Chapter 58
Leaving Ren Ruiyun behind, Shen Hanyang felt the car move much faster. But Yan Qing was out of contact again; three calls went unanswered. A bad feeling crept in. He regretted leaving so hastily that morning without understanding her feelings, and the more he thought about it, the more he suspected she might have seen or heard what was happening downstairs.
I dialed two more numbers, but still no one answered. My palms were sweating as I gripped the steering wheel.
Back in the bedroom, Yan Qing was no longer there. Completely clueless, Shen Hanyang stared at the dark screen of his phone, wondering where to look for her.
After waiting forever, he finally received a call back from Yan Qing, but the signal was intermittent: "I... this afternoon..."
Then it will indicate that the other party's phone is switched off.
His emotions fluctuated wildly over the two hours. By the time he finally met Yan Qing outside the east gate of L University, the moon had already risen high in the sky.
"I almost thought you ran away again." He said something that was very different from his usual self, and his tone was quite uneasy.
Yan Qing coaxed him gently, "I had an interview this afternoon and didn't hear the phone. Then my phone died."
"interview?"
"Yes, I'll be graduating after the New Year. I've shortlisted a few companies for interviews and received a few offers..."
He asked with great interest, "Which companies have you invested in?"
Yan Qing named several people, mostly top figures in the internet industry. Her desire to work in the internet sector was purely for the attractive salaries; pure mathematics jobs weren't easy to find, so she wisely minored in computer science during her undergraduate studies.
"Huanyu has also released a campus recruitment announcement, have you seen it?" Shen Hanyang asked.
Yan Qing, without any guile, said, "I didn't notice."
"oh……"
Shen Hanyang fell silent. After a long while, he gave her a resentful look and said, "It's normal that a small company like Huanyu can't attract the attention of outstanding spring graduates from L University."
He felt wronged, but before Yan Qing could understand his meaning, he preemptively began to defend himself: "You are my leader, not my subordinate. If you come to Huanyu, I will have to assign you tasks, wouldn't that be insubordination... Okay, I've thought it through."
Childish, yet strangely adorable, Yan Qing couldn't help but smile. That smile swept away all the gloom. Shen Hanyang took her hand, and the two strolled along the roadside. The cool winter air felt refreshing from head to toe.
"From now on, I'll try my best not to work overtime or socialize anymore, and I'll have dinner at home with you," he said.
"Home?" she asked in surprise.
"Yes, our home."
Yan Qing was slightly taken aback. In his coat pocket, a hand tightened its grip on hers. Without looking up, she could feel his gaze; the warmth emanating from his burning palm made his tone hesitant: "I know you hate my presumptuousness and self-righteousness, but—" He stopped in front of her, his expression more serious than ever before. She had rehearsed what she was about to say countless times, every word etched in her mind, yet she was momentarily stunned by the person before her.
The weather was cold, and her skin, like frozen mutton fat, was flawlessly white, with a touch of rosy blush at the tip of her nose. Her eyes were transparent, shimmering with the clear sky beyond, a realm he desperately longed to reach but could never touch. Those eyes ignited his feelings. He had intended to tell her gradually, "I've planned our future, a very long future." But facing her directly, all his rehearsed plans crumbled. Desire and courage swelled together, and he asked hopefully, "Could you give me a chance to take care of you for the rest of my life?"
However, courage is only temporary. Once the crucial question is uttered, the aura of confidence vanishes in an instant, completely gone, as if it had never existed. Time seems to freeze, space seems to solidify, all attention is focused on one point, even the sound of the wind whistling past one's ears cannot be heard, the whole world is filled only with one's own suspended heartbeat and breath.
He was waiting for her answer.
His ambiguous silence gradually eroded his resolve, and he began to realize his foolishness. His eagerness to voice his true feelings, as expected, frightened her. There was one more thing he wanted to say, but he ultimately kept it locked away.
At that moment, the hand in his pocket moved slightly, very gently, like a hibernating animal adjusting its position. Hope rekindled in Shen Hanyang's heart.
A cold laugh drifted past them, and suddenly Wang Yongxing's broad, fat figure appeared in their field of vision. He was heading towards the school from the direction of Wuxing Street, wearing a bright green down jacket. With each twist and turn of his head, he looked like a clumsy, giant monster crossing the border.
"Yan Qing?"
Before the figure of the demon had gone far, another familiar voice suddenly rang out. Yan Qing turned around with a start and saw an electric scooter parked by the roadside. Huang Qian was carrying Huang Yanxiang, and the two of them, each wearing a little yellow duck helmet, turned around in this direction.
Yan Qingyi stood stiffly in place, like a candied hawthorn stick coated in syrup, unable to move.
Huang Qian, on the other hand, was in a completely different mood. Her own aloof, ethereal female student was holding hands with a man—a man with broad shoulders, a straight back, and a tall, handsome figure; she didn't even need to see his face to know he was a handsome man. She was happier than if she were in love herself, and she gave Yan Qingfei a flirtatious wink. But when the man calmly turned around and his face came into view, Huang Qian abruptly withdrew her flirtatious glance.
"Professor Huang." Shen Hanyang greeted Huang Qian calmly.
Huang Qian, having seen it all, quickly suppressed her shock, smiled kindly and warmly, and activated her most prized social skill: "Oh, it's President Shen. Hello, hello. Aren't you cold on the curb for a date?"
Everyone: "..."
"No, I meant Xiao Yan was dressed too lightly," Huang Qian tried to explain.
Shen Hanyang silently took off his coat and draped it over Yan Qing, leaving himself in only a thin cashmere sweater, making his figure even more dazzling.
The rest of the people: "..."
From the moment Huang Yanxiang saw this scene, her eyes kept darting back and forth between Yan Qing and Shen Hanyang. She quietly tugged at Huang Qian's sleeve: "Mom, you'd better not say anything."
"Okay, I won't bother you anymore." Huang Qian twisted the throttle and rode away without looking back.
Yan Qing returned the coat to Shen Hanyang and urged him to go home.
Before leaving, Shen Hanyang pulled her into the car and, without saying a word, did something he had wanted to do for a long time.
"We can't lose contact anymore," he said.
Gu Feimeng had already signed the tripartite agreement and, under her parents' relentless urging, decided to leave school early and go home.
It wasn't until she moved that she discovered that the seemingly unremarkable two-door wardrobe in her dorm room was like a silent mythical creature that had swallowed so many things: countless clothes, shoes, hats, dolls, and all sorts of random trinkets—all her online shopping spoils from the past few years. Many of them were seeing the light of day for the first time, and she didn't even remember when she bought them.
Gu Feimeng groaned, "How do I have so much stuff?!" Looking at Yan Qing beside her, who was helping her pack, she seemed completely calm, even sporting a faint smile.
"Hey," Gu Feimeng waved her five fingers in front of her, "Seriously? Your sister is leaving school, and instead of hugging me and crying your eyes out, you're laughing?"
"Sending you off in tears?" Yan Qing hesitated. "Isn't that a bit unlucky?"
Enraged, Gu Feimeng threw down the clothes she was folding halfway through, crossed her arms, and sat down on the stool. Her detective-like keen senses alerted her to Yan Qing's unusual behavior. A phrase popped into her mind: "Spring's beauty cannot be confined within the garden walls."
She squinted: "No, something's not right here."
However, Yan Qing didn't take the bait. She methodically packed the folded clothes into the suitcase: "All the spring, summer, and autumn clothes are in this green suitcase. Next, I'll pack the winter clothes."
Gu Feimeng immediately forgot her earlier doubts and asked happily, "Is it almost finished?"
Yan Qing glanced at the ground, which still had nowhere to step: "Almost there, about one-tenth of it is done."
Gu Feimeng covered her head in despair, unwilling to face it.
Everything was packed in place: two 34-inch suitcases, one 28-inch suitcase, three compression bags not much smaller than the suitcases, two backpacks, and one tote bag, all bulging out with no space left.
Gu Feimeng was even more desperate: "Even my dad's Mazda doesn't have a trunk this big!"
Yan Qing answered a phone call: "...Um...Thank you for your help..."
Not long after, downstairs at the graduate student dormitory of L University, Gu Feimeng stared wide-eyed as two burly men carried her luggage into a minivan.
Her gaze swept over the burly man, over the equally shocked Mr. and Mrs. Gu, and finally landed on Shen Hanyang's face.
She was speechless. It was Gu's mother who woke up first, nudging her daughter with her elbow: "Is this your new boyfriend? He's really good, a hundred times better than Chen Jing!"
Gu Feimeng had no time to pay attention to her mother-in-law's overly enthusiastic attitude. Her mind was racing with a word problem: Given that her best friend is dating a super handsome and rich guy, should she eat boiled fish or spicy blood curd tonight?
"Uncle and Aunt, Mengmeng has a lot of luggage. Let Hanyang drive it over." It was Yan Qing who spoke.
"Han Yang???" Gu Feimeng's voice rose eight octaves.
Yan Qing's face flushed red.
Shen Hanyang gave Gu Feimeng a humble yet approving look.
Yan Qing had eaten at Gu Feimeng's house a few times and was familiar with Gu's parents. Gu's mother then realized she had made a mistake in matchmaking and quickly tried to ease the awkward atmosphere: "Young man, you're Qingqing's boyfriend, right? Oh, what a perfect couple! Our Mengmeng and Qingqing are best friends. If you know any suitable boys, please introduce them to my daughter, just someone like you would be ideal..." Before she could finish, Gu Feimeng covered her mouth, pulled her away, and shoved her into the back seat of the Mazda. Gu's father, not one for words, simply commented with two words: "Not bad, very good," and got into the car with a smile.
Gu Feimeng, rubbing her chin, paced back and forth between Yan Qing and Shen Hanyang a few times.
"What happened? When did you take over? When were you taken down? You, you all..." She gritted her teeth and finally labeled the two of them as "detached from the organization, disregarded the masses, and infringed on Comrade Gu Feimeng's right to know."
Shen Hanyang defused Gu Feimeng's resentment with a single, understated sentence: "Please sit at the head table when we get married."
As for Yan Qing's reproachful look, he could only pretend not to see it for the time being.
"That's more like it. Xiao Shen is quite sensible." Gu Feimeng's anger turned to joy. "Are there any plans for the wedding? A woman only has one wedding in her life, so it should be arranged properly!"
Shen Hanyang adopted an extremely humble attitude: "Please offer your valuable suggestions."
"It's easy to express opinions. Just understand the other party's preferences and pinpoint the difficulties, pain points, and key points. For example... well, Qingqing likes the sea."
Shen Hanyang immediately said, "How about a wedding on an island? I'll invite you and your aunt and uncle to come."
Gu Feimeng instantly conjured up images of the South Pacific's pristine blue skies, clear waters, beautiful corals and tropical fish, as well as the vibrant hand drums and hula dances, yet she maintained her composure on the surface: "That must be quite expensive."
"The cost is not a problem, as long as you are willing to come."
Gu Feimeng was practically straining to suppress her smile: "If you put it that way, I just remembered that Qingqing read a book this year, 'Someone Is Coming,' and after finishing it, she became obsessed with Norway, saying she wanted to see the fjords in the snow. Tsk tsk, islands or Scandinavia, it's a tough choice..."
"Two events can be held."
Every answer was perfect. Gu Feimeng's assessment of Shen Hanyang was a complete success. She abandoned Old Gu and the Mazda, happily boarding Shen Hanyang's MPV. The two hit it off immediately, chatting animatedly about matters related to Yan Qing and Shen Hanyang's future marriage. Shen Hanyang became quite eloquent, and Gu Feimeng forgot to call him a bastard on the phone; in short, she was like a bride's family looking at their new son-in-law, finding him pleasing in every way.
During their conversation, they got to a certain detail and even seriously asked Yan Qing for her opinion, but Yan Qing had no intention of answering. How could she possibly be thinking about marriage so soon!
Her indifference and deafness did nothing to dampen their enthusiasm for the conversation, and the discussion about the wedding continued. Yan Qing, sitting by the window, was starting to doze off. But as she listened, a pure white wedding dress silently unfolded before her eyes. The person holding the dress had clear features and bright eyes, just as he always did when he looked at her, without the slightest difference.
Your lover arrives as promised, and your friends are by your side. Sounds pretty good, right?
It's not just good, it's a scene she dreamed of during her teenage years!
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