Su Kai closed his eyes: "It's okay. Is there anywhere you want to go? I've been quite bored these past few days. Didn't Ling Zeyu tell you not to go to work? Think about where you want to go, let's go have some fun."
"I...I am a public figure now, and it is inconvenient for me to appear in crowded places."
"Then let's go abroad."
Su Kai blurted out. After going abroad, no one could control them anymore, and he wouldn't let anyone bully Bai Yanfei. Besides, without Ling Zeyu abroad, Bai Yanfei wouldn't be so upset.
As expected, Bai Yanfei shook his head.
"I don't want to, let's just stay nearby."
"You want to stay by Ling Zeyu's side, don't you?" Su Kai hit the nail on the head; he knew Bai Yanfei still couldn't let go.
"I'm sorry, senior." Bai Yanfei felt very apologetic. He had bothered Su Kai time and time again, and he couldn't accept the other's kind offer. He already had someone in his heart, and his heart was only so big that it couldn't hold two people.
"It's okay, we'll go play when you have time."
Su Kai wore a bitter smile. When would Bai Yanfei finally belong to him?
The two spent the afternoon at the bubble tea shop, and as it was almost closing time, Su Kai took Bai Yanfei home.
"You can come to me when you're bored. I don't have much to do in China."
"Senior, I know you're not the good-for-nothing they say you are. You've even held an art exhibition. You don't need to take the Su family's words to heart."
Su Kai smiled brightly: "I understand."
Bai Yanfei's words were enough to make Su Kai happy for days.
Chapter 42 Critical Illness Notice
As Su Kai was leaving, he happened to run into Ling Zeyu's car on his way home. He glanced at it and saw that Su Yang was also inside.
He slammed on the brakes. No wonder Bai Yanfei had been unhappy lately; it turned out that Ling Zeyu had brought Su Yang home to live with them.
Su Kai angrily pounded the steering wheel. Why was the person he cherished treated like this by Ling Zeyu?
Ling Zeyu, you have no heart.
...
After Ling Zeyu returned home, he noticed Bai Yanfei's attire.
"They went out?"
"Yeah, I went out to eat with my senior." Bai Yanfei didn't want to hide anything from Ling Zeyu, nor did he want Ling Zeyu to misunderstand him.
"Um."
Ling Zeyu didn't pay much attention to his private life. Bai Yanfei looked bitter. Ling Zeyu probably only asked because he was afraid that he would be photographed by the media.
When will he give up this wishful thinking? Su Yang has been much more well-behaved these past few days. When Ling Zeyu is at home, the whole house is filled with a low atmosphere, and no one dares to provoke him.
But when Ling Zeyu worked overtime in the study at night, he would ask Bai Yanfei to come over as well. He didn't know what he could do there, and when he took out his tablet, Ling Zeyu wouldn't let him use electronic devices, so he could only randomly pick up a book from the bookshelf and flip through it.
In the quiet study, only the sounds of Bai Yanfei turning pages and Ling Zeyu typing on the keyboard could be heard. The two sounds mingled together, creating a unique and harmonious atmosphere.
Ling Zeyu had been working late these past few days. Around 10 p.m., he stood up and stretched.
With his view blocked, Bai Yanfei looked up and saw Ling Zeyu standing in front of him.
"What's wrong?"
"fine."
Ling Zeyu sat back down. He didn't know what was wrong with him. He was tired from work and wanted to go over and see Bai Yanfei's face, but Bai Yanfei had his back to him, so he could only walk over.
Seeing the bandages wrapped around Bai Yanfei's face, he felt a surge of frustration again. When would this damn eye injury ever heal? He had acted rashly in the heat of the moment, not knowing how much force he had used, and even now, he felt a little regretful.
Ling Zeyu attributed this emotion to Bai Yanfei, because he had hit Bai Yanfei, which made Bai Yanfei unhappy and caused him to ignore him, resulting in him not being in the mood to work.
"Come here." Ling Zeyu rubbed his temples; the document was giving him a headache.
Bai Yanfei walked over and placed his slender, pale fingers on Ling Zeyu's temples. He gently pressed on Ling Zeyu's temples, and Ling Zeyu closed his eyes comfortably.
When he had pressed down enough, Bai Yanfei let go of his hand: "I haven't finished reading the document yet."
Ling Zeyu opened a document and pulled Bai Yanfei, who was trying to leave, in front of him.
"These are the rules of the competition. Take a look, and I'll go get a glass of water."
Bai Yanfei was bent over, looking at the computer screen, his body forming a perfectly angled posture. Ling Zeyu, carrying a glass of water, stared at him for a long time. But Bai Yanfei himself didn't notice, still intently reading the document.
It wasn't until a hand landed on his waist that Bai Yanfei jumped back like a startled rabbit, taking two steps back and looking at Ling Zeyu in panic.
Ling Zeyu suddenly made an intimate gesture, and Bai Yanfei immediately stammered, "Your work isn't finished yet. I... I've finished reading it and I'm going to draw the draft."
"Where are the design drawings? Let me see them."
Ling Zeyu was no longer in the mood to work. Bai Yanfei seemed less angry. If Bai Yanfei's design was to his liking, no one would dare to object if he let Bai Yanfei win the championship.
However, the prerequisite is that Bai Yan must design a draft that satisfies him.
Bai Yanfei showed his design to Ling Zeyu, feeling uneasy, wondering how Ling Zeyu would view his work.
Ling Zeyu frowned as he looked at the design drawings: "The idea is good, but don't you think it's contradictory? You want to design jewelry for young people, but your designs are all elegant and luxurious, which is something that older people usually like."
"But that's how traditional Chinese style design is; a little complexity can also showcase the company's technical expertise."
“Buyers don’t care how complicated your craftsmanship is. As long as it looks good and makes them want to spend money on it, that’s enough for them. Nothing else matters to them.”
Ling Zeyu criticized Bai Yanfei without hesitation, and Bai Yanfei lowered his head in shame.
He didn't really consider all those aspects, but this current version of the design is the one he's most satisfied with.
"Also, why did you use a flat surface here? You could try using a cutout design, and you could even put a bead next to it." Ling Zeyu handed the draft back to Bai Yanfei. "You've glossed over the parts that should be carefully considered, and you've made the parts that should be simple so complicated. Who would buy your design like this?"
"I..." Bai Yanfei felt a pang of sadness as he held his manuscript. Although he loved his manuscript, he had to admit that Ling Zeyu's words made a lot of sense.
He once again felt the gap between himself and Ling Zeyu.
"Also, your manuscript shows too much imitation. You should break out of your understanding of traditional Chinese style. Everyone is pursuing innovation now, but you are picking up some old things. Except for a certain group, most people will not like it."
“But this article was written specifically for these particular groups. You all want to be innovative, but you’ve abandoned these excellent traditions. Why can’t we use them?”
"So, do you think your manuscript is valuable?" Ling Zeyu hit the nail on the head, and Bai Yanfei couldn't refute it. He wasn't a marketing major, so he didn't know how to estimate the value of a product.
"I'll prove it to you."
"Don't talk big so soon." Ling Zeyu shut down the computer. "Can the bandages be removed this weekend? I need to go home for dinner this weekend, and I don't know how to explain it to Mom."
"Dr. Wen said it can be removed the day after tomorrow."
"Um."
Ling Zeyu's words pierced his heart like fine needles. This time, Ling Zeyu's words weren't too harsh. He couldn't help but wonder, if it weren't for hitting him, would he have responded with harsh words? He had just clearly seen Ling Zeyu's disdain for his work. Bai Yanfei was deeply hurt. Did he have no redeeming qualities at all in front of Ling Zeyu?
In the middle of the night, Bai Yanfei was awakened by the vibration of his phone. He answered the call groggily, but after hearing what the other person said, Bai Yanfei instantly woke up.
His movements were so loud that they woke Ling Zeyu up. Ling Zeyu opened his eyes with a displeased expression, but what followed was Bai Yanfei's flustered and helpless hand.
Bai Yanfei grabbed Ling Zeyu as if he were a lifeline.
All he heard was Bai Yanfei's voice, which was trembling with sobs.
"Grandma is critically ill."
Chapter 43 Men Should Not Touch Each Other
This was the first time Ling Zeyu had ever seen Bai Yanfei so flustered. On the way to the hospital, Bai Yanfei kept crying, but he held back his sobs and didn't say a word.
Bai Zhenrong arrived at the hospital shortly after.
Bai Zhenrong was somewhat surprised to see Bai Yanfei injured.
What happened to your eyes?
"It was an accidental injury." Ling Zeyu stood in front of Bai Yanfei, not wanting too many people to see Bai Yanfei like this. The questioning looks from others seemed to remind him again and again: Look, this was Ling Zeyu who hit him.
Bai Yanfei started sobbing, and Ling Zeyu patted his back: "It's okay, don't cry, do you still want your eyes?"
Perhaps it was Ling Zeyu's gentleness that worked; Bai Yanfei was stunned for a moment, but then he cried even harder. Taking advantage of being in the hospital with someone watching, he dared to throw himself into Ling Zeyu's arms and cry freely.
He knew that as long as there were outsiders present, Ling Zeyu would give him face, which was why he dared to be so presumptuous.
Bai Yanfei cried bitterly, sobbing in Ling Zeyu's arms, "Grandma was the best person in the world to me. If Grandma leaves, no one will be good to me anymore..."
Upon hearing this, Ling Zeyu looked up at Bai Zhenrong, who was equally anxious. He had a feeling that things were not so simple.
If he's not her biological son, why is Bai Zhenrong so anxious? And why did only Bai Zhenrong come, while Zhang Rongrong didn't? The old lady is having surgery, yet he still came to check on her.
Not long after, Su Kai arrived. Ling Zeyu looked down at Bai Yanfei, a feeling he couldn't quite describe welling up inside him.
Why did Su Kai come? This grandmother is so important to Bai Yanfei, so why didn't you call him here sooner?
Thinking of this, Ling Zeyu felt a pang of jealousy. When he realized that he seemed to be jealous, he immediately dismissed the thought.
How could he possibly be jealous of Bai Yanfei? Bai Yanfei betrayed him; shouldn't that be Bai Yanfei's problem?
Su Kai saw Bai Yanfei crying in Ling Zeyu's arms and his face was full of heartache.
"Xiaoyan..."
Su Kai reached out to touch Bai Yanfei, but Ling Zeyu slapped his hand away: "Second Young Master Su, men should not touch each other. This is my fiancé."
"Pretentious!" Su Kai withdrew his hand, helpless. What Ling Zeyu said was true. With Bai Yanfei's real fiancé here, he, as Bai Yanfei's friend, really had no right to touch Bai Yanfei.
"Xiao Yan, you can't cry for too long." Su Kai was worried that Bai Yanfei's eyes would be affected if she kept crying like this. He was still outside when he received the call from the hospital. When he rushed over, he found that they were already here. He didn't know how long Bai Yanfei had been crying or if she had been crying all the way.
Bai Yanfei stopped crying, but was still sobbing. He glanced at Ling Zeyu's shirt, which was covered in his tears, and Ling Zeyu's chest was already soaked.
"Are you feeling better?" Ling Zeyu gently stroked his head. He couldn't care less about the pain in his eyes at that moment. His grandmother was still in surgery, and he could only wait helplessly on the side.
"Didn't you say nothing would happen recently? How could this happen so suddenly?" Bai Yanfei couldn't help but blame himself. "If I had come to visit Grandma more often, and she was in a better mood, would the outcome have been different?"
"Don't blame yourself." Su Kai squatted down in front of Bai Yanfei. "It's not your fault. Grandma is getting old. These are things we can't decide."
"I..." Bai Yanfei shook his head. He wanted to say something, but in the end, he didn't say it.
The surgery lasted until morning. Ling Zeyu had been very busy at work lately and had to get ready to go. Shortly after Ling Zeyu left, Bai Zhenrong also left.
"The Bai family needs me now. You and your friends can wait here. Just contact me if anything happens."
Bai Yanfei only realized now that Bai Zhenrong had also grown old. His father's temples were already gray, and a tired smile appeared on his face.