C9 A Farewell Meal

Mooh Yang accidentally let his thoughts slip out, not realizing how unfriendly they sounded. But once spoken, words can't be taken back.

"Mooh Yang, can you be reasonable? The Chairman called me! How can I not go back? I'm his assistant now! What do you expect me to do? What do you really want from me?"

Shu Ann felt incredibly wronged, like no matter what she did, Mooh Yang was always against her. What could she possibly do to make things right? Everyone seemed to be picking on her!

Seeing Shu Ann genuinely upset, Mooh Yang didn't dare say more. "Okay, okay, I was wrong. I won't do it again." He was truly afraid Shu Ann would stay mad at him, so he quickly admitted his mistake to prevent further unhappiness.

"Alright... I'm leaving now, or else Jingyan will definitely be upset!"

Mooh Yang had planned to stay quiet, but hearing Jingyan's name set him off again. "Jingyan! Jingyan! Jingyan! It's always him! Is this man really that important to you? You can't go three sentences without mentioning him! Be honest with me, have you fallen for him? Do you have feelings for your Chairman?"

Shu Ann never imagined Mooh Yang would think this way about her, and she felt deeply disappointed in him. "Mooh Yang, aren't you being a bit too much? You were the one who took on this project, insisting I follow through step by step. I've wasted so much time and effort on this, and now you're accusing me. Mooh Yang, you've really let me down."

Shu Ann had never felt such heartache before. Being wronged felt terrible, and she couldn't understand why, after losing so much, she was still the one getting hurt. It just seemed so unfair!

“Are you sure you don’t have even the slightest personal feelings for Lih Jingyan?” Mooh Yang still couldn’t believe Shu Ann had no interest in him, so he asked again.

“Mooh Yang, how many times do I have to say it? He’s the boss, and I know my place. Someone like him is out of my league. Everything I do for him is just part of my job as an assistant. Believe it or not, we really are just in a professional relationship.”

After saying this, Shu Ann walked away without looking back, leaving Mooh Yang standing there, dumbfounded.

Lih Jingyan was holding his car keys, ready to head to the parking lot. After some thought, he decided it would be better to drive Shu Ann home. To be honest, he was curious about where she lived and what her home was like. In the next moment, countless possibilities flashed through his mind.

But he quickly shook his head vigorously—no, no! He just felt she worked too hard yesterday, and that’s why he wanted to give her a ride home.

As Lih Jingyan headed toward the open-air parking lot, he suddenly stopped in his tracks. He could hear Shu Ann and Mooh Yang arguing intensely. Though he hadn’t caught what they were arguing about, he heard the most crucial part of their conversation.

“Really? I’m just someone she respects as her boss…”

It wasn’t until long after Shu Ann had left that Lih Jingyan emerged from the shadows by the wall, looking dazed. Yet, he chuckled to himself—what was this indescribable expectation? He had inexplicably hoped Shu Ann would say something and that Mooh Yang would continue to misunderstand…

“Ridiculous!” Lih Jingyan muttered to himself in frustration as he turned and headed back to the house.

He stormed back to his study, not realizing his own state of mind. Picking up a few folders from his desk, he hurried toward the door. As he stepped out, he nearly collided with Mrs. Wang, who was about to enter the study to clean.

Mrs. Wang was taken aback when she saw Chairman Lih, stumbling over her words, "Chairman Lih, you... you don't look well. Didn't you just leave?"

Lih Jingyan cast a cool glance at Mrs. Wang, noting her anxious demeanor. He replied evenly, "I came back to grab some documents."

Relieved that Chairman Lih wasn't upset with her, Mrs. Wang asked, "Where are you headed?"

"To the office."

Without another word, Lih Jingyan turned and left. He didn't notice that as he closed the door behind him, Old Master Lih emerged from another room on the second floor.

Watching his son walk away, Old Master Lih stroked his beard with a knowing smile, "Could it be because of Miss Shu? How interesting."

This side of Lih Jingyan was something even Old Master Lih, who had raised him, was seeing for the first time.

From behind, Mrs. Wu respectfully inquired, "Old Master Lih, would you like black tea or green tea for your afternoon tea today?"

Old Master Lih smiled warmly, "We had black tea yesterday, right?"

"Yes, we did."

"Then let's have green tea today."

A luxury car shot out of the Lih family estate like an arrow. Lih Jingyan glanced at his reflection in the rearview mirror. Mrs. Wang had been surprised at how unwell he looked!

Did he?

Did he really?!

She must be seeing things...

"Miss, I'm sorry. The place you're asking to go is too far and complicated. You might want to try another car."

This was the fourth car already.

Shu Ann sighed helplessly, waving her arm at the sparse passing taxis. After the grueling work yesterday, she thought Lih Jingyan might drive her home today. Clearly, she was overthinking it. Of course, with him being so unpredictable and a company chairman, managing all sorts of affairs, he wouldn't have the time to drive her home.

Another cab pulled up; this was the fifth one. Clinging to a last shred of hope, Shu Ann gave the driver her home address. To her surprise, after a moment's hesitation, the driver nodded.

"Thank you, thank you!"

Relieved, Shu Ann sighed, opened the car door, and happily got in. After a bumpy journey, she finally made it home. Just as she was about to unlock her door, she noticed a brightly colored sticky note on the peephole.

Scrawled across it was, "Darn it, Ann! I've been looking for you so many times since yesterday! Where on earth have you been? — Your endlessly searching friend, Xiaoqi."

Xiaoqi was a friend Shu Ann had met during her internship. She lived nearby, and they became friends after Xiaoqi's Husky had shredded Shu Ann's slippers during a walk.

Entering her empty bedroom, Shu Ann recalled a conversation she had with Lih Jingyan when she first arrived at the Lih Mansion—

"Is your father usually at home, Mr. Chairman?"

"Yes, why do you ask?"

Back then, Shu Ann shook her head and smiled, "Oh, nothing. Your home just feels so lively."

"Really? It's always been like this since I was a kid. I'm used to it."

Since leaving the orphanage, Shu Ann hadn't experienced such a lively household in a long time. It was warm, clean, filled with the scent of dried flowers and steaming food.

Even though most of the people at the Lih Mansion were staff, their smiles and diligent work showed they truly loved the home.

If she had a complete family, she thought, she could have that warmth and happiness too.