Chapter 32

Guan Shanyan added Mrs. Chen on social media but hadn’t contacted her much. He found her in the list and sent a message: [Hello Mrs. Chen, sorry to bother you. I’d like to ask about someone.]
Mrs. Chen, socially active and holding a key role in the Chen family company, usually wouldn’t respond immediately. But no sooner had Guan Shanyan put down his phone than it lit up again.
Mrs. Chen: [No need to be so formal, you can just talk to me normally [smirk]. Who do you want to ask about?]
Guan Shanyan: [Chen Qing’s girlfriend, Xu Qairan. She’s my sister’s friend.]
This time, Mrs. Chen sent a voice message after a short delay. Guan Shanyan called Shen Youwei over to play it.
[Do you mean Shen Youwei? I remember Xu Qairan used to work with her. We don’t usually interfere in Chen Qing’s private life, but a while ago he asked me to arrange Xu Qairan into the company. In the end, she didn’t come.]
Shen Youwei frowned: [If Xu Qairan didn’t go to the Chen company, where did she go?]
Guan Shanyan sent another message: [Do you know where they are now? We can’t contact Xu Qairan and are worried something might have happened.]
Mrs. Chen replied by voice: [Probably hiding from debts. Chen Qing asked me for money before; I didn’t give it. I said he won’t get another penny until he quits gambling. He’s also been missing from the company for days. We’re used to not seeing him.]
“…” Shen Youwei couldn’t help but comment: “Mrs. Chen really doesn’t seem to care about Chen Qing at all.”
Guan Shanyan: “This kind of thing has happened many times. They’re too lazy to care. If Chen Qing truly runs out of options, he’ll have to return to the Chen family and show up himself.”
“Makes sense. I don’t care about Chen Qing either, as long as he doesn’t drag Xu Qairan down.”
Guan Shanyan replied to Mrs. Chen and told Shen Youwei: [They’re a couple now; trouble for one means trouble for the other.]
“…” Could people stop picking men out of garbage bins? Even her own mother doesn’t care, yet Xu Qairan treats him like treasure!
Guan Shanyan asked curiously: “Where did Xu Qairan and Chen Qing meet?”
Shen Youwei: “By the garbage bin, I guess.”
Guan Shanyan: “…”
“How do I even reply to Aunt Xu?” Shen Youwei was worried sick. Xu Qairan was raised by a single mother; if anything happened, Aunt Xu wouldn’t be able to accept it.
Guan Shanyan glanced at his phone: “Mrs. Chen said she would contact Chen Qing and have him tell Xu Qairan to call her mother.”
“That’s great.” The Chen family was Chen Qing’s final support; he wouldn’t cut ties. “I’ll have Aunt Xu wait for Xu Qairan’s call.”
While Shen Youwei was on the phone with Aunt Xu, the takeout Guan Shanyan ordered arrived. He got bowls and utensils and placed the food on the table. Shen Youwei hung up and walked over: “I hope Xu Qairan can contact her mom soon.”
Guan Shanyan poured her a bowl of soup: “Don’t worry so much about others. How’s the recruitment going at your studio?”
Shen Youwei drank a spoonful and said: “You wouldn’t believe it, my inbox was almost overwhelmed. Many people weren’t even serious applicants, but after filtering, I selected five for interviews.”
Guan Shanyan nodded and sat opposite her: “When are the interviews?”
“The day after tomorrow, in my studio.”
“Then I’ll go with you. I don’t trust you going alone.”
Shen Youwei looked up at him in surprise: “The day after tomorrow is Wednesday. Don’t you have work?”
“I’m the boss. Even if I go later, no one can dock my pay.”
“Oh, being your own boss really is the best.” Shen Youwei smiled: “Looks like starting my own studio was a wise decision.”
“…” Guan Shanyan didn’t speak, only lifted the bowl and quietly sipped his soup. What was going on today? Earlier, Shen Youwei’s head tilt had seemed so cute, and now her smile looked so pretty,
His little sister really knew how to get things done.
“You’re not talking bad about me in your head, are you?” Shen Youwei narrowed her eyes at him.
Guan Shanyan choked slightly, setting down the bowl: “I’m not.”
“Your guilty look makes it even more obvious.” Shen Youwei and Guan Shanyan had grown up together; they knew each other too well. That expression was him scolding her silently in his mind!
“I didn’t make you angry just now, so what are you scolding me for?”
“I already said I’m not.”
“Yeah, right. Sure I believe you.” Shen Youwei picked up her chopsticks and started eating.
Even though they had ordered takeout for dinner, there were still dishes and the table to clean. Shen Youwei played with Tianquan nearby while Guan Shanyan tidied up the trash.
Seeing him go into the kitchen, Shen Youwei’s gaze flickered, and she quietly followed. Guan Shanyan tied up the trash and placed the dishes into the dishwasher, suddenly feeling a pair of eyes staring at him. He turned to see,
Sure enough, Shen Youwei’s mischievous head peeking around the corner.
“What are you doing?”
“!” Shen Youwei hadn’t expected him to turn around and didn’t have time to hide, getting caught red-handed. She chuckled softly and said, “I just wanted to see if you needed any help.”
“No, go play.”
“Okay.” Shen Youwei called Tianquan, and they went to the living room to play.
Guan Shanyan watched her, eyes darkening slightly.
Shen Youwei had been acting unusually the past couple of days. When he was making juice yesterday, had she seen him?
He hadn’t planned to hide his somewhat extraordinary abilities, but first, no one would believe it if he just told them, and second, he didn’t want to scare Shen Youwei.
Judging by her reactions, she didn’t seem too frightened, and the last time at the buffet, she had even changed the outcome of the lottery, which made him suspicious.
Could it be that someone else also had extraordinary abilities besides him?
Both had questions in mind but didn’t bring them up. Soon it was Wednesday, and Guan Shanyan accompanied Shen Youwei to her studio for the assistant interviews.
“My brother will come today too.” Shen Youwei sat in the passenger seat, pulling the seatbelt across. “Oh, I mean Luo Yu.”
Guan Shanyan’s eyebrows lowered slightly, clearly not wanting to see him: “Why is he coming?”
Shen Youwei explained: “A batch of custom soft furnishings is being delivered today. He’s helping me supervise the installation.”
She had deliberately scheduled the interview for today to avoid making two trips.
Guan Shanyan nodded silently. Luo Yu was her biological brother, so he had no reason to forbid the meeting.
“He wants to take me out for lunch. Are you coming?” Shen Youwei asked, knowing the relationship between Luo Yu and Guan Shanyan wasn’t good. “If you don’t want to, it’s fine; he probably wouldn’t agree anyway.”
“…” Guan Shanyan didn’t respond as she expected. “Sure, where?”
Shen Youwei was momentarily stunned: “You’re really going?”
Guan Shanyan drove while glancing at her: “So you weren’t sincerely inviting me, huh?”
“!” Shen Youwei silently grabbed her phone and notified Luo Yu that Guan Shanyan would join for lunch. “He said the restaurant is called Ludao. I haven’t been there before.”
Guan Shanyan had been there. The restaurant was refined and upscale, but he couldn’t help frowning: “Doesn’t he know Ludao is on a hill?”
“Huh?” Shen Youwei paused. “We have to climb a hill?”
“Not really, it’s just a small slope; cars can drive up.” It was spring, and the scenery was beautiful. That was probably why Luo Yu specifically chose this restaurant.
“That should be fine then.” Shen Youwei looked up some photos and said excitedly, “They even have a deer park?”
“Yes, I saw some sika deer last time. The scenery is nice.”
Shen Youwei glanced at him: “You just returned to the country, but you’ve already been to a lot of places.”
This Ludao restaurant was newly built, yet Guan Shanyan had been there before.
“I’m a male celebrity. I have to attend many events,” he said.
Shen Youwei: “Copycat, stealing my idea.
The interviews were scheduled for 10 a.m. Shen Youwei arrived early to receive the furniture, but the delivery team was even earlier. When she arrived, the installers and Luo Yu were already there.
“You’re just in time, little sister. Look at this cabinet, it’s just installed. Do you like it?”
Shen Youwei checked it and found it well made, just like in the pictures: “It looks great! It fits perfectly here!”
“Of course, my careful selection,” Luo Yu said proudly, patting his chest. He noticed Guan Shanyan nearby: “What are you doing here?”
Guan Shanyan expressionlessly: “There’s an interview today. I’m here to supervise.”
“Oh, I heard you’re joining us for lunch too?” Luo Yu glared at him. “Designer Guan, aren’t you busy?”
“Even if I’m busy, I have to eat. But you,” Guan Shanyan slightly turned, eyes cold: “You don’t know that Youwei is afraid of hills, yet you invite her to a restaurant on a mountain?”
Luo Yu was taken aback. He remembered hearing about Shen Youwei’s fear of hills but had forgotten: “Ludao is just a small slope. If she’s scared, I’ll choose another place.”
Guan Shanyan: “Make sure it has a deer park too. Youwei wants to see the sika deer.”
Luo Yu: “!”
He knew Guan Shanyan was deliberately picking a fight.
“Brother, help me put the sign by the door so the interviewees can see it.” Shen Youwei pulled out the sign she printed yesterday. Both men reached for it at the same time.
Shen Youwei stared at the two tall men and fell silent.
Luo Yu first challenged Guan Shanyan: “She calls you brother, are you her brother?”
“Heh.” Guan Shanyan coldly: “She’s been calling me brother for over ten years. What about you?”
“Since she was born, I’ve been her brother. I’ve been her brother for twenty-five years. What about you?”
The furniture installers secretly stared at them. Shen Youwei, embarrassed, shoved the sign into Luo Yu’s hand: “You take it.”