Water and Fire~Chapter 46.3: Reasons for Leaving

 

Chapter 46.3: Reasons for Leaving

During lunch break, everyone rushed to the cafeteria for lunch. Chu Qianmiao and Ren Yan entered the staff restaurant together.

As soon as they entered, Chu Qianmiao jumped for joy and ran towards a table by the window.

Ren Yan saw Gu Miaoyu, Shao Yuan, and the middle-aged couple sitting at that table. Chu Qianmiao hugged the couple and called them godparents. Ren Yan guessed that the middle-aged couple must be Gu Miaoyu's parents. He seemed to have heard Chu Qianmiao mention that Gu Miaoyu's job at Jialeyuan had recently stabilized, so her parents had taken the opportunity to come to Beijing for a trip. He remembered Chu Qianmiao saying her parents were supposed to come too, but unfortunately, her father was caught up in something before leaving and couldn't make it.

From her words, he could sense the warmth and happiness of her and Gu Miaoyu's family. Although they weren't born into a wealthy family, perhaps even barely making it, their lives were filled with loving family, a kind of intimacy and happiness that money couldn't buy. He finally understood why she possessed such a strong sense of humanity. It was the result of her upbringing.

He now felt that her humanity was a precious quality, because it was indeed becoming increasingly scarce in this society.

After Ren Yan bought the food, Gu Miaoyu's parents warmly waved to him, inviting him to sit and eat with them.

He didn't want to, but seeing Chu Qianmiao blinking at him, a hint of anticipation in her eyes, he was drawn to the table.

He sat down next to Chu Qianmiao. As soon as he sat down, Chu Qianmiao whispered to him, "My godparents might be aware of the relationship between those two guys next to us. Senior, please help me cover for them later!" The two guys she was referring to were Gu Miaoyu and Shao Yuan.

Ren Yan nodded calmly.

After a while, Gu's parents indeed began to inquire about Shao Yuan's family situation.

Shao Yuan looked at Chu Qianmiao for help.

Chu Qianmiao passed the pleading look to Ren Yan, playing a game of pass-the-parcel.

Ren Yan was stunned for a moment.

Then he reached out with his chopsticks, picked up a piece of meat, and placed it in Chu Qianmiao's bowl, saying considerately, "Eat it while it's hot; it gets greasy when it gets cold."

Sure enough, this action caught Gu's parents' attention, and their curiosity shifted from Shao Yuan to Ren Yan.

Father Gu politely asked Ren Yan with a smile, "What do your parents do?"

Chu Qianmiao and Gu Miaoyu both held their foreheads in their hands at the mention.

Little man...

Ren Yan, however, maintained his polite demeanor and replied, "My parents are deceased. I'm an only child. Aside from my grandmother, I don't have any immediate family."

Mother Gu sighed, then looked at Ren Yan with a gaze filled with maternal tenderness.

Father Gu then inquired, "So, what's your grandmother's personality like? Is she easy to get along with?" He was clearly concerned about Chu Qianmiao's perceived relationship, so he inquired about the old woman's approachability.

Ren Yan said, "My grandmother's personality is similar to mine."

Father Gu said, "Oh," "I see..."

After finishing his meal, Ren Yan returned to his office. Father and Mother Gu grabbed Chu Qianmiao and said to her with a troubled look on their faces, "If Xiao Ren's grandmother has the same personality as him, she'd be quite aloof and difficult to get along with. ...But Xiao Ren, this young man, does have good qualities. ...Alas, given the temperament of the elders in your family, you might not have an easy time in the future. ...But never mind, even if the elderly live their best, how many more years can they expect to live? It's not easy. Just give in to her. That way, the problem won't be too big..."

Father and Mother Gu were torn between two ideas.

Finally, Chu Qianmiao couldn't stand it anymore and told them the truth: "Godfather, godmother, you misunderstood. We're really not boyfriend and girlfriend!"

Gu's father: "Really?!"

Chu Qianmiao: "No!!!"

Gu's father: "Oh, that's a waste of time. I was going to ask about Shao Yuan's family situation. Isn't that ridiculous..."

Chu Qianmiao: "..."

Gu's father: "That little Ren is really something. He has nothing to do with you, but he gave you meat and made us misunderstand! This is not good. We won't bring him to dinner next time!"

Chu Qianmiao: "Yes, not! How could he be so rude!"

Gu Miaoyu practically knelt before the father. What kind of logic is this?

To thank Chu Qianmiao and Ren Yan for their help, Shao Yuan offered to treat them to dinner. The dinner was at a barbecue restaurant where Chu Qianmiao and Gu Miaoyu often drank and soothed their sorrows.

Shao Yuan said to Chu Qianmiao, "I tried to invite Senior Ren, but he turned me down. Senior, why don't you give it a try?"

Chu Qianmiao said, "That's a tough ask. He's notoriously slow to socialize."

Shao Yuan replied, "Senior, give it a try. I think you can."

Chu Qianmiao raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why would I?"

Shao Yuan said, "Because you and Senior Ren spend so much time together, your relationship is stronger than mine."

Chu Qianmiao decided to give it a try. While Ren Yan was in the tea room, she sauntered over, smiling and saying, "Senior, remember, summer is the season for barbecue and beer? How about tonight after get off work, let's go for barbecue and beer?"

Ren Yan filled his glass with water and turned to look at her. "With Shao Yuan and Gu Miaoyu?"

Chu Qianmiao: "..."

She nodded, unable to conceal her feelings.

Ren Yan pondered for a moment and said, "Shao Yuan asked me out, but I didn't go. You asked me out, so I went. Do you think that's a good idea?"

Chu Qianmiao's eyes rolled around, and she said, "I don't think there's anything wrong with that. Just say you didn't want to go because Shao Yuan had just graduated and you didn't want him to spend money. Then you heard Xiao Daogu and I were both going, so he's charming in front of girls by paying. You going is actually helping him bear witness to his charm."

Ren Yan looked at Chu Qianmiao's glaring face and made up his mind, and the corners of his mouth curled up.

She really can turn black into white and black into color.

"Okay," Ren Yan said as he walked out of the tea room, holding his water cup. "Then I'll go."

Chu Qianmiao was stunned for a moment, and couldn't help but give himself a "Yeah."

That evening, although Ren Yan had honored her by coming to the barbecue restaurant and had some wine and barbecue, he didn't finish the meal and left.

In the middle of the meal, his phone rang. After seeing the number, he stood up and went out to answer the call. When he returned, he apologized to the other three, saying, "Excuse me, there's an emergency; he needs to pick someone up at the airport."

Then he called a designated driver. As soon as the driver arrived, he left.

After he left, Shao Yuan casually remarked, "Who could possibly bother Mr. Ren to go to the airport in person while he's halfway through his meal, even with a designated driver?"

After Ren Yan left, Chu Qianmiao didn't show any regret or unhappiness.

But Gu Miaoyu knew she did feel regretful, because she'd been drinking heavily and drunk as soon as she got home.

Thankfully, Chu Qianmiao didn't make a scene when she was drunk; she just slept.

Gu Miaoyu put her in her room and let her sleep peacefully.

Chu Qianmiao was awakened by a series of ringing phones. When she answered, her voice was hoarse from the alcohol.

She called, staring out the window at the pitch-black darkness, momentarily unsure of what time it was in this world.

Tan Shen's voice came from the receiver. He wasn't a chatterbox. When he spoke seriously, his voice took on an unusually deep tone: "Qian Miao," he said, "I'm back."

Chu Qianmiao was stunned when she heard Tan Shen call her "Qian Miao." "Huh?"

She remembered that he wouldn't randomly call her "Miao" or "A Miao" when they were talking seriously. So, she figured he was serious, not teasing her, and that he had truly returned.

Tan Shen smiled and repeated, "I'm back!" After a pause, he added, "You'll never guess how I got from the airport into the city today!"

Chu Qianmiao was still a little dizzy, and she subconsciously asked, "How did you get in?"

Tan Shen said, "Senior Ren Yan came to pick us up at the airport." He paused, then explained the "we" in "we." "Oh, I happened to be on the same flight as Senior Li Tang, so, luckily, I got a ride with Senior Ren Yan!"

Chu Qianmiao sighed, "Oh."

Li Tang, if she remembered correctly, seemed to be the name of his ex-girlfriend.

So, that was why he'd left the table mid-meal.