Chapter 329 - 164: A Few Years of Sweetness, A Lifetime of Bitterness

Chapter 329: Chapter 164: A Few Years of Sweetness, A Lifetime of Bitterness

Her soft body was pressed against Su Ran’s chest. He didn’t dare let go; the moment he did, her dress would fall right off. Su Ran glanced at the store manager, who shook her head, signaling that this was genuinely an accident and not some deliberate setup.

And so, the petite girl in the maid outfit was held securely in Su Ran’s arms. She had been a little scared a moment ago, but now, resting in his embrace, she wasn’t afraid of anything. She knew that as long as Su Ran was there, she wouldn’t be exposed. It was a kind of deep-seated trust.

She looked up at Su Ran from within his embrace and asked, "Class Monitor, are you worried about me?"

Su Ran looked down and said, "I couldn’t let everyone else get a free show."

"Oh..." ’So it doesn’t count as a "free show" if you’re the one looking?’ Shen Qingning thought.

The store manager brought over a large towel and draped it over Shen Qingning, who hurried off to change her clothes.

The store manager apologized repeatedly to Su Ran. "It’s fine," Su Ran said. "Since it was an accident, it just means she didn’t pull the zipper up properly." His mind, however, was still stuck on the moment her dress fell, replaying the stunning sight.

’Did all of Shen Qingning’s nutrients go straight to her chest?’

Shen Qingning got the job and was overjoyed. She even treated Su Ran to a cup of milk tea. But because Su Ran had seen... well, *everything*... she was now quite shy and not acting as naturally as before.

「At the school gate.」

"Bye, Class Monitor! I’ll treat you to lunch again tomorrow to thank you for helping me find a great job."

"I’m busy tomorrow. I have to go to the Imperial Capital."

"Going away again? What are you doing in the Imperial Capital?"

She suddenly became rather inquisitive. In the past, she would never have asked about his plans.

"An old lady invited me to the commencement ceremony for a new show she’s investing in, and then I’m going with Reba to watch a flag-raising ceremony. That’s all."

Su Ran was always this frank. If you asked, he’d answer. If you didn’t, he’d never bring it up.

"Reba?"

"Yep."

"Oh."

Reality snapped Shen Qingning back to her senses. She sometimes forgot herself and started to think of her Class Monitor as just an ordinary guy. But at the most crucial moments, she was always reminded: ’He’s a man at the top of the food chain. He’s destined to be surrounded by beautiful women, not a plain girl like me.’

"Do you want to go? If you do, I can take you to the flag-raising ceremony with me."

"I think I’ll pass. I’m starting at the shop tomorrow as a trainee. I want to get the hang of things as soon as possible."

"Fair enough. Well, you should head back to your dorm."

"Mm-hmm."

Shen Qingning turned, clutching the strap of her shoulder bag as if she had just made a decision.

"Class Monitor!"

Su Ran had just put on his helmet and was about to leave when he heard Shen Qingning call out from behind him. He turned his head, only to see her sweep her long hair aside, lean in, and plant a light, fleeting kiss on his cheek.

The spring breeze rustled through the treetops. Spring had returned to the land, and everything was beginning to sprout.

"Thank you, Class Monitor."

Then she turned and vanished through the school gate.

Su Ran raised his hand and looked at it. Shen Qingning’s Red Dust Line was right there, within reach, but it remained untied. This showed that Su Ran hadn’t developed feelings for her. He was, by nature, a good person who enjoyed helping others. Plus, he was the type of guy who was slow to warm up, not some romance-addict who falls in love at the drop of a hat.

Of course, if Su Ran were to grab the Red Dust Line at his fingertips and tie it, he would effectively bind Shen Qingning to him, and she would fall hopelessly and irrevocably in love with him.

But Su Ran didn’t want to do that. Deep down, he didn’t want to toy with the hearts of too many girls, especially a good one like her.

’The road ahead is long, and the future is vast. I’ll let time be the judge of everything...’

Back in her dorm, Shen Qingning took a shower. Her face flushed red as she lathered her chest with body wash, her mind uncontrollably replaying the moment Su Ran had held her. ’Actually,’ she thought, ’at that moment, I really wanted to say, ’You’re holding me too tight! It’s squishing them and it hurts...’’

She never would have imagined that... *those*... would be seen so completely by her Class Monitor in that situation, at that very moment, and that he would even end up holding her.

She didn’t feel like she’d been taken advantage of, because Su Ran had been saving the day. Without him, everyone in the shop really would have gotten a free show.

...

「The next day.」

Su Ran set off for the Imperial Capital, a city he had always longed to visit but never had before.

Another perk of being a Divine Rich was that he felt at home wherever he went. There was no secret to it—being rich was just that good.

His plane landed in the Imperial Capital at 10:00 AM. What Su Ran sensed in the air wasn’t the smell of money, but the scent of power. In the Imperial Capital, just being rich was no big deal. What was that old saying...?

When money stands up to speak, truth itself must remain silent.

But when power stands up, even money must take three steps back.

’Imperial Capital, here I come!’

As he walked out of Daxing Airport, Su Ran turned on his phone. He had an email from Aunt Luo containing a phone number for his driver.

’Sigh...’

’What is wrong with us?’ he thought. ’One old, one young, and both as stubborn as mules. Neither of us is willing to be the first to say, ’Let’s add each other on WeChat.’ We just keep sending emails back and forth. We don’t even qualify as pen pals.’

’Fine! We’ll just drag this out. Let’s see who breaks first and asks for the other’s WeChat.’

’It was a childish, unspoken competition.’

Su Ran dialed the number. A Toyota Alpha luxury van quickly pulled up in front of him. The driver was the same assistant he’d met before, Ah Wei.

Carrying nothing but a backpack, Su Ran got in the car, and they drove off.

Ah Wei glanced at Su Ran in the rearview mirror. "Welcome to the Imperial Capital, Mr. Su. Aunt Luo is already waiting for you at her home."

"At her home? I thought we were going to the commencement banquet."

Ah Wei explained, "The commencement banquet is tonight at the Shangri-La Hotel. This is a private lunch. Aunt Luo said she was very fond of that photo you took, so she invited you to her home for a visit."

Adopting a ’go with the flow’ mentality, Su Ran agreed. ’As long as I’m not being sold off, everything should be fine,’ he thought.

"By the way, Brother Ah Wei..."

"No, no, no, Mr. Su, you’re too kind. Just call me Ah Wei."