Chapter 56: Determined to Leave
Yan Nian's grandparents passed away a few years ago. His uncle Xu Yiyuan has loved Xu Yiqing since he was a child, and Xu Yiqing would discuss things with him whenever there was something.
Yan Nian stood at the subway entrance and called his uncle, but no one answered.
Xu Ke didn't reply to her WeChat message, so Yan Nian took a taxi directly over.
"Aunt."
"Oh, it's Nian Nian, come in quickly." When aunt Pan Yuzhi opened the door and saw her, the smile on her face doubled.
When Yan Nian entered the room, Pan Yuzhi found slippers for her to change into. "Are you here to see your sister? She's working overtime at the company today and will be back this afternoon."
Yan Nian changed his shoes and went in: "I'm here to find my uncle."
Pan Yuzhi was stunned for a moment: "Oh, your uncle had a meeting at his workplace, so he left early this morning."
Yan Nian sat down on the sofa feeling somewhat disappointed and asked her aunt, "When will he come back?"
Pan Yuzhi laughed dryly: "I don't know. Look at you, you went to look for your uncle as soon as you arrived, and didn't get close to your aunt."
Pan Yuzhi poured her some water, and Yan Nian said, "Thank you, aunt."
Pan Yuzhi was known for being a shrewd person. Yan Nian only saw her a few times a year, so it was difficult for her to ask some questions.
"What are you thanking me for?" Pan Yuzhi sat next to her and looked at her. "Nian Nian is really getting more and more beautiful."
Yan Nian put down the cup of water and called out, "Aunt."
Pan Yuzhi's smile froze on her lips: "What's wrong?"
Yan Nian asked gently, "Has my mother been to your place recently?"
Pan Yuzhi's smiling face was frozen, as if she was asking something very baffling: "I've never been here before, what's wrong?"
Yan Nian lowered his eyes: "It's okay."
After sitting for a while, Yan Nian stood up and was about to leave: "Aunt, I'm going back first."
Pan Yuzhi's face darkened, and she pulled her aside, "Have lunch before you leave. Since you're here, stay with your aunt for a while. We have an old man and a young child who are busy working all day and don't even take a break on our days off. It's so frustrating. Come chat with me for a while."
She's not one for conversation.
Yan Nian was forced to sit on the sofa again.
Pan Yuzhi turned on the TV for her: "Turn it on for you."
"Auntie peels fruit for you."
"What do you want to eat for lunch?"
"Your dress is so beautiful, did your mother buy it for you?"
"..." Yan Nian said, "I bought it myself."
After lunch, Yan Nian stayed for a while. It was already past one o'clock when he left his uncle's house and took a taxi back to Huayue Mansion.
On the way, Mu Chen's message popped up.
Yan Nian didn't unlock the screen and saw the message he sent: [There are many reasons that hinder your communication. Don't blame all the problems on yourself.]
[I'll come over in a couple of days to meet and chat.]
Yan Nian had already forgotten what message she had sent him last night when she was most helpless, so she unlocked the phone to check.
Before these two messages, she sent Mu Chen the following: [Senior, we always can't communicate normally. I don't know what to do.]
Yan Nian held the phone, closed his eyes, and dozed off with his head resting on the car seat.
On the other side, Xu Ke was concentrating on looking through the plan in her hand when the mobile phone on the table suddenly interrupted her.
His eyes shifted from the plan to his phone.
Strange number, Lingyun?
She picked up the phone and asked politely, "Hello, who is this?"
There was a smile on the other end of the phone: "It's me, Coco."
Oh my god! When Xu Ke heard the voice on the phone, he got goosebumps all over his body and slammed the phone directly on the table.
At the next workstation, Xiao Lin, who was chewing bread, was startled by the noise and shuddered. He choked and said, "Sister, is my phone burning my ears?"
"Eat yours." Xu Ke quietly pinched the side of the phone with the screen facing down, tilted his head and looked up, then hung up.
Xiao Lin asked, "What phone call? It scared you like this."
Xu Ke turned his phone to silent mode and said casually, "Fraud."
Xiao Lin still had the bread in his mouth and said righteously, "If you hit me, give it to me. I'll curse these bastards to death."
Xu Ke was annoyed: "You are the one who is Guisui."
Xiao Lin choked and said, "Hey, why are you helping them scold me?"
"..." As Xu Ke put down her phone, Mu Chen's message popped up. She rolled her eyes at the ceiling and picked it up to read.
Bastard: [I didn't mean to call you for any other reason. Yan Nian sent me a message last night. Please show some concern for me.]
Xu Ke switched to the chat interface with Yan Nian. The most recent message was sent to her at around ten o'clock in the morning: [Sister, are you and uncle at home?]
She thought for a long time and typed: [I'm at the company, my dad is also at the company, what's going on?]
On the other side, Yan Nian received the message and replied: [Nothing.]
The house was empty. Yan Nian fell on the sofa, hugging the pillow and staring blankly for a while.
Suddenly remembering something, he stood up panic-stricken and slowly walked towards the master bedroom.
The cloakroom was quite messy. All the clothes Xu Yiqing had worn were placed on the chair and sofa beside the dressing table, and there were also some on the floor. The clothes in the closet were also in disarray.
It was very different from the neat and tidy dressing room she came in last time.
The old biscuit box on the open shelf on the right side of the dresser has disappeared.
Yan Nian picked up the clothes on the floor, sorted the pieces in the closet one by one, and put the ones thrown outside into the washing machine according to their colors.
I returned to the cloakroom, my palms sweating as I began to look for the old biscuit box I had seen before.
After a while, there was the sound of slippers walking outside, and Yan Nian hurriedly closed the open cabinet door.
Xu Yiqing came in and saw her packing clothes in the cloakroom. Without saying anything, he took his bag and left.
When Yan Nian went out with the dirty clothes, Xu Yiqing sat on the sofa and called her, "Come here."
Yan Nian put the clothes in the basket and walked over.
Xu Yiqing gestured to her: "Give me your ID card."
Yan Nian said cautiously, "I left it at grandma's house."
Xu Yiqing looked up and glanced at her: "Then you can go and get it back tomorrow. I saw a house in the North City District and have already paid a deposit. I plan to put it in your name. You can come with me to sign the contract the day after tomorrow."
Seeing that she was determined to leave, Yan Nian had no choice but to obey and said, "Okay."
Xu Yiqing didn't stay at home for long. He came out of the room and left after half an hour.
After she left, Yan Nian washed her face and put on a slightly heavier makeup to cover up her fatigue, fearing that Zhou Ran would notice it later.
Zhou Ran sent her a message at 4:30: [Come down.]
Yan Nian took out the two prepared gifts from the cabinet. Before leaving, she smiled stiffly in front of the mirror and found a clavicle chain to wear before going out.
Yan Nian's steps became lighter as he saw the black SUV parked on the side of the road with its hazard lights on.
She walked to the passenger side, opened the door, and shut out the heat.
Zhou Ran was wearing a casual polo shirt with solid-color borders. He looked mature and reserved, with his strong and powerful arms exposed. He had a sturdy and well-proportioned figure and was brimming with hormones.
He continued looking at his phone without even lifting his eyelids when he heard the noise.
Yan Nian couldn't help but think of what Xu Ke said when he asked her to get a gym membership: "Even little puppies have tendon meat."
Yan Nian handed him the paper bag in her hand, not knowing what to say, and then said, "Happy birthday."
Zhou Ran put down his phone and looked up. He first noticed the slightly heavy makeup on her face and the necklace around her neck. She was as calm and composed as usual, as if nothing had happened last night.
Even the little sense of familiarity he had slowly regained disappeared without a trace.
Zhou Ran took it and took a look. There were two boxes, one starry blue gift box and one pure black gift box.
He picked up one of them and was about to open it, but Yan Nian hurriedly stopped him: "Go back and take a look."
Zhou Ran looked at her inexplicably and put the gift in the back row.
Zhou Ran started the car. Yan Nian noticed that he didn't seem to be in a particularly good mood and asked, "Do you need navigation?"
Xiangzhangli is about twenty kilometers away from her.
Last night she suggested coming here because she couldn't find anything to eat, but she didn't expect Zhou Ran to agree so readily.
Zhou Ran said arrogantly: "Do you think I am you?"
“…” Yan Nian sat quietly and said nothing more.
After the car drove for a while, Zhou Ran took the time to look at the person next to him. He had fallen asleep in the passenger seat and seemed very tired.
I don’t know what happened last night, the voice is so weak.
Thinking of this, Zhou Ran's bright eyes immediately darkened and he frowned.
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