Xu Linchuan turned his head and saw Su Qi. His lips moved, but he couldn't speak yet. The moment Su Qi appeared, his eyes were instantly filled only with her.
Gu Tangxue scooped up the soup and brought it to Xu Linchuan's lips. When she realized he wasn't drinking, she followed his gaze and saw Su Qi. Gu Tangxue put down the bowl, stood up, and said, "You're here."
Her expression visibly darkened upon seeing Su Qi.
Su Qi let out a barely perceptible sigh and said helplessly, "Let's sit in the coffee shop downstairs later."
Gu Tangxue glanced at him. "No."
She stayed by Xu Linchuan's side, afraid of anything happening if she left. She even managed his food and daily life at the hospital.
"Come out to the corridor."
Su Qi opened the door and walked out.
After a moment, Gu Tangxue followed. "What is it?"
Her tone was cold and distant.
Su Qi frowned. "You're an actress. Everyone in the crew is waiting for you. Are you going to keep so many people waiting for one man?"
"So what? Linchuan risked his life for you, and what have you done for him? Before Linchuan appeared, I thought my life was only about acting. Linchuan's appearance changed my life. I won't leave his side; I don't want to see anything happen to him."
Su Qi's forehead throbbed.
Indeed, she felt guilty towards Linchuan.
But one thing was one thing.
What Gu Tangxue should be doing now was not being a caregiver.
"I'll arrange for some nurses to look after Linchuan, or at the very least, I'll have Tianhao come. You must return to the set and film as soon as possible!"
"Why should I? I can make my own decisions about my career. You can advise me, but you can't dictate to me, nor can you order me around!"
After speaking, Gu Tangxue turned and went back into the ward, leaving Su Qi with a resolute back.
Su Qi was both angry and helpless.
In college, she had witnessed two girls in the same dormitory fight fiercely over a boy, even resorting to pulling hair and fighting, leading to a bitter estrangement. Su Qi found it unbelievable how two such close friends could become enemies in the blink of an eye.
She never expected it to happen to her, only to realize that such things truly occurred.
This was the path Gu Tangxue had chosen, and she had no right to interfere.
However, Gu Tangxue was the pillar of the company. If Gu Tangxue truly put her career on hold for love, the company would have no revenue.
Yang Tianhao had just signed a performance-based agreement: if the company achieved a hundredfold increase in performance within a year, it could successfully go public.
Leaving the hospital, Su Qi made a phone call. "Tianhao, cultivate new talent. I want to create a second and third Gu Tangxue."
Gu Tangxue's rise to fame was a combination of opportune timing, favorable circumstances, and human effort. Her excellent acting skills, being discovered by Song Heqing, her hard work, and a bit of luck. Xu Linyun was embroiled in scandal, allowing Gu Tangxue to smoothly replace her. Coupled with her professional training, she naturally took over Xu Linyun's position.
Although Ri Linyun was heavily promoted by Huo Tingyun, her acting was mediocre and often criticized. Her appearance also paled in comparison to Gu Tangxue's. Despite her pure and cute looks, she always played leading roles, attracting many anti-fans. Her popularity was slightly lower than Gu Tangxue's.
Su Qi returned home, exhausted both physically and mentally. The food prepared by the housekeeper had gone cold. Su Qi took a shower and lay on the bed, too hungry to sleep. She tossed and turned, the light remaining on.
Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Su Qi got up to open it. Who could it be at this late hour?
She opened the door to find a young man in a yellow delivery uniform holding a large paper bag. As soon as the door opened, he handed her the bag.
"Miss, this is your delivery."
This was a high-end residential area, and delivery people weren't allowed upstairs. How did this young man get up here?
Before Su Qi could ask anything, the delivery person thrust the paper bag into her hands and turned to leave.
"Hey..."
Su Qi watched the delivery person leave, then closed the door with a sigh and placed the paper bag on the table.
After a moment of hesitation, she opened the bag.
Judging by the packaging, it was from a popular Su cuisine restaurant under the Huo family's businesses. It was very popular in Shencheng for its authentic and delicious taste.
Su Qi had been craving it for a long time and had been unable to forget it after eating there once. She hadn't expected someone to deliver it to her in the middle of the night.
Who was it?
Su Yan Ge? Or Linchuan?
Linchuan was still in the hospital; it couldn't be him!
Su Qi opened the paper bag. Inside were many dishes tailored to her taste, along with her favorite congee.
How did Su Yan Ge know she liked these dishes?
Su Qi opened the lids, her mouth watering. She ate ravenously, one bite after another, until she was so full she could barely move.
After eating her fill, she finally had a good night's sleep.
The next day, Su Qi sent a WeChat message to Su Yan. "Thank you, Ge, for the late-night snack last night. I really enjoyed it!"
Late-night snack?
Su Yan, seeing the WeChat message, was surprised.
What late-night snack?
When had he ordered her a late-night snack?
Su Yan held his phone, typed out a message, then thought about it and deleted it all, not sending it.
In the end, he simply replied, "I'm glad you liked it."
After attending a meeting, Su Qi returned to her office and found a bouquet of vibrant roses on her desk. They were a delicate pink, and their unique, beautiful shape indicated they were not a domestic variety.
Yang Tianhao knocked and entered. "Sister Su Qi, I don't know who sent these. They also sent pastries, but I was worried they might be unsafe, so I didn't bring them to you. These roses look very expensive."
He walked over and placed the documents on the desk.
"Sister Su Qi, it seems that being good-looking really pays off. You've already got someone pursuing you. Hurry and tell me, who is it?"
Yang Tianhao's eyes were full of curiosity.
Su Qi put her hands to her forehead in exasperation. "I don't know..."
Could these roses be from Su Yan Ge?
After Yang Tianhao left the office, Su Qi sat in her executive chair and picked up the card attached to the roses.
It contained a line of beautiful, strong calligraphy.
"Did you enjoy the late-night snack? I hope you like the roses. Thank you for that dance."
Su Qi was astonished. Was it the man from that night?
Who was he?
In the afternoon, Su Qi took leave and drove to a temple in the mountains.
She hadn't seen Qin Xue for several days and wondered how she was doing at the temple.
While driving, Su Qi suddenly saw a news item on her phone.
"Second Spring? Huo Tingyun's ex-wife, less than a month after her divorce, is reportedly being pursued, with a large bouquet of roses delivered to her company—"
What the heck?!
Su Qi almost dropped her phone.
She had always known that gossip and entertainment media were sensationalist, but she never expected to become the subject of gossip herself.
Since that press conference, the company's management of her Weibo account had seen a surge in followers, skyrocketing from zero to millions in just a few days. As the account was managed by the company, Su Qi had never logged in, nor had she ever looked at the comments.