Shang Xinglu buried her head on Shang Xingyu’s shoulder, saying, “I can’t handle it anymore, I’m going to throw up.”

Shang Xingyu was flustered and disoriented: “Wait a minute?!!!”

Yin Yao said, “I think she’s really drunk. You should take her back to the room, and I’ll go get some hangover medicine.”

Shi Rui added, “No need, we’re a bunch of people here. Taking care of Louise will be fine.”

After all, despite their past conflicts with Yin Yao’s team, which were so intense they could be described as chaotic, they reconciled and now, Shi Rui still had some unresolved feelings.

No, no, no… Let’s not talk about unresolved feelings.

The habit of confrontation was still there.

Xue Shaoying, being more diplomatic, said, “It wouldn’t be good for both of you to leave. You stay here and oversee things. Don’t worry about Louise. She only had a bit of champagne. She probably hasn’t drunk in a while, she’ll be fine soon.”

Everyone quickly took their roles and escorted Shang Xinglu away.

The hotel rooms were in the building just behind, so it was quite close.

Naturally, Shang Xingyu had to carry Shang Xinglu.

On the way, Shi Rui asked, “You just got a call from Lin Heng, right? What did he say?”

Shang Xingyu replied, “He said he’s coming.”

Shi Rui asked, “That’s good. End-of-year is busy, but not this crazy, right? And today, she came with someone. Why did she bring you?”

Shang Xingyu hummed, “Am I that embarrassing?”

“Compared to Lin Heng, yes, you are embarrassing.” Shi Rui, as part of the sister group, wasn’t shy about her disdain, just like Shang Xinglu herself.

Wait, what? Why am I being compared to my ex-brother-in-law?!

“…” Shang Xingyu choked, then said, “I guess she was worried Lin Heng would be too busy, so she called me.”

The three girls exchanged incredulous looks. “Is this for real? Louise actually thought of others like this… Did she ever do that when she was with Shen Wang?”

Xue Shaoying responded, “Back then, they were both just messing around. They were immature, like two kids playing house.”

Jiang Lexuan sighed, “Has our silly Lou really grown up?”

At the hotel, Shang Xingyu was once again tasked with buying hangover medicine.

The three girls stayed behind to help Shang Xinglu change her clothes and helped her into the bath, while Shang Xinglu behaved quite well, not causing any trouble or insisting that she wasn’t drunk and still wanted to drink.

After the ordeal, Shang Xinglu woke up a little, snuggling in bed and falling asleep again.

In the middle of the night, she was woken up by the doorbell.

“Who is it?” Shang Xinglu groggily opened the door.

Lin Heng was standing outside, with his coat draped over his arm. He didn’t look as neat as usual, and there was a shadow of stubble on his chin. He looked hurried.

Shang Xinglu’s vision was still blurry. She rubbed her eyes and looked up.

Shang Xinglu: “…?”

Lin Heng asked, “When did I ever abandon you? Who told you that?”

His tone, unusually harsh, showed just how wronged he felt.

Shang Xinglu hadn’t yet realized the “crisis.”

She tilted her head. “Did I just see Lin Heng… was I dreaming?”

Lin Heng pinched her face. “Is it a dream?”

“Ouch, ouch, ouch…” She groggily covered her face, then suddenly her eyes widened.

Wow, it’s really him! It’s actually Lin Heng!

Shang Xinglu jumped into his arms, burying her face in his chest, rubbing against him, and taking a deep breath. She finally stopped moving.

Lin Heng simply picked her up and carried her into the room.

But Shang Xinglu remained quietly held in his arms, more obedient than a little joey in a kangaroo pouch.

She was obedient to the point of being oddly strange.

Lin Heng couldn’t see her face, just her head.

He couldn’t help but ask, “What are you doing?”

Shang Xinglu’s voice was soft, “…吸林總. Recently, I’ve been lacking in Lin Heng energy, and Lou Lou’s about to die.”

What Lou Lou, what ‘about to die’? She was practically acting coquettish, completely unlike a woman in her thirties who ran a company.

Lin Heng’s heart suddenly softened.

“I’ve been so busy lately.”

He spoke simply, but the truth was that his workload recently was far beyond the normal human capacity, constantly working without rest.

Shang Xinglu mumbled, “I know.”

Lin Heng asked, “Are you mad?”

Shang Xinglu thought for a moment, then said, “No, and even if I was… now that I see you, why would I still be mad?”

She noticed the dark circles under Lin Heng’s eyes and immediately felt a pang of sympathy.

She quickly asked, “Who asked you to come here? You could’ve slept another two hours instead of going back and forth.”

Lin Heng, however, asked, “Don’t you want to see me?”

This was the part Shang Xinglu couldn’t lie about.

She could only say, “I do want to see you…”

Lin Heng: “Then that’s settled.”

“But if you keep working yourself to death… if something happens to you, then who am I supposed to see?”

Lin Heng: “…”

Tonight, in his arms, Lou was being both practical and mood-killing.

Shang Xinglu shoved him onto the bed. “Sleep, sleep! Hurry up and get some rest!”

As she spoke, she helped him take off his suit jacket.

Lin Heng was really tired. He lay on the bed and fell asleep soon after.

But early the next morning, his phone vibrated, and Lin Heng had to leave.

He got dressed, saw that Shang Xinglu was still asleep, and didn’t wake her. Instead, he leaned over and gently kissed her forehead.

…Which caused Shang Xinglu, upon waking, to almost think she was seeing a fake Lin Heng.

At breakfast, Shi Rui asked, “Where’s Mr. Lin? Did you see him last night?”

“I did,” Shang Xinglu replied.

“Where is he?”

“Oh, he left again.” Shang Xinglu stuffed a bun into her mouth, her tone casual.

Shi Rui couldn’t help but pat her on the head. “I think you must’ve seen him in a dream. Be good, it’s broad daylight—wake up, stop dreaming.”

Shang Xinglu: “……”

Take your hand off me! Do you really not sense that I’m already heartbroken over Lin?!

Seeing how exhausted Lin Heng was, Shang Xinglu didn’t dare to bother him.

Another ten days passed.

New Year’s Eve.

Naturally, Shang Xinglu returned to her family home for the celebration.

As far as she knew, the Lin family didn’t place much importance on traditional Chinese holidays. At most, they would have a simple meal together.

And Lin Heng probably wouldn’t even attend that meal.

But this year, Shang Xinglu was divorced, so she was expected to return home alone.

Spring Festival was an important occasion for the Chinese.

The Shang family had prepared all kinds of festive goods in advance, and the atmosphere was lively and warm. It had been a while since Shang’s parents last saw their daughter, so they showered her with concern and affection.

The family sat together for a sumptuous New Year’s Eve dinner. Around 8 p.m., snow began to fall outside the window.

Shang’s mother asked, “Are you still going back tonight? It’s snowing, the roads will be slippery.”

Shang Xinglu insisted on going home, so she left before the snow got heavier.

Most of the household staff were on holiday, and the Shan Hai Guan residence, which was quite large, felt eerily empty and quiet.

Shang Xinglu turned on the TV—not to watch, but just to create some noise.

She kicked off her slippers, curled up on the sofa, and spent a while replying to New Year’s greetings from various friends. Then, she sent a message to Lin Heng:

“Happy New Year!”

There was no immediate reply.

To be honest, if someone told her Lin Heng was working overtime today, she would believe it.

She had always known he was busy, but not this busy.

What kind of insane company was this?!

Cursing Clemens in her heart, she then proceeded to mentally curse Lin Heng’s uncle, Lin Maosen. At that moment, her phone vibrated.

It was a call. From Lin Heng.

He asked, “All the household staff are off for the holiday?”

Shang Xinglu replied, “I kept two, but since I went home for dinner today, I gave them the night off too.”

“Are you back home?” Lin Heng asked.

His background noise was silent—he was probably in his office.

Shang Xinglu said, “Yes, I’m back.”

A soft chuckle came from the other end, with an unclear meaning.

Then Lin Heng said, “Open the door.”

“Is there a gift?” Shang Xinglu asked suspiciously as she walked toward the entrance.

As soon as she pulled it open, a gust of cold wind and snowflakes rushed in, making her shiver. She quickly pulled her sweater tighter around her body.

She looked up—

And froze.

Lin Heng stood in the wind and snow, his smile calm and gentle.

“Do I count as a gift?” he asked.

His features were striking, and in the pitch-black cold night, there was an indescribable elegance about him.

Shang Xinglu was speechless for a moment.

Then she said, “No, you’re too stingy.”

Even as she spoke, her hands were already pulling him inside.

The house was warm. Lin Heng took off his coat and said, “I haven’t eaten yet.”

Shang Xinglu thought about the last time she cooked and hesitated.

“Well… if you trust me to cook for you.”

Lin Heng considered it, then rolled up his sleeves. “I’d better do it myself.”

Shang Xinglu: “……Hey!”

Lin Heng, not very skillfully, cooked himself a bowl of noodles while Shang Xinglu hovered around him like a little tail.

She asked, “When are you leaving?”

Lin Heng: “You want me to leave as soon as I arrive?”

Shang Xinglu found it strange. “Didn’t you just squeeze in some time to come over?”

Lin Heng reached out and ruffled her hair. “Sort of. But I’ve started my holiday now, so I’m staying for a while.”

With just one sentence, Shang Xinglu broke into a wide smile.

Her eyes curved into crescents, sparkling like stars.

She grinned and said, “President Lin, what a coincidence! My Spring Festival break just started too.”

Lin Heng looked at her, smiling quietly.

Exhausted, Lin Heng finished eating, took a shower, and settled in front of the TV. He was like an old man who got sleepy on schedule—barely staying awake past midnight before giving in and heading to bed.

Even though Shang Xinglu wasn’t that tired, she followed him like a little tail and went to bed too.

After getting a full night’s sleep, she woke up early the next day.

When she checked her phone, her social media apps were practically exploding.

At first, she thought it was just New Year’s greetings. But as she kept scrolling, she noticed something was off.

Her best friends’ group chat was going crazy:

“WTF?!”

“Holy sh*t!!!”

“What’s up with your ex-husband?!”

“Is the world ending?! Should I sell all my assets and buy a ticket for Noah’s Ark?!”

Then she saw messages from other friends, all expressing the same level of shock.

Shang Xinglu was completely confused. “What happened?”

A friend who was already awake immediately sent her a link.

It was from the finance section.

Headline: ‘Clemens’ Executive CEO Resigned Last Night—What’s the Real Story Behind It?’

The article included an official press release from Clemens, but the statement was very formal and didn’t reveal much.

Shang Xinglu: “!!!”

Then she saw another update—

The new CEO had already been confirmed as Chris Lin.

Shang Xinglu knew who this Chris was—Lin Heng’s cousin, Lin Yan.

Shang Xinglu: “!!!”

And finally, the article concluded:

“We have not yet been able to reach Edmond Lin for comment.”

Shang Xinglu turned her head.

The man they couldn’t reach was right beside her, still fast asleep.

Shang Xinglu: “……”

President Lin, you really dropped a bomb this New Year.