Volume 1, Chapter 7: Isn't It Good to Come Back and See You?

The next morning, Shen Zhi had just gotten out of bed when she received a call from an unknown number.

“Hello, please sign for your delivery.”

“Delivery? I didn’t order anything...” She suddenly snapped back to reality, thinking it might have been Shanshan who ordered it.

“Please wait a moment, I’ll come down right away.”

As Shen Zhi was about to knock on Shanshan’s door, she received a message from her: “Zhi, I have something to take care of. Eat breakfast at home and wait for me!”

She smiled, not thinking much of it, got dressed, and went downstairs.

“Living in such a big apartment and still ordering delivery! I’ll have to give her a good scolding later!”

At the door, there was no delivery in sight, only a man in a suit holding a bouquet of flowers. When he turned around, he immediately wore a professional smile and presented the flowers with both hands.

“Miss Shen, a gentleman asked me to give you these. Please accept them!”

Shen Zhi took the flowers, puzzled. She thought it might have been a suitor of Shanshan’s, but he addressed her as “Miss Shen.”

Before she could ask who had sent them, the man had already ridden off on his bike.

Delivering roses in a suit—now that’s impressive! Has the delivery industry become so competitive?

Then she noticed a small card attached to the flowers, with a line of uneven handwriting: “Shen Zhi, seeing your name is like seeing you in person. ‘I want to see you,’ I’m waiting here.”

A chill ran down her spine.

She had planned to ignore it, but then she thought—besides He Yunshen, who else would know she was at Shanshan’s place?

“What game is he playing this time?”

Soon, Shen Zhi arrived at the “I Want to See You” café.

Upon entering, the receptionist approached to guide her.

“Hello, are you Shen Zhi, Miss Shen?”

“That’s me.”

This didn’t feel like He Yunshen’s style of doing things; after knowing him for so many years, Shen Zhi was quite familiar with his ways of coaxing.

Since she was here, she decided to go with the flow.

She followed the receptionist upstairs to a private room.

The room was empty but warmly decorated, with an array of desserts she liked arranged on the table.

Just as she turned to leave, a shadow blocked her path from behind.

“Long time no see!”

Suddenly, a gentle breeze brushed past her. She halted her breath and instinctively looked up, her gaze meeting the dark, inscrutable eyes of a man looking down at her.

“Fu Nanfeng?”

She hadn’t seen him in three years.

Their eyes met, Fu Nanfeng’s gaze was ambiguous, his deep black pupils softened with a hint of tenderness.

“Aren’t you abroad? When did you come back?”

Fu Nanfeng came from a scholarly family and had known Shen Zhi since childhood. He had always been her guardian. She had gone overseas three years ago when she got married.

“I came back to see you. Isn’t that good?”

His voice was gentle, and his smile as warm and radiant as ever.

“How did you know I was at Shanshan’s?”

Seeing Fu Nanfeng, Shen Zhi felt a mix of surprise and disappointment.

She didn’t know what she was expecting. Old friends reuniting should bring joy, but she couldn’t feel happy at all.

“Guess.”

Shen Zhi smiled awkwardly and glanced at the desserts on the table. She hadn’t eaten breakfast and was quite hungry.

“You still understand me!”

She plopped down and began eating heartily. In front of him, she could let go of all pretenses.

Despite Fu Nanfeng’s wealthy background, he never acted like a spoiled rich kid.

They had been classmates, and both in and out of school, he had been her steadfast protector for ten years.

“Are you doing well?”

Fu Nanfeng’s eyes were full of concern.

“Pretty good! Why do you look at me like that?”

Shen Zhi tried to act natural. After all, she didn’t want outsiders prying into her family matters, especially Fu Nanfeng, who was overly nosy.

“I told you, if he ever treats you badly, I’ll take you away.”

Shen Zhi was taken aback. “It’s not about him.”

“At a time like this, you’re still defending him?”

Fu Nanfeng restrained his emotions. It seemed he already knew everything, but Shen Zhi didn’t want to discuss her relationship with him.

“Did you come just to talk about this?”

She guessed Shanshan must have told him.

In the past, Shanshan had tried to play matchmaker for them multiple times, but everyone knew her feelings for Fu Nanfeng were purely platonic.

Shen Zhi felt a bit annoyed.

Sensing the awkward atmosphere, Fu Nanfeng shifted to a lighter mood.

“No, I just wanted to catch up since it’s been a while. You didn’t look well, so...”

Shen Zhi didn’t want to ruin his mood and teased, “How long are you staying this time?”

“Not leaving.”

Shen Zhi was stunned. “What, family pressuring you to get married?”

She regretted saying that as soon as the words left her mouth—it was like she’d hit a sore spot.

The smile on Fu Nanfeng’s face vanished instantly, and he looked at her with a deep, serious gaze.

“It’s time to think about settling down.”

“It’s about time.”

Fu Nanfeng’s words were loaded with meaning. Shen Zhi dared not respond further, fearing she might only make things worse.

“Alright! When you decide, remember to invite me to your wedding!”

From childhood until now, Shen Zhi had noticed everything Fu Nanfeng had done for her, but their relationship was strictly friendship.

Fu Nanfeng, mindful of her feelings, had almost never confessed outright—only subtle hints here and there.

After a few bites, Shen Zhi got up to leave, and Fu Nanfeng stood as well.

“Leaving so soon?”

“Yeah, Shanshan’s still waiting for me.”

Though she wanted to spend more time with him, Shen Zhi wasn’t in the mood and feared he’d bring up emotional matters again. She just didn’t want to deal with relationship issues right now.

“I’ll see you out.”

“No need! I can go back on my own.”

Still, Fu Nanfeng followed Shen Zhi out, gallantly escorting her downstairs until she got into a car.

“Zhi Zhi, let’s meet again another day.”

Looking at his gentle yet melancholic smile, Shen Zhi felt uneasy.

After all these years, Fu Nanfeng was still the same. At this rate, even friendship might become difficult.

She didn’t want to lead anyone on.

Meanwhile, Shanshan, dust-covered and hurried, arrived at Yunlai Law Firm. Without stopping at reception, she rushed straight to He Yunshen’s office.

“Miss Jiang, do you have an appointment today? Mr. He is—”

Jiang Shanshan was a major client of Yunlai Law Firm. Everyone in the company knew this fiery, quick-tempered young lady was not to be trifled with.

“I’m here to see He Yunshen. Since when do you need an appointment for that?”

No one dared to stop her. Besides being a VIP client, she was the heiress of the Jiang Group and Shen Zhi’s closest friend.

Her brisk footsteps soon brought her to He Yunshen’s office, where she encountered Zhou Qin coming out with some documents.

“It’s you?”

Shanshan knew Zhou Qin was He Yunshen’s stepsister. They had met a few times in college, and Shanshan had warned her to keep away from Shen Zhi.

“Miss Jiang, long time no see,” Zhou Qin greeted politely.

Shanshan scoffed and rolled her eyes before entering the office.

“He Yunshen, you’re quite the big shot now—just back and already with a personal assistant. No wonder you’ve abandoned your own bedmate?”

He Yunshen lowered his head and smiled. “What wind blew Miss Jiang here today?”

“Don’t play coy with me. What exactly did you do to Zhi Zhi?”

Jiang Shanshan had known He Yunshen since college; they were old acquaintances.

She had never approved of Shen Zhi marrying him, especially with the ambiguous ‘sister’ by his side.

“You spent the whole night with her and don’t even know it, then come ask me? I can’t bear that accusation,” He Yunshen said with a dismissive air, which only fueled Shanshan’s anger.

“Isn’t hurting Shen Zhi enough for that woman?”

“Miss Jiang, please watch your words. This is a company, not a place for personal matters. If you have no business here, I must ask you to leave.”

He Yunshen turned to walk away.

Just as Shanshan was about to stop him, he froze, staring intensely at his phone screen, looking terrifying.

Before she could speak, he rushed out of the office as if headed to commit murder.