Chapter 27: "Mm... Sister." (Including an Extra Update)

The moment their breaths tangled, a faint, numb tingling seemed to spread from her lips through her limbs, and Fu Chaoying’s body trembled involuntarily.

The soft touch on her lips was delicate and lingering, as if it had reached straight into her heart. Their lips rested together, brushing lightly and tenderly, and Fu Chaoying could only see the faint smile in front of her eyes; in those eyes, it seemed there was only her.

It was only when Ye Jiayuan let her go that Fu Chaoying’s thoughts finally came crashing back, and she realized what had just happened: at the airport security checkpoint, with people coming and going all around them, Ye Jiayuan had actually kissed her first.

That lingering warmth still seemed to remain on her lips, vivid and real.

Fu Chaoying’s eyes widened slightly, a trace of shock still lingering there as she subconsciously glanced behind Ye Jiayuan. Liu Xin had already disappeared into the crowd, and there were no familiar faces in sight either.

Fu Chaoying exhaled in relief, only to feel a light pat on the top of her head.

Ye Jiayuan’s cool, steady voice sounded by her ear, carrying a hint of amusement. “I’m leaving.”

Fu Chaoying turned back to look at her, and her fingertips unconsciously caught at Ye Jiayuan’s sleeve. “You kiss me and then leave? Isn’t Sister Jiayuan being a little... too irresponsible?”

Her tone was a little reluctant, a little aggrieved.

Ye Jiayuan felt the slight tug on her sleeve; she lowered her eyes, her gaze falling on Fu Chaoying’s pale fingers. Then she took her hand in return, but still said nothing.

Fu Chaoying’s heart seemed to skip a beat. In the silence, she looked up at her in mute inquiry.

Ye Jiayuan’s thumb lightly brushed over the soft hollow of her palm, carrying a trace of barely perceptible intimacy. “Do you really have to be so polite when you call me?”

A glint of mischief flashed through Fu Chaoying’s eyes. Her lashes fluttered as she asked in mock confusion, “Sister Jiayuan? Isn’t that nice to hear?”

Ye Jiayuan didn’t answer. She merely tightened her grip for a moment, then relaxed it again, and released her hand. “It’s fine. Call me whatever you like.”

As soon as she said that, Ye Jiayuan turned as if to leave, her tone calm and natural as she said goodbye. “I’m going through security first. See you next weekend.”

“Okay. Safe travels.” Fu Chaoying stood obediently in place, watching her figure disappear into the security lane before slowly turning away.

Just as Fu Chaoying got into the car, her phone rang.

It was her cousin, Fu Chaohua, calling to invite her to the Art Association forum banquet, complaining that she was too bored being there alone.

After a brief moment of thought, Fu Chaoying still changed her destination and asked the driver to take her to the hotel.

Fu Chaohua was waiting for her downstairs. The moment she saw her, she hurried over brightly and hooked her arm through Fu Chaoying’s in an intimate gesture. “You finally came. I was really about to die of boredom all by myself...”

Fu Anyun had always had her own social circle and did not particularly look after the younger generation.

Fu Chaoying gave her a light smile. “I was bored all morning too.”

Fu Chaohua instantly caught the key words, her tone turning curious. “My mom said you went out with Sister Jiayuan?”

Fu Chaoying gave a soft mm-hm and, for no reason she could quite explain, remembered the question Ye Jiayuan had asked her before leaving.

Whether it was Fu Chaohua or herself, they were used to calling Ye Jiayuan “Sister Jiayuan.” Only in Singapore, when she had gotten carried away and wanted to probe her feelings, would she call her “sister” in that coy, intimate way.

After speaking, Fu Chaohua gave a couple of teasing coughs and asked, “How’s it going?”

Fu Chaoying’s expression stayed natural. “Pretty good. Sister Jiayuan even introduced me to a collaboration project.”

“What project?”

Fu Chaoying briefly explained the situation, then heard her ask in surprise, “The company run by Dong Muyu?”

Fu Chaoying nodded slightly, a trace of confusion flashing through her eyes. “You know her?”

“I do. I’m actually playing a game developed by their company right now.”

Fu Chaoying gave her a suspicious look, then smiled. “And you still have time to play games?”

Fu Chaohua’s expression turned a little unnatural. She answered lightly, “Research is too boring. I need to find some fun for myself.”

Seeing that she didn’t want to talk more, Fu Chaoying tactfully changed the subject.

The two of them walked into the banquet hall together, just in time for the toast. They hurried over to stand beside her grandaunt, Fu Anyun, and picked up the wine glasses on the table. Only after the deputy curator finished her toast did they raise their glasses and take a small sip.

At the table, the deputy curator mentioned that Nanyan Art Museum was currently preparing a global exhibition project and was now in the bidding stage.

Then she turned to Fu Chaoying, her gaze carrying a hint of probing curiosity. “Xiao Ying, didn’t you recently start a new company? Would you be interested in taking on this kind of work?”

Fu Chaoying smiled as she answered neither humbly nor arrogantly. After a few rounds of subtle testing, both sides already understood each other’s intentions.

She replied politely, “Thank you for thinking so highly of me, Director Yu. I’ll have my people prepare the bid documents as soon as I get back.”

Fu Anyun also chimed in at the right moment, and the atmosphere at the table remained harmonious.

Fu Chaoying kept her smile perfectly in place. She knew Director Yu was only bringing it up casually; the final bidding result would naturally prioritize the museum’s interests.

But the fact that Director Yu had taken the initiative to mention it to her meant, in itself, that she was being acknowledged.

Of course, from a publicity standpoint, having the descendant of Fu Li—the representative figure of Southern School ink painting—participate in a global exhibition project would undoubtedly add a great deal of buzz for Nanyan Art Museum as well.

Fu Chaoying had never dealt with bid documents before. As soon as she got home after the banquet, she went straight to the study to look up related information. Only then did she realize how cumbersome the entire bidding process was; not to mention the technical proposal, there were also all sorts of qualification documents and response materials required.

She sorted through the materials she had gathered with great care, planning to discuss them with the team during tomorrow’s morning meeting.

By the time overtime ended, Fu Chaoying looked up and realized it was already almost ten.

Her heart tightened a little. She instinctively picked up her phone, afraid she might have missed some important message, only to find the screen blank—Ye Jiayuan had not sent her a single message after landing.

That lingering kiss when they parted in the evening had given Fu Chaoying a real sense of being in a relationship, but the cold, empty chat box on her phone reminded her once again that they were in different places, separated by a great distance.

Fu Chaoying’s fingertips hovered above the screen for a long time, but never pressed down. In her mind, Ye Jiayuan’s parting words kept echoing.

“Do you really have to be so polite when you call me?”

Fu Chaoying’s thoughts shifted. She typed a line into Ye Jiayuan’s chat box: [Sister.]

Then she tapped send gently.

There was no immediate reply on the other end; she was probably busy.

Fu Chaoying didn’t wait any longer. She took her pajamas and went into the bathroom to shower.

The moment the hot water came down, Fu Chaoying’s mind went blank for a second; then Ye Jiayuan’s figure began to surface uncontrollably in her thoughts, along with that ambiguous kiss when they parted.

Although they had kissed long ago, when she had been drunk, her mind had not been fully clear then, and Ye Jiayuan had been the one on the receiving end of her kiss.

But today was completely different; it had been Ye Jiayuan who had taken the initiative to kiss her lips.

In the midst of the jumbled thoughts, a strange idea suddenly surfaced in Fu Chaoying’s mind—the kiss at parting seemed to be in response to her kiss on Ye Jiayuan’s jaw.

Still, being kissed by a beautiful older sister was indeed enough to make her heart tremble.

Fu Chaoying’s lips curved unconsciously. She finished showering quickly, but just as she turned off the water, she heard a melodious phone ringtone from outside the bathroom.

It was the special WeChat incoming-call ringtone she had set just for Ye Jiayuan.

Ye Jiayuan was calling her?

Fu Chaoying didn’t bother drying herself thoroughly; she only pulled on her nightdress in a few quick motions and ran out of the bathroom.

But the familiar ringtone had already cut off.

Fu Chaoying took a deep breath, picked up her phone, and hovered her fingertip over Ye Jiayuan’s chat box. Then she lowered her eyes and glanced at the loose, low-necked nightdress she was wearing, along with the damp strands of hair still resting against her neck.

A thought quietly rose in her heart. Fu Chaoying tapped the plus sign at the lower right of the screen and made a video call to Ye Jiayuan.

The moment the ringtone sounded, her heart began to race uncontrollably.

But the video call was not answered right away.

One second, two seconds... several seconds passed before the call finally connected.

Yet the image on Ye Jiayuan’s side was completely dark, and Fu Chaoying’s breath caught.

“Xiao Ying.” Ye Jiayuan’s cool voice came through the receiver.

Ye Jiayuan’s gaze seemed fixed on Fu Chaoying’s damp hair, her slightly flushed cheeks, and the pale skin visible at the collar of her nightdress. Her eyes moved a little.

The one-way video view was strangely intimate; Fu Chaoying felt inexplicably shy and blurted out, “Why didn’t you turn on the camera?”

Then she heard a low chuckle through the receiver. “Are you sure you want me to?”

Fu Chaoying froze slightly, as if she could hear the faint sound of running water on the other end. “You... are you taking a shower?”

The other side was quiet for a moment before Ye Jiayuan’s cool voice finally came through. “Mm.”

Fu Chaoying felt her cheeks warming and hurriedly said, “Then you go ahead and finish showering.”

Before the words were even finished, she quickly hung up.

Only after hanging up did Fu Chaoying realize there was a thin layer of sweat on her skin for some reason. She turned back into the bathroom and quickly took another shower.

Afterward, she dried her hair and sat by the bed for a long while, but Ye Jiayuan still didn’t call back.

Given the awkward situation just now, Fu Chaoying naturally wouldn’t take the initiative to call again.

The phone remained quiet.

Fu Chaoying pressed her lips together, simply turned off the bedroom light, climbed into bed, and closed her eyes.

But in her mind, Ye Jiayuan’s image kept flashing by; her warmth, her light kiss.

Suddenly, a phone ring interrupted her thoughts.

Fu Chaoying’s mind cleared at once, and she quickly answered Ye Jiayuan’s video call.

This time, Ye Jiayuan had turned on the camera. She was still wearing a long-sleeved nightdress, but the top two buttons had been left undone, revealing her exquisite collarbone.

Fu Chaoying turned her gaze away awkwardly. “Mm...”

Then, once again, that almost imperceptible laugh sounded through the receiver. “Why aren’t you calling me Sister Jiayuan anymore?”

Fu Chaoying shifted her gaze back to the screen and blinked. “Then... what do you like me to call you?”

As she spoke, she carefully studied Ye Jiayuan’s expression, and the corners of her mouth couldn’t help but lift slightly.

Ye Jiayuan raised one brow a little, amusement flickering in her eyes. “The same one you used in WeChat just now is fine.”

Fu Chaoying laughed softly and deliberately asked, “Then do you like it when I call you Sister Jiayuan, Sister Xiaoyuan, or Sister Ayuan?”

Ye Jiayuan looked at her calmly, but the corners of her eyes and brows had already softened with a trace of smiling warmth. “The simplest one.”

Fu Chaoying coughed lightly and pretended to think seriously. “Sister Xiaoyuan? That has the fewest characters.”

Ye Jiayuan shook her head helplessly, the smile in her eyes deepening, and she crooked a finger lightly at the camera.

Fu Chaoying obediently leaned closer to the phone screen, only to hear a low whisper from the receiver, carrying unmistakable temptation:

“Call me sister.”

“Just like you did in Singapore before.”

A flood of images instantly flashed through Fu Chaoying’s mind: her fingertips brushing over Ye Jiayuan’s cool sleeve as she called her sister; half-asleep, finding the familiar scent and curling into her arms; in Singapore, during thunder and lightning, asking, “Sister, can you hold me?”

And Ye Jiayuan had probably already noticed, keenly, that ever since being gently turned down by her in Singapore, Fu Chaoying had rarely called her “sister” again; even after they had made their relationship official, she always used the appropriately polite address of “Sister Jiayuan.”

A subtle emotion moved in Fu Chaoying’s eyes. She cleared her throat, the end of her voice soft with a touch of coquettish pleading. “Sister... why didn’t you message me after your flight landed? I was a little worried about you.”

A nearly imperceptible curve appeared at the corner of Ye Jiayuan’s lips. Her gaze landed warmly on Fu Chaoying’s face as she explained gently, “I started working overtime as soon as I landed.”

Fu Chaoying looked at her on the screen, noticing the fatigue between her brows and eyes, and her voice grew even softer. “Sister works so hard. Let me hug you.”

Ye Jiayuan couldn’t help smiling and looked into her eyes with complete seriousness. “You can’t hug me through the screen.”

Fu Chaoying’s fingertips unconsciously rubbed along the side of her phone, her tone carrying a bit of anticipation. “After I saw you off, I went to the forum banquet. The deputy curator mentioned Nanyan Art Museum’s global exhibition project.

“If we win the bid, I might be going to Gangcheng on a business trip soon.”

On the screen, Ye Jiayuan’s attention sharpened; she nodded slightly, signaling for her to continue.

“Then I’d be able to hug Sister every day—” Fu Chaoying’s tone turned light and bright.

Ye Jiayuan’s fingertips tapped unconsciously against the screen as she looked at her radiant smile, and warmth flickered in her eyes without her meaning to. “Okay. Then I’ll wait for you.”

Fu Chaoying couldn’t help but curve her brows and bury her face in the soft pillow, her voice muffled. “But the bid document template looks so complicated. It feels like it’ll be a lot of trouble.”

The last syllable carried a hint of coaxing.

“You can find help,” Ye Jiayuan said in a low voice. “There are agencies that specialize in preparing bid documents; they’ll be more efficient.”

Ye Jiayuan had once done an internship at the grassroots level, so things like this came naturally to her.

“Oh, right!” Fu Chaoying’s eyes lit up at once. She immediately shrank the video window, opened her usual shopping app, and quickly typed in the words “bid document.” A whole string of related service links immediately popped up on the screen.

Fu Chaoying beamed. “I’ll contact them tomorrow!”

“Good luck,” Ye Jiayuan said encouragingly.

Warmth filled Fu Chaoying’s heart. She shifted her attention back to the video, her eyes shining with light as she softly called, “Sister...”

“Mm?”

Fu Chaoying looked her over again, more carefully this time, seeing the faint weariness in her eyes and feeling even more distressed, though the corner of her mouth still lifted in a small smile. “Good night, Sister. Get some rest early!”

Ye Jiayuan’s gaze drifted unconsciously across the small glimpse of spring at the neckline of her nightdress, faintly visible under the warm light. She averted her eyes a little unnaturally. “Good night.”

Her voice carried a trace of barely noticeable hoarseness.

They ended the video call.

But in Fu Chaoying’s mind, Ye Jiayuan’s slightly tired figure leaning against the headboard was still vivid.

The usually upright, meticulous Ye Jiayuan probably only showed such a relaxed posture when she was utterly exhausted.

Fu Chaoying’s heart ached a little, yet there was also a slight restlessness in it, like a vine finding something to cling to as it grew.

Early Monday morning, Fu Chaoying acted swiftly and contacted a professional bid document company, inviting them to the office for a meeting. After a round of detailed communication, they once again confirmed how complicated the bid preparation process was for the global exhibition project, along with all the required materials.

Thursday was the bidding deadline, and time was tight. Everyone in the company was putting in their full effort, almost wishing they could live at the office while racing to complete the bid.

Unexpectedly, the procedures for all the qualification documents went very smoothly. Several employees in the company who had studied literature had excellent writing skills, and the progress on the technical proposal exceeded Fu Chaoying’s expectations.

Since their phone call on Sunday night, Fu Chaoying and Ye Jiayuan had only occasionally sent each other WeChat messages.

Ye Jiayuan was busy with work in Gangcheng, while Fu Chaoying was fully immersed in the intense bid preparation. The two of them tacitly reduced unnecessary interruptions.

But sometimes Fu Chaoying would open their chat box. The latest messages were usually either a lunch photo she had sent, or a [Good afternoon] from Ye Jiayuan, or a question asking whether her progress was going smoothly.

Beyond that, it almost felt as though they had run out of anything deeper to talk about.

The ambiguous atmosphere from that night’s video call seemed to have quietly dispersed in the midst of busyness.

Fu Chaoying gradually grew used to opening the messaging app less often and poured all her energy into work. Yet on Thursday afternoon, she unexpectedly received an invitation to dinner from a director at Nanyan Art Museum.

An alarm immediately rang in her heart.

Although this director was not the direct person in charge of the current bidding project, making informal contact before the official opening of bids was, procedurally speaking, not considered improper.

Still, Fu Chaoying faintly sensed that something was off. After all, she was nowhere near close enough to this director to be invited to dinner on such short notice; normally, invitations were made at least a day in advance.

Fu Chaoying went as promised, carrying a trace of unease and suspicion.

During the small talk and reminiscing before dinner, the other party casually asked about the recent development of her company, then seemingly out of concern brought up some personal matters, yet always skillfully avoided any topic related to the global exhibition project bid.

It was as if this meal were nothing more than an ordinary private gathering to maintain ties.

However, halfway through the meal, the other party suddenly changed the subject, speaking in an especially meaningful tone. “Xiao Ying, you know that the Southern School of ink painting is indeed facing a decline these days, with a shortage of new talent coming through.”

“Our Nanyan Art Museum fully understands your concerns, and we also know how deeply you feel for Master Fu.”

“So, the museum sincerely hopes to use this global exhibition collaboration as an opportunity to further deepen the trust and connection between us.”

“And even more, we hope to work with the Fu family; especially, we hope to bring out Master Fu’s treasured works, and together open a new horizon for the inheritance and development of Southern School ink painting.”

The key point was in the last sentence.

Fu Chaoying finished the meal calmly and politely escorted the person to the parking lot.

The director seemed to hold an appreciative view of her and patted her shoulder. “Director Fu, the museum and I are both very optimistic about you!”

Fu Chaoying smiled faintly. “Thank you, Director, and thank the museum for its kindness and high regard.”

As the city lights came on, Fu Chaoying returned home and found a message quietly lying on her phone screen from Ye Jiayuan: [Good luck with the bid opening tomorrow. Looking forward to good news.]

Fu Chaoying’s fingertip hovered above the screen, and in the end she only typed a few words: [I’m looking forward to good news too.]

The two of them wished each other good night as usual.

The next morning, Fu Chaoying led her team to Nanyan Art Museum to attend the bid opening meeting.

Although Fu Chaoying and her team were participating in a bid for the first time, everyone appeared calm and professional.

Even if there were other bidding teams present who knew Fu Chaoying and wanted to come over and strike up conversation, the team members only exchanged a few polite pleasantries with smiling faces and cleverly avoided any in-depth interaction.

Fu Chaoying’s expression remained as composed as ever; she just waited quietly for the result.

As time passed rapidly, the air was filled with an indescribable tension.

By the time it was nearly time to announce the winning company, Fu Chaoying’s heart tightened involuntarily.

Soon after, the host read out the winning company.

Li Bingzhe, sitting beside Fu Chaoying, gently gripped her arm, silently conveying her shock and disbelief.

Not far away, the bidding team that had tried to talk to Fu Chaoying’s group before the meeting also looked over in surprise and confusion, whispering to one another.

Fu Chaoying gave a self-mocking smile, turned her head, and calmly swept her gaze over the team members. “Let’s go.”

It wasn’t until they were back in the company car that Li Bingzhe still couldn’t suppress the confusion and disbelief in her heart. She couldn’t help asking, “President Fu, our bid was clearly so beautifully done, and the budget was controlled very reasonably, and besides, you were still...”

Li Bingzhe stopped mid-sentence, apparently realizing it would be a little inappropriate to continue, and quickly fell silent.

Fu Chaoying leaned back in the comfortable seat, the corner of her mouth pulling into a curve. “Did all of you think we were definitely going to win?”

The team members exchanged looks, but none of them spoke.

In truth, not just the people within their team; almost everyone who knew Fu Chaoying was participating in the bid naturally assumed she would take it—

after all, she had a uniquely favorable position. Not only was she herself a highly anticipated new-generation Southern School ink artist, she was also the granddaughter of the late master of ink painting, Fu Li.

A smile rose on Fu Chaoying’s lips as she comforted everyone. “We only prepared for three or four days. Getting a score like this is already amazing.”

Their company came in second place, and they were only 0.05 points behind first.

Fu Chaoying smiled again and soothed them. “You’ve all worked hard these past few days. I’m giving everyone the day off today; go home and get some rest.”

Hearing they got time off, the atmosphere inside the car finally brightened a little, and some of the disappointment over failing to win the bid was eased.

By the time Fu Chaoying got home, she received a message from Ye Jiayuan: [It’s okay. There will be many more opportunities like this in the future.]

It seemed Ye Jiayuan had already seen the official result posted online.

Fu Chaoying lightly typed back: [Mm!]

The conversation ended there.

After a simple lunch, Fu Chaoying returned to her bedroom wanting to sleep, but she lay in bed tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.

Although she no longer held too much expectation, a tremendous sense of disappointment still seemed about to swallow her whole.

The effort the whole team had poured into the bid day and night over these past few days seemed, in the end, to have all come to nothing.

Fu Chaoying gave a self-mocking laugh and comforted herself inwardly: at least the entire preparation process had only taken a few days; it wasn’t too much of a loss.

Unknowingly, drowsiness finally came over her. Fu Chaoying fell into a deep sleep and slept until evening, when Aunt Wu knocked on the door to call her for dinner.

Fu Chaoying got up at once, washed up, and went downstairs.

Only after catching the enticing aroma of food wafting out from the dining room did Fu Chaoying begin to feel her mood turn around.

But just as she reached the corner of the dining room, she suddenly froze—there was already a woman sitting beside the table.

It was Ye Jiayuan, who had originally been scheduled to return from Gangcheng to Nanyan tomorrow.

Today she was wearing a beige long dress, elegant and intellectually refined, with an otherworldly air. Around her, it seemed, the usual chill had faded by a few degrees, replaced by a gentler warmth.

Fu Chaoying couldn’t care less about the wildly accelerating beat of her heart. Her eyes curved as she looked at her, and the word nearly slipped out at once: “Sis...”

Realizing that Aunt Wu was nearby, Fu Chaoying hurriedly changed her words, her tone carrying a note of surprise and delight. “Sister Jiayuan, why did you suddenly come back today?”

Only five days had passed since they last saw each other, yet Ye Jiayuan’s brows and eyes seemed to hold a little more tenderness. She was already looking at Fu Chaoying, nodding slightly. “I came back to the company today to listen to an important project summary report.”

Fu Chaoying walked to the dining table and sat in the seat opposite her. The two of them ate dinner together as naturally as ever, casually chatting about their recent work and lives.

From the words exchanged, no outsider could tell that the two of them were in a romantic relationship.

After dinner, Fu Chaoying heard Ye Jiayuan say, “I brought you a small gift. It’s in the car.”

There was a trace of implication in Ye Jiayuan’s eyes that was hard to notice.

Fu Chaoying naturally wouldn’t foolishly think she had really gone to the trouble of bringing back a gift. She instantly understood that this was just Ye Jiayuan’s reasonable excuse to find a chance to be alone with her.

The two of them got into the car one after the other.

The space inside the car was enclosed, their breaths mingling together, and the atmosphere somehow turned seductive.

Fu Chaoying tilted her head to look at her, but her gaze accidentally swept over her red lips. After realizing something, she jerked her eyes away as if shocked by electricity, only to hear her say coolly, “If you felt wronged, why didn’t you tell me?”

Fu Chaoying turned back in astonishment, a trace of confusion in her eyes. “Mm?”

She knew? How did she know?

Ye Jiayuan looked at her quietly and sighed helplessly. “I guessed.”

There seemed to be two degrees of heartache in Ye Jiayuan’s eyes, and the grievance Fu Chaoying’s instinct for self-protection had made her ignore surged up at last.

Fu Chaoying pressed her lips together and said nothing, but then Ye Jiayuan suddenly reached out, placed a hand on her shoulder, and gently pulled.

In an instant, Fu Chaoying was surrounded by a familiar warm fragrance, and her heart suddenly sped up uncontrollably—

Ye Jiayuan drew her into her arms, and Fu Chaoying heard her say, “I’m your girlfriend.”

“Behind you, there’s me. You can ask me for help, complain to me, and vent your feelings to me without any hesitation.”

“Don’t bottle everything up by yourself, hiding it in your heart so that I can’t see anything.”

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Finished the exam!