Monday afternoon dawned on Xia Biming. After getting out of the weekly reports meeting earlier that morning, she went to her office to finish sewing her dress together. After she finished, it was already 1 pm.
Her assistant, Lin Zhi knocked and then entered her office. "CEO Xia, you have a lunch delivery. Did you order this?" Lin Zhi handed her the takeout box.
Biming observed the box and took the note off the top of it.
'Good afternoon, Biming. I hope you had a lovely weekend. I apologize for the way my family acted over dinner. I was wondering if you were interested in having dinner with just me. Here's my number. Please let me know when you decide. Enjoy your lunch.'
Immediately, Biming knew that this was from Xue Changmin. She opened the lunch box to find that he had ordered a Japanese bento box for her. It contained steamed white rice, shrimp tempura, beef gyudon, and a side of seaweed salad. The smell of it made her mouth salivate.
She dug into the lunch and thought if she should go to dinner with him and listen to what he had to say. When she felt full, she took the note and typed his number into her phone before sending him a message.
[Xue Changmin, this is Xia Biming. I received your delivery. Thank you, I enjoyed it. I hope you also ate well. For your request for dinner, I will agree and hear you out. Just let me know what you have in mind.]
She sent the message and started her research about the locations for the pop up shops again. Her phone suddenly beeped, notifying her of receiving a message.
[Hello Biming. I'm glad you enjoyed it. I already ate, I had the same thing you did. Thank you for agreeing. If you are free tomorrow night, how does dinner at restaurant X sound? 7pm?]
[Changmin, that sounds fine. See you then.]
And just like that, they made dinner plans. Xia Biming was curious to hear what he would have to say when it was only the two of them. She forced herself to not overthink and went back to work.
That evening, Xue Changmin met up with Xia Huanting and Wang Xuan at the bar that Wang Xuan owned. In the luxurious private room, they had their dinner and chatted over drinks.
"Xia Huanting, tell me the truth. What do you think about me and your sister?" Xue Changmin was curious. He valued his friend's opinion a lot. Especially in this matter. "All the elders think the same thing and want us together, but I can tell that your sister doesn't want to."
Xia Huanting hated picturing his sister being mistreated. "I can understand why Biming doesn't want to. She only ever loved one man in her entire life outside of our family. She liked that douche since she was a little schoolgirl. He was decent back then; I don't know why or when things changed in their relationship. But I know how badly it hurt her. I overheard her crying over that scum so many times. There were times where she was trying to be strong, but I could see her putting up her strong front. When they finally split, she kept zoning out and her cheery spirit wasn't there anymore. Once, mom called her over for dinner and she hardly ate anything. She just kept staring off into space and only nodded at what we said."
Chang could picture how miserable she was on such nights. He too, was able to witness her break downs a few times.
"So I'll tell you honestly Xue Changmin. Only think about being with her if you're serious. If you're serious about her, I honestly wouldn't mind having you as my brother-in-law. You've changed from how you used to be. If you were still the same Xue Changmin from back then, I'd break all your limbs before you even had a chance to speak her name. But you're one of the few decent guys I know now. And if you are sincere, I would trust Biming to you. I know you'd care for her."
This was one of the toughest conversations Xia Huanting has ever had. It was tough because he was speaking his honest and raw feelings. He loved his little so sister dearly and always wanted to protect her since she was the prized jewel of his family. But he knew she needed someone that would love her in a way that he couldn't. As he would need to find his own love too.
"Huanting, I appreciate your blessings. But I'm at a loss on what to do. She really doesn't want to be in a relationship at all and I don't want to force her. But the elders are pushing so hard. I feel like I'm stuck in quicksand and can't get out." Changmin didn't know what to do or say. He wanted to tell Xia Huanting that he was also afraid of falling in love again but didn't want to be seen as weak.
"Bro, I think you should just do what your heart keeps feeling. Don't think too much about it, and just follow your heart. Biming isn't like that girl. I've watched her grow, too. And she's a sweet girl, very hard working and genuine." Wang Xuan couldn't help but also voice his thoughts. He too was tired of seeing all the moping around him. It was ruining his mood.
"I think Xuan is right, Chang. Just let me know if you're serious and I can talk to Biming to see what she thinks. Her mind might be a bit messy right now. She's trying to expand Jade Atelier and is burying herself in her work. She's always been a hard worker, but I think she could slow down a little. She might burn out if she keeps up this pace" Huanting recounted his sister's late nights at the office from.
Xue Changmin considered all the things he heard that night. Maybe Biming needed him just a little bit more than he needed her. Or maybe they needed each other just as much.
He was willing to step up and be her shoulder to lean on. He enjoyed her company anyways, even though she was in a miserable state every time. He could just imagine how it would be if she was restored back to her usual cheerfulness.
He made up his mind that night to try and win Biming. He was excited and wanted to give this relationship a shot. He recalled all the fuzzy feelings he got when he was with her during her birthday celebration.
He hadn't felt those feelings so strongly before.