What a small world! I never expected to run into an acquaintance as soon as I arrived at the hotel after landing in Milan.

As we pushed our suitcases into the hotel, we ran into Xu Qianning chatting and laughing with a few foreigners, who were about to leave the hotel.

I was secretly surprised.

We met at Suzhou Garden the day before; she was still in China.

How come you've gone abroad faster than me in the blink of an eye?

I know there was a direct flight to Milan last night, so it seems she took a red-eye flight and arrived first. She's probably already well-rested and adjusted to the time difference.

The Lunar New Year is just around the corner, and in her wealthy family, family reunion is the most important thing.

Moreover, this year is the first year of family reunion after Mr. Xu's retirement—and she is not at home for the New Year?

Considering that she comes from such a wealthy family and is still so hardworking and ambitious, I have developed a certain admiration for her.

"Jiang Wan, we meet again." Xu Qianning greeted me as soon as she saw me.

My colleagues were unaware of my personal feud with Xu Qianning, but since we all work in the fashion industry, they knew she was the president of the East Asia region for the L'Oréal brand.

Little Cherry whispered, "Sister Wan, Miss Xu greeted you first."

"Yes, we are alumni." I replied softly, then turned to my colleagues and told them to check in and rest first.

When Xu Qianning approached, I saw her extend her hand and shook it politely. "Miss Xu is really going all out, traveling so far for business so close to the New Year."

I genuinely admire her, but she felt I was being sarcastic, so she retorted: "The better your background, the more effort you have to put in, otherwise people will always think I'm just relying on family connections."

I smiled, wondering if he was being modest or showing off.

If you have connections in your family, who wouldn't want to rely on them?

It is said that amniotic fluid is the most important watershed in life.

Nobody wants to be born into a bad family.

"You just arrived, you must need to rest. Let's meet later, there are some things I want to talk to you about."

Xu Qianning took the initiative to greet me, which was clearly purposeful; she wanted to talk to me alone.

Xiao Yang, who had been standing beside me, politely declined before I could respond, saying, "Miss Xu, you and Miss Jiang have nothing to talk about. If it involves Mr. Su, you can go and talk to him directly."

Xu Qianning's attention was probably all on me, and she didn't notice the person next to me at first.

After Xiao Yang spoke, she turned her gaze to him, then looked surprised: "Second Brother Su actually sent his personal bodyguard to your side?"

I smiled faintly and brushed a strand of hair behind my ear: "Yes, he's worried about my personal safety."

"But aren't you worried about him?" Xu Qianning's face darkened, her tone clearly lecturing. "Do you know how important his identity is? Do you know that he absolutely cannot have any accidents happen to him? And you're still so smug about taking his bodyguard away."

Of course I know, Su Shenglin told me all of this.

However, these words coming from my rival made it seem like only she cared about Su Shenglin's safety, which made me very unhappy.

"Since Sheng Lin has made this arrangement, he must have a countermeasure. Miss Xu, you should mind your own business."

I had been on a flight for over ten hours and was so sleepy that my eyelids were drooping. I didn't want to waste any more time with her, so I turned and walked away after saying that.

"Jiang Wan!" Xu Qianning turned around and reminded her again, "You know there's no future for you two, so why cling to this temporary happiness? The deeper you fall, the more painful it will be when you break up in the future. Why bother?"

In a foreign land, she suddenly spoke loudly in Chinese, attracting the attention of the foreigners around her.

But I still didn't respond and walked straight to the elevator.

Xiao Yang followed me in, dragging my luggage along.

"Brother Xiao, don't tell him about this. It won't threaten my personal safety anyway, so as not to worry him." I looked at Xiao Yang and politely advised him.

"Okay, Miss Jiang."

I gave him a grateful glance, but after a moment of silence, I suddenly asked, "In all these years you've been by his side, has he encountered any dangerous situations?"

Xu Qianning's words still left a mark on my heart, and I was worried about Su Shenglin's safety.

Xiao Yang said, "No."

After saying that, knowing what I was worried about, he added, "Miss Jiang, don't worry, I'm not the only one with Mr. Su. Even if I'm not there, there will be other people to take care of his safety."

"Okay, thank you."

Back in my hotel room, I sent Su Shenglin a WeChat message to let him know I was safe. After a quick wash, I went to bed.

Although I was physically exhausted, my insomnia returned once I arrived in a foreign country.

I woke up less than three hours after falling asleep, and no matter how I lay down, I couldn't fall back asleep, so I had to get up.

After organizing my work, I picked up my phone and checked the time.

It's afternoon in Milan now, which is seven hours earlier in China, and it would be evening.

Su Shenglin should be free at this time.

Thinking of him warmed my heart, and I felt a pang of longing for him, so I took the initiative to call him.

The call was answered almost instantly.

"You woke up so quickly?" His deep, gentle voice came through, filled with affection and amusement.

I sighed, "I woke up a long time ago, but I can't fall back asleep..."

"Not used to it?"

"A little."

"If it's convenient for you, please send a video. I'd like to see you."

"OK!"

After I agreed, I hung up the call and sent a video call directly.

The next second, his handsome and charming face appeared on the phone screen.

"Hi...you're home?" I noticed he was all alone over there, quiet and not in an office, so I figured he was at home.

"Yeah, it's a two-bedroom apartment next to my workplace. I was thinking of calling you after you woke up, so I took care of some work while I was at it." Su Shenglin casually held his phone. His features were so outstanding that even from a low angle, he was still very handsome.

But I was a little "burdened," afraid that he would see me looking ugly, so I took my phone and lay down on the bed, deliberately finding a good angle.

"I thought you were still busy. I've been awake for a while now. If I had known you were waiting, I would have called earlier."

"It's okay, I'll be here no matter when you call."

We chatted about pointless nonsense, our eyes fixed on each other. Occasionally, when we ran out of things to say, we would just look at each other and smile.

They're not young anymore, but when they fall in love, they act like lovestruck young boys and girls, all lovey-dovey and affectionate.

"By the way, Xu Qianning is also in Milan, did you know?" Su Shenglin suddenly changed the subject.

I was taken aback and asked, "How did you know?"

"I heard it from Grandpa today. He said that when Grandpa Xu came over the day before yesterday, he said that Xu Qianning took a flight to Milan in the early hours of last night."

Just as I guessed.

Seeing that I didn't say anything, Su Shenglin immediately understood, "You also know she's in Milan?"

"Ha, not only do you know, we're staying at the same hotel," I said with a smile.

"So you ran into them?"