To My Dear Mr. Huo

When Xiang Caiping saw that familiar face appear in front of her, she felt it was almost the same as the one in her memory. She was dumbfounded.

In an instant, the cake in her hands dropped onto the ground. The sound of the cake hitting the ground failed to snap her to her senses.

She stared blankly at Su Chenghui. He returned her stare. Compared to his privileged life these past twenty years, Xiang Caiping had clearly gone through considerably more turmoil.

She had aged substantially and did not resemble the soft-spoken and beautiful girl she had been in her youth. He was still able to recognize her immediately. The shock reflected in his eyes was overshadowed by sympathy.

“Caiping? Caiping? What’s happened to you?”

It had been too long since they parted ways and, in Su Chenghui’s heart, Xiang Caiping’s features had become blurry. Despite that, he still remembered her at her most beautiful at the very beginning of their relationship.

Su Chenghui’s words snapped Xiang Caiping out of her trance. She gazed at the man in front of her whom she had practically loved and yearned for her whole life. She helplessly forced a smile and it was a bitter one.

“This is what I look like now.”

When she was returning to Lin City, she figured that she would eventually bump into Su Chenghui.

She had never thought that day would come so soon. She had felt that she would already be fully prepared for the day when it arrived.

Little did she expect that day would catch her off guard like this.

She originally thought of leaving hastily to escape from the situation. At this moment, however, she was not thinking about making a hasty retreat. She stood there determinedly and fixed her eyes calmly on Su Chenghui.

“I have aged.”

These simple words caught Su Chenghui off guard and his feet felt light. His arms hung limply by his side and his hands trembled slightly.

Xiang Caiping had indeed aged. She was wholly different from how she was more than twenty years ago. She had changed in a way that almost caused him to lose the courage to acknowledge her.

“Caiping, you…”

Su Chenghui tried his best to control his emotions. Despite that, he was still a little reluctant to look at Xiang Caiping. He was afraid that he would lose control.

“Where have you been all these years? Have you been doing well?”

The question only allowed two answers – yes or no. It was difficult for Xiang Caiping to explain. She shook her head. “It is all in the past. It has all passed.”

How could it not be difficult for a woman to conduct business all by herself? How could it have all gone well for her?

It was all in the past, however, and there was no need to bring it up.

Even without Xiang Caiping answering his question, Su Chenghui knew that it must have been tough for her. He felt the urge to tear up. “Why did you not look for me? I did look for you. I looked for you everywhere. I…”

“What if I had found you?” Xiang Caiping shot back. “You were already married with children. If you had found me, what would you have done anyway?”

Su Chenghui was at a loss for words. He could not utter anything at this moment.

Even if he had tried to look for Xiang Caiping in the past two decades, it was only to satisfy his curiosity in knowing if she was doing well by herself. What could he have done even if he had found her?

He was Su Chenghui, Li Qianxue’s husband. He was Li Corporation’s general manager. He…

He teared up more than before and took a step forward to stand in front of Xiang Caiping. “Caiping, listen to me. I… I can…I can…”

“Don’t say anything.” Xiang Caiping knew what he was going to say. “Don’t speak of things which you’ll not be able to do.”

More than twenty years ago, he was not able to keep his promises. She did not believe that he could keep his promises more than twenty years later.

Being a veteran in the business arena for many years, Su Chenghui did not fail to comprehend what Xiang Caiping meant. He stood, dazed.

Yes, he had qualms about the past and he still had them in the present. Not only did he have qualms, but he also had more apprehensions now.

“Caiping…”

“Mother?”

Two voices called out in unison.