Chapter 8: Which Part Offended You?

"...Manman?"

Before Sui Mi could get another word out, Pu Yu called out, puzzled.

Sui Mi snapped back to herself and coughed lightly to cover it.

"Just a senior at school. He helped me out before."

"Then you should treat him to a meal."

Hearing that her daughter didn't seem inclined to elaborate, Pu Yu respected her wishes and didn't press.

Instead, her tone softened into a reminder. "It gets windy at night. Don't dress too light just because you like the cool air—bring a jacket."

"Alright, go get changed then. Dad's got to bring Mom her dinner too."

"Next time you're home for break, Dad'll cook your favorite dishes again."

The call ended.

Sui Mi stared at the clothes in her hands for a few seconds and pressed her lips together.

Right!

This wasn't like after she got married, going out to eat with Xi Jianbai, where they'd sometimes run into half-familiar business partners or rivals and have to make small talk in something nicer than a T-shirt and shorts and Crocs.

This was just an acquaintance from school.

Just someone who'd done her a favor.

Not even sure if it could develop into a friendship.

What was she dressing up for?

Sui Mi tossed the clothes back into the wardrobe and shut the door.

She pulled the mirror on her desk closer, tidied up her slightly messy hair, and casually tied it into a round bun with a hairband.

A loose-fitting short-sleeved shirt with light-colored trousers.

The final courtesy was swapping out her overly casual Crocs for a pair of sneakers she pulled from under the desk.

She was standing on one foot, pushing her foot into the shoe.

The phone screen beside her lit up with a new message notification.

Afraid it might be from Xi Jianbai, Sui Mi quickly looked up—and when she saw it was just an unimportant promotional text, her body swayed and she suddenly lost her balance.

She couldn't steady herself in time and staggered backward.

"Sss—"

Her heel slammed hard into the corner of the cabinet.

That spot was nothing but a thin layer of skin over bone, no cushioning at all. The pain made Sui Mi gasp sharply.

She braced herself on the desk and took a moment before forcing back the tears that welled up.

With a pained expression, she looked down.

A red streak stretched across the skin near her Achilles tendon.

Luckily it wasn't bleeding—just a bit of skin scraped off.

I'm buying corner protectors as soon as I get back!

Seeing it was almost six o'clock, Sui Mi couldn't afford to dawdle anymore. She gave the injured spot a casual rub as if to comfort it, grabbed her phone, and headed out.

The Cantonese restaurant they'd agreed on was just a short walk from the school gate.

When Sui Mi arrived, sure enough, there was Xi Jianbai standing quietly under the streetlight by the entrance.

A light khaki casual shirt, sleeves rolled up to his forearms, revealing smooth, firm lines of muscle.

Unlike most people who pull out their phones to scroll through something every spare moment.

When Xi Jianbai waited for someone, he just waited—shoulders straight and relaxed, gazing naturally ahead.

His profile was bathed in the warm glow of the streetlight, as if even some of his cold sharpness had melted away.

Sui Mi took two steps forward.

Xi Jianbai's ear twitched slightly. He turned his head, his gaze cutting straight toward her.

Not a trace of hesitation or uncertainty.

No wonder she always said he was like an overly keen hunting dog.

Able to pick out his owner's footsteps with perfect accuracy from a chaotic sea of sound.

And so he'd snap awake from deep sleep, lift his head, wag his tail—his body reacting before his mind, already anticipating his owner's approach.

Sui Mi stole a glance at the time on her phone.

Five fifty-five.

No telling when Xi Jianbai had arrived.

But in Sui Mi's memory, no matter how early she showed up out of politeness, Xi Jianbai was always the one already waiting at the table.

Before marriage, after marriage—never an exception.

The day of their blind date in her past life, they'd agreed on three-thirty in the afternoon.

Sui Mi arrived at three, thinking she was early—only for the waiter leading her in to say the gentleman inside had gotten there at two. She'd been so startled she hurried her steps.

But strangely enough.

In every other situation, Xi Jianbai was the type to measure things down to the minute and second.

He clocked in and out of work right on the dot every day. Sometimes Sui Mi got up early to finish a draft and ate breakfast with him—maybe she was just too sleepy, but she swore she could detect a hint of I-don't-want-to-go-to-work irritation in his expressionless back as he left.

Meetings that popped up during holidays ended right on time too—not a single extra word.

He clearly had no patience for waiting, yet he was willing to arrive that early.

Sui Mi turned all this over in her head while putting on a smile and walking up to him.

"Let's go. I reserved a private room in advance."

But Xi Jianbai didn't move right away. He lowered his eyes slightly, quickly scanned her gait, and asked out of nowhere, "Are you hurt?"

Sui Mi blinked.

After the initial sharp pain from the bump had faded, walking over here with big strides, she'd only felt a very faint sting when the wound rubbed against the edge of her shoe.

It wasn't bad enough to affect her walk, was it?

He could tell from that?

"I bumped into something just now. It's nothing."

Sui Mi shook her head. When the waiter at the Cantonese restaurant came to greet them, she tilted her head and said briefly, "Let's head in."

Then she walked toward the entrance.

Xi Jianbai watched her back for a few seconds before silently following.

Sui Mi really loved the food at this Cantonese restaurant.

It was just that during her senior year, the owner won the lottery, said he was done working and going home to lie flat and collect rent, and shut the place down.

Two lifetimes later, tasting it again—still just as delicious.

Sui Mi buried her head and ate with gusto, occasionally exchanging a few words with Xi Jianbai.

She was quite used to his quiet reticence, and she knew that as long as she brought up a topic, Xi Jianbai would answer earnestly and thoroughly.

She learned that Xi Jianbai was in the process of preparing to start his own company.

Thinking of the future—when he'd hold several utility patents and his net worth would skyrocket a thousandfold—Sui Mi deliberately asked, "Do you accept investments?"

At that, Xi Jianbai looked at her.

The round table in the small private room wasn't very big.

And Xi Jianbai's eyesight was very good.

She'd gotten a bit warm from eating. A thin sheen of sweat beaded at her temples, half-hidden by the short wispy hairs scattered around her ears. Her round apricot eyes glistened with a moist light, curving with a touch of lively mischief.

Her lips, flushed red from the hot food, were cooled by the iced drink—wet and glistening, like velvet petals rolled in water droplets.

Xi Jianbai looked at her for a few seconds, then restrainedly withdrew his gaze. His long lashes dipped slightly, fixing on the pattern of the tablecloth.

His Adam's apple bobbed slowly.

Only then did he speak in a low voice: "Do you want it?"

Sui Mi: "?"

She couldn't help laughing. "If I want it, you'll just give it to me?"

Xi Jianbai's jawline stayed taut, his eyes unblinking. "Mm."

Sui Mi raised an eyebrow slightly.

Didn't expect young Xi Jianbai to have a sense of humor.

All while wearing that utterly unshakable cold face.

If they hadn't been talking about patents and a company—

It would've sounded way too breezy and sincere.

Sui Mi of course wasn't going to let his words drop. She nodded with great seriousness and made her demands: "Sure. Give it to me."

"But I have another condition—remember to write in that all profits, past and future, are to be gifted to me free of charge, got it?"

Having said that, she cracked up first, her eyes crinkling bright and radiant.

Xi Jianbai's fingertips curled slightly. His unhesitating reply was buried beneath her laughter.

"Okay."

All he'd ever wanted, really, was to be worthy of her.

-

Sui Mi was a little stuffed.

She looked down at the beautifully prepared dishes, looked up at that face like crushed ice and falling snow.

And couldn't resist reaching for a few more bites.

It was still early.

Sui Mi cradled the rock-sugar chrysanthemum tea the owner had brewed himself, took two sips, and turned to look at the private room's window.

The window faced the road behind the restaurant. Following it forward was a small park that didn't take up much space.

"I'm so full," she mumbled, then turned to Xi Jianbai. "I want to take a walk around the little park in a bit. You coming?"

Xi Jianbai didn't answer yes or no. Instead he asked first, "Can you walk on that foot?"

She hadn't expected him to still remember that.

Sui Mi looked down and rotated her ankle. The comfort and ease of sitting for a while had given her plenty of confidence. She nodded without hesitation.

"Of course I can."

"It doesn't hurt at all!"

Then, a few dozen steps into the small park, Sui Mi quietly slowed her pace and subtly shifted her weight while walking.

At first she really didn't feel anything.

But after walking that distance, the scraped spot on her heel rubbed repeatedly against her sock edge and the slightly stiff back of her sneaker, producing a fine, mild, yet impossible-to-ignore ache.

The small park was quite lively at night, with many residents from nearby neighborhoods out for a stroll.

Streetlights were tucked among the lush green trees, their glow falling soft and hazy, gently lighting the path ahead while quietly hiding the expressions on people's faces as they passed.

Sui Mi tried walking a few more steps.

Sure enough, it hurt more the further she walked.

She never forced herself to endure discomfort. She was just about to turn to Xi Jianbai and say let's not walk anymore, let's head back—

When the footsteps that had been unhurriedly trailing behind her suddenly quickened by two steps and came to a stop right beside her.

Up close, his tall frame cast a shadow that loomed over her entirely, swallowing her own shadow whole.

Sui Mi couldn't help blinking. She tilted her face up against the light to look at Xi Jianbai.

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of the path beside them.

And suddenly it occurred to her—the position Xi Jianbai had been trailing her at this whole time was actually precise in a rather subtle way.

Exactly in her blind spot. If not for the steady sound of his footsteps and the rustle of fabric by her ear, it was almost like he was following her silently, nearly impossible to notice.

Yet the moment she needed him, he could step forward at top speed.

Before Sui Mi could think further, Xi Jianbai spoke: "Does it hurt?"

"Yeah."

Sui Mi nodded honestly.

The word, tinged with a stuffy nasal note, had barely landed when she saw Xi Jianbai lower his head slightly, reach into his pocket, and grab something.

When his hand came out, his fingertips were pinching a small bandage.

"There's a bench by the plaza up ahead."

Xi Jianbai didn't even lift his eyes—no need to search. It was as if he'd already observed everything nearby in advance and could pinpoint it directly.

He was still a young man who hadn't left campus yet. His ability to rein in his emotions wasn't yet like that of the future Chairman Xi—impenetrable, utterly unruffled.

His pale eyes, backlit, sank into the darkness. His low voice inadvertently leaked a trace of the commanding dominance in his bones as he ordered:

"Go sit down."