Self-Perception - Chapter 25.1

They exchanged greetings.

Gu Huai dried her hands and murmured as she walked past her, “I look forward to our next meeting.”

Watching her back, Wen Jinyan slightly furrowed her brows.

Next meeting… Does she know me?

It wasn’t until Xu Yuanyuan waved the manuscript in front of her that her thoughts gradually returned. Wen Jinyan grabbed the manuscript.

“Jinyan, why are you so absent minded?” Xu Yuanyuan withdrew her hand and went back to her workstation.

“Thinking about something,” Wen Jinyan connected the voice recorder’s USB to the computer, put on her headphones, and started writing the article.

“Come in.”

The door opened. Wen Jinyan placed the draft on the table, yawning. “I finished it.”

“Heart hands,” Su Muqing made a heart shape with her hands.

“You should save that for Ji Yibai,” Wen Jinyan “politely declined.”

“She’s not worthy.” Su Muqing picked up the draft, nodded repeatedly, and praised, “It truly is you. Your talent is wasted on writing novels. Why don’t you quit being a full time novelist and join our magazine? We’ll hire you at a high price.”

“I’m not interested in taking a young girl’s rice bowl,” Wen Jinyan’s voice lacked energy. She rubbed her temples, her eyes heavy with sleepiness.

“There’s a folding bed in my lounge. It’s brand new. Your long legs can completely fit.”

Wen Jinyan teased, “Are you planning to make me work for free long-term?”

Su Muqing corrected, “I was just worried you’d have to spend money on a taxi to go home and sleep. Can’t you see I care about you?”

Wen Jinyan smiled without saying a word and went to the lounge.

Su Muqing looked at the closed door and sighed inwardly.

Ever since that incident a few years ago, she needed to sleep excessively after finishing a relatively long piece of writing. Wen Jinyan never said anything, and Su Muqing only accidentally found out that she was seeing a psychiatrist. She also secretly asked Dr. Jiang about the cause, and Dr. Jiang simply replied: it might be due to a combination of factors, including brain stimulation.

Fortunately, in the past few years, other than needing more sleep, it hasn’t had any negative effects on her body. It’s better to sleep more than to be unable to sleep like before.

Su Muqing checked the time. After a quarter of an hour, she quietly opened the door, rummaged through Wen Jinyan’s bag, took out the sedative pills, and opened the bottle to look closely. There were still many white tablets left.

Su Muqing breathed a sigh of relief.

It seems that Wen Jinyan marrying Gu Wansheng isn’t entirely a bad thing. At least,

she’s been sleeping soundly lately.

Wen Jinyan woke up around three in the afternoon. Su Muqing saw her and poured her a glass of water. “Are you hungry? You’ve been asleep for a long time. If you didn’t wake up, I was about to call Teacher Gu.”

“Why would you call Gu Wansheng?”

“Haven’t you read the story of Sleeping Beauty?” Su Muqing raised an eyebrow. Perhaps feeling that her next sentence didn’t suit her age, she said with a laugh, “Waiting for her to come and wake you with a kiss.”

Wen Jinyan stared at her and slowly uttered a few words, “I haven’t read it.”

Su Muqing’s heart skipped a beat.

How could she forget that Wen Jinyan had a very difficult childhood?

She’s an idiot.

Su Muqing felt guilty. “I’m sorry, Jinyan. I…”

Wen Jinyan understood. “No need to apologize. I don’t mind.” She said, “I’m hungry. Is there anything to eat?”

“There are some tea snacks. I’ll get them for you.”

Su Muqing brought her some small biscuits and tea. Wen Jinyan ate until she was about four-tenths full and then stopped.

“Let’s go out for dinner after I get off work.”

Wen Jinyan remembered Gu Wansheng telling her this morning that she would be filming late. She nodded. “Okay. I’ll go to your lounge and write my novel. Lend me a charger.”

“Here.”

Wen Jinyan took it.

“Off work, off work.” Su Muqing stretched, closed her laptop, and knocked on the door. “Jinyan, we can go.”

Wen Jinyan acknowledged her. Su Muqing went to get her phone. When she turned back, Wen Jinyan was putting on her glasses. The two walked out of the magazine office.

In September in Jiang City, even the sunset carried a hint of heat. The sunlight shone on a nearby billboard and refracted, causing Wen Jinyan to squint slightly behind her glasses.

This is the pain of wearing glasses.

She heard Su Muqing let out a soft snort and turned her head. From her perspective, Su Muqing’s profile was tense, and her lips were pursed. She followed her gaze and realized she was looking at the company across the street.

Ying Yue Magazine

That name sounds familiar. Wen Jinyan pondered. Oh, Write’s rival. Someone had supposedly jumped ship to Ying Yue before.

“Tsk.” Su Muqing quickly pulled her away. “Seeing that just pollutes my eyes.”

Wen Jinyan allowed her to pull her. “What’s wrong?”

“Saw someone unfortunate.”

After getting in the car, Su Muqing turned on the music, choosing a more sentimental song.

She hummed the tune, stopping outside the crosswalk.

“Is Teacher Gu free tonight? Should I call her to join us? I’ll choose a restaurant with good privacy,” Su Muqing asked, resting her hand on the steering wheel and turning her head.

“She’s quite busy lately,” Wen Jinyan looked straight ahead.

Gu Wansheng told her she would be working very late and might not come home tonight because she had to rush to the next filming location.

She seems very busy after filming the movie. She didn’t even make her breakfast this morning.

Just as she was thinking this, a WeChat notification sounded. Wen Jinyan opened the app, it was from Gu Wansheng.

[Gu Wansheng]: Jinyan, I won’t be back tonight. I have an interview early tomorrow morning and I’m afraid I won’t make it.

[Gu Wansheng]: Rest well, eat well. I hired an auntie who used to cook for me to deliver your meals for the next few days. Her cooking is excellent. Even better than mine.

[Gu Wansheng]: Close the windows tight tonight. I saw the weather forecast that Jiang City might have rain soon.

[Gu Wansheng]: Remember to wear extra layers when the weather turns colder later.

The system showed that the other side was still loading.

Gu Wansheng looked at the “Miss me” she had typed in the chat box. After hesitating, she deleted it.

“Who is in such a hurry to find you? Your WeChat keeps going off,” Su Muqing asked casually, seeing her staring at her phone.

“It’s from Gu Wansheng,” Wen Jinyan read the messages one by one and put her phone in her pocket.

Su Muqing teased with a drawn-out “Oh.”

“What did Teacher Gu send you? Was it like ‘My wife, I miss you’ or ‘Sweetie, did you miss me’?”

She mentally summarized the messages Gu Wansheng sent and concluded, “She told me to pay attention to my rest.”

“That’s it?” Su Muqing was suspicious, watching the woman in front of her.

“That’s it.” Wen Jinyan rolled down the window, letting the breeze in.

“You two have been together for several months, and you still have absolutely no affection for each other?”

Su Muqing gestured with her thumb and index finger, leaving a gap between them.

“Does the affection in bed count?” Wen Jinyan countered.

Su Muqing, “…” Truly her.

Forget it. She’s known about Wen Jinyan’s emotional dullness for more than a day. Back then, it took her more than two years to even become friends with Wen Jinyan.

Su Muqing simply looked away. It was a good thing she didn’t look, or she wouldn’t have seen something so disgusting.

Zhang Qi was in the passenger seat of the car across from them, chatting and laughing with the woman in the driver’s seat.

Su Muqing’s car had anti-peep window film, so they couldn’t see inside from the outside.

What bad luck. Just as she was about to look away, she saw Zhang Qi lean over and kiss the woman in the driver’s seat.

Su Muqing rolled her eyes, turned her car window down, changed the music in her car to “Don’t Bite Me,” and turned up the volume.

“After all, they are dogs, so one shouldn’t expect too much from them…”

The volume was too loud, which attracted Zhang Qi’s attention. Zhang Qi wanted her to turn it down, but when she turned around and saw it was Su Muqing, she closed her mouth and rolled up her car window.

Su Muqing never gave her a glance, but when she noticed the car window opposite had been rolled up, her mood immediately improved.