I Want a Lifetime with You
Chapter 122

"Forget about it then," Su Yian conceded. She figured that there was no need for her to be so worked up over it when Shi Nuan herself appeared unruffled. She came to the conclusion that no matter what Shi Wei said, it did not change the facts. She finally loosened up and said sheepishly, "It looks like I still have a lot to learn to reach your level of serenity."

Shi Nuan just chuckled - she was far from serene. She simply recalled all the times she spent with Fu Chengyan. No matter what happened, Fu Chengyan kept his cool and remained calm and steady at all times. Shi Nuan had been around Fu Chengyan enough to be influenced by him imperceptibly.

Song Rongrong handed two glasses of wine to Shi Nuan and Su Yian, "Let's not talk about her anymore. I heard that all of Prosperous Dynasty's guests are either wealthy or respectable. Liu Min's husband must be quite capable in order to secure this venue, especially since we have the whole floor to ourselves."

Song Rongrong nudged Shi Nuan's shoulder with her own, "Does your husband know who owns Prosperous Dynasty?"

Shi Nuan shook her head, "I didn't ask. Not his, I suppose." If it belonged to him, it would really take Shi Nuan by surprise.

In contrast to the quiet atmosphere on Shi Nuan's side, Shi Wei was swamped by people who came in waves to befriend her for their own benefit. Shi Wei welcomed them with her arms wide opened and a big friendly smile plastered on her face.

Basically, Liu Min had only invited those achievers in the same batch who had certain accomplishments. Hence, Shi Wei did not mind socializing with them. Wave after wave of people came, but in the end, Liu Min pulled her out and said she needed to talk to Shi Wei, "Hey, people, we still have all the time on earth. But now, I have matters to discuss with Shi Wei."

With that, Shi Wei was dragged away by Liu Min, but the crowd was reluctant, and some even tried to follow them. Hence, Shi Wei flashed them a bright smile and said, "I'll catch up with you guys later. I'm pretty sure most of you already have my number."

Shi Wei, being the social butterfly she was, had immediately left them a good impression. After a while, Liu Min had led Shi Wei to a corner. She breathed out a sigh of relief when they were finally away from the crowd, "My dear friend, it's been a while since we've met, and it looks like you are doing quite well!"

"Oh, stop it." Shi Wei squinted her eyes and looked at Liu Min. "You're not too shabby either! With that hotshot husband like yours, only he has the right connections to arrange for such a grand venue in the Prosperous Dynasty." Shi Wei put on a smile when she talked to Liu Min, but her heart was full of disdain.

All this while, Liu Min had always been known as someone competent and not for her looks. She was someone who would be called a plain Jane at school. Hence, Shi Wei would usually try to avoid interactions with her back when they were still classmates. However, Shi Wei did not expect Liu Min's life would turn out so well. It was all thanks to her husband, Song Shen, who was quite the hotshot. He is so much better compared to Fu Xicheng.

Shi Wei bit her lips as she immersed deeply in her thoughts. A sinister look flashed for a mere second in her eyes, but it dissipated when she forced out a smile, "Speaking of which, where is your husband?" "He is still at work. He said he will be here later," Liu Min took a good look at Shi Wei before replying. "You're getting prettier every day."

"Thank you," Shi Wei faked on a smile while responding, "What did you want to tell me?"

"Silly me! I totally forgot about that. My sister-in-law likes you very much, and she wouldn't stop talking about how much she wants to meet you. Since she is still young, my in-laws wanted to keep a close eye on her, and they don't allow her to come to these places. I was just thinking if I could trouble you with an autographed photo. Since this is just to fulfill her wish, I wasn't sure that it would be such a good idea if had asked for your help in front of everyone," Liu Min answered.

It was like Liu Min's silver tongue had got around Shi Wei, stroking her ego, and that made Shi Wei extremely pleased.

"No problem at all. It's just an autographed photo. There's no way I can say no to that. But it's too bad that I don't have my photo with me. Let me just give you an autograph first, and I will give you an autographed photo next time in private," Shi Wei said as she reached in her bag for a piece of paper and signed on it. Then she glanced at Liu Min apologetically, “Liu Min, Anna is waiting for me..." "That's alright. Off you go."

Shi Wei squinted her eyes and left with her head held high.

In the meantime, Liu Min, who was still standing there, took a glance at Shi Wei's signature and casually put it in her bag with an unreadable expression on her face.

When Anna saw Shi Wei coming back, she instantly grabbed her hand and asked, "What did Liu Min want from you?"

"What else could it be? It's just an autographed photo," said Shi Wei nonchalantly. She then scanned through her surroundings, and after a while, her gaze landed on a tall, dark figure. Her eyes sparkled in excitement at the sight of it.

Anna saw the man too, yet her reaction was way different in comparison. She clenched her fists tight, and her face slowly turned red with rage.

Right beside her, Shi Wei observed the look on Anna's face and put on an act. She pouted, tugged at Anna's arm, and appeared flustered, “Anna, it's been years since that happened. It's time to stop thinking about him. Since Qin Yue had stopped caring about you, you should just let it go."

Yet what Shi Wei said had deeply angered Anna. She clenched her jaw and said, "Do you seriously think that I still like him? Well, I don't! It's just that I can't accept what happened a few years ago..." All those memories were nothing but pain that she had tried so hard to block out.

Not only he had rejected me in public, but he had even confessed his love to someone whom I hated the most - Shi Nuan! Right in front of me! And to think that she even had the nerve to turn him down. Humiliation, that was what it was. I'd much rather be slapped in the face.

Ever since then, the scene had left such a big scar in Anna's heart that her hatred towards Shi Nuan grew day by day.

The man who she treated like a precious gem was cast aside by Shi Nuan. It was just something that Anna could not reconcile with, no matter what.

Anna stared at Shi Nuan, who was right across the hall, with her eyes blazing. Shi Nuan was chatting happily with Song Rongrong and the rest, obviously catching up with each other. At one corner, Qin Yue stood by and watched quietly. His gaze never left Shi Nuan for one second, and that made Anna's blood boil. With her fists clenched tightly, she glared at both Shi Nuan and Qin Yue.

"I need to go to the washroom." Shi Nuan said to Song Rongrong and Su Yian, who were obviously unaware of what was going on in Anna's mind. Since Shi Nuan had quite a few drinks, she was a bit tipsy. But Song Rongrong had caught her hand just as she stood up. "Are you alright?" Song Rongrong asked.

Shi Nuan nodded, “I am alright. Just feeling a little dizzy for a split second. It's probably nothing. I'm just heading to the washroom now. You stay and keep them company." Shi Nuan gave Song Rongrong a reassuring look. However, Song Rongrong was still a bit worried, so she said, "Alright then, be careful."

"Yep."

Just as Shi Nuan was leaving the banquet hall, someone had blocked her way. With all the consciousness she had left, Shi Nuan gathered her focus and stared. She then twitched the corner of her mouth, "What's the matter?"

Qin Yue scratched his head uneasily. Ever since he came into the hall, his eyes had never left Shi Nuan. It seemed like time had played a cruel joke on him. Even after all these years, Qin Yue still couldn't forget about Shi Nuan. Not only that, but he had even grown fonder of her. With one glance at her, even from afar, Qin Yue knew that he could never let Shi Nuan go.

"It's been a while, dear friend," Qin Yue chuckled nervously. He was trying his best to act normal.

Shi Nuan curled her lips, "Yes, it's been a while." She took one look at Qin Yue, and of course, how could she miss the gleam in his eyes? Yet, Shi Nuan could not care less. "If there's nothing else, then I'll excuse myself," Shi Nuan said.

"Nuan, can you leave me your contact number? So that we can keep in touch next time. After all, we were classmates," Qin Yue stopped her.

Shi Nuan squinted her eyes and replied, "I'm sorry. Can we just do this when I'm back from the washroom?"

With her eyes almost seeing stars, Shi Nuan could not stand her dizziness any longer. She quickly left before Qin Yue had the chance to respond. Qin Yue watched Shi Nuan's back as she left, but he could no take his eyes off her.

"Hey, you! Do you know what this is? One-sided love!"

Qin Yue frowned and turned around. It was Anna, who had a smug look on her face, jeering at him. He didn't like this one bit. "This is none of your business!"

"You're right," Anna snorted, "do you think I am still the same Anna as before?"

Qin Yue frowned in frustration. He really did not want to spend another second with Anna, so he quickly brushed past her. Anna, however, stayed put and chuckled, "Aren't you curious about what had happened to Shi Nuan all these years?"

Her question had succeeded in drawing his attention. Qin Yue paused in his steps and asked, "What do you know?"

Behind him, Anna still had that smug look on her face. Only now, it seemed to carry another meaning behind it.

In the meantime, Shi Nuan had staggered all the way to look for the washroom. When she finally found it, she dashed into one of the cubicles. After a while, she came out with a look of relief on her face. She stood in front of the countertop basin and stared at the mirror with her face slightly flushed. It was clearly a sign of excessive drinking.

Shi Nuan sighed inexplicably, then she took a handful of water and splashed it on her face. Instantly, she felt more awake. After that, she continued to touch up her makeup.

Right then, her phone rang. When Shi Nuan took out her phone and saw the name of the caller, a smile broke upon her face, "Hello."

"It's me," Fu Chengyan's gentle voice came from the other side of the phone. Shi Nuan had had a bit of a headache before, but she felt a lot better now that she heard his voice. "I know. Are you still outside? Or you have gone home?"

"I'm still outside. I'll pick you up shortly. Where are you now?" Fu Chengyan said as his slender fingers lightly tapped on his knee.

"Prosperous Dynasty. But isn't that a bit too far? It's alright, I got this," Shi Nuan said.

"Did you drink? You should never drink and drive. I happened to be at Prosperous Dynasty, with Heng and the rest." Fu Chengyan replied with a smile.

Shi Nuan knew exactly how much she drank. Even if Fu Chengyan had not called, she knew it would be impossible for her to drive back home by herself. When Shi Nuan learned Fu Chengyan was at Prosperous Dynasty too, she agreed to it immediately, "What time are you finishing? Just let me know once you are done. I can leave anytime now."

"I still need another half an hour," said Fu Chengyan. That being said, he was instantly met by a few pairs of probing eyes; they were from his companions who were sitting across him. Fu Chengyan slightly raised his eyebrows and curled his lips in response, "My wife is rushing me. Those of you who aren't married would never understand."

"Excuse me, Chengyan, but what do you mean by that?"

Shi Nuan overheard a deep heavy voice in the background that sounded like a protest. Soon after, Su Shaoqing's voice followed, "Chengyan, don't get too cocky just because you are married. Shame on you!" Shi Nuan giggled, and Fu Chengyan's dark-colored eyes twinkled cheekily. "Cocky? This is nothing. I can do better than that!" He then said to Shi Nuan, "May, give me a minute, will you?"

"Sure. Then I will see you later," Shi Nuan chuckled lightly and shook her head. Right after Shi Nuan finished her sentence, the lights in the washroom flickered. Pop! And the washroom went into complete darkness. "Ahh!"