Gu Shiyi left, Cheng Ji invited Xu Yan to have lunch together.

Xu Yan replied, “The company has spread rumors about us like that. When we go out to eat together, they lose focus on work for the whole day.”

Cheng Ji didn’t care. “What are you afraid of? If you are upright, you have nothing to fear. Others have their mouths, so they can say whatever they want.”

Xu Yan thought what he said made sense, so when she packed up her documents and came out of the office, he was already waiting in the lobby .

They walked towards the elevator together. The employees who remained in the lobby and did not go to eat picked up their phones, secretly took pictures of the two of them walking side by side, and then posted them in the newly created small group, saying that this was so sweet.

At the dinner table, Cheng Ji said, “Today, Gu Shiyi came to ask me if I had any idea of listing Meisi Group. What do you think?”

“Do we need to go public now?” Xu Yan asked him.

Cheng Ji shook his head, “I don’t have such a plan now. To put it bluntly, going public is just a way to make money from shareholders. Now that our Meisi Group has just recovered, there is no need to expand yet.”

Xu Yan smiled and said, “Do you really think she is here for the listing of Meisi Group?”

There seemed to be something behind her words, so Cheng Ji asked, “What did she tell you?”

Xu Yan curled her lips and said, “It’s nothing serious, just some private topics between women.”

Cheng Ji looked at her with a burning gaze and said, “New Year’s Day is coming soon, do you have any plans?”

“No, I have a cat, so it’s not easy for me to travel far. I just cook at home and tend the vegetable garden.” She answered indifferently.

“I want to accompany my mother back to my hometown. The scenery there is beautiful and the air is fresh. Why don’t you bring Wuyou and Wulv with us?” Cheng Ji suggested to her.

“No. I really don’t like traveling far.” Xu Yan said.

The photo of the two of them going out to eat together was first circulated in a small company group. I don’t know where it started from, but the photo quickly spread to the group of colleagues.

Just by looking at the background, one can imagine a 50,000-word sweet romance novel.

The picture Jiang Han saw was sent by Qian Kun. He said obscenely, “Don’t mention it, these two really look like a couple. Now they are not shy about it. I think it will be soon that I will be able to drink their wedding wine.”

“What can a photo prove?” Jiang Han typed out this line of words almost with gritted teeth, deleted it before sending it, and threw the phone aside.

Is it necessary to be so high-profile when it comes to dating? They slept together before, did he tell anyone about it?

...

On the first day of the New Year’s Day holiday, Qu Yaqiong called his son back home. A rich variety of dishes were prepared in the kitchen, and the nanny kept coming in and out, appearing to be extremely busy.

Jiang Han has been feeling very depressed lately and has no interest in doing anything. He raised his eyelids and said, “It’s just New Year’s Day, why is it being celebrated more grandly than the Spring Festival?”

Qu Yaqiong looked at his son with some sympathy, “Your father invited the Gu family to dinner today.”

Because Jiang Qinghua went to see Xu Yan without permission last time, Jiang Han was very unhappy and had not contacted him for a while. Unexpectedly, his father was so afraid that they would be involved and was so anxious to settle the matter between the two.

“What are you doing? Is it that serious?” Jiang Han’s face was so gloomy that water seemed to be dripping out of it.

Qu Yaqiong patted his shoulder and said, “You are 34 years old and still haven’t started a family. This is a big worry for your father and me. Your parents are old and may pass away one day. How can we bear to see you alone in this world?”

Talking about this sad topic, she wiped her eyes.

Jiang Han couldn’t bear to see his mother so sad, so he shook his head helplessly and said, “Let’s leave it to fate.”

The three people from the Gu family arrived at Jiang’s house on time, carrying valuable gifts. Jiang Han went to entertain them, and Gu Songbai looked at him and nodded, “I thought you would be depressed, but today I see you are in good spirits. Doing business will always encounter many setbacks, as long as your will is not defeated, you can stand up again.”

Jiang Han forced a smile, “Uncle Gu is right, I will follow your instructions.”

“Okay, don’t say these things, we don’t have to be so formal.” Gu Songbai said kindly.

After three rounds of drinks, Jiang Qinghua started to talk business. “I discussed it with Lao Gu. There is nothing special. Let’s pick a good day and you two can get engaged first.”

Jiang Han glanced at Gu Shiyi . She lowered her head, but her face and ears were red.

“ Shiyi and I have little contact and we don’t know each other very well. There’s no need to be so anxious, right?” he said.

Gu Songbai asked, “Aren’t you willing?”

“That’s not the case. I just think that I should spend more time with Shiyi . After all, we are going to live together in the future.” He put on a sincere look.

Gu Shiyi raised her head and looked at him, trying to find evidence that he was lying, but his expression made it impossible to find any flaws.

Qu Yaqiong said, “You can get to know each other slowly after you get engaged.”

Jiang Han refused, “Now Xinlan Group’s business has dropped to its lowest point in history. If I get engaged at this time, what will the company’s employees think of me?”

Jiang Qinghua said, “It is because of the current situation of Xinlan Group that we let you get engaged. Uncle Gu’s funds can be introduced to help you tide over the difficulties.”

Gu Shiyi was surprised, “If my father really wanted to help, he should just go through the formal loan procedure.”

Gu Songbai glared at her daughter, “Don’t interrupt.”

Jiang Han was very angry at the moment, but he couldn’t put on a bad face in front of his elders. He said, “ Xinlan Group’s problems occurred during my tenure, and I will slowly solve them. If I use marriage as a way to solve the funding problem, I’m afraid I won’t be able to hold my head up in the future.”

Qu Yaqiong scolded his son, “Why are you so stubborn? Aren’t we all doing this for your own good?”

Gu Shiyi saw that her parents had done this, but Jiang Han still didn’t appreciate it. She pursed her lips and said, “Let’s wait until the Xinlan Group’s market situation gets better. If he is getting engaged to me because he covets our Gu family’s property, I don’t like such a person.”

Jiang Han nodded at her, “I will work hard and live up to the Gu family’s expectations of me.”

The young man was unwilling, and no matter how hard the parents pressed him, it was useless. After that, they started talking about other things and never mentioned the matter again.

When the Gu family was about to leave, Jiang Han found an opportunity to say to Gu Shiyi , “ Shiyi , thank you for understanding me.”

Gu Shiyi had a hint of sarcasm on his face. “I don’t understand you. I have my pride, and my family values respectability.”

Jiang Han smiled awkwardly and watched her turn and leave like a proud white swan.

...

Xu Yan took Wuyou and Wulv to get vaccinated. The pet shop was unusually busy during the holidays. Inside and outside the huge shop were cats, dogs and cages.

She waited in line for more than half an hour before a doctor came out of the operating room and said to her apologetically, “I’m sorry, I’m really too busy today.”

Xu Yan glanced at the people around him and said, “Why are you so busy today?”

The doctor said helplessly, “Our hospital has a partnership with a stray animal rescue center. They are sending a batch of cats here for sterilization today. Since everyone is at work during the week, they are only free during holidays.”

“Charity requires money, right? Where does the money come from?” Xu Yan asked as he took Wuyou and Wulv out.

“All of this was funded by kind-hearted people. I only charge a small amount for the cost of the surgery. This is a bottomless pit. I can only do as much as I can based on my ability.” The doctor said helplessly.

I usually go out by myself, and I always feel lonely when it’s late at night. It would be nice if I could do something meaningful. Xu Yan said, “I graduated from clinical medicine and worked as an assistant forensic doctor for three years. Can I join your organization?”

The doctor was surprised . “Would you like to join us? This is hard work and we don’t get paid.”

Xu Yan nodded, “I don’t care about the reward. I have a short video account for pets, and I usually make a little money. I can donate it to you to help stray animals.”

The doctor was so touched that he nodded repeatedly, “Okay, thank you so much.”

After Wuyou and Wulv finished their vaccinations, the doctor was about to go to the operating room, but Xu Yan stopped him and said, “I don’t have anything else to do today, but I can help. I’m good at stitching.”

The doctor was overjoyed. “I really need help today. Are you sure you’re okay?”

Xu Yan said, “No problem, I’ll put my cat in the cage first.”

After settling Wuyou and Wulv , she put on sterile surgical gowns, rubber gloves, and went to the operating room. The people at the pet hospital knew she was a professional when they saw her. But they didn’t dare to let her perform the operation, so they only asked her to suture the wound.

As she said, she had good sewing skills. Her hands quickly turned between the needle and thread, and she had finished sewing in less than two minutes.

The people in the hospital gave her a thumbs up and said, “You are amazing.”

Xu Yan spent two hours in the operating room. When she came out, Wuyou and Wulv were crying at her in the cage.

She cashed out the earnings from her short video account and sent it to the pet hospital. “These are all we have now, don’t underestimate them.”

The veterinarian said, “The size of the thought is important. Thank you for your kind heart. I thank you on behalf of those furry children.”

Xu Yan said, “Let’s add each other on WeChat. If you need surgery in the future, just call me. My name is Xu Yan.”

“Okay, okay, we won’t be polite. I hope you don’t dislike us.”

put Wuyou and Wulv into the cat bag and took them to the car. Only then did she realize that she had missed several calls. She flipped through them and found that the intervals were very short.

She started the car and waited until it was on the right road before calling back.

As soon as the call was connected, Cui Muyun angrily asked her, “You stayed in Canghai City. Why don’t you go home for the New Year?”

She pressed down the corner of her mouth and said sarcastically, “Why don’t you reply? Don’t you know what’s going on?”

Cui Muyun looked very unhappy. “With your ungrateful behavior, I don’t expect you to come back. Transfer some money to me. I have a backache recently and need to go for a checkup. By the way, you’d better help me find a good doctor in Canghai City People’s Hospital.”

Xu Yan answered very straightforwardly, “No money, no problem.”

“How can you be without money? If you have no money, go and borrow it. Xu Shu is unemployed now, and with that little salary I have, how can I support my whole family?” Cui Muyun said.

Xu Yan sneered, “What? Don’t you feel ashamed to use my money?”