Chapter 5

When she met those eyes—stubborn, yet clouded with dazed confusion—Mu Wanyan came to a sudden stop and couldn’t take another step.

Su Xingwei was lying on the bed, one hand wrapped tightly around her wrist. It wasn’t a strong grip, but it was firm, with an unmistakable refusal to let go, as if the moment she loosened her hold, the person in front of her would disappear. Her drunken gaze was misted over, unfocused, yet her eyes remained locked on Mu Wanyan with such stubbornness that it hurt to look at her.

“Okay, I won’t leave.”

Mu Wanyan coaxed her softly. “Let go of me first, all right?”

But Su Xingwei refused to loosen her grip at all. She stared straight at Mu Wanyan, yet also seemed to be looking through this familiar yet unfamiliar face at someone else, someone far out of reach.

Mu Wanyan’s chest tightened under that gaze, but she didn’t look away. She simply stood quietly by the bed and let her keep holding her wrist.

At some point, the door behind her silently closed. The footsteps in the hallway gradually faded, and finally the place fell into silence. The room was completely quiet now, with only the two of them left.

“You’re drunk.”

Mu Wanyan sat down by the bed and didn’t try to pry her hand free by force. Her voice was gentle and patient. “Close your eyes and sleep for a while. Otherwise, your head will hurt tomorrow when you wake up. I’ll stay here with you; I’m not going anywhere.”

Su Xingwei still stared at her for a long time. No one knew whether she had really heard. After a while, she suddenly struggled to sit up.

“Careful. What do you need? I’ll get it.”

Mu Wanyan hurried to support her, only for the other woman to throw her arms around her directly.

In that instant, it was as if all sound had vanished from the world, leaving only the beat of their hearts.

Mu Wanyan didn’t dare move. A few minutes later, she felt the person in her arms rest her head against her and fall asleep.

She waited quietly for a moment. Only after confirming that Su Xingwei was truly asleep did she carefully help her lie back down and tuck the blanket in around her.

The bedside lamp was still on, its warm yellow light falling softly across Su Xingwei’s face. Even in sleep, her brows remained furrowed, as if even her dreams were full of unease.

Mu Wanyan sat by the bed and looked at her sleeping face without saying a word.

It had been far too long since she had last been able to look at Su Xingwei like this; she couldn’t help lingering a little longer.

The phone on the bedside table suddenly buzzed, interrupting Mu Wanyan’s thoughts.

Su Xingwei’s phone only vibrated once before going still. Mu Wanyan hadn’t paid it much mind at first, but a few seconds later, it buzzed again and again in quick succession; clearly several messages had come in.

After hesitating for a few seconds, she still reached out and picked up the phone. A message from Xie Yin popped up on the screen; it seemed to be something urgent. Mu Wanyan looked down at the bed. Su Xingwei was sleeping soundly and showed no sign of waking.

After a brief pause, she still entered the lock-screen password she knew by heart; it was the date of their college graduation ceremony.

The screen unlocked at once. After all these years, that password had never been changed.

She scrolled to the last message. It read: “I found someone for you. I’ll bring her over tomorrow for you to see. This time, the conditions are pretty unbeatable. If you still aren’t satisfied, then I really can’t do anything about it.”

Mu Wanyan looked at it in bewilderment. She scrolled up through the chat history, but found nothing else. Then she glanced at the sleeping woman and, almost as if possessed, opened the photo album.

The newest photos were at the top; they were just screenshots of work documents and pictures from important occasions. She flipped down aimlessly for a few pages, then suddenly froze.

It was a group photo. The two of them stood side by side on the high platform of a stadium, wearing clean graduation gowns. Su Xingwei had linked her arm with the person beside her; that person had her head slightly turned, brows and eyes gently curved, clean and pure, so gentle it was almost unreal.

Mu Wanyan unconsciously held her breath and continued scrolling. One familiar photo after another came into view. For a full six years, every photo of Gu Xi had been preserved here intact.

Mu Wanyan’s eyes burned; a bitter ache surged through her heart. She hurriedly pressed the lock button and, as if she had done something wrong, put the phone back where it was.

For the entire night, Mu Wanyan barely closed her eyes.

Su Xingwei woke once in the middle of the night, groggy and wanting water. Mu Wanyan quickly got up, poured a cup of warm water, and helped her drink a few mouthfuls. Not long after, she fell asleep again.

Morning light slipped through the gaps in the curtains and scattered in tiny fragments across the room. Just as Mu Wanyan closed her eyes, voices from downstairs woke her.

She glanced at the bed. Su Xingwei was still sound asleep, so she quietly got up and left the room.

In the living room, a woman in a Chanel-style skirt suit was sitting on the sofa, holding a teacup and asking the housekeeper all sorts of questions with an air of arrogant superiority.

The sound of Mu Wanyan coming down the stairs immediately drew the woman’s attention. She turned her head and her gaze landed on Mu Wanyan. At first she only gave her a cursory glance, but in the next second her brows drew together sharply, and open hostility filled her eyes.

“Who are you?”

She set down the teacup, her tone unfriendly. “Why are you in Su Xingwei’s house?”

Mu Wanyan met her gaze calmly. “I’m Chairwoman Su’s assistant. She drank too much last night, so I brought her back.”

“Assistant?”

The woman stood up and looked Mu Wanyan over from head to toe with clear disdain. “You sent her home and then stayed the night? What exactly are you up to?”

Mu Wanyan didn’t answer her. She only asked coolly, “And you are?”

The woman let out a scoff, her voice carrying an innate sense of superiority. “My surname is Shen. I’m Xingwei’s friend.”

Mu Wanyan quickly searched her memory. She was sure she knew everyone around Su Xingwei. But she had no impression of this Miss Shen at all. Thinking about it, she must have been someone Su Xingwei had gotten to know in the year she’d been away.

“Miss Shen.”

Mu Wanyan greeted her politely.

Shen Yao walked toward her and said almost commandingly, “I’m here to take care of Xingwei; you can go now.”

Mu Wanyan knew full well that she should leave; it really wasn’t appropriate to stay here. She was just about to agree when the housekeeper stopped her.

“Assistant Mu,” the housekeeper said unhurriedly, “the Young Miss specifically instructed last night that you weren’t to leave. If you go now, I really won’t know what to say when the Young Miss wakes up.”

Shen Yao’s expression darkened instantly, and the look she gave Mu Wanyan grew even sharper.

“Are you really just an assistant?”

Shen Yao lowered her voice, the question edged with accusation. “Or are you just using this chance to cling to your boss and climb higher?”

The housekeeper was about to smooth things over, but Mu Wanyan beat her to it.

“Miss Shen, please respect yourself.”

Mu Wanyan’s expression didn’t change, but her voice cooled several degrees, completely unlike her usual gentle demeanor.

Shen Yao froze. Clearly she hadn’t expected this seemingly mild-mannered assistant to dare answer her back so bluntly. Just as she was about to flare up, footsteps came from the stairs.

All three of them looked up at once. Su Xingwei came down from upstairs, rubbing her temples, her brows tightly knit and her face looking less than pleasant. She first looked at Mu Wanyan; a trace of awkwardness flashed across her face, then she quickly shifted her gaze to Shen Yao.

“What are you doing here?” Her tone was full of impatience.

The sharpness on Shen Yao’s face vanished at once, replaced by a bright smile. “I came to talk to you about the cooperation project. Who would’ve thought your new assistant would be so full of herself?”

Before she could finish, Su Xingwei cut her off directly. “We’ll talk another day. It’s the weekend today; I’m resting. See her out.”

Shen Yao’s smile froze instantly. She shot Mu Wanyan a hard glare.

“Fine. I’ll come again another day.”

At last, the living room was quiet again. Su Xingwei sat on the sofa with her eyes closed, leaning back for a long while before asking casually, “Last night, I didn’t say anything I shouldn’t have, did I?”

“No.”

Mu Wanyan stood to the side, her voice calm as usual. “After you came back, you fell asleep very quickly.”

“Mm.”

Su Xingwei opened her eyes and glanced at Mu Wanyan from the corner of her eye. “Why are you standing there? Sit.”

Mu Wanyan nodded and sat on the sofa opposite her. They were separated by a coffee table, and neither of them spoke again.

Just then, a burst of bright laughter sounded from outside. Before the person even entered, the voice floated in first.

“Xingwei, I brought the person for you!”

When the door opened, Xie Yin strode in quickly, followed by a young woman.

The woman was tall, with proportions so perfect they seemed almost ideal. She wore a fitted dress, had delicate features, and looked like she had stepped right off the cover of a fashion magazine. After entering, she swept her gaze calmly across the living room, her face carrying a polished, professional smile.

“The person you asked me to find; I brought her.”

Xie Yin sat down on the sofa and said to Su Xingwei, “This is the third one. If you’re still not satisfied, then I really am out of options.”

Mu Wanyan looked at the unfamiliar woman beside them, completely baffled and unable to make sense of what the two of them were doing.

Only then did Xie Yin notice Mu Wanyan. Her eyes lit up instantly, and she leaned over with a smile, speaking as if they were already well acquainted. “Why is Assistant Mu here too? Last time we said that if we met again, I’d treat you to a meal; and here we are. What a coincidence.”

Mu Wanyan nodded at her in acknowledgment, but her gaze couldn’t help drifting toward the opposite side.

The woman had already taken the initiative to sit beside Su Xingwei. Her posture was poised and proper, the corners of her lips lifted in just the right smile; every movement looked professionally trained.

“Chairwoman Su.”

Su Xingwei gave no response and turned slightly to the other side, silently resisting the woman’s approach. The woman seemed to notice the distance, but showed no sign of awkwardness, still maintaining her composed smile.

Mu Wanyan withdrew her gaze and quietly asked Xie Yin, “Who is this?”

Xie Yin went, “Oh,” picked up the water glass on the coffee table, and acted utterly at home as she leaned close to Mu Wanyan’s ear. “Who else could it be? The contract lover your Chairwoman asked me to find.”

Mu Wanyan’s eyes widened. “What?”