Su Qi's heart leaped with joy, "Tingyun..."
The man had already dressed and stood expressionlessly by the door. "I'm not staying at Shallow Water Bay tonight. You should rest early."
"Tingyun..." Before Su Qi could speak, the man had already walked away, disappearing downstairs in an instant. Soon, the sound of a car engine starting echoed from outside the villa. Su Qi gritted her teeth, this man...
It was late. If she chased after him now, based on her understanding of this man, it would be completely useless.
She entered the room and finally fell into a deep sleep in the latter half of the night.
The next morning, Su Qi heard the commotion downstairs. When she went downstairs, she found Xu Linyun standing in the living room. Seeing Su Qi descend, Xu Linyun rushed forward and grabbed Su Qi's wrist. "Su Qi! Where is Tingyun? You vixen! You're divorced, yet you dare to seduce Huo Tingyun. Believe it or not, I'll kill you!"
Xu Linyun was furious and had rushed over early in the morning.
Su Qi shook off Xu Linyun's hand. "Huo Tingyun wasn't here last night. Also, this is the marital home that the old man gifted me before he passed away. It doesn't belong to the Huo family's assets. You running over here early in the morning is trespassing!"
"Su Qi, you..."
Xu Linyun couldn't win against Su Qi; Su Qi was too eloquent. It felt like a fishbone stuck in her throat. After a long while, she dropped a menacing remark and turned to leave.
Su Qi watched Xu Linyun leave, her mind a bit jumbled. After breakfast, she went out.
Because her office building had been taken over, the agent proactively showed Su Qi several office buildings, but Su Qi wasn't very fond of the locations. The office building in the financial center was the best she had seen. After seeing that one, other office buildings simply didn't catch her eye.
Su Qi returned to her car and looked at the messages from Gu Tangxue and Su Yan. She felt a sense of powerless frustration. She wanted to call Huo Tingyun, but his phone was always switched off. It seemed as though the concern the man had shown her a few days ago was all fake.
Su Qi made a few calls, but all she got was the "switched off" message. She seemed a little angry and called Xu Linchuan.
At the Chinese restaurant, in a private room, Xu Linchuan was already there when Su Qi arrived. "What made you have time to ask me out for a meal today? I thought you..."
A flicker of sadness flashed in Xu Linchuan's eyes.
Su Qi pulled at the corner of her lips and smiled. "You helped me a lot. Let's forget about what happened before. I take back what I said."
"Have you changed your mind?"
"I want to thank you for helping me during this time. I didn't have much time, and you helped me handle my mother's affairs."
Li Cuiping would never have dreamed that it was Xu Linchuan who helped cremate her and find her burial plot.
"Have the police reached any conclusions?"
"No, the police have ruled it as the patient jumping on her own."
Su Qi sat down and her heart sank upon hearing this.
Without any surveillance, she had no evidence to prove anything.
Li Cuiping had only just woken up, and her body couldn't hold on for much longer. But no matter what, she wouldn't have chosen such a method.
The scene was so chaotic. The person who didn't want to live had even gone to such lengths to make the hospital room so messy.
With no leads, there was nowhere to start. The matter had to be temporarily shelved.
"I also suspect this matter is not simple, but there's no need to rush. I will help you investigate slowly."
Su Qi looked steadily at Xu Linchuan. Hearing his words, a hint of sarcasm flashed in her eyes, and her red lips curved slightly. "Linchuan, what kind of person do you think your mother is?"
"My mother?" Xu Linchuan knew that Xu Ruyun and Su Qi had always been at odds. Xu Ruyun didn't like Su Qi, and Su Qi didn't particularly like Xu Ruyun either. He didn't know what she was trying to say by asking him this, but he still thought about it carefully before replying, "As a mother, she is a very good person. It's just that her methods are sometimes too extreme."
Extreme...
Su Qi sneered inwardly, raised her teacup, and took a shallow sip of the clear tea, not saying anything further.
The meal was tasteless. Su Qi and Xu Linchuan walked out shoulder to shoulder. Xu Linchuan was talking about Li Cuiping's funeral arrangements, and Su Qi was somewhat absent-minded. Suddenly, a voice reached her ears. "Master Huo, please come in. This is the best Chinese restaurant in Shenzhen..."
Su Qi stopped in her tracks. As she looked up, her gaze met the man walking towards her.
Huo Tingyun was dressed in a dark suit, hands in his pockets, tall and slender. The word "handsome and elegant" was not an exaggeration for this man. His appearance at the Chinese restaurant drew everyone's attention; he was incredibly eye-catching, almost like a celebrity.
Xu Linchuan, who was beside her, also froze. He glanced at Su Qi beside him and then smiled faintly, saying, "Tingyun, what a coincidence."
"Master Huo, your friend?"
"Yes, I'm taking my... girlfriend out for a meal."
Xu Linchuan smiled and put his arm around Su Qi, who was standing beside him.
Su Qi hadn't even reacted when Xu Linchuan's hand landed on her waist.
Su Qi frowned and instinctively pulled away. When she looked up, she found Huo Tingyun's gaze fixed directly on her. From a distance, it landed precisely on her face. The coldness in the man's eyes instantly seeped into Su Qi's heart.
"I... I'm a bit tired. Let's go back," Su Qi tugged at Xu Linchuan's sleeve and then walked ahead herself.
"Excuse me, my girlfriend is tired, so we'll be leaving. Master Huo."
Xu Linchuan smiled meaningfully and quickly followed Su Qi.
Su Qi quickly walked out of the Chinese restaurant and got into the car. By the time Xu Linchuan got into the car, Su Qi was already seated in the passenger seat with her seatbelt fastened. Xu Linchuan didn't ask anything and simply started the car.
As they stopped at a traffic light, Xu Linchuan asked gently, "Shall I take you home?"
"Yes."
Su Qi merely responded faintly. Xu Linchuan chuckled and started the car, taking Su Qi back to the Shallow Water Bay villa.
"Thank you," Su Qi said, then pushed the door open and got out.
As she walked up the steps, the man behind her also got out of the car and stood beside it.
"Xiao Su."
Su Qi stopped and turned around.
"The matter I mentioned, please consider it again. Until you agree, I will not give up. I will definitely marry you!"
The early winter sunlight, with a mix of warmth and coolness, fell on the man's shoulders, onto his light brown, tousled hair. His gentle and handsome face, he seemed like a savior, smiling so tenderly, looking at her as if she were a child.
Su Qi's heart ached instantly.
If it weren't for her, Xu Qingfeng wouldn't have been hospitalized with severe injuries from a car accident.
It was just a pity that he was Xu Linchuan, the enemy of the Su family.
Su Qi lowered her gaze. "Thank you. We'll still be good friends in the future."
Upon hearing this, a flicker of sadness appeared in Xu Linchuan's eyes, but as if remembering something, he quickly resumed his gentle smile.