Chapter 76: Encounter by Chance

  After entering the living room, Sumo was always in a daze, with worries in her heart, and naturally couldn't concentrate anymore.

  That old man who was once dignified and stern is now blind because of his adopted daughter's departure.

  In this life, her life trajectory has changed. She is no longer Mu Qing but Su Mo Ruo. However, she still retains the memories that belong to Mu Qing and the emotional memories with Lao Ren. Facing such an old man, she can't refuse his closeness.

  The old man's white hair was like a knife cutting into Su Mo's eyes and heart.

  "Invite your friends to eat." Since Sumo entered the living room, he hadn't said a word. Although the old man couldn't see, he also had doubts in his heart and couldn't help but remind him, facing his adopted son beside him.

  Hao Gang looked at Su Mo Ruo as he listened to his adoptive father's words, gazing at her distracted appearance with eyes that seemed to be wandering everywhere. Along the way, they had rushed over without rest because of his anxiety, a journey that would normally take two days but was completed in just over one day. "Are you tired? If you're tired, I'll have someone arrange for you to rest first."

  Also need some time and space to calm down and think, Sumo nodded and replied: "Good."

  Seeing Su Mo Ruo also agreeing, thinking that she might be really tired, he personally sent Su Mo Ruo to the room prepared for her. When they arrived at the door of the room, she subconsciously stopped her feet and looked up at the room next door.

  "This is Mu Qing's room." With a tinge of pain in his eyes, a bitter smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

  Looking at Hao Gang like this, Su Mo Ruo hastily shifted her gaze, not daring to look at Hao Gang like this. This him was someone she had never seen before - vulnerable. In her heart, Hao Gang was the young master from years ago, with a soldier's iron blood on his body.

  But now he has something called sorrow on him, which affects his original toughness.

  "This room, you've been keeping it all along?"

  "Hmm, want to go in and take a look? This place, they've always kept it for when they have some free time to sit in this room and reminisce about the people they miss."

  In fact, Sumojo had nothing to do with them and couldn't enter this room at all, but he couldn't help himself and wanted to take Sumojo in to sit for a while.

  "It's okay, you should go back and keep your adoptive father company. I just need to rest." This room, she was less familiar with it than anyone else, but all that was in the past now, and she didn't want to be the one to uncover those things herself.

  Although Hao Gang had good intentions and wanted to take her to Mu Qing's room for a look, Xian Mo was unwilling to do so herself, and at this time, she also had to leave.

  Watching Hao's receding back, glancing at the room that belonged to Mu Qing, closing his eyes and still able to smell the familiar scent, after being apart for over a year, yet nothing had changed.

  "What do you mean by bringing this girl back?" The white-haired old man sat in his wheelchair, looking at his adopted son. For so many years, he had always been proud of him. His adopted son was still young, yet he had already risen to the position of Dragon Group's commander-in-chief, and in terms of rank, he was already a major general. And yet, he would bring an unfamiliar girl to his place, if there wasn't a reason, he absolutely wouldn't believe it.

  "Uncle, this time I came back, mainly because I realized that the girl I brought with me has many similarities with Qing'er."

  The old man listened silently, lost in thought, his mind preoccupied with unknown thoughts.

  Hao Gang continued: "This time back, it's just to let her follow and accompany you, to relieve your boredom."

  Hearing this, the old man who had been quiet earlier slowly let out a deep sigh, his eyebrows furrowed, and his eyes were filled with an unscatterable mist. A layer of sorrow appeared on his face, "If Qing'er was still here... you two should be together..."

  Hao Gang felt a pang in his heart, this name was something that still made him feel unbearable pain even with just a slight touch. Mu Qing, a woman as beautiful as a peony, although she was introverted and had a cold personality, he knew that she cared about him and his adoptive father, and after meeting her, he had sworn that he would not marry anyone else in this life but her.

  What a pity...

  This lifetime, this wish will never come true again. She has left them forever, without giving him time to buffer, so resolute.

  "Uncle, let bygones be bygones......" His voice was a little hoarse. Now, Uncle is his only relative, he doesn't want anything to happen to him.

  The old man let out a deep sigh at these words, "You child, actually... Qing Er's matter is the thing you find most difficult to put down, don't comfort your uncle anymore."

  "Yes, we were a family of three and could have lived happily ever after." But that was just a naive thought from the past.

  Knowing that Yu Nu's death was a great blow to Yu Zi, but people have already left, and the deceased is gone. He has nothing to do with nostalgia every day, but Yu Zi has an unlimited future, he has a broader stage where he can play, so he doesn't want him to be submerged in Yu Qing's death forever.

  "I know you blame yourself, but all that is in the past. Qing Er would not be at peace if she knew you were still consumed by guilt over her death."

  As soon as he said this, Hao Gang calmed down and sat silently on the sofa, lost in thought.

  Only these words can calm down this adopted son.

  "Uncle, let me stay and accompany you for a while, we haven't seen each other in a long time." Recently, he has been busy with tasks, the old man's body is not good, he didn't even have time to take care of himself properly. Now that he has some free time, he naturally wants to spend it accompanying the old man.

  The old man listened, and didn't refuse. "By the way, that girl you brought back, when are you planning to let her go?" Adopted daughter Mu Qing held an irreplaceable position in his heart, so even if his adopted son resembled him, he still didn't want to get close to him.

  I thought bringing Su Mo back would make Father happy, but unexpectedly, he asked when I was going to take Su Mo away.

  "Adoptive father, there are really many places on her body that make me think of Qing'er... Even I feel like she knows a lot of the thoughts in my heart, and when I mention Qing'er, she becomes very excited. And towards us, she seems to be very familiar." He had always felt that Su Mo Ruo's mood was very agitated all along the way, and when they arrived here, although she hadn't acted alone before, he still felt like she was very familiar with this place, just like them.

  But the old man didn't think so, he attributed everything to his grandson thinking too much about adopting a daughter-in-law, which led to such thoughts. "Forget it, let's not talk about it, later have the kitchen make some dishes you like to eat, and we'll have a good meal together."

  "Alright, I'll go now." He said and left the living room.

  Looking at Hao Gang's back, the old man had an inexplicable heartache in his eyes. In his mind, he suddenly recalled the voice of the woman his adopted son had brought back earlier at the door. The voice and feeling were also very familiar to him, but it was impossible for it to be his adopted daughter, who had been dead for over a year.

  At dinner table in the evening, Su Mo was very quiet while eating, and Hao Gang and the old man were even more silent. Such an atmosphere, the feeling of three people having dinner together at the same table, had not been experienced for a long time.

  Also because of Su Mo's quietness while eating, it gave the old man a very intimate feeling. Yi Nü Mù Qīng was also like this, extremely quiet during meals, every move, although the old man couldn't see, but Hao Gang could see, and the old man could keenly sense, so gradually, the two people's gaze towards her became more probing.

  The old man thus also had some curiosity about Su Mo Ruo, and kept her here for a week. It wasn't until Hao Gang's side had something to pass on, asking him to return immediately, that the two of them bid farewell to the old man and left together.

  "Ah Niang, come visit this old man more often when you have time." He couldn't help but admit that over the past week, he had really grown to like Ah Niang. Her quiet nature and aura made him feel a sense of familiarity, as if she were someone similar to him. This similarity made him want to break through his previous understanding and be willing to let her exist by his side as a comforting presence.

  "Alright, I know." A sour feeling rose in her heart, if only she was still Mu Qing, that would be great.

  Closing her eyes, she calmed herself down and followed Hao Gang on the journey back to Donghai.

  Halfway through, Hao Gang changed planes. He didn't say where he was going and she didn't ask. The two of them parted ways like this halfway through their journey, and Su Mo Ruo boarded the plane back to Donghai.

  When she arrived at the East Sea, it was already Friday. As soon as she got out of the airport and took a taxi, her phone rang. Looking at the caller ID, she suddenly remembered that she had agreed with Ji Lan to meet up this week because she had been busy lately. Incidentally, Ji Lan would also bring another real estate company manager over for her to take a look.

  Counting the days, these days over there, accompanying the elderly and Hao Gang, made her feel very comfortable in her heart. But because of having something on her mind, she didn't sleep well today. It should still be okay now, first go back and rest for a while. This weekend, it's probably not just this one thing.

  Lying down in the dormitory and falling asleep, I vaguely heard someone calling me, and someone pulling my quilt. Opening my sleepy eyes, I looked at the three people in front of me. I didn't expect that Ning Shiyang's three people hadn't left school. "It's the weekend, why haven't you gone home?"

  "This weekend is my birthday, so I want to invite you all to come with me to my home." Ning Shi Yang was a bit nervous, but she still brought it up. It really was her birthday, and not just something she said casually.

  Looking at Ning Shi Yang's tense appearance, it was clear that she wasn't lying, but because of her identity, she was afraid that she would misunderstand something, so she spoke in a somewhat twisted and hesitant manner.

  Slowly getting up from bed, took a glance at the outside sky, "Even if it's your birthday on weekends, but today is only Thursday, right?"

  As soon as she heard this, Su Moruo, who had been somewhat nervous, suddenly straightened her eyes and almost didn't dare to believe it, but Su Moruo actually agreed.

  "You..."

  "What's wrong with me?"

  "It's nothing, it's nothing, you promised, right?" Ning Shi Yang's eyes curved into crescent moons as he smiled.

  Hearing this, Su Mo's lips curled up slightly, "Which day?"

  "Tomorrow." Thinking of his parents' similarly anxious mood, he could finally put it down now. He smiled at Qiu Mengyu beside him.

  "I've already said it, your birthday, our relationship is so good, how could Mo Rou not agree to you? You're just overthinking." Min Jing seemed to be born without a brain, and she herself didn't know about Su Mo Rou's situation with the Ning family, so she never understood why Ning Shi Yang looked so nervous when asking Su Mo Rou to go to her house.

  "I'll come over a bit later tomorrow." She didn't have any other ulterior motives, it's just that she really did have something to do tomorrow morning and going to the Ning's house wasn't going to take just a moment or two, as long as she went, that was all that mattered.

  She now thinks that nothing else matters, but at least the Ning family wants her to return to the Ning family and be a member of the Ning family. She can't accept it. In Sumo's world, there is only one relative, her adoptive mother Liu Qin.

  Su Mo thought so, but Ning Shi Yang didn't know. In her opinion, because of Su Mo's relationship with the Ning family, saying that she would come later was already giving herself face. After all, there were many people from the Ning family who would be coming over to celebrate her birthday tomorrow.

  "It's okay, just come over whenever you're free."

  "Let's hurry back, it's already so late." Su Mo Ruo urged, as the sky outside had already darkened.

  Three people did not rely on each other, and they pulled Su Mo Ruo to chat for a while, and even went crazy for a while before slowly walking away.

  Because of the three people making a fuss, Sumo also couldn't sleep, got out of bed, picked up the computer on the desk and went back to bed, starting to browse some recent news.

  When I saw a news flash that "Jiang's real estate changed hands, a wealthy businessman from country M took over and made a big push into the East China Sea", I slightly curled my lips. It seems that Ji Lan is even more impatient than her.

  Currently, in the real estate industry on this side of Donghai, there is indeed a lot of profit to be made. If done well, one can become a billionaire, but if not, they may end up losing everything. She knew that the waters of the real estate industry were deep and that to succeed, she had to first get the interpersonal relationships with the officials in Donghai's government in order. Otherwise, if she wasn't careful, she might offend someone from the Donghai government, and although money can often smooth over many things, it couldn't rule out those who deliberately wanted to stir up trouble.

  Thinking of this, he picked up the phone next to him and dialed an international long-distance call to Ji Lan.

  "Ji Lan, when are we departing?"

  From over there came Ji Lan's somewhat lazy voice, which sounded very charming but was not the least bit muddled. "Big sister, you really don't know what time it is now."

  Hearing this, Ji Lan almost gritted her teeth, "Are you doing it on purpose?"

  "I just thought of it, so I called you to ask something." Su Mo said very seriously. To be honest, she really didn't notice the time and was a bit tired, so she was a bit dazed.

  On the other end of the phone, she rubbed her eyebrows, glanced at her watch and shook her head. She was almost certain that her sleep time for today was basically gone.

  "What's up, speak up." Ji Lan got out of bed and went straight to the tea room to get a cup of boiling water for herself. She hadn't had a moment to herself all day yesterday, plus last night, so it wasn't until dawn that she lay down to rest, but just an hour later, Su Mo's phone call came over.

  "Is it also managed by the person you mentioned on this side of the East Sea?"

  "Uh-huh." Ji Lan didn't expect Su Mo Ruo to suddenly ask about this matter, wasn't she supposed to head to Dong Hai soon?

  "What time is your flight?" He asked, thinking of tonight's dinner party.

  "The day after tomorrow morning, we'll see each other on Sunday, and I'll give you a call then."

  "If possible, let that person meet me before you, remember not to let her know my identity, I'll take care of the rest." It's not that she didn't trust Ji Lan, it's just that in selecting these people, she had to be more cautious.

  Upon hearing this, Ji Lan was slightly stunned, but quickly regained her composure and understood her concerns. She replied, "Alright, I'll take care of everything. I'll call him to let him go to Donghai first. As for the specific location, I'll tell you again after he arrives in Donghai tomorrow."

  "Thanks, trouble you."

  "It's as it should be." Thinking of the recent stock market turmoil, and also thinking of the situation on the other side of T country, I couldn't help but feel excited. "The situation in T country is indeed just as you predicted."

  "Hmm, the loan from that side is now being put to use on this side." Su Mo had experienced the financial storm before and naturally knew that if they operated properly during this financial crisis, it would bring them huge benefits.

  "Yes, even I don't dare to believe it." Now looking at the substantial growth of assets within the company, she can hardly believe her eyes.

  "There are still many people who can't believe it." A financial crisis of this magnitude has probably never happened before in the country, and Ji Lan, known as the "Financial Queen", is excited about it because she loves this line of work.

  ……

  The next day, Su Mo Ruo got up early, found a white shirt and black trousers, tied her hair high, with a fair and delicate face, a pair of shiny eyes, looking exceptionally stunning, in front of the mirror, that slightly curved lip corner, revealed her good mood.

  The text message was also received yesterday morning, sent by Tan Yun Ning, the content is to tell him that he has something with the leader and comes to Donghai for a business trip. He said that there is only a dinner party at night, and the daytime is all free, so he wants to get together with her. Originally, she was going to visit several real estate companies today, but now it seems that this opportunity can only be put on hold for the time being.

  In the bedroom, Sumo was alone, so her unusual behavior wouldn't be noticed by anyone else. Otherwise, if everyone saw it, their eyeballs would probably fall out. Normally, Sumo was calm and collected, and never got up this early to dress up, but today she was clearly abnormal.

  Wore a black backpack, white clothes, black casual pants, hair casually tied up, fair and smooth skin, shiny black eyes, although very simple dress, but gave people a very positive stimulus.

  Tan Yunning was standing at the school gate, and he didn't know how long he had been waiting there. When he saw Su Mo Ruo, he recognized her at a glance.

  "Yu'er——” A few steps took him to Su Mo's face, calm on the surface, but his heart was racing like thunder. He still remembered when he left the house, Li Xin looked at him with a teasing gaze, and he felt a little annoyed in his heart. They were all studying at the party school, but this old man had brought him to Donghai for a few days. Who knows where this old man found out about his relationship with Su Mo?

  However, such an opportunity is hard to come by in daily life, so he didn't pretend to be noble and refuse. Looking at the woman in front of him, those dark eyes, fair skin, and cold breath gave him a very familiar feeling, warming his heart.

  "How long has it been?" Looking at the man in front of her wearing a white shirt and western-style pants, she felt somewhat surprised, and didn't know if they had an unspoken understanding or because he simply liked this type.

  Maybe they are similar in character, because of their similar characters, their hobbies are almost the same, and as a result, they can also slowly come together.

  "Want to have breakfast?" Tan Yun Ning glanced at Su Mo Ruo beside him, but quickly looked away. He didn't know the reason, he just felt a sudden panic in his heart. This feeling was something he had never experienced with his ex-girlfriend. To be honest, he wasn't even with his ex-girlfriend because of love. At first, they were together out of pity. But with Su Mo Ruo, it was different. There was an inexplicable feeling between them that made them want to get closer to each other.

  "Okay, I'll take you to a place that's quite good." On weekends, she likes to go to that small shop for breakfast, mantou and congee, very clean and hygienic.

  "Wherever you want to go, I'll take you there." When he said this, Tan Yunning's voice was naturally laced with a hint of pampering, something even he himself didn't notice. His voice could become so gentle and soft, it was just a natural tone, without any embellishment.

  In the breakfast shop, Tan Yunning only ate a steamed bun and then stopped moving, smiling as he watched Su Mo eat, as if watching Su Mo eat was the greatest happiness in his life.

  "Why aren't you eating?" Her movements couldn't be described as rough, but they were absolutely not elegant. However, Tan Yunning, although he had lived a very hard life since childhood, seemed to have an aristocratic air that was born with him. Sitting in this shabby little restaurant eating breakfast, even just a single steamed bun, he could eat it differently from others, making others aware of his difference.

  Such a person, how can he be ordinary?

  "It's enough for me just watching you eat."

  "She can still pretend to be humorous." Watching her eat was enough to make Su Mo feel speechless.

  As for Su Mo's words, Tan Yunning did not refute them. He picked up his chopsticks and gave her some pickled vegetables in her bowl. He found that Su Mo liked to eat pickled vegetables very much. This sour and spicy pickled vegetable, eaten with porridge, looked particularly delicious.

  "You try it too." Looking at the sauerkraut in the dish, Sumo also used her own chopsticks to add a scoop for him, smiling and staring at him.

  Lowering her head, she picked up her chopsticks and quietly took a bite of the pickled vegetables with porridge. After that, she put down her chopsticks again, gave a gentle smile, and gazed at Su Mo Ruo with her eyes fixed on him.

  As she watched him, Su Mo Ruo subconsciously picked up her chopsticks and gave him another bite, placing it in front of him. He then proceeded to eat the pickled vegetables with his porridge, his movements elegant and refined like a noble, slowly savoring each bite.

  "Can't you even pick up food for me?" Su Mo finally understood that this man wasn't refusing to eat, but rather wanted her to feed him.

  Shook his head and said seriously: "Don't want to."

  "Don't you want to? Having a meal, you say you don't want to?" Some Mo felt that when she was with this man, even if she was usually calm and collected, she would lose her composure, and when they were together, there would be many more words.

  She looked up at the girl in front of her, that fair skin and black eyes were even more striking than before. She pursed her lips, lowered her head, and stopped speaking.

  I don't understand how you can calm down all of a sudden," "You won't get angry just because I say two words to you, will you?"

  "Come on, keep eating." As he spoke, he gave Su Mo a few more pieces of pickled vegetables.

  It seems like it's pointless to continue talking to him, what a boring man, Su Mo Ruo thought to herself.

  Behind him, looking at the bowl of porridge in front of Tan Yun Ning that hadn't been touched much, he helplessly picked up his chopsticks and carefully placed some pickled vegetables in it. Looking at the man in front of him who finally lowered his head to eat with elegant movements, he couldn't help but smile.

  After having breakfast, the two of them didn't go window shopping like other couples, but instead chose a small tea house near the river again. The two sat inside drinking tea and chatting, a very simple dating activity.

  "On the Beijing side, Principal Yang has been in contact with me." Looking at Su Mo Ruo in front of him, it had been a long time since they last met, and he felt his heart was filled with satisfaction once again.

  As soon as Tan Yunning mentioned Jinghua, she couldn't help but think of Yang Wei and asked: "I haven't paid attention to things in the capital recently, how is that Yang Wei doing?"

  "The school has already expelled him, I heard that he has a younger sister who was kept by someone else and is quite spoiled. However, it seems like there's someone in the middle who intervened in this matter. Anyway, from what the principal said, it will be very difficult for Yang Wei's backers to do anything about it. In the end, I heard that Yang Wei lost his backing and his power and status, now his life is a complete mess."

  It's also a normal outcome, and as for the force Tan Yunning mentioned, she can easily guess who it is. She nodded lightly and didn't dwell on this issue anymore. "Have you made up your mind to take this path?"

  "Yes, I will definitely reach a high position and make them all beg for my status. This is what that family owes me, they should return it to my parents." As she thought of her mother's doting gaze and the gentle voice that always called her Xiao Ning, the sound seemed to linger in her ears, and a rare smile involuntarily curled up at the corner of her mouth.

  Knowing Tan Yunning's feelings for her parents are very deep, especially her mother, "Are you in Sydney now? How did it pass so quickly."

  "Uh, time was already quite tight." In fact, he felt that his distance from Su Mo Ruo was getting farther and farther away.

  "Did you come with your leader this time?" She wouldn't ask Tan Yunning about his current position, thinking that he must have come with the leader, running errands and whatnot.

  Tan Yunning looked at Su Mo's expression and vaguely guessed something, but he didn't say anything either. He took a sip of tea, "I have to follow the leader to a dinner party tonight, so we can still have lunch together this afternoon."

  "What do you want to eat?" Tan Yunning added.

  "I'm easy-going." Su Mo Ruo wasn't picky about food.

  A gentle smile appeared in her eyes. This woman wasn't picky about food, she would eat anything. When they were together, the places they ate at were always chosen by Song Xue Li, but she had never been picky about food.

  "Mo Ruo, how did you end up here?" Suddenly, a surprised voice sounded in Su Mo Ruo's ear, causing him to lift his head and look at the person who had spoken.