Mu Shengchen crossed his arms over his chest. "Why weren't you answering my call?"
Ning Qianyu resisted the urge to shiver at his voice. She lowered her head, not wanting to look at him in the eye. "I didn't know."
"Go get dressed. We're going somewhere." His eyes were as dark as ink. There was something about his gaze that could make anyone stutter and pause, and she was included in that. He stared at her for a long time, and his Adam's apple bobbed up and down.
"I..." Who was Su Lianmeng? She had initially wanted to ask, but upon glancing up at his cold face, she could only turn away. "Nevermind."
"What were you going to say?" He gazed at her expectantly.
"Should I change my clothes?"
His face simply darkened in response. "No need. Ye Xi will be bringing Liv over." Without another word, he drove his wheelchair out of the study.
After Mu Shengchen had left, she lowered her shoulders in disappointment. So much for asking him. Rolling her eyes at herself, she could only sigh and look around. It wasn't as if she could ask now.
Hesitating for a while, she grabbed the thermos and small blanket before shoving them into her bag.
In the study room, Mu Shengchen still hadn't gotten over their conversation. He had initially assumed that she'd be devastated, and even ask Ye Xi to send him back. But she did the exact opposite.
She never even mentioned the name, and she didn't even ask him!
Did she even care?
For her, this was nothing more than a simple agreement. The only reason that they've stayed together this long was that they had an arrangement. That was it. Nothing more. Nothing less.
Ring, ring, ring! His head tilted upwards, and he glanced at the phone on his desk. "What is it?" His cold voice echoed across the room.
"Young Master Chen, Yan Rui said that he has business he needed to deal with back in City A. He'll be coming to the apartment in a bit to inform you about the situation in Shengxiang headquarters," Ye Xi responded hesitantly.
"All right. Bring me a dress by six." With a sigh, he threw the phone onto the desk in frustration. Why couldn't things just be simpler?
It was ironic. While one sat in the study and the other sat in the living room, they still did the same thing–stared at the ceiling and wondered how it had gotten to this point.
It was silent and peaceful, until Ning Qianyu's phone rang out.
"Hello?" Her eyes widened in recognition.
"Professor Mo Yan?"
"Ning, you skipped class today. Maybe it's time I start seeing you personally," he teased from the other end of the phone, and she rubbed the back of her neck.
"I–I'm sorry, Professor Mo Yan," she slowly replied. "I was preoccupied; that's why I couldn't go to class."
"It's no problem. I was just asking about how you're doing. How about this–I'll take two days off tomorrow, and when you're free, I'll help you catch up on today's class," he suggested.
"You–can you really do that?" Her eyes lit up.
"Of course!" He grinned. "I'll be heading to class now. I'll just set an appointment when the time comes, okay?"
"Thank you, Professor." Thanking him one last time, she later hung up.
Ning Qianyu glanced at the study hesitantly, before sitting back down. After all, there was no reason for her to worry about him, right? She clenched her fists and looked away.
Later tonight, the Su's Corporation had already booked themselves a room in Dihua Hotel in City A. The engagement banquet was one of the most prestigious events in the city, so it was only natural that everyone was looking forward to it.
Even the reporters surrounded the hotel, trying to get some gossip for their headlines.
Ye Xi was accommodating Mu Shengchen while Ning Qianyu was following right beside them. They stepped into the hotel's entrance together, and they had immediately attracted the attention of the press.
No one knew Ning Qianyu. Mu Shengchen, however, was a different story. Although he hadn't appeared in the limelight for three years, everyone still recognized him. "It's the Young Master! He's here!"
The reporters immediately crowded over them, and all the lights streamed towards the couple at the same time.
Su Lianmeng and Mu Shengchen were originally a couple that everyone had admired. They were the 'lit couple'. Everyone followed them, and everyone wanted to be them–that was, until his car accident. Now that Su Lianmeng was engaged, had he come to offer his blessings? Or was he there for something else?
After all, no couple was without its drama.
While he was used to being in the spotlight, Ning Qianyu still wasn't used to the big scene. She squinted her eyes, immediately being blinded by the lights. She wanted to move, only to find that she was frozen.
"Young Master Mu! Did Miss Su invite you to her engagement party?"
"Were you the one who broke up with Miss Su because of your car accident?"
"What do you think of Miss Su's engagement?"
The reporters tried to nudge their microphones towards the couple, but they were immediately stopped by the security personnel on the scene. "Young Master Mu! Young Master Mu!"
The commotion still didn't stop even when he had already entered the banquet hall.
The waiter immediately led them to their seats. Although the clamor had ended, that didn't mean that it was over.
As soon as they were seated, Ning Qianyu could see hundreds of people surrounding them. They were glancing at them from time to time, before whispering to each other. Biting her lip, she glanced at Mu Shengchen.
His expression was cold and penetrating. He didn't look too bothered about what they were talking about. It's as if they didn't even exist.
Ning Qianyu knew that this was only a way for him to isolate himself from the world. Why were they even staring at him? Like some animal in a zoo? Lowering her head, she opened her bag and grabbed a thin blanket from its pockets. She placed it over his thighs. Just as she was about to sit back, he suddenly reached out and grabbed her hand. "Why is your hand cold?" His voice was faint.
"I..." Her heart trembled and tears slid down her cheeks. Afraid that he'd notice, she didn't raise her head.
Mu Shengchen stared at her for a long time before pursing his lips. His sharp eyes swept across the hall and waved Ye Xi over.
"Yes, Sir." He moved closer to him.
Ye Xi nodded. Then, he stood up and walked towards the VIP seats at the front of the hall.
He patted the shoulder of one of the young men. The young man turned around and saw Ye Xi standing by the side. "Ye Xi, you're here!" He immediately stood up in excitement.
He motioned in the direction of Mu Shengchen and Ning Qianyu. "Young Master Mu had received the invitation to the engagement, and I came with him," he responded.
Yan Rui followed his line of sight and saw a woman sitting next to the man. "That's...Is the woman sitting next to him Miss Ning?" he asked excitedly, almost jumping out from his seats.
"Other than the Young Mistress herself, who else could enter with him?" He rolled his eyes.
"Young Mistress? So it's true then?" Yan Rui had heard from Ye Xi that the Young Master had already gotten married. He had thought that they wouldn't be coming to the wedding banquet, but he didn't expect to see them in City A today.
"Of course it's true." If the Young Master hadn't asked him to look for Yan Rui, he wouldn't have bothered himself with this fool.
"So, why are you here?"
"The Su's had arranged another cooperation plan with me." He raised his eyebrows. "I was invited to come here and report to the Young Master about it."
Ye Xi almost vomited when he heard about Yan Rui's words. There was another cooperation? He raised his right hand and patted his shoulder. "At least you couldn't say anything about me not warning you anymore," he murmured. "You've already chosen your death."
"What?" Yan Rui staggered upwards. "What are you talking about?"
"You'll know in a while."
Yan Rui turned bright red. "You really are ruthless, Ye Xi."
"Please, we're just the same."
Right then, a voice came from outside.
"Miss Su and Mr. Guo have arrived."