Deep Fog Kiss

"Chu Chu, I don't think I've ever told you about myself before." Jiang Li took a sip of wine, then turned to look at her and spoke frankly, "I'm not actually from Jingzhou. I was born in Nancheng."

Shen Nianchu stared intently at her, listening attentively as she told her story.

"When I was eight years old, my father died instantly in a car accident. I witnessed that accident and I will never forget that day."

Shen Nianchu gasped. When she was abroad, she only saw Jiang Li's brilliance.

Jiang Li is beautiful; among the crowd of blond-haired, blue-eyed foreigners, her perfectly proportioned Eastern face stands out. She's also academically gifted, winning scholarships left and right, and is always the center of attention wherever she goes.

Shen Nianchu had no idea that such a painful thing had happened to her.

She gently patted Jiang Li's head with a pained expression. "You and your aunt must have had a very difficult time all these years."

Jiang Li smiled gently, revealing her shallow dimples. "My mother passed away when I was one year old. I have no memory of what my mother looked like."

Shen Nianchu's hand, which was resting on her head, suddenly froze. Looking at Jiang Li's smile, she felt like crying.

She suddenly slapped her mouth, "Look at my mouth, what am I saying?"

Jiang Li stopped her hand and smiled, "I'm used to it."

As if afraid of hurting her, Shen Nianchu asked cautiously, "So... do you live in Jingzhou with your other relatives?"

"Family..." Jiang Li blinked her long eyelashes, savoring the two words.

To be precise, she has no relatives left.

Was Gu Zhishen family? She didn't know.

Perhaps their relationship is no longer even that of family.

She gently shook her head. "I have no relatives. I was taken in and fostered in Jingzhou."

Shen Nianchu frowned and looked at her in surprise.

After a while, her eyes stung and she felt a pang of heartache.

She suddenly stood up, her expression serious and earnest. "From now on, I'm your family! Although I, Shen Nianchu, am a little luckier than you with a father and mother, my father has never cared for me and my mother has never looked after me. It's almost like I have no parents at all."

She smiled easily, opened her arms, and said, "From now on, we're not just business partners, but friends, best friends, and family!"

Jiang Li stood up and stared at her for two seconds. "Is she a best friend or family?"

"She's my best friend!" Shen Nianchu looked at her sincerely and repeated, "She's family!"

Jiang Li smiled, her eyes red-rimmed, and hugged her tightly.

Fortunately, in this vast city of Jingzhou, she wasn't homeless and helpless.

She finally has a friend with whom she can speak her mind.

......

In the early morning, the morning light peeked into the messy living room through the gaps in the warm-colored curtains.

The room was filled with the slightly intoxicating smell of alcohol, and empty bottles lay scattered on the coffee table and carpet.

Jiang Li frowned slightly, propped herself up on the sofa and sat up, her eyes slightly open, her head throbbing.

She glanced around the living room, which looked like a disaster scene.

The scene of me getting drunk in the middle of the night vaguely appeared in my mind.

After sharing their innermost thoughts, she and Shen Nianchu embraced and cried for a long time, drinking bottle after bottle of alcohol until they were completely drunk.

She vaguely remembers the two of them standing on the table and sofa, laughing and crying, shouting to each other like lunatics that they wanted to be each other's parents.

In the end, they didn't know how much they drank, and the two of them just rolled around on the sofa and fell asleep in a haphazard way.

Her gaze fell on the other sofa, where Shen Nianchu was clearly still drunk, sleeping soundly with her pillow in her arms.

She suddenly smiled gently, her eyes crinkling into crescents.

She had a terrible headache, perhaps because she drank too much last night.

Shaking his head, just as he was about to get up from the sofa, a sudden cell phone ringtone broke the silence of the room.

She looked at the incoming call—it was a call from the Gu family.

"Feed?"

She answered the phone, her voice unusually hoarse.

"Xiao Li?" It was Grandma Wang Shiyin on the other end of the phone. "What's wrong with your voice? Do you have a cold?"

"Great-grandmother?" Jiang Li was mostly sober from her hangover and obviously couldn't tell the truth that she had been drunk all night, so she quickly said, "No, I might have caught a bit of a cold."

"That's good. Take care of yourself as the weather gets colder." The old lady asked with a smile, "Do you have time to come back today?"

"I'm free," Jiang Li asked hurriedly. "Is there something you need, Great-Grandma?"

"There is something to be happy about. We have guests coming over today, and I was thinking that you haven't been home for a meal since you came back. Let's all have a meal together today."

The old lady said cheerfully, "Your uncle will be coming too."

Jiang Li's eyes dimmed slightly when Gu Zhishen was mentioned.

She glanced at the sleeping Shen Nianchu and replied softly, "Okay."

After hanging up the phone, Jiang Li got up from the sofa, feeling dizzy and lightheaded.

She patted her forehead lightly, clearly having been quite drunk the night before.

After a while, she went to the bathroom to wash up.

When I looked up, I was startled by my reflection in the mirror.

The person in the mirror still looked pretty, but her face was as pale as paper, and there was a dark circle under her eyes.

After quickly washing up and changing her clothes, she tidied up the messy living room, gently covered Shen Nianchu with a blanket, left a note, and went out.

The Gu family values ​​rules and face, and since the old lady said that guests were coming today, Jiang Li naturally dared not attend without a mask.

She first went back to Beishan Villa, changed into clean clothes, and put on light makeup before taking a taxi to the Gu residence.

......

"Ah Shen has reached the age of thirty, it's indeed time for him to settle down. Suqin, could you help me decide, among these daughters of prominent families, which one is more suitable?"

As soon as Jiang Li arrived at the old lady's door, she heard the conversation inside.

She stopped in her tracks and held her breath.

"Chairman Su's daughter is lively and lovely, and her personality complements Zhi Shen's. President Yu's daughter is outstanding and capable, and she is indeed a good match for Zhi Shen in terms of career. Director Xie's daughter is quiet and gentle, with a good reputation, and she is a virtuous wife."

Feng Suqin smiled gently, "These girls each have their own merits. Which one do you prefer, sir?"

The old lady held a few photos between her fingers, pulled one out, and smiled, "I think this one is nice."

Feng Suqin looked at the girl in the photo, "It seems that Mom has taken a liking to Wanqing."

Outside the door, Jiang Li's breath hitched.

Late Qing Dynasty?

Yu Wanqing?

Inside the house, the old lady smiled kindly and said, "Old Yu had a very good personal relationship with Yue Ze before he passed away. Wan Qing is about the same age as Ashen. She is beautiful and capable. I think she is very good."

"Wanqing is indeed smart and capable," Feng Suqin praised. "After Old President Yu passed away, she single-handedly supported the Yu family and is now serving as the vice president of Zhishen's company."

"Moreover, Mr. Yu was a long-time shareholder of the Gu Group, and he left his shares to Wanqing to inherit. If the Yu family and our Gu family were to form a marriage alliance, Wanqing would be a great help to Zhishen's future career in the Gu Group."

Feng Suqin smiled gently, "Mom has thought this through very well."

"Sigh." The old lady sighed. "I haven't thought about career or shares. I just feel that Ah Shen is career-oriented and Wan Qing is smart and capable. They will have common ground in this regard."

"Moreover," the old lady said with a smile, "Ah Shen seems quite satisfied with Wan Qing as well."

Jiang Li's fingertips clenched her palms so tightly that she didn't even realize they were red.

She stood at the door, her breathing erratic.

Is Gu Zhishen really going to marry Yu Wanqing?