When An Xunuo saw Third Young Master Ye, she had this sudden feeling that she saw how Ye Ningyuan would be in thirty years’ time. Both father and son were too alike as though they were from the same mold.
She felt a dissonance.
The atmosphere over dinner was very good. Although An Xunuo was one of few words, she talked much more than usual thanks to Ye Hailan and Cheng Anya. The Ye family, a family of five, were very happy together. Everybody, from young to cold, treated her very warmly.
She suddenly had a guilty feeling. She was initially here to kill Ye Ningyuan, but how could she feel…
She looked a little lost.
In the night, An Xunuo leaned against the window with her arms akimbo as she looked up at the moon that poured out its cold light. Her delicate features were covered in a thin sheen of moonlight that brought out a few hints of paleness in her pale skin as though it were a lonely lily that blossomed in the night. While a woman like her should not seem vulnerable on the surface, he, however, saw it at a glance.
Ye Ningyuan knocked on the door. An Xunuo was taken aback and wiped her expression off her face. Once she wiped the expression off her face, it was as though she had worn a mask of coldness and became a completely different person.
Holding a laptop, he then put the laptop on the table and smiled. “I was afraid you had nothing to do at night and prepared a computer for you.”
“Thank you so much!”
The atmosphere was a little quiet, and it was as though they did not know what to say. There was a very weird atmosphere in the room, and Ye Ningyuan approached the window and asked, “Xunuo, what are you troubled about?”
“Nothing to do with you!” An Xunuo turned and looked at the magnolia tree. She seemed to emanate a vacuum that kept everyone at arms’ length.
Ye Ningyuan suddenly put a hand by her ear and pinned her between the window and his hand. An Xunuo turned around in displeasure only to find that his face was mere feet away. “Are you sure it has nothing to do with me?” He sounded exceptionally low.
Danger!
That was what An Xunuo saw in his gaze. Coldness flashed through her eyes, and she said, “Ye Ningyuan, I do not like strangers being this close to me.”
In English, it was to say that if he did not leave, she would hit out at him.
As Ye Ningyuan had seen her in action, she, if his judgment was not off-track, should be as capable as him. This point once left him shocked as his abilities had put him above Third Young Master Ye, Ye Wei, and even the Mo brothers. As he was Mo Shitian and Su Ruyu’s disciple, he had the strengths of both Mo Shitian and Su Ruyu. Those, along with his exceptionally innate talent, allowed him to supersede many. Little did he expect a woman to be on par with him.
His breathing was very shallow, and that gentle scent of menthol on him lingered around her. An Xunuo was a little vexed but did not show it as she coldly looked at him.
He leaned in so close that his nose almost touched hers. Xunuo, in the reflection of his eyes, saw her cold self and that cold mask of hers that endured all punishment.
She felt even more frustrated, but Ye Ningyuan kept looking at her quietly. He just looked at her quietly and waited for her to climb out of her mask. An Xunuo suddenly punched at his face.
He easily dodged it and held her wrist. An Xunuo’s gaze became colder, and Ye Ningyuan gently smiled. “Miss An, I’ve had a hard upbringing. If you want to fight, could you avoid the face, please?”
His casual statement defused the tense situation. While An Xunuo was already very vexed, she almost laughed at his joking statement. She then coldly harrumphed and pulled her hand back.
“You’re not too bad.”
“Likewise.” Ye Ningyuan gently smiled. “I’ve never seen City A at night. Are you interested in joining me for a stroll?”
“I’m not free!”
…
An Xunuo did not understand why she would allow him to ‘abduct’ her. While she clearly said that she was not free, he said something along the lines of how his mommy once said how women never meant what they said. To her, he was utterly blabbering nonsense as she really did not want to be with him.
Despite her love for high-risk and challenging missions where she could do something even more thrilling, she had an exceptional dislike for dangerous creatures that could put her at risk.
Ye Ningyuan, to her, was a high-risk creature. Her reasoning called for her to maintain a distance from him.
Little did she expect herself to be pulled out by him once again.
To her, City A at night was not as beautiful as London. It could have been because she was too used to London and really liked London. Having been to many cities in the years, none of the cities would fascinate her like London did.
Ye Ningyuan brought her around the streets of City A in the dead of night as he conveniently introduced the landmarks to her. Although An Xunuo was lacking in interest and not the most cooperative, he was not flustered at all. He eventually stopped the car along a more bustling street, and it was still particularly crowded even though it was midnight. An aroma lingered along the street, leading them to a food belt.
“What did you bring me here for?”
“For supper! You’ve definitely never had supper here.” Ye Ningyuan smiled.
“I’m not hungry.”
“Miss An, you’ll be hungry after just one bite.”
An Xunuo was lost for words.
The street became even more crowded at night, and hearsay had it that it was crowded the entire night as there were many discotheques, party houses, and some high-class establishments in the vicinity. Since this food belt was just a corner away, there were many people from many walks of life here. This food belt, the most famous in City A, was a landmark in itself thanks to the many popular figures that thronged it frequently.
Ye Ningyuan gave An Xunuo a stick of fried prawn rolls, along with another stick of grilled cuttlefish, and a stick of fried spring rolls. An Xunuo looked exceptionally lost as she had never had such food.
Since she had never had such food, the aroma of the food was so fragrant that she wondered how it tasted. She was starting to get hungry.
“Try it. It’s really nice!” Ye Ningyuan was not focused on eating but wanted to show her the fun parts of life that she had missed out on. He had no idea why he had such a thought. Although Xunuo was indeed cold…
Her eyes had melancholy and destitute that could never be dispelled…
He wanted to make her that bit happier…
“I do not like to eat this.”
“How do you know whether you like it or not before you’ve even tried it?” He cajoled her. “Try it. It’s really not bad.”
Just as he was about to buy her a beverage bottle, he felt a chill down his spine. He tucked his lips. A gunshot rang out and he suddenly felt a force knock him onto the ground…