Three days later.
With the joint effort of two squads, they made a breakthrough in the case involving the small town. Still, the past few days had been gruelling, and Su Jianan and the rest were all exhausted.
Also exhausted to the point of paralysis was Shen Yuechuan.
Lu Boyan had been a complete workaholic for the past few days. Every morning, he would arrive early at the company and get straight to work. If he had no business-related social gatherings to attend, he would have his lunches and dinners in his office. Every day, he would be at work for 16 hours straight.
As Lu Boyan’s special assistant, Shen Yuechuan was also dragged into this madness. Lu Boyan’s other secretaries and assistants suffered the same fate as well. Nonetheless, everyone could tell that Lu Boyan was in a foul mood, so they did not dare speak up. The only thing they could do was ask Shen Yuechuan about it in private.
Shen Yuechuan shook his head. “It’s better for you guys not to know.”
Only work could numb Lu Boyan at this point. The only way he could stop himself from thinking about Su Jianan was by exhausting his mind so much that it could no longer function. The exhaustion would also allow him to fool himself into believing that Su Jianan was right beside him whenever he lay deliriously in her bed at night. It would allow him to fall asleep amidst his own lie.
That heaviness would hit him square in the chest when he opened his eyes the next morning and saw the empty bed. When that happened, his only option was to dive head first back into work.
That was how Lu Boyan’s life got trapped in this vicious cycle.
Not a few days later, Shen Yuechuan could no longer tolerate the high workload and was practically foaming at the mouth. Shen Yuechuan burst into Lu Boyan’s office around 11pm that night. “Enough of this shit! I’m going to tell Jianan everything right now!”
“Shen Yuechuan,” Lu Boyan growled. It was rare for Lu Boyan to give Shen Yuechuan such a dangerous glare, but right now, he did. “I told you before. She can know absolutely nothing about this.”
“Then, what, you’re going to keep this up?!” Shen Yuechuan roared. “Do you know that you’ll soon collapse?! Who do you think you are, huh? The man of steel?”
Lu Boyan suddenly realized that Shen Yuechuan had been doing overtime together with him for a few days straight. He put down his pen and said, “You’re allowed to go home and rest.”
“I’ll bring you home first,” Shen Yuechuan said in defeat, loosening his tie. In the car, Shen Yuechuan said, “Giving Jianan the right to choose, my ass. How is she supposed to make a choice if you don’t even have the guts to tell her the whole truth?”
Lu Boyan shut his eyes. “She has already chosen Jiang Shaokai.”
Shen Yuechuan went silent for a moment. “But why do I feel like things aren’t the way they seem?” Shen Yuechuan muttered. He had looked into it before, so he knew that Su Jianan and Jiang Shaokai had always been on friendly terms with each other. But even so, he was absolutely positive that their relationship was platonic. There was only pure and innocent friendship between them and nothing more.
Shen Yuechuan decided to conduct another thorough investigation, and this time, he would use Su Yicheng as the starting point. As Su Jianan’s brother, Su Yicheng must know everything about Su Jianan like the back of his hand.
Shen Yuechuan did not expect to receive a call from Su Yicheng just after he had sent Lu Boyan home.
“Do you have time to meet?” Su Yicheng asked him on the phone. “But don’t let Lu Boyan know.”
“Yeah. Just as well, since I was planning to see you too.” Shen Yuechuan turned the car around and drove away from the villa district. “Where are you?”
Su Yicheng was currently sitting inside a booth in a bar. Shen Yuechuan drove quickly and arrived at the bar in just thirty minutes.
The first thing Shen Yuechuan did the moment he sat down was rotate his shoulder blades and arms to loosen the knots in his muscles and joints. Su Yicheng poured him a glass of alcohol. “You only got off work now?”
“Big boss had gone off his rocker. Pawns like us can only indulge his craziness by doing overtime with him.” Shen Yuechuan swirled the glass in his hand. “So, you’re asking to meet me to discuss the thing between Jianan and Boyan, I presume?”
“Indeed,” Su Yicheng said, pinching the bridge of his nose to soothe his headache. “It’s only been half a year, and yet they are talking about getting a divorce.”
“Jianan had admitted that she’s in love with Jiang Shaokai,” Shen Yuechuan said, thinking that this was a good opportunity for him to probe deeper into the matter. “She’s the one who asked for the divorce. I’m sure you’ll agree too if you were in Lu Boyan’s shoes.”
“Seriously? Did Lu Boyan not use his head to think things through?” Su Yicheng frowned. “Do you really think Su Jianan’s personality would allow her to marry Lu Boyan if she really has feelings for Jiang Shaokai? Let me tell you something, man. She would rather herself be kidnapped by Su Hongyuan than go through with the marriage.”
“Right? That’s what I though too. I mean, Jianan doesn’t seem to me like the type of person who would tolerate-” Shen Yuechuan stopped short as the penny dropped. He stared at Su Yicheng with wide eyes. “What did you just say? What do you mean by that?”
Su Yicheng swayed the glass he was holding; the sparkling and transparent liquid formed a beautiful arc as it swirled inside the glass. “I meant it exactly in the way you’ve understood it.”
Shen Yuechuan was thunderstruck, so much so that he was rendered immobile.
People used to say, “What is clear to bystanders often eludes those who are directly involved.” In this case, the aphorism was perfectly fitting. From the perspective of a bystander like Shen Yuechuan, Su Jianan’s shyness and awkward blushes during her interactions with Lu Boyan were all clear signs of the affection she had for him. Add to that the fact that her face would turn beet red whenever anyone teased her about her relationship with Lu Boyan. Was it even possible for someone with Su Jianan’s personality to react in those ways without romantic feelings being at play?
If Su Jianan harbored no romantic feelings towards Lu Boyan, her only response to such teasing would be a cold stare followed by a simple, “Don’t joke around.”
“I knew it!” Shen Yuechuan thought. “What? Su Jianan had feelings for Jiang Shaokai? Bullshit! That doesn’t even make sense!”
“This is Jianan’s secret. The reason I’m telling you this is because I want you to be frank with me about something,” Su Yicheng said. “How does Lu Boyan really feel about my sister?”
“Well, let me put it this way, then.” Shen Yuechuan smiled. “The main reason Lu Boyan had agreed to Jianan’s demand for a divorce was because Jianan had admitted that she had feelings for Jiang Shaokai. He was hurt, but at the same time, he wanted Jianan to find genuine happiness. But get this. Ever since Jianan left for San Ching town, Lu Boyan started acting abnormally. He worked sixteen hours per day every day, and when he went home, he didn’t even sleep in his own bedroom. Instead, he slept in Jianan’s room. In fact, Jianan’s room was the only place he could fall asleep in. So, why don’t you tell me how he feels about your sister?”
Understanding dawned on Su Yicheng. He massaged his temples. “This is clearly something that can be easily resolved if they could just sit down and talk things through like adults. Man, what are those two even thinking?”
The smile on Shen Yuechuan’s face froze at that comment.
He had forgotten entirely about the most crucial aspect of everything: Kang Ruicheng.
Kang Ruicheng was actually the biggest reason that drove Lu Boyan to agree to Su Jianan’s request for a divorce; it was no longer safe for her to remain by his side.
Then again… should he tell Lu Boyan about Su Jianan’s feelings?
“Forget it,” Su Yicheng said, putting down his glass. “I’ll have a chat with Lu Boyan after Jianan returns from San Ching town. I’m actually curious about how the guy would react if Jianan really does end up together with Jiang Shaokai.”
Shen Yuechuan released a hollow laugh and left the bar with a troubled heart.
When Lu Boyan arrived at the company the next day, he immediately noticed the strange look on Shen Yuechuan’s face. Then again, he had often seen such a look on Shen Yuechuan. Every time when someone asked Shen Yuechuan about that look, Shen Yuechuan would just smile gleefully at them and then show them the pictures of two women: “Hey, hey. Who do you think I should ask out tonight?”
Lu Boyan no longer paid Shen Yuechuan’s facial expression any heed after the second time he had seen it today. That was until the afternoon, when Shen Yuechuan had decided to linger around his office after dropping off some documents for him. Somehow, Shen Yuechuan seemed reluctant to leave, and he looked as if he had something to say. “Is there something you need?” Lu Boyan asked finally.
“I…” Shen Yuechuan trailed off in hesitation. “Argh. Forget it. Better to let Su Yicheng to be the one to tell you.”
Lu Boyan narrowed his eyes. “So this has something to do with Jianan,” he thought.
He closed the folder he had been reading. “What did Su Yicheng say to you?”
“You’ll know about it soon enough!” Shen Yuechuan said, walking towards the exit. “All I can say to you right now is that it’s better for you should think carefully about your divorce with Jianan! Things aren’t… Things aren’t what they seem.”
In the end, Shen Yuechuan chickened out and did not tell Lu Boyan the truth. Shen Yuechuan knew better than anyone else the lengths that Lu Boyan had gone through all these years for Su Jianan. If Lu Boyan found out about Su Jianan’s true feelings… Well, the whole of A City might start to shake.
Lu Boyan failed to guess what it was that Su Yicheng had told Shen Yuechuan. Still, Lu Boyan’s understanding of Shen Yuechuan’s character told him that something was not right. “What the hell did he mean by ‘things aren’t what they seem’?”
What the heck did Su Yicheng tell him?
He suddenly remembered something from a few months back. Su Yicheng had come to him that day and requested him to sign Luo Xiaoxi on as part of Lu Enterprise Media. Su Yicheng had promised him back then that he would return the favor by revealing a secret about Su Jianan. Could it be
…
When office hours ended today, Lu Boyan did something completely unprecendented: he skipped overtime. He had called Su Yicheng’s office himself and asked to meet Su Yicheng.
“I was planning to come see you after Jianan’s return,” Su Yicheng said. “But since you’ve called, why don’t you drop by my office?”
Lu Boyan ordered Uncle Qian to drive him to Cheng An Group’s building. Downstairs, he was received by one of Su Yicheng’s assistants, who brought him straight into Su Yicheng’s office.
In the spacious office, Su Yicheng sat on the couch with a frown, holding a cigarette between his fingers. He was obviously awaiting Lu Boyan’s arrival.
Lu Boyan sat down on the armchair beside him. “Isn’t it about time you fulfill the promise you made a few months ago?”
“So now you remember?” Su Yicheng laughed helplessly. “I honestly thought you would’ve discovered it on your own before I even get the chance to tell you. After all, Jianan was already acting so obvious around you, and I even gave you three months.”
Lu Boyan had a feeling what it was that Su Yicheng wanted to tell him.
For the first time in his life, Lu Boyan actually felt nervous, like he could feel his own breaths clearly and distinctly. His heart drummed against his ribcage, beat after beat, as if his heart could burst through his flesh any second.
“What do you mean?” Lu Boyan tried to keep his voice steady and calm. “What exactly are you trying to tell me?”
Su Yicheng put out his cigarette. “You know, there was a period of time when I really hated you,” Su Yicheng began slowly. “Do you know why? Well, here’s the thing, I practically raised Jianan, and I see her like my most precious treasure. It was also because of my fondness for her that she tended to ignore most of the guys her age. Until you showed up, that is.
“That was when I suddenly discovered that my younger sister would talk about you all the time. She was only ten that year, just a kid who wore her heart on her sleeves, not knowing how to hide her own thoughts from others at all. And she was so happy every time she talked about you. Hell, the way she said ‘Brother Boyan’ sounded even more affectionate than the way she called me, her biological brother. Tell me, how was I supposed to like you with all that going on?
“Seeing her like that back then, I knew right away just how bad things were. Indeed, my fears came true by the time she got older. Although she never told me a thing, I still noticed the way her eyes would brighten up whenever I mentioned your name. She would never miss out on a single news article about you. One time, I deliberately revealed to her that you’ll be playing golf every weekend. And guess what? She followed me right to the golf course. But it just so happened that you didn’t show up that day. I teased her about it, and after that, she never attempted to have a chance meeting with you again. I guess you’re the only one who could vary her skin’s thickness, so to speak.”
“What about the time when she was applying to study abroad? A lot of famous universities had sent her offers back then, and yet she chose Columbia University. She picked it because that was where you had gone to study. When she returned to the country and I told her that I could arrange a meeting between you two, she was so happy that her eyes were practically glowing. But that glow didn’t last long at all. It disappeared from her eyes almost as soon as it appeared, and I saw it vanish with my own two eyes. She felt unworthy of you. She thought you were out of her league. For all she knew, you were no longer that Brother Boyan from fourteen years ago. You’re now a glowing beacon in the business world with a beautiful celebrity as a girlfriend. She thought there was an unbridgeable gap between you, that you were beyond her reach, and that it was impossible for her to be with you. That was why she did not even have the courage to see you and had chosen to keep her feelings carefully locked up.
“She’s such a proud person, and yet she felt inferior because of her feelings for you. Did you honestly think that I’m incapable of protecting her and was therefore forced to ask you for help? I just wanted to give my silly sister a chance to approach you. I knew that there was nothing going on between you and Han Ruoxi. I also believed that you would eventually discover her feelings for you.
“And yet you ended up buying all that crap about her and Jiang Shaokai? Do you think she would even agree to marry you if she really is in love with Jiang Shaokai? Do you still not understand her personality after living under the same roof for half a year?”
“Lu Boyan,” Su Yicheng said, looking as if he was currently experiencing a massive headache. “Everyone says you have sharp, discerning eyes. But why? Why did you fail to notice the affections that Jianan had harbored for you for over a decade?”
