Wen Qiangguo coughed lightly, “No rush, the kids are still young.”
Gu Hao laughed and said, “No, no, I’m in a rush, hahaha.”
Before Wen Qiangguo could reply, Gu Hao seized the opportunity to suggest, “Why not, in-law, there’s no time like the present. How about we discuss it today?”
“……….”
Today both families happened to be together, and once the company resumes its normal operations, everyone might get busy.
Anyway, the young couple is in love, and the parents are satisfied; the engagement is inevitable sooner or later.
Wen Qiangguo hesitated. In fact, he was quite satisfied with Gu Ting, as well as with his parents and family. But engagements shouldn’t be rushed by the girl’s family.
Wen Qiangguo intentionally remained silent, making Gu Hao a bit nervous.
Gu Hao was inwardly regretting it. If he had known that Gu Ting’s girlfriend was his old comrade’s daughter, he would never have complained about her in front of Wen Qiangguo. Now it’s become a hassle.
“Alright, you.” Liu Qing could tell Wen Qiangguo was being deliberate. Seeing it was about time, she smiled and patted Wen Qiangguo on the shoulder, “Today it is then, quickly get the calendar, let’s pick an auspicious day for the engagement!”
“I’ll say this first, all traditional engagement formalities must be observed.”
Wen Qiangguo felt a bit sad as he said this, after all, his cherished daughter was about to be engaged to someone else in the blink of an eye.
“Definitely, definitely! Not a single one will be left out!” Gu Hao smiled as he said this.
After dinner, feeling bored at home, Gu Ting and Wen Ke’an went out for a walk. When they returned, the four elders were still seriously discussing the engagement date.
They had practically worn out the calendar, each holding a piece of paper and a pen, turning the date discussion into a debate.
Finally, after much discussion among the elders, they settled on five auspicious dates for Wen Ke’an and Gu Ting to choose from.
Wen Ke’an felt it didn’t matter, it’s just an engagement, not the wedding, there wasn’t a need for such grandeur.
“Which day do you want?” Wen Ke’an looked up at Gu Ting and asked softly.
“March 12th,” Gu Ting replied.
“Alright, it’s right before your school starts!” Gu Hao agreed.
After saying this, Gu Hao suddenly felt he shouldn’t finalize it alone, so he turned to Wen Qiangguo and asked with a smile, “What do you think, in-law?”
“Fine, that’s a good date too,” Wen Qiangguo replied.
“Ha ha ha ha, great, then it’s settled for the 12th!”
While the elders were chatting in the living room, Wen Ke’an took advantage of their distraction and secretly pulled Gu Ting to the balcony, whispering, “Why did you choose the 12th?”
When Gu Ting mentioned March 12th, he didn’t hesitate at all, making Wen Ke’an feel that Gu Ting had already thought of this date for the engagement.
“Don’t you remember?” Gu Ting asked with a smile.
Wen Ke’an was stunned for a moment. She tried hard to recall any important day from the past. Their previous life’s marriage registration day was in April, it wasn’t the day he proposed, nor was it his birthday.
Among the important dates she remembered, March 12th was not significant at all.
Finally, Wen Ke’an gave up and said, “I can’t remember.”
Gu Ting had anticipated this. He smiled before slowly explaining, “This is the day when we first met in our previous life.”
On hearing this, Wen Ke’an’s eyes widened slightly. She actually barely remembered it, but it seemed true that they met not long after the New Year.
That New Year was the saddest one for her, the only time she crossed into the new year alone.
“I don’t remember,” Wen Ke’an whispered, feeling somewhat apologetic.
“It’s alright,” Gu Ting said while gently patting her head in comfort. “As long as I remember.”
They first met on a snowy night. At that time, he had just been released from prison and was being targeted by some people. He was dirty, with injuries on his hands and face.
Back then, she was the only one willing to come near him.
The balcony was still a bit cold. Gu Ting instinctively took her hand to warm it.
“Were you not afraid then?” Gu Ting suddenly asked in a low voice.
That night, he probably didn’t appear to be a good person.
Wen Ke’an seriously thought for a moment. It had been so long that she couldn’t quite remember her feelings then.
“Perhaps I was scared,” Wen Ke’an whispered, “but what’s the use of being scared?”
“At that time, being scared wouldn’t bring anyone to help me.”
At that time, it seemed like everyone had left her. She had nothing and no one cared about her.
Gu Ting fell silent, his gaze darkening. He held her hand tightly with a pained expression.
“But it’s okay.” Seeing the atmosphere turn somber, Wen Ke’an looked up at Gu Ting with a smile.
“Hmm?” Gu Ting looked down at her.
Small snowflakes began to fall outside.
Gu Ting saw the girl beside him smiling ear to ear. She seriously said, “Later, my Ah Ting will help me.”
The engagement banquet was not ostentatious; only important relatives were invited for a meal together.
After the engagement banquet, it was soon school reopening time.
In the second half of her junior year, Wen Ke’an had few classes, so she needed to prepare for internships after they ended. The school offered internship company recommendations, but students could also send their résumés and find companies on their own.
As April approached, the weather gradually warmed up.
Qiao Sheng’er especially loved buying clothes for Wen Ke’an. Her home was filled with branded clothes Qiao Sheng’er had bought.
Just within the recent days, there were estimated to be a hundred sweatshirts of various kinds she could wear.
Wen Ke’an was about to change clothes to go out. When she opened her wardrobe, she found many new clothes she hadn’t worn yet.
Wen Ke’an paused and turned to look at Gu Ting. “Did Auntie buy me clothes again?”
“No,” Gu Ting replied, “I bought them.”
Gu Ting walked closer as he spoke and opened his wardrobe.
Wen Ke’an saw an identical hoodie inside.
“Couple’s outfit,” Gu Ting added.
On her first day reporting to work, Wen Ke’an ultimately chose a more formal-looking blazer.
Seeing she wasn’t wearing the couple’s outfit, Gu Ting seemed a bit unhappy.
Wen Ke’an couldn’t help but laugh and said, “It’s our first day at the company, Little Boss Gu. Wearing matching outfits would let everyone know I got in through connections.”
Wen Ke’an’s internship was at Gu Ting’s company. She figured she might as well take advantage of having a strong backer.
However, being her first day and just an intern, Wen Ke’an thought it better to keep a low profile. She hoped to learn something worthwhile at the company to complete her internship report successfully.
—-
“Have you heard? Our department might get a little internet celebrity.”
“Who? Who?”
“The girl Wen Ke’an from the talent show, do you know her?”
“I’ve never watched those shows.”
“I have, I have! She’s super pretty. But she’s also a student from a top university, coming here for an internship.”
On Monday, the department employees buzzed with excitement about the new intern.
After completing her onboarding, Wen Ke’an was led to her department by a girl.
Each person had their own workstation in a large room where they all worked together.
“Oh my gosh, you look even better in person than in photos!” Shortly after sitting down, another intern nearby leaned in, “Hi, hi! Let me introduce myself, I’m Li Ye, but you can call me Yezi.”
“Nice to meet you, I’m Wen Ke’an.”
“I know, I know! I really liked you on the show!!”
After a few days of work, Wen Ke’an found that most people in the company were easy to get along with. There were just a few female leaders who seemed a bit arrogant, but since Wen Ke’an didn’t interact with them much, her internship was going smoothly.
After work one day, Wen Ke’an and Yezi left the company together and saw police cars downstairs.
“What’s going on?” Wen Ke’an asked softly, puzzled.
“You don’t know?” Yezi whispered mysteriously, “Do you know Gu Yu?”
“Yes.”
Speaking of company gossip, Yezi became very excited, “I used to think Gu Yu was one of the heirs too, but later found out he wasn’t. Gu Yu isn’t the biological son of General Manager Gu; he’s actually the son of an old comrade, but General Manager Gu has always raised him.”
“This isn’t a company secret anymore; it’s like a real-life version of ‘The Farmer and the Snake.’ General Manager Gu has always treated Gu Yu well, even sending him abroad for his education. But after returning, Gu Yu has been secretly causing trouble. He tried to embezzle company funds a few days ago and flee but was caught.”
Yezi speculated, “I guess the police are here to deal with this.”
When Wen Ke’an returned home, she found out that everything Yezi said was true. Gu Yu really was preparing to transfer the assets. General Manager Gu had anticipated his actions and set a trap early on, waiting for Gu Yu to fall in.
“Will Gu Yu be sentenced?” After hearing the full story from General Manager Gu, Wen Ke’an asked softly.
“Yes, at least ten years in prison,” General Manager Gu said coldly, “That’s the punishment he deserves.”
—-
Wen Ke’an’s internship wasn’t difficult. Once she got the hang of it, she even had spare time.
Meanwhile, Wen Ke’an had started a new book. She would sneak in some writing during work breaks, but her updates were quite sporadic.
One morning, Wen Ke’an woke up at noon to see a message from Chu Han.
“An’an, when are you updating?”
“I stayed up late to finish reading! You left a cliffhanger at the most critical part!”
“Do you have any drafts saved?”
Wen Ke’an read the messages and slowly typed two words, “No drafts.”
“”
“You’re off today, right? Write, write, write!!”
“By the way, the male lead in your new book seems familiar.”
“The inspiration is Gu Ting, isn’t it?”
Wen Ke’an was taken aback by Chu Han’s message and replied, “The male lead in the new book is very gentle.”
She glanced at the marks on her body left by Gu Ting.
She thought, Gu Ting wasn’t gentle at all.
“It really isn’t, it’s just that some places inexplicably remind me of Gu Ting.”
Wen Ke’an didn’t have a chance to reply yet when she suddenly noticed the clothes Gu Ting had prepared for her by the bed. There was also a small note on the clothes.
The note had many reminders, asking her to remember to eat breakfast. He had already made breakfast; she just needed to warm it up a little. He even reminded her, knowing her period was coming soon, not to eat cold things.
After silently reading it, Wen Ke’an suddenly opened her phone to look at a scene she had written before.
Just like the little note, her male protagonist had done exactly the same thing as Gu Ting. Even the tone of the words on the note was very similar.
Wen Ke’an looked at it for a long time and then suddenly murmured, “It really does seem like he has a part of him in this character.”
