Chapter 20, Part 20: A Round and Round
He Peiru took another nap and finally managed to completely put everything that had happened behind her back.
Last night, Jiang Yaozong and Zheng Wanqiao had made plans with old friends. Jiang Yici was worried about her mood, so he comforted her during dinner: "Aru, just think of going to the nursing home today as saying goodbye to the past. Don't think about anything else related to He Zhongsheng's old age, illness and death. I will have someone handle it here."
The uncle and nephew did not discuss it beforehand, but they both agreed not to bring everything to the attention of the two elders.
She had worried that she might have to intervene if He Zhong needed her help, but since Jiang Yici said so, she would gladly accept it; it was the best arrangement possible.
She replied, "I understand, and I won't be influenced by him anymore."
He Peiru's mood calmed down a little, and she soon realized that in the face of the current facts, the disturbances caused to her in the past were no longer worth mentioning.
It's time for her to put a final, clean end to her relationship with He Zhong.
Seeing that she was feeling better, Jiang Yici decided to divert her attention by mentioning other plans: "Isn't your birthday coming up soon? Your family is planning to throw you a birthday party."
"Is it your birthday?"
If Jiang Yici hadn't mentioned it, He Peiru would have forgotten about this day.
Birthdays have become a distant concept for her for a long time, and she doesn't make a conscious effort to celebrate them.
Sometimes, she only remembers to buy a small cake when she receives a blessing from outsiders or a gift from Feng Shiqi.
For He Peiru in the past, this was already a very extravagant thing to do.
The Chiang family was about to make grand preparations for this day.
Jiang Yi let her process this fact slowly, and suggested to her, "You can invite your friends to the birthday party as much as you like. Only people familiar with the Jiang family will be there that night. Just tell Assistant Li how many invitations you need."
The last time she had a proper birthday celebration was when her parents were still alive; the three of them would always go to McDonald's to celebrate with her.
Looking back at this special day, He Peiru's first thought was to invite Feng Shiqi. She nodded and said, "Okay, I'll think about who I want to invite first."
Considering the people she might invite, she asked, just to be on the safe side, "If we need to prepare extra dresses..."
Before she could finish speaking, Jiang Yici replied, "You can have as many dresses as you need. I'll have Assistant Li contact more stylists for you later."
He Peiru's mood improved completely: "Thank you, Uncle!"
As she finished speaking, her hopes for the future followed.
Although Jiang Yici said it was a farewell to the past, countless memories worth cherishing flooded her mind at this moment.
It was thanks to those people and events that she was able to get the chance to return to the Jiang family.
Aside from the public housing where she grew up, to meeting Yu Yin later, and the man she met in the back alley while working at Wu Yang's place, it seems that it was all due to their momentary lapse in judgment that she was saved.
He Peiru still remembers the lighter she casually tossed away, but in this city that can hold seven million people, she probably has no chance to meet the other person again.
Perhaps that lighter has already ended up in a garbage incinerator, but she alone still clings to hope.
But she knew that just thinking about it was pointless, especially since she didn't even really know the other person.
Perhaps in the near future, that lighter will suddenly appear in front of her.
-
Jiang Yici's office.
Yu Yin was so surprised that she couldn't close her mouth after finally figuring out the situation.
Although the names matched, Yu Yin and Gu Zhaoqian still felt it was necessary to confirm them again.
Gu Zhaoqian matched the information he knew with Yu Yin's memories one by one, and after ensuring that there were no errors, he was finally certain that the person he had been looking for was He Peiru.
At the same time, a question arose in his mind, and he asked, "I have sent people to inquire about Aru's whereabouts over the past few years, but why are the answers I received different from the facts?"
"Come to think of it, I do remember something like that." Yu Yin hadn't expected reality to unfold so dramatically, and awkwardly told him the truth.
“At that time, I was worried that some strange person had approached Aru, and I didn’t know what their purpose was, so I made up some false information.”
...
No wonder he encountered many obstacles during his investigation; it turns out that his direction was correct, but the information he obtained was not accurate.
So no matter what he did, he couldn't get the result he wanted.
Yu Yin couldn't help but think of more, and murmured, "If I had told you the truth back then, would you have been able to recognize Aru sooner, Aci...?"
The further the story unfolds, the more Yu Yin realizes that this possibility exists.
Jiang Yici patted the back of her hand and said, "Don't overthink it."
She sighed, "But this kind of coincidence is really..."
"This largely proves that after going around in circles, they will still come together."
Jiang Yici did not want Yu Yin to feel guilty, especially since things are unpredictable and every choice can change the course of events.
Gu Zhaoqian drank the tea his secretary brought in without saying a word. Jiang Yici couldn't tell what he was thinking, so he asked directly, "Ah Qian, what are your plans?"
Jiang Yici had been so focused on talking to Yu Yin that he remembered something more important and asked, "What happened between you and Aru? Why do you want to find her?"
Gu Zhaoqian couldn't believe that so many coincidences could actually exist in the world. Now that the facts were right in front of him, he couldn't make a decision. He could only answer, "Let me think about it. I don't want her to know for the time being. As for me and Aru... Uncle Jiang, I'll tell you later."
"Hmm?" Jiang Yici didn't necessarily intend to know the whole story, but he was surprised that Gu Zhaoqian would be so cautious.
He organized his thoughts and said, "I don't know if Aru remembers, and I'm afraid that if she finds out, it will become a burden."
“Alright, then I’ll respect your idea.” Jiang Yici turned to look at Yu Yin. “Tonight I plan to take A Yin back to the Jiang family. We’ll pretend nothing happened.”
He nodded: "I'm counting on you."
Just five words made Jiang Yici laugh.
It's surprising that He Peiru made him act so politely.
“However…” Gu Zhaoqian then asked, “Can I go back with you tonight?”
"Of course." Jiang Yici frowned, surprised that he was actually being so polite. "But you have to be careful not to reveal it to Aru."
Gu Zhaoqian nodded: "Understood."
In that instant, he transformed back into the arrogant Gu Zhaoqian.
The secret in his heart was finally revealed, but he hesitated, unsure of how to proceed.
-
He Peiru went back to school in the morning. After class, instead of going home, she went to the library to study, which she hadn't done in a long time.
It's time for her to consider choosing a topic for her graduation thesis.
It wasn't until after 3 p.m. that she received a message from Jiang Yici.
She thought it was related to her birthday party, but the content surprised her.
Jiang Yici: [Sohpia said you're not home? I'll be inviting a guest home tonight.]
Jiang Yici: [If you're free tonight, you could get to know the guests.]
His mysterious tone made He Peiru want to ask who the guest was, but she felt it wasn't appropriate and could only wait until the evening to find out.
He Peiru: [I went back to school, I'll be home in a bit.]
She estimated the time and returned to the Jiang family home. The clock in the living room was about to point to the time when Jiang Yici usually arrived home, so she simply sat on the sofa and waited.
In He Peiru's memory, Jiang Yici had hosted many guests at home, but it seemed to be the first time he had sent her a message alone.
She kept looking out the window, waiting for the sound of a car to come from outside. When she turned around, she could see Sophia and the other Filipino maids busy at work.
This was a scene I had never seen before.
After waiting a few more minutes, He Peiru finally heard the sound of the villa door opening. She looked up abruptly and the first person she saw was Gu Zhaoqian.
She paused for a moment, then said, "Brother Qian."
Gu Zhaoqian's expression was somewhat complicated, but he simply nodded.
There was no response.
Then she noticed that Jiang Yici was following behind him.
There's another woman?
Her gaze was drawn to the pink diamond necklace around the woman's neck. Wasn't this the same one that Assistant Li had brought back that day?
He Peiru looked up at the woman's face, and froze the moment she saw it clearly.
She knew this face all too well.
The reason she was able to successfully complete secondary school and later save up for part of her university tuition can be said to be entirely due to the lingering influence of Yu Yin.
However, she subconsciously doubted her own eyes, rubbed them to make sure she wasn't seeing things, and only then did she dare to speak: "...Sister Yin?"
Yu Yin saw her reaction and couldn't help but chuckle, saying, "Aru, it's been a long time."
He Peiru was so shocked that she couldn't recover for a long time. Sitting on the sofa, she murmured, "This..."
Jiang Yici didn't forget to erase what happened in the office, nor did he mention Gu Zhaoqian. He simply said, "After Yinyin heard your name, she confirmed with me and found out that you two had known each other for a long time."
Gu Zhaoqian chose this moment to speak, telling He Peiru, "She is the person you're curious about."
"Really!?"
He Peiru was stunned by the successive revelations, her gaze constantly shifting between her uncle and Yu Yin.
After she got into university, she stopped working part-time at Wuyang. Although she would occasionally go there, she saw Yu Yin much less often than when she was working there.
So I almost didn't recognize her.
He Peiru noticed that Yu Yin had been holding hands with Jiang Yici earlier, but now she let go and walked towards her, saying with emotion, "I was so surprised when I found out that you were Aci's niece."
Yu Yin hugged her tightly, her voice filled with heartache: "That's great, Aru won't have to worry about those things anymore."
On the way back to the Jiang family, Jiang Yici told Yu Yin about her current situation, and even told Yu Yin about the things that He Peiru had kept hidden in her heart and related to He Zhong.
So much so that when Yu Yin saw He Peiru, her eyes welled up with tears, and she wanted to start catching up with her right then and there.
Jiang Yici followed Yu Yin at a leisurely pace, and only when he was almost beside them did he say, "From now on, we're all family. You can talk about whatever you want to say."
Upon hearing this, Yu Yin finally released He Peiru and turned around to give Jiang Yici a shy nudge.
Jiang Yi had other plans, but Gu Zhaoqian's accidental visit to his office brought his plans forward.
"That's good," he laughed. "I originally planned to introduce you two at Aru's birthday party, but now it's fine. Otherwise, you would only be thinking about catching up with old friends."
He Peiru looked up and said awkwardly, "Actually... Sister Yin's name is on the list of guests I plan to invite."
“That’s not important.” Jiang Yici seized on the loophole in her words. “Don’t call her Sister Yin anymore. According to seniority, she is your aunt.”
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Author's Note: Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2024-02-17 23:58:58 and 2024-02-18 23:57:23!
Thank you to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: Twenty-four, Wang Chuqin, one bottle of Healthy Growth Solution;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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