Shine on Me

That night, I returned to the hotel at midnight but didn’t fall asleep until past two. Five minutes were spent completing a certain transaction, ten minutes on washing up, and two whole hours agonizing over how foolish I must have looked saying "I do."

Ugh, it wasn’t even a marriage proposal—why did I say "I do"?

Sigh~

This bittersweet, awkward feeling was too much for my sleep, so when my uncle woke me up for breakfast around eight, I was yawning nonstop, drawing his suspicious glances.

"What time did you sleep last night? You look exhausted."

"I haven’t attended a banquet in so long, I guess I’m just tired." I guiltily buried my face in my bowl of wontons.

Uncle didn’t seem well-rested either, sporting two dark circles under his eyes. He took a sip of black tea and asked, "Are you going to the Sheng family for lunch today?"

This had already been discussed with Lin Yusen last night—we decided it was better if I didn’t go. He’d finish the meal quickly and then take me out to eat and explore. I answered honestly, "Lin Yusen said he hasn’t formally visited Mom and Dad yet, so it wouldn’t be appropriate for me to go first. He plans to make up an excuse to leave me out."

Uncle’s expression relaxed noticeably. "He does have some sense. But early this morning, your mom received a call from Old Mr. Sheng. Knowing you’re in Shanghai, he extended an invitation as an elder for you to join them for a casual meal. The courtesy is there."

"Huh? So I should go?"

"Just a simple meal, nothing more." Uncle emphasized, "Old Mr. Sheng personally called—we can’t refuse that."

"See? Even you can’t say no to a phone call. How could I refuse on the spot at the banquet last night? And you still blame me."

Uncle retorted irritably, "Oh, so now you’re the one with a point?"

"...Not really."

I lowered my head and kept eating, glancing at my phone. Mom hadn’t even texted me. Clearly, she wasn’t too keen on the idea either, so she just had Uncle relay the message.

Uncle let out a long sigh. "Daughters are nothing but worry. Be careful when you go to the Sheng family. I’d only heard bits and pieces about their affairs before, but after last night, I didn’t sit idle—I dug into everything. It’s more complicated than I thought."

"?"

Mouth full of wonton, I shot him a questioning look.

Uncle said, "Lin Yusen’s father passed away over twenty years ago. Did you know that?"

I nodded. "He told me. He said his dad died of illness while on an overseas assignment when he was very young.""It's not that simple." My uncle took a sip of tea. "His father came from an ordinary background but graduated from a prestigious university with exceptional intelligence and remarkable business talent. Within a year of joining Shengyuan Group, he was promoted several times. There are different accounts of whether he knew the eldest daughter of the Sheng family before joining the company or if they started dating afterward. But in any case, with such talent, even from an ordinary background, Sheng Xianmin had no reason to object—their relationship and marriage went smoothly. After marriage, he was entrusted with greater responsibilities. But I suspect even Sheng Xianmin never imagined just how outstanding a truly capable person could become when given resources and higher authority. During those years, the Sheng family's momentum was strong, but within the group, his sons were completely overshadowed. The whole company, even outsiders, speculated that Shengyuan might pass the business to an outsider. In the end, he was sent abroad to expand the market and didn’t return for years. Later, a coup broke out in that country, he was accidentally injured, and without timely treatment, he passed away. His mother has lived abroad ever since, not even returning when Old Master Sheng fell ill."

"In old-established family businesses like the Shengs, it's not unheard of to hand management to outsiders. But Sheng Xianmin is stubborn—to him, family legacy far outweighs business growth. In the Sheng family, no matter how outstanding an outsider is, they’ll always be held back. You saw the situation yesterday with that young man."

My uncle paused, then pointed at me. "You need to understand the circumstances clearly."

I was stunned, my mind flooded with countless images of Lin Yusen—his hearty laughter, his witty humor, his strategic brilliance... I had assumed that even if his father passed away early, he must have grown up in a harmonious family. I never imagined that behind his gentle, carefree demeanor lay such a past.

I picked up a napkin to wipe my hands and nodded. "I understand now."

My uncle looked surprised. "Oh? Then tell me, what do you understand? What are you planning to do when you visit the Sheng family later?"

I straightened up and recited my background like a script: "I am the only daughter of Jiang Yun and Nie Chengyuan of Wuxi, the sole niece of Jiang Ping of Nanjing. Even Old Master Sheng pays a visit to my godmother when passing through Wuxi. If they think they can bully my boyfriend, they’ve got another thing coming!"

As the young mistress of a prominent family, my arrogance was so overwhelming it even startled CEO Jiang. I decided to bestow upon Lin Yusen the highest honor—personally going to his house to pick him up!

So as soon as my uncle left, I set off for Lin Yusen’s place with great determination. But before I could even leave the hotel, I got a call from Aunt Huang.

"Xiguang, are you up yet? I’m almost at your hotel. Your mother asked me to take you to see a property."

See a property?

I knew my family was well-off, but the idea of my mom casually arranging a house for me was still a bit beyond my expectations.

When Aunt Huang saw me, she first showered me with compliments: "Xiguang, your skin is so lovely. Oh, that necklace is beautiful—I didn’t see it yesterday."

"And the bracelet—it’s a set. I didn’t wear the earrings." I lifted my hand to show off the bracelet, then added with mixed feelings, "This was part of yesterday’s exchange—uh, no, I mean, a New Year’s gift."

At least Mr. Lin had the sense to give me gifts other than slippers. But he only handed them to me after dropping me off at the hotel and retrieving the watch. ==After getting it, he left happily. The whole process took less than five minutes, like a hasty transaction... Although he kissed me before leaving, there was still no romance to speak of. It wasn’t as romantic as when he gave me slippers.

Probably in a hurry to go home and study that watch alone...

I don’t really want to dwell on it.

I changed the subject: “Where’s the apartment?”

“Nearby, just a few minutes away.”

That close?

Could it be in Lin Yusen’s neighborhood?

Thankfully, it wasn’t that coincidental. But it wasn’t far either—just the next neighborhood over...

Aunt Huang first showed me around the neighborhood, then we went upstairs to see the apartment. It was a three-bedroom, two-bathroom unit with high-end finishes, completely empty. The living room and master bedroom faced the Huangpu River.

“We bought this place a few years ago but never furnished it. If you like it, I can hire an interior designer to decorate it. Of course, if you’d rather live in Puxi, we also have an empty place in Xintiandi. The others are either too far away or have been rented out—you might not be comfortable with that.”

I looked out the living room window at the same river view as Lin Yusen’s place and instantly fell in love with it. Then it struck me that even the wisest mother can make a mistake—did she even know this neighborhood was right next to Lin Yusen’s?

It almost felt like I was throwing myself at him.

“What do you think?” Aunt Huang asked.

“It’s great. Let’s go with this one.” I gave her my full approval. “You can handle the furniture.”

“What style do you prefer?”

I thought about Lin Yusen’s refined taste and decided to go for something completely different. “Something softer, with a fluffy carpet, fabric sofas—white, soft, and velvety...”

After walking through the apartment, we left. While waiting for the elevator, we discussed the details.

“No need for a big coffee table. I like sitting on the carpet—a small side table for my things will do. Oh, and save a room for Jiang Rui too.”

With a ding , the elevator arrived. The doors opened, revealing someone already inside. I stepped in and glanced casually, then froze mid-sentence.

The elevator doors slowly closed.

Aunt Huang beside me said, “Jiang Rui is Director Jiang’s son, right? I’ll note that. Xiguang, when do you have time to look at furniture? Or if you’re busy, I can have them send you a catalog after the design is finalized? I’ll also send you some portfolios of designers in the next couple of days for you to choose from.”

I heard her but momentarily forgot to respond.

Another passenger in the elevator was speaking: “The rent here is indeed slightly above your budget, Mr. Zhuang, but the location is excellent—very close to your workplace. But if you’re not satisfied, we can look at other neighborhoods? There’s another place I highly recommend—much better value for money and more suitable for a single gentleman like you.”

The person beside him didn’t reply either.

Aunt Huang glanced at me and stopped talking.

Suddenly, the elevator fell silent.

This was the first time I’d seen Zhuang Xu since the boss’s wedding.

So unexpectedly, in a place I never anticipated. I figured I probably didn’t need to greet him, right? That would feel so fake.

On this point, we seemed to have reached an unspoken agreement.Amidst the silence, the elevator reached the ground floor. As the doors opened, Yu Guangzhong didn’t move at all, so I stepped out first.

Aunt Huang followed behind me. "The rent in this complex is quite high, and the tenants are decent. Did you see how handsome that young man in the elevator was?"

I stayed quiet for a moment. "Aunt Huang, are there any other apartments available?"

Aunt Huang was taken aback. "Is there something wrong with this one?"

Nothing was wrong, it was just…

But from what the agent in the elevator had implied, Zhuang Xu probably wasn’t satisfied with this place. And even if he was, seeing me living here would likely make him reconsider.

So why was I overreacting like this? It just made me seem too invested.

I shook my head. "Just asking casually. No issues—this one’s fine."

I declined Aunt Huang’s offer to drive me back to the hotel and slowly walked to the entrance of Lin Yusen’s residential complex alone. Then I stood there, pondering how I could get inside without the security guard notifying him, so I could wait in the lobby and give him a surprise.

Lost in thought, I zoned out until a series of text message alerts snapped me back.

I lowered my head and opened the messages.

"Has our little sun risen from the mountains?"

"Grandpa called this morning and said he phoned your mom. Did she tell you?"

A quiet smile curled at my lips.

Looking up at the building where Lin Yusen lived, I called him directly. "Mr. Lin, could you hurry up? The sun hasn’t just risen—it’s already shining at the entrance of your complex."

The person on the other end was clearly surprised. "You’re at my place?"

Realizing, he spoke rapidly, "Let me change clothes. I’ll be right down."

I urged him, "Then hurry up. Don’t try on a hundred ties."

The sound of hurried footsteps and his laughter came through the phone. "Overthinking it, Miss Nie. Now that I’ve caught you, why would I bother with that?"

???

So annoying! I immediately issued a stern warning: "It’s not a done deal yet. I can still fly away."