Chapter 20: Searching for Him in My Dreams, Thousands of Times

  Qiao Yu seemed to want to say something else, but Ji Siyu suddenly stood up and walked away without even looking at him.

  。

  Qiao Yu wanted to say something but didn't have a chance to speak until dinner was over.

  On the way back, it was already dark, and everyone in the car looked exhausted. Ji Si Xuan curled up in the corner of the last row of the big bus to take a nap, with lights constantly shining in from outside, she sat up, took out an eye mask from her bag, put it on and continued sleeping.

  The sound of rustling and whispering stopped, Qiao Yu curved the corner of her lips into a silent smile. She was still the same, when she couldn't wake up, her temper was incredibly bad, not giving anyone any face.

  When I was in school, she would occasionally drag me to class with her. In the classroom filled with people, she loudly scolded, "Can the students talking in the back please keep their voices down and not disturb the students sleeping in the front?"

  She didn't realize until she turned around that the teacher on the podium was staring at her in shock, and only then did she awkwardly repeat, "Don't...interrupt...the teacher's lesson."

  It just so happened that the teacher knew him, looking at him and then at her, wanting to say something but seemingly not knowing what to say, his face was extremely colorful. The two of them were actually two different types of people, he walked a moderate and ordinary path, while she executed an unconventional approach, he always listened attentively in class, whereas she was always sleeping, having her own ideas, the works that came out of her hands had a spiritual aura, striking people's hearts, just like her as a person.

  Someone's cell phone rang, and soon someone picked it up. The voice was not loud, but it was nagging and reluctant to hang up.

  Ji Siyun's eyes moved restlessly a few times, and it seemed that she had really reached her limit. Grinding her teeth, she spoke in a cold tone, "Either hang up the phone or you can get out of here yourself, choose one."

  Everyone in the group knew Xuan Huang's methods and style, so the person who made the phone call immediately hung up.

  Just as it had quieted down for a short while, the mobile phone kept vibrating. Qiao Yu frowned and pressed it off, sending back a text message to ask the caller to call again later.

  He went back to the text messages and pressed the return key. In his inbox, there were only a few sparse messages. He didn't like texting with people, thinking that the cold words were boring. Most of them were from others, and he was too lazy to reply. Scrolling down a little, he saw a contact, opened it, and found a long chat record quietly lying there.

  The even and long breathing sound behind her, probably because she was exhausted for the past few days, but Qiao Yu couldn't sleep.

  。

  All these years, he changed phones, and each time he changed phones, he had to back up the records and transfer them to the new phone. He thought the text was cold and boring, but the messages this person sent him made him feel warm and interesting, from her initial teasing to her later spoiled childlike behavior, and finally, the last message she sent him.

  Qiao Shixiong, four years have passed, I've troubled you, farewell.

  Time stood still a few years ago, the day she went abroad to study. He was sitting in the airport monitoring room not far from her. He didn't respond, and a sentence disturbed the polite distance full of strangers. Perhaps returning to the original stranger relationship was a luxury for him. He knew she wasn't saying goodbye to herself, but to the years that had passed. From then on, in the vast world, there was no more Qiao Yu in Ji Siyu's life.

  The car suddenly braked and changed lanes, and Ji Si Xuan was startled awake. The next second she sat up and took off her eye mask, and the two words "Qiao Yu" came out of her mouth naturally.

  A few seconds later, she raised her hand to cover half of her face and retreated into a corner.

  At that moment, Ji Siyuan felt a sense of desolation in her heart, and she let out a soft, helpless sigh.

  What's wrong with me? Did I meet an old friend today? Thinking about the past too much? Or was it Qiao Yu's sentence "having a 'girl' friend" that stimulated me?

  Actually just now it was a bit 'mixed up' and chaotic, her voice was also soft, and she sat in the corner, so no one heard clearly.

  It's an instinct, a desire to find that person, Qiao Yu has a deep understanding of it.

  The car got back on the road, and Qiao Yu sat in the last row in a daze, silently pulling Ji Si Xuan into his arms.

  Ji Siyun struggled for a moment, unsure whether she was annoyed at him or herself, and asked in a low, gritted tone, "What are you doing?! Are you pitying me? Does your 'girlfriend' know about this?"

  Qiao Yu grasped her hand tightly, "I don't recall us ever discussing breaking up. I didn't say it and neither did you, so we never broke up. You're still my girlfriend."

  Ji Siyun sneered, "Does this kind of thing have to be said so clearly?"

  Qiao Yu's eyes were serious, "Shouldn't this kind of thing be clearly stated?"

  Ji Siyuan was left speechless, and in the dim light, the two of them stared at each other for a long time, neither giving in.

  。

  Ji Siyuan's eyes drooped in defeat, and she let out a soft sigh before speaking up, "Qiao Yu, do you have any idea what you're doing?"

  Qiao Yu couldn't bear it and wrapped his arms around her, firmly pressing her against his chest.

  Ji Si Xuan's face turned red with rage, her low voice trembling with suppressed fury, "Qiao Yu!"

  Qiao Yu softly spoke on her head, with a gentle and soothing tone, "Shh, good girl, go to sleep."

  She punched him in the chest with all her might, her eyes stinging unbearably, "Let go!"

  Qiao Yu hummed softly, grasping her hand and pressing it against his chest. The real pain brought him comfort, letting him know that all of this was true, and in his lifetime, he could still hold her in his arms.

  Ji Siyuan wanted to struggle again, but froze in the next second.

  His chin gently rubbed against her hair, his voice weak and pale with a hint of pretence, "Just pity me."

  At his wrist, the palmar surface of his fingers was warm and hot. Underneath, his heartbeat was like thunder, pounding against her palm one beat at a time. What shocked her the most, however, was his tone, which carried a hint of seduction, an almost imperceptible low hum, and a slight... tremble.

  She finally calmed down and snuggled quietly in his arms.

  He knew the despair of waking up suddenly and wanting to find that person but couldn't, in the tug-of-war between dreams and reality, reason gradually took over, the emptiness and despair surged, leaving one at a loss, only wanting to retreat into their own world and quietly lick their wounds, repeating the cycle, never erasing it, he had experienced that pain, so he didn't dare leave her alone.

  Qiao Yu tightened his arm, gently patting her back, she finally nestled obediently in his arms, that kind of satisfaction was unprecedented, only... this journey was too short.

  He didn't know if she had fallen asleep, but just as they were approaching the city, she suddenly sat up, lowered her head to tidy her hair, and her voice returned to calmness. "We're almost there, you can sit back now."

  Until she got off the bus, Ji Si Xuan was still dazed, and others just thought she was tired and didn't ask much.

  Qiao Yu only discovered a water stain on his chest after he went back to change clothes, and when he touched it, it felt slightly damp. He didn't remember when he got splashed with water, or maybe...

  This position is exactly where Ji Si Xuan just lay down, she... cried?

  Ji Siyuan's sad mood didn't last long, it wasn't until she pushed open the door of her home that she realized something was off.

  。

  Is anyone home?

  She turned on the light and only saw Da Miao crouching at the entrance, guarding a travel bag beside it, with a folded paper on top of the luggage.

  Ji Siyuan suddenly had a bad premonition, this feeling was too familiar! It was as if she came home from school one day to find that her parents were gone again! She and Da Miao exchanged a glance, both the person and the cat saw the familiar disdain and helplessness in each other's eyes. Ji Siyuan sighed, bent down to pick up the paper, with only a few words on it.

  We're going out for a walk, take good care of Da Miao, everything it needs is in the bag.

  Ji Siyuan looked at the big cat again, one unwilling to take care of it and the other unwilling to be taken care of. The two stared at each other in disgust, frozen in a standoff at the entrance.

  Ji Siyun refused to give up and took out her phone to call her parents, but they were both turned off. Finally, she let out a loud cry and fell onto the sofa, pretending to be dead.

  The big cat still sat quietly in its original position, looking cold and noble, and let out a calm meow.

  The next day, Ji Siyu looked at the big cat sunbathing on the balcony before leaving the house, gritted her teeth and put on high heels to leave. But she didn't walk a few steps before turning back, extremely unwilling but unable to bear it, "Big cat, come, I'll take you to work."

  As the project has not been officially launched yet, Qiao Yu cleared out all the rooms on the floor where his office is located and temporarily arranged for Ji Siyu and her team to work here.

  When Ji Siyu stepped out of the elevator, a cat's head poking out of the bag hanging from her arm immediately drew attention. She walked by without looking around and pushed open the conference room door before turning back, crooking her finger, "Come in for the meeting."

  After everyone sat down, Wei Xing pointed at Ji Siyuan's bag and said, "I say, Crown Prince Si, what is this..."

  Ji Siyuan took Da Miao out of the bag and put it on the table, "Come on, call uncle."

  Wei Xing immediately waved his hand, "No need to be so polite, just call me brother, you're making me feel old."

  Ji Siyun's face was inexplicable, "I'm letting you call it uncle, and according to its age conversion into a 'human' age, it's probably over 40 years old"

  。”

  Wei Xing looked at Da Miao and then at Ji Siyu, "You want me to call this bun-faced man uncle?!"

  Ji Siyuan couldn't bear to see others bullying her or her cat. "It's not a baozi face, it just has longer and fluffier fur." Let me formally introduce you, this is my cat, Chinese name Ji Xiao Hua, English name Da Miao Ya Mai Dai, nickname Da Miao.

  “……”

  Everyone was speechless, this name... how can we bear to say it out loud.

  Wei Xin stroked his chin and asked, "Isn't it a male? Why is it called Little 'Flower'?"

  Ji Siyun tilted her head and looked at him, "Because I want to, if I want to, I can also call it a rabbit, a cat called Rabbit."

  Wei Xin's face turned red, and after holding it in for half a day, she finally gave her a thumbs up.

  Ji Siyuan stood in front of the conference table, looked around and raised an eyebrow, asking "Do you have any opinions?"

  Everyone burst out laughing, "No no, haha, what a coincidence, this cat also has the surname Ji."

  "My cat of course shares the same surname as me." Ji Siyu put Da Miao back into her bag, "Da Miao, say hello to your nephew and nieces, we're leaving."

  Wei Xin looked at Ji Si Xuan walking out of the conference room with her head held high and chest out, then grabbed Xu Bing Jun beside her, "Bacteria! You don't even care that Queen Xuan brought a cat to work?!"

  Xu Bingjun sat as stable as Mount Tai, "Whether or not you bring a cat is none of my concern. I only know that Xuan Huang is more dedicated than you are. She finished her part last night. Tell me, Wei Gong, where's your part?"

  After finishing speaking, he raised his head and looked at Wei Xian.

  A group of people love watching three team leaders fight, with eyes shining brightly in pairs.

  Wei Xin glanced at the crowd and pulled Xu Bingjun out, whispering, "So many people are watching, can't you give me some face?!"