If You Could Hear My Heart

“Butler, you think he’s being unreasonable too, don’t you?” Xu Chaomu said indifferently.

“It’s simply too much, how could he say such things to you.”

Butler Ling sighed. Shen Chi was good in every aspect, it’s just that sometimes he could be so foolish it was as if he had a negative IQ.

“Then I won’t pay attention to him for three days, butler, you have to back me up on this.”

“I will back you up, this time, I won’t take Shen Chi’s side either, he really went too far.”

Xu Chaomu chatted with Butler Ling for a while, and her mood had significantly improved. She had been in a bad mood since Shen Chi lost his temper at her for no good reason last night.

She ate her breakfast slowly, and after finishing, she took a walk with Butler Ling in the garden.

She had put away that blue small card. Apologies that aren’t spoken out loud are just hooliganism; she won’t acknowledge it, acting as if she never saw it.

At noon, Shen Chi did not come back for lunch, and Xu Chaomu couldn’t be bothered to care.

The midday heat of summer tends to make people drowsy, and after having lunch, Xu Chaomu ended up dozing off alone on the living room sofa.

She was so sleepy, her head nodding like a pecking chicken, and finally, unable to stay awake, she laid down on the sofa to sleep.

She didn’t have to worry about her sleeping position, as the Shen Family’s home was now almost exclusively Shen Chi’s.

Shen Cexian’s health had always been poor, and he had long since moved to a summer villa, buying a small villa there where he would stay during the summer to escape the heat and recuperate.

Liu Rumei had also gone with him to take care of Shen Cexian and rarely returned to the west wing.

As for Shen Shihan, he moved out of the Shen Family home five years ago and started his own little family with Mo Shuifu. Shen Yanrou, too, bought her own apartment outside.

The big family had scattered, each going their separate ways, no longer resembling its state from five years ago.

It’s still the same summer, but the flowers and trees in the garden have grown taller, and the green bricks of the villa are now covered with creeping vines.

Times change but people don’t.

It seemed as if she had just had a long dream…

She still remembered the day she came to the Shen Family’s house thirteen years ago, how lively the Shen Family was back then…

Listening to the chirps of cicadas outside the window, Xu Chaomu fell asleep hugging a pillow.

This kind of summer was so tranquil, every corner exuding an aura of serene and peaceful years.

When she woke up, it was already two in the afternoon. After a long sleep, she felt even better.

With no one to accompany her, she thought of giving Lou Yanli a call.

Having met Lou Yanli yesterday, Shen Chi had become jealous, and Xu Chaomu thought Butler Ling was right, men should not be pampered.

She shouldn’t have to avoid seeing the people she wants to see just because he’s unhappy.

She had only given her number to Lou Yanli yesterday but forgot to ask for his. Consequently, she had to resort to asking Weiwei for help.

To her surprise, Yu Weiwei actually had Lou Yanli’s number and sent it over within a few seconds.

When Lou Yanli received Xu Chaomu’s call, he was in the office working on design drafts.

“Male god, are you busy?” Xu Chaomu laughed.

“Not busy, Chaomu, what’s up, missed me already after a day?” Lou Yanli laughed as well.

“Yeah, yeah, missed you a lot, how come you didn’t call me?”

“I did last night, but you didn’t answer,” Lou Yanli shrugged.

Xu Chaomu then remembered that there were several missed calls from last night.

However, she had put her phone on silent mode early last night, so she didn’t bother to check.

“Hehe, sorry about that, male god. Are you free now?”

“I’m free.”

“Then I’m inviting you for afternoon tea, will you come?”

Lou Yanli checked his watch and smiled, “Sure, where to?”

“How about Xiangsi Teahouse near the school, what do you say?”

“Didn’t expect you to be so nostalgic.”

Xu Chaomu laughed, “Yep, yep, I’m just a nostalgic person. Let me tell you, I’ve made it big now, but I haven’t forgotten you old friends.”

“Made it big?” Lou Yanli laughed out loud, “How big? Suddenly struck it rich? Or made it onto Forbes?”

“Come over, and I’ll tell you.”

“Alright, see you at Xiangsi Teahouse.”

Xu Chaomu’s bad mood had almost completely disappeared; her moods came quickly and left quickly.

She thought if she wasn’t optimistic enough, she would have probably been driven to death by Shen Chi’s actions years ago.

Shen Chi, she figured, must have left many a young girl with profound psychological shadows.

After sprucing up a bit, Xu Chaomu grabbed her handbag and headed out.

Since Butler Ling had pledged to stand with Xu Chaomu these next few days, Xu Chaomu left without reporting to Shen Chi.

Xu Chaomu hailed a taxi and went to the school.

The Shen Family’s home was neither close nor far from the school. When she arrived at Xiangsi Teahouse, she spotted Lou Yanli pulling up in his car.

It was the hottest part of the day, the blanched sun scorching the earth mercilessly.

The streets were nearly empty, giving a clear view of their former school.

The high school was still the same, and so was the large building; nothing had changed.

Now during the summer break, the entire high school seemed somewhat deserted.

She shielded her eyes from the sunlight and looked up at the classroom where she once stayed.

There, many, many memories lay buried…

She wondered if the high school homeroom teacher was still there, that opportunistic old lady.

Back then, she despised her enough to grind her teeth in anger, but now it didn’t seem like much at all.

Who didn’t have a few teachers they loathed in school, after all?

“Chaomu,” Lou Yanli called out after parking his car.

He saw her too; coincidentally, they arrived at the teahouse at the same time.

“Male god!” Xu Chaomu waved at him with a laugh.

Lou Yanli came over to her side, taking her bag, “Let’s go inside, it’s too hot out here.”

“Okay!”

Walking alongside Lou Yanli, Xu Chaomu noticed how much taller he had grown; he was now almost as tall as Shen Chi.

He wasn’t the little boy of the past anymore.

As they passed by Lou Yanli’s car, Xu Chaomu deliberately paused and snickered.

“Male god, is your car a Land Rover? It’s a very domineering car, nice. Later, take me for a ride in it.”

“Didn’t you say you’ve made it big? Why did you come in a cab?”

“I only have the No. 11 bus,” Xu Chaomu laughed.

“Then you lied to me about making it big.”

“Ah, I was worried you’d look down on me and refuse to come out,” Xu Chaomu said.

“Just your usual chatter,” Lou Yanli laughed.

He led Xu Chaomu into Xiangsi Teahouse, where the proprietress immediately greeted them with a smile.

Given the time, the teahouse was exceptionally quiet, a rare occurrence for a customer to come by.

“What would you like to drink?” the proprietress asked.

Xiangsi Teahouse’s upper floor spoke of longing. Xu Chaomu observed that the proprietress was still the same one from five years ago; she hadn’t changed at all.

Back in high school, she couldn’t have afforded such a fancy place; she had only passed by it several times with her classmates.

“You choose,” Lou Yanli said, glancing at Xu Chaomu.

After five years without seeing her, this girl had grown even prettier, her features delicate, her face unadorned, radiant like a rose.