31 Chapter 31
◎You have guests!!!◎
Sang Xinqi stood in the corridor, her fingers unconsciously twisting the strap of her bag. She looked up and saw Liao Yishen coming out of the bathroom, wiping his hair.
Water droplets slid down the ends of his hair, leaving a mark on his collarbone. He seemed to notice something and suddenly turned his head to look at the door.
The moment their eyes met, Sang Xinqi saw him frozen in place. She took a deep breath, dug her nails into her palms, and forced herself to smile politely, "You have a guest."
Liao Yishen walked quickly to the door, and was greeted by a humid and hot air mixed with the familiar scent of osmanthus.
"My senior, Xu Jiaran," Liao Yishen's voice was a little tense.
Sang Xinqi's gaze darted between the two of them, finally settling on a suspicious red mark on the woman's collarbone. She suddenly felt difficulty breathing and let out a hasty "Ah!" "Alright, then. I won't bother you anymore."
Without waiting for Liao Yishen's response, she turned and walked towards the door opposite. The prompt sound of entering the password was particularly harsh in the silent corridor. She pushed the door open and smiled at the two of them as she closed the door. Then she slammed the door shut, shaking the decorative paintings on the wall three times.
After entering, she slowly slid down to sit on the ground with her back against the door.
The two people outside stared at the closed door.
Xu Jiaran shrugged, "It seems like there was a misunderstanding."
After a long silence, Liao Yishen's voice seemed to come from far away, "It's okay, senior sister, I'll change my clothes and take you home."
"Don't care?" Xu Jiaran's tone was inquiring.
He didn't respond, but went into the house to change his clothes.
Seeing him come out, Xu Jiaran said, "Thank you so much today. If I hadn't met you, I don't know what to do."
Liao Yishen said softly, "Senior sister, you were the most free and easy when you were in school."
"Yeah," Xu Jiaran said with a wry smile, "but now... there's someone I can't bear to let go of."
Liao Yishen's eyes darkened, and his voice was low but firm, "That's not a reason for you not to leave. You can definitely take her with you. It will be good for both her and you."
Xu Jiaran lowered his eyelashes, and gently stroked the old bracelet on his wrist with his fingertips. After a while, he said, "I have... decided."
Her voice was very soft, as if she was speaking to him, but also as if she was speaking to herself.
-
For several days, Sang Xinqi did not go to see Liao Yishen, and even did not return to her residence. She stayed at Chang Yisi's house.
"How could he do this?" Chang Yisi angrily stuffed a grape into his mouth. "Why didn't he tell me he had a crush on someone earlier? What's the point of keeping you hanging? If it were me, I'd just give up."
Sang Xinqi lay on the sofa with her face covered with a mask, her voice muffled, "I'm so sad... I don't even have the courage to go back now. I really want to move out."
"Move! Must move!" Chang Yisi said firmly, "How can we keep a man like this for the New Year?"
Sang Xinqi curled the corners of her mouth and didn't say anything else.
Even with his eyes closed, the scene of that day could not be erased: the glaring red mark on the woman's collarbone, and Liao Yishen's frozen expression.
The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. My chest felt like it was blocked by a ball of cotton, making it stuffy and painful.
She sat up suddenly and peeled off her mask. "I want to go back."
"Ah?" Chang Yisi almost choked on the grapes. "It's already past ten o'clock. Why are you going back?"
"Ask clearly," Sang Xinqi clenched the mask tightly, water dripping through her fingers, "otherwise I won't be able to sleep."
Chang Yisi opened his mouth and finally sighed, "Alright, you're so stubborn..."
Sang Xinqi is a man of action. As soon as the idea came to her mind, she immediately grabbed her coat and bag and packed everything in three minutes.
The streets were empty and quiet late at night. She stepped on the accelerator, and the wind blowing in through the car window dispelled some of the heat. However, the closer she got to the residential complex, the faster her heartbeat became, and her fingertips tapped unconsciously on the steering wheel.
Soon, she was standing in the familiar corridor. She took a deep breath, walked straight to the door opposite, raised her hand and knocked.
"Boom, boom, boom."
The thirty seconds of waiting seemed to be stretched into a century.
Until the door lock made a light "click", Liao Yishen's face appeared before his eyes in the warm yellow light.
There was a faint dark tint under his eyes, as if he hadn't slept well.
Sang Xinqi looked at the face she had been thinking about day and night, and her heart softened for a moment, but then the scene of that day appeared before her eyes again -
These days, he doesn't even have a message.
"I want an explanation," Sang Xinqi stood at the door and went straight to the point. The night wind rushed in from the corridor window, blowing the loose hair on her forehead.
Liao Yishen's gaze lingered on her face for a moment, his brows slightly furrowed. "Let's talk inside."
Sang Xinqi gripped the strap tightly, her nails digging into her palms. "Okay."
She walked straight to the sofa and sat down with her back straight. Liao Yishen closed the door, and the cold light from the refrigerator illuminated half of his face. He took out two bottles of water, loosened the caps with his slender fingers, and handed one of the bottles to her.
The cool touch brought Sang Xinqi back to her senses a little.
Liao Yishen sat down opposite her and said in a low voice, "She is my senior, there is nothing between us."
"That day in the restaurant, I saw her arguing with her husband and mother-in-law. Her mother-in-law suddenly threw water at her, and I blocked it." His fingertips unconsciously stroked the bottle. "Then her mother-in-law thought I was her gigolo, and the argument got even worse. My senior sister was so angry that she dragged me away."
Sang Xinqi tapped lightly on the bottle with her fingertips, and the rhythm gradually slowed down.
"She had nowhere to go for a while, and I also needed to change clothes, so I brought her back first, that's all," Liao Yishen looked up at her, his Adam's apple rolling.
He knocked on her door every day these days, wanting to explain to her, but after knocking for several days, the door was never opened.
Sang Xinqi's frustration suddenly eased a little. "Is her husband just going to watch her mother-in-law like this?"
"They met through a blind date and didn't have much emotional foundation. After they got married, we found out he was a mama's boy," Liao Yishen said with a wry smile. "He listens to his mother in everything."
"You are not the same..." Sang Xinqi blurted out, and suddenly realized something and stopped talking.
She stole a glance at Liao Yishen and added softly, "...I'm sorry."
Liao Yishen shook his head, the light casting a small shadow under his eyelashes. Silence stretched between the two of them, and it was finally Sang Xinqi who broke the silence.
"Then I will continue to pursue you," her voice was soft but firm, "until you agree to reconcile."
Liao Yishen's fingers suddenly tightened, the plastic bottle made a slight clicking sound, and the words of rejection rolled around on the tip of his tongue, finally turning into an almost inaudible sigh.
Sang Xinqi suddenly leaned forward, the distance between them suddenly shortened to the point where breathing was audible. Her long eyelashes cast tiny shadows under the light, and her bright eyes looked straight into his. "If you don't say anything, I'll take it as your consent."
She was so close that Liao Yishen could smell the faint scent of shampoo in her hair, and so close that he could see the fine hairs on her cheeks, which were coated with a soft glow by the light.
His breathing unconsciously stopped for a moment, his Adam's apple rolled up and down, and the knuckles holding the mineral water bottle turned slightly white.
Fortunately, she retreated the next second, keeping a safe distance like a cunning cat. Only then did Liao Yishen realize that his back was stiff.
"I'll go first," Sang Xinqi's hair lifted in a light arc as she turned around, but her steps were deliberately slow, as if she was waiting for something.
It was not until the door lock made a slight "click" that Liao Yishen came back to his senses from the subtle feeling of dizziness.
In the empty living room, there was only an unfinished bottle of mineral water on the coffee table. A few drops of water were slowly sliding down the bottle, just like the gleam in someone's eyes just now.
-
The November sunshine streamed into the conference room through the floor-to-ceiling windows. Sang Xinqi spread the last sample garment neatly on the display stand.
These winter series, which took her two months of hard work, have every line shining delicately in the sunlight.
"Mr. Shen, this is our flagship style this season," she said, lightly tapping the dark pattern on the sample with her fingertips. "It uses three-dimensional tailoring, which not only retains the sharpness of the garment, but also adds a feminine element through the pleats at the waist."
"Not bad, not bad. We are very satisfied," Mr. Shen stroked the sample and said with a smile, "I played golf with Mr. Xu last week and talked about your studio. He was very optimistic about your studio. I have cooperated with Mr. Xu a lot, and he is optimistic about it. So you are really good."
Sang Xinqi paused for a moment, her fingertips lightly tracing the neckline of the sample garment, the corners of her lips raised in a perfect arc, "Mr. Shen, you are too kind. It is my honor to receive the favor of your company."
By the end of the meeting, the contract was stamped with bright red seals from both parties.
Xiao Zhang followed behind him, holding a file bag. As soon as he got out of the elevator, he couldn't help but cheer, "Boss! Mr. Shen's eyes lit up when he looked at the samples!"
Sang Xinqi looked at the falling sycamore leaves on the street, and smiled slightly, "Great, I'll treat everyone to dinner tonight."
Xiao Zhang cheered, "Great!"
At three o'clock in the afternoon, a faint caramel aroma wafted from the "Cloud Coffee" near the studio. When Xu Jianian pushed the door open, the wind chimes rang crisply.
"I heard that you are cooperating with Mr. Chen?" Xu Jianian asked as he entered the door.
Sang Xinqi took a sip of coffee and nodded, "This deal is possible thanks to you."
"It's mainly because your design is unique, otherwise he wouldn't have noticed." He put down his briefcase and pulled out a stack of documents. "It just so happens that I have an opportunity here too."
Sang Xinqi stirred the coffee, and the milk foam left a dense mark on the rim of the cup. On the information handed over by Xu Jianian, the logo of a well-known sweater brand was particularly eye-catching.
"Their sales have dropped significantly in the past two years," Xu Jianian said, pointing to market research data. "Traditional knitting techniques are an advantage, but the designs are still stuck in the past five years. Our company specializes in evening gowns, and you're more adept at that."
Sunlight passed over the pages of information, and Sang Xinqi's fingertips stopped on a certain set of data. This was exactly the consumer group her brand wanted to expand.
"Jia Nian," she suddenly closed the file, her eyes bright, "I'll remember this favor."
Xu Jianian tapped the rim of his coffee cup with his slender fingers, causing the latte art in the cup to sway slightly with his movements. He raised an eyebrow and smiled, "Don't be so quick to thank me." Sunlight filtered through the floor-to-ceiling windows, casting tiny specks of light on his glasses. "I'm just playing a role. Whether you can catch Mr. Zhang's eye depends on your true ability."
Sang Xinqi held her chin up, her fingertips gently drawing circles on the table, "If it works, I'll give you a share of the profits."
She winked slyly, and the ends of her hair cast a swaying shadow on her neck.
Xu Jianian's eyebrows curved and he was about to speak, but she spoke again before him, "Don't refuse," her voice was undeniably cheerful, "otherwise, I won't feel at ease accepting the clients you introduce in the future."
The background music in the cafe just switched to a light and cheerful tune. Xu Jianian lowered his head and chuckled softly. His watch flashed a silver light in the sunlight. "Okay," he said, raising his coffee cup. "Then I wish us... a happy cooperation?"
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