Both were startled, a pang of heartache washing over them.
Mu Yichuan reached out and pulled Xin Yu into his arms, gently stroking her cheek with one hand.
"Don't forget the money for the two safes." He wouldn't allow her to be a poor girl anymore!
From now on, he would always be there for her…
Xin Yu's eyes flashed, her dark eyes curving slightly. "Let's eat!"
So much money, how could she possibly spend it all!
Besides, he had a good memory; he was still thinking about it!
"Qiu Zhi, you should eat with us too." Xin Yu generously invited him, then, not paying much attention to the two men, turned back to continue looking at her drawings.
Mu Yichuan's eyes were undeniably sharp; he immediately spotted the shortcomings in her design.
Especially the two points he revised, which made the library design much smoother and more harmonious.
Xin Yu took out her notebook and jotted down her notes. Such insightful comments were something others would kill for! Feeling the pressure on her shoulder, she turned to the side, and sure enough, Mu Yichuan's chin was resting there.
"Hey..." Xin Yu complained softly, quickly turning to the other side, thankfully no one was there.
"Qiu Zhi left, didn't eat." Mu Yichuan chuckled, continuing to rest his head on her shoulder. "Still so easily embarrassed? What normal person doesn't know about that?"
"Are you normal?" Xin Yu retorted instinctively. She had initially just thought he was being unruly because he was sick.
But Mu Yichuan interpreted it differently.
He scooped Xin Yu up and pressed her onto the bed. "Tell me, is your husband normal?"
His warm breath brushed against her earlobe, sending a shiver down her spine.
She had no choice but to give in, her small hands pressing between their bodies. "Weren't you supposed to be discharged?"
"Yes."
"Then let's go." Xin Yu pushed him away again, not daring to look into his hawk-like eyes.
"Where are you going?"
Ugh, Xin Yu immediately understood the trap he had set. "I don't know about you, but I'm going back to the old house."
"The old house?" He pondered, feigning profundity. "Okay."
Xin Yu's eyes widened slightly. He was so easy to talk to?
Then hurry up and stand up!
"I'll miss you, A-Yu."
"You're not going back?"
"Yes." Mu Yichuan stood up, pulling Xin Yu into his arms protectively. "I've been too busy lately, I won't be going back for now."
Uh.
Xin Yu reached out and hugged him. Despite the playful banter, she couldn't help feeling disappointed.
Sniffling, she nuzzled against his chest, tilting her face up. "Then you need to take care of yourself."
"Come visit me at Mu's sometime." He pinched Xin Yu's nose, noticing the sour red tingle.
"That's hard to say," she said stubbornly, but it was true. "I'm very busy too; I have to submit the drawings the day after tomorrow."
Mu Yichuan took her to the old house, but he left without even going inside.
Watching his cold, resolute back, Xin Yu's heart clenched slightly, her hands tightening around the drawings. "Ayu, what are you doing? Men should prioritize their careers, and so should women. How can you become so petty just because he's sick!"
She admonished herself, tapping her head as she walked, muttering to herself, "Mu Yichuan is human, not a god. He's bound to get sick, and Ayu will get sick too."
Thinking this, she went into her room and opened the drawings.
She took a few deep breaths, focusing her attention…
"Ah!" Finally finished! Xin Yu breathed a huge sigh of relief, standing in front of the teaching building, feeling the bright sunshine, but it wasn't warm enough.
It was getting cold.
Thinking this, she took out her phone and looked at her chat history with Mu Yichuan from last night. Although she couldn't see him, she still smiled sweetly. Then she quickened her pace and went to the villa.
"Madam, are you cooking for Mr. Jiu again?" Butler Qin smiled broadly upon seeing Xin Yu.
However, Xin Yu's face flushed; she felt like a submissive wife these past few days.
She nodded and went into the kitchen, focusing intently on her "work."
Once everything was ready, the clock struck twelve, lunchtime.
When Xin Yu arrived at the Mu Group with several lunchboxes, Mu Feng paused and quickly greeted her.
"Madam, Mr. Jiu is in a meeting with the board members…"
"It's alright, I'll just sit here and wait a bit." She quickly reassured him, not wanting to put Mu Feng in a difficult position, since the food was in insulated containers.
Mu Feng nodded gratefully. "Madam, please wait here for a moment. I'll tell Mr. Jiu you've arrived as soon as the meeting is over."
"No rush."
Ring.
Xin Yu, who was flipping through a magazine, heard her phone ring.
But it only rang once. She picked it up and glanced at it, her brow furrowing slightly. It was an unfamiliar number.
From Nanshi.
Just as she was about to try dialing, her mentor called. "Xin Yu, where are you now?"
"I..." Xin Yu was a little embarrassed and changed the subject. "Teacher, is there anything I can help you with?"
"I have good news for you. Your drawing passed the preliminary round." Her mentor, Donghua, sounded quite excited. "If you have time, come and register."
"So fast?" Xin Yu was a little incredulous. She had only submitted the drawing less than half a day ago!
"The competition committee said the quality was very high."
"..." Xin Yu was too embarrassed to mention that she had a ghostwriter; Mu Yichuan had polished two parts for her. "Oh, okay."
She pushed open the door and saw Mu Feng making a phone call in the corner, looking very businesslike.
Xin Yu couldn't help but smile. Mu Yichuan's subordinates all acted like him.
"Madam, is there something you need?" He must be getting impatient. Mu Feng glanced towards the conference room, but it had only been open for an hour; he figured it would be good if he came out in another hour.
"I have to go back to school for a bit. Make sure he eats something when he comes out; a regular sleep schedule is essential for a faster recovery," Xin Yu instructed.
This…
Mu Feng was in a dilemma. If Mr. Jiu found out he had let his wife, who had gone to so much trouble to come, go, how could he possibly have a good life?
He was very suspicious!
"Why don't you wait a moment, I'll go check," Mu Feng said, about to report to Mu Yichuan. He figured his boss would definitely prefer to see his wife rather than those bald, pot-bellied board members in the conference room.
"No!" Xin Yu quickly interrupted, "I really have something to take care of. My advisor just contacted me."
Besides, it wasn't like she couldn't come. "I can come back when I'm done."
Just as she stepped out of the Mu Group building, Xin Yu saw Liu Shuihan walking towards her from outside. Both of them were startled.
His confession on the phone last time, and the documents Mu Yichuan showed her that Liu Shuihan had signed, flashed through her mind.
"Ayu, what brings you here?" he asked gently, a sliver of hope in his heart.
He was about to tell the truth, but Xin Yu changed the subject, "Brother Shuihan, where's Henhen?"
She hadn't seen Liu Hen since she and Cheng Yuan returned from S country.
"She came straight back to Beishi from S country," Liu Shuihan replied. "She said she was homesick. Is everything alright at the website?"
Xin Yu quickly shook her head, afraid he would misunderstand. "No, no! Manager Zhang is doing a great job; everything is running smoothly."
"Ayu, if you want to start your own business after the agency agreement ends, you need to recruit staff in advance."
Faced with Liu Shuihan's reminder, Xin Yu was truly grateful. He always thought one step ahead of her.
Especially this agency agreement; without Liu Shuihan, it probably wouldn't have been possible, and even if it had, it might not have been profitable.
"Okay, thank you, Brother Shuihan."
"You're welcome, it's what I wanted to do."
"..." Xin Yu was taken aback.
"Ayu, you can consider me as your choice." Liu Shuihan volunteered, unwilling to give up on Xin Yu regardless of her attitude.
Xin Yu pursed her lips, nodded, and finally had to bring up her tutor again before rushing towards the school.
Mu Yichuan walked out of the conference room at 2:30, a dangerously low-pressure aura surrounding him.
However, before even stepping into his office, he turned to Mu Feng and asked, "Ayu was here?"
...!
Mu Feng thought to himself, does his Ninth Master have special abilities?!
He had originally planned to report after Mu Yichuan went in, but it seemed he was destined for punishment.
"I'm asking you a question!" Mu Yichuan said dismissively, wearily loosening his tie as he pushed open the door.
"Yes, Mr. Jiu, Madam brought you lunch."
"Hmm?" At the same time, he did see three insulated food containers on the black marble coffee table. "When? Where is she?"
Under immense pressure, Mu Feng recounted the events. As soon as he finished speaking, his back stiffened.
For a full minute, Mu Yichuan remained silent.
"Mr. Jiu... I'm going to pick up Madam from school?" The usually composed Mu Feng stammered, not daring to even lift his head.
After receiving permission, he practically fled.
But as soon as he reached the elevator, he felt like he had saved the Indian Ocean in his past life.
"Madam..." Mu Feng blinked, oh my god!
Was he hallucinating from fright?
Xin Yu smiled sheepishly. She felt incredibly embarrassed to have come back from school after finishing her business!
Everyone probably thought she was going crazy missing Mu Yichuan.
However, that seemed somewhat true.
"Madam, please come with me!" Mu Feng wanted to reach out and pull Xin Yu to shorten the short journey.
But his actions startled Xin Yu.
Her eyes widened, her hands sweating nervously. "What's wrong? Mu Yichuan... he's in trouble?"
She knew she hadn't fully recovered and shouldn't be pushing herself like this!
Without waiting for Mu Feng's answer, she ran straight into Mu Yichuan's office.
"Ayu?!" He was startled, his long legs carrying him over. "Why are you running so fast!"
"Are you alright?" Xin Yu looked Mu Yichuan up and down, afraid of missing a single detail. "Just now, Mu Feng..."
Xin Yu paused. Mu Feng seemed to have said nothing.
"It's good you're alright." Seeing him standing there unharmed, she tapped her head. Why had she been imagining things?
Mu Yichuan roughly guessed what had happened. He glared coldly at Mu Feng. He couldn't even handle a simple task!
"I'm sorry, Madam. I was too anxious just now, so you misunderstood," Mu Feng bowed apologetically. "It's mainly because Mr. Jiu really wanted to see you."
"Go eat if you haven't eaten." Mu Yichuan gave the order. He didn't want anyone else to confess for him!
Mu Feng fled again.
He leaned down, his eyes burning, and his thin lips parted slightly, "I really missed you."