Don't ever do that again... Don't use yourself as a weapon to protect yourself.
Ji Yi's mind was scattered with a million feelings. After some time, she let out a soft "Mhm" to He Jichen.
Upon hearing her reply, He Jichen's brows relaxed and he started the car up again. He followed the road and drove straight ahead.
In comparison to how silent he was before, he still didn't speak much but he did start to talk to her again.
"Didn't you say you wanted to walk around the city to see the night view?"
"Where do you want to go?"
"Chang'an Street?"
Ji Yi let out another soft "Mhm."
He Jichen took that as agreement, so he turned left at the road up ahead and drove to Chang'an street.
Ji Yi felt truly warmed by He Jichen's words "Don't ever do that again." She stared outside the window and watched the endlessly retreating neon lights for a while. Without realizing it, Ji Yi naturally told He Jichen the thoughts on her mind that she never planned to tell anyone. "He Jichen, I didn't actually lie to you on purpose..."
Deep down, I never cared about her lying to me... He Jichen instinctively wanted to tell Ji Yi, but before he could, the sound of Ji Yi's soft voice traveled into his ears. "...I wanted to give you a surprise."
Surprise?
He Jichen's fingers quivered around the steering wheel. He chose to stay silent as he waited for Ji Yi to finish.
Ji Yi probably had a lot she wanted to say in her heart as she stared out the window for some time before speaking again. "Well... in the beginning, I never wanted to go to the BL Charity Gala, but I wanted to return to the road you paved for me. I wanted to regain the popularity you generated for me after you spent so much time and money on me in the past..."
I want to not let you down after everything you did for me.
I don't want all the work you put in to go to waste. I didn't want your decisions to fire Director Lin and go against the board of directors to go to waste. What's more, I don't want you to lose your bet with the board of directors.
I wanted to use my own abilities to tell YC that I'm not a total failure. I wanted them to know I'm worth your protection.
With those thoughts, Ji Yi continued to move her lips.
The atmosphere in the car thinned out. Aside from her low, delicate voice, there were no other sounds.
"... I really do hate Qian Ge; I hate her so much that I want to step on her, but He Jichen... Though I let my anger out on Qian Ge tonight, that wasn't my main goal. My main goal was to give you a surprise."
My main goal was to give you a surprise...
Her final word revolved around He Jichen's heart for who knew how many times before he realized that his heart didn't dare believe that what she said was truly meant for him to hear.
The things that I did for her, the things I sacrificed, and the things I lost for her... They were all done willingly by me.
He never imagined that she would pay him back, but at this very moment, she was telling him that everything she did tonight was to give him a surprise.
He Jichen thought about it; this had to be the most beautiful thing he had ever heard in his life.
The surprise came so suddenly that He Jichen lost the ability to speak.
After Ji Yi finished speaking, she stayed silent for some time before she realized exactly what she said.
She sensed that the atmosphere in the room had turned a little odd.
To ease the atmosphere, she half-jokingly said, "What's more, I signed onto YC with great difficulty that I can't let YC shut down now... I still hope YC can support me. What if YC becomes bankrupt..."
Ji Yi wanted to say "What if YC shuts down, then wouldn't I be finished?" but before she could finish, He Jichen suddenly broke his silence. "Without YC, you'll still have me."
Without YC, you'll still have me...
Those few words replayed in slow-motion. Each and every word echoed in Ji Yi's head and unbelievably softened her whole heart.
At that moment, a sudden line came to mind: "The glorious Spring fell into the Autumn waters, the Summer days shine on the Spring mud. From here on out, you are the only one in my heart."
The glorious Spring fell into the Autumn waters, the Summer days shine on the Spring mud. From here on out, you are the only one in my heart, He Jichen.
No matter how she tried to stop her emotions from deepening, she couldn't deny that in her heart, his name, "He Jichen," was there.