Can't Hide My Love for You - Chapter 93

“President Chi doesn’t celebrate birthdays.”

Cheng Yixin never expected that after all her heartfelt anticipation and planning, she would receive such a sentence. She stood frozen in place for two seconds, murmuring blankly, “Why?”

“I don’t know the specifics,” Siwen frowned slightly. “It seems something happened in the past. Every colleague in our company gets a birthday party, with the sole exception of President Chi.”

She looked at Cheng Yixin. Seeing the actress holding fresh flowers after having gone to such great lengths to investigate and keep things a secret, it wasn’t hard to see how much Cheng Yixin had been looking forward to today.

“…I see then.” Cheng Yixin was visibly dejected. “What time does Chi Yi get off work?”

“In previous years, she would stay late at the office to work overtime. I’m not sure exactly when she leaves.”

“Alright, go back to your work. Thank you for the heads-up.”

Before leaving, Siwen glanced back a few times with concern. If Cheng Yixin truly insisted on celebrating for her, she figured President Chi would cooperate; no matter how much she disliked it, she would put on a happy face to respond to her partner’s expectations. This is what they call love, I suppose.

Cheng Yixin sat in the pantry, pouring herself a cup of warm water from a disposable cup. She took two sips to swallow the rising sense of grievance. When she first heard about the birthday boycott, it would be a lie to say she didn’t feel slighted—all her meticulous preparations felt like they were getting no response, actively shut out.

But as she calmed down, she became more concerned about what this day meant to Chi Yi. Why didn’t she celebrate?

She had previously learned from Feng Siqi that Chi Yi celebrated with a “friend” every year. If Siwen’s account was true, it confirmed her suspicion: that friend was likely a fiction Chi Yi created to reassure her family.

After thinking it over, she called Feng Siqi. As family, she would know more.

“Sister Xin! Are you calling to invite me to Sister’s birthday party~!” Feng Siqi sounded in high spirits on the other end.

“Siqi, besides it being Chi Yi’s birthday, is today any other kind of special day?” Cheng Yixin went straight to the point.

“Uh.” Feng Siqi’s cheerful tone cooled significantly. “Why ask that all of a sudden?”

“I could ask your sister directly, but I want to understand first.”

“You’d better not ask her. I’ll tell you.” Feng Siqi let out a soft sigh. “Actually, today is also the anniversary of my aunt and uncle’s death. I was small then, and I only know the family went out to play and got into a car accident. Only Sister was left.”

“Is Sister feeling sad remembering the past? I’ll come over to find you guys! Let’s all go home for dinner; it’s livelier with more people, so she won’t dwell on it.”

“No, no,” Cheng Yixin said hurriedly. “I’ve already booked a restaurant for tonight. Don’t be a third wheel.”

Cheng Yixin finally understood why Chi Yi lied to her family. Today was her birthday, but it was also the day her grandparents lost their daughter. To force them to endure grief just to celebrate her birthday would be too cruel.

At 7:00 PM, as night fell quietly, Chi Yi put down her pen. She turned to see the outdoor LED advertising screen on the building opposite her floor-to-ceiling window lighting up. Her chat history with Cheng Yixin was still stuck on this morning, where the other said she was going to film.

Chi Yi stared at the chat for a long time. It seemed Teacher Cheng was very busy today. Her notification bar still held a collapsed SMS reminder:

[Grand Bank] Dear Ms. Chi Yi, we wish you a happy birthday, peace, and health. May beauty always be with you!

Year after year, the same birthday greeting. Chi Yi cleared the notifications. Just as she put her phone down, a call came from a partner supplier.

“President Chi, it’s your birthday today! Happy birthday! What are your plans for tonight? Regarding that contract earlier, thanks to your care, I’ve booked a table at Hesheng Mansion. Please do me the honor of letting me treat you to a meal.”

The glass window reflected Chi Yi’s face; her smile was distant and polite. “Thank you, Mr. Wu, but I already have arrangements tonight. I’ll treat you another day.”

“Alright, alright. I won’t disturb you then.” The other side had only called as a formality; Chi Yi had received no less than five such calls today.

Just as she hung up, a knock sounded on the heavy solid wood door. Once, twice, thrice—then it stopped. At this hour… Chi Yi was puzzled; Siwen should have already gone home.

She put down her phone, looked toward the door, and said, “Come in.”

When she saw the person who entered, Chi Yi was momentarily stunned. Cheng Yixin, who was supposed to be filming on set this morning, had suddenly materialized before her.

“Ta-da~~ Surprised?!” Cheng Yixin opened her arms, trotted over, and gave her a big hug.

Chi Yi was pulled into a full embrace, taking a small step back as she hugged her back. “How did you get…”

Before she could finish, she swallowed the words. Today… she had clearly come to celebrate her birthday.

Cheng Yixin was empty-handed. “I was supposed to be filming in Zhenzhou today, but the director of a previous project told me to come over for some dubbing fix-ups. I couldn’t push it off, so I had to come.” She frowned, her complaining tone making it sound like a real occurrence.

“I spent the whole afternoon in the studio and just got out. Since it was near the office, I dropped by. I didn’t expect that without me here, President Chi would be such a workaholic.” Cheng Yixin teased her with a smile.

“I just had a few things left to handle, so I worked late,” Chi Yi told a casual lie. “Have you eaten yet?”

“Not yet, I’m starving after wrapping up.”

“What do you want to eat?” Chi Yi reached for her phone to book a restaurant. “How about that place we went to before?”

“It’s okay, but it’s so crowded. I can’t wait in line,” Cheng Yixin said. “I want hotpot. Let’s just find a random place and try it!”

There was a large mall near the office, but popular shops would all have long queues at this hour. So, they walked to a street of food stalls near the mall and saw a Lamb Spine Hotpot place.

It was a combined hotpot and BBQ shop. The owner was lighting the charcoal at the door, and there were only a few tables of diners inside. It looked more like a place that catered to the late-night supper crowd.

“Eat here?” Chi Yi hesitated. “Let’s find somewhere with a better environment.” She didn’t personally mind “hole-in-the-wall” eateries—after all, she had stayed in harsh conditions in the mountains—but she felt she shouldn’t slight Cheng Yixin when taking her out.

“Hotpot needs that ‘fire and smoke’ atmosphere,” Cheng Yixin laughed. “This is the place.”

Dinner was a choice made on a whim. All along the way, there were no signs of any prepared gifts.

The Lamb Spine Hotpot used an old-fashioned copper stove with a raised cylindrical charcoal chimney in the center. The red-hot charcoal was evenly distributed at the base, and the broth bubbled merrily.

“It looks delicious.” Cheng Yixin was hungry. She quickly picked up a piece of lamb spine and took a light bite. It was hot.

“Slow down, no one’s racing you.” Chi Yi methodically used her chopsticks to strip the meat from the bone and placed it in Cheng Yixin’s bowl.

The lamb, pressure-cooked until tender, melted in the mouth—savory, slightly numbing, and moderately spicy. After finishing the large bones, the remaining broth was used to swish vegetables. The greens, infused with the savory lamb broth, were incredibly delicious.

Cheng Yixin swished a large bunch of sliced lamb, fished it out ten seconds later, and gave half to Chi Yi.

“I had hotpot with your grandfather before. He said hotpot is very inclusive; even two people with different tastes can sit at the same table.” At this, Cheng Yixin smiled and tilted her head. “It’s just like us.”

Cheng Yixin was impatient and prone to impulsiveness. If her partner had been someone else, she might have lost her head when the relationship was leaked, stubbornly insisting on coming out, which would have ended in her fans turning against her and her career being ruined. But Chi Yi was sensible and meticulous—a complete rationalist who weighed pros and cons to make decisions rather than acting on emotion. She and Cheng Yixin complemented each other perfectly.

“You’re right,” Chi Yi smiled.

“I saw a post saying a drive-in theater opened at the Peak Park. The night views they posted were beautiful. Let’s go watch a movie after dinner.”

“We can, but…” Chi Yi hesitated. “Your work…”

Going to a movie after dinner meant they wouldn’t be back until the early hours.

“We’ll be fine coming back after the movie. Even if we went straight home, we wouldn’t sleep that early anyway.”

Since Cheng Yixin put it that way, Chi Yi naturally agreed.

On the way to Peak Park, Cheng Yixin bought tickets online, where the day’s screenings were updated.

“There are three movies: a romance, a comedy, and an adventure. Which one should we see?”

“What do you want to see?” Chi Yi asked back.

Usually, when couples go to the movies, it’s almost always a romance. But Cheng Yixin said, “I want to see the adventure film.”

“Alright.”

The benefit of a drive-in was that they didn’t have to get out of the car or endure the cold; they had a private space, and the film audio could be heard by tuning the car radio to the same frequency. Most people at the drive-in headed straight for the romance halls. In the large parking lot for the adventure hall, only about a dozen cars were parked.

Chi Yi picked a viewing spot in the middle-back, with the windshield facing the massive projection screen.

While waiting for the movie to start, Cheng Yixin said, “I also saw a blogger say there’s a very secluded date spot here where you can see the night view. On the hour, you can even hear the tolling of a clock. Let’s go check it out after the movie.”

“How do you know everything?” Chi Yi chuckled.

“Even though I’m not in Jingning, Big Data is never late!” Cheng Yixin’s tone held a hint of pride.

The movie started on time. The drive-in was a first-time experience for both of them, and it felt very novel. The projection quality was clear. Combined with the car’s stereo system and realistic special effects, it truly felt immersive. During a startling jump-scare, Cheng Yixin lunged into the crook of Chi Yi’s neck. “Why did that person jump out so suddenly!”

“Just to scare people,” Chi Yi stroked her hair. “It’s okay, the scary part is over.”

As the movie neared its end, Cheng Yixin vaguely heard the sound of a clock tolling. She rolled down the window; without the barrier of the glass, the sound was clearer, though it came from far away. It tolled eleven times, meaning it was 11:00 PM.

After the exciting movie, they still felt a bit unsatisfied and didn’t forget the plan to visit the secluded date spot.

The car drove out of the drive-in. While other cars headed straight down the mountain, they made a U-turn toward the higher parking lot of Peak Park. The car couldn’t go any higher than that, so they had to park and walk the rest of the way.

The winding mountain road was lit at night like a serpentine ribbon. Cheng Yixin turned back to look; on the endless road, they were the only couple. Their fingers were interlaced as they walked slowly upward, chatting about the movie.

At this moment, time seemed to slow down. They weren’t public figures; they were just ordinary people. There was no need to worry about being photographed. They were enjoying a very ordinary date.

Dinner, a movie, a walk—then going home together, waking up in each other’s arms to greet countless mornings.

The so-called secluded date spot was a gazebo. Sitting inside, one could see the scattered lights below and the intersecting roads.

“Are you cold?” Cheng Yixin held her hand. Her fingertips brushed the Buddhist prayer beads on Chi Yi’s wrist. She gently traced the patterns and asked with a smile, “Has it brought you good luck?”

“I might find it hard to have any more good luck in this life,” Chi Yi said.

“Why?”

“Because meeting you has already used up all my luck.”

“…” Cheng Yixin was silent for three seconds before she couldn’t hold it in and burst into a “goose” laugh. “Hahahaha! That pickup line is so cheesy!”

Chi Yi also couldn’t keep her straight face. She bit her lip. Alright, it was a bit cheesy.

“Good girl,” Cheng Yixin stroked her face. “There’s plenty of good luck ahead. Mine is yours; rounded up, the luck doubles.”

As her fingertips touched Chi Yi’s eyes, Cheng Yixin’s smile slowly faded. She said seriously, “Be happy.”

“I am happy,” Chi Yi caught her hand and said it again. “I am happy.”

Happy that she came.

Cheng Yixin never once mentioned that today was her birthday. Chi Yi felt a small sense of loss in her heart, yet she was also relieved.

BONG— BONG— BONG—

The clock tolled on the hour, echoing across the peak. Cheng Yixin counted until the eleventh strike, then the sound stopped. Midnight had quietly arrived, meaning it was a new day.

She stared quietly into Chi Yi’s eyes, leaned in, and planted a kiss at the end of her eyebrow.

She said with a smile, “Chi Yi, happy birthday.”