novelraw Chapter 193 Ignore Him
Chapter 193 Ignore Him
Lu Xiran changed her clothes into a loose knitted dress. Her ankle was mostly healed, and she no longer felt pain when walking. She looked at herself in the mirror, tied her hair up, then let it down, and finally tied it up again.
The phone rang.
—It is Gu Yanshen.
"Breakfast is ready, and the fruit is washed and on the second shelf of the refrigerator. What would you like for lunch? I'll have someone bring it over—"
"Okay," she interrupted him.
"Ranran, I might not be able to cook lunch..." His tone was cautious.
"I'm just about to go out." Lu Xiran picked up her bag. "You don't need to bring me food."
"Where to?" The voice immediately tightened.
"It's none of your business." Lu Xiran checked the items in her bag.
"Ranran," he called her, his voice lowered, with a hint of pleading.
"Qiqi and Yinuo asked me out." She paused, her voice softening slightly, "I just happened to miss my godson."
There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone.
"Are you going out?" Gu Yanshen's voice changed; it wasn't a question, but a low, tense tone.
Lu Xiran felt unhappy. She had finally wanted to get some fresh air, and her foot injury had been healing for so long, keeping her cooped up indoors every day. What was he still worried about?
"Are you going to lock me up for nine months?" she raised her voice.
"You said before that you would listen to me and wouldn't go out..."
Lu Xiran was stunned. She remembered. Three and a half years ago, when she was newly pregnant, she begged him not to leave her, saying, "I'll listen to you from now on, I won't go anywhere." That was the most humiliating moment of her life, trampling her self-respect underfoot, just begging him to stay. But did he stay?
"Gu Yanshen!" Her voice trembled. "That was three years ago. I begged you not to leave me, and you agreed?" She took a deep breath. "Oh, right, you pushed me away several times. Now it's not me begging you anymore. I don't need you anymore!"
She hung up the phone.
My fingers are still trembling.
She looked at the name on the screen, her eyes welling up. But she didn't cry.
She didn't want to cry for him anymore. She picked up her bag, opened the door, and went out.
Gu Yanshen stared at his phone screen. The call had ended. He dialed again, but there was no answer. He dialed again, still no answer. Everyone in the conference room was waiting for him, so he sent Lin Chen a text message.
"You can arrange it yourself," he said, then turned and left without looking back.
He didn't know why he was so panicked.
She was just going to see Jin Qiqi, just to fulfill a promise, just to have a cup of coffee.
But he was worried. Her foot wasn't fully healed, and when she went out alone, she wouldn't answer the phone—his mind was filled with the image of her almost falling that night, and the scene from three and a half years ago would occasionally replay in his mind.
Extreme joy is followed by extreme worry.
He dialed Jin Qiqi's number, his tone carrying a coldness he himself didn't realize: "Where are you meeting?"
Jin Qiqi paused for a moment, then turned on the speakerphone.
Yinuo called out "Uncle" in a childish voice several times. Jin Qiqi hesitated for a moment, then sent her location to Gu Yanshen.
It's a newly opened coffee shop on the pedestrian street outside Gu's Shopping Mall.
When Gu Yanshen arrived, Lu Xiran had not yet come.
He stood at the shop entrance, watching the people coming and going.
He glanced at his watch, then at the elevator. Why hadn't she arrived yet? Had she gone to the wrong place? Had she twisted her ankle again? He took out his phone, intending to call, then put it down. She wouldn't answer.
Lu Xiran saw him as soon as the elevator doors opened.
He stood at the store entrance, wearing a black overcoat, his posture upright. Girls passing by were all looking at him and whispering among themselves, but he couldn't see anything. He was just staring in the direction of the elevator, his brows furrowed in a tight knot.
She walked over, deliberately avoiding his gaze. "What are you doing here?"
"Security hasn't been arranged yet, I'll go with you first." His voice was very flat, as if he were saying something that was not open to discussion.
Lu Xiran raised her head and looked at him.
His eyes weren't domineering, nor were they controlling.
—It's fear.
She just felt wronged. All she wanted was to have a coffee with Qiqi and play with Yinuo for a while; she just wanted a little bit of freedom. Why did he have to interfere with even this?
"No!" Her voice began to tremble. "You can't restrict my freedom!"
Gu Yanshen looked at her, and his heart softened, but he couldn't back down.
He couldn't let her go out alone, couldn't let her out of his sight, and couldn't let her have any more accidents.
He was scared. Really scared.
"I'll wait outside." He took a step back.
"No!" She glared at him. "How can I talk to Qiqi with you here? With you here—" Her voice choked, "I can't even laugh."
He didn't speak.
He looked at her, for a long time. Then he reached out and gently wiped away the tear that was about to fall from the corner of her eye. The movement was very light, as light as touching a flower petal. She turned her head away, avoiding his gaze.
"Okay," he said. "I won't appear in front of you, and I won't affect you."
He didn't wait for her reply and went into the store first.
Jin Qiqi led Yinuo over, but as soon as Yinuo saw Lu Xiran, she broke free from Jin Qiqi's hand, ran over with her short legs, and hugged Lu Xiran's leg.
"Godmother! Godmother!"
Lu Xiran squatted down and picked him up. The little guy was heavy, making her arms ache, but she couldn't bear to let go. Yinuo hugged her neck, pressed his face against hers, and said in a childish voice, "Godmother smells so good."
Jin Qiqi stood a few steps away, hands on her hips, rolling her eyes. "That ungrateful little thing, I bathe him every day, and he never says I smell nice. But the moment you appear, he acts like he's seen honey." Yi Nuo turned his head, looked at his mother seriously, and said, "Mommy smells bad." Jin Qiqi almost fainted on the spot.
The scent of Yinuo's milk wafted into her nose, soft and warm. She buried her face in Yinuo's little shoulder, without saying a word.
"Where did Uncle go?" Jin Qiqi asked, looking at Gu Yanshen's retreating figure.
Lu Xiran shook her head. "Ignore him."
Lu Xiran kissed Yi Nuo, and Yi Nuo hugged Lu Xiran's neck and kissed her back.
Why didn't you let him come along?
Lu Xiran didn't answer. She put Yi Nuo down and took Yi Nuo's hand. "Let's go," she said, "I want some dessert."
Jin Qiqi didn't ask any more questions. The three of them went into the store. Yi Nuo skipped around, shouting "Cake, cake!"
Yinuo sat in his high chair with a strawberry milkshake in front of him, his mouth covered in pink cream. Lu Xiran wiped his mouth for him, and he smiled at her, revealing two tiny teeth that melted anyone's heart.
"Ranran, you look much better lately." Jin Qiqi, biting her straw, looked her over. "Did Gu Yanshen fatten you up?"
Lu Xiran lowered her head, her fingers tracing the inside of the glass. "Qiqi, I'm pregnant."