I'm Rich - 48
Guan Zhiyi felt helpless over her previous, ridiculous line of thought. Just how much self-confidence did she possess to actually believe that this man, who had treated her strictly like a younger sister for so long, would suddenly harbor romantic feelings for her?
"They're here." Upon entering, Guan Yuanbai saw Qi Chengyan standing in the living room waiting for them.
Guan Yuanbai walked over, patted his shoulder, and whispered, "If you ask me, you should just give in."
Qi Chengyan's expression remained cold. "Not happening."
"Why not? She's pretty great."
"If she's so great, why don't I introduce her to you?"
Guan Yuanbai: "..."
"Xiao Wu, Yuanbai, you're all here. Come, come, let's eat," Qi Mingsheng called out warmly.
Guan Zhiyi nodded and walked over to Qi Mingsheng's side. "Grandpa, what delicious food do we have today?"
Qi Mingsheng always doted on her, patting the back of her hand. "We have several dishes you like. If there's anything else you crave, I'll have the kitchen make it for you."
Guan Zhiyi glanced at the table and smiled. "So much already? No need for extra dishes, there's more than enough."
"Then sit down, let's eat."
Before long, the five of them were seated around the dining table.
"Mengjia, what have you been up to lately?" Qi Mingsheng asked.
Yang Mengjia replied, "My company is working on an energy project right now. My dad wants me to follow along and learn."
"Is that so?" Qi Mingsheng said. "What a coincidence. Chengyan mentioned earlier that he was interested in that sector too. You two could have a good talk about it."
Yang Mengjia hummed in agreement, stealing a glance at Qi Chengyan.
Qi Mingsheng urged, "Chengyan, speak up. What was the name of that project you said you had your eye on last time..."
"Grandpa, didn't you know? After the last board meeting, we put energy projects on hold for now," Qi Chengyan said indifferently.
Qi Mingsheng's smile stiffened slightly. "Is... is that so?"
Qi Chengyan added, "Yeah. Maybe your memory is starting to slip with age."
Qi Mingsheng: "..."
Yang Mengjia interjected, "It's fine, it's fine. I just started following this project anyway and don't know much. Even if we talked, I probably wouldn't have much to say."
"Mengjia, don't be so modest." Qi Mingsheng glared at Qi Chengyan, then turned back to her. "Oh, right, I heard you like traveling. Chengyan has been to many places too. You two can travel together in the future."
"I've been to many places for work. If you're looking for a travel buddy, Hua Hongxi is your man," Qi Chengyan said with a faint smile toward Yang Mengjia. "He's my cousin and really knows how to have fun. I'll introduce him to you next time, Miss Yang."
Yang Mengjia: "..."
Guan Zhiyi ate quietly while observing Qi Mingsheng's expression. She felt as though Grandpa Qi was about to be driven to pure frustration right there and then...
Now that Qi Chengyan had made things so explicit, anyone with eyes could see his intention. Guan Zhiyi thought to herself: so Yang Mengjia wasn't invited to the house by him.
"What are you staring at? Eat." Qi Chengyan suddenly looked up, catching Guan Zhiyi off guard while she was still watching him. Her eyes fluttered nervously, she quickly lowered her head to eat.
"Try this. The chef made it really well today." Qi Chengyan placed a piece of sweet and sour pork into her bowl.
Guan Zhiyi muttered a quiet thank you.
Sitting beside Qi Chengyan, Qi Mingsheng noticed this and yanked on his grandson's clothes under the table, using his eyes to signal him to dish up some food for Yang Mengjia too. Feigning ignorance, Qi Chengyan placed another piece of food into Guan Zhiyi's bowl instead. "This one is pretty good, too."
Guan Zhiyi: "...Oh."
"Can you reach the fish from over there? Forget it, I'll get it for you... Also, this meat is great. Xiao Wu, eat more..." Qi Chengyan kept putting food into her bowl every few moments, his serving speed far exceeding her eating speed.
Within moments, a small mountain of food had piled up on Guan Zhiyi's plate.
The corner of her mouth twitched slightly. As he was about to add yet another piece of food, she stopped him. "That's enough, Gege. I can't finish all this."
Qi Chengyan said, "You're growing. Eat more."
Guan Zhiyi: "..."
Guan Yuanbai cast a glance at Qi Chengyan. "She's been an adult for years. What growing?"
Without turning a hair, Qi Chengyan replied, "Oh. Then gain some weight. She's too thin."
Seeing Qi Chengyan act like this, Guan Yuanbai naturally assumed he was intentionally distancing himself from Yang Mengjia in front of Elder Qi. A subtle smile touched his lips. "Don't worry, I'll take care of my own sister. Mind your own business."
Yet Qi Chengyan merely let out a light laugh, ignoring him completely as he continued to heap food onto Guan Zhiyi's plate.
Elder Qi found the meal completely tasteless. As soon as dinner ended, Yang Mengjia prepared to take her leave.
"Grandpa Qi, I'll be heading out now. Thank you for the hospitality."
"Mengjia, dear, come visit again soon."
"I will, Grandpa."
"Chengyan!" Elder Qi called out sternly as Qi Chengyan emerged from the kitchen. "Mengjia is heading down to her car. Walk her to the garage."
This time, Qi Chengyan did not refuse. Instead, he turned around and grabbed Guan Zhiyi, who was walking out holding a plate of cherries. "Xiao Wu, come with me to see the guest off."
Guan Zhiyi hesitated. "Wait... what about this—"
"Eat it when we get back." Qi Chengyan set the fruit platter aside on a nearby table, pulling her along by the wrist while turning back to call out to Yang Mengjia, "Let's go, Miss Yang."
Yang Mengjia looked at the two of them, then followed along.
By now, Guan Zhiyi fully understood that Qi Chengyan had no romantic interest in Yang Mengjia whatsoever. Dragging her along just to walk a guest out made his intention to avoid suspicion painfully obvious.
"I'm going back..." Guan Zhiyi murmured under her breath.
Before she could finish, he caught her by the shoulder. "We're almost there. What's wrong with walking a guest out together?"
"She's your guest, not mine."
"Same thing."
"How is that the same!"
As the two bickered in hushed tones, Yang Mengjia reached her car.
"President Qi, do you have a moment to talk?" Yang Mengjia turned back and asked.
Seeing her chance, Guan Zhiyi tried to slip away, but Qi Chengyan kept a firm grip on her, rendering her completely unable to move.
"Sure. Go ahead."
Yang Mengjia looked at Guan Zhiyi and smiled faintly. "Alright. Since Zhiyi isn't an outsider either, I'll just speak frankly."
Qi Chengyan nodded.
Yang Mengjia continued, "I like you. I really do."
Just like that, a confession?!
A cold sweat broke out across Guan Zhiyi's back. What was she supposed to be right now, a third wheel? And he wouldn't even let her leave!
Yang Mengjia pressed on: "I came over two days ago because I heard Grandpa's leg was bothering him, hoping I might run into you again. You remember what I said before, right? I truly believe we're a great match, and since I genuinely have feelings for you, I wanted to give it another shot. I know that going to your company under the guise of your fiancée without your permission created a bad impression, but Grandpa had given his blessing back then, and I assumed you had tacitly agreed as well. That's why I did it."
Qi Chengyan let out a soft laugh. "Miss Yang, something like this ought to come from the person involved. My grandfather doesn't speak for me."
"Fair enough." Yang Mengjia let out a small, self-deprecating laugh, a sudden hint of confusion crossing her face. "Still... what exactly is wrong with me that you dislike me so much?"
"I don't dislike you."
"Then why—"
"I simply have someone I like, it wouldn't be right for me to get involved with anyone else."
Guan Zhiyi froze completely. He had someone he liked? It wasn't Yang Mengjia? Then who...
Yang Mengjia was equally stunned. "Is that so? Who do you like?"
Qi Chengyan turned his gaze toward Guan Zhiyi, saying nothing.
Guan Zhiyi met his gaze in utter bewilderment. "...?"
Watching the way Qi Chengyan looked at Guan Zhiyi, Yang Mengjia suddenly recalled all the subtle ways he had looked after her earlier. Enlightenment struck her like a bolt out of the blue. "You... you..."
"Regardless of who I like, it would be unfair to you, Miss Yang, because I care deeply about that person and have no room left to pay attention to anyone else," Qi Chengyan said evenly. "So I don't think you need to waste any more effort on me."
Guan Zhiyi: "?"
Why was he still looking at her?!
Yang Mengjia's face flushed hot and cold by turns. After a long, tense silence, she turned around, opened the car door, and drove away without another word.
As the roar of the engine faded into the distance, an absolute stillness settled over the underground garage—a quiet so profound that one could almost hear the pounding of their own heart.
Guan Zhiyi swallowed with difficulty. "Gege, what are you doing? Do you have any idea how easily that look of yours could be misunderstood?!"
Qi Chengyan released her, his tone calm and composed. "Misunderstood as what?"
"Just now... acting like that, Yang Mengjia is definitely going to misunderstand that you like me! Seriously, using me as a shield like that... I'm going back up to tell Grandpa right now—"
"What if it isn't a misunderstanding?"
"How could it not be... What?" Guan Zhiyi stopped dead in her tracks, her mind going blank with a sudden roar.
"I said, what if it isn't a misunderstanding? How would you feel?"
The tall man stepped closer, closing the distance between them. He looked down at her, his pitch-black eyes catching every ambient ray of light in the dim garage, glittering with a tender, enveloping warmth that seemed ready to draw her in entirely.
Guan Zhiyi opened her mouth, completely lost for words.
What was he saying? Not a misunderstanding?
He liked her, and it wasn't a misunderstanding?
"Did I scare you?" Qi Chengyan let out a soft sigh as he took in her stunned, wide-eyed expression.
He had tried to take things slow, step by step, letting her gradually sense that his feelings were shifting. Had he still managed to frighten her?
Yet regardless of whether it scared her or not, he knew he had to keep going.
Having reached this point, he couldn't stop, nor did he want to.
"What... what do you mean?" Her heart trembled violently, panic washing over her.
"I mean, how about I stop being your Gege?"
Her heart hammered wildly against her ribs, the rush of blood deafening in her ears. Looking at the man standing so close to her, Guan Zhiyi felt almost overwhelmed by the sheer impact of it all.
Yet he showed no intention of letting her off the hook. Reaching out, he gently touched her cheek, his voice dropping low. "Xiao Wu, what if... I became your boyfriend instead?"
Was he out of his mind?
That was the very first thought that crossed her mind.
She stared at him, her hands trembling uncontrollably.
He actually said he liked her?
How could he... suddenly like her?
Guan Zhiyi had no idea how to describe what she was feeling. It was as though she had been tossed into a jar of cotton candy, surrounded by a suffocating sweetness, yet a profound sense of panic gripped her—a terrifying feeling of sinking into something so deep she might never crawl back out.
Moments from the past flashed through her mind: loving him in secret, hearing his rejections, listening to him say he didn't feel that way...
She had already decided to give up. She had stopped holding out hope for him.
So why was this happening now...
Qi Chengyan had anticipated that she might feel bewildered or flustered after his confession, but he had never expected her to cry. Looking at the young girl before him, her eyes rimmed with a heartbreaking shade of red, tears gathered at the brink of spilling over. "Xiao Wu..." He froze.
Guan Zhiyi was so flustered her tongue tied itself in knots. "Are... are you serious?"
A single teardrop broke free as she spoke, falling to the ground like a droplet seeping straight into his heart.
"Of course I'm serious." Qi Chengyan's throat tightened. "Don't cry. I just wanted to let you know how I feel. I'm not asking you to make me your boyfriend right this second. I know this came out of nowhere, but please don't be afraid..."
Guan Zhiyi sniffled, reaching up to wipe her tears away.
Qi Chengyan felt a sudden pang of regret for bringing it up so abruptly, yet he truly hadn't wanted to wait any longer. If he kept waiting, who knew how many more "Yang Mengjias" would keep popping up around him.
"You don't need to give me an answer right away. Take your time and think about it," Qi Chengyan coaxed gently. "Once you've thought it through, you might just find that having Gege as a boyfriend isn't so bad."
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