Chapter 29

The restaurant where they were meeting for dinner was not far from He Wancheng’s company. After dropping off their luggage at the hotel, Wei Lai went to He Wancheng’s company to deliver some precious tea leaves from Jiangcheng.

“The office building of Mr. He’s company is in the old city area?”

“Yes,” Wei Lai glanced outside the window. The buildings in the old city area were limited in height. “Their group’s new building is in the industrial park, about forty to fifty floors. He said he’s used to the old office building and hasn’t moved there yet.”

Cheng Minzhi nodded.

The driver listened quietly to the conversation in the back seat without saying a word throughout the journey.

The traffic was congested, and by the time they arrived at He Wancheng’s office building, it was getting late.

As the car stopped, Wei Lai’s hand was about to touch the door when she suddenly froze. A black Bentley drove past from the side. Separated by two car windows, neither could see the other.

Cheng Minzhi also saw the Beijing license plate on the Bentley, a car she was very familiar with—it had been to their home before. Wei Lai must have seen Zhou Sujin’s car. Judging from her reaction, their relationship seemed to be in trouble.

She got out of the car as if nothing had happened, pretending she hadn’t seen anything.

Wei Lai didn’t deliberately avoid Zhou Sujin. She had just spaced out, and the car had passed by.

She opened the car door, picked up her bag and coat, and got out of the car.

She didn’t look back.

Whether out of fear or because it seemed unnecessary.

“Mr. Zhou, it’s Miss Wei.” Uncle Yan, unaware of their breakup, saw Wei Lai from the rearview mirror and reminded him.

Zhou Sujin was looking at his phone with his head down. He then turned to look out the window, but there was no one outside either of the side windows.

Uncle Yan said, “It should be Mr. He’s car at the entrance of the building.”

“Back up,” Zhou Sujin put away his phone.

Wei Lai was just picking up the tea leaves from the trunk when she faintly heard the sound of a car approaching from behind. She turned around abruptly. The black Bentley’s rear was only two to three meters away from her, and it didn’t reverse any further; the driver had applied the brakes.

The rear door of the car opened, and today, he was wearing a white business shirt. He must be attending some important event, as he had put on a tie, something Wei Lai hadn’t seen him wear before.

Her mind went blank for a moment. Should she address him as Mr. Zhou or not address him at all?

“Aunt Cheng, hello.”

“Huh? Sujin, you’re also in Sucity?” Cheng Minzhi pretended to be both surprised and delighted.

Zhou Sujin gave a faint smile and replied, “I’m attending a forum.”

“Then you two chat,” she turned and took the tea leaves from her daughter’s hand. “I’ll wait in the lobby.”

After Zhou Sujin got out of the car, Yan Shu drove to a nearby parking spot, and He Dong’s driver drove away. Only the two of them were left.

The distance of two to three meters felt a bit far to carry on a conversation. It seemed impolite to talk from that far away. Wei Lai took a few steps forward, even though they were pretending to be a couple, they felt like they had gone through a real breakup.

At this moment, she was extremely grateful to have terminated the contract early. If they had stayed together for another two years, breaking up would have been even more painful.

“I just saw your car; I didn’t have time to call out.”

She explained apologetically, “I haven’t told my mom about our breakup yet, but she probably guessed it. I’ll explain everything to her when we get back.”

Zhou Sujin replied, “It’s okay. Mr. He said you’re coming to Sucheng to learn from your peers.”

“Yeah, there’s a lot to learn.”

Their second meeting was not as awkward as the rejection that day. It should be said that his demeanor made their interaction less awkward.

With the postponed dinner, there really wouldn’t be another chance to treat him.

“Mr. Zhou, when are you free? Let me treat you to dinner in Sucheng. I’ve owed you for so long.”

Zhou Sujin hesitated slightly. He had a dinner appointment tonight and would return to Beijing early tomorrow morning. There were important matters to attend to when he returned, and all his plans were already set and couldn’t be postponed.

But he still agreed, “I’m free tonight.”

Wei Lai hesitated, “I’m afraid tonight won’t work…”

“I’ll call Director He. It’s just a meeting between peers, and Aunt Cheng can go over by herself.”

Afterward, Zhou Sujin called He Wancheng, only saying that he would treat Wei Lai to dinner tonight. He also informed He Wancheng that Cheng Minzhi was already on the first floor of the building.

He Wancheng would naturally go along with his words, “Great, you young people have your gathering, and we, the older folks, will have our chat. I’ll go downstairs now to pick her up.”

Wei Lai exchanged a few pleasantries with He Wancheng when she entered the building, and Zhou Sujin also followed suit. He personally introduced Cheng Minzhi to He Wancheng.

He then went downstairs to greet He Wancheng. Cheng Minzhi felt somewhat guilty. People like He Wancheng, who had been in a high position for a long time, had long hidden their sharp edges, and their demeanor and affability were naturally ingrained.

“He Wancheng, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” She reached out her hand.

He Wancheng smiled and shook hands out of courtesy. “The pleasure is mine. I should be the one saying it’s a pleasure, as I’ve heard Wei Lai mention you before. The two kids are meeting alone tonight, so we don’t have to worry about them.”

He gestured towards the direction of the elevator. “My old friend will be here soon. Let’s go to my office first.”

Wei Lai accompanied them to the elevator, watching the doors slowly close before leaving.

In the car, Zhou Sujin loosened his tie and apologized to Wei Lai, “I can’t let you choose the dinner place tonight. I’ll arrange it.”

Anticipating what she would say next, he added, “But you can choose the wine.”

They decided to dine at a Western restaurant in a five-star hotel in downtown Sucheng. When they arrived at the reserved table, Zhou Sujin took off his suit jacket and draped it over the back of his chair. He told her, “Wait for me for a few minutes. I’ll go upstairs to the private room.”

Wei Lai, not too slow to react, met his clear gaze. “Do you have a dinner appointment tonight?”

“It’s nothing,” Zhou Sujin replied casually. “It’s not too important; I’ll just show up for a drink.”

He rolled up his sleeves and walked towards the entrance of the restaurant.

He took off his tie before getting out of the car.

Wei Lai watched his broad figure disappear from her sight, then looked down at the menu, flipping through it casually. Before he returned, she remained uninspired.

Upstairs in the largest private room, everyone had already arrived, waiting for him.

He filled his glass with wine as a self-punishment, saying he couldn’t stay long and had to accompany someone for dinner.

To be able to personally accompany him, must be quite an honor.

Similarly, they didn’t dare to joke around or inquire about who it was. They urged him to go downstairs quickly so they wouldn’t have to wait too long.

After he left, the door to the private room closed, and they began to discuss.

“Who could it be?”

“It should be that person from Jiangcheng.”

“The one he brought home?”

“Yeah.”

“It seems like they broke up. The car is parked at Lu Yu’s place.”

…

When Zhou Sujin returned to the Western restaurant, Wei Lai was still looking at the menu.

“Why haven’t you ordered yet?”

“I’m treating you, so you should order first.”

“I’ll just pick something at random.”

As long as it’s not hot pot.

Zhou Sujin ordered a bottle of red wine without the help of the waiter. He wrapped the bottle in a towel, poured some wine into Wei Lai’s glass, and handed it to her first.

Wei Lai’s gaze fell on his distinct knuckles as she found a casual topic to break the silence. “You never voluntarily poured me a glass of wine during our pretense.”

Zhou Sujin raised his eyes. “You said it yourself, it was just a pretense. We were only in a business relationship then.”

“You never took the initiative to do anything.”

“True.”

His straightforward answer left Wei Lai at a loss for words.

She changed the subject. “He Wancheng helped introduce you to his old friend. It’s your honor.”

During the days of their pretense, she had said “Thank you, Mr. Zhou” so many times that she didn’t say it again tonight. She raised her glass, and the rim was lower than his. They lightly clinked glasses.

They both finished their drinks in one go.

Zhou Sujin watched her finish her drink in one breath, his gaze unwavering. For the first time, he carefully examined her from her eyebrows to her eyes.

The person before him was completely different from the one who used to take liberties and act cute.

He didn’t like people talking constantly while he ate, so Wei Lai didn’t say much tonight. It wasn’t until they finished dinner and left the Western restaurant that she spoke a few words.

She found dining in silence quite enjoyable.

She didn’t have to rack her brains to come up with topics and could space out freely.

Uncle Yan drove the car over.

Wei Lai stood in front of the car and didn’t intend to get in. She pointed to a tall building flashing with the hotel’s logo in the distance. “I’m staying there. It’s just a two-block walk. I’ll walk off the meal.”

Zhou Sujin never liked to force others, so he lightly grasped the car handle and met her gaze. “When you go to Beijing for business in the future, you can contact me.”

Wei Lai smiled. “Okay.”

But she rarely went to Beijing on business.

After saying goodbye, she put her hands in the pockets of her windbreaker, straightened it, and walked along the sidewalk toward the hotel.

This dinner was both a thank-you dinner and a farewell dinner.

Tonight marked the formal end of their contractual relationship.

Thinking of how she used to fear him and act cute in front of him.

Thinking of how he especially came to pick her up from Wen Changyun’s party.

And thinking of how he ate half of the pastry she didn’t want to eat.

Although everything was fake, it still left many traces in her heart.

The next morning, Zhou Sujin returned to Beijing.

After getting off the plane, he sent a message to his aunt: **”I’ll come to see you and Uncle tomorrow night.”**

Ning Rujiang hadn’t seen her nephew for quite some time. She knew him too well – he wouldn’t come just to visit her without any reason.

Tomorrow was the weekend, and she happened to have nothing planned.

When her nephew suddenly wanted to visit, Ning Rujiang had a strong intuition. She said to her husband, “It seems like Zhou Sujin is going to break up with Wei Lai. My dad talked to him, and from what my mom said, my dad almost lost his temper with him. Fortunately, they were at the airport customs, so it wasn’t convenient to speak too freely. If it had been at home, Zhou Sujin wouldn’t have been able to end the conversation.”

Her husband couldn’t believe it. “It was all just pretending?”

Ning Rujiang sighed and nodded.

Her husband couldn’t understand. “If even your older sister could tell it was fake, shouldn’t you have been able to tell as well?”

Ning Rujiang admitted truthfully, “Because I like Wei Lai.”

She patted her husband’s shoulder, half joking, “See, liking someone makes people lose their rationality.”

**”Okay, Auntie will cook for you. What time will you come tomorrow?”**

**”I’ll come around three or four o’clock.”**

**”Then Auntie will make you some good coffee.”**

In the past few days, a cold front had arrived, and the temperature had dropped below zero. There were only a few yellow leaves left on the ginkgo trees, sparsely hanging on the branches.

Even though the sun was shining during the day, it was still too cold to stay outdoors.

On the weekend day, it was cloudy again.

Before her nephew arrived, Ning Rujiang moved the tea table indoors, close to the wooden windows.

A little after four o’clock, Zhou Sujin’s car stopped at the entrance of the courtyard.

“I just made coffee for you.”

Her nephew never added sugar to his coffee, so Ning Rujiang added a piece of sugar for herself.

Zhou Sujin took off his windbreaker and hung it up. “Is Uncle not at home?”

“He went to the company. He said he would be back before dinner.”

Pretending not to know anything, Ning Rujiang chatted casually, “You’re always so busy every day. Do you still have time to see Wei Lai?”

Zhou Sujin stared at the coffee for a few seconds before replying, “We broke up.”

Knowing it was fake, Ning Rujiang had mentally prepared for her nephew’s breakup, but hearing him say it himself, she still felt sad for the two of them.

She didn’t understand where this sadness came from.

Her nephew must have come today to specifically tell her this matter and let her pass on the message to her sister.

After dinner, Zhou Sujin left.

Ning Rujiang casually grabbed a coat and walked her nephew out.

Zhou Sujin stopped her. “It’s cold outside.”

“I’m wearing a lot.”

Every time her nephew came, she would habitually go to the door to greet him, and when he left, she would send him to the car.

Today, her nephew was driving the car that had been left in Jiangcheng for four months and had finally returned.

The day after having dinner at her aunt’s house, Zhou Sujin flew to the London branch, stayed there for more than half a month, and then flew to Manhattan.

When he returned to China, it was already mid-December.

There were a few things on the Jiangcheng project that needed his final decision, so he landed directly at Jiangcheng Airport.

Lu Yu was free and went to pick him up from the airport.

In the afternoon, he had meetings with several responsible persons from cooperating companies. Zhou Sujin’s investments in Jiangcheng were mostly in cooperation with local leading enterprises, including Zhang Yanxin and Mu Di’s family.

Cooperation came first, and meeting Wei Lai came later.

After picking up everyone, Lu Yu reported on the project’s progress.

Among the people attending the afternoon meeting was Zhang Yanxin. “Your love rival is also here.”

Zhou Sujin didn’t react immediately. “What love rival?”

“Zhang Yanxin. He’s Wei Lai’s ex-boyfriend, and you’re her ex-boyfriend too.” It was a clear-cut case of love rivals.

Zhou Sujin didn’t respond.

Zhang Yanxin also didn’t want to see Zhou Sujin, but for the sake of the project, he had no choice.

After the meeting, he first glanced at Zhou Sujin’s wrist. He was still wearing that new watch, a watch that had appeared on many occasions.

Why was he paying so much attention to Zhou Sujin’s watch? He couldn’t understand his own psychology.

He was completely out of focus during today’s meeting.

It wasn’t until nearly five o’clock that the meeting ended.

Coming out of the meeting room, Lu Yu teased, “Zhang Yanxin seems to have taken a liking to your watch. He looked at your wrist no less than eight hundred times.”

“Of course, he exaggerated his words.”

Zhou Sujin glanced at him, “You’re more interested in everything than in the project.”

“…”

Implicitly, he was not attentive to the project, but Lu Yu couldn’t argue.

At this point, he could only quickly change the subject, “Zhang Yanxin is getting married next week, on December 28th. The wedding will be held in Jiangcheng, and he has sent us a few invitations.”

He certainly wouldn’t be foolish enough to ask Zhou Sujin whether he would attend the wedding. In this kind of business relationship, it wasn’t necessary for even Zhou Sujin to show up. “I’ll be there that day.”

Throughout the conversation, Zhou Sujin didn’t mention a word about Zhang Yanxin’s wedding.

He went directly back to Jiang’an Yunchen from the business center of the park.

Lu Yu was now tacitly allowed to go to that house.

Before entering the underground garage of the community, he passed by the ground-floor shops of the community.

Lu Yu inadvertently looked outside the car and saw the grand entrance of Wei Lai Supermarket and a conspicuous and distinctive small logo of the number 17.

There was no talk of a flagship store for the supermarket; otherwise, he would have thought this was a flagship store.

Just by looking at the size and quality of the entrance, it was several notches above the other Wei Lai Supermarket stores.

“They opened a Wei Lai Supermarket here, you know?” He turned to ask Zhou Sujin.

Zhou Sujin turned his head to look out of the window on Lu Yu’s side. The car window happened to be level with the number 17, and it quickly moved away, revealing the logo.

He withdrew his gaze and replied to Lu Yu, “I know.”

Wei Lai had mentioned this to him.

“Opening a supermarket here makes it convenient for you to shop.”