Chapter 10

Late at night, with the wind blowing, the lights in the hotel lobby cast a shimmering reflection of the drizzling rain.

Yi Xinling volunteered to sit in the front passenger seat, poking her head out to Yi Siling, “Yi Zhaozhao, just drop me off at school later. I won’t stay at the hotel with you.” She feared she might be too much of a third wheel.

Uncle Mei chuckled and asked, “Miss Xinling, which school are you attending?”

“Peking University, Xie Wenning dormitory.”

Uncle Mei was surprised. This coincidence seemed too marvelous. “So you’re the good friend that the Little Miss often mentions. Fate has brought us together irresistibly.”

Yi Xinling agreed and then playfully winked at Yi Siling before closing the passenger door and settling in to play with her phone.

Traitor! Calling her by her nickname again! Yi Siling sighed softly under the loose fit of her oversized suit.

The night rain fell in threads, blown sideways by the wind.Xie Xunzhi approached and opened the rear door, neither hurrying nor inviting, just quietly gazing at her with a warm and deep look. His eyes were as dark as ink, his tall figure illuminated by the light, casting a small circle of shadow that enveloped her.

Unable to bear this gentle yet eerie atmosphere, Yi Siling quickly averted her gaze, lifted the hem of her skirt elegantly, and sat down, legs crossed gracefully. It was just getting into a car, but her movements were both beautiful and reserved, tinged with a hint of pride. It was hard to imagine that she had been blushing just minutes ago.

Xie Xunzhiremained unmoved. Raindrops fell on his thin shirt. After a few seconds, he leaned forward, in a noble posture, and stooped low by the woman’s side, neatly arranging the elaborate skirt that spilled outside the car, then closing the door with a gentle touch.

The car headed towards Peking University without navigation, clearly a familiar route. The nearly six-meter-long vehicle was spacious, filled with a dry and clean fragrance. Cantonese love songs played softly on the radio, serving as a soothing background.

In the front seats, Yi Xinling and Uncle Mei chatted aimlessly, but beneath their conversation lay hidden motives.

“Uncle, are you busy with work on regular days?” Yi Xinling asked.

“When it’s busy, it’s quite hectic, mainly taking care of some daily life matters for the young master. But the young master is busier, working every day with little time to rest.”

“That’s true. Managing such a large conglomerate with over a hundred thousand employees must be demanding. My second sister was promoted to senior vice president this year and has been incredibly busy.” Yi Xinling adjusted her seatbelt. “But my second sister attends a lot of socialite events. Sometimes I miss her, but I can’t see her. I wonder what keeps her so busy.”

“Busy, but shouldn’t be busy in vain. After marriage, you still need to spend more time with the princess. Otherwise, marrying a husband who’s always elusive is like being widowed after marriage.”

Yi Xinling wasn’t sure if her implications could be understood.

Uncle Mei finally grasped the hidden meaning behind Miss Xinling words and immediately became more vigilant.

This wasn’t just small talk. It required more thought than speaking with a leader. Everywhere was a trap. As light misstep could leave a bad impression on the young mistress.

After thinking for a moment, Uncle Mei said, “Miss Second is young, and her career is just starting. She can’t avoid some socialite engagements. Our young master was like that in the past, but now he often returns to Xie Garden to accompany Madam. He’s postponed many unimportant social events.”

“That’s right. Many socialite events are just full of hypocrisy. I don’t like those ostentatious scenes.” Yi Xinling adjusted her safety belt. “Three Miss’s words are reasonable. The young master never participates in these games, and because of that, many people say our young master is too unsociable. Madam also said that in the future, she’ll have to take the young mistress out more often.”

Uncle Mei rambled on.

In the back seat,Xie Xunzhi seemed not to hear, quietly closing his eyes to rest. Yi Siling, pretending to sit up straight, couldn’t help but squeeze her hand when she heard the words “young mistress.”

What were these two talking about?

Yi Xinling was quite satisfied and seized the opportunity to ask again, “Then—”

In the back seat, Yi Siling finally couldn’t listen anymore, furrowing her brows and saying in Cantonese, “Yi Xinling, don’t speak so loudly. I want to sleep.”

Yi Xinling glanced back at her, smiling gently to soothe her, “Alright, alright. You go to sleep; I won’t talk anymore.”

Uncle Mei curiously glanced at the girl in the front passenger seat. She was the younger one, but her demeanor was like an older sister. Her tone of voice was accommodating and indulgent.

The Yi family was quite peculiar. The older sister acted like the younger one, and the younger sister acted like the older one. Miss Three had an outgoing and open personality. It was hard to say what the other two were like.

Although he hadn’t interacted with them directly, Uncle Mei had carefully investigated their backgrounds. The Yi family’s young ladies were all de Licate and beautiful, but not easy to handle. Each of them was exceptional, or else they wouldn’t have such a reputation in Hong Kong.

“Never mind. Miss Three and Uncle Mei can chat. We still have a long way to go.” At this moment, Xie Xunzhi opened his eyes and tapped the front seat, “Uncle Mei, close the partition.”

“Yes, Master,” Uncle Mei responded promptly.

With that, the glass partition between the front and back seats slowly rose, followed by a touchscreen TV. With the partition up, the car now had two separate spaces, where sound and sight no longer intersected.

The isolated space felt like a gift box, trapping them inside, unable to escape, only to endure.

Yi Siling remained silent.

Xie Xuuzhi handed her a clean wool blanket. “Take a nap. I’ll wake you when we arrive.”

Yi Siling was already feeling disgruntled; her mind full of consecutive minor annoyances. Where would she accept this? She just turned her body towards the car window, closing her eyes.

She ignored him.

The air suddenly quietened, faintly smelling the fragrance lingering from the suit, her soft and long breaths  Like butterfly wings.

Thinking she might have fallen asleep, Xie Xunzhi took out his tablet to catch up on work messages from the past few hours.

“I haven’t decided yet.”

Amidst the silence, the woman suddenly spoke.

Xie Xunzhi paused, slowly turning his head. A streak of neon outside cut across, falling on her beautifully troubled face. “I know.”

He calmly watched her, his deep and gentle voice spreading through the neon. “Take your time, no rush.”

 Like a lion creeping through the jungle, knowing its prey was within reach but unwilling to startle it, he became even more restrained.

Yi Siling fell silent again. Soon, her eyelids grew heavy, and unconsciously, she drifted off to sleep. In her dreams, it felt like something soft was covering her.

The car stopped midway at Peking University. When Yi Xinling left, Yi Siling remained asleep. Yi Xinling smiled helplessly, provided Uncle Mei with the hotel address, asked them to safely deliver her sister, and, still concerned, left Uncle Mei’s phone number.

Yi Siling stayed at Yunlan Hotel, one of the upscale hotels under the Xie family’s banner, alongside Yunxi, Yunlan, and Yunman.

It wasn’t surprising Yi Siling chose this place because Yunlan Hotel was the only top luxury hotel in Beijing styled after the 18th-century French Rococo era, extravagant in every aspect. From carpets to wall reliefs, crystal chandeliers, and decorative paintings—every item was personally selected by Xie Wenning and Xie Mingsui. They even bought a hundred paintings in one go from a top gallery in London.

It perfectly matched her expensive and luxurious style.

After the car arrived at the hotel, Yi Siling still hadn’t woken up. Fast asleep, her crimson lips slightly parted, the blanket slipping off her. Xie Xunzhi gently covered her again.

Waking her up was unlikely. He didn’t want her to be upset.

Xie Xunzhi solemnly and sternly resumed responding to work messages on his tablet, typing instead of using voice messages. The executives on the other end were surprised when they received a long string of texts.

When he finally opened his eyes again, the night was dark and thick. In the dim  Light, the  Lights were bright.

Yi Siling rubbed her sleepy eyes and murmured drowsily, “Where am I?”

“In the hotel parking lot,” came a deep, magnetic voice beside her ear. Yi Siling’s mind jolted, and she quickly looked over.

Wide-eyed, she couldn’t believe she had fallen asleep in Xie Xunzhi’s car. “How long was I asleep?”

“Not long.”

Xie Xunzhi glanced at her and continued typing: “Two hours.”

“!”

So, he waited for her in the car for two hours?

Yi Siling, still dazed from just waking up, spoke with a hint of something in her voice, a mixture of complaint and a touch of coyness: “Then why didn’t you wake me up?”

Xie Xunzhi finished replying to the messages on his tablet and set it aside. “You were sleeping so soundly. I didn’t want to disturb you and make you unhappy.”

Yi Siling remained silent.

He spoke as if she was easily displeased. But she wasn’t, she was a reasonable person.

Xie Xunzhi looked at her with gentle and calm eyes, waiting for her response. The car was dark, illuminated only by the radiant lights from the hotel lobby not far away, making the night seem deeper.

Yi Siling pursed her lips and said nothing. She felt a slight, stagnant, ambiguous atmosphere.

Ambiguous? She was startled by this adjective.

Knowing she couldn’t linger any longer, she quickly thanked him, grabbed her bag, and then, remembering something, she put the bag down again, intending to take off the suit and return it to him.

Before she could remove it, Xie Xunzhi stopped her. “You still have a way to go before you reach your room.”

Once people got used to warmth, they grew lazy. Yi Siling looked at the silvery rain on the window. The temperature in this city was not at all gentle, and the situation changed at the drop of a hat.

“Alright then, but when can I return it to you?”

How come she was suddenly so obedient? He thought after she returned to her room, she would just throw his suit in the trash and think about returning it.

Xie Xunzhi smiled and said softly, “Anytime.”

Yi Siling did not think too much about it and pressed the open-door button. “Mr. Xie, thank you for escorting me and my sister tonight.”

She was completely without fault when she was polite and didn’t throw tantrums. Yet, after calling out ‘Mr. Xie’ so suddenly, it felt like an invisible chasm.

No one had ever referred to him by his full name before; she was the first person to call him Xie Xunzhi, while others typically referred to him respectfully as Mr. Xie, Director Xie, or General Manager Xie.

From her mouth, calling him by his full name seemed more natural than any respectful title.

It was unnatural for her to call him Mr. Xie, creating a clear boundary.

Xie Xunzhi’s eyes darkened slightly.

Soon, she pressed the button to open the car door. The door opened smoothly, and cold air rushed in through the gap, colliding with the warmth inside the car. The car window quickly fogged up. Yi Siling, dressed in her evening gown, got out of the car slowly. Just as both feet were about to step out, her wrist was caught by a not too light, not-too-heavy force.

The force was restrained but unbreakable.

**flashback**

Frowning, Yi Siling turned to look at him, puzzled.

Xie Xunzhi’s face was hidden in the darkness of the night, showing no emotion. “My proposal, I hope you will consider it seriously. Don’t forget.”

Yi Siling’s pupils suddenly contracted. How could she forget?

In that elegant tea room, the man who puzzled her placed a cup of tea beside her.

“If there is no reason why we cannot marry, Miss Yi, I hope you will consider.”

“What do you want me to think about?”

“Marry me.”