Chapter 40 The Person I Like
Upon receiving the message and recognizing the sender's name, He Peiru looked up at the sky outside the window.
She learned from Li Jiale that they were going to Melbourne.
While it's still sunny and warm here in the afternoon, night has already fallen over there.
Perhaps because of the time difference, she wasn't as nervous as she had imagined when she received a message from Gu Zhaoqian.
He Peiru took a deep breath and mustered the courage to look down at the text on the screen.
The news came suddenly, but when she saw Jiang Yici's name, everything seemed to make sense.
Regardless, she secretly cheered herself up.
He Peiru: [I don't really know what kinds of souvenirs are available...]
Looking at the message after it was sent, she felt a little annoyed that her reply didn't seem very good.
He Peiru no longer chose to dwell on it alone, and instead posted the screenshot in a group chat she had recently created with Fang Xiaoxin and Feng Shiqi.
He Peiru: [Is my reply okay?]
Fang Xiaoxin: [It's okay, but I think you could be a little more proactive.]
Feng Shiqi: [However, you can continue the conversation along this line.]
Fang Xiaoxin: [Shiqi is absolutely right!]
The two people's replies undoubtedly reassured He Peiru.
He Peiru: [Then I'll wait and see what his reply is.]
Returning to her chat with Gu Zhaoqian, He Peiru's heart suddenly raced.
She repeatedly clicked into and exited the chat page, but still didn't receive any new messages from Gu Zhaoqian.
He seemed different today than usual, replying to messages instantly. Maybe he was busy, or maybe...
It was Jiang Yici who instructed me; it wasn't anything important.
Fang Xiaoxin, on the other hand, had already begun to anxiously press for answers.
Fang Xiaoxin: [I just noticed what Young Master Gu said. Mr. Jiang told him to ask you? I don't believe it!]
Fang Xiaoxin: [That makes it seem like your uncle's assistant is just for show, since he's the one handling all the arrangements for your trip abroad.]
He Peiru was initially struggling with this point, but after Fang Xiaoxin's explanation, she found it increasingly reasonable.
She shouldn't be unaware of this principle, yet she seems to be deliberately deceiving herself by not wanting to delve deeper.
She seemed to be running away.
If these are all excuses from Gu Zhaoqian, does it mean he waited until Jiang Yici arrived in Australia before sending her the message?
He Peiru couldn't figure out Gu Zhaoqian's thoughts, but this guess alone was enough to make her heart race.
The man didn't reply until more than an hour later.
Gu Zhaoqian: [It's okay, what kind of thing do you want?]
Now she lacks nothing materially, and with the advanced transportation system, she can easily buy things from different countries in Hong Kong with just a little effort.
Moreover, the question covers a wide range of topics, making it difficult for her to come up with an answer in such a short time.
But she was also afraid of making Gu Zhaoqian wait too long.
He Peiru: [I haven't thought of anything yet...]
He Peiru: [Or is there something exclusive to Australia?]
This way, she was giving a range of possibilities, which prevented her from seeming perfunctory while allowing her to continue chatting with Gu Zhaoqian.
This time he replied very quickly.
Gu Zhaoqian: [Then why don't you leave the arrangements to me?]
He Peiru: [Okay.]
She held her phone with a heart full of excitement, her smile almost reaching her ears.
Fortunately, she is in her own room now. If other people saw her with this expression, they would definitely be curious about what she had seen.
He Peiru habitually typed "thank you," but just as she was about to press send, she suddenly realized her mistake, quickly pulled her hand back, and deleted the two words.
The conversation almost came to an abrupt end.
He Peiru: [What are you doing right now?]
Gu Zhaoqian: [Attending a cocktail party.]
She had been lounging lazily on the sofa, but was startled and sat bolt upright.
He Peiru: [Huh!?]
He Peiru: [So you still have time to reply to my messages?]
Gu Zhaoqian: [It doesn't matter, this party isn't particularly important.]
Is it unimportant?
He Peiru thought about it. Gu Zhaoqian always seemed to say that, but she didn't know how much of it was true or false.
She felt somewhat helpless.
But it seemed that Gu Zhaoqian had no intention of ending the conversation, so she naturally didn't want to dampen his enthusiasm.
He Peiru: [Is your uncle with you now?]
Gu Zhaoqian: [Yes, but he's currently socializing.]
He Peiru: [...And what about you?]
I wanted to ask him why he didn't have to socialize, but he had already answered my question.
A short sentence.
That was enough to make her blush.
Gu Zhaoqian: [Replying to your message.]
It seemed to be implying that her existence was more important, yet it was also like subtly teasing her.
She steadied herself before continuing to reply.
He Peiru: [Won't this take up too much of your time? You should go back to the party...]
The man's words flowed effortlessly, making it impossible for her to continue the conversation.
Gu Zhaoqian: [Okay, I'll go in then.]
Gu Zhaoqian didn't know why he did what He Peiru said. He had just left the party because he felt bored and tired and went outside to the spacious platform for some fresh air.
Now he actually put his phone away and turned to walk into the city.
He quickly found Jiang Yici in the crowd.
When the people around him saw him approach, they immediately shifted the topic to him: "Young Master Gu is a promising young man and often tells the younger generation in his family to learn from you."
"You're joking."
Whether it's flattery or genuine sentiment, Gu Zhaoqian rarely takes these words to heart unless there's a collaboration.
However, the conversation never stopped, and others began to inquire about his relationship status.
"I've heard that Young Master Gu is currently single, and my daughter is about your age..."
It would have been better if I hadn't said anything, because once I did, I stepped right into Gu Zhaoqian's sensitive spot.
He instantly wiped the smile off his face and interrupted without any politeness: "No need."
She didn't hide anything: "I already have someone I like."
The person who had just spoken realized their abruptness and quickly stopped the conversation: "I see, I'm sorry."
One of the key lessons to learn in such situations is to know when to stop.
The others present were surprised by Gu Zhaoqian's answer, not expecting that they could get first-hand information from Australia.
This also served as a subtle reminder to others not to play matchmaker in front of him anymore.
Jiang Yici, who had been watching him from the sidelines since he returned, found it all amusing.
He was just short of unleashing his pent-up anger, and in this situation, he had no better option than to verbally refuse.
Jiang Yici smiled and took a big gulp of red wine, secretly hoping that this farce would finally come to an end.
-
He Peiru was still somewhat dazed.
What was her position when she urged Gu Zhaoqian, and yet he actually did as she said?
She slumped into the sofa, seemingly lacking the courage to face the reality of the situation.
It doesn't really matter what kind of souvenir Gu Zhaoqian prepares for her; what matters is that they finally have a reason to connect.
The messages released today seem to be a good start.
About three more hours passed.
Gu Zhaoqian: [The party is over.]
He Peiru just came out of the bathroom at that moment. Without even drying her hair, she quickly replied to the message.
He Peiru: [Why did it feel like the party ended much later than usual?]
In the past, at parties held here, people would usually leave around 10 o'clock, unless there were other activities to follow, otherwise they would be ready to rest.
Gu Zhaoqian: [Some investors were quite interested in our project, and once we started talking, it wasn't so easy to leave.]
He spent the whole night dealing with different people, subtly and overtly inquiring about him regarding the project.
If he hadn't really valued this project, he would have run out of patience long ago.
He Peiru naturally couldn't possibly know these things.
He Peiru: [Thank you for your hard work, Uncle.]
She hesitated for a moment before uttering those words.
She felt it was inappropriate to point the finger at Gu Zhaoqian alone; only this way would be proper.
Gu Zhaoqian: [Then Uncle Jiang is having an even harder time; someone is still trying to contact him in the car.]
However, He Peiru wouldn't pay special attention to Jiang Yici alone. He would probably only think that something big must have happened no matter what she said to him.
She didn't mention the souvenirs again, and neither did Gu Zhaoqian.
He Peiru thought he might have forgotten, but she also hoped that he had actually made preparations.
But I kept my expectations hidden in my heart.
The greater the expectation, the greater the disappointment.
He Peiru: [Are you on your way back to the hotel?]
Gu Zhaoqian: [Yes, what about you?]
Gu Zhaoqian: [What are you busy with?]
He Peiru looked up at the computer screen that was still lit up not far away. She would have to face those dizzying data again in a moment.
He Peiru: [Still preparing my graduation thesis...]
Gu Zhaoqian was amused by the text that popped up on the screen, and could easily imagine her troubled expression at that moment.
Gu Zhaoqian: [Graduation thesis is indeed quite annoying.]
Gu Zhaoqian: [Are you preparing for the graduation ceremony?]
She wasn't surprised that Gu Zhaoqian would find out.
He Peiru: [I've heard rumors, but I don't know exactly when.]
Gu Zhaoqian: [If the time is confirmed, would you welcome me to participate?]
He Peiru: [Of course!]
She seemed to reply without thinking, almost instinctively.
Although he knew he was asking for her opinion, it was surprising that someone of his status was asking the question.
She found it equally unbelievable.
Gu Zhaoqian: [Then I'll wait for you to tell me the time.]
He Peiru: [Okay.]
It seemed that through this question-and-answer exchange, the two of them suddenly grew closer to each other.
During Gu Zhaoqian's time in Australia, he would find different reasons to chat with her every day.
She would tell her two girlfriends about the general content of their conversation, and she sensed something increasingly unusual.
Fang Xiaoxin: [Why do I feel like Young Master Gu is proactively reporting his schedule to you?]
Men's writing is never too deliberate, and He Peiru was so absorbed in her own thoughts that she didn't realize there was a problem.
But after hearing Fang Xiaoxin say that, she belatedly realized that something was wrong.
Gu Zhaoqian's words, on the surface, seemed to be expressions of concern, but in reality, they unintentionally revealed what he was doing.
Especially once he mentions Jiang Yici's name.
She would unconsciously assume it was Jiang Yici's arrangement, thus deceiving herself.
These days, all the news revolves around the two of them, and He Peiru must be bewitched to think it's all so natural.
Before they knew it, the day finally arrived for them to return to Hong Kong.
He Peiru hadn't seen Gu Zhaoqian for over half a month; their communication was limited to text messages, and she hadn't even heard his voice.
I actually started to feel like they were online friends.
However, the thought of seeing the real person again after so long made He Peiru feel a little embarrassed.
She didn't know if Gu Zhaoqian would come to the Jiang family. Although she was curious, she didn't dare to ask too many questions.
They could only stay in the living room under the pretense of having afternoon tea, but dared not openly look outside.
He Peiru realized then that her feelings could be so conflicted.
Just as only one pastry remained on her plate, He Peiru heard the sound of a car entering the parking lot.
She suddenly looked up, and Sophia beside her told her, "Mr. Jiang is back."
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