Chapter 84

“Are you finally free, Sister Xi Yu?” Yu Nianyi asked, gripping her phone with both hands as she sat in her chair, her eyes fixed on Xi Yu.

Xi Yu seemed to be in a quiet office on the other end of the screen. Soft light from the side fell across her face, bringing out her calm, slightly serious expression.

Xi Yu nodded; the faint crease between her brows eased, and the corners of her mouth lifted just a little. “Painting?”

Yu Nianyi set the paintbrush in her hand aside and said with a hint of pride, “Mm. By the time Sister Xi Yu comes back the day after tomorrow, you’ll be able to see the nearly finished piece.”

Xi Yu’s brows curved slightly. “It looks like things are going smoothly on your end.”

Yu Nianyi lifted her chin and unconsciously swung her feet. “Yeah. I’ve already found that feeling for painting again. But it still needs more refining.”

“Mhm,” Xi Yu said softly. “I knew you could do it.”

“President Xi, Mr. Zhang has already set out; he’ll arrive in half an hour.” A somewhat familiar voice suddenly came from nearby. Yu Nianyi leaned to the side and seemed to catch a glimpse of Jiang Chen’s profile.

Xi Yu looked over there, then withdrew her gaze and met Yu Nianyi’s eyes.

Yu Nianyi smiled. “Sister Xi Yu, go ahead and get back to work. We can talk again when you’re free.”

Xi Yu nodded, then asked, “How are you planning to eat lunch later?”

Yu Nianyi glanced at the time. It was already eleven; it really was about time to think about lunch. After a moment’s thought, she decided she couldn’t be bothered to cook on her own. “Takeout, I guess. That’ll be the easiest.”

“Okay. Then don’t order yet. Lin Yan happens to be nearby; I’ll have her take you out to eat.”

Yu Nianyi blinked. “What a coincidence.”

Xi Yu lowered her eyes slightly and didn’t answer. She stood up smoothly and said, “Contact her after you’re done getting ready. I’m going back to work.”

“Okay. Sister Xi Yu, make sure you take care of yourself. I heard it’s been raining there lately; you need to wear more.” Yu Nianyi reminded her softly.

Xi Yu turned her head and looked at her. “Okay.”

After the call ended, a message from Lin Yan came through almost immediately. The two of them didn’t chat often; most of the time, Lin Yan would mention some good desserts she wanted to bring over. Since she knew Yu Nianyi and Xi Yu were living together, she would have them sent directly to Xi Yu’s place.

[Lin Yan: Little Nianyi, have you eaten? Sister’s taking you out.]

[Yu Nianyi: Not yet. Sister Xi Yu already told me. Sister Lin Yan, wait a moment; I’ll get ready.]

[Lin Yan: Xi Yu sure is quick, haha. Okay, okay; call me after you’re done.]

Yu Nianyi thought for a moment and sent over the location of Xiangyang Community.

[Lin Yan: This is?]

[Yu Nianyi: It’s the place I’m renting temporarily. Sister Lin Yan, just come here directly.]

[Lin Yan: Got it.]

Yu Nianyi put down her phone, quickly took off her apron, and changed into something she could wear outside. Seeing how messy her hair was in the mirror, she tied it up again, hurriedly tidied herself up, then sent Lin Yan a message.

Lin Yan replied quickly, saying she was already downstairs.

When Yu Nianyi left the community, she saw Lin Yan standing in front of a white car, smiling and waving at her.

“Long time no see,” Lin Yan said with a smile, looking Yu Nianyi over. “New hairstyle today?”

Yu Nianyi smiled and nodded. “I was painting just now, so it’s easier with my hair tied up.”

Lin Yan opened the door and motioned for Yu Nianyi to get in, then got into the driver’s seat herself and started the car. Once they were on the main road, Lin Yan asked, “When did Xi Yu tell you I was coming?”

Yu Nianyi thought about it. “About twenty minutes ago, I think.”

Lin Yan laughed. “No wonder she was in such a hurry to hang up on my call. So she was busy chatting with little Nianyi.”

Yu Nianyi laughed too, glancing out at the cars flashing by outside the window. “When Sister Xi Yu told me, I was a little surprised too.”

Lin Yan looked at her. “Surprised about what?”

“Because she said Sister Lin Yan just happened to be nearby on business and could come keep me company for lunch.”

Lin Yan’s eyes curved as she laughed for a long time. After she’d finally calmed down, she asked, “That’s what she said?”

Yu Nianyi paused. “Yes.”

“Is there a problem?”

Lin Yan pressed her lips together, smiling without speaking. After a brief silence in the car, she clicked her tongue a couple of times and said, “No, nothing wrong. Later, Sister will take you to a pretty good Japanese restaurant; there’s a very famous cake shop right next to it, so we can pick some up and try them too.”

Yu Nianyi nodded, clearly sensing Lin Yan had changed the topic, and didn’t ask further.

It took quite a while before they finally reached their destination.

Lin Yan parked the car, then took Yu Nianyi into the Japanese restaurant. Since they’d made a reservation in advance, the two of them went straight into a private room.

Lin Yan said she was going out to get something and told Yu Nianyi to keep ordering whatever she liked.

Yu Nianyi lowered her head to look at the menu and started flipping through it slowly from the first page. Before she’d looked for long, Lin Yan pushed the door open and came back in, setting a rather large brown-wrapped box on the table.

“The desserts here are really good. I’ve been wanting to bring you here to try them for a long time,” Lin Yan said.

Yu Nianyi smiled. “Thank you, Sister Lin Yan.”

“You’re welcome.” Lin Yan kicked off her shoes and sat down. “Have you ordered yet?”

Yu Nianyi shook her head.

Lin Yan paused. After a few seconds of silence, she laughed. “Were you waiting for me so we could order together?”

Yu Nianyi nodded. “I didn’t know what Sister Lin Yan doesn’t eat.”

Lin Yan waved a hand, smiling. “I don’t really have anything I can’t eat. Just order whatever you want. And you don’t need to be so polite with me.”

“Okay.” Yu Nianyi ordered quite a few of the signature dishes, and Lin Yan added a few more before handing the menu to a staff member.

“Did Xi Yu tell you when she’d be back?” Lin Yan asked during the meal.

Yu Nianyi: “She did. I figured it out; it should be the day after tomorrow.”

Lin Yan checked her phone. “Mm, earlier than I expected.”

Yu Nianyi smiled and lowered her head to eat.

Maybe it was because the private room was too enclosed, and the Japanese restaurant was rather dim and quiet; for a while, the only sounds around them were the soft noises of chewing.

Yu Nianyi looked down at her phone, wondering whether Xi Yu was done with work and whether she’d eaten.

“Oh, right. Let me show you Xi Yu’s childhood photos.” As if remembering something, Lin Yan suddenly smiled, picked up her phone, and swiped open the screen. Before long, she handed it over.

Yu Nianyi took it on reflex. In the photo were five children who still looked a little immature; four girls and one boy. Two of the girls were taller. The girl on the far left had her hair down over her shoulders and was wearing a smooth, neatly pressed light-purple dress. She was smiling in a very well-behaved, shy way; she looked extremely proper.

For some reason, Yu Nianyi’s gaze stuck there, and she felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

“The one on the far left in the photo is Xi Yu. Can you tell?” Lin Yan asked from across the table.

Yu Nianyi nodded. “She does look a bit like Sister Xi Yu.”

In the photo, Xi Yu’s hand rested on the shoulder of the somewhat dazed little girl beside her, almost as if she were lightly holding her close. Her face was small, her nose delicate and pretty, and her lips were pressed tightly together, but she still managed to raise a smile for the camera.

“So Sister Xi Yu was like this when she was little,” Yu Nianyi said.

Lin Yan continued, “Isn’t it a huge difference from now? Back then Xi Yu was especially shy, and she always acted like an older sister, saying this couldn’t be done and that couldn’t be done. When I was little, I was sick of being lectured by her.”

“She was especially easy to tease back then; even a casual joke would make her blush.” Remembering that scene, Lin Yan laughed out loud without thinking. “Kids were more fun back then. Not like now.”

Yu Nianyi looked at the phone for a long time before handing it back. “I think Sister Xi Yu was very cute when she was little too, like a little grown-up. Even though she was clearly just a child, she still made people feel like she was steady and mature.”

Lin Yan took the phone and looked at the photo again, then raised her head. “Now that you put it that way, that’s true too.”

“At that time, we were only fourteen, Chen Shuo was twelve, and Xi Yao was just five,” Lin Yan said. “Xi Yu would always take care of the others more. Things we didn’t want to do, she’d do them; she helped the adults a lot.”

Yu Nianyi lowered her lashes and looked at the food on her plate. After a brief pause, she asked, “Has Chen Shuo been with Sister Xi Yu since she was very little?”

Lin Yan froze for a moment, then nodded. “Yes. Counting the years, it’s been several. They used to be together all the time when they were young.”

She looked at Yu Nianyi and added, “Later, they were separated by school and studying abroad. After that, everyone got busy with work; it wasn’t until the last couple of years that they started seeing each other again, and this year even more so.”

Yu Nianyi nodded.

Lin Yan waved a hand, as if trying to comfort her. “But that was all childhood stuff. Now they’re all grown up, and their relationship already faded a long time ago.”

As she spoke, Lin Yan still kept glancing at Yu Nianyi to see how she reacted.

Yu Nianyi smiled. “I know. It’s fine, Sister Lin Yan.”

Lin Yan nodded. Seeing there was no point in saying more, she changed the subject.

After the meal, Lin Yan escorted Yu Nianyi all the way to her door, then bought some desserts and brought them into Yu Nianyi’s home as well.

Yu Nianyi instinctively wanted to refuse, saying plainly that she couldn’t possibly finish all of it.

But Lin Yan was quite forceful; she insisted Yu Nianyi accept them, kept saying it was Xi Yu’s wish, and added that if she got bored, she could still come find her to hang out.

After hearing all that, Yu Nianyi could only accept them in the end.

Sitting on the sofa at home, Yu Nianyi opened her phone, sent Lin Yan a few words of thanks, then opened her chat with Xi Yu.

There were no new messages there either.

Yu Nianyi had no choice but to take off her outer clothes, wash up, and put her apron back on.

Not long later, her phone buzzed twice.

[Xi Yu: Finished eating?]

Yu Nianyi hurriedly picked up her phone.

[Yu Nianyi: Yes. I ate a lot. Sister Lin Yan even bought a lot of desserts.]

[Xi Yu: Good. Those are pretty good; you can try them. If you like any, send her the name and have her bring more for you.]

Yu Nianyi smiled, a little embarrassed.

[Yu Nianyi: Wouldn’t that be inappropriate?]

[Xi Yu: It’s fine. She’s very free lately.]

Yu Nianyi couldn’t help but burst out laughing, unconsciously leaning back in her chair.

[Yu Nianyi: Have you eaten, Sister Xi Yu?]

Buzz.

[Photo]

Yu Nianyi lowered her eyes and stared at the screen. In the picture was a clean white table and a set of light-brown tea utensils. A teacup sat in front of them, faint steam rising from it. Off to the side, the edge of another cup could be seen; the tea inside was half full too.

[Xi Yu: Yes.]

[Yu Nianyi: What does it taste like? Is it good?]