Chapter 296: Sensible Enough to Make His Heart Ache
It’s seven o’clock, why hasn’t Cheng Lie come to find her yet?
Yun Shifei stayed in the cold, lifeless hotel room, watching the clock inch forward bit by bit. Her phone was silent, and there was no movement at the door either.
They had clearly agreed on six-thirty, but now he hadn’t shown up.
Could it be that he forgot where she was staying?
Yun Shifei decided to get dressed and headed down to the lobby to wait for him.
But she waited until seven-thirty, and he still hadn’t appeared.
At this point, her stomach betrayed her with a loud rumble.
Yun Shifei stared at her phone. Cheng Lie was never the type to be late. In the past, whenever they arranged to meet up, he was always on time—sometimes even arriving earlier than her.
What was going on today? Had he decided he didn’t want her to take responsibility for him anymore?
Thinking this, Yun Shifei felt a dull ache in her chest and a growing unease.
She finally couldn’t resist calling Cheng Lie, but the phone rang for a long time without anyone answering.
What’s happening?
At that moment, Xu Yuejiao and a few others returned from outside. Seeing Yun Shifei sitting in the lobby, they were surprised. "Feifei, what’s going on? Weren’t you out for dinner?"
Yun Shifei shook her head. "Cheng Lie still hasn’t come."
"That guy!" Xu Yuejiao gritted her teeth angrily, "He stood you up?"
"Maybe he has something going on. I just called him, but he didn’t answer."
"What could it be?" Xu Yuejiao thought for a moment before saying, "Oh, today he was with a group of people when I saw him earlier. Could it be that something held him up?"
Xu Yuejiao recalled the scene of Cheng Lie arriving earlier. He hadn’t come alone—there had been a group of people with him. Those individuals had looked rather formidable.
Is that it? Yun Shifei pondered. Perhaps he really got tied up with something.
Although Xi Garden was beautiful, it was also quite remote, and there weren’t many hospitals nearby.
They had driven over ten kilometers to get Mr. Wen to the hospital, and Wen Lin had then hurriedly arranged for Mr. Wen’s attending physician to come.
Once Mr. Wen’s condition stabilized a bit, Wen Lin let out a sigh of relief and looked at Cheng Lie. "Mr. Cheng, I truly can’t thank you enough."
"No need for thanks," Cheng Lie replied.
Then he asked, "Has Mr. Wen’s health always been poor?"
Wen Lin nodded. "Grandpa’s heart has never been in great shape. He usually has regular check-ups, and there haven’t been any issues. I have no idea why it suddenly got this severe."
Wen Lin’s explanation dispelled the lingering doubts in Cheng Lie’s mind.
He had initially wondered why someone as capable as Wen Lin had seemed so flustered when problems arose. Now he understood—she had never faced such a situation before.
With Mr. Wen’s emergency handled, Cheng Lie finally stepped outside and called Yun Shifei.
In his rush earlier, he had left his phone behind at the hotel.
It was now close to eight o’clock. He wondered if that girl had been waiting for him all this time.
The thought made Cheng Lie press his lips together, guilt welling up in his chest.
Back when it happened, he wasn’t completely incapable of ignoring Mr. Wen’s situation.
But he had chosen to help Mr. Wen instead.
At this stage, when he hadn’t yet established himself in Beijing, every opportunity was tremendously precious.
If he couldn’t seize these chances, his future hardships would only multiply. Having clawed his way out of hell, he naturally had to treasure every rare opportunity.
Still, it meant he would let her down. He was well aware that, right now, such disappointments would likely become his norm.
The thought gripped Cheng Lie’s heart as though someone were clutching it tightly, causing a piercing pain.
He dialed Yun Shifei’s number.
"Hello." A girl’s voice rang out.
"Shi Fei, it’s me."
Hearing Cheng Lie’s voice, Yun Shifei felt a bit surprised. This wasn’t Cheng Lie’s usual number. As expected, his phone wasn’t with him—she had guessed as much. Otherwise, he surely would have called her earlier.
Yun Shifei took a bite of her noodles as she responded, "Where were you? I’ve been waiting for you so long."
"I was accompanying an elderly man to Xi Garden. Just now, Mr. Wen fell ill, and I took him to the hospital," he explained.
Yun Shifei let out an "Oh," and the frustration she had been holding onto instantly melted away.
He hadn’t intentionally stood her up.
So she said, "It’s fine. Taking care of your matters is more important."
She knew very well that Cheng Lie was going through a tough time right now—even though he no longer had to endure bullying from the Cheng Family, his circumstances were still full of pressure and constraints.
She had heard that Cheng Lie was tasked with designing something for them.
And that Qin Yumo was so arrogant, looking down on Cheng Lie, even threatening to retaliate against him once he no longer had any use for him.
At the moment, if Cheng Lie wanted to avoid Qin Yumo’s revenge, he had no choice but to work hard and grow stronger.
Looking at her past life’s experience, she truly believed Cheng Lie could become incredibly powerful.
He was inherently career-driven and pragmatic. His emotional detachment didn’t surprise her.
"Then take good care of him. If there’s nothing else, I’ll hang up now."
Cheng Lie pressed his lips together. He hadn’t expected not to hear a hint of anger in her tone.
Wasn’t it said that when a girl cares about a guy, being stood up would make her upset?
Why wasn’t she angry?
"You’re not mad?" He couldn’t help but voice the confusion in his heart.
"Why should I be mad? It’s not like you stood me up for no reason. You had something important to deal with. Just handle it well. I’m planning to sleep early tonight anyway."
After hanging up, Cheng Lie stood still for a long time, unable to snap out of his thoughts.
His fists clenched tightly as warmth spread through his heart, mingling with a faint ache.
She was always like this—so understanding it hurt.
Such a wonderful girl... what was he supposed to do with her?
The next day, Yun Shifei woke up and dragged Xu Yuejiao out for a stroll around Xi Garden.
They were scheduled to head back by noon. Yesterday, she had been drunk during the daytime and only managed to catch glimpses of the garden’s night scenery. She wanted to seize this last chance to properly explore it in daylight.
They wandered while snacking on street food, the two of them walking hand in hand, close and cheerful.
"Hey, isn’t that Cheng Lie?"
Xu Yuejiao suddenly spotted something ahead and pointed toward the distance. Yun Shifei followed her gaze and saw Cheng Lie coming out of an elegantly styled building, loading his luggage into a car.
Yun Shifei blinked, debating whether to go over and greet him.
But she then noticed a woman walking up behind him, engaging him in conversation.
This woman—wasn’t she the one they had run into at the restaurant yesterday?
Yun Shifei felt a jolt of surprise.
Today, the woman was dressed in a red coat. Her short hair gave her a lively and sophisticated look, and her bright demeanor paired with her striking figure made her stand out. Standing beside Cheng Lie, there was a surprising harmony between them.
Xu Yuejiao glanced at Yun Shifei. "Feifei, who is that woman?"
Yun Shifei shook her head. "I don’t know either."
"That guy! Is he running around behind your back?" Xu Yuejiao’s indignation flared, "This won’t do—I have to teach him a lesson!"