Chapter 109 - A Day At The Office

"Wowwww!!! My friend is finally taken! This calls for celebration. Congratulations Ranran. I'm so excited!" Su Qianhua stood up in delight.

Pei Yueran grinned from ear to ear. "Thank you girl."

"Please don't leave anything out, give me all the details."

So from the morning of her birthday, to the shopping spree and finally the proposal, Pei Yueran told her how it all went.

"All hail Boss Li! That was fantastic. And that ring is so beautiful that it is dazzling! I really wish I was there! But nevermind, I'll be there for the wedding, definitely. By the way, have you fixed a date?"

"Not yet, it's a busy period for the company, so we plan to take it easy and plan slowly."

"No no no. Why slowly? Don't you want to quickly lay a claim to him legally? The earlier the better."

Pei Yueran shook her head. This was really her Huahua.

"We would really be busy. But plans are underway, like the meeting of families and such things. That aside, no one dares to steal my Chuan away from me. Even Li Chuanmo would not allow himself to be stolen away."

"I love your confidence girl! Alright, sounds good. Still, according to my Mom, things like this are on a "first person to act wins" basis, so hold him tightly. You know what they say: The winner is king, the loser is the bandit."

"Yes Queen Hua." Pei Yueran did a mock bow, which made Su Qianhua laugh.

They continued their discussion for a while more, making small talk and sharing stories about rings and weddings. But till their call ended, they made no more mention of Su Qianhua's plight.

Pei Yueran had already made up her mind.

A trip to City A was in order.

*****

"Are you busy Mom?"

"No, come in."

Han Yichen went into her room and stood until Pei Yueran offered him a seat.

He said, "Mom, will you be busy on Saturday?"

Pei Yueran thought briefly, "Well, I have to go to the office for a couple of hours in the morning, and then I have a date in the evening. Why?"

"Actually, I won the third prize for a writing competition and I need to go collect the award." The writing competition he entered for had just announced the winners online.

Pei Yueran stared at him for a moment. She wasn't even aware that he entered in for a competition. "Oh, I see. Congratulations are in order firstly."

"Thank you Mom. I'm sorry I didn't let you know. I wasn't sure anything would come out of it, so I didn't want to get your hopes up."

"No problem Xiao Chen. But I want you to know that I will always be interested in anything you do. I would love to root for you, support and encourage you every step of the way.

"Besides I know you're very talented, so even if you did not win a prize, I would still love to read your work."

"Thanks Mom." Han Yichen smiled.

"So tell me, what is it about?"

Han Yichen told her the synopsis.

"Sounds interesting. Did the protagonist finally get a happy ending?"

"You would have to read it Mom, no spoilers allowed."

Pei Yueran gave him an amused look. "Alright alright." She teased him, "So that aside, what else are you hiding from me?"

She fully expected him to shake his head and say "nothing", but surprisingly he didn't.

"Actually, I also started a blog some months ago where I post stories, poems and thoughts."

"Wow Xiao Chen, you do know how to keep a secret, don't you?"

"I'm sorry Mom."

"You don't need to apologize Xiao Chen, it's okay. I admit I'm a bit hurt that you didn't let me share in on what you obviously have so much passion for, but, but I'm not angry at all. I just want you to know that you can share anything with me, anytime."

"Yes Mom. I'll keep that in mind."

"Good."

"One more thing Mom, can I please invite Uncle Li and Yuchen for the ceremony?"

"Sure."

"Thanks." Han Yichen said, smiling.

He left afterwards, but Pei Yueran kept thinking. She had to admit that it bothered her quite a bit.

Subconsciously, she asked herself if this was due to her shortcomings as a parent. Was she not hands-on enough? Was she neglecting him in any way? Or did he just need a father figure?

*****

"Come in." Pei Yueran said in response to a knock on her door. It was still quite early in the morning, but she was hard at work, sorting out files and reviewing proposals in preparation for a meeting.

"Too busy to even spare me a glance?"

At the sound of that deep and low baritone, Pei Yueran looked up with a smile. "How's that possible? Good morning Handsome."

Li Chuanmo did not quibble with her. "Good morning to you Beautiful." He said, softly pinching her cheek. He liked doing that because her cheeks were as soft and tender as well kneaded dough.

Pei looked up at him, "What's up?"

"Can't I just come to look at you?"

Pei Yueran gave him a look that said "Yeah right" before saying "Seriously?"

"Of course. And also to remind you about the party tonight."

Pei Yueran groaned at that reminder. She really didn't like parties. Wasn't it better to go home and rest? Or better still, spend time with Li Chuanmo alone?

It was supposedly a small event to celebrate the retirement of the president of one of the Li family companies. He was a friend of the Li family as well as an old employee, so Li Chuanmo as the chairman had to go, give a short speech and stay for at least a few minutes symbolically before leaving.

Some of their business associates had also been invited, and there was a tacit understanding that he had to show his face.

Pei Yueran was attending as the Special Assistant to the chairman, but Li Chuanmo really wanted her to go so that he could send a subtle message to high society.

He was taken, and by a woman he well and truly loved. So, all other young ladies who were throwing themselves at him covertly and overtly could back off.

For that reason, he had planned a makeover for her.

Pei Yueran groaned even more when he told her so. The thought of spending hours doing her nails and perming her hair sounded as unappealing as a meeting with an irrational customer.

"It won't take that long. You are already so lovely looking, you would just need a few minutes."

Pei Yueran stared at him. "Chuan, have you been eating honey recently?"

Li Chuanmo raised his brows at her question. He knew it was one of those times where she had a subtle insult hidden underneath the veil of an innocent question.

Instead of answering, he leaned down until he was close enough to look into her eyes. "Do you want to taste and find out yourself?"

Pei Yueran almost choked. This wasn't how the situation was supposed to play out!