Chapter 16 Mr. Guan Is Getting Engaged

Chapter 16: Mr. Guan Is Getting Engaged

With the backing of Guan Junshan’s attorney, the subsequent matters were resolved smoothly.

The driver stopped the car outside the gates of the University of Hong Kong. Attorney Zheng got out, bag in hand, while Lin Haoda sat in the back seat. “Attorney Zheng,” he leaned out the window, hesitating, “Maybe I should still come with you…”

“No need.” Attorney Zheng glanced at his watch and smiled at him. “If you’re there, the other party might get emotional.”

“I’ll try to wrap this up quickly.” His tone was relaxed and confident. “Shouldn’t take more than half an hour.”

Lin Haoda nodded in response, the worry on his face fading a bit.

Ten minutes later, Attorney Zheng arrived at the men’s dorm. Lin Haoda received the message and, as planned, dialed Liang Yuan’s number.

Sure enough, Liang Yuan hung up quickly.

Lin Haoda tried a couple more times. When he was sure Liang Yuan didn’t want to talk, he sent him a text: Fine, don’t answer. My lawyer is already waiting for you downstairs.

Within a minute, Liang Yuan immediately called back. This time, it was Lin Haoda’s turn to hang up, then promptly blocked his number.

“He’s on his way down,” Attorney Zheng informed him from the other end. “I’ll talk to him first. I’ll update you later.”

But the wait turned out to be even more nerve-wracking than Lin Haoda had imagined. He sat restlessly in the car for over ten minutes, constantly checking the time on his phone, until the sky darkened and the streetlights came on one by one.

The dusk deepened, and the lights softened the street scene. Lin Haoda felt a bit dazed, and for some reason, he remembered the early days with Liang Yuan. It was a long, harsh winter. Their rented one-bedroom had an energy-hogging AC, so to save money, they’d hold hands and walk to the fast-food place across the street. They’d order the cheapest two-person combo, mooching off the free Wi-Fi, electricity, and heat, sitting there all afternoon.

One evening, just as the sky was getting dark like this, Liang Yuan ran to the convenience store next door to buy him hot cocoa—just because it was two yuan cheaper. On his way back, he wasn’t paying attention, slipped, and fell into the snow. Lin Haoda pushed the door open and ran out. Under the warm streetlights, Liang Yuan had an innocent smile, and the hot cocoa splashed on his scarf, sending up a white mist, making his eyes sparkle.

Back then, he said, “Haoda, every winter from now on I’ll buy you a cup of hot cocoa.”

Lin Haoda wasn’t disappointed. He had already worn down and processed all his emotions on his own, leaving only a trace of stubborn sorrow he couldn’t get past, which he saw as regret.

But it was a pity that no one could reverse the final direction of a relationship. When true feelings turn sour, the Liang Yuan who would cheerfully bring him a cup of hot cocoa had vanished from this world.

The driver glanced at Lin Haoda several times through the rearview mirror. Maybe noticing his reddened eyes, the driver spoke up, “Mr. Lin, you seem a bit down. How about we drive around campus?”

Lin Haoda hesitated. “Can we drive in? Wouldn’t they stop us?”

“No,” the driver said. “Our CEO Guan used to come here often for business. Security knows him.”

The car went through the main gate without any problem. With the last light of sunset, the driver drove him through thick, shady trees and finally stopped near the sports field.

The evening star, newly risen, hung in the sky. Lin Haoda leaned out of the car window, quietly watching for a moment. The evening breeze blew through the car, carrying a fresh, subtle scent of grass and woods.

At some point, the driver had turned on the radio, flipping through a few channels before settling on a news broadcast.

Piecing things together, Lin Haoda could barely understand most of it. He caught a keyword, stayed quiet for a few seconds, then couldn’t help asking, “Did I just hear Mr. Guan’s name?”

“Yeah,” the driver said, volunteering the information. “Mr. Guan is getting engaged.”

“Engaged?” Lin Haoda was a bit surprised. After a brief pause, he quickly added, “That’s great news. Congratulations.”

Every word of praise for Guan Junshan seemed to please the driver immensely. He took out his phone, found a photo of his boss’s fiancée online, and proudly showed it to Lin Haoda in the back seat. “Pretty, and she’s the daughter of a big boss. They really are a great match!”

Lin Haoda glanced at the phone screen and said, “A great match,” then added with a blessing, “May they last a long time.”

The driver was very pleased and thanked Lin Haoda on behalf of Guan Junshan.

It wasn’t even 8 o’clock yet when Attorney Zheng finally finished. The driver got a call and drove back around to the school gate to pick him up.

Attorney Zheng got in, first unscrewed a bottle of water, and took a couple of sips. Lin Haoda waited for him to finish drinking before asking, “Did it go smoothly?”

“All settled,” Attorney Zheng said as he fastened his seatbelt and turned around. “He accepted all our demands.”

Lin Haoda leaned back into the seat and let out a long sigh of relief. “That’s great.”

A smile appeared on his face, and he added, “Thank you, Attorney Zheng.”

Lin Haoda offered to treat him to dinner as a token of thanks, but Attorney Zheng looked a bit hesitant. “I still have a lot of cases to handle at the office.”

Lin Haoda graciously backed off, saying they could do it another time, and urged him to definitely let him know if he ever had a business trip to Shanghai.

The driver dropped Attorney Zheng off at the law firm building, then asked Lin Haoda where he wanted to go next.

Lin Haoda asked tentatively, “Is Mr. Guan busy right now?”

The driver told him that Mr. Guan had asked to be driven to the company by 9:30 and was probably still swamped with work.

Lin Haoda said “That’s fine,” already determined to go find him.

Guan Junshan was delayed by a board meeting. He walked out of the company building close to 10 o’clock.

Lin Haoda was too hungry, so he went to a bakery across the street and bought two discounted doughnuts. He couldn’t resist and ended up eating one in Guan Junshan’s car.

He had planned it well—finish eating, get out of the car, and stand by the side, waiting. That way, it would clear him of suspicion and also show more sincerity. The driver was also happy to help cover up the evidence, agreeing to open all the doors and windows wide to air out the smell.

Unfortunately, Guan Junshan showed up a bit earlier than expected. Just as he was pulling the door open to get in, Lin Haoda hurriedly tried to shove his doughnut into his bag.

“What are you doing?” Guan Junshan didn’t get in right away. He stood outside the car, arms crossed, bending down slightly to look at Lin Haoda. “Sneaking around.”

“Nothing.” Lin Haoda pretended not to know, stalled for a while, then said in a guilty voice, “I’m not doing anything.”

Guan Junshan frowned at him for a long moment, then reluctantly got into the car.

Seeing all the windows wide open, he stopped Lin Haoda, who was about to get out and move to the front seat, and asked, “Did you eat something in my car?”

Lin Haoda said “Ah,” pretended not to know, stalled for a while, then finally defended himself, “The smell isn’t that strong, is it?”

There was a faint, sweet aroma of cream in the air. Lin Haoda couldn’t smell it himself, but for Guan Junshan, who didn’t have much of a sweet tooth, it was easy to guess.

Guan Junshan smirked, but didn’t bother telling Lin Haoda that there was a dusting of powdered sugar still above his upper lip. He told the driver to get moving.

The driver asked where to go, and Guan Junshan gave a name. The car slowly started rolling.

Lin Haoda was silent for a long time, troubled by guilt. Finally, he admitted his mistake, “Sorry, I shouldn’t have eaten in your car like that.”

He paused a moment, then promised, “I won’t do it again…”

But he suddenly realized that maybe there wouldn’t be a next time.

Guan Junshan saw him looking down, silent, and averted his gaze, changing the subject. “How did the matter go?”

“Very smoothly,” Lin Haoda said quickly, a smile spreading across his face. “Attorney Zheng is really capable and reliable.”

Guan Junshan stared straight ahead and, after a moment, asked, “Since it went so smoothly, what else did you come to see me about?”

He never missed a chance to assume the worst of people.

Lin Haoda, however, didn't mind his cold, aloof way—or rather, he'd gotten used to it. After all, Guan Junshan probably had no need to put on a nice face for anyone, and that didn't necessarily make him a harsh person. On the contrary, Guan Junshan often did more than he said.

Thinking of this, Lin Haoda leaned in a little closer and went ahead: "Thank you."

Guan Junshan wasn't used to being thanked so sincerely, especially face-to-face. He cleared his throat slightly, looking away a bit: "No need. It's nothing."

Seizing the moment, Lin Haoda asked: "Can I treat you to a meal?"

Guan Junshan turned his head, paused for a few seconds, and told him, "I have to go to the hospital later. I don't have much time."

"Just half an hour," Lin Haoda said, persistent for once. "No, twenty minutes is enough."

He was insistent on treating Guan Junshan to dinner, even though it was already late into the night, which reminded Guan Junshan of the jacket Lin Haoda had gotten cleaned.

Guan Junshan didn't immediately answer "yes" or "no." He rolled down the car window and made a phone call, the wind blowing in and muffling his voice.

After hanging up, Guan Junshan told the driver to skip the hospital for now, then turned his gaze to Lin Haoda and asked, "Where to?"

At the tail end of the day, near its close, Lin Haoda finally got to check in at the trendy restaurant he had originally planned to visit.

It was 10:30, past the peak dinner rush. They were the only two left in the place. The owner warmly packed up all the remaining ingredients for their table in exchange for two good reviews from them.

Guan Junshan had no review app and never needed one, so Lin Haoda casually switched to his alt account right in front of him, writing heartfelt, lengthy reviews for each post.

"Lin Haoda," Guan Junshan said, maybe just out of curiosity, "Is this really the place you had to eat in Hong Kong?"

"No," Lin Haoda put down his phone and told the truth. "I just searched for it when I went out this afternoon."

Guan Junshan looked at him, and predictably, his expression cooled a few degrees. So Lin Haoda's gratitude wasn't as genuine as it seemed.

"Because I never thought things would go this smoothly," Lin Haoda said, pouring Guan Junshan a full glass of juice, continuing, "I don't know anyone here. Listening to Cantonese feels like fumbling around in the dark, and as you know, my luck is really bad..."

Lin Haoda touched his nose and lowered his head with a smile. "To be honest, I didn't have high hopes going in."

Guan Junshan took a sip of juice and started to say something when Lin Haoda suddenly looked up, a pure joy reflected in his eyes from the streetlights like falling stars in the sky—so innocent he could hardly look away.

He thanked Guan Junshan again, finished the sparkling juice in his glass, and said, "If there's ever a chance in the future, you absolutely have to let me return the favor."

Guan Junshan's throat itched slightly. It was rare for him to encounter a request he didn't know how to respond to. Even though he knew they probably wouldn't see each other again, he still murmured an acknowledgment and said to Lin Haoda, "Hopefully."

This area was pedestrian-only, so the driver had parked the car in a lot about a kilometer away.

After dinner, Lin Haoda followed Guan Junshan toward the parking lot. They walked single file, with little conversation and no topic to bridge the gap.

Guan Junshan was as handsome as ever, in a sharp suit, striding briskly through rows of neon lights, completely oblivious to Lin Haoda behind him.

Several times, Lin Haoda wanted to ask him to slow down but ended up hesitating. Guan Junshan was in a hurry to get to his next stop, and Lin Haoda had no right to make demands.

This subtle, neither-close-nor-far distance was soon broken. Halfway there, Guan Junshan took a call, seemingly about business. Holding the phone, he stopped walking and stepped back under the sign at the street corner.

Lin Haoda finally caught up, slightly out of breath as he stood by the roadside. Guan Junshan cast a glance down at him and silently tugged the corner of his mouth.

Lin Haoda thought he didn't want to be overheard, so he walked across the street to buy a cup of milk tea. After waiting a bit and seeing Guan Junshan still on the phone, he wandered around, pulled out his phone, and took many photos.

Guan Junshan remained standing in the corner, one hand in his pocket, slightly frowning, speaking in a steady tone on the call. Lin Haoda turned his head and saw his face in the shifting play of light and shadow. Each stray beam landed exactly where it needed to. The shadows amplified Guan Junshan's aloofness, making him look cold, proud, and hard to approach.

Something clicked in Lin Haoda's head, because he pulled out his camera from his bag, aimed through the viewfinder, and pressed the shutter with a click.

The next second, Guan Junshan, sensing the flash, lifted his chin slightly and looked across the street.

He saw Lin Haoda clutching an ugly point-and-shoot camera, guiltily averting his eyes.

"What did you take a picture of?" After a moment, Guan Junshan ended the call and came over to him.

"Just random shots," Lin Haoda lied instinctively, not wanting to be caught. "They were overexposed."

Guan Junshan gave him a suspicious look for a moment, but didn't press further. He passed by Lin Haoda and headed straight for the parking lot.