On the other end of the line, Su Wan’s voice was cold and detached. “What is it? Did something happen between us?”
Gu Huaiyu’s fingers tightened slightly around his phone.
She was definitely sulking.
That girl who used to chase after him, whose heart and eyes were once filled only with him; the girl who would run across half the city to find something just because of a casual remark he made; the girl who had been hurt so deeply by him yet still secretly looked at his photos late at night...
How could she truly forget everything that happened yesterday afternoon?
She simply refused to admit it.
She didn't want to admit that she had softened in the end, that she couldn't completely sever her feelings for him, and she didn't want to admit—
That she actually still cared about him.
Gu Huaiyu leaned back against the office sofa, the aches throughout his body reminding him of how “intense” yesterday afternoon had been. He rubbed his temples, his voice becoming softer than it had ever been before:
“Wanwan, I know you’re angry. I know I’ve wronged you and done a lot of bastarly things...”
“But I remember everything that happened between us yesterday afternoon. I remember every single second.”
There was silence on the other end for a few seconds before Su Wan’s voice rang out again, even icier than before:
“Gu Huaiyu, let me say this one more time. Nothing happened between us! Your head isn't right; you were dreaming.”
Gu Huaiyu let out a soft sigh, though a helpless smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
The more she denied it like this, the more certain he became.
If nothing had happened, why was she in such a hurry to clear things up?
If she really didn't care, why didn't she dare to admit it?
“Wanwan,” his voice grew even gentler, carrying a hint of the patience one might use to coax a child,
“Don’t be like this. I know you’re hurting, and I know you feel I’ve let you down...”
“But yesterday afternoon, you were willing, weren’t you? You came to find me, and then...”
“Enough!” Su Wan’s voice suddenly spiked, filled with undisguised loathing.
“Gu Huaiyu, listen clearly. There is nothing between you and me! Those filthy things in your head are just your own fantasies! Don't you dare involve me in them!”
Gu Huaiyu fell silent.
He could hear the impatience and disgust in Su Wan’s voice, but to him, that very impatience and disgust were evidence of her internal struggle.
She was trying hard to push him away, trying to deny everything that happened between them, trying to pretend as if nothing had ever occurred...
But if it were really as she said and nothing had happened, why couldn't she speak calmly?
Why couldn't she just politely brush him off like a stranger and hang up?
Her anger, her disgust, and her desperate denial—
They all pointed to one thing: she still cared.
She was angry because she cared.
She refused to admit it because she cared.
She had to push him away in such a violent manner because she cared.
A wave of unprecedented softness suddenly welled up in Gu Huaiyu’s heart.
All these years, he had been calculating, conquering, and chasing after so-called “success” and “control.”
He had thought Su Wan was merely a pawn on his chessboard, someone to be discarded once her usefulness was exhausted.
But now he realized that this pawn had somehow quietly embedded itself into his heart long ago.
“Wanwan,” his voice dropped low, carrying a sincerity and humility he had never shown before,
“I know I’ve wronged you. Regarding the Su family’s affairs... I won’t make excuses. I accept the blame.”
“But after yesterday afternoon, I suddenly realized that while I always thought I was doing the right thing all these years, now... I don’t know anymore.”
“I only know that I don’t want to lose you.”
“Whatever you want, I’ll give it to you. If you want that building, I’ll buy it for you. Whatever you want me to do, just say the word, and I’ll do it.”
“As long as... as long as you’re happy, as long as you’re willing... to give me another chance.”
There was a long, long silence on the other end.
It was so long that Gu Huaiyu thought Su Wan had already hung up.
Then, Su Wan’s voice came through, cold as if tempered in ice:
“Gu Huaiyu, listen carefully.”
“I, Su Wan, have absolutely no relationship with you, Gu Huaiyu.”
“Not in the past, not now, and certainly not in the future.”
“Keep those disgusting words of yours to yourself. Don’t bother me again.”
“And remember this: what you owe the Su family, what you owe me, and what you owe my brother—one day, I will make you pay it all back with interest.”
Click.
The call was disconnected.
Gu Huaiyu stared at his phone for a few seconds before unhesitatingly dialing the number again.
Beep—beep—beep—
No answer.
He dialed again.
Beep—beep—beep—
Still no answer.
He tried once more.
This time, a cold, mechanical female voice came through the receiver:
“The number you have dialed is currently busy...”
Gu Huaiyu froze for a moment before realizing what had happened—he had been blocked.
He set the phone down and leaned back against the sofa, staring at the dim light on the ceiling. Suddenly, he laughed.
The laugh was tinged with bitterness and helplessness, but more than anything, it carried a sense of relief that even he couldn't quite explain.
She was angry.
She was truly angry.
But if she really didn't care about him at all as she claimed, if she only felt hatred, then why would she be angry?
The best way to hate someone was to ignore them.
To treat them like air, like they didn't exist, like a stone on the side of the road.
But she didn't do that.
She was furious, she was disgusted, and she said so many harsh things—
Every word had stabbed into his heart like a knife.
But the fact that the knife could sink in only proved that his heart was still there.
If the heart were truly dead, the knife would only slide off without causing any sensation.
Gu Huaiyu closed his eyes, and images of yesterday afternoon surfaced in his mind—
The way Su Wan walked into his office, her movement as she locked the door, her smile as she walked toward him, the touch of her soft hand on his arm, and then...
Everything that followed.
It had all felt so real, so vivid; it couldn't possibly be fake.
She just wasn't willing to admit it.
Because she hated him.
Because she felt that admitting it would be like bowing her head to him, like softening her heart toward him, like betraying all the suffering she had endured over the years.
But he understood.
He understood it all.
Gu Huaiyu opened his eyes and looked out at the horizon, which was gradually turning pale. His gaze became firmer than ever before.
Su Wan, it doesn't matter if you hate me.
It doesn't matter if you won't admit it.
It doesn't even matter that you blocked me.
From this day forward, I won't pressure you anymore.
I will wait.
I’ll wait for your anger to slowly fade, wait for you to be willing to believe I’m sincere, and wait for you to be willing... to give me another chance.
When that time comes, I will use every day of the rest of my life to make up for the mistakes I’ve made.
Gu Huaiyu stood up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window. Looking down at the city as it slowly woke up, a gentle curve formed on his lips.
Wanwan, you can't escape.
Because this time, I’m serious!
Rate on N.U.
