It was unclear whether the tree next to the chair was blocking the view too well, or if the two people outside were too engrossed, but they suddenly began to engage in indescribable activities.
Gu Junxing also recognized the nature of those sounds. He felt very embarrassed, but if they were to walk out now, it would probably be even more awkward.
Then he thought about Nian Suian, a young girl, and worried it might be inappropriate for her to hear such things. He was just about to cover her ears when he noticed her eyes were sparkling with excitement.
Just as the sounds outside were getting louder, a phone suddenly rang.
Then came the man's exasperated voice, "My dad's looking for me, I have to go."
The woman left soon after. When it was completely quiet outside, Nian Suian finally dared to speak.
"It ended so quickly?" Nian Suian's tone was quite disappointed.
"Did you want to hear more?" Gu Junxing found it amusing that Nian Suian showed no sign of embarrassment, but rather seemed quite interested.
"What's wrong with that? If I can't eat pork or see pigs running, can't I at least listen?"
Hearing Nian Suian's words, Gu Junxing thought of something and coughed lightly without saying anything.
Nian Suian rolled her eyes, inwardly mocking Gu Junxing. A man who had a child at twenty was pretending to be so proper.
However, to prevent Mr. Gu from getting angry out of embarrassment, she didn't say this out loud. Instead, she asked Gu Junxing, "Was that just now Yan Heyu, the youngest son of the Yan Family?" The woman had called him "Young Mr. Yan," and in the Yan Family, only he would be called that.
"Yes, it was him." Gu Junxing had heard before that Yan Heyu was quite casual about his relationships with women, but he never expected such public displays... It was really... "When Yan Heyu first returned from studying abroad, he actively took over the Yan Family's entertainment company. Old Mr. Yan was quite pleased, thinking his son had developed a sense of ambition. Who would have thought that within half a year of taking charge, he'd be embroiled in scandals with several of the company's female artists. That's why he was transferred to the group's headquarters."
"Tch, what a sleaze," Nian Suian frowned in disgust.
"So they sent him to work under his older brother, both for training and to keep an eye on him. But from what we've just seen, it doesn't seem to matter where they put him."
"How can you control that? His legs are his own. For someone like him, unless you castrate him, nothing will work."
Seeing Nian Suian's puffed-up angry look, Gu Junxing patted her head, "Why are you getting so angry? It's not like it has anything to do with us. We should head back now." They couldn't keep hiding outside; they needed to make an appearance inside.
Before going in, Nian Suian took off Gu Junxing's jacket and returned it to him.
The scene inside was similar to when they had left. Everyone was still gathered in small groups chatting. Yan Zhensheng had also come outside, with a large group of people around him, but neither Nian Suian nor Gu Junxing were interested in joining that crowd.
"Sister Suian, you're here too!"
Nian Suian heard someone calling her and turned to see the Xiao sisters, Xiao Yan and Xiao Zheng. One was vivacious, the other refined—truly a feast for the eyes.
Nian Suian greeted them and introduced them to Gu Junxing.
Chatting with pretty young ladies was far more interesting than socializing with Gu Junxing, so Nian Suian quickly abandoned him and found a place to sit and talk with Xiao Yan and Xiao Zheng.
Nian Suian asked Xiao Yan, "When are you planning to go to Germany?"
"I'm leaving next month. My parents said I should go early to avoid adjustment issues later."
Nian Suian nodded, "That's probably for the best. What about you, Xiao Zheng? You should be starting university soon, right?"
"When I first came back, I was behind in my studies, so I repeated the first year of high school. I'll take the college entrance exam next year," Xiao Zheng spoke openly about her past experiences.
"So you're in your final year of high school now? Is the studying tough?"
Xiao Zheng shook her head. After being kidnapped for so many years and finally returning home, her parents would never pressure her to study hard. Even if she came home with the lowest scores in her class, they wouldn't say anything. Repeating her first year of high school was her own decision. She wanted to get into a good university, not for anyone else, but for herself.
"So where do you want to go to university? Will you go with Xiao Yan?"
Bringing this up, Xiao Yan said rather regretfully, "I wish my sister would come with me, but she says she wants to study locally."
"If we all left, our parents would be alone again. Besides, the major I want to study doesn't require going abroad," Xiao Zheng added, then said to Xiao Yan, "Our parents and I will visit you often, and you can come back during your holidays. It's not a big deal."
Nian Suian remembered what Qiao Peipei had told her before, about how Xiao Mo had terminated his contract with the company, paying a hefty sum in compensation, and then donated a significant amount to a charity for finding kidnapped children. After that, he disappeared without a trace, as if he had vanished from the face of the earth. If Xiao Zheng went away to study too, their parents would indeed be left alone again.
None of the three mentioned Xiao Mo, tacitly agreeing to act as if he didn't exist.
Seeing Nian Suian cover her mouth to yawn, Xiao Yan smiled at her, "Sister Suian, are you finding it boring too?"
"Indeed, I don't understand what's so interesting about all this."
Talking about this, Xiao Yan also looked troubled, "We didn't want to come either, but our parents insisted, saying they wanted us to meet more people."
Just as they were speaking, Mrs. Xiao came over, asking the sisters to come and greet some people.
In the blink of an eye, Nian Suian was left alone. She looked around but didn't see Gu Junxing anywhere, so she decided to stay put and wait for him to come find her.
"Excuse me, miss, may I ask your name?" Nian Suian heard the voice but didn't look up until a glass of wine appeared in front of her. Only then did she realize the person was talking to her, and it seemed he might be trying to strike up a conversation.
"I don't drink, thank you." The man in front of her was decent-looking, but Nian Suian disliked the appraising look in his eyes. It made her uncomfortable.
Despite being rejected, the man didn't get angry. Instead, he sat down next to Nian Suian.
"I'm Yan Heyu."
Realizing this was the protagonist of the scene they had overheard in the garden earlier, Nian Suian gave him a second look.
Yan Heyu had no idea his garden escapade had been overheard. He assumed his status as a member of the Yan Family had made an impression and smiled even more alluringly.
"I haven't seen you before. What's your name?" The reason Yan Heyu dared to approach her directly was that he was sure he hadn't seen her before, which to him meant she probably wasn't from an important family.
Nian Suian didn't want to talk to him and stood up, preparing to leave and find Gu Junxing. To her surprise, Yan Heyu grabbed her hand.
"I'm just asking for your name. Why so stingy? Or do you think this will make you more attractive to me?" Yan Heyu thought, what woman would reject the third young master of the Yan Family? Besides, this woman had shown interest when she heard his name. Her current behavior was surely just a ploy to attract him.
Nian Suian was mentally rolling her eyes to the heavens. Where did this lunatic come from, thinking everyone was interested in him?
"Let go."
"Young Mr. Yan, please release my wife's hand." As Gu Junxing spoke, he directly grabbed Yan Heyu's arm. When Yan Heyu loosened his grip in pain, Gu Junxing immediately pulled Nian Suian behind him.