The attendant looked at the young lady"s shocking beauty. He hesitated a little, then handed her a bottle of juice, telling her to look for him if she needed help!
The young lady smiled and rejected the attendant"s juice. She focused on sitting outside the suite"s door, waiting for her "family" to come back.
The moment Yun Liuli"s "family," Gu Qingcheng, came out of the elevator, he saw Yun Liuli hugging a cake, in a daze, as she sat outside the suite.
Gu Qingcheng had just come over from the Fu residence, only to see Yun Liuli outside his suite. He couldn"t help but feel surprised.
Yun Liuli raised her head and saw Gu Qingcheng. She continued to sit on the floor, blinking her eyes.
The elevator door behind Gu Qingcheng closed, and no one else walked out. Only then did Yun Liuli"s lips curl up into a smile. She extended her hand toward Gu Qingcheng. "My legs are numb, pull me up…"
Yun Liuli was sure that Gu Qingcheng would be soft-hearted toward her.
As expected, Gu Qingcheng frowned and walked up to her. "How long have you been waiting?"
Yun Liuli only smiled, not saying anything. Her legs had turned numb… She must have been waiting there for quite some time.
Gu Qingcheng grabbed her small hand and pulled her up. Yun Liuli, who was carrying the cake, stumbled into his arms. She s.h.i.+elded her cake, and when she sensed that Gu Qingcheng was going to push her away, her small hand anxiously grabbed onto the clothes at Gu Qingcheng"s chest. "Wait, my legs are very numb!"
Gu Qingcheng"s deep gaze appeared even darker when he saw Yun Liuli frowning tightly. Her small, fair, and tender hand that was clutching onto his clothes had green veins popping out. She didn"t seem to be feigning it.
"How long have you been waiting?" Gu Qingcheng asked again.
"Three hours…" Yun Liuli answered honestly.
Gu Qingcheng wrapped one arm around Yun Liuli"s shoulder, opened the door with his room card, and then carefully helped her in. With each step she took, the young lady would grit her teeth, her face distorting. She almost couldn"t hold onto the cake in her arms.
Gu Qingcheng put down the cake that the young lady was holding onto the coffee table. He then bent over and, with one hand resting on the sofa"s backrest, helped the young lady sit down as slowly as possible.
After settling Yun Liuli down, he took off his watch and casually placed it by the lamp. He then took off his coat, casually tossing it onto the sofa. He threw a glance at the cake that Yun Liuli had brought over, then took a seat on a single-seater sofa.
He retrieved a pack of cigarettes, drew one out, and wanted to bring it to his lips. After some thought, he eventually returned the cigarette to the pack. He raised his head and looked at the young lady who was seated docilely on the sofa.
She was wearing a red woolen hat, which covered her clear forehead, making her face appear smaller and more exquisite. Her overly big eyes were beautiful and energetic, so clear and clean that it was as if she had never seen the impurities in the world. She looked so innocent that he almost couldn"t bear to look at her with his eyes that had been tainted by the secular world.
Eighteen years old was undeniably the most wonderful age. Moreover, Yun Liuli was born with astonis.h.i.+ng and exquisite features. She looked so clean and pure that it seemed as if she was a spirit that had mistakenly landed in the mortal world. She looked so young, and she was astonis.h.i.+ngly beautiful.
Gu Qingcheng felt that a lady like her should have a life filled with suns.h.i.+ne and not be implicated by him and brought into the darkness.
Gu Qingcheng"s pitch-black and deep gaze looked toward Yun Liuli. He toyed around with his lighter and said, "I"ll be getting married soon. The wedding will be held in the country. Afterward, you"ll permanently settle down in the country…"
Gu Qingcheng"s throat rolled slightly when he said this. He lowered his eyes, not looking into Yun Liuli"s big eyes. He then frowned and bit onto the cigarette as he lit up the lighter. The flickering flame made his cold features appear even deeper.
Yun Liuli looked at Gu Qingcheng as if she didn"t know anything, seeming as if she hadn"t heard anything about him getting married. She asked, "It"s good to settle down permanently in the country. I like Sister Xiao Nuan and Tuan Tuan a lot and will be able to see them often in the future. Where will we be staying?"
Gu Qingcheng looked up toward Yun Liuli with a cold expression, puffing out smoke. "There"s no we. There"ll only be you… Liuli."
His expression was blurred behind the smoke, and the air felt so tense that it was as if it had been stretched into a line and frozen. It seemed as if the slightest sound in the hotel would break it.
Yun Liuli saw the small redness on the cigarette between Gu Qingcheng"s fingers from the corner of her eye. It was flickering.
Gu Qingcheng"s expression formed a contrast against the lighting in the presidential suite. One was cold, and the other was warm. However, when the warm light cast down on Gu Qingcheng"s features, it was unable to warm up his tightly pursed lips.
"So, you don"t want me anymore?"
Those words weren"t as hard to say as Yun Liuli had thought them to be. After saying this, she was probably the only one who would feel a piercing pain.
She felt that the tip of her nose was turning sore, and her eyes fogged up.
This time around, he probably really didn"t want her anymore!
He was going to get married.
"You"re already an adult, no longer a child," Gu Qingcheng said.
Yun Liuli looked at Gu Qingcheng with her big eyes. "I"ve been telling you that I"ve grown up and am an adult now! But you"d always say that I"m a young lady. Now, you"ve finally admitted that I"m an adult, but it"s only so that you can push me away!"
There was actually only a fine line between the two of them. Yun Liuli was courageous and willing to take a step toward Gu Qingcheng. However, Gu Qingcheng had always carefully moved the line one step back, maintaining the distance between them.
He lowered his gaze and tapped his cigarette. Since Yun Liuli"s 18th birthday, they had talked a lot on this topic.
From the corner of his eye, Gu Qingcheng saw the cake that was quietly resting on the coffee table. He recalled the night of Yun Liuli"s 18th birthday, where he had rushed back in the rain. The young lady was like an abandoned kitten, hugging onto a cake and sleeping in front of the windows.
She had been waiting all day, until midnight. It was so that she could celebrate her 18th birthday, her coming of age, together with Gu Qingcheng.
She looked at Gu Qingcheng excitedly, glanced at her watch, and then said that it was still in time… that her birthday wasn"t over yet!
He was perplexed, wondering why Yun Liuli hadn"t celebrated her birthday with her cla.s.smates and friends, but Yun Liuli said, "I don"t need friends. I only need you!"
He accompanied Yun Liuli, removing the cake from the box and lighting up the candles. As the candlelight wavered, he heard her third wish, which made his entire body stiffen up.
She said, "My first birthday wish is for Gu Qingcheng to be safe! My second wish is for Gu Qingcheng to be healthy! My third wish is that I hope that Gu Qingcheng can become my first man!"
Gu Qingcheng, who had been smiling and waiting for the young lady to blow out the candles, stiffened up. His gaze turned dark and unfathomable, and he gave off a pressuring aura that was stronger than usual.
The young lady"s black eyes reflected Gu Qingcheng"s expression. Almost as if things were within her expectations, she said honestly, "I"m serious." She then blew out the candles and hid herself in the darkness as well.
The memories flashed out like a black and white film in Gu Qingcheng"s mind. As he put down the lighter he was holding, he pulled the ashtray before him, tapped the cigarette ash, and then said casually, "When you came to my side at the age of 16, I treated you as my daughter. Even if I were to embrace all of the women in the world, it would be impossible for me to take you! Do you understand?"