Liang Jinghe had booked the French restaurant an hour in advance and rearranged the seating, with tables placed in a circle like the group activities in school, appearing very lively.
Everyone sat wherever they wanted. Shen Nian, as usual, chose a corner seat while Li Nan and Jiang Lingling sat on either side of her.
As soon as she sat down, Shen Nian lowered her head to her phone, minimizing her presence.
They had just settled in when the French dishes arrived, one plate per person.
Marseille fish soup, goose liver pâté, Parisian lobster...
All expensive items. Liang Jinghe must have been truly generous to treat so many people.
The waiter then brought over some fruit juices. Liang Jinghe smiled and said to everyone, "French red wine is renowned, but if today were a rest day, I would have opened a couple decent vintage bottles to celebrate. However, since you all need to work this afternoon, it's best to avoid alcohol. So fruit juice it is."
One had to admit, Liang Jinghe had impeccable social graces - humble, courteous, generous without being showy. It's no wonder people liked her so much.
Someone then remarked, "No worries, if we're lucky enough to attend Miss Liang and Mr. Lu's wedding, we can make up for it then!"
Liang Jinghe smiled faintly, "If that day comes, I'll send you all an invitation."
With such an amiable "future boss's wife", the atmosphere was lively.
Everyone started by enjoying the food together, discussing fine dining and drinks. Liang Jinghe had traveled extensively, so she shared insights into different cultures.
The conversation then turned to confessions of love.
Someone suggested Liang Jinghe could choose a venue first.
Another said they could prepare 999 roses, symbolizing eternal love.
Someone else said...
Romance needn't only be created by men; women could do it too. It was a test of who loved whom more.
Since Liang Jinghe adored Lu Lingchuan, she was willing to set aside her reservations for him.
"We could pretend nothing happened, find a way to lure Mr. Lu over, then give him a huge surprise! Miss Liang can step forward and confess her love while we set the mood..."
Just describing it painted a vivid picture.
Liang Jinghe thought it was a good idea, but there was one problem: "But how do we get Lingchuan to come? He won't go without a legitimate reason."
"That's true." The person who suggested it was stumped, having forgotten that detail.
Mr. Lu wouldn't be easily fooled by some random excuse.
Suddenly, the employee had an idea and her eyes lit up. "We could ask Assistant Shen for help!"
All eyes immediately turned to Shen Nian.
"Assistant Shen is Mr. Lu's most trusted aide who has been with him since the company's founding. If she speaks up, she's far more likely to succeed than any of us!"
"..." Shen Nian felt uneasy being stared at by so many eyes.
She had no choice but to look up, meeting the gazes of Liang Jinghe and countless others, all awaiting her response.
Shen Nian averted her eyes uncomfortably and said softly, "I can't do it."
Of everyone present, Lu Lingchuan disliked her the most. She had no such ability.
But the employee grew more enthusiastic. "Assistant Shen, don't be so modest. Mr. Lu trusts you with so much important work. Who here can match you? If even you can't do it, then no one can."
Liang Jinghe gave Shen Nian an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry to trouble you, but could you please help?"
"..." Shen Nian felt as if she had been submerged in an icy December pool, a chill pervading her body and soul.
Their gazes were like icicles, piercing right through her, binding her in place.
Everyone thought this little favor should be easy for Shen Nian.
Little did they know, to her it was the torment of descending into hell.
In the end, Shen Nian could not withstand the weight of so many stares. She said faintly, "I understand."
As soon as the words left her lips, the icicles piercing her disappeared.
With the issue of summoning Lu Lingchuan resolved, the others stopped worrying and continued discussing the confession setup.
.....................
For the rest of the afternoon, Shen Nian remained silent, even during meetings. She sat quietly, lost in her own world.
Soon it was time to leave, but unusually, no one rushed home. Instead, they joined Liang Jinghe to prepare for the confession - flowers, venue, lighting, etc. Everything needed preparation.
With Lu Lingchuan's return approaching, they had to work overtime.
As for Shen Nian, having taken on the task of "calling Lu Lingchuan over", she was not assigned any other work. So she went straight home.
Back home, Shen Nian resumed her solitary routine - eating alone at the table, washing dishes, then showering.
After her shower, dressed in pajamas, she curled up on the sofa and stared blankly into space.
She had no other pastimes. Whenever she had nothing to do, she would gaze at the wall, lost in thought.
"Ding dong --"
"Ding dong ding dong --"
Her phone kept ringing with notifications, snapping her back to reality.
She thought someone had messaged her, but they were just news alerts pushed by various apps.
#Unidentified female body found in the suburbs at 4:30 PM today#
Shen Nian usually ignored gossip, so she paid no attention at first. But when seven or eight identical alerts popped up across different apps, she accidentally tapped one and it opened a fresh report.
She was about to exit but glimpsed certain keywords that made her pause.
She quickly scanned the article for key terms, then instantly switched to Weibo.
The news had exploded there.
She clicked in and saw the report along with a police statement issued three minutes prior.
The statement was clear - an unidentified female body had been discovered in the suburbs. After responding to the report, the police were taking it very seriously and had a professional coroner examine the body on-site.
The coroner confirmed the deceased was a woman around 19 or 20 years old who had been dead for six to seven years.
As soon as the news broke, netizens erupted in outrage, condemning the perpetrator's cruelty.
Seeing the age and time of death reported above, Shen Nian felt a jolt in her heart, and an idea formed in her mind.
But she was not certain yet, so she clutched her phone, refreshing every few minutes to ensure she saw the latest news as soon as possible.
Sure enough, a couple of hours later, new information emerged.
Someone revealed that about seven years ago, a freshman student named Zhang Yueping had suddenly gone missing from a prestigious university in the capital city.
Upon seeing this message, Shen Nian confirmed it.
Lu Lingchuan had taken action.
[Just now, while rereading the previous content, I saw everyone's comments, and I want to explain something to you all ~ From the beginning, my setting for Lu Lingchuan was that he was someone who valued family very much, especially since he had witnessed Lu Lingrui's death before his eyes, that kind of feeling of helplessness when someone you care about leaves in front of you, which added to his pain. Although Shen Nian was not the murderer of Lu Lingrui, the incident they were involved in together, combined with how close they used to be, inseparable like each other's shadow.
Seeing Shen Nian would remind him of Lu Lingrui, and seeing Lu Lingrui would remind him of Shen Nian. This is why Li Mingshi could not see Shen Nian, because seeing Shen Nian's face would remind her of her poor daughter, and remember Lu Lingrui's suicide, which would cause her pain. To be fair, who could accept Shen Nian entering their home again after going through something like this? Lu Lingchuan cared about his mother and Shen Nian, so he has been entangled with Shen Nian, unable to let go of his feelings for Lu Lingrui and his mother, so he could not wholeheartedly be with Shen Nian. That's why he wanted to have a child with Shen Nian; if he had his own child, he might be able to take that step and tell himself to be selfish for his child, to selfishly let go of his care for Lu Lingrui and his mother, and choose his own little family with Shen Nian.
At the root of it, the child was just an excuse, because without a child, he couldn't find an excuse. Isn't that just how the human heart works? When neither choice is right, you'll unconsciously find an excuse to convince yourself to choose the option you want. Lu Lingchuan truly loved Shen Nian, but there were too many ties between them that made it impossible for them to go back to how they used to be.
In summary, they are all pitiable.]
