AD Chapter 49
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Just as Su Ning was inwardly roasting his boss to death, he suddenly overheard something that concerned him.
“…Then what about your assistant?”
Su Ning didn’t catch the whole sentence—only the second half—but since it mentioned him, he instinctively looked up. The person speaking didn’t care at all that Su Ning was standing right there. When they didn’t get an immediate response from Gu Lingfeng, they quickly added with concern:
“No, seriously, now that Shen Yao is back in the country, shouldn’t you hurry up and get rid of all the flowers and grass around you? It’s not worth having a fight over something like this, is it?”
After saying this, the person glanced at Su Ning with a meaningful smile and added, “Since you already have the real thing, why continue to put up with a knockoff?”
Su Ning kept his eyes down, pretending to be made of wood.
Gu Lingfeng frowned slightly and glanced coolly at the person. “You sure talk a lot.”
That person looked at Gu Lingfeng, then at Su Ning—who was still pretending to be invisible—as if they finally understood something, and held up their hands in mock surrender with a grin. “Alright, alright, I get it. I was being nosy. But I heard Shen Yao’s not planning to leave this time—he’s even going to hold an art exhibition. If you get the chance, bring him out to hang with the group.”
The two of them chatted and walked into the private room. Gu Lingfeng had arranged a gathering with a few close acquaintances, partly for fun and partly for business talk. Su Ning didn’t follow them in. He leaned against the door outside, bored, thinking about where he could go to kill time.
The door hadn’t been closed tightly, and bits of conversation drifted out. Su Ning listened idly.
“…I saw Shen Yao yesterday, and honestly, he really does look alike. No wonder he’s been kept around all these years.”
“Right? I told you, even though our President Gu looks cold, he’s actually pretty devoted. He’s got that one white moonlight in his heart, so he’s never had a real relationship over the years. Every little fling he’s had looks kinda like his white moonlight…”
The rest was too muffled to make out—either someone had warned them or the topic had changed to something more serious.
Su Ning stood there with his head down and no expression, feeling a faint ache in his chest. After a long silence, he forced a weak smile.
Didn’t he already know this? What was there to be sad about? All this did was help him see his place more clearly.
A dinner party meant more to Gu Lingfeng than Su Ning’s life. An assistant should know his place—when the contract ends, take the money, walk away, and live a quiet little life. Don’t get tangled up in the melodrama of the rich.
Su Ning quickly pulled himself together, patted his face to make his smile look more natural, and walked to the lounge area set up for guests. There was a buffet. He piled his plate high with food, found a seat, and started eating.
But the more he tried not to think, the more the fragments of conversation echoed in his mind, spoiling his appetite.
He hadn’t seen Shen Yao yet, so he didn’t know what the man looked like. But thinking back now, Chu Zichen really did bear a resemblance—at least 50% similar.
Su Ning couldn’t help but blame his own dullness. How had he never noticed? Looking back, all the lovers Gu Lingfeng had kept around did share a certain resemblance in looks. So the man wasn’t incapable of love—he had just already given it to someone else.
He used to wonder what kind of person could truly capture Gu Lingfeng’s heart. Now he had the answer—no, not a newcomer. Someone who had always been there but had left and just returned.
Su Ning tried to smile it off like before, but the curve of his lips quickly fell again. The food in his mouth tasted bitter.
Sigh, what a waste of a good plate of food.
Su Ning stared down at the meal and sighed internally.
After hearing so much praise about Shen Yao from others, Su Ning finally met the man a few days later.
Perhaps because of his artistic background, Shen Yao had a unique presence. His features were refined, and his clothing style elegant and understated, suggesting excellent taste. He looked aloof and unapproachable, but was actually warm and soft-spoken. When he looked at you with those gentle eyes and spoke kindly, it made you feel flattered and special.
Su Ning couldn’t help but think to himself, This is the kind of person who’s truly worthy of Gu Lingfeng.
This time, Gu Lingfeng brought Shen Yao out to meet his friends, introducing him to his social circle. Shen Yao came from a wealthy family, too—on par with Gu Lingfeng's. The Shen and Gu families even had business ties. It was just that Shen Yao had gone abroad early in pursuit of art, while Gu Lingfeng chose to start his own business rather than joining the family empire. That’s why their social circles hadn’t overlapped much before.
Su Ning watched everyone chatting and laughing and felt completely out of place. He shrank further into his corner, trying to make himself invisible.
Gu Lingfeng only brought him today to be the driver—alcohol was inevitable at a gathering like this.
Su Ning didn’t want to draw attention to himself. He was painfully aware that he didn’t belong in this world. The people here would never take someone like him seriously. Worse, many of Gu Lingfeng’s friends knew he was more than just an assistant—that he was also Gu Lingfeng’s occasional bed companion. To them, he was just a disposable toy—disgusting even to look at.
After all these years by Gu Lingfeng’s side, Su Ning had gotten used to this sort of thing.
Rich people never saw others as equals, and Su Ning didn’t want anything to do with them either. He lowered his gaze to hide the flicker of coldness that had flashed through his eyes.
Sitting alone in the corner, he slowly sipped his juice and waited for the event to be over. Just then, the center of attention—Shen Yao—walked toward him with a wine glass in hand. The whole room seemed to pause and turn their eyes toward the corner.
“You must be Su Ning,” Shen Yao said with a warm smile, raising his glass. “I heard you've been taking care of Lingfeng these past few years. Thank you.”
Caught off guard that someone like Shen Yao—so talented and well-born—would come speak to him, Su Ning fumbled. He scrambled to his feet with his juice, spilling a bit in the process. He didn’t look up, but he could feel the mocking, disdainful stares from the people around them.
He pressed his lips together tightly, his grip on the glass tightening.
Standing next to each other, the resemblance was clearer. But one was poised and refined, the other stiff and awkward. Shen Yao exuded elegance. Su Ning just seemed cheap in comparison. They were like heaven and earth.
[Author’s note: Sleep early.]
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