Xu Linchuan stepped in to help Su Qi, "Sister Xiaoxiao, let's go sit down and have something to drink."
Familiar with the place, he led Su Qi to a window seat and they sat down. Outside the window, the sky was clear and blue after the rain, and the fallen leaves of the plane trees shimmered with a faint golden hue in the sunlight. Not far away was a bus stop. This area, perhaps due to its prime location, was very quiet, with few passersby and few cars. A bus would only pass by after a long while.
"I used to sit in this spot, lost in thought and reading. I often saw a girl sitting at that bus stop, from dawn till dusk, sometimes feeding the stray cats nearby."
Xu Linchuan ordered a hot latte for Su Qi. Su Qi held it in her hands, listening to Xu Linchuan's words, a wry smile appearing on her lips. She had woken before dawn, carrying the soup she had prepared, and rushed to Shengshi to give it to Huo Tingyun. She watched him throw the soup away, then took the bus back. After getting off, she didn't leave, but simply sat there, lost in thought. A whole day had passed in the blink of an eye.
This past year seemed to have passed both quickly and slowly. So quickly that she couldn't remember what she had done, yet so slowly that every day was agonizing.
Large raindrops pattered against the window. Soon, it turned into a downpour. Su Qi had left her home around two in the afternoon. This rain had been falling for several hours, and as night deepened, there was no sign of it stopping.
Xu Linchuan called a driver to pick Su Qi up and take her home. Su Qi was reluctant, but seeing the intensity of the rain, which showed no signs of stopping anytime soon, she reluctantly agreed. Xu Linchuan borrowed an umbrella and escorted Su Qi to the car.
As Su Qi sat in the car, she looked back. Xu Linchuan was still standing in the heavy rain, holding the umbrella. One side of his shoulder was wet. When he had escorted her out of the coffee shop earlier, Su Qi had thought the umbrella was truly large, completely shielding her from the rain. Su Qi averted her gaze, telling herself not to overthink things.
"Our young master has been single since birth for many years. You're the first girl our young master has ever driven home." The driver clearly had never seen Xu Linchuan call him to drive any girl home.
Upon arriving at the villa, Su Qi thanked him and pushed the door open to get out of the car. The driver drove directly into the garage, and Su Qi entered the villa through the garage door. She didn't get wet at all. After changing her shoes, Su Qi sent Xu Linchuan a text message to thank him. After some thought, she saved Xu Linchuan's number in her contacts.
The rain continued all night.
"What happened?" Su Qi looked around the living room. There were clear signs that it had been tidied up. Had there been a burglar last night? But everything in the living room was still there.
"The young master returned last night. When I came in this morning, I saw the young master lying on the living room floor, completely drenched and with a fever. So I called and sent the young master back to Huo Residence."
"Oh." Su Qi hadn't expected Huo Tingyun to have returned last night. And to have caused such a commotion. Couldn't Huo Tingyun, being an adult, take care of himself? Besides, it wasn't her place to worry about him. Su Qi hummed a tune and sat down to eat breakfast.
Sister Wu, seeing Su Qi's carefree demeanor, said with a mixture of helplessness and relief, "Madam, would you like to go see the young master?"
Su Qi took a sip of milk. "I don't have time." She had things to do today. After breakfast, Su Qi left. She wanted to find a place near her company, but after visiting several real estate agencies, she learned that the properties in the area had recently been acquired by Shengshi Group, and the rent had increased severalfold. Disappointed, Su Qi returned to Shallow Bay and thought about looking online with her phone.
A call came in. Although she hadn't saved the number, Su Qi recognized it. After a three-second hesitation, Su Qi pressed the red reject button. The call was immediately redialed. This repeated three or four times. Annoyed, Su Qi answered.
"Miss Su, Master Huo has a fever..."
"What does that have to do with me? You should call Xu Lin Yun!" Just as Su Qi was about to hang up.
"Master Huo was calling your name. Why don't you come over?"
"I'm not going!" Su Qi hung up the phone with a click and turned it off.
Sister Wu returned, carrying groceries. Seeing Su Qi still at home, she said in surprise, "Madam, you didn't go to see the young master? He seems to have a high fever. The young master has always disliked taking medicine. If he keeps burning up like this, I don't know what will happen." Su Qi pursed her lips and said nothing.
After lunch, Su Qi lay down, wanting to take a nap, but she tossed and turned, unable to sleep. Looking at the time, it was already evening. Sister Wu was cooking downstairs. Su Qi changed her clothes, went to the garage, and drove out. Besides the villa in Shallow Bay, Huo Tingyun also had an expensive riverside apartment near Shengshi Group, in the most expensive district of Nanshan. Su Qi, wearing only a trench coat, quickly entered the residential complex. This place, she suspected, Xu Lin Yun didn't even know about.
Familiar with the way, she went up to the 19th floor and swiped her key card. With a beep, the door opened. The interior was pitch black. A strong smell of alcohol permeated the air. The air was very stuffy. But she could faintly hear a man's hoarse breathing and occasional slight coughs. Sister Wu had said she sent Huo Tingyun back to Huo Residence this morning, but Su Qi hadn't expected Huo Tingyun to return here.
Su Qi closed the door and walked barefoot on the cold wooden floor. As she approached the sofa, she couldn't help but frown deeply. The floor was littered with cigarette butts and empty wine bottles. If she hadn't taken out her phone to illuminate the man's handsome face, Su Qi would have doubted if the person before her was indeed Huo Tingyun. The Huo Tingyun of the past was calm and self-controlled, didn't smoke or drink, and had a frighteningly regular schedule.
Su Qi leaned closer and found that the man's body temperature was terrifyingly high. His face was flushed red from the fever. Just as Su Qi was about to get up to buy medicine, the man's burning hand grabbed hers.
"Su Qi... don't go..." Su Qi was startled. When had he woken up? She looked and saw that the man's eyes were still closed. His slightly parted, thin, red lips murmured her name.
"You have a fever, I'll go buy you medicine." Perhaps due to the fever, the man had no strength, appearing completely different from his usual self. Su Qi struggled slightly and pulled her hand away from Huo Tingyun. The man's hand immediately dropped. He seemed to be grasping at the air in his sleep. Unable to find anything, the man's face showed a pained expression. His brows were tightly furrowed.
"Su Qi... Su Qi..." Su Qi ignored him as if it were the wind. She bent down and cleaned up the empty wine bottles and cigarette butts in the living room, then, carrying the trash bag, went out to buy medicine. Fortunately, there was a pharmacy downstairs in the building. Su Qi bought a pile of fever reducers and cold medicine. The pharmacy owner looked at Su Qi and asked with a smile, "Is your boyfriend sick?"
"No... just a regular friend!"