Chapter 35 Is it appropriate for the two of us to come? ...
"Yes!" Seeing Shang Shu remember herself, Ji Songning nodded emphatically. "That helmet... I've kept it safe all this time. Senior, thank you so much back then, otherwise I definitely wouldn't be like this now."
Shang Shu smiled with some relief: "You're the one who's capable. It was just a small favor for me."
Ji Songning scratched his head sheepishly, then said "Oh" and took out his phone: "I forgot to get down to business. Let's exchange contact information. We'll definitely need to keep in touch when we're setting up the exhibition."
Shang Shu replied "okay," then gestured to Song Lan behind her, exchanged her wine glass for a phone, and added Ji Songning on the phone.
The banquet went very smoothly. During the auction, the jewelry donated by Shang Shu was actively bid on by a group of collectors, and when it was finally sold, it even exceeded the target amount by a considerable margin.
After it was over, Shang Shu was about to get into the car when a voice called out to her.
"Senior!" Ji Songning lifted the hem of her dress and ran over.
"Sonia, what's wrong?" Shang Shu looked at the person who came in and silently withdrew the foot that was halfway onto the car.
Ji Songning generously took out a jewelry box and held it in his hands, then carefully opened it.
Shang Shu looked at the standard set lying on the velvet lining; it was the very set of jewelry she had donated that had been auctioned off at the banquet earlier.
“Senior, I want to give you this ‘Morning Star’ set. You are the most suitable person for it in my eyes, so I think this piece should belong to its designer.” When Ji Songning spoke, she rarely wore her bright smile, but instead was unusually serious and earnest.
"I……"
"Consider this my thank-you gift. I hope you won't think it's too late, senior?" Seeing that Shang Shu seemed to be refusing, Ji Songning quickly added as she stuffed the jewelry box into her hands.
Shang Shu looked at the glittering 'Morning Star' in her hand, then at Ji Songning's expectant eyes, and finally pursed her lips to accept it: "Thank you, you're so thoughtful."
Ji Songning then smiled again and lifted her skirt once more: "Then, senior... see you in a few days when we're setting up the exhibition!"
"Okay." Shang Shu smiled and said goodbye to her.
Back in the car, Song Lan took the jewelry box from Shang Shu and said calmly, "Miss Ji is very sunny."
Upon hearing this, Shang Shu smiled noncommittally, since Song Lan didn't know about that past either. While asking Song Lan for her phone, she asked, "Any news about Gu Sui?"
Song Lan calmly shook her head, handed Shang Shu her phone, but a hint of a smile flashed in her eyes.
Looking at the empty message box, Shang Shu couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. She glanced at the time, calculating that Gu Sui and the others should be arriving soon, so after some hesitation, she finally asked, "Are you landing soon?"
Unexpectedly, the other party replied immediately: "Yes, the banquet will be over in twenty minutes?"
Shang Shu was startled as she held her phone and instinctively looked out the car window.
Is this person hiring someone to follow her?
Impossible, Gu Sui would never do such a thing.
How does she manage to fly in the sky and still know exactly what her schedule is all about...?
Fortunately, it wasn't long before Shang Shu quickly realized that there seemed to be a "suspect" next to her.
She narrowed her eyes and turned her gaze to Song Lan, who was standing to the side: "How did Gu Sui know I was attending the banquet?"
Song Lan blinked innocently, but readily admitted, "I said it."
Shang Shu continued to press, "Didn't you just tell me you had no news of Gu Sui?"
Song Lan gave an awkward smile: "Weren't you asking about your phone...?"
"..." Shang Shu was speechless, wondering when Song Lan had become Gu Sui's "spy".
She unusually refrained from using a single syllable and replied to Gu Sui with: 【Yeah, just finished.】
The other party replied instantly: 【Get some rest.】
Her lips curved into a smile involuntarily, and she replied with a flick of her finger: "Okay, you too."
After sending the message, Shang Shu leaned back wearily and rested her head on the headrest.
After wearing a smile all night, her lips and cheekbones were a little sore. Her exquisite makeup and the tight dress made her feel tense all over. In addition, she hadn't eaten much at the banquet, but she had drunk a lot of alcohol. She wasn't feeling unwell, but she wasn't exactly comfortable either.
Thinking of this, she glanced at Song Lan and said, "If she asks about drinking, you mustn't whisper in her ear."
Song Lan smiled helplessly as she typed, "It's business entertainment, Miss Gu can understand."
Hearing the change in address from "President Gu" to "Miss Gu," Shang Shu couldn't help but shake her head. It seemed that by the time she discovered the clues, someone had already been bribed and had been lying in wait for a long time.
Back at Yijing Bay, Shang Shu felt her stomach was empty and planned to find something in the refrigerator to eat, but she found a bowl of hot noodles that the housekeeper had already cooked on the dining table.
It must have been something Song Lan had told her about on the way.
"Such a thoughtful secretary is hard to find even with a lantern," Shang Shu praised Song Lan beside her while washing her hands.
Song Lan smiled and said, "I'm sorry to disappoint you. I'm only prepared to administer the hangover medicine and relay messages. This was Miss Gu's instruction."
Shang Shu paused in pulling out the chair, her heart starting to pound again.
This person calculated that she wouldn't eat properly at the banquet, and even had a backup plan.
She slowly sat down, picked up some green vegetables from her noodles with her chopsticks, and muttered irritably, "You're too kind of flattering me. You seem more like her than my secretary."
She really couldn't understand how her loyal subordinate, who had followed her for three years, could be subdued by Gu Sui in such a short time, and a sense of frustration welled up inside her.
Song Lan listened to the complaints but smiled without saying a word. She knew that Shang Shu always said one thing and meant another when it came to such matters.
*
When Gu Sui and Gu Xiangyi arrived home, it was four o'clock in the afternoon in Luncheng.
During winter time, it gets dark in this city as early as three or four o'clock, and the streetlights come on early. A damp and cold wind, carrying drizzle, blows from the banks of the Thames, bringing a chill that seeps into people's collars. It rains for more than half a month on average each month, giving the air a unique damp smell.
Gu Qi rented a large apartment for the two of them near the training school so that Gu Xiangyi could walk there in a few minutes every day. Therefore, Gu Sui didn't have any important tasks. He only needed to ensure Gu Xiangyi's personal safety and provide her with less than three meals a day.
Gu Sui had just put down his luggage when he saw Gu Xiangyi sitting on the suitcase by the door, typing away on her phone.
She nudged Gu Xiangyi's seat with Martin: "Come in first."
Gu Xiangyi said "Oh" and then reluctantly put away her phone and pushed her suitcase.
In fact, she had started "harassing" Lin Lang on the plane. After being jokingly rejected by her sister last time, she decided to cheer up after a brief period of dejection.
But she has a strategy: she needs to make her presence felt frequently, but not too annoying, which is why she's often seen on her phone, typing and deleting.
The implication from her sister's last words was that they weren't close and that she didn't know her well enough. So she would seize every opportunity in daily life to cultivate a gradual relationship, because wouldn't they become familiar with each other over time?
With that in mind, she finally sent out the message: "[Landed in Luncheng, arrived at the apartment!]"
After Gu Sui settled everything, he checked the time in Macau on his phone. It was already midnight there. Shang Shu should be asleep by now, right?
Guessing what was going on, she silently turned on her phone's ringtone and vibration, afraid of missing a call or message from the other party.
"Auntie, what are we having for dinner?" Gu Xiangyi wandered around the house, looking at the bedroom on the left and the balcony on the right.
Gu Sui sat on the sofa and crossed his legs: "Didn't you eat enough on the plane?"
"What's the point of being on the plane? Come on, Auntie, let's go find something delicious to eat." Gu Xiangyi started to throw a tantrum. It wasn't that she really wanted to eat, but watching Gu Sui eat was one of the tasks her mother had assigned her.
“Okay.” Gu Sui stood up and agreed.
At Gu Xiangyi's insistence, the two went to a restaurant near the Luncheng Tower Bridge.
Once seated, Gu Sui noticed that their seats were next to a large window framed with flowers, offering a clear view of the Tower Bridge in the twilight.
Gu Sui glanced around and saw that most of the people there were couples, dressed elegantly and beautifully. So she casually teased Gu Xiangyi, "Would it be appropriate for the two of us to come?"
Gu Xiangyi rolled her eyes at him: "I brought you here to scout out the place beforehand, okay?" She continued, flipping through the menu, "This is a date spot I carefully selected. Look at this big floral window and the view outside. You can bring Sister Shang Shu here in the future."
As Gu Xiangyi spoke, she couldn't hide her pride, thinking that her aunt definitely didn't have that kind of romantic flair, and the more she thought about it, the more perfect her suggestion seemed.
"Thank you so much." Gu Sui picked up his cup and took a sip of water. Hearing Shang Shu's name, he couldn't help but smile.
Actually, she and Shang Shu had been to Luncheng before, but they hadn't really stayed long because it was far from Aicheng, requiring a five-hour train ride. Plus, they were both busy with their studies, so they hadn't come very often. Thinking back, the last time they came was to accompany Shang Shu to see the jewelry exhibition in Luncheng.
She still remembers the little girl's sparkling eyes from the moment she stepped into the museum, excitedly introducing the exhibit to her in front of the display case: "This is Queen Victoria's sapphire crown, designed by Prince Albert himself..."
"That's Empress Josephine's relief bracelet. We specifically disassembled its design drawings in class. The base is made of gold and inlaid with five ancient reliefs depicting Greek mythology..."
"And another thing! Queen Mary's diamond brooch uses the world's largest Cullinan diamond..."
At that time, she stayed by the little girl's side and listened quietly. Even though she only half understood some of the things, she couldn't help but be happy when she saw Shang Shu happy, because she saw the concrete manifestation of love.
Philosophy taught her to rationally take everything lightly, and told her to pursue inner peace. Things she thought she would never understand in her life, the passion she lacked, and the romance she never spoke of, all changed little by little with the appearance of this little girl.
Like a wondrous chemical reaction, Shang Shu seemed to be a ray of light that penetrated into her life, allowing her to see the bright sunrise in a dim and boring world; like a pebble lightly tossed onto her usually calm lake, making her heart flutter and unable to find peace ever again.
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Author's note: Have a great holiday everyone! [fireworks emoji]
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