Chapter 817: Extra 6

She fell in love at first sight.

At that thin yet upright figure, at those determined eyes, at that young man whose eyes were filled only with his sister, she fell in love at first sight.

She was lucky; from the moment she was born, she was doted on by her parents.

She was also unlucky; the betrayal of a friend once made her feel inferior and refuse to communicate with others.

Until she met An Yinan, she would unconsciously want to get close to her; she was special, she was independent, she was one of a kind.

That day, she met Nan Nan's younger brother, whose name was An Xiangbei.

Yinan, Xiangbei.

Her face would blush uncontrollably, her heart would beat wildly without restraint; on the day of her graduation, she gathered her courage and went to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to wait for him to get off work.

But he got off work so late; she had waited for such a long, long time, and the sky had already turned dark, with everything outside pitch black.

To look nice, she was wearing a skirt, but the night wind was so cold; the temperature difference in early autumn was too great, and gusts of autumn wind swept up the fallen leaves on the ground, carrying a touch of desolation, just like her youthful infatuation.

"An Xiangbei."

Seeing a group of people walking out of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, she spotted An Xiangbei at a glance; the tall, straight youth had grown into a man over these past few years, his gaze growing increasingly cold, as if even more chilling than this autumn wind.

"Sister Yun Duo."

An Xiangbei greeted the people around him, then strode over with his long legs, stood in front of her, and called out softly.

His voice was light and shallow, there was no look of confusion on his face, just a simple form of address; he didn't even ask her why she was here.

She felt a chill down her back, pulled at her skirt, and rubbed her somewhat frozen hands, "I..."

Before she could finish speaking, An Xiangbei had already taken off his Zhongshan Suit and draped it over her, "Sister Yun Duo, you wear this, don't catch a cold."

"If my sister found out I didn't give you clothes to wear, she would kill me."

It was clearly a caring gesture, clearly a moment to warm one's heart, yet he used his sister to brush it off.

And she, however, felt warmth in her heart.

"Shall we walk ahead? There is a noodle shop; shall we talk over there?" An Xiangbei looked at her and asked politely.

At that time, she was full of joy, not knowing that he was only doing it because she was Nan Nan's friend, and he was willing to spend the time to wait for her to finish speaking.

And this was not because of feelings, not because of liking, and certainly not because of love.

"Okay."

The shadows of the two people were stretched very long under the dim streetlights.

"Beibei, I think I like you."

"Ever since I first saw you, I think I've liked you." Jiang Yunduo kept her head down, not daring to look into his eyes; the sound of her heartbeat seemed as if it would shatter her own eardrums.

However, there was no response from the other side for a long time; she looked up in a daze and saw a pair of emotionless eyes.

"Sister Yun Duo, you are my sister's good friend, and you will also be my family."

The young man's smile was still there, but this time, she suddenly realized that when Nan Nan was not by his side, his smile had no warmth at all; he just habitually curled his lips, and the calmness in his eyes was chilling.

She felt as if a bucket of ice water had been poured directly over her head; her whole body shivered, colder than that expectant autumn wind.

"We can try."

"I am very good, I won't throw tantrums, I won't disturb you..."

Jiang Yunduo held her head up, her moist eyes stubbornly refusing to let the tears fall; this was the person she had liked in her heart for four years!

An Xiangbei pondered for a moment, as if thinking about how to answer, but when he looked up, his heart was already firm.

"Sister Yun Duo, I don't know who will stand by my side in the future, but I know that person won't be you."

His work, the path he chose, could not take care of a delicate flower like Jiang Yunduo; without feelings, how could they talk about trying?

If he chose to, it would only be because he had developed feelings.

And not because of the word "try."

It would be unfair to himself, and unfair to her.

She could clearly find someone better, someone who could protect her, someone who could accompany her every day, someone who could experience the warmth of a home and the bustle of life.

But he, he could not.

"Why? You don't have anyone you like, and I like you; can't we just try?"

"I don't ask for the future, I just want to try." She seemed to have let go of all her fear, all her self-esteem, all her reserve, like a speck of dust, begging for his consent.

An Xiangbei looked at her, "Sister Yun Duo, how could someone who likes you bear to see you become like this?"

"You are a proud princess; you are beautiful, your personality is good, your grades are good, and your future is limitless."

"Someone who likes you would feel heartache."

He looked at her earnestly, "But I won't."

Jiang Yunduo didn't know how she walked back to the school dormitory; that night, she didn't know how long she cried; she cursed, she felt aggrieved, and she completely broke down.

But she knew that he didn't like her.

Because when he sent her back to school, he had said...

"The person I like only needs to be herself, and before I meet her, I don't want to settle."

That cold and aloof person, his back was still straight, his gaze still firm.

Everything was exactly as she had first liked him, but in the end, such a person did not belong to her.

"Sister Yun Duo, you will meet someone better, and that person just won't be me."

After sending her to the school gate, he left; that Zhongshan Suit seemed to have become the final parting gift, and it also became the only memento of her four years of liking him, which she did not return to him.

"Jiang Yunduo, are you sure?" The department head looked at Jiang Yunduo; she had clearly refused before, but now she had agreed.

Looking at her dejected appearance, he asked uncertainly, "Are you okay?"

Jiang Yunduo seemed to come back to her senses and nodded, "I'm fine, I've decided, I will continue my studies."

She went abroad; on the day she left, everyone from the dormitory came to see her off, only Nan Nan did not come, as her itinerary was also classified.

"Jiang Yunduo!" Liu Erya ran over; the hospital was very busy, and the time she could take off was limited.

"You're leaving just like that, did you eat gunpowder?" Zhang Jia complained, but she still walked up and hugged her tightly, "The scenery abroad isn't that beautiful, the air abroad isn't sweet, and it's not safe abroad either."

She looked at Jiang Yunduo, "Abroad, there is also no us."

"You little heartless thing, for the sake of a man, you're acting like you're dying, wanting to go far away to a foreign land; is it worth it?"

Jiang Yunduo widened her eyes; she had never told anyone, how could Jiajia...

"That look of yours, it only fools yourself; if you don't say it, we won't bring it up, and we'll just pretend we don't know."

"Nan Nan left a message two years ago; she didn't know when you would say it, but she was afraid she would be too busy and neglect you, so she asked me to keep it in mind."

Jiang Yunduo's eyes widened even further; she thought she had hidden it well, but it had long been known to everyone.

"What message?"

The mood that hadn't been able to recover for these past few days seemed to suddenly recover a little.

"She said..." Zhang Jia smiled, "Even if you admire her, don't look for her shadow in others; there is only one An Yinan in this world."

Jiang Yunduo was stunned, then couldn't help but smile softly; that feeling of being forgotten by the whole world just slowly dissipated.

Her escape was just because she didn't know how to face Nan Nan.

So it turns out...

She was always there!

"She also said." Zhang Jia was serious this time, looking at Jiang Yunduo, "Jiang Yunduo, the person who truly loves you will not have the heart to let you shed tears; he just hasn't appeared yet. Are you already so impatient? Wait for him, okay?"

Wait for him, okay?

She suddenly remembered An Xiangbei's words: She hasn't appeared yet, and I don't want to settle...

"Help me answer her, okay." Jiang Yunduo smiled, the light in her eyes slowly beginning to gather, unraveling the sorrowful emotions bit by bit.

Around her, there were so many people who cared about her and loved her.

"Hmm... although I think there's no need to say it, Nan Nan also asked me to pass a message to you." At this moment, Zhou Ruoran stepped forward, looking at the girl who had seen the sun after the rain; she was young, her personality was soft, and everyone in the dormitory cherished her, protected her, and pampered her like a little sister.

But, in the future...

"What message?" Jiang Yunduo was even more curious.

"She said, since you have chosen, you are definitely going to leave."

"Study hard and make progress every day."

"Be... the best version of yourself."

Jiang Yunduo was stunned, thinking about just now; even though she had untied the knot in her heart, she still hadn't backed down or given up.

She was so afraid of people, so afraid of unfamiliar environments.

But when deciding to study abroad, after she untied the knot in her heart, she did not back down.

"I will."

"Ruo Ran, help me convey to her: this Huaxia is the place she protects with her life, how could I bear to leave?"

"Wait for me to finish my studies, wait for me to return, wait for when I can also contribute a bit of effort for Huaxia, for Mother."

The girls hugged each other.

At this time, Zhao Qiu Hua and Li Xiue came over in a hurry, "Xie Yuanyuan, can you hurry up? We're going to be late."

"I want to too! Is it my fault?"

The three panting people arrived from afar and stood in front of Jiang Yunduo; they didn't even have time to speak, instead breathing heavily.

"Wait, wait for me to catch my breath." Xie Yuanyuan was almost rolling her eyes; her lungs were about to explode.

"There's still time, don't rush." Jiang Yunduo patted her back to help her catch her breath.

Four years, it's not long, but it's not short; friends, family, and loved ones—she had far more than she thought.

"Nan Nan said the clothes over there are too revealing and you won't like them, so she asked me to prepare four sets of clothes for you; wear these for now, and they will be sent to you quarterly in the future." Zhao Qiu Hua smiled and handed over the shopping bag in her hand.

Jiang Yunduo's lips parted slightly as she looked at the clothes in the bag; for a moment, she opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

"Nan Nan said, when you're out and about, if you haven't figured out the exchange rate and the money, how will you survive? Keep this safe, it can be spent over there." Li Xiue handed her a wallet.

Inside was colorful money with unfamiliar patterns, which An Yinan had gone to great lengths to have someone exchange.

"Mine is a bit heavy." Xie Yuanyuan finally caught her breath, then placed a heavy suitcase directly in front of her, "Nan Nan said, when you're out and about, you can't mistreat your stomach; you're already thin, don't let people bully you. These are all the latest snacks from the An Group; I brought you some of everything, especially the Spicy Strips you like—I put in ten bags. That's generous enough, right?"

After Xie Yuanyuan finished speaking, she even winked at her.

Nan Nan said...

Nan Nan said...

Even if she was busy, even if she didn't know which corner of the world she was in, she still remembered her and cared about her.

"I will."

She didn't refuse any of the things; she waved goodbye to her friends and left.

Two years later...

Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade.

"Let us welcome our new colleague." A round of applause erupted.

Zhang Cheng looked at that familiar yet unfamiliar face, "Jiang Yunduo?"

Jiang Yunduo nodded gently, "Group Leader Zhang Cheng, please take care of me."