Ye Ziyu’s body was not seriously injured, but she lacked energy. Di Mingjue was too worried about her condition, so he asked her to stay in the hospital.
If she went back, her bad mood might affect the children, so Ye Ziyu agreed to Di Mingjue’s arrangement.
Spending her days in the hospital room, she ate and slept. With fewer things to think about, she felt more relaxed.
However, Di Mingjue was not in a good mood.
“Ziyu, I heard you haven’t been discharged yet. I happen to be next door, so I thought I’d come and see you.” Gu Xiuyu placed the washed fruit on the bedside table.
As soon as Di Mingjue left the ward, Gu Xiuyu saw an opportunity and immediately found a reason to come over.
This was the first time in a while that he could openly sit in a chair and talk to Ye Ziyu.
“Next door? Is it Mr. Gu?” Ye Ziyu politely expressed her concern.
Since the collaboration between their two companies ended, Ye Ziyu hadn’t heard any news about the Gu Corporation. She hadn’t expected to see Gu Xiuyu at the hospital again after so many days.
Thinking of his admiration for her, Ye Ziyu felt an inexplicable awkwardness.
“Yes.” Gu Xiuyu looked up and placed the peeled orange in his hand in front of Ye Ziyu. “I left for a while some time ago. When I returned, I learned that he was ill and hospitalized. Now I think about it, my departure was too impulsive, and I didn’t consider that he is old and needs companionship.”
“Indeed, Mr. Gu, at his age, he should have his children by his side for good company.” Ye Ziyu agreed.
Talking about these matters, she was actually not concerned. After all, the Gu family’s affairs had nothing to do with her.
Gu Xiuyu raised his hand. “I just peeled this. Try it.”
Oranges were Ye Ziyu’s least favorite fruit. She shook her head and pushed her palm forward. “I’m sorry, I don’t really like oranges.”
“Then have some grapes.” Gu Xiuyu had brought a fruit platter when he came. He had prepared some of every kind of fruit, having anticipated that Ye Ziyu might refuse him by saying she didn’t like them.
Facing his kind hospitality, Ye Ziyu reluctantly accepted the grapes.
After all, he didn’t need to peel them.
After eating one or two, Ye Ziyu picked up a nearby tissue to wipe her fingers. “I’m done, thank you.”
“There’s still a lot,” Gu Xiuyu said, placing the entire fruit platter in front of Ye Ziyu. “If you like them, I can have someone send more over.”
She liked them, but not ones he brought.
After spending a short while together, Ye Ziyu felt that Gu Xiuyu’s feelings for her had not disappeared.
“Mr. Gu,” Ye Ziyu said.
Gu Xiuyu disliked this address very much, feeling it made them too distant. He corrected her, “Ziyu, you can call me Xiuyu. Calling me Mr. Gu all the time is too formal.”
Call him Xiuyu?
Ye Ziyu couldn’t bring herself to say it. Just as he always called her Ziyu, every time she heard it, it reminded her of his feelings for her.
“Mr. Gu, I don’t think it’s appropriate for us to call each other by our first names so intimately.”
“Intimately? I don’t think so. Isn’t this a normal friendly address?”
Gu Xiuyu’s words made Ye Ziyu feel momentarily awkward.
Yes, isn’t a normal friend’s address to drop the surname and use the given name.
“Ziyu, I know what you’re worried about. I admit I was persistent and confessed my love to you before. I’ve been through a lot during this time and understand that feelings cannot be forced. I just hope we can be normal friends, that there’s no barrier between us because of what happened before, and that you don’t guard against me like a bad person.” Gu Xiuyu looked at Ye Ziyu with sincere eyes.
If they hadn’t touched upon feelings at the beginning, they might have become purely platonic friends. But once there was a certain level of emotion, they needed to draw a clear line.