After Trying To Pursue The Cold, Elegant Beauty. I Ended Up Being Flirted With Instead - Chapter 20

She never called her name again.

Made a mistake?

Pei Xiubai’s clear eyebrows furrowed. Her mind began to recall what she had said to Wen Zhu yesterday.

Being too busy with work, she couldn’t immediately recall, but she figured it wasn’t anything nice.

Since she had wronged Wen Zhu, why didn’t Wen Zhu explain to her yesterday?

If she had said something yesterday, how could she have possibly wronged her? Could she be secretly angry with her again?

Thinking of this, Pei Xiubai frowned even harder, and the irritation in her heart intensified.

But Jiang Xinxin was her new favorite, the only girl she had met recently who wasn’t covetous of her power and hadn’t used any means to get close to her.

She was as pure as a blank sheet of paper. When Pei Xiubai saw her, she couldn’t help but feel a protective pity.

How could she possibly blame her now?

“I know, your assistant didn’t do it on purpose. Don’t worry,” Pei Xiubai gently soothed. “It’s good that you’re okay now. You have no idea how much I worried about your health.”

Upon hearing this, Jiang Xinxin immediately cheered up, her voice filled with uncontrollable joy: “Really? Boss Pei is so kind!”

Then, she suddenly became a little shy, and softly said, “Boss Pei, rest assured, I am perfectly fine now. It’s just… I miss you so much. What about you, have you missed me lately?”

Her tone was innocent and sincere, holding an overflowing, almost spilling amount of love.

In that instant, Pei Xiubai was suddenly lost in thought.

Once upon a time, there was also a girl who blinked her crescent-moon-shaped, smiling eyes and sweetly asked her, “Xiubai, do you miss me?”

It was this moment that Pei Xiubai suddenly realized that, somewhere along the way, Wen Zhu’s way of addressing her had slowly changed to “Boss Pei.”

She never called her name again.

This realization, coupled with the fact that Wen Zhu hadn’t even called her once during the two days she was in Tongcheng, brought a dense, almost absurd sense of panic to Pei Xiubai, a feeling that she was about to lose something important.

Her heart suddenly felt empty.

But it was only for a short second.

She quickly managed to convince herself Wen Zhu loved her so much, she must just be sulking and unwilling to back down, right?

It wasn’t the first day her Qingqing had such a stubborn temper.

Pei Xiubai felt inexplicably helpless. She suppressed her feelings and said gently to Jiang Xinxin, “Of course I miss you. My work is finished anyway. How about I come to Tongcheng to see you?”

After waking up from a nap, Wen Zhu finished lunch and asked the B&B owner’s wife where the nearby flower and bird market was.

Although Li Zhishu had said not to bring anything, she couldn’t really show up empty handed.

At the market, while picking out flowers, her phone rang. It was an unfamiliar local number.

Wen Zhu answered. It was the intern from the morning.

The intern cautiously asked, “Sister Wen Zhu, Manager Wang gave me your phone number and told me to inform you that he has already changed your workstation. He’s asking when you’ll be returning to work…”

“What kind of orchid is that?” Wen Zhu spotted a pot of flowers, asked the owner, and then turned to the intern, saying, “I’m very busy right now. Tell him that there are still two days left out of the three I mentioned. Tell him to come and find me personally in two days.”

The intern fearfully said, “Okay,” and Wen Zhu hung up the phone.

The owner brought the orchid over. Wen Zhu examined it thoroughly and decided on that pot.

She paid, hugged the flowers, and, following Li Zhishu’s directions, easily found the courtyard she had mentioned.

“Knock, knock.”

She knocked on the door, and it opened quickly.

Looking down, the little face of Jiao Jiao behind the door, which had been somewhat playful, instantly drooped like a frost bitten eggplant when she saw Wen Zhu: “Why is it you! What are you doing at my house?”

Wen Zhu was about to speak when, just then, Li Zhishu came downstairs.

The moment she saw Wen Zhu, her eyes instantly lit up: “Xiao Zhu, you’re here! Come in, quick, come in! Auntie is stir-frying the last dish, and dinner will be ready in a few minutes!”

With that, she opened the door, intimately held Wen Zhu’s wrist, and led her inside.

As soon as she entered the door, Wen Zhu felt enveloped by a unique and warm atmosphere

The living room wasn’t large, but it was decorated very warmly.

The table was covered with an orange grid linen cloth, and the cabinet was filled with various small ornaments. Some looked handmade, but most were Jiao Jiao’s awards and certificates, glittering gold and hung in a row, nearly filling the entire wall.

The TV was playing a cartoon, and the end credits song was cheerfully sounding. The kitchen door was closed, and the sounds of spatulas hitting the sides of the wok mixed with the rich aroma of cooked food.

Everything was exactly like the scenes Wen Zhu had fantasized about in her childhood.

She stood still, her nose stinging from the scent of the food, but her heart suddenly softened.

This must be the feeling of “home.”

The home she had dreamed of since childhood but could never have.

This feeling allowed Wen Zhu’s tense nerves to relax.

She offered the carefully chosen orchid in her hands: “Sister Zhishu, I passed by the flower and bird market on my way here, and the moment I saw this pot of orchid, I immediately thought of you. It must be fate; seeing this flower instantly reminded me of you. I always feel like the temperament of this flower is very much like yours. I bought it on a whim, I hope you don’t mind, Sister Zhishu?”

As she said this, her eyes were clear and sincere.

For some reason, Li Zhishu’s gaze toward Wen Zhu always held a mysterious sort of loving kindness.

Hearing this, she accepted the cluster of elegant and dignified orchids with surprise, smiling brightly, her eyes curving: “You are too thoughtful. Didn’t I tell you not to bring anything?”

She had lived in the mainland for so long and had heard all kinds of flattery, but this was the first time she realized that complimenting someone could be done this way.

It lacked any sense of pandering, yet it made her feel joyful and pleasant.

“Come, sit here.” Li Zhishu led Wen Zhu to the dining table and pulled out a chair for her, her eyes full of delight.

She then remembered Jiao Jiao by the door: “Jiao Jiao, didn’t you go to the supermarket this afternoon? Go get Auntie Wen a drink, okay?”

Upon hearing this, Jiao Jiao pouted, her expression full of reluctance.

But she seemed to think of something, furrowing her little brows, and still lowered her head, slowly walking to the refrigerator, standing on tiptoe, and opening the door.

When Li Zhishu saw that Jiao Jiao poured the chocolate Ovaltine, she was completely stunned.

She had only asked Jiao Jiao to pour a random drink, but she didn’t expect her to bring out her most prized Ovaltine.

Didn’t her daughter hoard her chocolate Ovaltine the most?

Normally, she wouldn’t even share it with her own mother, constantly saying that her aunt bought it for her and no one else was allowed to drink it.

Jiao Jiao put down the cup, then climbed onto a nearby chair, looked at the drink, and felt more and more wronged.

She was no longer her aunt’s favorite person; she even had to share her Ovaltine with someone else…

Wen Zhu was very good at sensing other people’s emotions.

Just like now, although Jiao Jiao was young, the intense aura of sadness was almost palpable.

Wen Zhu gently leaned over, sat beside her, and asked warmly, “Jiao Jiao, did Auntie do something to upset you? Can you tell Auntie, please?”

Jiao Jiao pursed her lips, sniffled, and said breathlessly, “Auntie Wen, I love my little aunt the most, can you please not bul..”

Before she could finish, familiar footsteps suddenly sounded at the doorway.

Jiao Jiao stopped talking, instantly perked up, her eyes bright, and she quickly ran toward the entrance.

“Little Aunt is back!” she happily shouted, her movements as lively as a fawn.

She rushed over, pulled the door open, and indeed saw the familiar figure, sweetly and softly calling out, “Little Aunt! I missed you so much this afternoon!”

As soon as Li Zhiyun returned home, she saw Jiao Jiao rushing towards her, and her heart softened involuntarily.

She looked down, stroked Jiao Jiao’s soft hair, picked her up, and gently swayed her.

Looking up, she made eye contact with Wen Zhu at the dining table.

In an instant, her gaze darkened, and she glanced at Li Zhishu.

Her look was clearly one of questioning.

Noticing this look, Wen Zhu immediately felt like she was sitting on pins and needles, and her heart suddenly clenched.

If she sensed it correctly, Li Zhiyun was not welcoming her here?