Chapter 73 With Nothing to Hold Her Back
Su Ziyue still sat motionless at the dining table for a long while after Qin Muchen had left. The dishes he prepared still rested on the dining table, and traces of his scent seemed to linger in the air.
She fished out her phone to call An Xia. “Let’s go out and have a drink.” An Xia’s voice sounded weak. “I’m having my period so I can’t have anything cold.”
After Su Ziyue hung up on her, she packed all the food on the dining table and brought them to An Xia’s place.
She reheated the food in the microwave before placing them all on the dining table and offered a pair of chopsticks to An Xia. “You haven’t eaten, right?”
“I always know you’re the best. As soon as I got back home from work, I just lay on my bed, feeling so awful that I wished I could just vanish into thin air. I had no appetite at all.”
Joyously, An Xia took over the pair of chopsticks and started enjoying the food.
When she had tasted almost everything, Su Ziyue asked indifferently, “Is the food delicious?”
“Yes, it’s not bad. Where did you get it? I’ll order takeaway from them next time.” Her speech was unclear because her mouth was stuffed with food.
Su Ziyue said with a smile, “Have more because you won’t have the chance to have it in the future.”
“Why?” An Xia eyed her suspiciously. Why did she sound so weird over some food?
Su Ziyue then clarified, “The food was prepared by Qin Muchen.”
Pfft…
An Xia spit out the mouthful of water she had just drunk. “Mr. Qin actually knows how to cook? And he cooks so well? Don’t you try to frighten me.”
Su Ziyue rolled her eyes at her.
“Did you apply for leave today because of him?” An Xia narrowed her eyes, her mind spinning, trying to analyze the situation.
Su Ziyue nodded her head, looking somewhat lost. Without answering An Xia, she said instead, “He wanted an answer from me.”
An Xia was puzzled. “What sort of answer?”
Su Ziyue gave her a meaningful look which was instantly understood by An Xia.
“What did you tell him then?” An Xia stared at her curiously, thinking that it was unlikely that Su Ziyue would accept Qin Muchen so easily.
“I asked him to tell me his motives when he first approached me in the beginning, but he refused to come clean…”
“Then?”
“Then, I suggested that he should keep a dog as a pet instead.”
Looking shocked, An Xia was speechless.
After a silent moment, An Xia put down her chopsticks rigidly and pointed at the door with an agonized look.
“You should go now. I don’t want to befriend someone as b*tchy and unreasonable as you! I’m surprised that you actually told such an eligible man to keep a dog as a pet instead! If I were him, I would straightaway turn you into a dog.”
As soon as she heard her comment, Su Ziyue went wide-eyed with rage. “He wouldn’t dare!”
An Xia eyed her contemptuously. “Why wouldn’t he? If he really wanted to cause trouble, your entire family wouldn’t be his match, let alone yourself.”
Seeing Su Ziyue was keeping mum, she pressed on, “So, why’re you telling me all this?”
Su Ziyue then gave her an account of how Qin Muchen had specifically requested her to be the person in charge of handling the agreement with LK Group.
After listening to her, An Xia commented after a brief silence, “How shrewd is Mr. Qin! No wonder you rejected him despite being so smitten with him.”
Su Ziyue immediately countered, “I don’t…”
“You know very well whether or not you’re smitten with Mr. Qin.” While An Xia was talking, she prodded Su Ziyue’s chest.
…
Later that night, Su Ziyue could not sleep even after tossing and turning for a long time. That last sentence from An Xia kept on replaying in her mind.
She only managed to fall asleep in the wee hours of the morning. She dreamt of being turned into a dog by Qin Muchen, causing her to wake up with a start only to find that the sun had risen.
Quickly, she got out of bed and washed up before making her way straight to the office without having breakfast.
She bumped into Su Yige at the entrance of the office tower.
Su Yige looked at her with a smile. “Ziyue, what tied you down at home yesterday? I don’t suppose you know Grandpa was admitted to the hospital?”
Su Youcheng was admitted to the hospital?
Su Ziyue turned to face her with an expressionless face. “Since Grandpa is in the hospital, why are you here instead of staying there to take care of him?”
Su Yige’s face froze for a second before returning to normal. “Grandpa was hospitalized because of overworking and fatigue. Of course I have to be here and work hard to lessen his burden.”
“I see.”
Su Ziyue turned around and walked in the direction of the elevator after casting her a glance.
Su Yige then followed her into the elevator where the two did not speak to each other again.
…
As soon as Su Ziyue reached her office, she tossed her bag aside and mulled over what Su Yige had just said.
What did she mean?
As Su Youcheng was hospitalized, the company could not operate without a leader.
Did that mean that Su Yuanming, who had been manning the branch office all this while, was coming back?
If that was the case, things were looking bleak.
Su Yige might tone down her behavior when Su Youcheng was still around. But, if her father, Su Yuanming, was to take over the company, Su Yige would have nothing to hold her back anymore.
Su Ziyue became alert from then on.
As expected, An Xia knocked on the door of her office and came in minutes after she reached her office. “General Manager Su is back and he wants to see you now.” An Xia looked somewhat worried after she said that.
Su Ziyue flashed her a reassuring smile. “I’ll be okay.”
With that, she rose to her feet and made her way to Su Yuanming’s office.
She stood by the door and knocked twice before Su Yuanming’s voice was heard, “Come in.”
Su Ziyue pushed the door open and saw Su Yuanming who was reviewing some documents before the desk.
“Ziyue, please have a seat.” He put aside the documents and pointed at a chair on the opposite of him.
Su Ziyue walked over but she did not sit down. “General Manager, please cut to the chase. I have an ongoing project in my department and there’s still a lot of preparation work that needs to be done.”
“Don’t worry about work. My father was admitted to the hospital yesterday due to a relapse of his old illness. I suppose you know about that?”
Su Yuanming scrutinized her expression while he talked.
Su Ziyue, who had no idea of his plan yet, had no choice but to nod her head. “I heard it from Yige when I arrived at the office just now.”
Satisfied with how perceptive she was, Su Yuanming carried on, “For people like him at such an old age, it’s inevitable to have a weaker body. Yet, Yige and I aren’t free to take care of him as we have plenty of work to handle. Let’s see, why don’t you put aside that project of yours first or just pass it to Yige so that you’ll have time to take care of your grandfather and catch up with him?”
As it turned out, Su Yige was eyeing the collaboration she was handling with LK Group, so she had gotten her father, Su Yuanming, to convey her request on her behalf.
Did Su Yige really think that she would still be intimidated by a senior of the Su family after how she had been treated by them?
She stared at Su Yuanming unflinchingly, a trace of disdain flashing in her eyes.
“I think it’ll be better if Yige takes care of Grandpa because he has always doted on her a great deal. Also, you know very well how bad my relationship with Grandpa is. I’m afraid the sight of me might only worsen his condition.”
Staring at the subtle change slowly taking place on Su Yuanming’s face, she looked down and said obediently, “It was with much effort that I managed to clinch the deal with LK. If I can show some results sooner, I believe Grandpa will be even happier.”
