Thirty seconds later, Ji Mingshu hurriedly slipped on her high heels and went out, barely preserving the last shred of elegance she had left after taking off her makeup.
She pressed the buttons for all four elevators, then stood there waiting like an idiot, silently reminiscing about the exclusive top-floor elevator at Baicui Tianhua.
Thirty seconds, nothing.
One minute, still nothing.
So slow! This trashy building, TVT!
After one minute and eighteen seconds, an elevator finally opened.
Ji Mingshu swept inside like a gust of wind, pushing Gu Kaiyang, who was still on her phone, out of the elevator in the process.
Gu Kaiyang was stunned for a moment as she was shoved out. Was that just Ji Mingshu? Holy shit, I don’t have my keycard! Is this girl rushing to a funeral or something?!
Speaking of which, Ji Mingshu’s mood wasn’t much different from someone on their way to a funeral.
She was anxious the whole way down, and even felt a little inexplicably guilty. The key was that she didn’t know when Cen Sen had arrived, what he and Cen Yang had talked about downstairs, and most, most, most importantly—Cen Yang had hugged her when he dropped her off just now. Could he have seen it?
A little drum pounded in Ji Mingshu’s heart. But after a moment, she felt that something wasn’t right—
That bastard had invested in Li Wenyin’s movie with such self-righteous arrogance. What was wrong with her meeting Cen Yang? What was wrong with old friends sharing a hug?
Cen Sen had already crossed every line imaginable, while she, Ji Mingshu, had only just dipped her little toe over the edge. What was there to feel guilty about!
Yes, that’s right.
With that thought, Ji Mingshu unconsciously straightened her back.
She even reflected on it, concluding that this was probably a side effect of having morals that were too upright and a sense of ethics that was too strong. Not good, not good at all. It was far too detrimental to herself and beneficial to Cen Sen.
The Xinggang International building had a high volume of foot traffic. Although she was in an elevator, it stopped at nearly every other floor on the way down, with people constantly getting on and off. It took a full five minutes to get from the thirty-third floor to the first.
It was snowing outside; the temperature was low, and the wind was cold.
Ji Mingshu wrapped her trench coat tighter and walked to the intersection to cross the street. Swept along by the crowd, she hurried over, only to belatedly realize that Cen Yang and his white Mercedes were gone. All that remained was Cen Sen, his hands tucked into his coat pockets, leaning against the door of his Maybach with a faint look in his eyes, the very picture of a judge.
This was truly a living embodiment of: Hell is empty, and Cen Sen is on the road.
Ji Mingshu subconsciously asked, “Where’s Cen Yang? Did he leave?”
“He left.”
Cen Sen’s reply was brief, his voice as if it had been wrapped in snow—crisp and cold.
Ji Mingshu’s little sparrow heart couldn’t help but tremble. She froze for a moment, then forced herself to ask haltingly, “So what… what did you guys talk about just now?”
“What do you think?”
Cen Sen lowered his eyes to look at her.
Ji Mingshu opened her mouth but couldn’t manage to say a word.
After a long moment, she tried a different question. “When did you get here?”
Cen Sen: “Six-thirty.”
…?
She had only just left at six-thirty, right? So he had seen everything, from the moment she left to when Cen Yang brought her back?
Ji Mingshu subconsciously wanted to explain, but as the words reached her lips, she remembered the series of thoughts she’d had on her way down the elevator… Explain what? What was there to explain? Why should she have to explain herself to this bastard Cen Sen!
In the span of just three or four seconds, Ji Mingshu’s attitude shifted abruptly. She straightened her back, reached out a finger to poke Cen Sen’s chest, and declared righteously, “Please be aware that you and I are currently in a state of pending divorce! You had the audacity to invest in Li Wenyin’s movie, so what’s wrong with me having dinner and a hug with Cen Yang! I haven’t even judged you yet, so don’t you dare think you can stand here and judge me!”
Cen Sen’s gaze was quiet. He didn’t speak, but he suddenly took hold of the finger she was poking at his chest, then her hand, and tucked it quite naturally into his coat pocket.
???
Ji Mingshu’s mind went blank.
“I was negotiating a merger the last few days. Seventy-two hours straight, no sleep. I got back this morning, rested for a few hours, and was planning to pick you up for dinner and a movie tonight. You’ve already eaten, but I haven’t had anything since this morning.”
His gaze was still calm and his voice was even, as flat as if he were giving a report in a meeting. Yet, from this schedule report, Ji Mingshu somehow detected a tiny hint of grievance.
And the main point was, he had come to pick her up for dinner and a movie at six-thirty. The bravado she had just mustered instantly vanished, replaced by a feeling of deep regret and guilt.
After a long silence, she lowered her lashes and mumbled, “Actually, that French meal… I didn’t get full either.”
After a moment of contemplation, Cen Sen said, “Let’s go eat then.”
He casually brushed the snowflakes off her trench coat and led her to the passenger side.
The car door opened. Ji Mingshu sat down numbly. Just as she was about to reach for the seatbelt, Cen Sen leaned over and buckled it for her.
For those few seconds while he fastened the seatbelt, they were very close. Ji Mingshu could smell the light, cool scent of fir on him and see six-pointed snowflakes quietly melting in his short hair.
For some reason, an impulse stirred in Ji Mingshu’s heart. She suddenly wanted to kiss him.
He had been standing outside for so long; his lips must be cool right now, like jelly taken from the refrigerator.
Just then, Cen Sen also turned to look at her.
The moment their eyes met, Ji Mingshu leaned back against the seat with a reserved expression, but every cell in her body was screaming: Aww, kiss me, kiss me, hurry up and kiss me! If you kiss me, I won’t make you kneel and apologize!!!
Unfortunately, after three seconds of eye contact, Cen Sen unromantically straightened up and got in from the other side, as if that divine move of tucking her hand into his pocket had been performed by a nearby ghost who couldn’t bear to watch any longer and possessed him to help out.
“…”
Hah, it seems he prefers to kneel and apologize after all. :)
Just as Ji Mingshu’s mind was stampeded by a herd of cute alpacas, she received a call from Gu Kaiyang.
“Hello?” she answered, then said in a serious tone, “I’m a little hungry, so I’m going out to grab a bite. What’s up? Is something wrong? Did you work overtime and not eat? Do you want me to bring you something?”
“No, that’s okay. It’s nothing, I just… I misdialed. Yeah, misdialed.”
Gu Kaiyang hung up swiftly and decisively. Staring at the receding silhouette of the Maybach as it sped away, she stood by the roadside for a long time, unable to snap back to reality.
The cold wind howled. It wasn’t until a little girl selling flowers called out “Big sister” that she was roused from her daze.
She quickly bought a bouquet and called Jiang Chun. “Where are you?”
Jiang Chun was eating and answered indistinctly, “I’m having hot pot with Tang Zhizhou over by Biqiao.”
Gu Kaiyang: “So are you sleeping at the apartment tonight?”
Jiang Chun blushed, swallowed a roll of fatty beef, took a sip of Coke, and covered the phone to whisper, “What nonsense are you talking about? Tang Zhizhou and I are very chaste! Of course I’m going home to sleep! Besides, my dad calls to check on me at midnight every day!”
Gu Kaiyang wasn’t in the mood to care about her love life. “Then let me crash at your place for a night. You go on and eat. I’ll wait for you at the coffee shop downstairs from your place. That woman Ji Mingshu left with her husband and took my keycard with her!”
Jiang Chun: “Then why don’t you just have her bring it back to you?”
Gu Kaiyang: “Is your brain clogged with hot pot broth? This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to send the plague god away, and you want me to go knocking on their door and disturb them? I, Gu Kaiyang, would rather freeze to death under a bridge tonight than make another single call to Ji Mingshu!”
Jiang Chun: “…”
Truly one of a kind.
It was Christmas Eve, and the festive atmosphere in the city center was thick. Christmas carols played everywhere, and the squares and roadsides were lined with Christmas trees of all shapes and sizes. A thin layer of snow had already accumulated on the ground, and by the looks of it, it would continue to fall for a long time.
Although it was a holiday, the only places still open near midnight were basically Japanese restaurants and hot pot places. The remaining noodle shops and barbecue joints had dining environments that were too ordinary. Since Cen Sen didn’t like Japanese food, their only remaining option was hot pot.
The service at this hot pot restaurant was excellent. Even in the dead of night, the waiters were full of energy, wishing the two of them a “Merry Christmas” as they handed them towels and offered them Santa hats.
Ji Mingshu had a bird-like appetite. Having already had a big meal in the evening, she couldn’t eat much now. She perfunctorily ordered a few vegetable dishes and passed the tablet to Cen Sen.
Cen Sen didn’t order much either. After placing the order, he handed the tablet back to the waiter and glanced at Ji Mingshu’s bare calves under the table. “Are you cold?”
Ji Mingshu: “It’s fine.”
If she couldn’t handle this bit of cold, how could she be a beautiful and charming socialite?
In truth, a sweater dress with a trench coat was her usual winter attire. The main issue was that she had been in a rush when she left and hadn’t had time to change into boots, instead running out in a pair of high heels. Her feet were indeed a little cold now.
Hearing her reply, Cen Sen was about to take off his coat when a waiter suddenly appeared at their table as if out of nowhere, holding a blanket and smiling. “Miss, it’s important to stay warm in the winter. Here is a blanket for you.”
“Oh… thank you.”
It was Ji Mingshu’s first time here, and she was slightly surprised by the thoughtful service. She accepted it with a smile.
Cen Sen glanced up at the waiter.
The waiter, completely oblivious, asked with impeccable service, “Sir, would you like one as well?”
“…No, thank you.”
Cen Sen felt that perhaps he hadn’t had hot pot in too long; he had no idea that the service at a semi-self-service restaurant like this had become so attentive.
Ji Mingshu was a woman who was rather high-maintenance when eating out. When having hot pot, she wouldn’t mix her own dipping sauce, pour her own water, or ever shell her own food.
But for such a high-maintenance woman, Cen Sen found himself unable to do anything for her the entire time. The omnipotent waiters had taken care of everything at the first opportunity.
As they were leaving, Ji Mingshu even praised the restaurant’s excellent service, saying it was no worse than those Japanese and French restaurants that cost several thousand per person.
Cen Sen didn’t say a word. He just casually crumpled the receipt and tossed it mercilessly into the trash can.
The waiter standing at the door to see them off was a little confused about what this male customer was dissatisfied with. The service had been so attentive the whole time, yet as he left, his face was practically screaming, “I will absolutely never come to your restaurant a second time.” The restaurant industry was just too difficult.
It was very late by the time they finished hot pot. The west entrance of the mall, which had been open earlier, was now closed. Only one elevator leading down from the movie theater was still in operation.
As they walked towards the theater, Cen Sen suddenly asked, “Want to watch a movie?”
“Huh? A movie? I guess that’s fine.”
Pink bubbles were popping in Ji Mingshu’s heart, but her face showed a look of reluctant agreement.
The only movie still selling tickets this late was a certain romance film that had premiered today, with three showings scheduled from midnight to six in the morning.
The midnight showing had been crowded, but by the time they got to the two o’clock showing they wanted to see, the theater was completely empty.
The light in the theater was dim, and the pace of the romance film was slow. Seeing that there was no one else around, Ji Mingshu subconsciously started muttering commentary on the movie as she watched.
When the male lead misunderstood that the female lead had slept with the second male lead, she couldn’t help but complain, “This is so cliché. Do investors have too much money to burn these days? Why do they fund any movie? This guy’s brain must be full of bubbles. It’s so obvious the female lead likes him, yet he still misunderstands. Is he an idiot? He’s unbelievably stupid.”
Cen Sen didn’t speak, but he silently agreed in his heart. Indeed, unbelievably stupid.
Cen Yang had said a lot to him tonight. He hadn’t really listened, nor did he care much, but there was one sentence he had heard and remembered very clearly: “Mingshu likes you now, but that doesn’t mean she’ll like you forever.”
Now, likes you.
His gaze on the screen inexplicably softened, and the corners of his lips curved up in a very faint smile.
Ji Mingshu was fuming over the plot when she turned to see Cen Sen smiling, a million question marks popping up in her head.
Is this man a pervert? The female lead is in such a miserable state, and he can actually smile? Does he have any humanity?
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