Chapter 61
"What a beautiful house!" Jiawei leaned against the car window and exclaimed outside.
Next to the clean driveway is a small green half-slope garden with blooming flowers and a fragrant smell. Among the flowers, there are two rows of one-meter-high white column railings extending vertically up the slope. In the middle, there are more than a dozen small steps about 1.5 meters long. Up the steps is a three-story stand-alone building.
The house is painted a simple, understated white, yet surrounded by tall, lush evergreen trees, it appears bright and spacious. Four tall white columns arch over the entrance, extending from the second floor to a semicircular terrace where a beautiful round table and two lounge chairs have been set up. The third floor boasts a tall spire and chimney, and the beautiful, spacious square windows have been flung open by the owner, letting in the refreshing, bright morning sunlight.
"We're here!" The car turned onto the open courtyard at the top of the hill and stopped outside the tall gate with four white pillars. It turned out that the path was the main road for the owner to get around the house, while for cars there was another opening on the side road beside the garden, which was also the real gate of this independent villa.
This was also Guan Ying's first time in Queen Anne, and she was no less surprised than Jiawei.
"This place is amazing!" Jiawei got out of the car, stretched her arms, took a deep breath, and felt her whole body open up. When she turned around, she saw the azure coast and the cityscape of Seattle before her. She praised it repeatedly, "This view is simply unbeatable!"
Mike stood at the back of the car, having already unloaded the suitcase from the bed. He looked up at the scenery. Knowing it was their first time, he slowly introduced it, "Queen Anne is one of the best neighborhoods in Seattle. From here, you can see not only the city and the coast, but also Kerry Park and Mount Rainier. Oh, and of course, there's the famous Space Needle!"
Jiawei said excitedly, "Yes, yes, I know the Space Needle. It's a Seattle landmark! This location is so great, who would want to go out?"
Mike smiled and said, "Queen Anne Hill is already the highest mountain in the city. As you can see, it's uphill all the way when we drive up here. However, the scenery here is really beautiful, and the community residents also attach great importance to education. There are many high-quality elementary, middle and high schools nearby. Of course, the most important thing is that it is very convenient to get to the city from here. It only takes about 20 minutes to drive to Seattle University... and it's also very close to our home!" After that, he looked at Guan Ying.
Guan Ying thought to herself: It's only a year. We were originally planning to rent. Judy suggested buying a house based on real estate trends, and she agreed because she thought it was worth investing. But the first houses Judy showed them were clearly quite affordable, average-priced properties. I wonder what happened later on, how they ended up spending so much money on such a large house in a wealthy neighborhood... I'm afraid Mike played a big role in that... Professor Wilson's house is only a ten-minute walk from here, so it's really close...
At this point, there is no time for her, as a daughter, to regret on behalf of her elders.
"Jiawei, have you arrived yet? Come up quickly!" Mrs. Guan leaned against the third-floor window, looking down, and greeted Jiawei warmly, "There's an elevator on the first floor."
"Mom Guan, I'm here!" Jiawei waved upstairs and trotted in happily.
Guan Ying had calmed down by now and looked at Mike: "You've been on vacation for a while, right? When are you coming back to Boston?"
Mike did some mental calculations: "Four days from now. We'll be parting ways soon. Will you miss me?"
Guan Ying frowned: "Mike, we've only met twice."
Mike: "But I've been waiting for you for a long time. I've liked you since the first time we met. Don't you have any feelings for me at all?"
Guan Ying said curiously: "Sorry, I didn't feel it."
Mike was unusually shy: "That night, you kept smiling at me, like a beautiful jasmine flower, mysterious and fragrant..." At this point, he frowned handsomely, a rare moment, "Also, there was a little melancholy, maybe even sadness... Ah, I can't explain that strange feeling, but you always remind me of the sunset at the seaside, the moon at night... Every night, I think of your smile, and I think I really have fallen in love with you, but I never have the chance to see you again... I went to the library to look for you, but I really didn't know where you were sitting... Ah, when I heard that you loved me too, I felt so lucky!"
When I first visited Professor Wilson's house, Guan Ying and her family were all so polite. Naturally, she wore a polite smile. What's so strange about that? Ah...musicians are a bit too emotional, especially since he's a saxophone player...
Guan Ying slapped her forehead in frustration and muttered softly, "If I had known you liked me from then on, why would I have worried about Jiawei? What a mistake..."
Mike was puzzled: "You don't look very happy."
Guan Ying recreated her smile from that night, flashing it in front of him, and then explained, "Hey? Is this the kind of smile you're talking about? This doesn't mean love or liking. When we Chinese meet for the first time, it just means politeness. Perhaps you can ask your mother Judy to confirm this. I'm sorry for the misunderstanding. Also, when I said "I love you" this morning, actually..."
Mike was very smart and smiled: "Actually, is it your [politeness] too? It doesn't matter, I know now, but I like your politeness. Also, don't mention my mother, I like you not because of her. I'm not really looking for a sugar mummy, it's just a joke. Welcome home, sister!" After that, he picked up the box with a smile and walked straight into the door.
Ha... I've really met my match! He was clearly the one who insisted on having his own way, and now that he's speaking out, why does that make her look like a scumbag, like she seduced a young man and doesn't want to take responsibility... This inexplicable feeling of guilt is so wrong.
Upstairs was already bustling with activity, with Jiawei coming in and out, looking here and there. Having recently handled some house matters in Vancouver, she seemed quite experienced, offering suggestions here and there to the workers Judy had brought in, eager to save the old couple some trouble, as if she were the young master of the house.
Seeing a sweet-talking young woman with considerable real estate experience, Judy was delighted to save herself the hassle of communication and proactively discussed every detail with Jiawei. A little unsure, Jiawei turned to the old couple for their advice. After some discussion, she and Judy quickly finalized the follow-up arrangements for many of the miscellaneous matters. The old couple, seemingly assisted by divine intervention, stayed by Jiawei's side, acting like a family of three.
Guan Ying had a rare moment of free time at this time, so she went outside the room and walked around everywhere, of course, to avoid Mike.
When I walked to the evergreen woods behind the house, I suddenly heard a dog barking. I didn’t know how big the dog was, but thinking that foreigners always like to keep large dogs, I was frightened and hurriedly retreated.
Just as she was about to go back to the house, her cell phone suddenly vibrated in her pocket. She was still in shock when she jumped again! The phone was the same one she used to use, but this time it felt unfamiliar, burning in her hand. She did a few somersaults before she could hold it. She looked at the number carefully. It seemed like she had seen it somewhere before, but she didn't remember it clearly.
"Hello?" She picked up the phone hastily.
"Ha...Hello? Hello!" The other person's tone seemed even more uncertain than hers.
"Hello, who's calling, please?"
"What the hell is going on @＃％……&＊" The person on the other side complained to someone nearby for a few words before turning back and saying, "Are you Xiao Guan? This is my Brother Xu!"
Where did this "Brother Xu" sound like? Manager Xu from Southern Steel?
Guan Ying quickly replied, "Brother Xu? I'm Xiao Guan. Why are you calling? I was wondering, this number looks so familiar."
"Oh, I'm glad it's you!" Manager Xu said impatiently, "Is Xiao Zheng with you? When will you let him go back to the Middle East? Things are almost in chaos in Saudi Arabia! He can't keep contacting me by email. I wait for his email every day. What's going on? We at Southern Steel have also paid sincerity. He should be responsible for the business he introduced to us! Oh, I know you have no part in this matter, but I really have no choice. Xiao Zheng doesn't come back. Can you help me persuade him? If that doesn't work, I was thinking, can you ask Lawyer Xiao if he is free? Even if he can come, he is not far away..."
Why does it sound like Manager Xu is in Saudi Arabia, while Zheng Juyong is still in China? Was Manager Xu so anxious that she said the opposite? But then, at the end, it sounded like she was using her connections to ask Xiao Weiyan for help. But how could Xiao Weiyan be considered close to Guangzhou?
Guan Ying couldn't figure out what was going on on the phone as she was talking incoherently. She asked incoherently, "Go back to the Middle East?... What happened in Saudi Arabia?... Lawyer Xiao left Dubai two months ago and is now working in Vancouver, which is very far away..." She didn't need to explain that she and Xiao Weiyan had broken up and had lost contact.
"Ah? What should we do? We are here, we are unfamiliar with the place, how can we know anyone? Xiao Zheng can't do things like this. If he hadn't stayed away from home, we wouldn't have been stuck here until now!" Manager Xu was almost unable to suppress his anger on the phone.
Guan Ying became increasingly confused as he listened. "Brother Xu, please speak more slowly... What happened to Nanfang Steel? Did something happen? Zheng Juyong isn't a lawyer. Why are you looking for him?"
To Manager Xu, it sounded as if she was unwilling to hand over Zheng Juyong. Manager Xu, however, grew even more furious. "Hey, I told you, little Zheng isn't that cunning. So, could it be you, Little Manager, who was behind this? You knew this was a trap, didn't you? You hid him when things got bad, and you just pretended you didn't know anything the whole time? We at Southern Steel are just the scapegoats, being played over and over again by those two younger guys at West City Steel! Oh, I have the evidence. If we get hurt, you won't let us off easy!"
With a beep, Manager Xu hung up the phone angrily.
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