Substitute Bride to the Crippled Billionaire-Chapter 184: Good Relations

Fu Yihan waved his hand, "Work is important, but so is family. Go home early with your child."

"Alright."

Watching the father and daughter leave, only then did Fu Yihan turn to Su Qingnuan. "What do you think?"

Su Qingnuan stared at Xia Xing’s departing figure and sighed, "The department head is truly dedicated!"

"What did you think? How else could he have achieved this position at such a young age?" Fu Yihan chuckled. "If you worked as hard every day, you could do it too."

Feeling sheepish, Su Qingnuan lowered her head and smiled faintly. "I don’t have such big ambitions. I just want to do my part well."

"...No ambition."

With a look of disdain, Fu Yihan turned and headed back.

Awkwardly chuckling, Su Qingnuan quickly followed him.

Their shift came to an end, and the three of them left the office and descended to the parking lot.

As they started their car, they spotted a black car speeding by in the distance.

"Isn’t that Minister Xia’s car?" A-Qi asked.

Fu Yihan glanced briefly but remained silent.

A-Qi, sensing the atmosphere, promptly shut his mouth and refrained from saying anything further.

The car sped into the quiet night, cutting through the stillness of the dark.

"Are you on duty tomorrow?"

Fu Yihan’s voice suddenly broke the silence inside the car.

Su Qingnuan snapped back to reality, realizing he was asking her. She nodded quickly. "Yes, Mr. Fu."

"Mm." Fu Yihan nodded, his eyes fixed straight ahead as he said casually, "I’ll have A-Qi pick you up in the evening."

"Alright, thank you, Mr. Fu."

After that, the two of them didn’t talk much.

Later that night, Su Qingnuan changed Fu Yihan’s dressings.

She originally planned to try acupuncture again but decided to wait, recalling Fu Yihan’s reaction last time.

After finishing the dressing change, Su Qingnuan lay on the bed, while Fu Yihan worked at the small desk.

There was only one desk lamp on in the room. Its soft, dim light cast a gentle glow on Fu Yihan’s face.

Su Qingnuan stared at his profile, momentarily lost in thought.

Before long, her vision blurred, and before she knew it, she had fallen asleep.

The rhythmic sound of her breathing filled the room, causing Fu Yihan to look up.

The figure lying on the bed, wrapped in a quilt, was already deep in slumber.

While Fu Yihan preferred silence, at that moment, the sound of her quiet breathing didn’t bother him at all.

He adjusted the lamp to make it dimmer and returned to his work.

...

Over the next few days, it was always Su Qingnuan on duty.

Ever since discovering the cause of the commotion—Xia Xing’s daughter—Su Qingnuan felt less afraid.

Once again, it was Su Qingnuan’s turn to be on duty.

At the usual time, faint laughter began echoing from the empty hallways, tinging the atmosphere with an eerie vibe.

Finding it hard to concentrate after working awhile, she grabbed the candies she had bought earlier in the day and walked toward the hallway.

"Xiaoyuan?" Su Qingnuan stood at the office door and called out with a smile.

The laughter in the hallway ceased, followed by light, quick footsteps.

Xia Xiaoyuan appeared, clutching a doll, her eyes wary as she looked at Su Qingnuan.

Su Qingnuan crouched down and extended her palm.

"I have candy here. Do you want some?"

Xia Xiaoyuan’s gaze swept warily over Su Qingnuan’s face and hands, but she remained rooted in place.

Her guard was high.

Smiling softly, Su Qingnuan stood up and walked toward Xiaoyuan.

"Let’s check with your dad first, then you can have some candy. Sound good?"

Xia Xiaoyuan hesitated briefly before nodding slightly.

With Xia Xiaoyuan in tow, Su Qingnuan made her way to the department head’s office.

Unlike the brightly lit main lobby where Su Qingnuan had been sitting, Xia Xing’s office stood illuminated alone amidst a darkened corridor.

Holding Xia Xiaoyuan’s hand, Su Qingnuan knocked on the glass door.

"Come in."

Su Qingnuan pushed the door open, stepping in with a smile.

"Minister," she said, nudging Xia Xiaoyuan forward, her grin deepening. "I bought some candy for Xiaoyuan, but she seemed hesitant, so we came to check with you first."

When Xia Xing saw Su Qingnuan, he froze, and his expression grew even more awkward listening to her explanation.

"Xiaoyuan, were you running around the hallway again?" Xia Xing asked, his face stern.

Giggling, Xiaoyuan ran up to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Daddy, I was so bored by myself!"

"..."

Helplessly, Xia Xing tapped Xiaoyuan’s nose affectionately. "Daddy knows you’re bored. Just wait a bit longer, and I’ll take you home."

"Okay!"

Xia Xing’s gaze at Xiaoyuan was brimming with deep affection.

"Then..." Xiaoyuan glanced tentatively at the candy in Su Qingnuan’s hand. "Can I have some candy?"

Hearing that, Xia Xing turned to Su Qingnuan with an apologetic look. "Qingnuan, Xiaoyuan eats too much candy. Her teeth are almost getting cavities, so I’m sorry."

"It’s no problem." Su Qingnuan tucked the candy away. "That was thoughtless of me."

"Not at all. I still appreciate you watching over her," Xia Xing replied.

Su Qingnuan: "...You’re welcome."

Leaving Xia Xing’s office, Su Qingnuan rubbed her face awkwardly.

She hadn’t done anything, yet somehow earned the department head’s gratitude, making her feel a tad undeserving.

Because of Xia Xing’s gratitude, for the next several days, Su Qingnuan stopped bringing candy and instead brought small, fun items.

Little toys or crafts.

Although Xia Xiaoyuan pretended not to care, the smile lighting up her face when receiving something was absolutely radiant.

Seeing this made Su Qingnuan quite happy as well.

Because of Xiaoyuan, Su Qingnuan found herself interacting with the department head more often.

One day, while she was in the tea room pouring tea, she noticed someone approaching out of the corner of her eye. Quickly, she moved aside to make space.

"Making tea?" a familiar voice asked.

Startled, Su Qingnuan glanced over sideways, her eyes widening in surprise when she saw who it was. "Minister? Are you... here for tea?"

Shaking his head, Xia Xing gestured toward the coffee machine and smiled. "I drink coffee."

"I’ll help you."

Without waiting for a reply, she took the coffee cup from him and skillfully began preparing a cup.

Watching her deft movements, Xia Xing chuckled. "Don’t you not drink coffee?"

"I don’t, but my colleagues love it, so I learned how to make it."

Otherwise, when asked to bring coffee, she’d look clueless—a situation that wasn’t ideal.

What Su Qingnuan didn’t realize was that as she busied herself making coffee, Minister Xia stood behind her, quietly observing her every move.

"Here," Su Qingnuan said, turning to hand him the cup of coffee.

Taking it with a slight smile, Xia Xing replied, "Thanks."

With that, he turned and left.

As soon as Xia Xing stepped out, a crowd swarmed around Su Qingnuan.

"Wow, Qingnuan, you’re something! Making coffee for the department head?"

"In our department, barely anyone even dares chat with the head. But you’ve got guts!"

"Qingnuan, how are you so amazing? Teach me your ways!"

"..."