Chapter 240: Love Letter
Before going abroad, on a clear day, Lian Li and Jin Shi Yue went to visit Elder Mei.
The chef made pastries and biscuits with low sugar content, packed them neatly into an exquisite food container, and as always, delivered them to Elder Mei.
However, Lian Li did not expect to run into Jin Yan Ting; she hadn’t seen him since that night he confessed his feelings.
Perhaps Jin Yan Ting had given the order, as Assistant He no longer sent her messages related to Jin Yan Ting.
She only heard that Miss Chen Wei Qi, the young lady of the Chen Family who had been raised in the capital since childhood, was sent to study business management, forcing her to give up her life of worldly pleasures, and her mixed-race Chinese-American boyfriend became an ex-partner.
Naive and thoughtless, dealing with all sorts of people daily, she might cause a major incident any day. To avoid risks, the Jin and Chen families told her to settle down and pursue an MBA in London.
As for Duan Shiqing, although she did not have a marriage alliance with Jin Yan Ting, her life seemed unaffected. She continued to perform excellently on the international design stage, with her works repeatedly exhibited at fashion weeks.
Given Duan Shiqing’s background and abilities, she was fully qualified to be arrogant. While she might have liked Jin Yan Ting and perhaps been humble or manipulative, she was definitely not the type to fall apart if she couldn’t have him.
Otherwise, when they were forced to break up due to family conflicts back then, she would have already become dejected and fallen into ruin.
Lian Li did hear something interesting, though.
Duan Shiqing’s younger brother, Duan Yu, confessed to a girl at a concert and was unfortunately rejected. It is said that the two were high school classmates, and the girl had a crush on him for many years, unable to forget him. She often attended his concerts, waving her glow stick countless times in a sea of mint green for him.
What was expected to be a grand confession scene of a secret crush coming true turned out to be a fan-disbanding press conference.
It was just casual talk after meals, and Lian Li didn’t take it to heart. She wasn’t familiar with the blue-haired Duan Yu; she simply enjoyed listening to their band’s songs.
Works and idols’ private lives were clearly separated.
Seeing Jin Yan Ting, Lian Li involuntarily thought of people and events related to him.
She collected her thoughts and greeted him politely, “Brother Yan Ting.”
Before Jin Yan Ting could speak, the excited chirping of a parrot echoed around them: “Junior Sister! Junior Sister! Junior Sister!”
Lian Li and Jin Yan Ting turned their heads together to follow the sound and saw Jin Shi Yue returning with a cage in one hand. The rare breed of parrot stood on its perch, chattering incessantly, even more talkative than Zhong Yang.
Lian Li stood under the osmanthus tree in the courtyard. The two of them walked towards each other from the ancient-style corridors on either side, forming an equilateral triangle with the three of them as points.
“Junior Sister! Eldest Young Master! Junior Sister!”
The parrot spoke similar words, triggering a vivid memory for Lian Li: Jin Shi Yue called her, and she answered the phone in front of Jin Yan Ting.
Jin Yan Ting’s gaze swept over Lian Li, and he asked Jin Shi Yue, “Are you here to visit the teacher?”
“It’s been a while since we last visited. I can’t rest easy without seeing the old man,” Jin Shi Yue’s tone was full of languidness.
The brothers seemed to have moved past the argument from that night, returning to their usual calm.
Lian Li said, “Grandpa Mei is playing chess with an elder in the chess pavilion.”
At that moment, Secretary Nie hurried over to greet Jin Yan Ting, who then no longer lingered and strode towards the chess pavilion.
At the corner, Jin Yan Ting paused for three seconds and looked back.
Under the dense osmanthus tree, Jin Shi Yue held the birdcage casually in one hand, his posture tall and unrestrained, like an unshakeable, hard rock.
Lian Li lowered her eyes to look at the purple-tailed parrot, then looked up, her face beaming as she looked at Jin Shi Yue, saying something.
The girl, in a green dress and with fair skin, her slender and delicate arms exposed, had her straps elegantly tied into two petal shapes, like a fluttering butterfly.
A gentle breeze blew, her skirt and hair brushed against Jin Shi Yue’s black pants and shirt, stirring up ripples of warm breath.
Jin Yan Ting withdrew his gaze, a dense throbbing pain surging in his heart, and he lifted his heavy steps to leave.
Lian Li was like an osmanthus flower falling from the treetops in the wind, silently covering the hills in his heart, heavy and deep.
When the wind blew, petals fluttered down, reflecting in his eyes like a mesmerizing, drizzling rain.
That was not rain for him.
He was merely fortunate enough to catch a glimpse, yet it couldn’t suppress the stirrings of his heart in midsummer.
At noon, Lian Li, Jin Shi Yue, and Jin Yan Ting stayed to have lunch with Elder Mei. They sat around a round Chinese dining table.
Secretary Nie had been with Elder Mei for many years and was considered half family. He usually dined with Elder Mei, and today was no exception.
The meal was eaten in silence, always demonstrating the etiquette and upbringing of a noble family.
After the meal, Elder Mei asked Lian Li when school started, and Lian Li answered truthfully.
Jin Shi Yue, who was playing chess with Jin Yan Ting, suddenly spoke, “Remember to think of your boyfriend when you’re away.”
Jin Yan Ting: “…”
Lian Li smiled, “Okay.”
Jin Shi Yue: “Think of him every day.”
Lian Li nodded, “Mhm!”
Jin Shi Yue added, “At least two hours every day.”
“…” Elder Mei couldn’t listen anymore and laughed, scolding, “You mischievous girl, you mischievous boy, showing off your affection here in front of me.”
Jin Yan Ting’s expression remained outwardly calm and serene.
Elder Mei was wrongly accusing them; they were saying these disgusting things purely to disgust him.
Jin Yan Ting looked at Lian Li, who was cooperating with Jin Shi Yue. Lian Li gave him an apologetic look.
What could she do?
She had to spoil her own boyfriend.
Jin Yan Ting lowered his eyes, his expression unchanged as he played chess.
Jin Shi Yue rested his head on his long fingers, placing a move with an unchanged expression.
In most matters, the brothers could yield to each other. Only in the game of love, as the king and general of the entire board, neither was willing to back down.
But no matter how fiercely the chess pieces fought, they ultimately couldn’t decide the winner.
The only one who could determine the victor was the player.
–
Lian Li took a private jet to go abroad. Jin Shi Yue accompanied her, but he couldn’t stay long and needed to return to the capital to handle official business.
The affairs inside and outside the manor villa were handled by Li Shuangjie and the butler. She didn’t need to worry about her daily life and could focus on her studies.
From childhood to adulthood, Lian Li’s only pressure at school came from her academic performance. Apart from that, she always seemed carefree.
They had the support of their families behind them, a harbor to rely on.
Lian Li did not.
She always had to handle various trivial matters.
On the day school started, Jin Shi Yue drove Lian Li there. In the car on the way, she glanced at him.
The man had high brow bones, a sharp and distinct profile, and thin lips pressed together, his three-dimensional features forming an extremely striking handsomeness.
Lian Li felt he looked like a parent sending their child to school, but she didn’t say it.
If she told him, the Eldest Young Master would surely accuse her again, saying she thought he was old.
The weather was clear and bright, and the campus, with its large proportion of green vegetation, was quiet and beautiful. Students of various appearances could be seen everywhere, and every corner exuded a vibrant and lively atmosphere.
“I’m going now,” Lian Li said goodbye to Jin Shi Yue. She walked a few steps forward, then turned back, waving goodbye to him with a playful smile.
Without waiting for his response, she turned again and, with light steps, merged into the surging crowd of new students, becoming one of them.
Jin Shi Yue leaned against the car door with his arms crossed, watching the girl he loved pursue her dreams.
