Suddenly, Han Muzi stretched out her hands and wrapped them around Ye Moxuan, then gently rested her head on his shoulders. “Don’t you panic, and don’t you be afraid, for memories will only remain as memories. Other than messing with your mind, it has no other powers. Let bygones be bygones. I am now by your side, as well as Little Bean and Little Sprout, and your grandfather too.”
The soft tone of Han Muzi’s words were like soothing sounds caressing Ye Moxuan’s heart. His fingers twitched as he wrapped Little Sprout in his arms even tighter now. The two corners of his lips lifted and formed a smile. What Muzi said was right. Although he had gone through some stormlike trials, what was most important now was having his loved ones with him. He was indeed on the brink of death, but wasn’t he alive and well now?
At that, Ye Moxuan raised his eyebrows. “Are you saying these things so that I will stop following you?”
Han Muzi let out a gentle cough with an awkward expression. “I didn’t mean that. You were looking so sad just now and I only wanted to comfort you. Otherwise, you might go crazy one day for thinking too much.”
Ye Moxuan cast a short glance at her and reached out his finger to pinch her nose. “Naughty girl.”
The two of them were like lovebirds, fooling around and displaying playful affection at each other.
…
Ever since Lin Xuzheng had bumped into Xu Yanwan the other day in Han Group, he had been feeling restless. So he hired someone to investigate Xu Yanwan’s background. After all, she had all of a sudden declared that she was bankrupt, and he wanted to find out why.
After the investigation was completed, he found out how Xu Group came to a downfall from a prestigious international company. Upon reading those information, Lin Xuzheng was overwhelmed by how a powerful corporation like Xu Group could collapse just like that. Just overnight, Xu Yanwan was left all alone in the Xu Family.
Humans had feelings, even toward strangers. After finding out about Xu Yanwan’s encounters, he felt a gush of empathy and compassion for her, not to mention that the three of them had been growing up together since they were young. Perhaps the reason for this was also because of his treating Xu Yanwan like his own sister. And most importantly, he had always been aware about her feelings for Han Qing. However, Lin Xuzheng had always thought that Han Qing was like a lone ranger who would never marry, and that Xu Yanwan’s feelings toward him were destined to be unrequited. What he didn’t expect was the appearance of Yan who won over Han Qing’s heart in the end. He also didn’t expect that Xu Yanwan’s family business would go bankrupt, leaving her alone to make ends meet and subsequently came to work in Han Group.
He grew more restless just by thinking about these. But soon after that, his lips lifted and turned to a sneaky grin. His friend, Han Qing had always been calm and rational. Lin Xuzheng wondered how would Han Qing have reacted if he had two women—one of them was his childhood sweetheart, while the other was his beloved woman—fighting for him? Honestly, Lin Xuzheng was very keen to see the reaction of Han Qing, but the consequences would be too huge to bear. Thus, Lin Xuzheng planned to ask Xu Yanwan out for a chat.
When Xu Yanwan received the call from Lin Xuzheng, she wasn’t surprised at all. Ever since that day that they had bumped into each other in the office, Xu Yanwan had figured that he would come looking for her very soon. “You were faster than I thought. Although you were not managing the company all these years, it seems to me that the power of Lin Group in North City had not diminished at all.”
Smiling, Lin Xuzheng said, “It looks like you have already expected that I would be looking for you?”
“Yes.” Xu Yanwan nodded. “I just didn’t expect that it would be so soon.”
Instead of beating around the bush, Lin Xuzheng asked her out for a meet-up straight away. They fixed a date to meet in a cafe. As Lin Xuzheng was sitting there waiting on the second floor, his range of vision covered well over the boundaries of the building below. From afar, he could see Xu Yanwan walking toward the cafe through the window.
In her olden days, Xu Yanwan had the services of her chauffeur with her private car at her disposal, bringing her to wherever she wanted to go. All of her attire and accessories were only luxurious items. In contrast, her dressing today was no different from what she wore on the first day he saw her in the office. It was definitely not tailored-made for her and the heels that she was wearing were obviously not fit for her too. The woman who was once the Young Lady of the Xu Family had been degraded to this state.
Taking a sip from his cup of coffee, Lin Xuzheng was finding difficulty in explaining his mix of emotions. Back then, the three of them had a close bond with each other. They were still young and naive. When Lin Xuzheng was in a relationship with his girlfriend later on, he slowly drifted away from the group. Then, Xu Yanwan migrated with her parents. And now…
Xu Yanwan stepped into the cafe. After mentioning her name to the waitress, she was led upstairs.
“Here.” Lin Xuzheng stood up and pulled out the chair for Xu Yanwan like a gentleman.
Watching this scene, Xu Yanwan stood at her spot. After a while, she finally commented, “I’m no longer the Young Lady of the Xu Family, so please stop doing all of these.”
Lin Xuzheng raised his eyebrows. “Xu Yanwan, do you think I did this because of your status?”
Xu Yanwan pursed her lips, staying silent.
“It’s for the sake of our past friendship for growing up together. Do you understand?” Still speaking, Lin Xuzheng angled his finger and flung it against Xu Yanwan’s forehead. “Your whole family is bankrupt but you could at least see me as a big brother, right?”
“Brother?” Xu Yanwan was startled, staring back at Lin Xuzheng.
“We grew up together since we were young. When I was a teenager, you were only this tall.” Lin Xuzheng gestured with a wave of his hand. “When you went to school and was courted by the boys who stalked you after you rejected them, I settled the matter for you.”
Xu Yanwan plunged into those memories as they started to surface in her mind. Indeed, the three of them grew up together. She was the only girl among them, so she was always under an extra amount of special protection. But all of these extra protections mostly came from Lin Xuzheng, not from Han Qing… Unless she requested help from him personally, or if he had happened to be at the scene, then he would have no choice but to help her.
“It’s just a bankruptcy. You are a big girl now; you can overcome all these difficulties. There is nothing to be upset about.”
Xu Yanwan glanced down as she chuckled. “Yes, it’s just a bankruptcy.”
It’s just a bankruptcy… What’s the big deal? she thought. It was really not a big deal, but Xu Yanwan just wanted to break down and cry. After all, she had nothing left. She had even lost Han Qing who was so perfect. With that, Xu Yanwan’s eyes began to well up with tears.
“I have no other intentions. The reason for my asking you out today was just for a catch-up as a friend.”
After Lin Xuzheng beckoned her to have a seat, Xu Yanwan tried to compose herself as she raised up her head with some sense of dignity.
