Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Meanwhile, in the office, Dongfang Liuyun did not turn around as she listened to Lan Xiu slam the door and leave.
Her hands propped up against the cold floor-to-ceiling window in front of her as she looked at the flickering lights below. She was in a daze as she took a deep breath. For some reason, her heart felt heavy.
However, what else could she say.
There were some people who could only be met by chance and not sought after. They would not feel regret because...
However, it seemed that this was also the position that they should be in. Dongfang Liuyun had always been very clear in her heart. She was also very clear about her own position. Therefore, if she was given another chance, she would definitely not have asked Lan Xiu.
"I wish you good luck!"
After a long while, Dongfang Liuyun gently clasped her hands together, closed her eyes quietly, and muttered softly.
Her very soft voice drifted in the air after that, as if she had never said anything.
The phone on the table was flashing this whole time. It was muted, so Dongfang Liuyun could not hear it.
...
It was a common thing to leave early and return late these days. After a few days, Su Chen also felt a little exhausted.
Qin Su's follow-up work was quite smooth, but things were tough on Su Chen's end. He needed to provide a lot of detailed information and cooperate with the investigation of the task force. It was found that this car accident was indeed not an ordinary car accident, but was premeditated.
It was a very bad car accident, so it was not great on Su Chen's end and not easy for Qin Su's side either.
It was already close to midnight, in Su Chen's office.
Qin Su was still sitting on the sofa, focused on reading the information Su Chen had just collected. Xiao Xu was also sitting on the side to help.
"These are the information from the surveillance footage we just found. The truck's information is also roughly clear. You'd probably have to go to the countryside with the task force tomorrow. It's already very late. Staff Officer Qin, you should go back and rest early. You've been busy day and night for so many days. You should rest well."
Su Chen slowly stood up and looked at the woman who was still sitting on the sofa. He reminded her in a low voice.
Hearing this, Qin Su shifted her gaze away from the document in front of her. She looked up at the clock and realized that it was already very late!
Closing the document in his hand, she said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I've forgotten the time. I've wasted a lot of your time. We'll go back now."
Su Chen looked at the time on his phone. After some thought, he said, "It's almost midnight. I didn't even manage to have dinner. If Staff Officer Qin doesn't mind, let's have supper together. I'm sure you're all hungry."
Supper?
As soon as he said that, Qin Su suddenly felt a sense of hunger in her stomach.
"Let's go!"
As he said that, Su Chen also took the briefcase by the side, took the hat, and walked out of the door.
Qin Su frowned. A hint of hesitation flashed across her stern face. It disappeared in a flash. Then, she gave Xiao Xu a look and the two of them followed him out.
Secretary He, who had been waiting outside for a long time, quickly closed the door as well.
There was no longer the hustle and bustle of the day and the heat. The night was a little cool with stars everywhere. It was a very clear night.
They went to Imperial Sky Entertainment City.
Su Chen was used to this place. The atmosphere was pretty good. It was not that kind of rock 'n' roll and deafening heavy metal music. This place was obviously more suitable for relaxing. Moreover, the food here was very delicious. Most importantly, Mu Yuchen was paying, he would definitely not stand on ceremony.
However, what surprised Su Chen was that Liang Jing was here too!
"Mother Zhou, why are you here?"
After they booked the private room, Su Chen quickly pulled Liang Jing out.
"There's someone celebrating their birthday, and it's my day off, so I wanted to relax a little. Good boy, who's that very beautiful woman? How dare you bring another woman to a place like this? Be careful, or I'll cut you! You should learn from the good, not from the bad! Be careful, you better cut off that girl or it might have a bad effect. Otherwise, I can't guarantee that I won't mention it to your father. I guarantee that he'll break your legs right away!"
Liang Jing's words were naturally very serious, and her eyes were filled with disapproval.
Su Chen frowned, pulled Liang Jing, and walked to a corner—
"Mother Zhou, you're overthinking it! Do you also think that girl is very beautiful? That girl over there!"
While pulling Liang Jing aside, Su Chen lowered his voice and asked.
Liang Jing carefully recalled how she looked when she saw Qin Su just now, and there was still a hint of surprise in her eyes—
"She is beautiful, but all beautiful women are poisonous. Su Chen, don't have such thoughts, understand? You already have Ji Zitong, so don't think about getting more when you already have something in hand. You'd better give up on this as soon as possible, understand?"
"No, Mother Zhou! That's Zimo's! Zimo's partner!"
Su Chen took a deep breath and quickly turned his head to whisper in Liang Jing's ear!
"Since you think that the girl is not bad too, then I think that Zimo might really have a chance this time! We didn't intend to talk about this matter. Now that you've exposed it, we might as well talk about it! Her name is Qin Su, and she's a Staff Officer of Father Zhou's military region. She's 28 this year, and she's a very nice person. Her parents are both officials of the military region. Father Zhou has always wanted her to be Zimo's wife for a long time now..."
Su Chen's words immediately made Liang Jing's eyes widen. She looked at Su Chen in disbelief. She did not seem to hear what Su Chen said after that. She could only hear these few words in her mind—
Zimo's lover!
Could that girl be her son's lover?
Liang Jing looked at Su Chen in a daze.
"Mother Zhou, don't look at me like that. We're just trying to think of ways to bring Zimo and Qin Su together. Moreover, they have known each other for a long time and Zimo has a good impression of her. Therefore, it's not impossible to get her. Whether or not he can get such a good girl depends entirely on whether or not Zimo has the ability!"
Of course, they could not tell Liang Jing about the contract marriage.
Zhou Zimo was such a person. If they did not hold him down and force him to the edge of the cliff, he probably would not compromise as quickly. Therefore, now that Liang Jing knew about it, she would give him some proper pressure to ensure that he would have a better sense of urgency.
"Are you saying that you want to set up Qin Su and Zimo? Do they know each other from before?"
Liang Jing narrowed her eyes and looked at Su Chen.
Su Chen nodded—
"Yes, Mother Zhou. Qin Su saved Zimo once before, and Zimo is very grateful to her. He even said that he wouldn't marry anyone other than Qin Su, but he didn't dare to show it. We need to help him. Of course, we can't let him and Qin Su know, otherwise..."
The two of them had been conspiring for a long time before they finally smiled at each other.
"I'll have to trouble you guys with Zimo. Don't worry, I'll do my best to cooperate. I'm looking forward to him starting a family, so...," Liang Jing smiled.
"Zimo is our brother, so we'll take his matter to heart. Don't worry, Mother Zhou. The fate that should belong to him won't get away no matter what. There's no point to worrying, we can only create opportunities for him."
Su Chen laughed loudly, when he saw Liang Jing's worry, a trace of warmth surged from the bottom of his heart as he hurriedly said this.
Liang Jing then nodded, "That's good. I'll have to trouble all of you to worry about him. Don't worry about me. I know what to do. It's time to put some pressure on him. Your grandfather Zhou almost got hospitalized because of him. He has been home for the past two days. I'll find some time to chat with him again and then pressure him a little. I think with his character, he might not be as bad as what you said, but really..."
"However, since Qin Su is a good girl and his father agrees with her, she should be pretty great. I think she looks quite nice. As long as her family background is clean and Zimo likes her, I won't have any problems with her."
Liang Jing quickly expressed her thoughts. "As long as she likes our Zimo, it's fine. He's turning 34 soon. I'm worried that she might not like our Zimo because he's older."
"A man establishes himself at thirty, and Zimo is in his prime. There are plenty of women in City Z who want to marry him. The most important thing is Zhou Zimo himself must like them."
"That's true. Then I'll fan the flames when I get back. I must make set up a trap for this child!" Liang Jing was not fooling around.
Su Chen listened and smiled with his eyes narrowed. The smile on his face was despicable and shameless!
"Alright, I'll go over first. You watch over that girl for our Zimo. Later on I'll discuss it with his father. That old thing actually didn't tell me about this. It really makes me angry!"
Only then did Liang Jing leave as she complained.
When they returned to the private room, the waiter had already served supper. Qin Su was drinking the tea in her cup carelessly. She had a pensive look on her face and was as serious as ever.
Xiao Xu and Secretary He had a small drink and were chatting happily.
The music in the private room was not as deafening as before. Instead, it was very soothing piano music. Listening now, it seemed a little quiet.
"Don't you want a glass yourself?"
Su Chen brought over a glass of red wine.
Qin Su shook her head and raised the teacup in her hand. "I'll drink this. I have to drive back to the Military District later."
"I won't persuade you to drink anymore. How have you been? I didn't expect you to leave so soon back then, and that was a perfect collaboration too. Zimo had always wanted to thank you, but when he went to look for you, you were already gone."
Su Chen toasted to her as he spoke.
"Back then, I received a temporary mission and went to the border to help with the work, so I didn't have time to say goodbye. I also felt very happy about the collaboration back then. Thank you for all your cooperation."
"You are a woman that is a match for men. We have a lot of respect for your skills in all aspects. Back then, when our senior officer told us that one of our own was a woman and that her performance in all aspects was no less than ours, we disdained it and refused to believe it. But when I saw it with my own eyes, I knew that I would make such silly mistakes too."
As Su Chen spoke, there was a hint of a smile in his tone.
"I just spent a little more time familiarizing myself with the project. Your skills have also made me see you in a new light, especially in the sniper project, which was beyond my reach."
Qin Su was very modest and calm. Even though she had been rated as an excellent Military Officer almost every year, she had never felt any sense of superiority because of this, she was no different from the way she usually acted.
"There are specializations in your profession. You're not a sniper by profession, so..."
"At first I thought that you guys would always stay in the army. I didn't expect for you guys to all retire and come back."
Qin Su lowered her head and sipped her tea. She looked at Su Chen thoughtfully.
"That's just a life that needs to be experienced. If we really stay in there for a lifetime, the few of us would really go crazy if we were to tell the truth. Especially since we are all such restless people."
Su Chen did not hide how he felt at all. After leaving the army for so many years, he suddenly recalled some memories when he was talking to such a comrade.
"However, a life like that does make one nostalgic."
"When you have time, you should go back to the Military District to visit. Someone like you should have the chance to come back."
Qin Su's reply was somewhat formal. Perhaps it was also because of her usual style.
Su Chen looked at her and thought about it for a long time before he lowered his voice and asked, "Have you contacted Zimo? Since the last time, I saw that he was determined to thank you back then. Also, your arm should be fine now, right?"
"It's fine. I've been moving around a lot over the years. Even if I wanted to contact him, I might not have been able to. I was just doing what I was supposed to do, there's no need to be so polite."
Su Chen actually wanted to test Qin Su's impression of Zhou Zimo, but he was not an enigmatic person like Mu Yuchen. Even if he wanted to ask, he would not be able to. He was worried that it would be too sudden, so now, he could only be anxious!
After a glass of wine, Su Chen took a deep breath and looked over at Qin Su. He then realized that she was quietly eating snacks with her head lowered. Her movements were still as strict as a soldier. When he saw her like this, it made Su Chen recall their life in the army back then.
"Are you still used to getting up every day and running five kilometers in the morning?"
Su Chen remembered that Qin Su seemed to have such a habit. Back then, when he, Zhou Zimo, and the others came back from their overnight camp, they saw Qin Su running around the field before dawn. After that, they would occasionally run together. Back then they were also somewhat amazed by how fit she was.
At this moment, as she listened, Qin Su also raised her gaze. The cold light in her star-like eyes dissipated a little and she suddenly shook her head. "I'm still doing it, but not as frequently as before."
"Why not?"
Su Chen remembered that she was a person with strong willpower.
Qin Su lowered her eyes and her clear gaze landed on one of her ankles, "I hurt my leg a few years ago, and it took me a long time to recover. The doctor said that I can't endure too much exercise for a long time, so I can only persevere appropriately."