Chapter 32

Walking down the mountain was not as hard as the opposite but it still took a considerable journey. Once Li Shaoze finally arrived by his car, Zhu Zijin bowed slightly as he proceeded to turn on the engine.

Just when he was about to get in, a woman's voice was heard calling after his name. Li Junfeng also turned around and was dumbfounded by the sight of Pei Qian huffing and puffing for air.

His eyebrows arose slightly. He had never seen his fiancee like this. She was always graceful and her smile was delicate and sometimes professional. Now she looked like a track and field runner, with a two-inch high heels and messy hair.

"Thank goodness you didn't go yet," Pei Qian smiled and breathed for air.

Her smile was obvious as if she was happy that she caught him. There was even a slight chuckle from her as she shook her head, thinking about her unsightly appearance in front of Li Shaoze. Nevertheless, the feeling of success far exceeded the shame.

Li Shaoze was frozen without any action. He was perplexed but once he heard the effortless laughter coming from her, a strange feeling was caught in his throat, making him unable to say a word.

Pei Qian straightened her back and tried to make herself presentable. Her hair was a mess and her dress was not quite in place. Once she was done, she laughed again for the second time. She must look crazy and improper in front of this man she wasn't close to.

But somehow she felt there was no need to adhere to a strict requirement between her and Li Shaoze. She was comfortable this way. It might be because he was Li Junfeng's older brother but other than that reason, she couldn't think of any.

"Sorry, I must look bad," she said with a smile, a little bit of embarrassment was present on her face. Thinking of her automatic reaction to run after Li Shaoze, Pei Qian also didn't know why she did it.

"... Did you forget something?" Li Shaoze cleared his throat and asked.

"Oh no, I... just want to invite you for dinner. Would you like to...?" this invitation also wasn't within her comprehensive behavior, but Pei Qian couldn't stop herself.

She didn't know why, but she had a strong feeling to get along with Li Shaoze. His strange impression was etched on her mind and the fact that he was the closest to Li Junfeng should play a role.

Li Shaoze didn't expect an invitation for dinner to come from Pei Qian, his little brother's fiancee. He didn't know what she was thinking or what she could gain from this harmless dinner but he didn't outright reject her.

He had resolved himself to get along with Pei Qian for Li Junfeng's sake. So he must do what he promised.

"Don't you not want to or do you already have a plan?" her beautiful voice became smaller and smaller as if she was ashamed.

Li Shaoze pursed his lips and was about to answer when he caught sight of the dazed Li Junfeng by his side. Li Junfeng was staring straight at Pei Qian and his eyes revealed a complicated mixture of emotions.

Li Shaoze didn't know what he was thinking but his expression gradually cooled. He maintained a detached persona and said, "... Sure,"

***

What was supposed to be a dinner for two later turned into a feast for three. Pei Qian received a call from her brother earlier and told him about her encounter with Li Shaoze.

Pei Zeyan was just calling casually to ask about his sister's whereabouts, whether she was still in the province. But when she told him about the impromptu encounter with Li Shaoze, he expressed his intention to join the dinner.

Pei Qian said okay and texted him the place. She didn't know her brother was already acquaintances with Li Shaoze.

Once he arrived, Pei Zeyan reached for a handshake towards Li Shaoze with familiarity. Li Shaoze also didn't stand on ceremony.

Pei Qian glanced at her brother and asked curiously, "You know each other?"

"We met when I went fishing a few days back," Pei Zeyan said with a small smile. He also wasn't aware that his sister would be so familiar with Li Shaoze to the point of inviting him for dinner. It actually surprised him.

When the dish arrived, almost all of them were meat which was Li Junfeng's favorite. Li Shaoze didn't say anything but he ate so little that even Pei Qian noticed.

"Is the meal not to your taste?" she asked with concern. She was the one who invited him so she was concerned when he wasn't pleased.

"Let's order more dishes, I think it's inconvenient when there's so little," Pei Zeyan being the observant man he was, naturally noticed the same thing. He offered to call the waiter and began ordering a lot of meals that contained fish, like sweet and sour, braised lime and other. He had a lot of experience in fishing so he naturally liked to eat fish the most.

Once he finished, he told the waiter to wait for Li Shaoze. Li Shaoze didn't want to reject Pei Zeyan's goodwill so he picked up the menu and went on to pick some stuff.

When the new batch of meals arrived, Pei Qian realized her mistake. She had ordered following Li Junfeng's taste instead of Li Shaoze's. It made her feel bad but she didn't say it.

Li Shaoze didn't know what was on her mind, he continued to pick some crab casserole that had just arrived with the spoon and ate silently. Later, he reached for the seafood stir fry. Pei Zeyan casually offered him the sweet and sour fish fillet.

"I prefer to eat this one with the soup. The body is tender so you should try," he said.

"It's delicious," Li Shaoze replied positively.

For some reason, he no longer felt somber and his mood went back to normal. He was skeptical to accept the dinner invitation at first but now he felt it wasn't bad.

Li Junfeng had long become silent ever since he saw Pei Qian. He didn't know what he was feeling in his heart when he saw her smiling and laughing like in the past.

He didn't feel bad but he slightly felt strange. As if his most treasured person was no longer within his grasp. She was now moving on slowly, leaving him behind as just memories.

Aside from this strange sensation, he also felt relieved. No matter how selfish he was, as a person he loved most, he was also happy not to see her in pain like before. She didn't cry as easily when thinking about him. So his heart was relieved of the burden.

It was just that he felt a little bit of regret.

However, this regret would be fulfilled over time so Li Junfeng felt he should be strong.