiao Zhuangxi ran over, tugged at his sleeve, and looked up to ask, "Uncle, can I have the Little Genius smartwatch from my schoolbag? I want to add Teacher Qu on WeChat."

Zhuang Bieyan handed over the schoolbag.

Zhuang Xi searched every corner of his schoolbag, inside and out, and his little face gradually fell.

"Where's my watch?" Her voice was clearly trembling with tears. "I clearly put it here... Without my watch, I can't see my little bowl right away..."

"You should take good care of your own things," Zhuang Bieyan said calmly.

Xiao Zhuangxi's tears finally fell.

Qu He glanced at Zhuang Bieyan with some dissatisfaction.

She quickly knelt down and reached out to wipe Zhuang Xi's tears, gently comforting her, "Don't cry, don't cry..."

Zhuang Bieyan froze for a few seconds after being glanced at by her.

“Instead of crying,” his voice was softer than before, “you should be thinking about how to solve the problem.”

These words seemed to have a magical power; Xiao Zhuangxi slowly stopped crying. She looked up, sobbing, and through her teary eyes, a sudden inspiration flashed in her little mind.

"Then... Uncle, can you add Teacher Qu on WeChat?"