When Will My Childhood Sweetheart Marry Me?-Chapter 255: The Harshest Words

Looking at the familiar streetscapes flashing by, Jiang Shuyao had already silently guessed where he was taking her.

Technology Park.

The place where three youths’ startup met its premature end two years ago.

Taking the elevator to the ninth floor, she quietly followed behind Pei Yan without wanting to disturb this peaceful moment because she knew the scene she was about to see would plunge her into various questions and surprises.

It was still the same office. Pushing open the glass double doors, what greeted her eyes were four black characters on the front desk’s background wall: Xiyao Technology.

Jiang Shuyao paused slightly, her gaze lingering on those four characters for a while before finally breathing a sigh of relief after confirming them again and again.

Thankfully, it wasn’t "Shuyao."

Her reaction was caught by Pei Yan, unexpectedly giving him a sense of having narrowly survived a disaster.

He chuckled and ruffled her head, "If I weren’t afraid of you blowing up, I really wanted to be more direct."

"Xiyao is nice," Jiang Shuyao turned to look at him, seriousness in her eyes, "The name is chosen with great care." She used Old Man Jiang’s words to express her own feelings.

Pei Yan nodded in strong agreement, then asked her, "Do you think it would be especially meaningful to name our future child this?"

?!

She pursed her lips in speechlessness.

"Not even one stroke of the character has been written and you’re dreaming about me having your babies."

Pei Yan’s laughter was nonchalant, "Believe it or not, if I go ask your mom for the household registration book right now, she definitely won’t even think before—"

"The household registration book is with my dad."

"..."

Someone’s smile momentarily stalled, "Wasn’t it still with your mom two months ago?"

"You’re really behind on the news," Jiang Shuyao didn’t want to pour cold water on him, but facts were facts, "As soon as I grab my diploma, Old Jiang is going to guard that household registration book with his life. Just wait and see, marrying me won’t be so easy."

With the conversation reaching this point, Pei Yan could no longer maintain his facade of calm.

Indeed, Old Jiang is as cunning as ever.

He narrowed his eyes, already contemplating his next move.

Pei Yan suddenly became quiet, which made Jiang Shuyao feel somewhat sympathetic.

She felt helpless, seeing a girl so eager to get married, while her elderly father clung tightly to the household registration book, blocking the way.

Was testing the future son-in-law really going to happen to her?

Jiang Shuyao subtly glanced at the person beside her, thinking he seemed quite pitiable.

"There’s still half a month until the tendering for the electronic medical record system." She lifted her head and changed the subject, "If we push hard, we should be able to get all the documents ready in advance."

Two months ago, she happened to overhear Ms. Zhu mentioning that the department was preparing to add a new electronic medical record system, just waiting for the procedures to complete before openly putting it up for tender.

At the time, she didn’t take it to heart, and Pei Yan didn’t show any particular reaction either.

Until last weekend, when Old Jiang had prepared a pot of chicken soup, which she was asked to deliver to her mother on duty at the hospital.

The head of the cardiology department had a separate office. While Jiang Shuyao’s mother wasn’t there when she entered, she placed the chicken soup on the desk where a document happened to catch her eye.

It was a registration form for companies bidding in this medical record system tender, and one name almost immediately grabbed her attention.

Yunteng Technology.

That was too sensitive.

She and Pei Yan had been closely monitoring Xinyuan and HT for two full years, knowing that they had recently set their acquisition target on Yunteng.

Yuan Chong’s appetite had grown bigger and bigger. Previously, he had used Xinyuan to suppress his peers, but now he was bewitched, ready to target a local powerhouse like Yunteng.

The Yunteng family had a large and stable foundation, not easily molded or flattened by just anyone. Yuan Chong’s desire to challenge them was pure fantasy.

Therefore, she was very curious about what scheming plans the other party would devise this time to achieve their goals.

Compared to Jiang Shuyao’s excitement, Pei Yan was much more composed.

"Let’s just keep waiting," he said, "there won’t be any major moves from HT in the short term."

"Why?" she asked.

Pei Yan gave a cold smile, "A tough nut to crack, Yuan Chong won’t make a rash move. He, too, is waiting for the right moment."

The moment...

Jiang Shuyao’s mind raced with alarm, and she quickly informed Pei Yan about Yunteng’s participation in Huaren’s bidding.

She had a strong premonition that Yuan Chong would definitely make a move during this bidding, though she had no clue yet about the specific tricks he might use.

Of course, what enchanted her even more was Young Master Pei.

The next day after learning the news, he got up very early, but she had no idea when he had left the house.

The following day, he still got up very early, and when he left, she was still asleep.

On the third day, he accidentally made a noise and woke her up. Seeing him ready to go with his backpack and laptop, Jiang Shuyao said sleepily, rubbing her eyes, "Even if you’re a thief, you should tell me; in case you don’t come back one day, I need to be prepared."

The girl’s voice was soft and sweet, but her words weren’t quite pleasant to hear.

Pei Yan was amused early in the morning and asked with interest, "If I really don’t come back, would the Princess be sad? What are your plans for the future?"

Two consecutive questions, seemingly easy to answer.

But Jiang Shuyao thought for a while, frowned, and said uncomfortably, "No plans. If you don’t come back, I’ll come find you. If you die, I’ll die with you."

At that moment, Pei Yan was sure she wasn’t sleep-talking, that final statement nearly shattered his calm.

The harshest words he had ever heard were undoubtedly from the Princess saying she would die with him.

Uttered so casually, without any solemn promises or tear-streaked emotions.

It seemed like a decision she had prepared for a long time, one she’d already accepted as inevitable.

In dealing with Yuan Chong, Pei Yan had never explicitly intended for her to get involved.

He wanted to keep her out of all dangers until everything settled, and then go to marry her with a clean slate.

But Pei Yan hadn’t considered that Jiang Shuyao’s feelings for him had deepened far beyond their earlier shallowness.

As much as he cared for her, she loved him just as much.

Their love was no longer one-sided, but mutual and evenly matched.

Jiang Shuyao would not allow him to act alone; she had once said she wanted to help send Yuan Chong behind bars with him.

So she honestly told him, if anything happened to him, she wouldn’t go on living alone.

Pei Yan couldn’t describe the taste of that moment, a mix of sweetness and bitterness spreading to his heart, along with shock.

In the following days, Zhu Yun saw her daughter more frequently, sometimes early in the morning, sometimes late at night, and occasionally when she was seeing patients, she would see a fleeting shadow outside the door.

Initially, her explanation was that she was doing data research for a project, but gradually, Zhu Yun sensed it wasn’t that simple.

That night, while Old Jiang was asleep, Zhu Yun slipped out of bed, tiptoed, and pushed open her daughter’s bedroom door.

Seeing her mother sneak in, Jiang Shuyao paused her typing and gave an awkward smile, "Mom, what are you doing?"

Zhu Yun didn’t rush to speak. She took off her shoes, sat down next to her daughter, glanced at the dense code on the computer, and asked gently, "Yaoyao, tell Mom the truth, are you guys planning to bid on the electronic medical record system project?"