Chapter 144: New Year's Gift

Luo Xing looked at the date; the new year was arriving soon.

On her phone, Gu Shiyan had sent his daily schedule. Looking at it, he would be busy until three in the morning, and it seemed he wouldn't even be able to properly celebrate the New Year.

"Is he coming for the New Year?" Jiang Ru asked.

From August to December, Gu Shiyan had only visited once in September, met with Luo Xing for a moment, and then rushed off to catch a flight.

"He's already so busy until late at night. I told him to stay home and get some good sleep; he shouldn't come," Luo Xing said, finishing packing their things.

"Let's go, Mom."

With Jiang Ru’s arm still in a cast, Luo Xing helped her put on her coat, and the two left the hospital room. "You need check-ups two or three times a month. During this time, you must stay put and absolutely cannot run around if you still want to keep your arm."

"Will it really recover..."

"It will," Luo Xing said with a firm tone.

In the bustling business district, the CBD was filled with skyscrapers and brilliant neon lights.

Gu Shiyan checked the time and said to Assistant Song, who had just entered with documents, "Let those outside go home."

Assistant Song was stunned. "Go home now?"

"Yes."

Although it was nearly eleven o'clock, who hadn't been leaving at two or three in the morning lately? Twelve o'clock was considered early.

Assistant Song set down the items in his hands. "Aren't you leaving?"

Gu Shiyan raised his eyes, staring fixedly at Assistant Song. "You misunderstood. I meant let the others go home; you have to stay and work overtime with me."

Assistant Song: "..."

That was close; he had almost been overjoyed.

"Then let Luo Xingqi stay. The work he has regarding the Island Bay project..."

"He is to go home," Gu Shiyan said, looking up at him again.

Assistant Song suspected his boss was unable to separate public and private matters. He narrowed his eyes. "You transferred him here, surely not because..."

"If he lacked the ability, I wouldn't have transferred him." Gu Shiyan quickly finished reading and signing the documents he had just brought in, then pushed a stack of files next to him toward him. "Try to finish before three, hurry."

Assistant Song carried the files out, mentally reciting the figure of his annual salary and year-end bonus.

Yes, he was full of motivation.

The phone Gu Shiyan kept in his drawer rang.

The phone on his desk was for official business, while the one in the drawer was his private phone. Not many people knew that number.

Gu Shiyan took it out and glanced at it.

"Still busy?"

Gu Shiyan sent back a sticker of a cat working.

"Not celebrating the New Year?"

Gu Shiyan smiled at the message and replied with a voice note.

"I'll celebrate the New Year with you next year."

A call came through from the other side, and Gu Shiyan answered. "I'm a bit busy today. Can I call you tomorrow?"

"I sent a private jet. Go take a look and see if there's a gift I prepared for you on the rooftop of your company building."

Gu Shiyan laughed. "Wow, I see it. I love the gift my baby sent."

"..."

Gu Shiyan didn't take Luo Xing's words seriously; where would she get a private jet? However, if she wanted one, he could buy it for her.

"Go to the rooftop quickly and look at the gift I sent you."

Luo Xing repeated it a second time, and Gu Shiyan began to pay attention. "Did you really have someone prepare a gift for me?"

As he spoke, he had already stood up.

"Of course. I'm not like you, a busybody."

"Who did you have put it there? Why the rooftop? Wouldn't it have been better to send it directly to my office?"

Gu Shiyan went out, and seeing that Assistant Song was no longer outside, he frowned. He held his phone, ready to send him a message.

Before he could finish editing the message, he stepped onto the rooftop and heard a burst of noise.

As he looked up, the phone in his hand was vibrating.

The rooftop had clearly been specially decorated; warm lights, a long table, and a semi-circular tent provided shelter from the biting cold wind.

The red lanterns with the character for "fortune" hung from the hallway, warming everyone's hearts.

The table was filled with New Year’s dishes. Luo Xingqi, Jiang Ru, Luo Zhou, Shen Que, and Assistant Song were all sitting together.

Luo Xing stood across from him, her smile bright and radiant, even more dazzling than the magnificent lights behind her.

Gu Shiyan answered the phone and held it to his ear. A voice coughed from the other side. "Busybody, did you see the gift I prepared?"

"Yes." Gu Shiyan walked over and hugged her.

He hadn't found the high-intensity work of these past few days unbearable, but holding Luo Xing in his arms, he felt that those days had indeed been bitter.

Luo Xing patted him. "How about we have dinner before you go back down?"

"Okay." Gu Shiyan buried his face in the warmth of her neck and replied softly, "Why did you come back?"

Luo Xing leaned into his ear and lowered her voice. "I came back to spend the New Year with my baby."

"Tsk," Luo Zhou shook his head faintly. "Let me time this and see how long they're going to hug."

Before Luo Zhou could start timing, he was swatted by Luo Xing. She took Gu Shiyan's hand and sat down next to her mother.

Assistant Song poured the wine and passed a glass to everyone present. Facing Gu Shiyan, he gave a sheepish smile. "Um, just a quick meal, then back to work."

"Uncle, Auntie..." Gu Shiyan held his glass, looking at the two of them with a rather stiff demeanor.

"Oh, we don't stand on such ceremony in our family. Sit down and eat," Jiang Ru said, waving her hand to tell Gu Shiyan to sit.

Gu Shiyan nodded, though he still performed the proper courtesies. After toasting the two of them, he looked at Luo Zhou nearby, the atmosphere becoming even more awkward. "Brother..."

Luo Zhou laughed teasingly. "So you know how to call me brother now."

"What is the connection between you two?" Ms. Jiang asked, looking at her son.

Luo Zhou looked at Gu Shiyan and smiled, without exposing him.

Just as Gu Shiyan was about to sit down, Luo Zhou added, "Hey! You haven't toasted our second brother yet!"

Luo Xing and Gu Shiyan were both stunned for a moment, until Shen Que stood up and clinked glasses with Gu Shiyan individually.

With everyone standing, the glasses clinked, the uncle and aunt watching, and a nitpicking brother specifically staring, Gu Shiyan looked at Shen Que and weakly called out, "Brother."

The atmosphere was awkward for a while, but then everyone stood together, counting down the seconds to cross from the old year into the new.

Gu Shiyan didn't dare indulge in the wine, only taking small sips each time.

However, the atmosphere was too lively. The elders told funny stories from the past and brought up embarrassing incidents from the younger ones' childhoods; they could barely stop talking.

Whenever Gu Shiyan heard interesting stories about Luo Xing's childhood, he would stop using his chopsticks.

"Hey, I remember when Xingxing was five. She was so tiny, standing next to Dad like a little figurine. It was also New Year's, and she secretly took some lettuce Grandma had washed and put it on the heater to grill..." Luo Zhou clapped his hands and laughed, and even Shen Que couldn't help but laugh.

Luo Xing had no memory of this at all. "What's so funny about that? Who hasn't done something stupid?"

Shen Que pressed his lips together, only to find he couldn't suppress his smile.

Luo Zhou looked at Gu Shiyan. "But that was the heater I used to warm my feet on! Hahaha, I put my feet on it, she took the lettuce to grill, and in the end, she even ate it! Hahaha!"

Luo Xing: "..."

Gu Shiyan’s chest heaved as he stifled his laughter. Seeing Luo Xing glaring at him, he forced himself to hold it in until he started to shake.

"How come no one ever told me this!" Luo Xing looked at Luo Zhou, who was still laughing opposite her, then stared at Shen Que beside him. "You knew too? Oh my god, you two have been hiding this from me for over ten years!"

It was the first time Jiang Ru and Luo Xingqi had heard of this incident as well.

"My brother once came to pick me up from school, got barked at by a black dog, and was so scared he fell into a ditch. Afraid of being laughed at, he made me secretly go home and get him clothes to change into..."

"Damn it! You, you, shut up!" Luo Zhou stood up, trying to cover her mouth. Luo Xing hurriedly pulled Gu Shiyan and hid. "As a result, while he was hiding under the bridge changing his clothes, he was seen by the goddess he had a crush on for six years! Hahaha!"