Chapter 119 – Birthday
“Ganzhi, isn’t it your birthday tomorrow? I’ll organize something, let’s all go out and have fun. By the way, your partner won’t mind, will he?” Before bed, Wenren Yi sent Lin Ganzhi a message with a hint of green tea bitchery.
Lin Ganzhi was taken aback. A week had passed since the last time he delivered food. He had spent this week in a daze. If it weren’t for Wenren Yi’s reminder, he wouldn’t have even remembered that tomorrow was March 21st, the same birthday as his original self.
This week, Yan Shengping still came and went irregularly. Lin Ganzhi had barely seen him while awake. However, he was also grateful for this. He was afraid that seeing Yan Shengping’s face would cause him to break down emotionally and make a huge scene.
But the thought of tomorrow sparked a faint sense of anticipation in Lin Ganzhi’s heart.
If Yan Shengping came back to celebrate his birthday with him, would that prove that he really cared about him, just like how he had tried his best to rush back from work back then?
“I don’t know yet,” Lin Ganzhi thought for a moment.
“Alright, alright, you don’t have to say anymore. Your partner will definitely celebrate your birthday with you. Sigh, in the face of love, bros are always superfluous. Forget it, I won’t fight with CEO Yan for you on your birthday. But can you be free the day after? We’ll celebrate your birthday then,” Wenren Yi said, her enthusiasm undiminished after a bit of sourness.
Lin Ganzhi immediately agreed. Since coming to this world, besides Yan Shengping, those friends were the most important people to him.
After hanging up, Lin Ganzhi clicked on the message Yan Shengping had sent this afternoon. Nowadays, he didn’t even need to remind him anymore. If Yan Shengping wasn’t coming back that day, he would let him know in the afternoon. Seeing that the latest message was from three o’clock this afternoon, Lin Ganzhi suppressed the urge to remind him and silently replied with an “okay,” telling him to take care of his health.
When Yan Shengping came out of the lab, he opened his phone and happened to see the message from Lin Ganzhi. His expression instantly became somewhat indifferent. He paused for a few seconds, and just as Tian Nini was a few steps away, he put his phone away.
“CEO Yan, the management is waiting for you for a meeting,” Tian Nini said, holding a thick stack of meeting documents.
Yan Shengping gave a low “mm,” turned a corner, and walked into his private elevator. As the elevator doors closed, he asked, “Has anyone come to the company recently?”
Tian Nini was so scared that the documents in his hand almost fell. He managed to maintain his composure under Yan Shengping’s terrifying gaze and replied, “Uh, besides your classmate, CEO Yan, no outsiders have come to the company recently.”
Yan Shengping looked away. Just as they were about to reach the floor, he suddenly instructed, “Don’t mention to Ganzhi that Li Yueshuo came.”
He’s just an old classmate, why hide it from baby Ganzhi! And CEO Yan, your wife already knows!
Tian Nini was completely baffled. And why did this plot feel so strangely familiar? It was as if a cheating husband was instructing his subordinate not to reveal the third party’s whereabouts!
Tian Nini’s expression gradually became complicated. Both sides wanted him to keep secrets. What kind of play were this couple trying to stage? When they argued, which side should he stand on?
Later, although Yan Shengping calmly and composedly finished the meeting, his face was clearly much worse than before, as if he were trying hard to suppress some emotion. After the meeting, everyone else went to the company dormitory to rest, but Yan Shengping only told Tian Nini to rest, while he himself went back to the office to review his work. Tian Nini didn’t understand. Why did it feel like CEO Yan was in a bad mood too?
***
On his birthday, Lin Ganzhi overslept again. When he opened Weibo while washing up, the system automatically pushed a notification that it was his birthday. The comment section and private messages exploded at the same time. Although Lin Ganzhi was quite laid-back when it came to being active, he still had several million active fans on Weibo. The fans all sincerely sent their blessings, and some even said they wanted to send him gifts.
[Happy birthday, baby Ganzhi! Sob, sob, when are you going to be active again! I miss you so much!]
[Baby Ganzhi is a 24-year-old big kid now, you should learn to be active on your own! (Taps blackboard!)]
[No matter what the future holds, I hope my baby can be happy every day!]
[Baby, did you receive my gift? I sent it to the company. When you remember you’re still an actor, remember to go to the company and sign for your gifts, ahhh!]
… …
Lin Ganzhi scrolled through these messages one by one, rubbing his eyes hard. Then he sat on the sofa in his room and replied to them for half an hour. This was probably the most dedicated Lin Ganzhi had been since the show aired. The fans who were replied to, over a hundred of them, were instantly overwhelmed and frantically stacked replies under Lin Ganzhi’s comments.
He only stopped when his eyes began to ache from the strain. For those he hadn’t replied to, he finally posted a Weibo to thank everyone. To his surprise, Bi Wu and Qi Lan, whom he had only worked with once before, quickly left comments on his Weibo wishing him a happy birthday. Then came Wenren Yi, Qi Yushuo, Lu Xi, and Que Jin. Lin Ganzhi took a deep breath and thanked each of his friends and seniors who had left him a message. But as he replied back and forth, the one blessing he wanted most was still nowhere to be seen.
Lin Ganzhi rubbed his aching stomach, exited Weibo, and checked the time. It was already eight o’clock at night. He had gone another whole day without eating.
He went downstairs and cooked a bowl of noodles, which he considered his 24th birthday celebration. Lin Ganzhi had suddenly come to terms with things these past few days. After Yan Shengping finished his busy period and completely settled things with the Zhong Corporation, he would talk to him. If they could make it work, they would. If not, Lin Ganzhi would return everything he had taken from Yan Shengping. At the very least, compared to the past, he had a healthy body. As long as he was alive, there was infinite hope.
After finishing a large bowl of noodles, Lin Ganzhi thought for a moment and decided to call him. Whether he was coming back or not, he needed to know.
But when he called, as expected, Yan Shengping didn’t answer. Lin Ganzhi then called Tian Nini again. The phone rang for a few seconds before Tian Nini picked up, but the background noise was a bit chaotic. It took a while for it to quiet down.
“Hello, Ganzhi! The chip issue is finally resolved. We were just at a celebration dinner, everyone’s having a blast. Do you want to come over too? CEO Yan booked the entire resort!” Tian Nini’s voice sounded very excited.
Lin Ganzhi subconsciously bit his lower lip hard, his fingertips gripping the phone turning white.
“No, it’s a bit of a hassle to get there. You guys have fun. It’s been a tough few days for you all. Is Yan Shengping there too? I just called him but couldn’t get through.”
“CEO Yan? He’s not here. I just saw him a moment ago. Wait, let me grab someone and ask for you.”
Lin Ganzhi heard the background noise on the phone become chaotic again, and he could vaguely hear Tian Nini’s voice. Then, a strange male voice pierced through the phone and reached Lin Ganzhi’s ear. “CEO Yan? Didn’t he go upstairs to chat with his high school classmate?”
Lin Ganzhi heard every single word clearly. Finally, he vaguely heard Tian Nini curse under his breath. “Ganzhi, don’t listen to his nonsense. Let me help you find CEO Yan. He should be nearby.”
“No need, I was just asking. Have fun,” Lin Ganzhi said, managing to maintain a normal tone. Then, just as Tian Nini was about to say something, he hung up the phone.
Under the light, Lin Ganzhi sat in his chair for a long time, thinking for a long time.
Finally, he let his hands fall and looked up at the ceiling. Lin Ganzhi suddenly gave a sarcastic laugh. He suddenly wondered why he had been so down for so many days. Wasn’t this just how his life was? Why hadn’t he gotten used to it yet?
After sitting like that for an hour, Lin Ganzhi seemed to have suddenly figured things out. He put down his phone, went upstairs, and hastily changed his clothes. He casually stuffed a charger and a change of clothes into a travel bag. Then, Lin Ganzhi called Wenren Yi.
“Hello, Wenren. Can I come over today?”
“Huh? Wait, what’s wrong? Why are you coming over today? Aren’t you celebrating with CEO Yan?”
Lin Ganzhi bit the wound on his lower lip and said in a calm tone, “He’s busy today. He’s been busy recently. I’m bored at home. If you think it’s inconvenient, I…”
“What are you talking about? Is there no place for you to stay in our big house? Just come over directly. On the way, uh, drive slowly. I’ll have the butler leave the door open for you. Seriously, if your partner doesn’t have time to celebrate with you, why didn’t you say so earlier? Your birthday will be over in four hours!” Wenren Yi said, her tone one of someone who hates iron for not becoming steel.
Lin Ganzhi laughed, picked up his packed luggage, and as he passed the coffee table, the key that was originally in his pocket was squeezed out and happened to fall onto the table with a piercingly crisp sound. Lin Ganzhi was stunned for a moment, then walked towards the door without looking back, closing it heavily behind him.
On the way to Wenren Yi’s house, Lin Ganzhi indeed drove very slowly. In his current state, if he drove any faster, it would be a birthday car accident. But he couldn’t even bring himself to curse Yan Shengping, because he owed him too much.
The forty-minute drive was stretched to an hour and a half by Lin Ganzhi. By the time he arrived, the lights in Wenren Yi’s large house were all off. Lin Ganzhi wearily got out of the car with his luggage and knocked on the door.
But just as he knocked, the door opened on its own. Lin Ganzhi fumbled in the dark, a strange sense of interest growing in his heart.
“Happy birthday!”
As cheers erupted in the darkness, the orange lights instantly turned on, and colorful confetti cannons exploded in the air, showering Lin Ganzhi with scraps. Then, Wenren Yi walked towards Lin Ganzhi with a large cake. Beside her were the Wenren family, Lu Xi, Que Jin, and Qi Yushuo. Everyone seemed to be enveloped in a warm, colored light.
Lin Ganzhi’s eyes, which had been dry for a long time, instantly turned red.
“Baby, why are you crying? Hurry up and blow out the candles and make a wish. You have no idea how heavy this cake is!” Wenren Yi said as she walked up to Lin Ganzhi.
Although Lin Ganzhi was feeling very sad right now, his friends had put so much effort into celebrating his birthday for him, so he couldn’t possibly not cooperate with a long face.
He obediently closed his eyes and blew out the candles just before the birthday song ended.
Afterward, Lin Ganzhi finally understood why Wenren Yi had told him to drive over slowly. The decorations in the huge living room were only half done, but all of Lin Ganzhi’s favorite foods were prepared. It was clear that a lot of thought had been put into it. If Lin Ganzhi had come tomorrow, the scene would have been even more grand.
For this, Lin Ganzhi sincerely hugged Wenren Yi and whispered “thank you” in her ear.
Wenren Yi gently patted Lin Ganzhi’s back, then dramatically pushed him away and said, “My wife is here! She’ll get jealous!”
Que Jin smiled at her words and said, “This doesn’t count. Ganzhi, you can hug her as much as you want.”
Lin Ganzhi pretended to be angry and said, “Sister Que Jin, do I not even reach the level of a love rival in your heart?”
As soon as he said it, everyone burst into laughter. The birthday party went on until midnight before it ended.
Lin Ganzhi’s energy was also completely depleted. After tidying up, he was dragging his heavy body to follow the maid upstairs to the guest room to sleep when the main door of the Wenren residence was pushed open again.
The rarely seen Wenren Lin called out to Wenren Yi, who was just about to go upstairs with him, his expression grave.
“Yiyi, and big brother, come with me to the study for a moment.”
Wenren Yi was stunned and subconsciously looked at Lin Ganzhi.
Lin Ganzhi, being very tactful, said, “Then I’ll go upstairs first. You should rest early too.”
The maid arranged a room with a window for Lin Ganzhi. It had good ventilation and was more than twice the size of the place he used to live. Lin Ganzhi took his powered-off phone out of his pocket and plugged it in to charge. As soon as it turned on, more than a dozen messages exploded onto the screen.
They were all sent around eleven o’clock, from Yan Shengping.
[Zhizhi, where did you go?]
[Why did you leave your key at home too?]
[You didn’t even tell Uncle Yan?]
[Reply when you see this.]
… …
Lin Ganzhi looked at the messages, his heart extremely complicated. After thinking for a moment, he still replied with a message: [I’m at Wenren Yi’s house.]
This time, Yan Shengping’s reply came quickly: [Do you know it’s your birthday today?]
Lin Ganzhi gave a somewhat sarcastic smile and replied: [I know. That’s why I came to Wenren Yi’s place. You’re busy with work, I understand.] Lin Ganzhi typed the word “understand” with extra force, the screen of his phone making a crisp sound.
The other side showed that he was typing for a long time, but after three to five minutes, there was still no message.
Lin Ganzhi simply put down his phone and went to the bathroom to take a shower. When he came out, it wasn’t his phone that was ringing, but the door.
Lin Ganzhi was stunned for two or three seconds, then opened the door with an impossible thought in his mind. And standing outside the door was Yan Shengping.
At this moment, his face was filled with exhaustion, but even more so with anger. He was angry that Lin Ganzhi had left the key and just taken off, without even saying a word to him!
“Why did you leave without saying goodbye?” Yan Shengping’s eyes were churning with anger. If it weren’t for his powerful self-control, he would have loved to pack the Lin Ganzhi in front of him into the car and lock him at home so he could never get out!
Lin Ganzhi was frightened by Yan Shengping’s oppressive aura and subconsciously took two steps back, but Yan Shengping directly pulled him back and then closed the door with his other hand.
Hearing the door slam shut with a bang, Lin Ganzhi suddenly regretted his decision to open it.
“What are you doing!” Lin Ganzhi struggled to shake off his hand, his voice uncontrollably rising. He knew that if this continued, he would definitely explode! But Yan Shengping’s hand was like an iron clamp and wouldn’t loosen at all, even pinching his arm until it hurt a little.
But Yan Shengping’s eyes didn’t care about these things right now. Instead, he pressed closer to Lin Ganzhi and asked through gritted teeth, “You want to leave me?”