Lu Huaiyu carried Ning Li all the way to the parking lot. When they got to the car, Lu Huaiyu had intended on putting her down, but Ning Li was clutching his shirt tightly and refused to let go.
He had no choice but to continue to carry her.
Only then did she stop fidgeting and rested quietly in his arms.
Cheng Xiyue was rendered speechless when he saw this.
Finally, he realised what had been going on earlier. Lu Huaiyu had not taken advantage of Ning Li. It was the other way around!
Lu Huaiyu lowered his eyes to look at the person in his arms.
Ning Li’s eyes were closed and her breathing was even. She had really fallen asleep.
Her small hands were still subconsciously clutching his shirt at his chest, and her forehead was lightly resting against his firm and flat chest.
The tip of her nose was still slightly red and she looked very pitiful.
Even in her sleep, her eyebrows were gently knitted together.
Lu Huaiyu gently patted her shoulder and hugged her a little tighter.
Ning Li’s face gently rubbed against his chest as if to confirm his existence, before gradually relaxing her frown.
Lu Huaiyu felt a knot in his throat. He took a deep breath and looked out the window.
“She can’t drink anymore in future,” he said.
She had become so drunk after just one glass. If she had drunk any more, who knew what the consequences would have been.
Cheng Xiyue looked at him incredulously.
“Are you going to watch over Little Ning Li every day? She drank right under your nose today. Who else is to blame but yourself?”
Lu Huaiyu frowned, but he did not refute it.
He had indeed been negligent.
He had brought her there and had only left her alone for a while, before she had run off to get a drink by herself.
Lu Huaiyu really had not expected Ning Li to have such a poor alcohol tolerance.
He also had not expected her to look like this when she was drunk.
Lu Huaiyu suddenly remembered something and asked, “Why did George come to Yunzhou?”
Cheng Xiyue already knew that George was staying at the Grand Hyatt and that he had chatted with Little Ning Li earlier.
He could hear the displeasure in Lu Huaiyu’s voice and inexplicably felt a little cold.
“How would I know? He’s always done as he pleased.”
George was known to love having fun. However, Yunzhou probably had nothing that would attract him, so why had he suddenly come here?
Cheng Xiyue pondered a while.
“Their last launch was quite successful, so I guess he was in a good mood and decided to travel?”
No one could guess George’s intentions.
“Oh, speaking of which, Little Ning Li’s dress tonight seems to be from G&S.”
Cheng Xiyue had an interest in fashion. However, he was not very familiar with G&S’s women’s line, so he did not know that Ning Li’s current dress was not one that was actually sold to the public.
Lu Huaiyu’s eyes turned cold.
He had noticed it too.
Perhaps that was why George had gone over to talk to Ning Li.
Cheng Xiyue did not know what had happened then, so naturally, he was not clear about Lu Huaiyu’s current thoughts.
In his opinion, this was just a small coincidence and not a big deal.
The more pressing matter was Little Ning Li.
Cheng Xiyue sighed and said, “Will Little Ning Li be fine?”
He had a feeling that something was off.
“Why is she so…clingy when she’s drunk?”
To be precise, she was only clingy towards Lu Huaiyu.
Earlier, Cheng Xiyue had called out to Ning Li several times, but she had barely reacted. When Lu Huaiyu coaxed her softly, she listened to him.
However, Cheng Xiyue did not mention this.
Lu Huaiyu did not answer his question either.
The car was silent again.
…
Ye Ci went home feeling defeated.
Never had she felt so humiliated in her life!
The atmosphere at the celebration banquet had been very fragile and finally ended.
Everyone joked and laughed as if nothing had happened, but Ye Ci knew that they would laugh at her the moment they left.
Half of her guests had gone to the Grand Hyatt Hotel across the street at the last minute to attend the celebration banquet that Lu Huaiyu had held for Ning Li.
This had been a brutal slap in her face!
It was not just her. Ye Ming and Su Yuan were also holding back their anger.
It had not been easy for Ye Ci to get fifth place in the provincial physics competition. They had planned to celebrate her achievement, but who would have guessed that it would turn out so badly.
The Ye family returned home looking unhappy.
As soon as Ye Ci entered the house, her first reaction was to see if Ning Li was home.
Ning Li had not returned.
Ye Ming went upstairs with a sullen face and did not bother to ask anything.
Su Yuan’s chest hurt at the thought that Ning Li had completely provoked Ye Ming this time. She was frustrated and all she could do was to try to comfort him.
Ye Ci went back into her bedroom, with the intention of calling Ning Li, but she felt very embarrassed.
She went to the bay window.
From there, she could clearly see the courtyard, so she would be the first to know if Ning Li came back.
Time passed slowly. Ye Ci became more anxious as she waited.
Just as she picked up her phone, she saw headlights lighting up the road ahead.
A car then stopped outside their gate.
Ye Ci opened the window and looked outside.
She knew that the car belonged to Cheng Xiyue.
That meant that Ning Li must be inside.
She bit her lip.
…
“Little Ning Li, we’re here!”
Cheng Xiyue stopped the car and shouted as he turned back.
Ning Li did not move.
Lu Huaiyu gently shook her. “Lili, wake up.”
Ning Li slowly opened her eyes.
Lu Huaiyu said, “It’s time for you to go home.”
Ning Li subconsciously looked out the car window.
It was a familiar carved nanmu wood[1] door.
Her pupils constricted, then she curled up and looked at Lu Huaiyu.
Ning Li’s eyes were open, and the corners of her eyes were red. She clutched his shirt and spoke in a soft voice, “Lu Huaiyu, aren’t you going to take me home?”
[1] Nanmu (Chinese: 楠木) is a precious wood that is unique to China and South Asia, and was historically used for boat building, architectural woodworking, furniture and sculptural carving in China.
