Chapter 525: Chapter 525 Yunzhou
Time flies by swiftly, as if everything just happened yesterday, even though in fact, two whole months have passed, and the clothes have gradually thickened.
"Yaoyao, I have to go on a business trip to Yunzhou for the next couple of days. There’s some issue with the branch office in Yunzhou, and I need to check it out. Would you like to come with me?" Xu Ke said, with a towel wrapped around his waist and his hair still dripping wet, being wiped by him with a towel.
"Is the issue in Yunzhou very serious? Why didn’t you mention it before? You’re saying it so suddenly that I haven’t even packed your luggage yet." Lin Mengyao pulled Xu Ke to sit by the bed, taking the towel from his hand to gently wipe him.
"The person in charge over there made a mess. They embezzled a large sum from a project fund and ran away. The situation happened suddenly, and Yunzhou is already in chaos. Moreover, given the scale of this matter, the entire management team in Yunzhou needs to be checked to see if there are other black sheep mixed in. I don’t feel comfortable having someone else handle this, so I have to go personally." Xu Ke patted the back of Lin Mengyao’s hand as he spoke.
"This is indeed something you need to handle personally, but I can’t accompany you to Yunzhou this time. There are matters on the Luo City side I need to deal with. I can’t stay in Shangjing dealing with company matters indefinitely. Short-term, it’s okay, but long-term, I’m still not comfortable. I originally planned for you to come stay with me in Shangjing for a while, but now with this incident, my plans are ruined."
There was clear disappointment on Lin Mengyao’s face. The past few days, the two of them had been almost inseparable. Lin Mengyao had gotten used to this life, and thinking about being apart now left her feeling empty and quite uncomfortable inside.
"What’re you afraid of? With how advanced technology is now, if you miss me, we can video call at night." Xu Ke immediately comforted her, as if knowing what Lin Mengyao was worried about. Lately, her emotions had finally calmed down, and Xu Ke didn’t want them to flare up again.
Hearing Xu Ke’s words, Lin Mengyao felt relieved. She placed the towel on the bed, instead entwining her arms around Xu Ke’s neck. "Alright, but in the evenings, you can’t mind me bugging you. Whenever you’re free, you have to video call with me, or else I’ll miss you." As she spoke, Lin Mengyao hung her head, burying her cheek in Xu Ke’s neck.
Talking in such a clingy way embarrassed Lin Mengyao, even the breath she exhaled seemed to become heated from shyness.
Xu Ke chuckled at Lin Mengyao’s rare display of clinginess. "Silly girl, how could I ever mind you?" He gently patted Lin Mengyao’s arm as he spoke softly.
The couple shared intimate moments through the night, and the next day, they packed their respective luggage, exchanged a farewell kiss, and parted reluctantly.
"Remember to send me a message when you reach Luo City, and I’ll call you back when I arrive in Yunzhou." Xu Ke lightly kissed Lin Mengyao’s forehead and said.
"Okay."
Yunzhou is south of Shangjing. Before boarding the plane, Xu Ke was prepared, having heard that Yunzhou would cool down, so he specially wore a thick windbreaker. However, upon descending the plane and leaving the airport, Xu Ke was caught off guard by Yunzhou’s temperature. Even the warmest coat couldn’t withstand the bone-chilling wind of Yunzhou.
The cold seemed to seep right into his bones, making it unbearable. Xu Ke, outside the airport, shivered quite unbecomingly.
A clear, crisp laugh came from beside Xu Ke, and before he could react, a thick, fluffy scarf wound around his neck. "Didn’t I tell you that there’s a cold spell in Yunzhou recently? How come you wore so little? You’re cold now, aren’t you? What if you catch a cold later?" Ariel, wrapped in a white couple’s scarf, said with bright eyes, looking at Xu Ke.
Seeing that it was Ariel, Xu Ke’s tense muscles relaxed, and his eyes softened with warmth, as if ice was melting and a touch of vitality was infused with a hint of spring.
"I made sure to wear more, but who knew the damp cold in Yunzhou would be this intense." As Xu Ke spoke, he sized up Ariel, noticing she was wearing a short skirt despite the weather, her legs bare and white, which made his expression turn stern and serious.
"You’re the one to talk. Aren’t you mindful yourself, coming with bare legs? Aren’t you cold?" Xu Ke wanted to take off his windbreaker to drape it over Ariel, only to be inexplicably teased by her.
"You’re so silly. I’m not an idiot. I already told you it’s so cold here. Why would I have bare legs? This is my newly discovered ’bare-leg artifact.’ It’s fluffy inside and incredibly warm to wear, and it looks as if I’m not wearing anything, while still looking good. Don’t you think I’m amazing and beautiful?"
Ariel tilted her head, tugging at the pants she was wearing to prove she wasn’t lying, then twirled around in front of Xu Ke, showing off her beauty in a 360-degree spin.
Seeing that Ariel indeed wore pants, Xu Ke’s expression relaxed. Just as the atmosphere between them grew pleasant, a discordant voice interrupted, upsetting the overall mood.
"I never thought in such a rundown place like Yunzhou, I’d encounter such a beautiful woman. This trip wasn’t in vain after all."
Initially, Xu Ke and Ariel paid no mind to the voice until two figures approached, blocking their path.
"Please step aside, don’t block our way." Xu Ke noticed the intrusive gaze on Ariel and spoke with hostility, his lovely brows drawn with anger.
"This card here has a hundred thousand yuan. Take the money, and the girl is mine." The man blocking their path slapped the card against Xu Ke’s chest, reaching to push him aside to stand beside Ariel. However, to his surprise, Xu Ke didn’t yield, making the atmosphere awkward.
"How can you be so oblivious? Take the money and leave already. Or do you think I’m offering too little?" The man’s frustration grew as he saw Xu Ke remained unmoved, face frowned, clearly getting irritated.
"Fine, fine, like you, trying to jack up the price like this, I’ve seen plenty. If the girl wasn’t so pretty, I’d ignore you altogether. Here’s another hundred thousand added to the previous ten, totaling two hundred thousand. Take the money and leave!" The man impatiently pulled out a check from his pocket, scribbled the sum swiftly, tore it off, and slapped it against Xu Ke’s chest again, speaking with a dismissive tone as if shooing away a beggar.