8. Snow in a silver bowl
He will never reach the height of her summer.
In the empty screening room with only the two of them, Li Xiran's deep-set eyes and tender expression as he looked at her were captivating.
Without a trace of hypocrisy or deception, he said earnestly, "Of course. The heroines in fairy tales all have their dreams come true."
"Of course, our Nuannuan will too."
Shang Xinuan looked into his eyes, and her whole heart seemed to fall into those deep and gentle eyes.
Especially in this quiet space where only their heartbeats could be heard, Li Xiran's words were undoubtedly a subtle hint to the girl.
Her already restless heart was stirred into ripples by the smoldering embers that ignited at that moment.
Shang Xinuan clutched her skirt, took several deep breaths, and wanted to confess her feelings to Li Xiran.
She wanted to tell him that her secret crush had come true, and it was him.
Just as she was about to speak, Li Xiran's phone rang.
The screen displayed the name Chen Shaoyi.
Shang Xinuan bit her lip, swallowing back all the words she wanted to say. "Grandma's calling, Uncle, please answer it quickly."
Through the leaky receiver, she could vaguely hear Chen Shaoyi say that guests would be visiting that evening and that Li Xiran would need to accompany her to receive them.
Since it involved official business, Li Xiran seemed a little embarrassed and found it difficult to refuse.
To show that she was sensible, the young lady immediately mouthed that work was important, and only then did Li Xiran agree to Chen Shaoyi's request.
After hanging up the phone, he apologized, saying, "Just consider it an obligation from your uncle to see the Bund at night. I'll definitely make it up to you next time."
"Okay." She thought it was alright, as long as there would be a next time.
"Shall I take you home now, or..."
"I'll make an appointment with Xixi later. Uncle can go ahead and do what he needs to do."
She'd already eaten enough candy today, and thought it wouldn't hurt to be a little more sensible. They still had a long future ahead of them.
Li Xiran looked down at her, the tenderness in his eyes seemingly frozen in his gaze.
He raised his hand and ruffled the top of her head, but in the end, he said nothing.
Shang Xinuan escorted him to the parking lot, and the smile on her face gradually faded only after the car had completely disappeared around the corner.
In fact, she longed to make a scene and even foresaw that Li Xiran would inevitably compromise and stay with her.
But she knew she didn't want that kind of ending; love should be a two-way street.
After a brief moment of distraction, she decided to ask Qiao Xi to go to the Bund.
No matter how many times she dialed Qiao Xi's number, the phone kept saying no one was answering.
Just then, Yu Jiayue called again, inviting her to go to the Bund that evening.
On this special day, Shang Xinu dressed up meticulously for Li Xiran, and was still holding the roses he had given her.
From any perspective, she felt it was unfair to the three people, so she politely declined.
Walking down that bustling street again, she was all alone.
Amidst the surging crowds, seeing couples holding hands, she felt a pang of regret.
She thought to herself that she should have been more willful just now. No matter how big the client is, could he be more important than Miss Shang?
-
After Valentine's Day, there are only a dozen days left until my thesis defense at Shanghai University.
Shang Xinuan no longer had any interest in romance, and was busy with the final battle of graduation every day.
Time flies like a white horse galloping past, and in the blink of an eye, it was time for the defense.
She was well-prepared, consistently ranked at the top of her class for four years, and received master's offers from Peking University and Cambridge University. Her professors did not even make things too difficult for her.
As she walked out of the defense classroom, she felt that the sky in Shanghai seemed even bluer.
Large swirling clouds, resembling scattered snow-capped mountains, exude a serene beauty amidst the sparseness.
She had no desire to linger at the school; she wanted to rush back to the Li family to tell Li Xiran that she had graduated.
But as soon as she stepped out of the school gate, she saw the familiar silver-white Maybach.
In front of the car, Li Xiran held a bunch of sunflowers.
He looked at her from afar, a gentle smile on his lips.
At that moment, the breeze and sunlight seemed to melt into his eyes.
The young lady walked over unhurriedly, looked him straight in the eye, and said, "Li Xiran, I've graduated."
Those beautiful amber eyes, under the light, were like an alluring vortex that made people fall in love.
He gave her a hug and said, "Congratulations! Shang Xinuan."
Li Xiran took her home, and that evening he celebrated with the Shang family.
Perhaps he was happy, because he drank quite a bit of alcohol.
Amidst the singing and laughter, he rested his arm on the edge of her chair, his gaze towards her filled with an indescribable depth.
When Chen Ti came to pick him up, she couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "Chairman Li rarely drinks this much."
Shang Xinuan supported his arm and helped Chen Ti put Li Xiran into the car, saying, "Be careful on the road."
"Don't worry, Nuannuan," Chen Ti replied.
At this moment, Li Xiran, who had already leaned back in his seat with his eyes closed, suddenly rolled down the car window.
The evening breeze ruffled a few strands of Shang Xin's hair, and she pressed her lips against Li Xiran's not far away.
It seemed to be the smell of alcohol that made her cheeks flush.
"Nuan Nuan." Li Xiran seemed quite unusual tonight, staring at her intently, his expression most intense at this moment. He said, "Happy graduation."
Then, as if carrying a thousand unspoken words, he asked Chen Ti to drive.
-
The following day, she received a message from Li Xiran.
First, I apologized to her, saying that I had received a last-minute notice from Zurich that I had to go there on a business trip, which would take about half a month.
The time we had originally agreed to go to the Yijing horse racing event was thus disrupted.
But to avoid disappointing her, Li Xiran arranged a private jet for her in advance, so that she could invite a group of friends to go and have fun first.
I'll make it up to him when he gets back from his business trip.
The young lady tossed her phone aside, thinking to herself, "He's asking for trouble again!"
So far, in less than half a month, he has already missed the Bund night, and now he misses Yijing horse racing.
But it was because of his work that he felt this nameless anger had nowhere to go.
She bit her lip, thinking to herself.
Let's see how many times Li Xiran will owe her a promise he hasn't kept in this lifetime.
After calming down for a while, the young lady thought that since the plane and the horse farm were already arranged, she might as well have some fun.
He picked up his phone again and sent a message in their five-person group chat.
[Silver Bowl's Voice: Friends, how about coming to my private horse farm this weekend?]
Upon hearing that they were going out to play, the quiet group chat immediately became lively.
[Yu Jiayue: Okay!]
[Soft Fairy: I was practically growing moldy in the art studio along with the paints! Thank goodness my warm friend rescued me in time!]
[Hi-Jiang Xiangzhuo: I have to go to Sister Nuan's invitation!]
[Qiao Xi: A private horse farm? Could it be that private horse farm that my uncle, Li, lavishly gave to the young lady?]
[Silver Bowl Filled with Snow: That's right! Uncle Li even left his private jet behind this time to take us there.]
[Qiao Xi: When will Uncle Shang Chenxi let me ride in his private jet? Otherwise, I won't swallow this insult.]
[Silver Bowl Filled with Snow: That belongs to my aunt, so don't even think about it. But you can have my cousin's; I have no objection.]
[Qiao Xi: A Kind WeChat Post (JPG)]
The group hit it off immediately, and on the day they were to go to Yijing, Li Xiran, who was still in Shanghai due to some personal matters, personally took them to the airport.
"Have fun." He escorted her all the way to the boarding bridge.
Shang Xin waved goodbye to him with reluctance.
Seeing this, Qiao Xi took her arm and said, "Alright! It's not like it's a matter of life and death, why make it so sentimental!"
"Don't worry, Uncle. I will definitely take good care of your dear niece," Qiao Xi said without turning her head.
At that time, Shang Xinuan thought it was just another ordinary, short separation.
Little did they know that at the moment the plane door closed, a watershed moment in their lives tore open an insurmountable rift in time and space.
-
The plane bearing the logo of the Li Group arrived at Yijing at noon sharp. As soon as the group got off the plane, a private car was waiting next to the tarmac.
Shang Xinuan recognized the driver, Uncle Liu, who was the steward in charge of the horse farm and who lived there year-round with his wife.
"Uncle Liu!" she waved enthusiastically.
Uncle Liu smiled kindly and opened the car door for them, saying, "It's been a long time, Miss Nuannuan."
The group, eager to get started, headed straight for the horse farm.
"So, we're going to stay at the horse farm tonight?" Boss Jiang was the first to exclaim.
Qiao Xi explained to him, "Two years ago, my uncle built a private open-air courtyard next door so that his friends could stay overnight."
A French-style garden manor, simply because Miss Shang likes it.
"Next time I need to add Chairman Li on WeChat and ask him to teach me how to pamper my wife," Boss Jiang remarked with feeling.
Ruan Songyi kicked Jiang Xiangzhuo's butt, "Young Master Yu is still here, watch your words."
The topic was thus dropped.
When the group arrived at the horse farm, Aunt Liu had already prepared lunch.
The young people were full of energy after a short rest.
He then changed into his riding clothes and headed straight to the stables to choose his own warhorse.
There are ten fine horses kept here, among which the chestnut-red Ruby is Shangxinuan's exclusive horse.
Her equestrian outfit was also custom-made, perfectly matching Ruby's equally radiant and beautiful appearance.
Ruby seemed to smell her scent and chirped excitedly from afar.
Qiao Xi followed behind her, leading a small white horse. "Only if you were my aunt would I not feel psychologically unbalanced."
"Why?"
"Because what's yours is mine."
The two laughed and mounted their horses together.
"My dear niece, your aunt will take you to gallop across the grasslands."
That day, Li Xiran was not by his side.
But the dopamine release from exercise still excited the young lady.
By the end, everyone else was exhausted, leaving only Shang Xinuan to continue riding around the loop.
Seeing Qiao Xi sitting in the pavilion drinking a cold drink, she called out, "Xi Xi, help me record a video of my uncle!"
Alright!
Qiao Xi pointed her phone camera at her.
As the sun sets, the golden rays of the sunset spill onto the girl's shoulders.
She was vibrant and radiant, like a free swallow.
Even Qiao Xi felt her heart skip a beat when Qiao Xi suddenly smiled at the camera at that beauty.
Just after Qiao Xi sent the video to Li Xi, her phone automatically pushed a headline article of the day.
Qiao Xi clicked on it subconsciously, and her blood froze.
On the screen, entertainment reporters vividly described today's major events in Shanghai!
Mrs. Chan Siu-yee, wife of the Lai Group, made a high-profile appearance at the latest Oriental Lide Gemstone Silk Road Auction.
He also spent a whopping 520 million yuan to buy the ruby diamond ring that was the highlight of the day, just to give it to auctioneer Bai Quesi. When facing the media, he even referred to her as the daughter-in-law of the Li family.
The comments section exploded instantly. As everyone knows, Chen Shaoyi's son is Li Xiran.
Without a doubt, the classical beauty in the cheongsam in the photo is Li Xiran's soon-to-be wife.
To prove its authenticity, the reporter also provided photos.
This photo shows the Li and Bai families having dinner together at the Li'an Hotel on Valentine's Day, May 20th.
At that time, Bai Quesi was sitting side by side with Li Xiran.
Every single detail is now clear.
The comments section contained people offering their blessings, as well as those who were simply gossiping about the wealthy family, and naturally, there were also those who were devoted to Shang Xinuan and Li Xiran.
What?! Weren't there rumors that Li Xiran was getting engaged to the Shang family's daughter? How come he's suddenly the bride now?!
Everyone knows that Miss Shang likes Li Xiran. Old Master Shang only took him on as a student because of him, and now he's suddenly turning around and marrying someone else. Isn't that just playing with people's feelings?
Why does the Shang family keep producing such unlucky, lovestruck heiresses?!
[A friend who works at the Li Corporation said that Li Xiran used to give up half an office for the young lady and spend every day with her. They used to call her "Boss Lady" in private, but now he's suddenly changed his attitude. This entertainment circle is truly chaotic.]
[Why doesn't anyone consider that the young lady is a full ten years younger than Li Xiran? She's a princess who was pampered and spoiled by Old Master Shang. It's not like just anyone can marry her...]
The woman in the photo is the daughter of the Bai family in Yijing. She's the same age as Li Xiran, and the two are a perfect match. They seem more like a couple, both in appearance and personality.
[Vote in this section. 1 is Shang Xinuan, 2 is Bai Quesi.]
"What are you standing there for?" Shang Xinuan called Qiao Xi for a long time, but she didn't respond. So she pulled on the reins and galloped away towards her.
Qiao Xi lost her composure for a moment and stood up, shouting to her, "Something terrible has happened! It seems that Uncle is engaged to Bai Quesi!"
Like a bolt from the blue, Shang Xinuan loosened Ruby's reins at that very moment.
In the instant she fell, she felt no pain; her mind was filled with the news of Li Xiran's engagement.
Until Ruby's horse hoof went out of control and stepped on her calf, a sharp pain tore at her heart and then spread throughout her body.
Everyone was calling her name, telling her not to close her eyes.
But there was never another moment when she felt so tired, so sleepy, and wanted to take a nap.
Like a scrolling slideshow, Li Xiran's back appeared in her field of vision.
In the brief moment he disappeared, she suddenly felt as if her heart had emptied, leaving a huge, irreparable hole.
The spring flowers of youth wither and fall at this moment.
That person seemed to be saying that he would never reach the summer that belonged to her.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
