Chapter 70

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There was no response from Ning Jiuwei on the other end of the line, and Wen Wanyuan’s imagination instantly ran wild with thoughts of Su Jinglan.

Ah Mu and Su Jinglan, sleeping together!

Wen Wanyuan’s scalp prickled, her heart leaping into her throat. No way—how could Ah Mu possibly share a bed with Su Jinglan? Whenever they traveled out of town in the past, they always booked two separate rooms. Even standard rooms were out of the question. She, Ah Mu’s childhood friend, wasn’t allowed to bunk with her, much less some outsider like Su Jinglan.

It had to be a mishearing. That voice belonged to Ning Jiuwei, just roused from sleep.

Ning Jiuwei glanced back. Su Jinglan caught her meaning and released her hand.

“Why?” Ning Jiuwei stayed within Su Jinglan’s view, phone in hand as she walked over to the floor-to-ceiling window.

After a night of rain, everything felt fresh and clean. Ning Jiuwei slid the window open and breathed in the crisp air, clearing the fog from her mind.

Now Wen Wanyuan heard it clearly: the gentle timbre, the measured pace, the familiar cadence—all Ah Mu’s.

She really had been overthinking it.

Wen Wanyuan steadied her racing heart and headed toward the living room as she spoke. “As the old saying goes, rekindling an old flame just repeats the same mistakes. Sure, those events are in the past, but who knows if they won’t hurt you all over again? Ah Mu, you should quit HS. Stay far away from Su Jinglan.”

“The relationship between President Su and me doesn’t quite fit that old saying of yours, does it?” Ning Jiuwei couldn’t suppress a chuckle, her laughter ringing clearly through the receiver.

At her words, Su Jinglan could no longer stay lying down. She sat up, watching Ning Jiuwei with open curiosity.

“I’m dead serious—don’t treat this like a joke!” Wen Wanyuan felt like she was dealing with an ungrateful wretch. Ever since learning Su Jinglan’s true identity, she hadn’t been able to eat or sleep, terrified that Ning Jiuwei’s mental health would crumble again. Yet here Ning Jiuwei was, acting like everything was perfectly fine.

Ning Jiuwei fell silent for a moment before replying calmly, “Last night, President Su and I slept together.”

“What did you say?” Wen Wanyuan wondered if she was still half-asleep; why else would she keep mishearing?

“Just what you think you heard.” Ning Jiuwei paused. “Now you can stop worrying.”

Wen Wanyuan’s composure shattered. “Worry about what? I never should have left last night, or that beast wouldn’t have gotten her hands on a prize like you!”

“We just slept in the same bed. Nothing happened.”

They were standing a little too far apart, and the breeze rushing in muffled their voices. Su Jinglan could only make out Ning Jiuwei’s side of the conversation, guessing at Wen Wanyuan’s responses.

“Nothing happened? Good.” Wen Wanyuan let out a relieved breath, grasping Ning Jiuwei’s point. “But that doesn’t mean hanging around her won’t lead to more trouble. Better to steer clear. Tell you what—I’ll be the safe choice right here under your nose. Let’s go get our marriage registration and put an end to her fantasies.”

“Enough, Wanyuan. No more worrying.” Ning Jiuwei ended the call.

Su Jinglan pieced their exchange together in her mind. Ning Jiuwei turned to meet her gaze, her lithe figure bathed in brilliant sunlight—a sight that set Su Jinglan’s heart racing. Giving in to impulse, she crossed the room to Ning Jiuwei.

There by the floor-to-ceiling window, beneath the sun’s warm glow, she pulled her heart’s white moonlight into an embrace.

“Why does Miss Wen think you can’t be with me?” Su Jinglan wanted answers straight from Ning Jiuwei, not her own speculation.

Ning Jiuwei lifted her hands as if to reciprocate, then let them fall.

“She thinks you’re too beautiful, President Su. Too many people chasing after you. Being with you would just leave me open to heartbreak.”

“You won’t know if it hurts until you try, Jiuwei. Want to find out?” Su Jinglan grinned and held her closer. “I promise Miss Wen’s got me all wrong.”

Ning Jiuwei offered a noncommittal smile and gently pried the arm from her waist.

It was the weekend, and Ning Jiuwei usually spent those lazing at home—reading books or bingeing TV shows for inspiration, the hours slipping away unnoticed. But with Su Jinglan around now, she locked herself in the study to keep some distance.

Su Jinglan claimed the living room sofa, her upward glance affording a clear view of the study door.

She reviewed files on her tablet, pausing now and then for a glass of water—not a guest in the slightest. Ning Jiuwei’s home felt like her own.

“President Su, I’m at the door.” A message from Assistant Lin, who carried a bag of takeout.

Lin Fengmian was on standby around the clock, executing the boss’s orders without delay.

“I’ll take it.” Su Jinglan opened the door but didn’t invite Assistant Lin inside.

She arranged the elegant food containers on the dining table, then rapped on the study door with good reason. Silence from within. She tried the handle—locked from the inside.

Through the closed door, Su Jinglan sent a message to the woman inside.

Ning Jiuwei propped her forehead on one hand as she sat behind the desk. The design drawings spread out before her were a scattered mess, none of them anywhere near complete.

Her phone buzzed, and a message popped up on the screen. Ning Jiuwei glanced at it before typing a quick reply and flipping the device face down on the desk.

She had spent the entire day holed up in the study. Only as the sun dipped toward the horizon did she finally step out. Su Jinglan was lounging on the sofa, her head tilted slightly downward. Files lay scattered across the coffee table, with a tablet resting beside her.

Su Jinglan had fallen asleep on the sofa.

Ning Jiuwei paused in her tracks, gazing at the sleeping figure from afar. A rare warmth bloomed in her chest, soothing her restless heart and tugging her lips into an unconscious smile.

She approached on light footsteps and stopped beside Su Jinglan. Her eyes flicked to the jumble of files on the coffee table. Ning Jiuwei draped the blanket from her hands over Su Jinglan, then tidied up the cluttered surface.

“Have you finished the design drawings?” Su Jinglan, who had actually woken at the sound of the door opening, murmured from her half-doze on the sofa. She slowly opened her eyes, her gentle gaze brimming with deep amusement.

Ning Jiuwei stacked the files neatly and placed them within easy reach. “Why didn’t President Su go back to her own place to sleep?”

“To keep my Designer Ning company, of course.” Su Jinglan reached out and pulled her into an embrace, nuzzling affectionately against her shoulder. “Shouldn’t Designer Ning show a little appreciation for that?”

Ning Jiuwei instantly grasped the implication of “appreciation” and bolted upright from the sofa.

She fled in a panic, leaving Su Jinglan beaming with delight—more pleased than if she had actually landed that kiss.

The takeout containers on the dining table sat untouched. As Ning Jiuwei headed to the kitchen to make dinner, she noticed them, and a faint tug pulled at her heartstrings. “President Su, did you skip lunch?”

“I did.” Su Jinglan strolled over at a leisurely pace. “I wasn’t hungry to begin with. And since Designer Ning wasn’t eating, I held off too.”

“You don’t have to wait for me next time.” Ning Jiuwei knew Su Jinglan had deliberately skipped the meal just to share it with her. Claims of not being hungry were merely an excuse to spare her any guilt. “I don’t eat much on weekends anyway.”

It wasn’t just weekends—her appetite was light most days.

Su Jinglan latched onto the key phrase—”next time.”

“Got it. Next time I’m hungry, I’ll eat first.”

Ning Jiuwei transferred the food from the containers onto plates one by one and popped them into the microwave to heat. Su Jinglan pitched in beside her, chatting idly about the design drawings.

As expected from the President of the Design Division—design was never far from her thoughts. Ning Jiuwei pulled two bottles of water from the fridge and handed one over.

“I haven’t drawn a single thing.” Ning Jiuwei twisted off the cap and spoke of her predicament with breezy nonchalance. “President Su, I’m afraid I’ll disappoint you. I can’t deliver six pieces for the annual new product line that you’ll be satisfied with.”

“Have I been putting too much pressure on you?” Su Jinglan immediately turned the blame inward. “The annual series wasn’t even part of your original duties. I’m sorry—I’ll take back that assignment. Just handle the custom designs you’re comfortable with. You don’t need to touch the annual series anymore.”

Silence fell over the kitchen, broken only by the hum of the microwave.

Ning Jiuwei took another sip of her ice-cold water. Her starry eyes fixed intently on Su Jinglan, who was casually readjusting her workload. “What role are you speaking to me in right now, President Su? As my boss? Or as a friend?”

A president ought to prioritize the company’s interests above all, issuing orders that must be followed without question. Designers who couldn’t produce drawings were a dime a dozen—which one ever got special treatment? They’d work themselves bald and still have to submit on time. Fall short, and they’d get chewed out; half-ass it, and the criticism would be just as harsh.

But if it was as a friend, a friend had no authority to cancel work assignments.

Su Jinglan’s smile remained tender, her stern demeanor reserved solely for others. “Assigning you the annual new products was my oversight. As a new President of the Design Division, I didn’t consider things from a designer’s perspective when handing out tasks. Adjusting now is for the long-term good. You’re a pillar of our Design Department—I can’t afford to burn you out for short-term gains.”

What designer in the department could juggle custom design drawings alongside the annual new products?

After hearing Su Jinglan out, Ning Jiuwei’s lips quirked in a faint smile, her expression softening into mild warmth. “I don’t like leaving things half-done. Once I decide on something, I stick to it. I’ve already promised President Su six pieces for the annual new products, and no matter what, I’ll see them through.”

“I believe Designer Ning can create works that satisfy everyone.”

Su Jinglan had always trusted in Ning Jiuwei’s abilities. Yet the woman before her now carried an unfamiliar air of pressure.

Back in high school, exam rankings weren’t announced publicly. Students had to ask their homeroom teacher privately to learn their place. Su Jinglan remembered her first midterm exam—she had taken first. But by finals, she had dropped to second.

The one who had surpassed her was a classmate named Ning Jiuwei, who lived on the same floor of the dorms. Her classroom was at the opposite end of the hallway.

She had grown accustomed to being first, but she never imagined that someone would surpass her in the very first semester of high school. Su Jinglan couldn’t tolerate coming in second. She gritted her teeth and pushed herself relentlessly, reclaiming the top spot in the mid-term exams of the second semester, just as she had hoped.

The monthly tests didn’t include rankings, but in the final exams half a semester later, she clung to her resolve with every ounce of willpower, never letting up day or night—only to be overtaken by Ning Jiuwei once more.

“President Su?” Noticing that Su Jinglan was staring at her with unfocused eyes, clearly lost in thought, Ning Jiuwei called out to her.

Su Jinglan snapped back to the present. For a brief moment, she confused the Ning Jiuwei standing before her with the one from her memories. With a smile, she struck up a conversation. “Designer Ning, let’s design the Annual New Product together.”

“Sure.” The microwave timer dinged. Ning Jiuwei set down her water, slipped on a pair of oven mitts, and retrieved the plate.

With her back to Su Jinglan, a spark of amusement lit up Ning Jiuwei’s eyes, her face radiant with vitality.

After dinner, Ning Jiuwei changed into her workout clothes, grabbed her gym bag, and headed out to exercise.

The two arrived at the gym in Wan Jun Hotel, one following the other.

Su Jinglan was dressed in a crisp black-and-gray athletic outfit, her long hair—which had been draped over her shoulders—now pulled back into a high ponytail. She approached Ning Jiuwei’s side.

At first glance, Ning Jiuwei didn’t recognize her.

“Designer Ning, working out together?” Su Jinglan glanced at Ning Jiuwei’s treadmill, her smile nearly cracking. “Designer Ning, just one kilometer?”

“Mm.” Ning Jiuwei felt no embarrassment whatsoever about running only a single kilometer in the gym. She stepped off the treadmill and told Su Jinglan, “I’m going swimming.”

“I prefer swimming over running too.” Su Jinglan hadn’t even covered a meter and was already planning to join Ning Jiuwei for a swim.

Wen Wanyuan, who had arrived fashionably late that evening, wedged herself between the two women, cutting Su Jinglan off. She arched an eyebrow in provocative challenge, flashing a smile. “Swimming? Sounds great. Count me in.”

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