"I said, why are you so late today? This isn't like you," Gu Chinan said, raising an eyebrow as he casually draped an arm over Shao Xichen's shoulder.
He had known Shao Xichen for so long and had never seen him late.
"Something came up," he replied, shrugging off Gu Chinan's arm and walking towards the cockpit.
While checking the cabin equipment, Cheng Xue couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.
"Yao Yao, fess up, are you hiding something from me?"
Cen Yao evaded eye contact, "No."
She was terrible at lying; whenever she felt guilty, she couldn't look the other person in the eye.
"Then why were you late together with Senior Brother Shao? Don't tell me it was all a coincidence."
"It really was a coincidence, we just ran into each other at the company entrance," Cen Yao said, lowering her gaze.
Cheng Xue was sharp; such a perfunctory excuse wouldn't easily satisfy her.
She had always hoped that Cen Yao would find someone worthy of entrusting her life to. At first, she thought Shao Xichen was not bad, so she also wanted to matchmake the two.
But ever since that incident, her impression of Shao Xichen had taken a hit.
With his kind of personality, Cen Yao would probably be miserable if she ended up with him.
"In any case, you should keep your distance from Senior Brother Shao, apart from work."
Today they were flying to Manchester, about ten hours away.
After all the passengers were seated and the routine checks were completed, Cen Yao finally had time to rest.
It was her first flight after being reinstated, and she was still a bit nervous, worried that something like last time would happen again.
"Something's wrong, come quick!"
Suddenly, a woman's scream came from the earpiece.
At this moment, in the business class cabin, the man's delicate features twisted grotesquely, one hand tightly covering his heart, his body twitching slightly.
"What happened?" Cen Yao urgently asked about the situation.
"I don't know, he was fine just now... and then suddenly like this," a passenger explained in broken sentences, clearly frightened.
"What should we do now?"
"You go notify the cockpit to prepare for an emergency landing at any time."
As soon as she finished speaking, the man stopped twitching, as if he had fainted.
Before they started working, they had undergone some training and learned some simple first aid measures.
Cen Yao tried to stay calm, first laying the man flat on the ground, hands crossed over each other.
Ensuring the pressure, she performed CPR rhythmically.
After several minutes, there was no sign of the man regaining consciousness, and Cen Yao's strength was also rapidly declining.
Just when she was about to give up, the man suddenly coughed and slowly opened his eyes.
"Sir, are you okay?"
The man struggled to lift his eyes and glanced at Cen Yao. He opened his mouth but didn't make a sound, so he pointed to his pocket instead.
Cen Yao immediately understood and took out a white pill bottle from the man's pocket.
"How many?"
The man signaled the number "1."
Cen Yao immediately gave the man a pill to take.
After taking the medicine, the man's condition gradually stabilized.
"Sir, are you feeling any discomfort?"
"No more."
Only then did Cen Yao finally get a good look at his appearance; the words 'gentlemanly and refined' described him perfectly.
"I have a congenital heart condition, I really owe you one."
Cen Yao smiled appropriately, "These are things we should do. If you feel any discomfort again, please let us know at any time."
After the minor incident, the plane landed safely, and Cen Yao's heart finally settled down.
After getting off the plane, everyone rushed to their accommodation together.
"Miss Cen, wait a moment!"
Cen Yao stopped in her tracks and looked back; it was the man she had helped on the plane.
"How did you know my surname?"
"I just asked at the service desk, I haven't officially introduced myself yet, my name is Shen Zihao."
Cen Yao smiled awkwardly; she really didn't know what to talk about with someone she had just met.
After a long pause, she blurted out, "Are you feeling better now?"
"It's an old problem, nothing serious. Miss Cen, do you have time? I would like to invite you to dinner as a token of my gratitude."
Shen Zihao said this just as Shao Xichen happened to pass by the two of them, his face visibly darkening.
"Miss Cen, is that okay?"
"Mr. Shen, I was just doing what I should have done. Any colleague would have done the same. I appreciate your gratitude, but let's skip the dinner."
She declined, pulling Cheng Xue's arm and walking away quickly.
"Yao Yao, why did you refuse when he kindly invited you to dinner?" Cheng Xue looked regretful.
In their line of work, they must have come into contact with thousands of people.
With her experience in judging people, she could tell that he was definitely a quality man, of the top-notch kind.
"Don't think I don't know what you're plotting."
Before Cheng Xue could continue, Cen Yao saw through her little thoughts.
"A meal is nothing serious. Even if it doesn't develop into a romantic relationship, it's good to make more friends. You can't really spend your life working, can you?"
"Cen Yao, look, you've been reinstated successfully now, and Ningning's condition is also improving. You should consider yourself, you can't always live for other people's affairs."
Cen Yao lowered her eyes and pondered.
The doctor had said that even if Cen Ning recovered in the future, it was impossible for her to return to a normal mental state. Situations like the one at the hospital could happen again at any time.
This meant that she might have to take care of Ningning for the rest of her life.
"We'll see."
She couldn't ask others to bear these burdens with her.
Cheng Xue shook her head helplessly; it was like the emperor wasn't in a hurry, but the eunuch was anxious.
Back at the hotel, it was already dark.
They would be staying in Manchester for a day and a half, and Cheng Xue wouldn't miss out on a free trip.
"Yao Yao, I know there's a famous scenic spot nearby, shall we go check it out tomorrow?" Cen Yao paused for a moment before nodding.
Preparing for the next day, after washing up, the two went to bed early to rest.
Before long, Cheng Xue's even breathing could be heard.
In the darkness, Cen Yao stared wide-eyed at the ceiling, not feeling the slightest bit sleepy, her mind unable to stop thinking about all sorts of random things.
Sometimes she thought about her relationship with Shao Xichen, and sometimes about Cen Ning's illness.