"Ah?" Shi Tiancai was a bit confused.
Song Qinian looked so beautiful when she smiled, why would anyone want her to cry!
Shen Chi Yan didn't want to discuss Song Qinian's crying face with other men, so he waved his hand, signaling Shi Tiancai to get back to what he was doing.
After several rounds of drinks, Shen Chi Yan, unable to refuse the hospitality, had a few more. When he looked back, Song Qinian was gone.
Thinking that Song Qinian might have gone to the restroom, Shen Chi Yan didn't pay it much mind.
After a while, seeing that Song Qinian still hadn't returned, Shen Chi Yan's brows furrowed tightly.
Where the hell did that woman go?
He took out his phone, about to call Song Qinian, then remembered she was mute. With a cold face, he sent a WeChat message, "Where did you go? Get back here immediately!"
After two minutes, without a reply from Song Qinian, Shen Chi Yan's expression grew even uglier.
He first called Gao Kunlun, asking him to find Song Qinian.
He then excused himself from the school officials and also left the hotel.
Shen Chi Yan was always calm and composed, rarely feeling anxious. But the thought that Song Qinian might have encountered something bad made him feel like an ant on a hot pan.
At that moment, Gao Kunlun's call came through.
"Fifth Master..."
"Did you find her?"
"Not yet, but I just heard from the front desk that she seemed to have drunk quite a lot and left the hotel stumbling."
Left the hotel?
Shen Chi Yan's face turned extremely grim. Just as he was about to say something, he suddenly saw Song Qinian sitting on the steps not far away, propped on her hands, looking up at the sky, lost in thought.
"No need to look anymore. Go and drive the car to the hotel entrance."
After hanging up, Shen Chi Yan walked towards Song Qinian step by step.
From a distance, he hadn't seen the expression on her face.
Upon closer inspection, her little face had fallen, and her expression was a little sad.
"What are you doing sitting here? Aren't you afraid of getting dirty!"
Hearing Shen Chi Yan's voice, Song Qinian slowly turned her head. Her beautiful deer-like eyes widened when she saw him, her pupils dilating, and they visibly brightened. She even flashed him a brilliant, charming smile.
In that instant, Shen Chi Yan felt his heart skip a beat.
She had been sad just moments ago, and was she this happy upon seeing him?
Song Qinian extended her hands and gestured. Perhaps she had drunk a lot, as her sign language movements were quite slow. "I was watching the stars in the sky... unfortunately, I didn't see any..."
Then, she pointed at Shen Chi Yan, her smile even brighter. "But I saw a star on the ground. He's so bright and dazzling, shining wherever he stands."
When Song Qinian smiled, two shallow dimples appeared on her cheeks, her eyes curved into crescents, and when she used sign language, she would look deeply into people's eyes, making Shen Chi Yan feel for a moment as if he were her entire world.
But seeing her flushed cheeks and slightly hazy eyes, Shen Chi Yan frowned. "You've been drinking?"
Song Qinian nodded obediently. "They were all so warm and treated me so well. I didn't want to dampen their spirits."
The thought of Song Qinian drinking with other men made Shen Chi Yan very unhappy. "If you were all having such a good time, why did you run out?"
Song Qinian clumsily pointed to her stomach. "It's uncomfortable here, stuffy inside, I don't like it..."
As soon as she finished gesturing, Song Qinian extended her hands towards Shen Chi Yan, a gesture asking for a hug.
Shen Chi Yan instinctively reached out to hug her, but then thought of something and stopped, merely staring at her coldly. "Get up yourself!"
Song Qinian pouted, her hands falling in disappointment. She struggled to get up.
But she had drunk quite a bit, and the alcohol was taking effect, making her body feel very weak.
After finally getting up unsteadily, she hadn't even regained her balance before she began to fall towards the ground.
Shen Chi Yan couldn't bear to watch, rushed forward, grabbed her slender waist, and pulled her into his arms.
The smell of alcohol on her made Shen Chi Yan's face turn green with anger. He had been invited to attend the centenary celebration of Jinghua University, and she was his assistant, serving him.
Now, here she was, having drunk herself into a stupor before he even got drunk.
"Song Qinian, if I ever see you drinking again, you're finished!"
Hearing Shen Chi Yan's threatening voice, Song Qinian's body trembled involuntarily, but she didn't push Shen Chi Yan away. Instead, she hugged him even tighter.
Shen Chi Yan: "...Let go!"
Song Qinian shook her head.
"You think acting spoiled will work?"
At that moment, a couple walked past them. The girl, after a burst of running, jumped onto the boy's back.
The girl hugged the boy's neck, and the boy carried her on his back, running. Their laughter was sweet and happy, undeterred by the car horns and general noise on the street.
Song Qinian watched their receding backs, her eyes filled with envy.
She turned and looked at Shen Chi Yan pitifully, her index fingers fidgeting together.
Shen Chi Yan immediately understood Song Qinian's hidden desire. "You want me to carry you? Don't even think about it."
Song Qinian silently lowered her head. In Shen Chi Yan's eyes, she looked like a little kitten that had been abandoned.
It was as if if he didn't carry her today, didn't fulfill this tiny wish of hers, he would be a wicked devil.
Shi Tiancai hadn't been entirely wrong.
Song Qinian, this woman, had a way of softening people's hearts.
Shen Chi Yan turned around with a dark expression. "Get on!"
Shen Chi Yan was one meter eighty-eight, and Song Qinian was only one meter sixty-three. Even if she jumped as high as she could, she couldn't get onto Shen Chi Yan's back.
Rare as it was for Shen Chi Yan to offer to carry her, to climb onto his back, she could only grab onto his clothes.
Shen Chi Yan's neck was being choked, and his expression worsened. "Are you trying to strangle me?"
Although he said that, his body was very honest. He half-squatted down.
Song Qinian easily climbed onto his back.
Perhaps due to the alcohol, Song Qinian was bolder. She liked Shen Chi Yan so much, liked his scent so much, that she hugged his neck tightly.
This closed the distance between them. A unique fragrance from Song Qinian, mixed with the smell of alcohol, wafted towards him. Shen Chi Yan's body stiffened abruptly. "You..."
Before he could finish speaking, Song Qinian laughed and rubbed her face against his handsome one, her clingy and affectionate demeanor making Shen Chi Yan's words catch in his throat.
Damn it, he might have had too much to drink too, to actually be carrying her!
Besides, now that he was carrying her, what was there to say?
But Song Qinian felt that being carried wasn't enough. She patted Shen Chi Yan's shoulder, pointed her index finger forward, indicating that Shen Chi Yan should run.
Just like the couple earlier.
Shen Chi Yan could no longer tolerate it, gritting his teeth. "Song Qinian, you need to know when to stop!!!"