Chapter 4
Shu Shiran: “He has some matters to attend to and isn’t in South City.”
The wind whispered past their ears, waves surged, and the hum of the motorboat accompanied their gentle swaying. Cool droplets of water touched the fingertips of Shu Shiran’s hand resting on the edge of the boat, faint and fleeting.
A few seconds later, Ji Xi asked again, “I heard last time you were about to get married?”
His tone was casual, as if merely making conversation.
Shu Shiran nodded. “Yes.”
Her grandmother’s health was declining, so she had indeed planned to put marriage on the agenda.
Ji Xi fell silent for a moment. “I thought you would marry—”
The tail end of his sentence dissolved into the autumn breeze.
Shu Shiran didn’t catch the last part and asked, “What?”
Ji Xi tugged at the corner of his mouth and smiled lightly. “Nothing.”
Shu Shiran was left speechless.
Marry who, exactly?
Someone else?
At that moment, her phone rang.
It was a callback from Yan Yi.
Ji Xi glanced down and saw the incoming call display.
Shu Shiran answered.
Yan Yi’s voice came through: “I didn’t check my phone earlier.”
Shu Shiran replied, “It’s nothing, just wanted to tell you I visited Grandma.”
Yan Yi asked, “How’s Grandma’s health?”
Shu Shiran said, “The season’s changing; she’s been a bit listless. What’s up with you?”
Yan Yi’s tone sounded different than usual.
On the phone, Yan Yi said, “A bit tired. What’s the noise in the background?”
“I’m on a shuttle boat, coming back from North Lu, running a little late.”
There was some interference on the boat, so they didn’t talk much. Before hanging up, Shu Shiran reminded, “Take care and rest.”
After the call, Shu Shiran tidied her wind-tousled hair and noticed Ji Xi gazing toward the river beside her.
“You came alone too?” she asked.
Ji Xi hesitated, then said, “No.”
There was an unspoken coldness in his voice.
“Oh.”
Shu Shiran didn’t know what to say and turned to look at the river.
The lights on the water seemed shattered.
Her phone screen glowed briefly, illuminating the snow-like skin on the inside of her wrist in the dark.
A message popped up in the group chat.
-Zheng Tingyan: Shiran, have you arrived yet?
Shu Shiran looked ahead and saw a tiny flicker on the river’s surface.
“Almost there.”
Ji Xi’s voice came, followed by a sigh she wasn’t sure she heard correctly.
She replied softly, then typed back into the group.
-Shu Shiran: On the river.
-Shu Shiran: Almost there.
Soon, they arrived.
The yacht on the river was like an isolated island, brilliantly lit.
Shu Shiran and Ji Xi took off their life jackets and boarded one after the other.
Most guests tonight were familiar to Shu Shiran.
After greeting a few acquaintances, she went to the main deck’s lounge to find Zheng Tingyan.
Zheng Tingyan was on the phone, with a dessert on the table before her.
Seeing Shu Shiran enter, she waved.
Of the three of them, Zheng Tingyan was the only one interested in business and now ran her own company.
Shu Shiran hadn’t eaten dinner yet, so she listened as Zheng Tingyan talked on the phone.
Seven or eight minutes later, Zheng Tingyan ended the call.
Shu Shiran remarked, “Still busy on the weekend.”
Zheng Tingyan sighed, her tone softening from the earlier seriousness. “Those people at the company are such a headache. Finally, you’re here, Shiran.”
Shu Shiran asked, “Where’s Aying? Didn’t she come with you?”
Zheng Tingyan said, “She was here earlier but went with Cheng Yexiu to meet friends.”
Xu Ying was tonight’s hostess and needed to greet guests.
Soon, Xu Ying and Cheng Yexiu arrived together.
Xu Ying exuded a cool and gentle aura, and the two looked well-matched walking side by side.
Shu Shiran wasn’t well acquainted with Cheng Yexiu and apologized, “I had some things this afternoon, so I’m late.”
Cheng Yexiu replied, “It’s okay. Aying told me.”
Shu Shiran said, “Happy birthday.”
“Thank you.”
Cheng Yexiu had come over just to greet Shu Shiran and left them to chat after.
Watching Cheng Yexiu’s retreating figure, Zheng Tingyan said to Xu Ying, “You two seem pretty good.”
Xu Ying replied, “Not bad.”
Xu Ying and Cheng Yexiu had married two years ago through family introductions.
The speed from meeting to registering the marriage surprised Shu Shiran and Zheng Tingyan greatly. They hadn’t expected the deeply research-focused Xu Ying to marry so quickly, and it was a whirlwind wedding.
At the time, Xu Ying said, “We’d marry sooner or later; better to get it over with.”
After Shu Shiran finished eating, the three went up to the upper deck.
The advantage of a yacht was privacy; no need to worry about being photographed secretly. Also, limited capacity meant fewer unrelated people aboard.
The unrelated ones were easy to spot, like someone taking selfies by the railing for over half an hour.
Most guests were on the first and upper open decks.
Suddenly, Zheng Tingyan exclaimed, “Who’s that man? So handsome.”
Shu Shiran followed her gaze down to the lower deck.
Not far away, a tall, neat figure leaned against the railing, speaking with someone. White shirt, black pants, sleeves rolled up, a faint, effortless smile on his face—noble and indifferent.
Several people’s eyes were fixed on him, but he appeared utterly unaware, almost dismissive.
Before Shu Shiran could speak, Xu Ying explained to Zheng Tingyan, “That’s Ji Xi. I’ve met him with Cheng Yexiu.”
“Ji Xi?!” Zheng Tingyan was surprised. “He’s back in the country?”
Xu Ying nodded.
“Did your husband invite him? Are they close?”
Xu Ying replied, “Don’t know. Seems not very close. Maybe some business connection.”
Zheng Tingyan knew Xu Ying cared little for business affairs.
“Just got back recently? How come I hadn’t heard anything?”
“Probably just yesterday.”
“Should be the day before yesterday,” Shu Shiran said.
Zheng Tingyan asked, “How do you know?”
Shu Shiran replied, “He came to our firm the afternoon before yesterday to discuss the renovation of the Jinhe Mansion. I ran into him at the dock and came up with him on the motorboat.”
“That explains why we didn’t see him earlier; he arrived late too,” Zheng Tingyan said. “Looks like he’s here to develop his career.”
“Seems so.”
Now that she thought about it, she had known about Ji Xi’s return relatively early.
Zheng Tingyan said, “The Ji family must be miserable. Maybe soon the whole family estate will fall into his hands.”
“Really?” Shu Shiran was surprised; she had thought previous upheavals were all there was.
The Ji family had accumulated wealth for four or five generations.
“How could it not? The Ji family only looks impressive on the surface.”
Zheng Tingyan, running a company, knew more about these matters.
She continued, “After the Ji family incident, I looked into it. Ji Xi opened a company with friends in Midtown Manhattan. When they graduated from Harvard, they made a name short-selling on Wall Street. I heard he even shorted the national debt of a small European country while maneuvering the Ji family’s affairs.”
Xu Ying said, “That smooth?”
Shu Shiran looked back at the first deck.
Ji Xi now had a woman by his side, and they were talking.
She guessed the woman was his companion. He had said on the motorboat he wasn’t alone.
Zheng Tingyan said, “But he might not do well in South City. After all, he’s still labeled an ‘illegitimate child.’”
Xu Ying nudged Zheng Tingyan with her arm, catching the glance Shu Shiran gave them.
They all knew Shu Shiran had been most irritated by the term “illegitimate child” since childhood and hated hearing it.
Shu Shiran heard it, smiled faintly, and said, “I’m not a kid anymore.”
Zheng Tingyan was right; identity was crucial in their circle. Many wealthy first and second generations struggled to break in; the third generation barely managed.
Ji Xi had torn ties with the Ji family and lacked the recognition of identity. No matter how rich, in some eyes, he was at best a “nouveau riche,” though many envied and sought to befriend him privately.
Zheng Tingyan changed the subject and clicked her tongue, “Good-looking men really have it easy. Was he always this handsome? I don’t remember.”
They only remembered him as the Ji family’s illegitimate child.
“I don’t remember either. We weren’t close before,” Xu Ying said. “He’s quite popular tonight; many want to meet him.”
Prompted by their words, Shu Shiran looked again toward the first deck.
The woman by Ji Xi’s side had changed.
He still looked calm and casual, with an air of reckless charm and ease.
“Wall Street is full of playboys,” Shu Shiran said.
At that moment, Ji Xi glanced up and looked their way.
Their eyes met, and Shu Shiran suddenly felt caught gossiping about someone.
Feeling a bit guilty, she calmly averted her gaze and turned away.
Zheng Tingyan also turned and leaned against the railing. “Definitely. The few Wall Street people I know party hard.”
Those men, constantly under the high tension of trading, needed outlets—usually alcohol and women—with little regard for morals.
After chatting a little more, Shu Shiran said, “By the way, I’m thinking about getting married.”
Xu Ying glanced at her. “Are you planning to marry Yan Yi?”
“I didn’t want Grandpa to see me settled, but at least Grandma should.”
Shu Shiran’s grandfather passed away late last year. He had worried about her deeply before he died.
She regretted not letting him see her start a family.
Since his passing, her grandmother’s health had declined.
She feared this regret would happen again.
Yan Yi had been pursuing her steadily. They knew each other well, and in spring, she agreed to his proposal and directly brought up engagement.
“Shiran, are you really going to marry Yan Yi?” Zheng Tingyan asked.
Shu Shiran replied, “Who else could I marry?”
Zheng Tingyan said, “I mean, have you thought it through?”
Shu Shiran nodded. “I have. We’re very compatible in every way. We’ve been together for almost half a year and get along well.”
Zheng Tingyan asked, “Just because it’s suitable?”
Shu Shiran said, “Isn’t suitable enough?”
Zheng Tingyan was momentarily speechless.
As the only married one among them, Xu Ying said, “Marriage is just like running a company together.”
Zheng Tingyan imagined marrying a business partner and found it intolerable.
Shu Shiran agreed with Xu Ying’s words. “We’ve at least spent some time together.”
Much better than rushing into a marriage after just a few meetings.