After talking with Fang Cheng about some work-related matters, Qiao Nan finally hung up the phone. Su Xiaobai, who had been fuming beside him, nearly lost her composure. She walked over, grabbed the apple she had peeled for him earlier, took a big bite, and heard the crisp crunch. The fruit was sweet and juicy, and no wonder the fruit basket cost her three hundred yuan. It wasn't the money that bothered her, but the thought of buying the apple for Qiao Nan made her feel a bit disgruntled.
Qiao Nan smiled as he watched her eat the apple, unable to resist commenting, "Hey, wasn't this apple meant for me? How come you're the one eating it?"
Su Xiaobai glanced at him, replying casually, "Well, there's plenty more over there. Don't you have hands to peel one yourself? You're just poisoned, your arms and legs aren't missing." As she spoke, she continued to munch on the apple, the crunching sound loud and clear.
Qiao Nan knew she was upset, and he found her true nature more interesting than her usual "cultured" demeanor.
Su Xiaobai noticed him smiling and staring at her. Feeling a little self-conscious, she swallowed the bite of apple and hesitantly asked, "Do you… really want the apple?"
Qiao Nan shook his head and said nothing, continuing to gaze at her. His unwavering stare made Su Xiaobai feel uneasy, as if he was plotting something.
"What are you staring at? Who does that? Even if I'm pretty, you should have gotten your fill of looking by now." As she said this, she smiled a little, secretly feeling a sense of satisfaction. Even the most beautiful women know when men look at them with a certain gaze. While they may not like it, there's also a sense of vanity that comes with it. Su Xiaobai wasn't any different. She knew that besides her good family background, her appearance was one of her advantages. Unlike her cousin Su Bai, who was more reserved, Su Xiaobai liked to embrace her more worldly side. Even if it was a little vulgar and a bit out of place in the grand scheme of things, it didn't bother her.
For example, she knew that Qiao Nan was an elder, but she still acted with a lack of formality in front of him. At first, she tried to keep up a composed facade, but soon enough, she was back to her old self. No matter how perfect the image Su Bai had worked so hard to maintain, it only took one word or small gesture from Su Xiaobai to ruin it.
But Qiao Nan didn't mind. He had started to get used to Su Xiaobai's carefree nature, perhaps even unknowingly indulging her.
However, Su Xiaobai's next words made a shadow cross Qiao Nan's eyes, though unfortunately, she didn't notice. He was too good at hiding his emotions.
"Why did you seem to not recognize me when I greeted you outside the hotel that day?" Su Xiaobai suddenly remembered the incident and still felt something was off about Qiao Nan that day. After all, they had only met twice, but that "off" feeling had been her gut instinct.
Qiao Nan looked at her, still with his usual calm and composed demeanor. "I probably didn't sleep well that day. I tend to get a little disoriented when I don't get enough rest."
Su Xiaobai didn't press the matter further, thinking his explanation sounded reasonable enough. She continued eating her apple. After finishing it, she said, "I'll be leaving now. Take care of yourself and watch out. Don't get caught up in anything messy again." Her words were a subtle reminder for him to be cautious of enemies. Su Xiaobai believed that the poisoning and kidnapping were the work of Qiao Nan's enemies. She was starting to think that Qiao Nan must be hiding some kind of earth-shattering secret.
She turned to wash her hands in the bathroom, then grabbed her bag from the couch, preparing to leave. Just then, she noticed Qiao Nan handing her a small piece of paper with a string of numbers written on it.
"As you said, you saved my life. If you run into any trouble in the future, feel free to call this number. If it's within my means, I'll help you," he said.
Su Xiaobai held the paper in her hand but didn't throw it back at him. Instead, she smiled mysteriously. "Does this have an expiration date?"
Qiao Nan smiled back. "It lasts until one of us is in the grave."
Su Xiaobai raised an eyebrow. "How many favors can I ask for?"
Qiao Nan held up one finger.
Su Xiaobai smirked, "Isn't this deal a little unbalanced? I feel like I'm losing out here. After all, I did save your life."
"This can't really be compared, but I can't return a life to you. Maybe one day, you'll find that some things are more important than a life. When that time comes, you can ask me to do it for you."
Su Xiaobai fell silent. Qiao Nan's words had truly struck a chord with her. The world was full of things that one could do nothing about. She couldn't guarantee that there wouldn't be any unexpected events in the future. Whether she used the phone number or not, at least it served as a form of security.
She entered the number into her phone in front of Qiao Nan. Then, remembering something, she looked up and asked, "Hey, you gave me your number—aren't you afraid I'll sell it to someone and they'll keep bothering you?"
Qiao Nan shifted in his bed, changing his posture to one where his left leg was resting on his right. He looked at her with a relaxed, grand manner. "This phone has a satellite blocking system. It only accepts one call from an unknown number. After that, this number will no longer exist."
Su Xiaobai frowned. "What if someone dials the wrong number?"
Qiao Nan glanced at her lightly, his smile fading a little, but his words were firm. "That's not possible."
Su Xiaobai almost rolled her eyes. The way he spoke was so arrogant, yet, somehow, she felt he wasn't lying. That was what truly irked her.
"Why go through all that trouble? We could just exchange phone numbers directly. Or do you think I'll bother you with calls?"
Seeing the increasingly impatient expression on Su Xiaobai's face, Qiao Nan only smiled and shook his head. "Just check your contacts."
At first, Su Xiaobai didn't understand what he meant. But when her brain caught up, she shot him a glare and quickly pulled out her phone. When she opened her contact list, she saw that his name had mysteriously appeared in it. She remembered the brief moment when she had gone to wash her hands earlier.
"Well, you really are wasted on something other than theft," she muttered, then eyed him suspiciously. Her phone was locked with a password. How did he access it so quickly? It had barely been a minute.
Qiao Nan, already aware of her thoughts, casually replied, "Wasn't it that day at the wedding when Fang Cheng saved your number for you?" After saying that, he gave her a meaningful look, his eyes darkening with a cool and distant expression that made Su Xiaobai's heart skip a beat.
Su Xiaobai had no clue about this, and even Su Bai probably couldn't figure it out. There had been no such thing—Qiao Nan was simply "playing" with her. Yet, she still forced a dry smile and said, "Oh, right. I guess that did happen. Look at my memory." She went back to fiddling with her phone, completely missing the momentary furrow in Qiao Nan's brow.
After leaving Qiao Nan's hospital room, Su Xiaobai was still puzzled by the phone situation. As she turned a corner in the hallway, she almost bumped into someone. She stepped aside quickly, but when she saw the person, she was a bit surprised. The man was nearly six feet tall, broad-shouldered, and had a muscular build. Despite wearing a dark gray suit, his physique was still very obvious.
This guy looked like a bear, Su Xiaobai thought to herself. She glanced at him but quickly averted her gaze when she noticed a glaring scar on his large hand, near the tiger's mouth. It was about ten centimeters long, deep, and although it had healed into a scar, the twisted, centipede-like shape was still quite terrifying.
He looked like the type of person who could be part of some "underworld." Su Xiaobai inwardly clicked her tongue, surprised to see such a person in a hospital.
Curiosity got the better of her, and she turned her head to take another look. She saw the man entering Qiao Nan's room, but Su Xiaobai didn't think much of it and went straight into the elevator.
Su Xiaobai stayed in the ancient capital for just two days before returning to Mingzhu City. Her work had already been smoothly taken over by someone else. With half a month left on her vacation, she naturally stayed home to rest. During this time, Fang Cheng seemed to be avoiding her, constantly on business trips. Even when they were at home, they hardly spoke. He usually came back late at night, leaving before dawn, and Su Xiaobai had temporarily put off bringing up the divorce issue.
Just then, Fang Cheng suddenly called, saying he would be on a business trip to another province for about ten days. Su Xiaobai angrily hung up the phone, suspecting he was purposely avoiding the divorce.
Just as she was seething with frustration, the phone rang again.
She picked it up, and a warm voice came through.
"Old classmate, next Thursday, the 25th, is our 10-year class reunion. You better not say you're too busy to come!"