"Brother Lin, I’m here."
She stood there, interrupting the waiter’s speech, with a light smile as she called out, her voice gentle and cheery, just like every time they had met before.
Lin Yebai paused for a moment, then turned his head and saw the girl standing not far away. She was wearing a pinkish-lotus-colored cotton-linen dress, slender and tall, her skin fair and clear, her features delicate. Even her smile at that moment seemed like a warm spring breeze, bright and comforting, showing no sign of anger at all.
So, she wasn’t blaming him?
Seeing such a smile, Lin Yebai suddenly felt a huge relief in his heart and hurried over. He stood in front of her, "Aning, are you okay? I looked for you all day yesterday."
The moment he spoke, his concern and urgency were undisguised.
Ye Ning shook her head as she looked at him, "I’m fine. I’m really sorry, my phone had no signal all day yesterday, and then I was busy with the factory. I left my bag in the office and didn’t hear it ringing. My apologies."
"It’s okay, it’s okay, as long as you’re fine!"
Lin Yebai quickly assured her he was fine, but in truth, he was more anxious and uncertain than she was.
Yes, someone who has done wrong always feels uneasy.
After greeting each other, the two found a place to sit in the café. Ye Ning ordered a lemon water, while Lin Yebai ordered his usual favorite, Blue Mountain coffee.
"Aning, I came here specifically to explain what happened yesterday."
Unexpectedly, after the coffee was served, Ye Ning sitting across him heard him say just that.
He came here to explain to her?
Ye Ning’s fingers paused as they held the straw...
"I know you’ve realized that the car that blocked you yesterday was sent by me. Yes, I admit it was my doing. But Aning, I was just trying to help you. You’re too soft-hearted, and if you can’t be ruthless at critical moments, your revenge will never be accomplished."
Sitting there, Ye Ning held the straw and for a long, long time, she couldn’t utter a single word.
What kind of feeling was this?
The feeling that she’s a child and he’s the parent, who in the end, regardless of the child’s decisions, takes control? No, worse than that. It was as though she was no longer herself, but merely a kite or an object in his hands, and what he did with her, what he arranged for her, all seemed so taken for granted.
So she didn’t speak but mechanically stirred her straw for a long time before finally asking, "How did you know I was going to take action?"
"That’s simple. A third-rate jade factory suddenly bought several tons of jade—it’s not hard to guess."
"So you went to investigate it?"
"Yes, it was Yang Xueshan who bought it. I naturally thought of you. I didn’t want to interfere at first; I was just worried that you might be afraid since it was your first time, so I decided to give you a hand."
Lin Yebai didn’t feel he had done anything wrong in this matter. If there was any mistake, it was that he hadn’t discussed it with her beforehand. But then, she also hadn’t told him about it from the start.
Besides, he still wanted to ask her why she had suddenly changed her mind.
Lin Yebai took a sip of his coffee and saw that the girl sitting opposite him hadn’t said much. Her eyes were fixed on something outside the window...